CHAPTER 488: CHAPTER 361: THERE WAS LIGHT IN YOUR EYES WHEN YOU LOOKED AT HER

The entire garden seemed to instantaneously enter a harsh winter, with a layer of white frost covering the surrounding flowers and grass.

Wen Nan was chilled, shivering as goosebumps erupted on his arms and felt as though they might fall off.

Indeed, the character with the yandere attribute as an "Ice Beauty" truly channels the spirit of Princess Elsa when enraged.

As he contemplated, a system notification rang in his mind—

9527: [Please note, the yandere attribute activation level of your bound strategy character "contractual marriage wife" has increased to 32%.]

It seems that proposing a divorce does indeed accurately trigger her yandere attribute. If this trend continues, it won’t be long before she fully enters the yandere state.

Opposite him, Zhuang Yichen slightly tilted her head; her cheeks, as pale and transparent as ice and snow, turned red at the nose and eyes’ corners, tears welling up as she trembled and said:

"Are you serious?"

Wen Nan stared back at her with utmost seriousness, "Yes."

"Why?"

The tears at the corners of Zhuang Yichen’s eyes instantly slid down her cheeks, forming two white frosty trails,

"Is it because I introduced you to friends and family? I know I broke the contract first, but I did it because...

"Because I like you!"

Raised in opulence since childhood, Third Miss Zhuang was always the focus of the crowd in any setting. She knew a crucial principle—no matter if her heart was moved, she must never be the first to say "like," for whoever falls for someone first will eternally find themselves in a passive position.

So, even though she liked Ye Jiu, she stubbornly held back, refusing to confess, waiting for the day the other would be moved and she could hear the words "like" from them.

But she realized she was too naive; this man’s heart was even colder than hers.

She feared she might never see the day when he would become moved, nor hear him utter the words "like" on his own.

If there were no feelings, their contractual marriage was destined to end.

She grew afraid, so she began to act, first secretly planning for friends to attend Ye Jiu’s birthday party, then contacting her two brothers to sound him out.

The final step was arranging for her parents to come over; if parents meet and theirs approved of Ye Jiu, she planned to ask her father to secure a high-ranking position for Ye Jiu at the Zhuang Group, with a multimillion annual salary, persuading him not to work the grueling 996 for a mere ten grand salary.

She thought that if everything went smoothly, she could use the guise of family to bind Ye Jiu to her side forever.

She believed that even without affection, their contractual marriage could be maintained forever.

But she didn’t expect that every time she took a step forward, Ye Jiu would take a step back—

She wanted to steal a kiss, but Ye Jiu avoided it each time, refusing to even touch her; she invited friends over, and Ye Jiu got angry with her, flatly rejecting any interaction with her friends; now, as she contacted her two brothers to test the waters, even before reaching the final step of introducing him to her parents, he reverted to the starting point, rendering a death sentence to her plans, her marriage...

Zhuang Yichen finally admitted that their marriage had come to an end, and her plans not only failed to help her keep this marriage but hastened its end.

Zhuang Yichen had nothing left to lose.

So she spoke the words "like."

"Ye Jiu," she slowly called his name, looking into his eyes, "Did you ever have even a fleeting feeling for me?"

The man opposite looked at her but said nothing.

Zhuang Yichen continued, "I like you so much—can’t you feel it? If you do feel something, even just a little, can’t you give our marriage one last chance?"

As he gazed at a face soaked with tears, like a melting little snowman, so pitiful and endearing, a trace of sympathy flickered in Wen Nan’s heart.

But that sympathy wasn’t enough to make him retract the words he had just spoken.

This final task required him and them to face each other honestly, with no more lies, no more deceit.

And the truth was, Wen Nan did not like Zhuang Yichen.

Sympathy and pity could not sustain a marriage.

If honesty was required, their fraudulent marriage certificate had to be torn apart.

Moreover, the testing space of the Divine Staff Sheath was about to open.

Wen Nan didn’t have much time left.

The system notification continued to ring incessantly in his mind, showing that Zhuang Yichen’s activation level had reached 61%.

She was immersed in sorrow, possibly unaware that, at some point, she was again enveloped by a subtle golden light around her cold body.

A notification that the key item "Chenchen’s Mobile Castle" was about to be activated appeared once more in Wen Nan’s equipment reserve.

Wen Nan shook his head and from the equipment reserve, he took out the contractual marriage agreement, the divorce agreement just downloaded from the mall, and from his pocket, a marriage certificate and a black sports car key.

The moment these items were laid out in front of Zhuang Yichen, they spoke louder than a thousand words.

Zhuang Yichen seemed to collapse in an instant, slumping onto the chair by the table, which instantly became an ice sculpture.

9527: [Please note, the yandere attribute activation level of your bound strategy character "contractual marriage wife" has increased to 89%.]

Wen Nan had no more words of explanation and only said, "Chenchen, I’m sorry."