224 The Apology 22 (1/2)

”What I failed to do in the past does not excuse you from what you have done. The two are not one and the same. Two wrongs do not make a right. Things don't even out just like that,” Joann said.

Xu Jing's heart sunk. When he heard the apology, he innocently thought things were going to come to its resolution soon so when he heard what his wife had to say, he was understandably disappointed.

Seeing the look of defeat on her husband's face, Joann felt her heart give. She genuinely felt sorry for her husband for laying all these things on him. Granted he had done some stupid things but how far did he need to pay before he could get his forgiveness.

Examining this from an objective perspective, Joann realized the mistake that she had done for taking advantage of Xu Jing in their marriage technically led to him having the extra-marital affair so she too should bear part of the responsibility.

Joann was now honest enough to herself to admit that she too wasn't the perfect wife in this partnership and there was plenty of things about her that was left to be desired. However, compared to her, Xu Jing was quick to accept her apology.

Of course, what she did and what he did couldn't be equated or even be discussed as the same thing, Joann still felt it was rather unfair that she had done so little but had already received the forgiveness that she refused to give him even though he had done a lot more than she did.

Joann did not want to hang onto the past so stubbornly but she could not just wipe the slate clean, and forget about his betrayal, forget about the fact that he had allowed another woman into the sanctity of their marriage.

Joann combed her mind and she decided to tackle this with the most straightforward way. She turned to Xu Jing and said, ”Xu Jing, I'm not sure I can ever forgive you for what you have done... but you deserve a second chance, I deserve a second chance, this marriage of ours deserve a second chance.

”I cannot guarantee that I can act like nothing has happened between us but I will try my best to not fixate on it as we move forward... for the sake of us.”

Joann could see the face of her husband brightened as she said that and in that moment, she knew she had done the right choice. She wasn't forced into giving the forgiveness because of societal rules or familial pressure, instead she wanted to give the forgiveness to give both of them a second chance.

Even though marriage wasn't about keeping score, after realizing Xu Jing had sacrificed so much for her, Joann took it upon herself to take a step back and choose to compromise for once in their relationship.

Of course, like what she had learned from Lee Mu and Xiu Ling, Joann applied that to the new chapter in her marriage to Xu Jing. Joann reminded the man, ”As I've mentioned earlier, this marriage is a joint effort. You're going to have work hard for it as well.