The 99th Divorce

Shen Luo’an’s heart ached when he saw how Shen Manting was avoiding him.

She appeared to be terrified of him, just as how she fled the room in fear.

“If you don’t want to sign the contract, then don’t. Let’s go home and talk it through,” Shen Luo’an offered cautiously, looking at her.

He articulated his sentences slowly, as though carefully choosing his words.

Shen Manting stared at him silently from a distance.

Shen Luo’an felt even more hurt. He looked at her from afar and confessed softly, “I know I hurl harsh words at you sometimes, but I want you to know that… you’re still charming.”

Shen Luo’an was slightly embarrassed for making that statement.

He was overwhelmed by a feeling that he had never felt before.

He inched closer to her and continued, “To be honest, your looks and your figure are now even better than before. I only said those words because I didn’t want you to compare yourself to the women on the streets.”

Shen Manting was moved. The tears that had been welling in her eyes started to fall.

How could she not know his intentions?

He had always been like that!

But she couldn’t stand him.

Not only because he had such a bad temper, but also because of the harm and the irreversible trauma he had inflicted on her.

“Let’s go home first, Manting. Mother is looking after the baby now. She has to go to work at the hospital tomorrow. Imagine if she loses her focus when performing surgery. Won’t that cause a tragedy?” Shen Luo’an moved closer to her as he spoke.

“Shen Luo’an,” Shen Manting looked at him through her bright, clear eyes, now shrouded in despair, “do you know I’ve always despised you?”

Shen Luo’an was taken aback, at a loss for words.

“I used to see you as an older brother whom I could rely on, my shelter from the storm,” Shen Manting professed, her voice choked with emotion. “But I never imagined I would have ended up in a relationship with you. I thought I could tolerate and survive the horrors of what you did to me, yet you continued to take advantage of me!”

Shen Luo’an felt his heart tremble. He stared at her in disbelief.

“I was overjoyed when you said you were going to betroth me to Ou Ming. I was relieved; I thought I was finally free from you. I would no longer be in an incestuous relationship. I lived in trepidation every day. I feared facing your parents and grandmother, who treat me as their daughter and granddaughter!”

“I was scared that they would condemn me as a lowly whore. They were kind enough to adopt me as part of the family, yet I’ve let them down by seducing their prized son Shen Luo’an! Have you ever considered my feelings? I was haunted by guilt every day!”

“At that time, Ye Youyou was still living in the family home. I addressed her as my sister-in-law, yet she was blissfully unaware that her husband ended up in my bed every night!”

Shen Manting nearly broke down. She clutched at her chest and continued, “I’ve had enough of you. I’m finally able to escape. I thought giving birth to your son would give me leverage to blackmail you and force you to offer me a sum of money and set me free…”

As she spoke, she gulped and glared at him intensely.

“But I didn’t have the heart to carry my plan through. I couldn’t bear to leave my baby. I couldn’t surrender him in exchange for my freedom. But I don’t want to be imprisoned and raped by you!”

Rape…

She had said it explicitly, provocatively.

For a moment, Shen Luo’an found himself resisting her accusation.

Shen Manting’s voice was trembling. Her petite frame, as fragile as a piece of cardboard, was swaying in the wind.

“Do you think I have the heart to give up my child? Never have I been more reluctant to leave him, but…” Shen Manting looked at him in despair, “you never treated me as a human being…”