Chapter 31 Love And Hate

Before they broke up, Melinda only had Jonas in her heart. There was nothing she wouldn't do for him
and for the Gu family. It was hard to even remember when was the last time she had lived for no one
else but herself.

Recently, she had been living a nice and unrestrained life. However, she constantly found herself
feeling lost. Emptiness often overruled her heart. Melinda believed that once she left, nothing bad
would happen to her anymore. But, once night fell and everything became quiet, she couldn't help but
feel sorrow.

Despite this, she was determined not to be bullied and taken advantage of.

She had a stronger sense of self-worth, and felt quite empowered when she and Jonas had broken up.

Meanwhile, Jonas was a little surprised that Melinda would make a condition like that. After thinking it
over, he nodded in agreement. 'I'm just doing this to please Grandpa after all,' he thought to himself.

"Very well. I wish us a pleasant cooperation, my dear ex-husband,"

Melinda said with a smile. The way her lips curved up was just the same as Jonas remembered five
years ago. Her eyes, however, were dull and indifferent. Even though she looked the same on the
surface, Melinda had truly grown into a different person.

Jonas didn't say anything about this title. There was nothing he cared about at the moment other than
achieving his goal. The remarriage procedure could be easily arranged, and Jonas hurriedly left to get
it started. Since Melinda was not in a hurry, she just sat back and took a deep breath to clear her head.

'This might be harder than our first marriage,' Melinda sighed to herself. 'I can do this. I just have to
stay focused.'



Not long after Jonas left, Kent arrived. Before Melinda could react, he pulled up a chair across from her
and sat down.

"Are you okay?"

Kent asked in a low voice. Actually, he was a little regretful. Because of his selfish motives, he
arranged for Melinda and Jonas to meet. It was so that Melinda could have a chance to finally get
closure from Jonas. What Kent didn't expect was that their meeting would actually bring the two back
together.

"I'm fine, Kent."

The drink she ordered had already cooled down, but she still held it tightly in her hands.

"What did he want to see you about?" questioned Kent. Jonas had told him that there was something
important he needed to tell Melinda. Because of this, he was sure that they were going to close off their
relationship once and for all.

"He wants to get remarried." Melinda said it so calmly and casually as if she was just saying something
about the weather.

"Remarried? To you?" Shock filled Kent's face.

"Yes. I've already agreed to it."

Melinda took a sip. Her stomach throbbed a bit from how cold the drink was, making her feel more
awake.

"Mellie, are you out of your mind? Have you ever thought about the consequences if you return to Gu
family?"



Kent thought that Melinda must be irritated by what happened to her, or she wouldn't have made such
a decision. The Gu family was such a cruel and merciless family. Though Nelson always protected her,
she still suffered a lot, and it was mostly because of Jonas.

"I know."

She had gone through it, so she knew the darkness in it. She had endured it for five years before. Now
she was ready to make good use of her identity. What else was there to be afraid of?

"Mellie, don't make a decision that you will regret."

Kent tried to persuade her, but Melinda shook her head stubbornly. Recently, she had been trying to
escape many things, but now she just didn't want to do that.

"Kent, I am the hostess of the Gu family. I won't be bullied by anyone,"

Melinda said with a smile. She had never dared to claim herself as the hostess back then, but now she
did with her chin up and her voice loud and clear. The status, power and honor she had was attained
through a lot of hardships.

"Grandpa has been protecting me all the time, and yet I disappointed him. But he hasn't given up on
me, so I can't give up myself either. Besides, Kent, I still can't get over the humiliation I have suffered.
This is my time to prove myself."

Nelson had always hoped that she and Jonas could get along well and support each other in the family.
But over the years, she was like a silly girl who did a lot of wrong things.

Now thinking of what she had done, she disliked herself very much. It was no wonder that a lot of
people made things hard for her.



"I still don't want you to go back," Kent said. After stepping out of the Gu's mansion, Melinda finally had
a smile on her face. If she went back, everything would disappear.

"Are you really planning on giving up all the hard work you've gone?"

Kent persuaded again.

"Of course I won't. I've talked to Jonas."

Melinda had already made a lot of improvement on her career in literature. This was something she
was really passionate about, so she wasn't going to give it up easily.

"Kent, I know what you mean. But I just can't get over the barrier in my heart, you know? I have been
dreaming a lot lately. I often dream of my child whom I have never even met. He is very beautiful, but
there is resentment in his eyes."

When she said this, she even had a warm smile on her face, but only she herself knew that her heart
felt empty and bleak. This was one of the reasons she promised to go back. She wanted to avenge her
child. If those people hadn't forced her, she would not lose her child in the first place.

She did not show any grief in front of Kent, and had endured it all these years. Still, Kent felt really bad
and worried for her.

"Don't you hate him though?" Kent asked as he shook his head.

Melinda sneered. How could she not hate him? She had loved Jonas with all her heart, and now he
was the person she hated the most. It sometimes caught her off guard that she could hate a person as
much as she hated Jonas.

"Of course I do."



'And I hate myself as well,' she thought. 'If I could let go of my love for him sooner, maybe a lot of
things wouldn't have happened. There would be no harm, sadness and loss...'

"Melinda, it is such a burden to hate someone. I don't want to see you like that. Hate can drive you out
of your mind, make you do things you don't really want to do. You are not calm enough at the moment,"

Kent continued to persuade. Melinda looked at Kent with a frightening cold expression in her eyes.
There was no way Kent would understand how Melinda felt since he didn't experience it for himself. It
was easy enough for her to understand that Kent just could wrap his head around the situation, but she
just wished that he wouldn't stop persuading her like this.

"Kent, I'm not a child any more. I can tell the difference between good and bad. I've already decided to
remarry Jonas. I don't need your opinion about this."

Staring at her, Kent swallowed back the words on the tip of his tongue. He clenched his fists as his lips
pressed into a fine line. A sense of inability overwhelmed him. Seeing this, Melinda sighed. "Kent, I'm a
little tired. I'll go back and get some rest."

Melinda put down the cup in her hand. Her nails were pale, and her eyes looked worn out. The glow
she usually had was not there, and it was easy to see that there was a sadness in her heart.

Staring at her back, Kent was still determined to stop her from remarrying Jonas. No matter what the
reason was, he would never allow her to go back to the Gu family.

Melinda was exhausted, both physically and mentally. Her nerves were taut. As soon as she relaxed,
she felt a buzz echoing in her head.

Lying on the sofa, Melinda curled up into a ball, hugging her knees tightly. A heaviness crept up her
heart, and she couldn't help but cry softly.



After returning to the company, Jonas handed the task to William. As his secretary, William tried his
best to stay professional, suppress his curiosity and print out two copies of the contract.

While he was at it, William added the request that Melinda made a few days ago and printed it out as
well.

When he dialed her number again, it was no longer in the blacklist. Melinda spoke in a rather strained
voice, completely different from the time when he met her.

After making an appointment, they hung up the phone. Even though things went smoothly, there was
still something different. Their conversation was cold and distant. Even people who worked together
often greeted and exchanged a few words with each other.

They had been married for five years, but they behaved like strangers. It was ironically painful.

The past few days, Kent had been following Melinda's whereabouts because he was worried for her.
Seeing that she was ready to go out, he called her immediately.

"Kent?"

Melinda asked a bit surprised, glancing down at her watch. Normally, Kent was writing at this time. He
was a self-disciplined man and always followed a strict routine.

"Mellie, are you free now? Could you please help me find some materials in the municipal library? I
need it urgently."

Kent had often asked Melinda to help with the material search, so she didn't think much about it. What
was more, it sounded that he was really in a hurry to get the material.

"I have something else to do now. Can I search that for you later?" Melinda said hesitantly.



"Mellia, I promised to update it in an hour. I can't make it to the library in time. Please."

"Well, send all the information you need to my WeChat."

Afterwards, Melinda called Jonas to reschedule their appointment. It took a long time for her to
rearrange the meeting, because from that day on, Kent always found some excuse to prevent her from
meeting Jonas.

The first time or the second time it happened, Melinda didn't feel anything wrong. The third time, she
started to feel suspicious, and decided to confront Kent face to face.

"Kent, you can't stop me from remarrying Jonas. You can't prevent it. It'd be better if you just wished me
luck instead of doing this!"

Melinda was determined. No matter what kind of reason Kent had used this time, she chose to ignore
him. After telling her current situation to Jonas, they made an appointment in private.

However, Kent was a bit stubborn. He still tried to stop her. He was not willing to let her go. 'Why does
she even want to go back to such a horrible place? To such a horrible person? She's already gotten
away from it. Things are already going great for her!' Kent thought in annoyance.

Finally, Melinda and Jonas were able to meet up to go through the contract. This time around, Melinda
was much more cautious. She went through the terms and conditions of the contract in detail, and even
stated those she didn't understand. Jonas even revised the parts of the contract Melinda was
dissatisfied with.

They signed the contract under the condition that both of them were contented with it. Melinda took her
copy of the contract and said sarcastically, "I did not expect that I would be Mrs. Gu again so soon. I
really want to see what the expressions of your current lovers will have."


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