Chapter 3

"You want a divorce?"

Aurora stood not far from me, her tone calm.

She had a maturity that didn't match her age.

Though... children without parental love do tend to mature earlier.

I watched Aurora's expression carefully, raising an eyebrow almost imperceptibly: "Your mother doesn't love me, and your relationship with me isn't even as deep as your relationship with your tutor. What reason do I have to stay with you Lanes?"

"No..." Her expression showed no obvious change, but her words stuttered for a brief moment.

After a long while, Aurora said flatly, "My mother won't agree to it."

"Well, that's not up to her," I replied.

The living room fell quiet for a moment.

"Because I won't let you attend the parent-teacher conference, you want a divorce?" Aurora suddenly asked.

I froze.

Just like mother, just like daughter—both had such peculiar thought processes.

Aurora lowered her eyes, as if making some kind of decision.

"...If you want to attend, then attend."

Me: ?

I suddenly understood why Aurora was reacting this way.

She must think I'd embarrass her at the parent-teacher conference, which is why she didn't want me to attend. But... she even less wanted me to divorce Raven.

My heart softened a little.

"...Daddy just wants to know how your studies are going lately." After a long silence, my voice gentled as I tried taking a step toward Aurora.

Her lips parted slightly, as if she wanted to say something. Just then, the villa's front door opened.

Aurora and I both turned to look. Raven's tall figure stood backlit in the doorway.

As Raven strode in on her long legs from the entrance, the hickey on her neck gradually became clear. The air pressure in the villa dropped again and again.

Aurora stared at Raven's neck for several seconds, then didn't even ask how she was doing. She simply walked around Raven and headed straight outside.

I instructed the butler to have someone follow her.

The butler smiled: "It's exactly time for the young miss's tutoring session. The driver is already waiting at the door."

I paused slightly, then nodded, suppressing my worry.

Raven's gaze met mine. She raised her index finger slightly, and everyone else in the villa left, disappearing from view.

"Where did you get the nerve to ask for a divorce?" Raven loosened her collar, her casual manner making it seem like an offhand question.

I couldn't control my gaze—it locked firmly onto her.

It was scrutiny, it was questioning, and it was... strange.

She was clearly such a cynical person, so why would she, after my death...

Raven lazily leaned back on the sofa, crossing her arms as she looked me over, her tone still flippant: "Darling, you'd better remember—the banquet is tomorrow night."

Tomorrow night's banquet would be attended by several local families, including my birth family.

My birth family was very strange. They both hoped I could firmly bind Raven and the Lane family, yet also didn't want me to have it easy.

"You have enough lovers outside. No need to waste your breath calling me 'darling.'" I smiled without picking up her thread, sitting down beside her.

My words contained a deliberately casual probe.

After death, as my soul wandered aimlessly, I'd seen many scenes I'd never witnessed before.

Like the countless men around Raven—there seemed to be another story there.

However, I still needed to explore the specific truth.

Raven's expression became unnatural for a moment. She glanced at me, and the smile at the corner of her mouth faded somewhat.

"You're actually jealous of me?" She seemed to mock herself, seemed to be sarcastic, her fingertips tapping her own thigh intermittently.

I took the opportunity to also place my hand on her thigh.

The woman beside me immediately froze completely.

Raven: ?

"Wife," I lifted my lips provocatively at her, "Although you always think what's outside is better, but..."

Raven stood up almost as if fleeing in panic.

She took a deep breath, looking down at me: "Felix, have you lost your mind?"

Raven's ears turned red.

But someone experienced in the game of love couldn't possibly be embarrassed that easily.

I pulled at my lips, launching into a continuous stream without pause: "We already have such a big kid—what's wrong with touching you? Are you so precious that you can't be touched? We're not even divorced yet. I'm your legal spouse—is it illegal for me to touch you?"

The tension was thick. This was the tone I'd always used when speaking in the Lane household in my previous life.

Mm.

Except this time, the tension carried a hint of teasing.

Loyalty is the foundation of maintaining a marriage. In my previous life, I'd always felt Raven was playing around outside, which disgusted me to death. Naturally, I had no good attitude toward her and was even less willing to be close to her.

But now it seemed the previous intelligence had some errors. So my attitude could change accordingly.

Raven repeated again: "...You've lost your mind."

This time not only her ears but her neck also flushed slightly pink.

Just as I thought Raven would fly into an embarrassed rage and turn to leave, the butler rushed over urgently, phone in hand: "Madam, Sir, something's happened to the young miss!"

I frowned, exchanged a glance with Raven, then chose to rush to the school together.

After getting in the car, Raven was on the phone with her people: "Figured out the reason?"

I turned my head to look at the scenery flying past the window, while listening to Raven's lazy, careless words on the other end:

"Hit someone? Getting arrogant just because I donated a few sums to the school? Tch, making a big fuss—no idea who she inherited that from."

The corner of my mouth twitched hard.

She might as well have pointed directly at me.

But Aurora was mature and quiet to a frightening degree, completely lacking the innocent and naive appearance other eight-year-old children had.

I wanted to refute Raven but held back.

I was very puzzled about what could make a child like Aurora resort to hitting someone.