Secret Marriage: The CEO's Pampered Wife

Chapter 161: Chapter 157: If I Were to Become a Monk

The entrance gate to Vimana is Raidenport, an eight-pillared gate. To its left stands the Wind God Statue, and to its right, the Thunder God Statue.

The temple was bustling with tourists. Georgia Thorne and Elliot Sheridan moved slowly with the crowd, admiring Vimana’s magnificent architecture.

Partway through, they came across a fortune-drawing stall. When Georgia saw many other tourists drawing lots, she grew intrigued as well.

She dropped 100 Akashima Dollars beside the container of fortune sticks, then picked it up and gave it a shake until a single stick fell out.

She picked it up. The number on the stick was sixty-four.

"Help me find sixty-four."

Georgia scanned the drawers carefully. The first thing that caught her eye wasn’t the number sixty-four, but a single character: Misfortune!

Georgia glanced at the number again, confirming it was indeed the one she had drawn.

Even without reading the Japanese text written on it, just seeing that one character for "Misfortune" made her heart sink. She had a bad feeling about this.

The Japanese verse was difficult to understand, especially on a fortune slip, so Georgia went to find a monk to interpret it for her.

A monk, who looked to be in his fifties, sized them up. "Greetings, benefactors. What number is your fortune?"

"It’s sixty-four. Master, could you please help us interpret it?"

"It has been a long time since any benefactor has drawn such a fortune!" The monk chanted "Amitabha" before interpreting the slip. "This fortune reads: ’Even in peace, be wary of danger. Deep love leads to separation. Like a boat adrift in a storm, the mandarin ducks must fly their separate ways.’"

"It means that even when you feel secure, worries still linger in your heart. You may be forced to part with the one you love deeply. Your situation is like a great storm, and though mandarin ducks are meant to fly together, you are fated to fly apart."

These words were clearly not auspicious. Even when the monk explained it in plain language, the message remained the same.

Every line was negative, all of it pointing to misfortune.

"Benefactors, were you asking about your marriage fate? If so, I advise you not to be together. Our temple..."

Before the monk could finish, Elliot Sheridan was already pulling Georgia Thorne away. "Superstition. You actually believe this stuff?"

"Do you believe it?" Georgia shot back.

"I don’t!"

"If you don’t believe it, then it shouldn’t matter to you what the monk says."

Georgia pulled her hand from Elliot’s grasp and turned back to the monk. "Master, is there any way to resolve this?"

The monk glanced at Georgia, then sized up Elliot again. "This male benefactor carries too much resentment. If he is willing to let go of the resentment in his heart, then it can be resolved."

At these words, Georgia turned her head to look at the man beside her.

Elliot stood with one hand in his pocket, scoffing at the monk’s words. He sneered, "Too much resentment? Monk, I don’t think I understand what you mean."

The monk bowed and chanted "Amitabha" again. "Benefactor, where you can forgive, you should forgive. You try to hold everything in your grasp, but one day, you will lose it all. Therefore, I advise you to let go. This female benefactor is not suited for you. The longer she stays with you, the more she will be hurt."

"Then tell me, what should I do?"

"Benefactor, you should try to let go of the resentment in your heart. You have a strong affinity for enlightenment. I believe that after you renounce the secular world..."

Before the old monk could finish, Elliot cut him off. "Are you telling me to become celibate? My woman is standing right here next to me, and you want me to go be a monk with you?"

Elliot sneered dismissively and dragged Georgia Thorne away by the hand.

Elliot walked so fast and furiously that Georgia could barely keep up as he pulled her through the crowd.

Slightly out of breath from running, she called out to stop him. "Elliot, you..."

Before she could finish, Elliot stopped abruptly, his handsome brows furrowed. "You believe what that old monk said?"

"I..." ’No...’

"He’s just a charlatan. If people didn’t toss donations into his box, how do you think he’d survive? Does he really think The Goddess of Mercy is looking out for him?"

Elliot Sheridan didn’t believe in gods or ghosts; he only believed in himself.

In this world, it was never heaven that made things difficult.

Georgia hadn’t even caught her breath yet. She felt Elliot’s reaction was a bit extreme; it wasn’t like she completely believed the monk either.

She had been a little convinced at first, but after the old monk told Elliot to renounce the world, she’d become half-skeptical.

"Shut up! Don’t you say another word! I don’t want to listen to you!"

Georgia had only heard the beginning of what he was saying before she frantically cut him off, her eyes wide with anger.

"You get so passionate, wrapping your legs around me so tightly... you little temptress, do you have any idea how close I..."

"I told you to stop! Why are you still talking? Not another word!" Georgia was truly panicking now and rushed to clamp her hand over Elliot’s mouth.

’He’s driving me crazy! How can he be so unfiltered? We’re in public! What if someone heard him?’

Georgia was genuinely angry now. She shot Elliot a vicious glare, then spun around and stormed off.

Elliot chuckled, watching her retreating back. ’How is she still so shy!’

Georgia tried to shake Elliot, but no matter how fast she walked, he was always right there, keeping a steady distance from her.

Then, she remembered something important and stopped dead in her tracks.

She started walking back, brushing past Elliot’s shoulder. He caught her by the wrist. "What is it?"

"Um, I forgot something!"

Elliot assumed she had dropped something or missed one of the sights, so he went back with her.

They returned to the fortune-drawing stall.

Georgia took the "Misfortune" slip she had drawn and tied it to a designated rack.

Elliot asked, confused, "What are you doing?"

"I heard that if you get a bad fortune, you can tie it here to nullify it."

As Georgia explained, she gave a small, devout bow, praying that this particular fortune would not come true.

Although Georgia didn’t really believe in these things, she figured a temple that attracted so many tourists might actually be potent.

After her prayer, Georgia’s anxious heart settled a little, and she resumed strolling through the temple with Elliot, her mood calmer.

Inside Vimana, there were many cherry trees, but unfortunately, they had come at the wrong time of year.

"What a shame we couldn’t see the cherry blossoms!" Georgia sighed regretfully, having read a nearby sign stating the trees bloomed in mid-March.

"Nothing to be ashamed of. We can just come back and see them this March," Elliot said, looking at the bare branches, uninterested in cherry blossoms.

"I hear it’s beautiful when they’re in full bloom. You just look up and see clusters of blossoms everywhere!"

Georgia looked forward to March, hoping they could come back to see the cherry blossoms together.

But she didn’t know that they didn’t have that much time.

These three days had been the happiest time of her life.

After they finished touring Vimana, the two of them went for lunch.

During the meal, Elliot took a phone call. He returned to the table with a grim expression.

After paying the bill, Elliot gripped her hand tightly and led her outside.

He hailed a taxi and pushed Georgia Thorne inside.

Elliot didn’t get in himself. Instead, he gave the driver their hotel’s address.

Georgia looked at him, puzzled. She rolled down the window and frantically grabbed his sleeve. "Aren’t you getting in?"

"Georgia Thorne, you should be happy. I’m setting you free!"

"What? Elliot, what are you talking about?"

Her fingers clutched his cufflink even tighter, her fair face a mask of panic. ’What is he saying? I don’t understand a single word!’

"I’m only going to say this once, so I hope you listen carefully!"

Elliot’s expression turned to ice in an instant. He grabbed her small hand with his large one and forcefully pried her fingers from his sleeve.

Word by word, he said with chilling severity, "Georgia Thorne, let’s break up."

As his words fell, Elliot yanked her hand away.

"Why!" Georgia stared at him, unblinking, as a hot, stinging sensation welled up in her eyes.

The man’s face before her began to blur.

"I’m bored of you. Do I need another reason?" Elliot watched her with a cold sneer. "This game started when I said so, which means it should end when I say so. Understand?"

Her brimming eyes could no longer hold back the tears, which began to stream down her face.

’Bored of me...?’

Georgia wiped her tears away, desperately trying to find a trace of warmth in his eyes.

But all she saw was ice and cruelty.

"Georgia Thorne, go on and live your life."

Elliot gave a cold order to the driver. Startled by Elliot’s vicious tone, the driver stomped on the gas and sped away.

Georgia cried as she watched Elliot recede into the distance. He had turned his back and walked away without a moment’s hesitation.

The tears fell even harder. Just a short while ago, he had promised her they would come back together in March to see the cherry blossoms in full bloom. He had kept calling her his wife. Why had he changed so suddenly?

The driver in the front kept glancing at the weeping Georgia in his rearview mirror. Unable to bear it, he tried to console her. "Miss, please don’t cry. If you shed tears at the start of the New Year, you’ll have bad luck for the whole year."

Georgia didn’t seem to hear him. Her mind was replaying scene after scene from the past few days, all the moments she had spent with Elliot.

She buried her face in her knees, but it couldn’t muffle her agonized sobs. She sounded like a small, wounded animal, crying softly to herself.

The driver had meant to comfort Georgia, but he hadn’t expected his words to make her cry even harder. He fell silent, unsure of what else to say.

In all his years of driving, he’d never encountered a situation like this.

The couple had been speaking Chinese, and he had understood a little of it.

It was only the third day of the New Year, and they were already breaking up.

Judging by the man’s clothes and the powerful aura he projected, he was no ordinary person.

A moment ago, when she had grabbed Elliot’s sleeve, a cufflink had come loose.

A black gemstone glittered in her palm. A hot tear fell onto it, but it felt as if it were searing her heart.

Georgia cried all the way back to the hotel. When she saw the man standing at the entrance, she stopped in her tracks.

Her small face was pale, and her eyes were red and swollen from crying. It was a heartbreaking sight.

Owen Sawyer took a step forward. "Miss Thorne, President Sheridan has given instructions. Wherever you wish to go next, I am to accompany you."