Chapter 28: What Do You Amount To
Liang Zhengzhi sat at his desk reviewing documents when the office door opened. Zhu Yuanyuan placed coffee on the desk, saying, “Brother Liang, here’s fresh coffee.”
Without looking up, Liang Zhengzhi responded, “Mm, just leave it there.”
Instead of leaving, Zhu Yuanyuan sat across from him and asked, “Are those documents really that interesting?”
When Liang Zhengzhi looked up, he noticed she had removed her jacket. She wore a black lace dress with a see-through design at the chest, showing off her curves. The dress was perfectly tailored at the waist, emphasizing how slim it was. The hem hit right at the top of her thighs.
Liang Zhengzhi felt heat rush through him and couldn’t focus on the documents anymore. He put them down and got up to lock the office door.
Zhu Yuanyuan’s face looked delicately vulnerable, and her outfit made her irresistible. Her hands moved to his belt buckle, then to the buttons on his chest.
Liang Zhengzhi lifted her onto the desk and kissed her, holding her chin. He then carried her to the floor-to-ceiling window.
“People can see us from below, Brother Liang~ We can’t~”
“We’re on the thirtieth floor. No one can see.”
[…]
Shen Yuchun lay in the bathtub with her eyes closed. She only got out when the water turned cold, dried off, and put on a bathrobe. Her phone had been ringing non-stop.
She answered the call.
“Send me 300,000 yuan.”
Shen Yuchun paused before speaking: “Didn’t I just send you money recently? Why do you need more now?”
“That little bit you sent before? It’s long gone. Your brother is getting married and needs another 300,000. Send it quickly.”
“I don’t have any money, Mom.”
“No money? How is that possible? You married into the Liang family – how could you not have money? Fine, so you don’t even see me as your mother anymore. My words mean nothing to you now. You won’t even lend me money. Are you trying to drive me to death? Is that what you want?”
“…”
“How did I end up so unlucky? I raised such an ungrateful child. You marry a rich husband but watch your own brother unable to even get married. You’re so heartless! How did I give birth to such a daughter?”
“You know this is about his wedding – his wedding has nothing to do with me. Why should I have to pay for his wedding? Haven’t you taken enough money from me already? Isn’t the monthly living expense I send you enough? What do you want me to do? What exactly do you want from me?” Shen Yuchun was practically shouting by the end.
“Then consider this Mom begging you. Just lend me 300,000 so your brother can get married, okay?”
Shen Yuchun replied helplessly: “I don’t have money. I’ve said it many times. I don’t have money. Stop calling me. I’ll send your living expenses on time.”
“If you won’t send the money, I’ll ask my son-in-law directly.” Cui Baozhi thought that even if Shen Yuchun wouldn’t give it, Liang Zhengzhi would.
Hearing that Cui Baozhi would call Liang Zhengzhi, Shen Yuchun compromised: “Give me some time. I’ll transfer the money to your card. Don’t call me again.”
After hanging up, Shen Yuchun leaned back on the sofa and scrolled through her entire phone contact list, only to realize she had very few numbers she could call to borrow money from. Over the years, while Liang Zhengzhi had given her material wealth, she never fit in with the wealthy wives’ social circle and eventually stopped trying. During their marriage, Liang Zhengzhi’s outward display of being gentlemanly and considerate toward her had made those wealthy wives reconsider her. But their interactions remained mostly superficial flattery.
After much hesitation, she called a woman she often socialized with. The call was quickly answered.
“Hello, Mrs. Wang.”
“Yuchun, what’s wrong?”
Shen Yuchun hesitated before explaining why she called: “Could I borrow some money from you?”
The woman on the other end clearly laughed before feigning surprise: “Borrow money? Your husband is so rich, why would you need to borrow from me?”
After Shen Yuchun’s silence, the woman continued: “Haha, you didn’t actually think I wanted to be friends with you, did you? It was all for your husband’s sake. Everyone in our circle knows you and Liang Zhengzhi are getting divorced. Without Liang Zhengzhi, what are you worth?”
The woman’s tone was mocking. Shen Yuchun silently hung up.
Back when she married Xu Hengyu, her family strongly opposed it. Xu Hengyu treated her well and often helped her family financially, which was why Cui Baozhi eventually warmed up to him. Later, when Xu Hengyu’s business grew, Cui Baozhi finally accepted him as her son-in-law and would often brag to her friends about how her daughter married a rich husband.
Then Xu Hengyu went bankrupt, and Shen Yuchun divorced him immediately. Cui Baozhi called her heartless for abandoning their child so easily, saying Xu Hengyu had made good money before and was just scammed – he could surely recover. Shen Yuchun didn’t want to endure the hardship with him, nor did she want to raise a child alone. She then married Liang Zhengzhi, whose family wealth far exceeded Xu Hengyu’s. This made Cui Baozhi happy again, saying her previous choice was right – if she had kept the son, she couldn’t have married so well.
Over these years, Cui Baozhi had taken plenty of money from her. Beyond the monthly living expenses, she kept asking for more and more – from hundreds or thousands initially to demanding tens of thousands at a time. In their eyes, Liang Zhengzhi was a big company boss with endless money, and these amounts were nothing to him.
If she told Cui Baozhi now that Liang Zhengzhi was cheating and she wanted a divorce, she could already imagine what horrible things Cui Baozhi would say. She’d either tell her to endure it and not divorce, or curse her for choosing wrong before – abandoning Xu Hengyu and their son, only to marry the wrong person? Serve you right that he treats you badly.
Sitting on the sofa, Shen Yuchun felt like she was about to break down. A person came to mind, and she opened her phone to dial a number.
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