Five years without pregnancy means you're too weak; I remarried a powerful man and had triplets

"Xu Zhesheng's problem has never been that he doesn't know how good I am to him."

Shen Zhiyi put down her teacup, the bottom of which gently tapped against the table, making a crisp sound.

"He knows. He just thinks that my kindness is a given. He complains that my cooking is bland, that I'm not good at handling things, and that my reasoning makes him feel frustrated. This isn't because he doesn't understand my efforts, but because deep down he feels that as a wife, that's how I should be. He enjoys everything I give him, but he has never truly respected me as a person."

Her voice didn't rise an octave, but every word was like a nail, piercing Xu Zhi's heart.

"You said you'd give him three months, and he'd change. But what will he change? His personality, formed over thirty years? His inherent selfishness? Or his sense of entitlement that 'if I just cry and lose a few pounds, you'll come back'?"

Shen Zhiyi gently shook her head, a faint smile appearing on her lips: "Uncle, you just said that people have to go through certain experiences to understand what's precious. But what Xu Zhesheng has experienced isn't enough. Right now, he's only sad because no one takes care of him, no one cooks for him, and no one manages his life. He's sad because he's lost a free caregiver, not because he's lost a wife. Do you understand the difference between the two?"

Xu Zhi opened his mouth, but his throat felt blocked, and he couldn't utter a single word.

"Give him another three months, and the result will only be that he pretends very well for the first two months, but his true colors will be revealed in the third month, and then we will have an even bigger argument and greater hurt."

Shen Zhiyi picked up her bag, stood up, and said calmly, "I don't owe him anything, Uncle. I gave him five years, and he threw it away himself. Now, it's my turn to live for myself."

She pulled out a few bills from her wallet, placed them under her teacup, glanced at Xu Zhi, and a hint of warmth finally appeared in her eyes: "This meal is on me. Consider it... an explanation for the past five years of taking good care of you and Mom."

After saying that, she turned and walked out, her steps slow but steady.

Xu Zhi originally wanted to say a few more words, but looking at the few plates of food on the table that had hardly been touched, he felt a little sorry for them and finally sighed and sat back down.

That evening, Xu Zhi returned home.

Zhang Feng was sitting on the sofa peeling fruit for Xu Zhesheng when she heard the door open. She immediately put the fruit knife down on the coffee table, got up to greet him, and asked with barely concealed eagerness in her eyes, "How did it go? How did your talk with Zhizhi go?"

Xu Zhesheng, who had been sprawled on the sofa, quickly got up to pour his father a cup of hot tea and handed it to him upon seeing him return. His handsome face was filled with anxiety: "Dad, you're back? Did you see Zhizhi? Did you talk to her? Is she alone or...?"

He asked several questions in a row, his voice clearly showing panic.

Based on his previous experience of going to see Shen Zhiyi, he always had to wait downstairs for a long time. When he finally saw her, her brows would immediately furrow, and her eyes would look as if she had seen something dirty. She would either ignore him completely or show him the kind of disgust that made his heart tighten.

Not to mention that Lu Zichuan was often standing next to her, and he couldn't even get a few complete sentences out before being ruthlessly driven away by that man.

Xu Zhi was a man of few words and had never spoken rudely to Shen Zhiyi like Zhang Feng had. He was indeed the only person in the family who could still talk to Shen Zhiyi.

If even he can't sit down and have a proper talk with Shen Zhiyi, then Xu Zhesheng is truly at his wit's end.

Xu Zhi wearily picked up his teacup and took a large gulp. Seeing his slow pace, Zhang Feng impatiently snatched the cup from his hand, slammed it on the table, and urged, "Hey old man, hurry up and tell me! When can't we drink the water?"

The water glass was suddenly snatched away, and the water that had just reached my lips dripped down my chin.

As Xu Zhi wiped his face with a tissue, he sighed helplessly, "Ah Feng, can't you change your temper? This matter was originally between Zhi Zhi and Ah Zhe, and it was because you always liked to interfere that things got so tense between them. And now you're still so impatient..."

"Alright, alright, stop nagging me! I'll definitely change what I need to change!" Zhang Feng stamped her foot impatiently. "Tell me first, how did your talk with Zhizhi go? Did she agree?"

Zhang Feng and Xu Zhesheng both looked up at Xu Zhi with expectant eyes, like two little birds waiting to be fed.

Xu Zhi clenched his fists, his Adam's apple bobbing, but he didn't know how to tell them the cruel truth.

"Dad...she didn't agree, did she...?"

Xu Zhesheng keenly noticed the hesitation in Xu Zhi's eyes, and his face instantly turned ashen. His eyes were dull and lifeless, and he stood up listlessly, as if all the strength had been drained from his body. He walked unsteadily, a sight that sent shivers down one's spine.

Seeing his son's state, Xu Zhi felt a pang of anxiety. If he were to tell him Shen Zhiyi's resolute words verbatim, the boy might truly be devastated.

He pursed his lips, reached out and grabbed Xu Zhesheng's wrist, forcing a relaxed smile: "You child, why are you just as impatient as your mother? I haven't even finished speaking!"

Xu Zhesheng turned around, forcing a smile, but it was more like a grimace, his lips trembling: "Dad... could it be that it's not what I said?"

The sound was so soft it seemed like a gust of wind could carry it away.

Xu Zhi felt even more pain in his heart, but he remained outwardly calm: "Of course not."

He cleared his throat and began to weave the white lie: "Following the address you gave me, I indeed waited for Zhizhi at the entrance of the community. When she saw me, her first reaction was not to hide, but to worry that I would be out in the cold wind, and she kept pulling me inside to sit down. But I thought that she was, after all, a girl, and it wasn't appropriate for a grown man like me to be alone at home with her, so she invited me out for a meal."

He took out his phone, pulled out a photo, and handed it to Xu Zhesheng and Zhang Feng: "Look, I even took a picture. She ordered all my favorite dishes."

That was a picture he took of the leftover food on the table after Shen Zhiyi left.

Xu Zhesheng and Zhang Feng came closer and stared at the photo carefully. Sure enough, the dishes on the table were all Xu Zhi's favorite flavors, and there were two bowls filled with rice next to them, with chopsticks neatly placed on the side of the bowls.

"Zhizhi, that child, she's tough on the outside but soft on the inside," Xu Zhi said with a touch of emotion. "She remembers all the dishes I like; she still cares about us."

"Really?" Xu Zhesheng's eyes lit up instantly, like a light suddenly illuminating the darkness. "Then...she promised not to divorce me?"

Xu Zhi thought for a moment, then carefully chose his tone and said, "She said the situation is rather complicated. Your engagement with Manman is already set, and if she says she won't get a divorce, she'll end up being the other woman, and she doesn't want that. You know she's always had a very strong sense of morality."

"I can handle this! I'll do anything as long as she doesn't divorce me!" Xu Zhesheng suddenly raised his hand, as if making a vow, or as if grasping at the last straw.

Xu Zhi looked at the renewed light in his son's eyes, his heart filled with mixed emotions, but he simply nodded: "Anyway, her attitude isn't firm. But she also said that the final decision depends on how you and our family change. If things are still the same as before, this marriage will still have to end in divorce."