She continued without waiting for his response.
"Where was I? Ah. Around 5 p.m., Madam Neri often demanded a massage or asked me to tidy her things. Then at 6, prepare dinner. At 8, prepare her bed. At 10, do the laundry. Only after she fell asleep was I allowed to go to my room… though most of the time, I stayed in Sean's room to make sure he slept well and, just in case he cried, I would be there."
Lianna paused, her gaze drifting toward the window. Even she was surprised to find that there wasn't a single tug at her heart as those memories resurfaced.
Perhaps time truly did heal all wounds. Letting go didn't mean forgetting the good, the bad, the bitterness. They were all parts of her life.
She had simply stopped allowing them to bind her.
"Keeping me here won't change anything," she said calmly. "If you truly feel sorry for me, then let's part ways amicably."
Zahn's eyes turned bloodshot, his gaze cold yet filled with grievance. "Lianna, I've already admitted my mistakes! Why do you still insist on divorcing? Have you ever thought about Sean? Do you know how much this will affect him growing up? I don't believe we can't work this out, resolve our grievances and start over."
Lianna's gaze hardened as a sneer tugged at her lips. It's exactly because of Sean that she could not waver. She would never allow her son to self-blame again.
"Resolve?" she said coolly. "Resolutions are for people who still have lingering feelings. But I don't. There's nothing left in me for you to exploit. If you ask me whether I regret marrying you, the answer is yes. But I don't blame anyone. It was entirely my decision to marry you. No one forced me, and naturally, I must bear the responsibility for that choice."
Her voice remained steady as she continued.
"And now, I'm making another decision again, without anyone forcing me. Whether I regret this divorce in the future or not is no one's business. I'm the one who will live with the consequences."
Lianna stood up, looking down at him with unwavering conviction.
"Zahn Neri, if you have the guts, stop using Sean to morally blackmail me. Stop hiding behind your family's influence to suppress me. Don't be a coward and face me fairly."
Zahn was stunned. He hadn't expected such words from her. This wasn't the Lianna he knew.
How could she have changed so much in such a short time?
Lianna smiled faintly, meaningfully.
"You must be wondering why I've changed. Let me tell you, I was never the kind and gentle Lianna you thought you knew. Time and again, I molded myself to suit your preferences because the lovesick me was desperate. I thought that only by changing myself could I stay by your side."
Her smile grew bitter.
"Even if you had never confessed to me, never asked me to be your girlfriend, I would've been content just being your close friend as long as it meant I could stay near you. Pathetic, isn't it?"
Zahn frowned deeply, wanting to refute her, but doing so only made his thoughts more tangled.
"But you're not any different from me," Lianna continued softly. "Don't you know that yourself?"
Zahn stared at her, silent, waiting.
With a heavy sigh, Lianna said, "You don't want this divorce not just because of Sean, and not because of whatever feelings you still have for me. It's because the name 'Zahn Neri' cannot be tainted again. Just like your perfect status, perfect upbringing, perfect career, and perfect personality... your marriage was also supposed to be perfect."
"Enough!" Zahn suddenly stood up, veins bulging on his neck. Yet beneath the anger, confusion and fear deepened in his eyes, as if he were facing an enemy he couldn't comprehend.
"Lianna, I love both you and Sean! How dare you gaslight me!" he shouted, as though raising his voice could suppress the dormant monsters stirring within him.
However, Lianna wasn't fazed. She crossed her arms calmly, her voice soft but firm.
"I lived with your mother. Did you really think I wouldn't come to that understanding? Ask yourself, Zahn, am I truly spouting nonsense?"
She looked at him steadily.
"Perhaps the only time you truly went against your mother was when you insisted on marrying me. Maybe because you had feelings for me, but also because you wanted me to suffer alongside you."
Her words cut deep.
"Your marriage was supposed to be perfect. Something people would praise whenever they spoke of it... childhood sweethearts, a virtuous and gentle girl, and a brilliant heir from a prominent family. But after the drugging incident, that 'gentle girl' image turned into someone scheming and vicious."
Her lips curved faintly.
"Your marriage became a joke. A cautionary tale to others. A stain on the supposedly flawless Zahn Neri. And now, with this divorce… who knows what people will say next? How could you possibly let go of the woman who ruined your image?"
Zahn could no longer hide his dread. His hands trembled as he sank back into his seat, as if the strings holding him upright had been severed.
Lianna's words tore open the past like a broken dam.
His mother's constant reminders: watch your manners, mind your words, control your actions, maintain your demeanor.
It was true. Everything about him had been decided the moment he was born.
The title of the Neri family's golden child and heir was dazzling but unbearably heavy.
Every move he made had been watched, evaluated, praised… until, without realizing it, he had shackled himself to that life as well.
The schools he attended were never his own choice nor were his friends.
Perhaps he had been fortunate enough to genuinely want to become a surgeon, sparing him the struggle of studying something he disliked. Even so, every person around him had been investigated, screened, and meticulously selected.
His mother had maintained a cordial façade toward Lianna at first, before her family declined. Yet she never failed to remind him to grow close to the Keir cousins and the Jie siblings, people of "equal standing."
"How we saw each other was wrong from the very beginning," Lianna said softly, pulling him out of his thoughts. "We were never ourselves but versions we created for someone else's sake. It's the same with this marriage."
Zahn looked up.
Lianna's eyes were moist, her expression solemn and composed.
"Do you know why Sean often has allergic breakouts?" she asked quietly. "Because just like you, your mother would never allow Sean to have any flaws. A mere allergy could be 'overcome' if he ate the food often. And of course, if something went wrong, she couldn't be blamed, so I, the daughter-in-law, was the easy scapegoat."
"Impossible…" Zahn could only murmur.
Lianna shrugged lightly. "Don't you have all the surveillance footage? I never had the authority to access it, and your mother must have thought you wouldn't bother checking it. Now that you finally have the time, verify it yourself."
Zahn fell silent, momentarily lost. Then he shook his head, forcing a self-deprecating smile.
"No matter what, doesn't this prove that you know me best?" he insisted. "Otherwise, how else could you say all these things? Lianna, other people can divorce, but we're not like other couples. You can't just abandon us and move on. If you want, I'll make my mother apologize to you."
What was the point of a forced apology?
Lianna felt an overwhelming exhaustion settle in. No matter what she said, as long as Zahn refused to truly understand, they would never be on the same page.
"So in the end… your remorse, your pursuit of justice for me, and even your regret weren't truly for me," Lianna said quietly. "They were for yourself. Your pain, your grievance over being betrayed and fooled by your mother... it was always about you."
Zahn stood abruptly, about to deny it, but Lianna didn't give him the chance.
"Zahn Neri, if you can't let me go as a husband, then at least remember what you always proudly upheld... your oath as a doctor. By now, you should know my depression was never fake, right?"
At the mention of it, Zahn's eyes widened, a deep sense of foreboding settling in his chest.
"I am your wife," Lianna continued steadily, "but I am also a patient. Staying by your side is killing me. If you truly meant it when you said you love me… then even if you can't give me what I want, you should at least give me what I need."
A tear slid slowly down Zahn's cheek. Every word Lianna spoke felt like a death sentence.
Was there truly no chance left between them?
Lianna hardened her heart. Ignoring him who looked as though his world had just collapsed, she turned and went back to her room.
How many times had she once stood where he was now?
How many nights had she felt helpless and shattered?
How many times, like him, had she desperately reached out, hoping he would care for her just a little?
Whatever belated affection he now had for her, it doesn't matter anymore.
---
Meanwhile, that night, Yeri was comfortably settled in the dorm, chatting cheerfully with Nina while wearing borrowed pajamas.
She had already sent a message to her nanny, saying she would be staying in the school dorm under the excuse of group study, and advised her to return to the main house with Carpet.
"So which chips should we open first?" Nina asked. "By the way, do you have any dietary restrictions?"
Yeri shook her head and tore open a bag of olive oil and black pepper flavored potato chips.
"It's been a while since I watched any series," she said casually. "What do you recommend?"
Nina opened a packet of spicy chicken strips while scrolling through her laptop. "What about a rebirth drama? Or something where the female lead goes back to an earlier era?"
Yeri was about to reply when her eyes caught an online headline. She immediately reached out and stopped Nina from scrolling.
[Calin Ricci spotted with another prominent young master.]
Yeri raised an eyebrow and skimmed through the article.
Apparently, three days ago, there had been a car accident. Though not fatal, it was rumored to involve drunk driving by a certain young master and Calin Ricci had been seen in the passenger seat.
Three days ago… that timing matched. She had left early with Shin Keir and hadn't known what happened afterward.