Chapter 3
A full seven days passed before Fu Tingchen came home again.
He carried a bouquet of roses and several bags of local snacks.
Shen Zhixia followed behind him.
Since she had returned to the country, scenes like this had become familiar.
He and Jiang Xingluo often argued over Shen Zhixia, then stopped speaking.
He would leave Jiang Xingluo alone for a few days, then reappear as though nothing had happened and casually brush the argument aside.
Now he wore that same perfunctory expression.
“You were treated unfairly last time.”
“I brought Xiaxia here to apologize to you in person.”
He gave Shen Zhixia a look.
There was resentment in her eyes, but she obligingly bent a little at the waist.
“Sister-in-law, I was wrong. I shouldn’t have called you a mistress, and I certainly shouldn’t have hit you. I was only joking.”
“I apologize. Sorry! Sorry! Sorry! Satisfied?”
She spoke the words without a trace of remorse in her eyes.
When Fu Tingchen wasn’t looking, she even mouthed “bitch” at Jiang Xingluo.
He pushed the roses into Jiang Xingluo’s arms and coaxed her with careless ease.
“There. Xiaxia’s apologized. It was a little thing, and it’s been days. You should be over it by now. Go withdraw the divorce application later.”
“You like the snacks from Jiang City, don’t you? I brought you a bit of everything on my way back from my business trip. Try them.”
As he spoke, he opened the containers.
The best parts of every dish had already been picked out and eaten.
Beside him, Shen Zhixia covered her mouth and giggled.
“Sorry, Tingchen. I was so hungry on the way here that I tried a little of each. Xingluo is so generous. She won’t mind eating my leftovers, will she?”
Fu Tingchen gave her an indulgent, helpless look, then turned to Jiang Xingluo.
“You couldn’t finish all this anyway. So she ate some. What’s the harm?”
Jiang Xingluo did not lose her temper. She only moved the roses out of her arms and looked at him.
“I hate roses.”
Red roses were Shen Zhixia’s favorite flowers.
Jiang Xingluo had always hated them after being pricked by a rose thorn.
He evidently remembered. His expression shifted, only to settle back into impatience.
“It’s a bunch of flowers. Must you make an issue of that, too?”
She did not argue. Pointing at the food, she told the maid,
“Throw away the flowers and this leftover rubbish.”
The maid did not dare move. Fu Tingchen’s face turned thunderous.
“Jiang Xingluo, you’re determined to keep making trouble, aren’t you?”
Her lips curved with a little more mockery.
“If this counts as making trouble, then I suppose I am.”
She had no wish to look at either of them again. She turned to leave.
Behind her, Fu Tingchen’s voice came, cold to the bone.
“Jiang Xingluo, I’m giving you one last chance.”
“Take the flowers, eat the food, and withdraw the divorce application yourself. Then I’ll pretend none of this happened.”
“Otherwise… refuse the way out I’m offering you now, and it may not be there when you want it.”
Jiang Xingluo did not stop.
“Thank you for your kindness, Mr. Fu. Save that way out for someone who needs it.”
Behind her came a cold laugh, furious beyond measure.
He turned to Shen Zhixia.
“Come to the family dinner with me tonight.”
She looked overwhelmed by the honor.
“Me? Tingchen, it’s a family dinner. What would I be attending as?”
He raised a hand and gently stroked the top of her head.
“As my future wife, of course.”
Jiang Xingluo looked back at him in disbelief.
His eyes stayed on Shen Zhixia.
“Xiaxia, Jiang Xingluo and I are getting divorced. Will you marry me?”
Shen Zhixia cast Jiang Xingluo a triumphant glance and cried out eagerly, without hesitation,
“Yes! I will!”
Fu Tingchen turned and met Jiang Xingluo’s paper-white face.
“You wanted a divorce, didn’t you? Who I marry afterward is none of your business.”
Her voice was slightly hoarse.
“Yes. After the divorce, you’re free to marry whoever you like, Mr. Fu. I have no say in it, and I don’t want one.”
He stared hard at her. Finally, he seized Shen Zhixia and strode out.
He left her with one sentence.
“Jiang Xingluo, don’t regret this!”