Scars Of Marriage.

chapter 10: Warm and Cold

Henry immediately told Demilia to process termination documents for the gossiping staff and warned all the others to be aware of the consequences that would follow if they did anything contrary to their contracts.

Henry then headed towards the bedroom angrily.

"Please, Madam Shiba, we know we were wrong. Please pardon us, okay?" one woman who was part of the three gossipers said.
What can I do? You brought this on yourselves. Your contracts are already terminated; I can't do anything about Henry's decision," I said.

"No, no, you don't understand! We don't care about the termination! Please, just spare us, okay?" another woman said.

"What are you talking about?" I asked.

"We don't want to end up like Sophie! She..." The man didn't get to finish his words before he was roughly dragged away by the guards, and the other two followed the same fate as they screamed and begged for mercy.

I was slightly shocked by the guards' actions. I knew that the three employees should have been escorted off the premises had they refused to leave, but being roughly handled like a bunch of criminals wasn't necessary.

However, I got a new piece of information from them. It seems that there was an employee named Sophie who faced a terrible fate. I could try finding some information about her.

I slowly entered the room after the incident. Henry had just finished taking a bath.He was only putting on sweatpants and had a towel around his neck as he was talking on the phone.

"...As usual...I got to go...deal with the rest," I heard Henry say to whoever he was talking to on the phone before disconnecting the call.

"Shiba, come here," Henry called for me with his fingers.

I slowly and hesitantly walked towards him. When I was slightly in front of him, he immediately yanked my shoulders and held them tightly.

I felt some pain, but then remembered that I had talked about him behind his back; I therefore had to bear such distress.

"I am sorry; I didn't mean to talk behind your back. They were talking, so I had to stop them," I said.

Henry looked at me for some time before releasing my shoulders and slowly massaging them with a slight smile on his face.

"Well, just ask me anything you are curious about next time, okay?" Henry said.

I could only shake my head in acknowledgment, assuring him that such an act would never happen again.

"Are you okay now? You gave me a scare last night," Henry said. After he mentioned yesterday's incident, I blushed in shame and embarrassment.

Of course, I still felt some pain, although not as tremendous as last night. I think it was because of the medicine I took this morning.

"I am now fine," I said.

"That's good then," Henry said before he left the room after his phone rang again. I sensed the distant and detached tone in his voice. It felt like he just perfunctorily asked; it hurt me a little bit.

Suddenly, my phone rang. I immediately picked up. It was Sima; she inquisitively asked me about my first time and the experience I had.

I couldn't tell her that I had a terrible first time, nor could I reveal Henry's camouflage attitude. This would make Sima worried, and my brother would, of course, know, leading to what I didn't want to happen.

So I lied. She finally wished me a lovely marriage and informed me that Dad's surgery would be scheduled for next week before bidding me goodbye.

I finally sank into thought. Henry appeared to be a polite and amicable person outside, and everyone agreed with that. His smile was always very blindly bright towards people, making them have a very favorable impression of him.

However, why did he suddenly change? Did I somehow annoy him? I silently reflected on my actions the previous night and indeed found that I hadn't been cooperative. It was my first time; how could I suddenly become active and indulgent?

"What are you thinking about?" Henry said.

I was immediately startled out of my thoughts. "Nothing much. My father's operation is scheduled for next week. I was on the phone call with Sima," I said as I placed the phone I was still holding on the side table.

"Father-in-law will be fine. I don't know why you worry so much about affairs beyond your capability. He now has the best doctors," Henry sighed as he sat beside me.

"Listen, I wanted to take you to meet my friends tonight, but you aren't feeling well, so I will meet them on your behalf," Henry said.

"Okay, please send my greetings to them," I replied.

"You are so understanding, Shiba; you are truly God-sent!" Henry said as he stood up and headed towards the wardrobe to change clothes.

When Henry finished dressing, he appeared grand and handsome. I didn't even want to know the price of the watch he was wearing; I was surely a lucky woman to have married him.

"What? Are you suddenly stunned by your husband?" Henry seemed to notice my gaze as he chuckled.

I immediately turned my eyes away from him in embarrassment.

"I am your husband after all. I belong to you, and you belong to me. You can do anything to my body," Henry said laughingly as he pinched my cheek and headed outside the bedroom.

After Henry left, I sank into thoughts again. Maybe I was thinking too much about the entire situation? My intuition told me that there was an anomaly surrounding Henry and this household, but my critical thinking told me to stop suspecting my husband for small things.

Henry suddenly became a complicated puzzle that I couldn't piece together. His attitude was warm and cold, making it difficult to tell what he was up to.

I prepared myself for bed because I was exhausted from everything that took place today, and my body still hurt. Coupled with my thoughts, I was completely fatigued.