I’m the husband that Yan Ruochu, the little princess of the Beijing circle, tried every means to pursue.
I’m also the live-in son-in-law that everyone looks down upon.
Just three years after we got married, Yan Ruochu took in a young male college student outside and was deeply attracted by his strong and energetic appearance.
On our wedding anniversary, she called:
“I’m going to watch my best friend Fu Jingzhuo’s concert tonight. After that, we sisters will have a facial mask party, so I won’t be back.”
The male college student lowered his voice, and the deliberate mockery came through the receiver, with unrestrained showing off:
“Humph, a live-in son-in-law who didn’t even go to college. Can he understand Fu Jingzhuo’s music?”
After hanging up the phone, Fu Jingzhuo beside me immediately clung to me.
“Brother Xiao Yan, choose me. I’ll never betray you.”
01
Luo Chen is a college student in his flamboyant youth.
In just a few months, he charmed Yan Ruochu so much that she even took him to various business occasions without any scruples.
The first time I saw him was at the investment promotion meeting of Yan’s Group. I was trying my best to appease the guests.
“Thank you all for your long-term support for Ruochu. Without you, Ruochu wouldn’t be able to sit firmly in the group. She has always kept your kindness in mind, and she attaches great importance to this investment promotion meeting.”
But before my flattering words were finished, Yan Ruochu walked into the venue arm in arm with Luo Chen.
The flush at the corners of her eyes was ambiguous, and her bright dress was clearly in a dating style, which was out of place in the business venue.
There was no sign of the respect that the executive of Yan’s Group should show to the partners.
“Sister Ruochu, is this your company’s investment promotion meeting? Are those high-end meals all unlimited buffets? That’s amazing!”
Luo Chen glanced at me, as if he didn’t see me, and pinched Yan Ruochu’s fair and smooth arm, speaking in a pretentious way.
It was the first time that I saw the concrete manifestation of a “green tea” in a man.
Yan Ruochu indulged him and let him be wanton and unruly in the venue.
He teased many clients who had business relations with Yan’s Group.
However, none of the surrounding guests blamed him. Instead, they pointed fingers at me, the live-in son-in-law who had long been disliked by the Yan family.
“Just now Xiao Yan was putting on airs when talking to me. Who knew that the eldest miss would slap him in the face the next second.”
“That’s right. He’s acting like he’s in charge when he’s just a nobody. Who asked him to act like the master?”
“It’s so embarrassing. A man has no dignity at all. If I were him, I would find a crack in the ground and crawl in.”
I stood quietly in the middle of the venue, letting the brilliant crystal lights above project on the surface of my custom-made suit.
I kept smiling on my face, pretending that I didn’t care at all.
Until Luo Chen completely disrupted the venue like a leader inspecting, and after having enough fun, Yan Ruochu just wanted to take him away with a few casual words.
“I’m sorry, everyone. My younger brother is young and lively. I didn’t entertain you well this time. I’ll definitely treat you to a better banquet next time.”
Once the little princess of the Beijing circle spoke, no one objected. Everyone said flattering words, with a humble and sincere attitude, which was completely different from the attitude towards me.
I finally couldn’t bear it anymore and stopped Yan Ruochu.
I tried my best to lower my voice to consider the overall situation:
“Ruochu, you’re going to make a scene on such an important day today. How can I deal with it if your father blames me tomorrow?”
“You promised me that you would leave me at least some dignity…”
Before I could finish my words, Yan Ruochu put a finger on my lips.
The charm in her eyes was as strong as before, and her every move was full of allure, but it was no longer for me.
Yan Ruochu comfortingly patted the discontented Luo Chen beside her and looked behind me with a solemn expression.
“Xiao Yan, you’re just a dog kept by our Yan family, a live-in son-in-law who lives off me. Why do you talk about dignity with me?”
I was completely stunned.
I looked at the woman in front of me in disbelief.
Those solid walls that had been built up with love for a long time to resist all criticism and insults collapsed in my heart with a loud crash.
As a man from an ordinary family, I was able to marry into the Yan family. From the very beginning, everyone looked down on me.
The ridicule around me kept coming, and no one would think that Yan Ruochu was too much. They would only mock me for overestimating my abilities.
Yan Ruochu raised her eyebrows, took her fair and slender fingers away from my lips, and tapped on her phone a few times.
My phone vibrated instantly, and it was a transfer message.
“Take the money and be quiet. Don’t meddle in my business and make me unhappy.”
02
I actually couldn’t really remember how the banquet ended that day.
I could only vaguely hear that the guests were all surrounding Yan Ruochu and openly accompanied her and Luo Chen to leave.
Someone smiled and praised, “This young man looks energetic. He must be in good health.”
Yan Ruochu smiled coquettishly, casually pulled up Luo Chen’s clothes, and touched his well-defined abdominal muscles.
“Of course. Do you think I want to look at a man as thin as a matchstick every day? It’s so disgusting.”
I lowered my head among the laughter.
I took a look at the 100,000 yuan transfer on my phone.
After sliding out of the interface, I found that cute bubble avatar.
The last message was sent two days ago. I hadn’t replied, and it just stayed on the screen alone, looking pitiful as if it was accusing me of being cold-hearted.
“Brother Xiao Yan, I finally found you. You’re the most talented composer. Are you really going to give up easily?”
“They don’t understand you. You should be the brightest star in the sky.”
I smiled, bent the knuckle of my thumb, and unconsciously rubbed it on the screen.
After a while, I replied, “Let’s meet at the teacher’s recording studio when we have time.”
The other side replied almost instantly, as if always waiting there.
“Okay!”
“See you there.”
I put away my phone and drove home.
I took out the most expensive red wine from the wine cabinet and drank it all in one gulp.
Only at this moment did my swollen and aching chest seem to be finally relieved. The aroma of the red wine filled the air, and suddenly I had an impulse.
I took a taxi to the address that Yan Ruochu posted on her WeChat Moments.
As soon as I entered, I saw her standing outside the boxing ring, holding a bottle of Perrier water, leaning on the fence and smiling while taking pictures of Luo Chen who had just finished boxing.
All her friends were around her.
Someone saw me, greeted me casually, and then called Yan Ruochu in a teasing tone.
“Look, your walking 100,000 yuan is here. It’s so nice to have money. The man at home is dutiful, and the man outside is charming.”
Yan Ruochu looked over with raised eyebrows.
Noticing my flushed cheeks because of drinking, she laughed.
“Xiao Yan, don’t tell me you went home from the banquet and then drank alcohol to boost your courage before coming to find me?”
“What are you going to say this time? Are you going to say that I shouldn’t have deprived you of your dignity, or are you complaining that I gave you too little pocket money?”
I thought I would be angry at her casual mockery, but I wasn’t.
I just took out a key card from my pocket and calmly put it beside Yan Ruochu.
Yan Ruochu glanced down.
“Oh, what’s the meaning of this? Are you going to run away from home to throw a tantrum?!”
Luo Chen on the boxing ring wiped his sweat while speaking in a joking tone, with a coquettish tone:
“Sister Ruochu, is brother still angry with me? I’m young and ignorant, but I also know that a man should coax a woman.”
I ignored Luo Chen and just looked at Yan Ruochu indifferently.
“I have something to do and need to go out of town. I saw that you didn’t take the key card, so I brought it here. But I guess you probably don’t need to go home much. If there’s nothing else, I’ll leave first.”
After saying that, I turned around to leave.
Yan Ruochu’s voice suddenly came from behind, neither salty nor bland.
“Xiao Yan, don’t go too far. Be careful that you can’t turn back in the end and have to beg me to make up like a dog!”
03
After that, Yan Ruochu became even more unscrupulous.
She took Luo Chen to various public occasions openly, allowing everyone to package and market them together and speculate about the relationship among the three of us.
In those popular report photos, the couple hugging each other looked just like a pair of lovers in love.
I vaguely remembered that we were like this once.
The two of us were inseparable, as if we didn’t want to be apart for a moment.
On the day when the musician Fu Jingzhuo held a concert tour at the Capital Concert Hall, Yan Ruochu, as her best friend, took Luo Chen to attend.
She was like a proud peacock, without caring about other people’s eyes at all, holding Luo Chen’s arm and letting the media take pictures.
Luo Chen’s excitement was palpable, and he praised passionately:
“It’s every music student’s dream to watch a concert of Teacher Fu on the spot. Thank you, Sister Ruochu.”
Yan Ruochu pinched his cheek fondly and teased deliberately as if jealous:
“You express your love for another woman in front of me. Aren’t you afraid that I’ll be angry?”
Luo Chen hugged her slender waist affectionately and bent down to kiss her on the lips.
“You don’t know how hard it is to buy tickets for Teacher Fu’s concert. She’s known as the female Jay Chou in the performance field. I just simply like her music and don’t mean anything else. No one can compare with you, Sister Ruochu, in my heart.”
I calmly watched all this in the monitoring room on the second-floor platform.
An unprecedented sense of disgust and nausea welled up.
At this time, the phone rang.
Yan Ruochu’s voice was impatient: “Since you’re back, don’t tell me. I’m watching Zhuo Zhuo’s concert tonight and won’t go home.”
I chuckled and asked seemingly casually:
“I also like listening to concerts. Do you want me to accompany you?”
On the other side of the receiver, Luo Chen’s voice was sarcastic and domineering, shamelessly stealing the spotlight.
“Uncle, you didn’t even finish college. What are you doing listening to Teacher Fu’s concert? Don’t be a bumpkin trying to squeeze into the city and make people laugh.”
After saying that, he directly took the phone from Yan Ruochu’s hand, bit her earlobe ambiguously.
“Let’s go, sister. The concert is about to start.”
Looking at the figures leaving hand in hand in the monitoring, I smiled silently.
Fu Jingzhuo beside me walked around to me and blocked all my sight.
“Tonight’s concert features all the music you wrote. It’s an audio-visual feast for the two of us.”
I lowered my eyes and stared at the woman in front of me without blinking.
Her graceful and charming eyes were full of captivating brightness.
“So what?”
Fu Jingzhuo slowly stood on tiptoe, her red lips slightly opened, exhaling warm breath.
“So if the concert is a great success, give up Yan Ruochu and choose me. I’ll never betray you.”
I smiled.
My itchy palm trembled slightly, and I heard my own voice floating.
“Okay.”
04
At the end of the concert, Yan Ruochu was tightly hugged by the excited Luo Chen.
He loudly announced his love.
It strongly infected all the guests present.
I quietly left from behind the crowd and got into a black business car that had been waiting in the underground garage early.
Fu Jingzhuo hooked my neck, and her faint fragrance drifted into my nose, easily disturbing my thoughts.
“Brother Xiao Yan, you’re here. You’ve finally been willing to face my feelings seriously, right?”
I didn’t say anything.
I just raised my hand and gently rubbed the top of her head.
Actually, there was a moment of hesitation in my mind that it might not be the best time yet, but the woman in my arms was too stubborn. She clung to me like a water snake, as if the next second, if I had the slightest thought of retreating, she would die with me.
At this moment, Fu Jingzhuo’s phone rang abruptly, breaking the romantic atmosphere.
Fu Jingzhuo looked at the screen, and the words “Yan Ruochu” kept flashing.
She deliberately waved it in front of my eyes maliciously and then turned on the speakerphone.
“Zhuo Zhuo, I came to watch your concert. My college boy is a big fan of yours and wants to take a picture with you.”
Then, Luo Chen’s voice came out, almost trembling with excitement.
“Teacher Fu, hello. I’m a student from the Music Performance Department of Beijing University, and I’m your most loyal fan. I like all your music.”
There was a moment of silence in the air.
Luo Chen’s excitement was met with no response.
The next second, Fu Jingzhuo suddenly sneered, and her voice slowly came out casually:
“A despicable third party who can’t even be a proper lover. Where do you get the confidence that I’ll take a picture with you?”
Luo Chen was stunned, and his rapid breathing came through, indicating his agitated mood.
“Teacher Fu, what do you mean by that?”
Fu Jingzhuo patiently continued to talk to him for a while, while also raising her eyebrows at me triumphantly.
“Isn’t the meaning of my words clear? Did you buy your college degree? You can’t even understand human language.”
Luo Chen was spoiled by Yan Ruochu and naturally thought that everyone in the Beijing circle would at least give Yan Ruochu face and respect him a little.
I couldn’t help but curl my lips.
Without looking, I knew that Luo Chen’s face on the other side of the phone must be extremely ugly.
“Okay, Zhuo Zhuo, don’t be angry. It’s my fault for not thinking carefully. I forgot that you’ve always disliked meeting strangers.”
Yan Ruochu’s voice rang out again, completely indifferent to the grievance Luo Chen had just suffered.
Luo Chen exclaimed in surprise and muttered dissatisfiedly:
“Ah, Sister Ruochu, how could she insult me like this? I like her so much.”
Luo Chen wouldn’t let it go.
He thought that relying on Yan Ruochu’s preference, he could be fearless.
But Fu Jingzhuo, although she was Yan Ruochu’s best friend , was an existence that even the Yan family couldn’t compare with.
How could Yan Ruochu turn against Fu Jingzhuo for a young boy?
Finally, Fu Jingzhuo completely lost her patience.
She coldly interrupted the continuous coquettish male voice on the other end of the phone.
“Ruochu, you really don’t have any taste. You take a fancy to any man. If he’s sick, take him to see a doctor quickly. Don’t bring any sissy in front of me. I’m busy, so I’ll hang up.”
05
The world finally became completely quiet.
I reached out and pulled Fu Jingzhuo into my arms, gently stroking her back.
“Okay, don’t be angry. It’s not worth it.”
But Fu Jingzhuo was stunned.
Facing my sudden intimate action, she took a long time to recover. A blush quickly climbed onto her fair little face, and there was no trace of her previous domineering and flamboyance.
“Brother Xiao Yan, it’s not worth it for you to be cuckolded by such a person.”
Fu Jingzhuo stammered, speaking intermittently with a shy and indignant look.
I was amused by her silly appearance.
“Now I’ve become the same kind of person as her, both of us are unfaithful in marriage. There’s nothing to owe each other anymore.”
Fu Jingzhuo shook her head.
“You’re different.”
“You’re the best Xiao Yan in the world. Your devotion was let down by Yan Ruochu. She doesn’t deserve it.”
The car started, and I turned off my phone.
When passing by the Yan family’s villa, it was pitch-dark inside.
It was like a cage that trapped souls, lying quietly in the shadows. It had only been three years.
Yan Ruochu and I had already reached a point of no return.
Fu Jingzhuo in my arms, intentionally or unintentionally, rubbed her fingers against my Adam’s apple.
She asked softly, “Brother Xiao Yan, when are you going to officially make a comeback?”
The man who had been sitting in the passenger seat silently and had no sense of presence all this time turned around to look at me when he heard this.
“Young master, I’ve already taken care of everything you need. Master has compromised over the years. He said that if you want to pursue music, you can go ahead, and he won’t stop you anymore.”
I leaned back into the sofa seat of the business car and nodded quietly.
“I see. Help me find a lawyer to draft a divorce agreement.”
The man nodded respectfully.
Then I lowered my head and kissed the slightly cool corner of the woman’s forehead in my arms.
“Zhuo Zhuo, wait for me for a few more days. It’ll be soon.”
06
I went directly to Yan’s Group the next morning.
As soon as I walked in, Yan Ruochu immediately stood up from the boss chair and quickly walked up to me. She threw a document at me without hesitation.
My forehead was hit by the metal corner of the document, and a dull pain came.
I raised my hand to touch it, and it was burning with pain. Fortunately, there was no bleeding.
Yan Ruochu grabbed my collar without scruple and shook me violently, making me a little dizzy.
“What do you mean, Xiao Yan? I received the divorce agreement you sent to the company this morning. Are you fucking crazy? How dare you ask me for a divorce!”
I was no longer the nice guy who would let Yan Ruochu lose her temper at will, so I just pushed her back a few steps with a little force.
Yan Ruochu looked at me in shock, her face full of disbelief.
“How dare you push me? You’re actually willing to push me? Xiao Yan, you weren’t like this before!”
My expression didn’t change, and I remained unmoved.
“Don’t mention the past, Yan Ruochu. It’ll only make us both embarrassed. Since you like that male college student, then I’ll make way for him.”
Yan Ruochu stared at me coldly for a long time.
After a while, she suddenly smiled.
“Are you jealous? Are you jealous of him?”
I shook my head.
But it seemed that Yan Ruochu didn’t believe me at all, or maybe she didn’t care at all about what mood I was in when I proposed the divorce.
She walked slowly up to me, reached out and patted my face.
One pat after another, rhythmic and forceful.
“Xiao Yan, go and look at yourself in the mirror. You’re just the live-in son-in-law of our Yan family. You need to work like a cow and a horse for our Yan family all your life. Don’t be shameless when I give you some face!”
After saying that, Yan Ruochu withdrew her hand.
She sneered and pulled the corners of her lips.
“If you really piss me off, even if you kneel down and beg me, I won’t even look at you again.”
After saying that, she pushed me hard.
“Now, you can get out and find a cool place to reflect on yourself!”
07
I walked out of Yan’s Building.
I stood on the sunny square and was in a daze for a while.
On the big screen opposite, an exclusive interview with the performer Fu Jingzhuo was being played.
The woman had a charming smile, and her drooping eyes were gentle and beautiful, without any of her usual competence.
“Everyone, don’t guess anymore. I have someone I like. He’s the composer of all my performance music. He was forced to stay away from the music world because of some unworthy people and things in the past, but his level and ability are still unmatched.”
I felt a thump in my heart.
I realized what consequences Fu Jingzhuo’s actions would bring, but I couldn’t stop it.
That afternoon, the news quickly spread, and the gossip about Fu Jingzhuo’s relationship rushed to the top of the hot list.
However, more speculations revolved around the mysterious composer who had always signed as “Xiaoyan”. Who on earth was he?
Many people said that Fu Jingzhuo and Yan Ruochu were friends, and Yan Ruochu’s new boyfriend happened to be a student from the Music Department of Beijing University. Could it be that the mysterious composer had something to do with this male college student?
For a while, the hot topic square was bustling.
The onlookers went to Luo Chen’s Weibo one after another to leave messages, asking him if he knew the inside story.
Luo Chen didn’t deny it. Instead, he beat around the bush in a pretentious way, allowing netizens to let their imaginations run wild and guess whether he was directly involved.
I curled my lips in disdain and closed the interface boringly.
When my father called, I was busy sorting out the manuscripts I had accumulated over the years.
“I saw the news. I didn’t agree with your marriage to the little daughter of the Yan family in the first place. But you were so stubborn that you even pretended to be an orphan to marry her. Now that things have become such a big mess, Xiao Yan, it’s time for you to wake up.”
I didn’t say anything.
My father understood that this was my acquiescence.
So he continued, “Come back to Hong Kong City in a couple of days. I’ll help you restore your identity and introduce you to everyone.”
08
I went back to Hong Kong City to attend the dinner party held by my father.
Those who attended were all famous people from Hong Kong City and the mainland.
Yan Ruochu, who represented the Yan family, still brought Luo Chen with her. As soon as they appeared, they attracted countless eyes.
“Didn’t I hear that the little daughter of the Yan family has a husband? Then who is this young guy?”
“Maybe he’s a gigolo she’s keeping.”
“A gigolo can be brought to attend Mr. Xiao’s banquet? She thinks this is in Beijing City and she can do whatever she wants.”
Facing the surrounding gossip, Yan Ruochu didn’t care at all.
She held Luo Chen’s hand as if no one else was around and introduced him to everyone.
Gradually, everyone knew that Yan Ruochu had a husband who was a freeloader, good for nothing except being good-looking, just a useless vase kept at home, and it was quite normal for her to find a male college student outside for entertainment.
Until I walked casually into the banquet hall.
Everyone’s eyes focused on me at the same time.
Since I seldom appeared in public since I was a child, not many people knew that I was the son of the Xiao family in Hong Kong City.
The few uncles who knew were also informed in advance and stood silently in the crowd, not coming to greet me immediately.
Yan Ruochu saw me and walked over with a frown.
“Xiao Yan, you’re really endless. You even chased me all the way to Hong Kong City!”
Luo Chen followed closely behind, looking at me smugly.
“Oh, brother, didn’t you say you wanted to divorce sister? Why did you follow her here? This isn’t a place where you can just come in casually. You’d better know your place.”
Yan Ruochu took Luo Chen’s hand and patted it comfortingly.
“Since you don’t want to divorce anymore, you should behave yourself. Don’t come out and make a fool of yourself. This isn’t the place for you to go crazy. Go back to Beijing City.”
For a while, many people who didn’t know the situation around us finally realized vaguely that I was that freeloading and useless husband.
Those blatant stares and contempt made my heart gradually sink into the abyss.
At this moment, someone shouted loudly:
“Mr. Xiao and Mr. Fu are here!”
Then there was a flurry of footsteps, and many staff members rushed towards the entrance.
Yan Ruochu pulled me away in disgust and, like everyone else, waited to welcome this business tycoon who had a great reputation both inside and outside Hong Kong City.
09
I turned my head.
A group of people appeared on the red carpet at the entrance.
The two people in the middle were smiling and greeting the people passing by one by one. Behind them, Fu Jingzhuo, who was dressed up, was looking at me sweetly across the crowd, her eyes fixed on me.
“Zhuo Zhuo, you’re here…”
Yan Ruochu, who wanted to build a relationship, walked forward and extended her hand to Fu Jingzhuo, but was directly ignored by her.
The surprised words got stuck in her throat.
Fu Jingzhuo walked up to me, took my arm, and stood on tiptoe to whisper in my ear.
“Brother Xiao Yan, after tonight, everything will be back on track. Just think of that trashy past as a dream.”
Yan Ruochu looked at me in disbelief, and gradually a fierce look appeared in her eyes.
“Xiao Yan, the person Fu Jingzhuo said she likes is you?!”
Luo Chen couldn’t stay calm either. He seemed to think of something deeper.
He raised his voice and said, “Don’t be ridiculous. Didn’t they say that the person Teacher Fu likes is the composer? You’re a useless househusband. What kind of farce are you putting on here?”
Fu Jingzhuo turned her head to look at them.
Her expression gradually cooled down.
She slightly raised her eyebrows, and her tone was filled with an unshakable coldness.
“Sir, if I remember correctly, Mr. Xiao’s banquet only invited businessmen in the industry and their families. I don’t know when a lover who can’t see the light has become a family member.”
Luo Chen was publicly humiliated by his idol but couldn’t refute at all.
He could only look at Yan Ruochu for help.
But Yan Ruochu’s eyes were always fixed on me.
Her eyes were filled with surging emotions.
“Xiao Yan, do you know what you’re doing? Do you know that you still have a wife? Are you trying to openly cheat now?”
“Figure out your own identity. Can you really bear the consequences of being so willful?”
I suddenly laughed.
“Yan Ruochu, we’re as bad as each other. Neither of us should blame the other. But there’s one thing you might have misunderstood. For me, the consequence of separation is only a happy ending for everyone.”
Yan Ruochu was obviously angry.
She had never been treated like this by me before.
“Do you know that as long as I lift a finger, I can make you unable to survive in Beijing City!”
I impatiently interrupted her.
“Really? Are you sure the Yan family has such great power?”
10
“What do you mean?”
Yan Ruochu had always looked down on me. Even in the year when she loved me the most, she only regarded me as a target to conquer.
It was too late when I woke up.
At this time, my father had already stood beside me.
He cleared his throat and announced loudly in the shocked eyes of everyone:
“For a long time, my son didn’t like business and didn’t like being disturbed too much by others, so his identity was almost kept a secret from me. But I didn’t expect that my son, Xiao Yan, would be insulted like this by others.”
“Today, I’m going to officially introduce Xiao Yan to everyone here. He’s my son and the only heir of the Xiao family in Hong Kong City.”
As soon as the words fell, the whole audience was in an uproar.
I stared at those eyes that had just been full of ridicule and contempt, and now they were all replaced with disgusting flattery.
I suddenly laughed.
Even Yan Ruochu beside me was so shocked that she was dumbfounded and didn’t come back to her senses for a long time.
“Xiao Yan… Xiaoyan… How many things have you been hiding from me!”
I shifted my gaze to Yan Ruochu.
I didn’t quite understand where her current anger came from.
If it was about deception, perhaps the only time was at the very beginning when I was about to tell my identity, and she proudly raised her head and covered my mouth with her hand.
“Xiao Yan, I like you. Whether your family is poor or rich, we’ll always be together.”
Three years ago, I was such a silly love-struck fool.
I easily believed such nonsense, gave up my booming creative career, gave up hundreds of millions of family property, and rushed to what I thought was love without hesitation.
I didn’t finish college, but it wasn’t because of poverty.
It was because I had something I really wanted to do. I willfully dropped out of school and focused on writing songs.
Actually, I later went to the Berklee College of Music for further studies. It’s just that no one knew about this experience.
It was also there that I met my junior sister Fu Jingzhuo. Under the teacher’s instruction, I wrote many songs for her, which helped her become the hottest performer with just these songs.
All these things, I had thought about telling Yan Ruochu.
But the little princess was spoiled since she was a child and was always lawless.
She only had a special preference for me and treated me differently. It seemed that to prove this preference, she didn’t allow me to talk about those pasts to show off her feelings.
I foolishly thought that this was love and was always looking forward to the so-called forever.
My father once advised me that people are realistic and told me not to make judgments so easily.
But I was stubborn.
Finally, I lost everything.
When I walked out of the banquet hall, there were reporters surrounding the door.
They surrounded me and Yan Ruochu with their cameras.
“Miss Yan, Mr. Xiao, may I ask if your marriage has been a fake one without any real feelings all along, and that’s why you each have a lover outside?”
I looked at the camera and answered calmly,
“Since you are reporters, you can go and investigate deeply. Miss Yan’s relationship with that college student started half a year ago. As for me and Jingzhuo, although we knew each other long ago, we hadn’t met since graduation. We got in touch again just a month ago.”
These words were all announcing a fact to the outside world that Yan Ruochu betrayed our marriage first, and that was why we finally walked on the path of a marriage that existed in name only.
11
After that, I was caught in a huge and drawn-out tug-of-war with Yan Ruochu.
After knowing the truth, the Yan family didn’t allow us to divorce and sent several groups of people to be lobbyists one after another.
What Yan Ruochu seemed to care more about was my relationship with Fu Jingzhuo.
She came to make a scene with me several times as if she was the one who was betrayed and hurt first, crying bitterly and tearing up the divorce agreement I had drafted right in front of me.
I watched her go crazy calmly, without any waves in my heart.
Unexpectedly, Luo Chen came to me aggressively.
“Xiao Yan, you’ve always been looking at me and laughing from a high position in the dark. Are you having a great time?”
I looked at this young college boy in front of me, feeling a bit speechless.
“I’m looking at you and laughing? Was it me who made you be a male mistress? Was it me who made you want to take shortcuts instead of being a good person? Wake up, classmate. Besides those muscles you show off, what else do you have as a man?”
Luo Chen’s face turned red from my sarcasm.
“Now sister is desperately trying to make up with you and won’t even answer my calls. Xiao Yan, it’s all because of you. You’re already with Fu Jingzhuo, so why are you still clinging to sister!”
I interrupted him and raised my eyebrows with a smile,
“Yan Ruochu refuses to let go because she doesn’t want to admit her failure. And you were dumped because after the passion faded away, you don’t have any value to be used at all and you’ve become just an obstacle. So wake up.”
After saying that, I called the security guards and had him driven out directly.
Then I called in the legal team of the group.
“Use your best skills and get me divorced from Yan Ruochu as soon as possible.”
In the following days, Yan Ruochu still wouldn’t give up and kept contacting me.
Sometimes she would recall our sweet past, and sometimes she would try to coerce or bribe me.
Fu Jingzhuo nestled in my arms and took my phone from my hand.
“Ruochu, have some self-respect.”
Yan Ruochu screamed angrily, “Fu Jingzhuo, who’s the one without self-respect? I regarded you as my friend, but you stole my man. As long as I don’t divorce, you two can’t be together openly!”
I finally got a bit tired of this tug-of-war.
“Yan Ruochu, although the Yan family’s business is big, it’s not without flaws. Moreover, just in terms of funds, it’s not beneficial at all to oppose the Xiao family. For the sake of our past as husband and wife, let’s part on good terms.”
12
Yan Ruochu just wouldn’t listen to reason.
She went even further.
She hired a lot of reporters to smear the relationship between me and Fu Jingzhuo and even spread false information online, trying to ruin Fu Jingzhuo’s performing career.
I looked at the materials handed over by the lawyer and raised my hand to rub my temples.
“Release them all.”
Then, when the public opinion reached its peak, a lot of information about Yan Ruochu’s cheating started pouring into the Internet.
It turned out that besides Luo Chen, there had been quite a number of young male college students she had been in relationships with.
During the three years of our marriage, it had never stopped.
At this time, some people remembered the news of her showing off her relationship with Luo Chen in various occasions before. At that time, everyone’s focus was on mocking me as a useless live-in son-in-law who couldn’t earn his own keep, but they all ignored that loyalty should be the foundation of marriage.
Whether rich or poor.
All of a sudden, the public opinion turned around.
Many radical netizens even went to Beijing University and collectively reported the moral corruption of the students there with their real names.
Beijing University couldn’t bear the pressure and issued a public statement, directly expelling Luo Chen.
Luo Chen was at the end of his rope and found Yan Ruochu. He knelt down, grabbed her skirt, and cried, saying that she was all he had left.
Yan Ruochu was so annoyed that she kicked Luo Chen away.
The two of them started fighting in broad daylight.
After all, Yan Ruochu was a woman and couldn’t beat the tall and strong Luo Chen. Soon her blouse was torn, her hair was pulled out, and she was running around in a mess trying to escape.
It was only when her assistant arrived that the situation was brought under control.
The assistant sent Luo Chen, who had started the fight, to the police station. Using all the connections of the Yan family, they made sure he had a criminal record and completely ruined his future.
But things were far from over. The onlookers around had already taken the whole process with their mobile phones and posted it online.
Now the public opinion reached a boiling point with everyone being extremely angry.
The stock price of Yan’s Group dropped by the limit for several consecutive days and finally couldn’t hold on anymore.
Mr. Yan sent a negotiation representative to discuss the divorce with me.
At the negotiation site, I saw Yan Ruochu who looked haggard. She had lost a lot of weight and was listless.
“Xiao Yan, you can’t do this to me.”
Yan Ruochu still stubbornly refused to agree to the divorce, crying and making a scene without caring about her image at all. It seemed that only now did she suddenly realize her love for me.
Little did she know that I had already seen through her.
Those malicious and selfish possessive feelings were all out of unwillingness.
So, I took out my trump card.
The notice of the comprehensive suspension of all the projects invested by the Yan family in Hong Kong City was placed on the table.
Mr. Yan’s eyes were bloodshot, and he was so angry that he almost went crazy. He slapped Yan Ruochu hard on the face as she kept making noise.
“Enough! You beast!”
Yan Ruochu was shocked and stared at her father dumbfounded. She couldn’t make a sound for a long time.
Finally, under the coercion of the Yan family, she signed her name on the divorce agreement.
13
During the divorce cooling-off period, I didn’t see Yan Ruochu again.
No matter how many tearful messages or voice messages she sent begging for forgiveness, I didn’t reply, nor did I block them. I just let them lie in my phone, ignored.
During this period, besides dealing with the daily work of the Xiao family, I spent almost all my time creating new music.
Fu Jingzhuo had been staying by my side, and her quiet company made me feel at peace.
On the day when my new music piece was released, I went to get the divorce certificate with Yan Ruochu.
Standing at the entrance of the Civil Affairs Bureau, she looked at me with teary eyes, as if she was really deeply in love.
“Xiao Yan, I just realized that I actually love you. I was so childish before and didn’t cherish you well. But now I really understand. Can you let me pursue you again?”
I felt extremely disgusted and interrupted her mercilessly.
“Don’t ever show up in front of me again, Yan Ruochu. Our marriage was a huge stain in my life. I feel so sorry for myself.”
After saying that, I turned around and left.
Behind me, the woman was crying as if her heart was broken.
14
Once my music album was released, it became an instant hit.
Fu Jingzhuo’s new round of concert tours was also put on the agenda.
Only this time, we would walk onto the stage together.
Two years later, after the last concert of the tour, I proposed to Fu Jingzhuo on the stage.
Under the spotlight that attracted everyone’s attention, she smiled as beautifully as a flower.
“Brother, I still say the same thing. Choosing me won’t be wrong. I’ll never betray you.”
(The End)
