Chapter 52 It's better to be separated
(Bonus chapter is here!)
At night, Zhao Fei applied iodine to the wound on his forehead, settled Zhao Yidi who was having nightmares, and went to the east wing.
Wen Xiaoxiao leaned against the headboard, her eyes unusually clear.
"Brother," she spoke first, "I'm determined to get a divorce."
Zhao Fei nodded: "It's good that you're divorced. Think it through, I support you."
“I’m going to give birth to this child too.” Wen Xiaoxiao placed her hand on her lower abdomen, her tone carrying a cold stubbornness. “He said it’s a bastard, but I’m going to give birth to it anyway. I’ll make this child call someone else ‘Dad’ for the rest of his life.”
Zhao Fei held her cold hand: "If you get a divorce, I'll marry you. I'll give you and the children a home."
Wen Xiaoxiao's tears welled up instantly: "But what if this child is Zhao Qingda's..."
"Any child you give birth to is my, Zhao Fei's, child," Zhao Fei said firmly. "I will love them as my own."
The next morning, Zhao Fei went out and found that his van had several rotten eggs smeared on the windshield, and the words "mistress" were crookedly written on the body of the van in charcoal ash.
He expressionlessly fetched water and wiped the car clean, then drove to the pig farm.
In the morning, Zhou Lanying returned from her hometown and was stopped by Aunt Liu as soon as she entered the alley.
"Oh, Sister Lanying, you're back! It's incredible!" Aunt Liu slapped her thigh. "Yesterday, the Zhao brothers got into a fight! Qingda said Xiaoxiao is pregnant with Zhao Fei's bastard child and wants a divorce! They fought right there in the yard, it was really fierce!"
Zhou Lanying clicked her tongue, thinking to herself, "This day has finally come."
She walked quickly back to the courtyard house, and before she even entered, she heard a huge commotion inside.
Zhao Qingda was dragging Wen Xiaoxiao out by the arm: "Let's go! Let's go to town now! Divorce!"
"Let me go!" Wen Xiaoxiao struggled.
"Let go of my sister!" Wenbin rushed in, shoved Zhao Qingda aside, and shielded Wen Xiaoxiao behind him. "Zhao Qingda! How dare you show your face here?!"
Zhao Qingda pointed at Wenbin: "Wenbin, mind your own business! She cheated on me, it's only natural for me to divorce her!"
"You're the one who cheated on me!" Wenbin's eyes were bloodshot with rage. "My sister is innocent, it's you who's a scumbag! I'm going to beat you up today!"
The two started fighting.
Wenbin was strong, and he punched Zhao Qingda right in the eye, leaving a bruise.
Zhou Lanying quickly stepped forward to break up the fight: "Stop fighting! Stop it!"
Wenbin was pulled back, still panting heavily as he glared at Zhao Qingda.
Wen Xiaoxiao grabbed Wenbin's arm, looked at Zhao Qingda who was covering his eyes, and said, word by word, "Brother, stop hitting him. I can't live like this anymore, I'm divorcing him."
She turned to Zhao Qingda: "You don't need to rush me, let's get a divorce right now."
Zhao Qingda sneered: "Fine! That's great! Let's go!"
Wenbin roared, "Fine, let's get a divorce! But let me tell you, Zhao Qingda, your Zhao family won't get a single child!"
"I never wanted her in the first place!" Zhao Qingda spat. "A little girl is a waste of money, and a bastard child is an even bigger scourge! Whoever wants her can have her!"
"You bastard!" Wenbin rushed up again and slapped Zhao Qingda a few times.
Zhao Qingda was beaten so badly that he had no chance to fight back.
"Brother!" Wen Xiaoxiao grabbed him tightly, "It's not worth it for him. Let's go."
She went back into the house to get her household registration book and marriage certificate, and said to Zhou Lanying, "Auntie, could you please watch the child?"
Zhou Lanying nodded worriedly: "Xiaoxiao, have you thought it through?"
"I've made up my mind." Wen Xiaoxiao straightened her back. "This marriage should have ended a long time ago."
She followed Zhao Qingda outside, while Wenbin followed behind, worried.
In the courtyard, Yi Zhen and Yi Bao seemed to sense something and suddenly burst into tears. Wen Xiaoxiao paused, but didn't turn around.
Zhao Qingda glanced back at the crying child, his face showing only impatience: "What are you crying for? It's bad luck."
Wenbin kicked him again: "If you can't speak properly, then shut that hole!"
The three of them left the courtyard one after the other and headed towards the Civil Affairs Bureau.
On the way, Zhao Qingda walked very fast, and Wen Xiaoxiao gritted her teeth to keep up. Wenbin followed closely beside his sister, watching Zhao Qingda warily.
"Once we're divorced, you'd better move out of my house right now," Zhao Qingda said without turning his head. "Just looking at you makes me sick."
Wen Xiaoxiao's voice was eerily calm: "Zhao Qingda, you'll regret this."
"Regret?" Zhao Qingda laughed as if he'd heard a joke. "My biggest regret is marrying you! You've wasted so many years of my life!"
Wenbin was so angry that his fists clenched so tightly they cracked, but Wen Xiaoxiao pulled him back.
Upon arriving at the marriage registration office, the staff looked at the two: Zhao Qingda had two bruises around his eyes and a scar on his face; Wen Xiaoxiao was pale and thin.
"Are you really sure? Can we mediate?" the staff member asked routinely.
"What mediation?!" Zhao Qingda slammed the marriage certificate on the table. "Get it done right now! We can't live like this for another day!"
Wen Xiaoxiao silently took out her identification documents and put them together.
The procedures were completed surprisingly quickly.
When Wen Xiaoxiao held that thin divorce certificate in her hand, she felt like she had just woken from a long nightmare.
As he walked out of the registration office, Zhao Qingda stuffed the divorce certificate into his pocket, not even glancing at Wen Xiaoxiao: "Alright, we're even. Pack your things and get out of here." With that, he turned and left.
Wenbin was so angry that he was about to chase after him, but Wen Xiaoxiao stopped him: "Brother, forget it. Let's go home."
"Go home?" Wenbin looked at his sister's pale face. "Xiaoxiao, are you really going to move out?"
Wen Xiaoxiao gripped the divorce certificate tightly in her hand, looked up at the gray sky, and said, "Let's go back first. The child is still at home."
The two walked back without saying another word.
As they approached the alley, they saw Zhao Fei's van pull up in the distance and stop in front of them.
Zhao Fei got out of the car, glanced at the divorce certificate in Wen Xiaoxiao's hand, and then at her pale face: "Is it done?"
Wen Xiaoxiao nodded.
"Get in the car, let's go home." Zhao Fei opened the car door.
Wenbin asked, "Brother Fei, you know everything?"
"I guessed it." Zhao Fei's voice was deep. "Let's go back first, the children are waiting."
On the bus, Wen Xiaoxiao kept looking out the window.
The alley was still the same alley, the courtyard house was still the same courtyard house, but she knew that from today onwards, everything would be different.
Zhao Fei glanced at her in the rearview mirror and said, "Keep the divorce certificate safe. Don't worry about anything else."
Wen Xiaoxiao lowered her head, and tears finally fell, landing on the divorce certificate in her hand, leaving a small wet stain.
On this day, she ended her four-year-long, painful marriage and became a divorced woman.
The road ahead is uncertain, but she knows that she has at least her brother, the man who said he would give her a home, and her two children waiting for her at home.
As the car drove into the alley, people on the roadside pointed and whispered.
Wen Xiaoxiao wiped away her tears and glanced at them.
It's better that we're divorced.
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