Fifth wedding anniversary.
He Lingchuan prepared a sumptuous candlelight dinner early, waiting for his wife Shen Yanxi to come back and celebrate, but she took her twin sons to celebrate her first love's birthday.
It even trended on social media.
He Lingchuan received the notification, his hands trembling as he clicked on it. He saw the first photo showing Shen Yanxi nestled in her first love's arms with a bright smile, even taking the initiative to kiss him on the cheek.
His twin sons were also close to the two of them, as if they were taking a family photo.
The comments section was full of well wishes.
Shen Yanxi not only made no clarification, but also liked the top comment that referred to Zhou Mingyan as "President Shen's husband" and wished their family of four a long and happy life together.
He Lingchuan felt his blood run cold and a sharp pain shot through his heart.
He gritted his teeth and called Shen Yanxi to question her: "Didn't you say you were working overtime last night? What's the meaning of that trending topic?"
Shen Yanxi said calmly, "Why are you reacting so strongly? Mingyan just returned to the country not long ago. We've been apart for a long time, so isn't it only right that I spend his birthday with him?"
He Lingchuan's heart sank, and he wanted to ask, "What about him?"
Before he could speak, his youngest son, He Nanchen, came through the phone with an impatient voice: "Dad, why are you always such a spoilsport? Uncle Zhou is so much better. I'm thinking of getting a new dad."
"that is."
The eldest son, He Beichen, chimed in, "We're going out to play with Uncle Zhou today, so please don't call and bother us again."
After saying that, the other end of the line hung up.
He Lingchuan stared at the phone that had been hung up, his heart sinking to the bottom.
It wasn't until the city lights came on that Shen Yanxi returned with her two children, along with a bouquet of lilies.
She shoved the lilies directly into He Lingchuan's arms and said, "Happy anniversary! Lilies symbolize a long and happy marriage. How about that? Touched?"
He Lingchuan held the flowers, but he couldn't manage a smile.
He has asthma and is allergic to pollen. He even fainted in front of Shen Yanxi because of this before, but she seems to have no recollection of it and is asking him if he is touched.
He Lingchuan suddenly found it quite ridiculous.
He responded with a soft "hmm".
After changing their shoes, the two children came in and started yelling that they were hungry: "Dad, what are you standing there for? I'm hungry, I want to eat!"
Shen Yanxi urged him to cook for the two children, then walked into the bathroom while looking down at her phone.
He Lingchuan placed the flowers on the table, a little distance away, before saying to the two children, "I don't want to cook. If you're hungry, just order takeout."
"Oh, right, haven't you guys been wanting to eat fried chicken? You can order fried chicken."
After he finished speaking, the two children froze and looked at each other in disbelief.
Previously, He Lingchuan had always said that takeout was unhealthy, especially fried chicken and barbecue. He always strongly opposed takeout and insisted on cooking for himself. Why did he suddenly change his mind today?
After their initial shock, the two didn't think much of it and happily went to order takeout.
He Lingchuan went to the balcony and dialed Shen's mother's number.
"Mom, the five-year period is up, and I want to divorce Yan Xi!"
Shen's mother instinctively objected: "No, you two already have a child together, how can you just get a divorce like that?"
He Lingchuan looked up at the bustling night view in the distance, his voice low and almost unreal: "Zhou Mingyan is back. Yan Xi has been spending all her time with him these past few days, except for work. She clearly still can't forget Zhou Mingyan. Wouldn't it be better for me to let them be together?"
Shen's mother also saw today's trending topics, and upon hearing this, she fell silent.
After a moment, she sighed and said, "But Zhou Mingyan is not the right man for Yan Xi after all. How about this, I'll give you 10 percent of the company's shares, and you can give up the idea of divorce."
He Lingchuan firmly replied, "No need, I can leave with nothing."
He just wants a divorce; there's no place for him in this family anymore.
Mother Shen frowned and pressed, "What about the child's custody? You don't even want the child anymore?"
He Lingchuan glanced at the two children who were busy ordering takeout inside the house, and remembering what they had said earlier, he gave a soft "hmm".
“I am willing to give up custody of the children to Yan Xi. They will be happier with her.”
After all, they both wanted Zhou Mingyan to be their father and stay by Shen Yanxi's side so that they could get what they wanted.
Seeing that He Lingchuan was determined, Chen's mother could not persuade him and could only compromise: "Alright, since you think this way, I respect your choice. You've worked hard all these years."
"Thank you, Mom."
He Lingchuan thanked him, and after hanging up the phone, his thoughts drifted into memories, pulled by the wind.
When his mother was seriously ill, he tried to raise money from all over the place, and it was his mother who helped pay all the medical expenses.
When he went to thank her, he said that he would definitely repay her kindness in the future.
Mother Shen gestured for him to sit down, and said with a solemn expression, "Since you want to repay my kindness, then do me a favor now."
He learned about Shen Yanxi and Zhou Mingyan's story from Shen's mother. The two were childhood sweethearts and liked each other, dating for several years during college.
During this time, the Zhou family went bankrupt, but Shen Yanxi never abandoned Zhou Mingyan.
On graduation day, Zhou Mingyan broke up with her, saying he was not good enough for her, and left without saying goodbye to fly abroad, unilaterally cutting off all contact with Shen Yanxi.
Shen Yanxi went abroad to find Zhou Mingyan several times, but he always turned her away with cold words.
Two months later, Zhou Mingyan got a girlfriend abroad, and Shen Yanxi was completely heartbroken. She locked herself in her dark room and drank heavily, even getting stomach bleeding twice and being hospitalized.
Shen's mother asked him to play the role of Shen Yanxi's suitor, stay by her side, and help her get through this painful relationship for five years.
He Lingchuan was initially a little hesitant, but upon meeting Shen Yanxi, he agreed without hesitation, because Shen Yanxi was the person he had secretly loved for two years during college.
Over the years, he had tried his best to be good to Shen Yanxi, always thinking that he could warm her heart sooner or later.
He pursued Shen Yanxi for over a year, but the woman who had previously been indifferent to him suddenly proposed marriage, and he happily agreed.
He even left his thriving startup team for Shen Yanxi, willingly becoming the man behind her.
He later learned that Shen Yanxi had gotten together with him because Zhou Mingyan had gotten married abroad that day, and he was traumatized by it, but he didn't regret it.
Shen Yanxi wasn't particularly enthusiastic towards him, but they had two children and their life was relatively peaceful and happy.
Just when he thought things could continue like this, three months ago, Zhou Mingyan divorced and returned to China. Shen Yanxi ignored herself time and time again for him, and now even their two children are on Zhou Mingyan's side.
His passionate love slowly cooled down under Shen Yanxi's indifference until it was completely worn away.
He was a little tired and didn't want to keep going.
A gust of wind blew by, and He Lingchuan came back to his senses, picking up his phone to reply to his best friend's message.
"Okay, I promise you, I will return to the team in a month to continue AI research and development."
The person on the other end of the phone replied instantly: "Wow, really? Mr. He, you've finally come to your senses! That's something!"
He Lingchuan replied with an "Mm," then went back to his study to draft the divorce agreement.
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