Chapter 131: Divorce?

Chapter 131: Divorce?

"Why? Both Xia Xian and Rui Feng gave interviews!"

Zhou Xingshi glared, clearly unwilling to drop the matter unless she received a satisfactory explanation.

"It’s unseemly for a young girl to flaunt herself in public!"

Su Xier nodded emphatically, her tone dripping with false concern, as if she truly had Shen You's best interests at heart.

But wasn’t Xia Xian also a young girl? Why wasn’t she afraid of being in the public eye? And what was so wrong with it anyway? It wasn’t something shameful!

Zhou Xingshi brushed her off and eagerly ushered Shen You forward to sit down.

"Come on, interview her too! Our You You’s a star—she’s also a student at Beijing University!"

"Yes, she ranked third."

"Third?! No way! You You! You’re incredible!!! We have to tell the whole country and let everyone celebrate with you!"

Zhou Xingshi was overjoyed. It was obvious—Xia Xian and Quan Ruifeng had taken first and second place, while Shen You secured third. Their two families had swept the top three spots at Beijing University!

This was huge!

Shen You ignored her stepmother’s words. She coolly met the reporter’s eyes, ready for the interview. She simply couldn’t be bothered with her stepmother’s mind games—they were nothing more than all bark, no bite.

"Wait! You You, I really am doing this for your sake. Your dad—"

"My dad what?"

A voice cut in from the doorway. It was Shen’s father, who had just returned, along with Gao Shuang and Quan’s father.

Gao Shuang had rushed to call them earlier to share the news that all three children had been admitted. Beijing University was a prestigious institution—who in the country wouldn’t envy them? Who wouldn’t dream of becoming a student there?

Shen’s father and Quan’s father were absolutely thrilled and immediately took leave to come home. They hadn’t expected to walk in on Su Xier blocking Shen You from giving an interview.

Shen’s father pinned her with a look, as if he had already seen through her intentions.

Su Xier hadn’t expected him to return at this exact moment! Flustered, she quickly backpedaled.

"Of course your dad’s proud of you! But wouldn’t it be better to share this news with him first before telling the whole country?"

"But now that your dad is back, you can talk to him first. It doesn’t matter how you handle the interview now. I’m sorry, You You—I was just too anxious earlier. I only wanted you to tell your dad first. You’re not mad at me, are you?"

Su Xier offered a half-hearted apology, her eyes glistening with tears.

This act again.

Shen You didn’t respond, not even sparing her a glance. Instead, she turned to the reporter.

"Let’s continue, Reporter Liu."

Her voice was ice-cold. The reporter noticed the tense family vibe and mentally rewrote her angle, though she kept her expression neutral.

"Alright, let’s proceed with the interview. We’ll take some group photos afterward."

"Xia Xian and Quan Ruifeng, could you wait a little longer?"

Reporter Liu spoke gently, hoping they could spare more time—though she wasn’t sure if they were busy.

"No worries, we’ve got time. We’ll wait."

Xia Xian spoke up first. They had time to wait—they wouldn’t be heading to the police station today.

Quan Ruifeng gave a curt nod.

So Shen You continued with the interview while Shen’s father and the others stood by, waiting. Seeing Shen’s father’s thunderous look, Su Xier sweated bullets. She opened her mouth to explain but was shut down hard.

"Enough! You You is being interviewed—don’t disturb her!"

His anger was obvious. Su Xier flinched at his scolding and immediately fell silent, scrambling for an excuse to salvage the situation and regain his favor.

Gao Shuang rolled her eyes at her. Being a stepmother was difficult, but Su Xier was doing it all wrong. Shen You never gave her trouble, yet she kept scheming, her mind full of cheap ploys. Only Shen’s father still believed she was a decent stepmother and treated her well.

It seemed living a long life was essential—otherwise, you’d never know how your family and children would be treated after you were gone. Breathing beats a coffin any day!

Gao Shuang mused darkly. Once you were dead, you had nothing left.

The reporter asked many questions. After finishing with Shen You, she suddenly decided to interview Zhou Xingshi and even invited Gao Shuang and the others to share their thoughts. Raising such outstanding children was no easy task—the parents deserved recognition too.

After the interviews came the photos—headshots, then group photos, and more. It took a long time, and by the time they finished, it was pushing dinner hour.

Finally, the interview was over. The reporters packed up and prepared to leave, but Gao Shuang quickly urged them to stay for a meal.

"Please, have dinner before you go. You’ve worked hard, and it’s already mealtime."

"We can’t. We need to rush back to submit the draft. If all goes well, the article will be published tomorrow. Besides, we can’t accept even a single grain from the people—that would be bribery."

The reporters shook their heads, begging off before leaving the Quan residence.

"Thank god that’s done."

Xia Xian was worn out from all that talking today. With the reporters around, she had to perch stiffly the entire time, and her back was aching.

"I’m exhausted too. Interviews wreck you."

Even Zhou Xingshi, who wasn’t the main focus, felt wiped out—let alone Xia Xian and the others.

"But being interviewed is a good thing. It’s worth the hassle. Most people don’t even get this opportunity. Let’s eat first—we’ll all have dinner together tonight to celebrate."

Gao Shuang beamed. Earlier, she, Quan’s father, and Zhou’s mother had most dishes ready.

Zhou Xingshi’s parents had also returned. Though Zhou Xingshi hadn’t been admitted, his fiancée Shen You had, which made them happy enough to bolt home early.

Now, only Zhou Xingshi remained. But even if he got accepted, his admission notice wouldn’t arrive so soon. Still, with four top students studying together—couldn’t they carry one slacker? Three of them had secured the top three spots at Beijing University. Surely Zhou Xingshi getting into an ordinary undergraduate program wouldn’t be too difficult, right? His parents couldn’t help but feel cautiously optimistic for him.

"Rest for a bit. I’ll go check if there are any dishes left to prepare."

Quan Ruifeng shooed Xia Xian to relax while he went to help in the kitchen. His thoughtfulness had everyone cooing again.

Zhou Xingshi, not to be outdone, also went to help. He had already lost to Quan Ruifeng academically—he’d be damned if he’d slack here too!

As everyone scurried about, Shen’s father yanked Su Xier into the hall.

His tone could frost glass.

"Get out. Don’t stay for dinner tonight."

Earlier, while everyone else had been helping with the cooking—even he had pitched in—Su Xier had simply hovered uselessly on the sidelines, watching like an outsider, making no move to assist.

That's right, Shen You isn't her biological daughter. How could he have believed her words before, thinking she would treat Shen You well?

Father Shen's heart had turned cold.

Seeing that Father Shen hadn't said anything for so long, Su Xier thought his anger was slowly subsiding. She never imagined he was biding his time for this—with so many people present, singling her out to be sent away. How could she ever show her face again after this humiliation?

She gasped in disbelief,

"Is this necessary? I didn't do anything wrong! You can't treat me like this! And I even gave you a son!"

"You wouldn't actually divorce me over this, would you?"

She raised her voice, instantly drawing everyone's attention.

The kitchen chatter and clatter of cooking ceased as everyone turned to look.

Xia Xian looked on too, though if Father Shen were to divorce over this, it would seem like an overreaction. Besides, Su Xier would never agree—divorce is never simple, no matter the circumstances.

As a divorcee herself, she knew all too well how many things had to be considered before a divorce.

But if he really did go through with it, he could slowly rebuild his relationship with Shen You!

Sure enough, at the mention of divorce, Shen You couldn't help but glance over.