The 99th Divorce

Aunt Zhang felt that she had been dismissed arbitrarily. She glanced at Shen Luo’an without a word, then turned around and left.

Shen Luo’an was cradling the infant, whose face had already turned red from crying.

He was moving his tiny arms about. He made noises that aroused feelings of affection and sympathy.

Shen Manting immersed the bottle of milk in some cold water and waited for it to cool down before bringing it out again.

She walked fast toward the infant, her heart aching for him.

She quickened her pace and hurriedly thrust the nipple into the infant’s mouth.

The infant stopped crying as soon as he latched onto the bottle.

He gripped the bottle and sucked hungrily from it.

Shen Manting looked at the baby tenderly. Then she looked up at Shen Luo’an and asked, “Can I hold him?”

Shen Luo’an passed the baby to her. Shen Manting picked him up and held the bottle. Her heart melted.

“Where do you live now?” Shen Luo’an asked coolly, his gaze fixed on the infant.

Shen Manting looked up instinctively and noticed that he was not meeting her gaze. She asked in a low voice, “Are you asking me?”

“Who else?” Shen Luo’an looked away and rose to his feet.

“Tongzhou…”

“So far away?” Shen Luo’an glanced at her and turned his gaze to the infant. “It wasn’t easy finding a nanny to take care of the baby, and now I’ve sent her away. What should I do now?”

“How could you have hired such a lousy nanny to look after the baby?” Shen Manting thought he was being ridiculous. “Are you out of your mind?”

“I didn’t have a choice. It’s not long after the New Year season. Nannies of this age are hard to find. The younger ones are unsuitable for the job.” Shen Luo’an put his hands into his pockets. “Now that the nanny is gone, you owe me a new one.”

Shen Manting was annoyed and rebuked impatiently, “Don’t be unreasonable! You were the one who dismissed her, not me!”

“I wouldn’t have sent her away if you hadn’t picked up on that trivial fault of hers.”

“You call that a trivial fault?” Shen Manting felt her blood boil. “Isn’t the child yours? She suggested adding cold water to your son’s milk. What if the baby falls ill? Is this a trivial fault?”

Shen Luo’an glanced at her. “I don’t know if she has done that before, but the baby has been fine all along.”

Anger rose within Shen Manting. “Are you even his real father? Leaving the child with you was a mistake!”

She raised her voice, frightening the infant, who started to whine.

Shen Manting looked down at him. His cheeks had turned red and he looked like he was going to cry.

She patted him gently and coaxed in a soft voice, “Don’t cry. It’s Mommy’s fault.”

The infant reached out and touched her cheek.

Shen Manting’s heart melted instantly, but she didn’t forget to glare at Shen Luo’an.

“Aunt Zhang is gone, and there’s no one at home to take care of the child. You’ll look after him.” Shen Luo’an looked at her. “You’re his mother. You should be able to take care of him better than anyone else.”

Shen Manting was stunned. For a while, she couldn’t read Shen Luo’an’s thoughts.

Seeing that she didn’t respond, Shen Luo’an continued, “Consider it.”

“No way…” Shen Manting refused immediately.

But she couldn’t say anything else when she looked at the infant in her arms.

“How about Mother He and Aunt Wu?”

“Aunt Wu went back to her hometown before New Year. She won’t be returning anytime soon. Mother He is busy with the domestic chores. She already has her hands full with the household errands,” Shen Luo’an said matter-of-factly. “That’s why I hired a nanny. But who knew she had such a quick temper?”

Shen Manting looked at the infant.

The infant yawned and looked sleepy. She could see his teething gums and the drool swirling inside his mouth.