The 99th Divorce

“The bad news is…” Shen Luo’an looked a bit hesitant. He shot a look at Ye Qianqian.

Ye Qianqian coughed lightly and said, “It was his idea, not mine.”

“Hey! Are you bailing out on your husband? Not so fast!” Shen Zhilie grabbed her and continued. “We’ve asked her to come to the capital and promised to arrange a job in sales and marketing for her. But I don’t have such a job available on my end. Big Brother, how about your side…”

Shen Luo’an tightened his grip around the orange and squeezed it so hard that the juice trickled out.

The scent of orange filled the room instantly.

Ye Qianqian stared at the orange greedily. She grabbed one for herself and started peeling it.

Shen Zhilie felt increasingly uneasy. He cleared his throat softly and uttered, “Anyway, just try to arrange a job for her. Otherwise, I’ll have to seek help from Yang Ye.”

Yang Ye had been one of Shen Zhilie’s best buddies for many years. Although Shen Zhilie’s relationship with Yang Ye was not as close as with Luo Ran, their bond was still solid.

Now Yang Ye was running a small logistics company. It was neither established nor well-known yet, but it was a decent enterprise.

“Working in Yang Ye’s company isn’t a bad prospect after all, except for the long hours. He often works overtime and is sleep-deprived. He’s as thin as a rake.”

When Shen Luo’an heard this, he lost all appetite for the orange in his grasp.

He threw the orange into the garbage bin in one swift toss and said in a cold voice, “Why are you so nosy? Is it any of your business? Shen Manting is striving to be independent. Isn’t offering her a job the same as sympathizing with her? Do you think she’ll accept your offer?”

Of course not!

The poorer a man is, the prouder he becomes.

The poor insist on being resilient and unyielding, and refuse any form of assistance from others, which they look down on as cheap charity, as offerings of pity.

On top of that, Shen Manting was mentally unsound. Normal people like them could never understand her way of thinking.

Upon hearing Shen Luo’an’s idea, Shen Zhilie pursed his lips and retorted, “That’s not the case. She’s being hired to work for her keep. It’s only called charity when all she has to do is sit around idly all day long!”

Shen Luo’an stood up and scoffed at him. “You know nothing about Shen Manting. If she finds out that you’ve tricked her into coming here, forget about getting her to fill the job you introduced to her – the mere sight of you will make her sick to the stomach!”

He then turned around and headed for the bathroom.

The sound of running water was heard from within. Ye Qianqian and Shen Zhilie looked at each other in dismay.

–

Shen Luo’an was deeply frustrated.

Running into Shen Manting today after not meeting her for such a long time evoked feelings of sympathy in him.

The sympathy he felt was not directed at her but himself.

He found himself pathetic and pitiable.

He should have upheld his manly pride, yet he had stooped so low that he let a woman influence and manipulate his emotional state.

When she requested to visit the child, he even thought for a second of giving in and letting go of the past.

He contemplated letting her see the child, hoping that she would become reluctant to leave after catching a glimpse of him.

However, the thought lasted no longer than a fleeting moment.

In the end, his logic defeated his emotions, quelling all sentimental thoughts and compelling him to take a mercilessly rational stand.

“You’re such a fool, Shen Luo’an.”

Shen Luo’an washed his face and left the bathroom.

Dinner was ready. After dinner, Shen Luo’an went back to his room.

The infant was behaving exceptionally well.

He had been sleeping for over an hour.

More than once, he wondered if the infant was this docile and quiet because he was aware of the absence of his mother.

Shen Luo’an picked up his phone and paused thoughtfully before typing in the chat window he shared with Shen Manting’s chat window: Let’s meet up.

However, he deleted it on second thought.

He set his phone aside and lay down.