As they grow, crown-of-thorns starfish love to gnaw on corals, and can eat up to 30 feet of coral reefs in a year.

Their spines are poisonous, making it impossible for other fish to bite them. Apart from giant conch shells, they can roam freely across the seas without any natural enemies.

Chen Hong was afraid that the same devil starfish had appeared here, so she made sure to clean them up, otherwise no amount of coral would be enough for it to eat.

Chen Hong harvests fish and seafood near Diaoyu Islands, transplants red coral, and lives a thriving fishing life.

Downstairs from Chen Hong's school district apartment in Jinan.

Yu Hai looked up, but suddenly froze. Who else could the old man opposite him be but his former father-in-law, Chen Gang?

Chen Hong's father had just come downstairs and was heading to the entrance of the community to find a breakfast shop when he unexpectedly saw Yu Yang's father, his former son-in-law Yu Hai.

The old man acted as if he didn't see him, simply stepping aside and walking away.

Yu Hai only came to his senses when he saw Chen Hong's father turn and leave: "Dad, Dad... no... Uncle, Uncle Chen, what are you doing here..."

Although he felt ashamed to face the old man, Yu Hai's first reaction was to call out to him. He'd only called out "Dad" twice when he suddenly realized he shouldn't have stopped calling him that in the first place!

Watching the old man's retreating figure, Yu Hai was filled with mixed emotions. Although his mother-in-law was somewhat sexist, she always made him do a lot of chores whenever he visited.

But his former father-in-law, Chen Gang, treated him really well. He not only frequently invited him home for meals, but also gave him cotton-padded coats and leather jackets that others had given him when it was cold.

In the past few years, almost all the winter clothes he could wear outside were gifts from Chen Hong's father. The old man couldn't bear to buy clothes that cost several hundred yuan each.

Chen Hong has many relatives and friends in the city, and they often give his father-in-law new or nearly new cotton-padded coats, leather jackets, and wool sweaters.

Chen Hong's father himself is reluctant to wear them; he will first pick out styles that make him look younger and better and give them to Chen Hong.

It's been almost a year since the divorce, and although his workplace is so close to Chen Hongniang's house, he has never dared to visit her again.

When going out, I try to avoid the streets that my father-in-law and brother-in-law often pass by.

He filed for divorce because of his own infidelity, and he was truly ashamed to face Chen Hong's family.

His brother-in-law is a ruthless and unruly man, and he's afraid of getting beaten up if he runs into him. Now, he avoids anyone with a similar build from a distance.

Chen Hong's father is a kind and honest old man. Although he doesn't like to hit people, he used to be very good to him.

I'm too ashamed to face him, and I don't know how to explain it to the old man.

Back then, in order to win Chen Hong's hand in marriage, he went through several roundabout ways and asked several acquaintances to visit him.

He bought things for them and helped with chores at their home, and after a long time of trying, he finally convinced the two elders to agree to the marriage.

After Chen Hong married him, every time he went to her parents' home, he would bring back bags and bags of things.

Chen Hong's father was always worried that it would be difficult for the two young people to live a life far from home.

They brought plenty of food and supplies from home, and even the furniture for the wedding in the rented apartment was handmade by Chen Hong's father.

Thinking about the past and how good his former father-in-law had been to him, Yu Hai felt a pang of sadness.

Since the divorce, he has been living in constant fear, always worried that his brother-in-law would bring a large group of people to Jinan to settle scores with him.

Judging from my ex-father-in-law's attitude now, I don't need to worry anymore; he doesn't take me seriously at all.

Judging from Chen Hong's father's tone, it seems he's going to pretend he doesn't know her anymore.

When they suddenly met just now, he actually wanted to lower his head and pretend he didn't see them to avoid it.

But in an instant, he recalled the times he had spent with Chen Hongniang's family, and he just couldn't bring himself to do it.

It's just that I wasn't meant to be with them!

Since they treat him like a stranger, he can't force himself on them. He'll just leave it at that; life has to go on.

He had completely cleaned up the mess with Chen Hong, but when he thought about his current wife and mother-in-law, Yu Hai couldn't help but feel a headache coming on.

When in love, I find girls who are seven or eight years younger than me, lively, cute, and cheerful incredibly attractive.

Being with Liu Lan was a secret, thrilling, and tender affair. If he didn't see her for a day, he would miss her terribly.

Why is it that after finally getting married, life is such a mess? Has Liu Lan changed, or have I changed, or have we both changed?

All the beauty of dating is gone; work, housing, children, and parents are topics of daily arguments.

The daily necessities of life—rice, oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, and tea—have all transformed into the bittersweet experiences of married life!

Why have these sweet words, once used in courtship, now become a burden on love, making people want to escape?

While pondering by the sea, I went up to my colleague's apartment on the fifth floor, finished my business, and left in a hurry.

As he went downstairs, he was still thinking that his father had mentioned that Chen Hong had bought a house in this neighborhood, but he hadn't paid much attention to it at the time.

Given that Chen Hong could build a villa in the village, it's not surprising that she could afford to buy a house in Jinan.

It's close to her parents' home and is the provincial capital. Maybe her child will go to school and work here in the future. When they were born in Yang, they had already planned to save money to buy a house in Jinan.

Now, times have changed, and the family has become two families, but they have each bought houses in Jinan!

Is her father-in-law here to renovate her house, or is he an elderly person living here? I don't even know which floor her house is on, or which apartment it is.

As if afraid that a room door might open at any moment and Yu Yang would rush out calling for his father. Yu Hai felt a chill run down his spine, quickly went downstairs, and left the community.

After working half a day at his unit, Yu Hai received a call from his father: "Yu Hai, come to the city hospital quickly, Liu Lan is about to give birth!"

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!