Chapter 60
Disordered breathing sounded in her ears. Tong Yufei's mouth was blocked tightly. She had bitten his lips, but she couldn't bear to bite them with all her strength. She could feel his depressed mood, but she was more worried about tomorrow's interview. If she provoked him to bite back, her work would be delayed if she got disfigured. The four indicators of performance appraisal, "morality, ability, diligence and performance", flashed before her eyes. The salary and bonus that supported their livelihood had to be used to pay rent and support her and her brother.
She gasped between breaths, "We're all getting divorced."
"I've noticed you're always confusing things, attacking people instead of things. You didn't say you'd give one free when we got married, and now that things have gone wrong, instead of actively negotiating, you're threatening divorce? If I really wanted to confront you head-on, I doubt you'd be able to continue working as a journalist." His voice was slightly hoarse, and his fingers, as if possessed of a thought, reached into their usual haunts. "I won't escalate the situation; I'm attacking the issue instead of the person. You should learn from me. For example, before our divorce, you and I were still husband and wife. We still have to do what couples should do occasionally."
Under his well-prepared and fiery attack, her resistance gradually collapsed, and only a faint murmur escaped from her lips: "How can a great doctor be so shameless as to force others to… educate… What about your education… You've read so much that it's like a dog's stomach."
"It's just a degree. Why are you talking to me about morality and honor now?" He bit the cartilage on her chest, grinding it and grinding it, making her feel like a thirsty fish. Her lips parted slightly, waiting for the rain and dew to moisten them. When the tide of passion was overwhelmed, he suddenly stopped, looked down at her and said, "Your mouth is tough, but your body is even more shameless than mine."
She suppressed the surging anger in her heart and sneered against his chest: "Do you want to regret it?"
He straightened the corner of her mouth: "Beg me?"
"You're dreaming."
"Of course you won't beg, you're in a hurry to be your adoptive father's daughter-in-law." His tone was light, but every word was like poison. "Then you have to exercise more in the future. Marrying a big fool and giving birth to a little fool, how can you be in poor health? Use your left hand to wipe your husband's rice residue, and your right hand to wipe the child's saliva. If you give birth to twins, oh, you can only grow three heads and six arms. All three are your treasures. Which one should you feed first? The older one is making a fuss, and the younger one is crying. How can you take care of them? You don't even need to eat. Your saliva alone can fill a bowl of soup. But no matter what, you have a husband and children to keep you warm, and the Ye family is at least prosperous and lively."
"A fool is a thousand times better than a scoundrel like you. If God has eyes, you deserve to be without descendants."
She cursed with gritted teeth and bit his arm that was across his chest, but he predicted it.
He rolled over and hugged her, pinching her cheek and pressing it into the pillow. "Before I die, you'd better stop scolding me like that, or you'll get the last retribution." He propped his elbow up to support his chin and looked at her. He could barely make out her outline, but he could sense her fury. "Isn't that enough? If you live with him, whether you marry him or not, there will be more nasty spit waiting to drown you. Bite it back one by one? Even if you bite your mouth off, will it stop the endless gossip?"
"I can't block it, and I'm not dead."
"But you don't have to live like this." He rubbed her red cheek and softened his tone. "Have you read Eileen Chang? She wrote in her essays that life is a gorgeous robe crawling with lice. This can also describe marriage. In fact, it's just like that. The so-called running-in is nothing more than grinding off the edges to tolerate each other. How many couples love each other madly, but in the end, they don't break up, just living together. It's cleaner for us to live this way, so we don't have to blame each other for infidelity in the future. Since marriage is jumping from one trouble to another, why bother? Five years ago, you knew nothing about me, but you dared to marry me. Now you're asking for a divorce, isn't it? Solve the problem if there is one. Don't be like a child, crying and making a fuss when you can't have candy."
The light cast the overlapping silhouettes of the two people on the wall, like two clay dolls that were smashed and then barely glued together.
He continued, "I've contacted a rehabilitation hospital that accepts patients with family members. You can send Ye Yimo there, and I'll pay for his care. I'll just treat the past as a sign that you're young, so I won't bother with you."
Tong Yufei laughed out loud while trembling. He said so much, but in the final analysis, he just wanted to express that he did not desire marriage, but since he was married, he had to continue this decent marriage to deal with the views of his family and the world. So he wanted to keep her who was the most convenient, who could meet the most basic needs without being in love, and avoid many disputes. But her abnormal brother broke this "convenience", so she had to be sent to a corner where he could not see her, so as not to bother him all the time.
He was so afraid of trouble, hadn't he forced her to sign the divorce agreement? Now that he didn't want to divorce, trouble became a panacea.
This ironic cycle made her laugh out louder and higher, as if her funny bone was pinched, and the laughter echoed layer by layer in the quiet night.
He took a deep breath and asked, "What are you laughing at?"
"Is your brain frozen because you study refrigeration equipment all day? My brother never goes anywhere and only follows me. You don't care about me, but what are you arguing about? Are you arguing about me taking care of my own brother, or are you arguing about your ridiculous face that requires me to abandon my relatives to fulfill your wish? Do you think I divorced just because of Ye Yimo? I lived well in the five years you were away, but after you came back, in just this one year, I endured it every day, but I couldn't bear it anymore."
"So, I've never made you hesitate between choices?"
She answered simply: "Not even a second."
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Mo Daoyan stayed up all night in the study, and his throat felt bitter and dry.
The whole family had breakfast together. Tong Yufei got up an hour early and made some golden and crispy scallion pancakes. Mo Daoxing lowered his head to eat the pancake, reluctantly saying that he would not be able to eat her scallion pancakes after he went abroad. Tong Yufei smiled and teased him that he would not be coming back. This was true, but when he returned, she might no longer be his sister-in-law, but as long as he still called her "sister", she would still be willing to make him a bite.
Mo Daoxing was going abroad, and she might not be able to see him off at the station, so she prepared a gift in advance: a dark blue silk tie with small flowers and a four-leaf clover brooch. Mo Daoxing knew that her salary was not high, and this gift must have cost a lot of money. He felt a little warm in his heart: "Sister-in-law, I have read all the articles you have written. You will definitely become a good reporter."
She sincerely wished Mo Daoxing well: "You will also become a famous musician both in China and abroad."
Mo Daoxing finished the last bite of his pancake in confusion: "Is fame really that important?"
Meng Ruqing patted his head and said, "What are you thinking about all day, little guy? You're leaving soon."
After dinner, Meng Ruqing went to help old lady Mo pack her luggage. She worked overtime until very late last night, and took a special leave today to find time to send the old lady to Changsha with Mo Changlin. Tong Yufei wanted to help, but Mo Changlin called her into the study and pointed to the gift boxes of cigarettes and alcohol piled in the corner. He said that the factory had replaced the new machines and the efficiency had improved. Some material benefits were given to the employees, as well as those given out during the National Day. He asked her to take some to Tong Jianzhong, and if he couldn't carry them, he should ask Mo Daoyan to send them over.
She said she didn't want anything: "Dad, I can't accept your things. You don't have to take special care of my sister and brother-in-law's business in the future. If it's doing well, we can continue to cooperate. If it's not doing well, we should give it to more capable people."
"How can you not understand, kid? These things aren't for you, they're for your father. Your sister and brother-in-law are pretty conscientious. Those leftovers are completely scrapped. They weren't worth much to begin with, and they're taking up space in the warehouse. Finding a professional scrapping company is another significant expense. The factory is worried about having no place to deal with them... No more talking, take them away quickly. Don't be so polite in the future. Your in-laws are not outsiders. I have to go warm up the car. It's a day and a night to drive from Xicheng to Changsha."
She decided to make it clear that although Mrs. Mo was in poor health and couldn't tell others, it would be better to tell others clearly so that they could gradually reduce contact and no longer have to accept other people's kindness in vain: "Daoyan and I are getting a divorce. From now on, my family and I will be outsiders. Thank you for your care over the years. Please take care of yourself."
Mo Changlin was stunned. "Did that bastard bully you? Tell Dad and he'll take care of it for you..."
"He didn't bully me. We just had a personality clash. We worked it out."
After Tong Yufei left the room, Mo Changlin went straight to the second floor.
Before Mo Daoyan could tie his tie, Mo Changlin pulled it off with such force that it seemed as if he was going to break his neck.
Mo Changlin's fingers were shaking as he launched into a barrage of abuse, "Dressing up like a gentleman, who are you trying to show off to? You're actually flirting with other women out there, you've lost your mind. In terms of looks, isn't your niece pretty? Yufei is on her level, and her character is impeccable. Who wouldn't praise her for being virtuous and sensible? Her education isn't as good as yours, but she's also a college student, so how can that be considered bad? I know you have a thorn in your heart and think she's unattainable, but you're totally wrong! Her education isn't as high as yours, but does education mean everything? Haven't you read her articles? Could you write something like that? Different fields are like different worlds. Don't judge people with your old-fashioned eyes and look down on them! Where can you find another girl like her? You don't even look down on women in this world, and you're looking for a fairy who drinks dew?"
Mo Daoyan took the tie back from his father: "I don't have any foxy feelings, and I'm not looking for a fairy."
"Why are you getting a divorce if there's no fox? You're talking about personality incompatibility? If you say your personality is bad, then just say your personality is bad. What's the point of saying incompatibility? Yufei's personality shouldn't be too good. Everyone can get along well with her, but you can't. Why don't you look for the reason within yourself?"
"We should treat everyone equally. Divorce is a matter between two people, why are you blaming me for everything?"
"If it's not you, then it could be her..." Mo Changlin seemed to have discovered something incredible. He was so shocked that he didn't react for a long time. "Shi Yu insisted on getting a divorce. She doesn't even want you. How powerful a man did she find?"
Although these words sounded like compliments, Mo Daoyan couldn't be happy. If she really climbed to a higher branch, maybe he would accept her.
Mo Changlin scratched his hair. "So there's no third party involved? That's even worse. It's better to be alone than to be with someone who's not your friend. She'd rather be alone than with you. You're the 'bad' one. Mo Daoyan, Mo Daoyan, how did you end up like this?"
Mo Daoyan's Adam's apple rolled, but he couldn't utter a word. Mo Changlin immediately understood about 70% of it.
"Don't be so stupid and clueless. It's already this late. Just tell me straight out. Do you want to live with me? If you do, you'll want to find a way to get her back. What she just said clearly shows that she doesn't want to go home anymore. Do you have to wait until she's gone far away and remarried before you start to get angry? You've been used to being superior since childhood. This is both a blessing and a curse. The blessing is that hard work always pays off, and the curse is that you think you can get everything in return. Just raise your hand and others should follow your will. It's easy to get what you want. But the human heart is not an award, certificate, or bonus. It's flesh and blood and has feelings. If you want to keep someone's heart, you have to give your own heart first."
Mo Changlin put his hands behind his back and sighed.
"Yu Fei is a fierce child at heart! Do you think she's idle all day sewing? She's just trying to please your grandma. It's not your grandma who's controlling her, it's she who's controlling your grandma. First, you need to gain a foothold and make plans before you act. Just because you have enough food and clothing doesn't mean you shouldn't strive for progress. Take those newspapers at home, for example. Your mom and I can't finish reading them all at work, so why would we subscribe to them at home? She subscribes to them all, including the opera newspaper that your grandma reads. She wants to be a journalist, so she can't keep up with the times. Were those articles written on a whim? She's been secretly preparing for years, fighting for her dignity. Some people would rather starve to death than fight for it. She's just betting on it now. You two don't understand each other well. Think about it carefully and ask yourself if you still want to be with her. If you do, go to her world and truly understand her. If you don't want to, don't waste her time. After all, a good girl like her will never have trouble finding a husband."
Mo Daoyan tied his tie again: "I didn't say divorce."
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