Chapter 104 Divorce

Chapter 104 Divorce

Su Lan quickly exclaimed, "Pfft, pfft, pfft! Don’t say such things!"

She emphasized again, "Dreams work in reverse."

"What happens in dreams won’t happen in real life."

"Jiang Luo is fine, running his business and factory. Don't even say that word—it's bad luck."

Zhao Guangyuan's eyes filled with tears as he grew agitated. "Su Lan, it’s true. In the dream, Jiang Luo really died. That dream felt so real. I was the one who received the call from Beijing. As soon as I heard, I was completely shocked."

Zhao Guangyuan struggled to sit up in his excitement. "Su Lan, in that dream, we were awful to Jiang Luo."

"We sent Zhao Mingshi abroad but abandoned Jiang Luo."

"When Zhao Mingshi returned, we bought him a house, but Jiang Luo got nothing at all."

"In the dream, Jiang Luo treated us so well. He always put us first, no matter how busy he was, he would call us."

"But we always ignored him, disliked him, and only cared about Zhao Mingshi!"

"Guangyuan, honey."

Su Lan stood up. "Don’t get up, please, don't work yourself up!"

She hurried to support Zhao Guangyuan, keeping him from sitting up, afraid he might have another heart attack from the excitement.

"Calm down, it was just a dream."

"Dreams aren’t real."

"Just breathe and try to calm down."

Zhao Guangyuan finally managed to control his emotions and lay back down, his eyes still red and teary. "Jiang Luo died in the dream, and we were heartbroken with regret."

"After I woke up, I remembered the dream so clearly, like I'd actually gone through it all."

"I regret it too, Su Lan."

"I regret not bringing Jiang Luo back right away. We still don’t even know why he’s ignoring us."

"I truly regret it."

"I want our son back. I want Jiang Luo to come home."

"I can't just turn my back on my own flesh and blood!"

"Okay, okay."

Su Lan also regretted bringing up the topic. She should've just let him rest.

She rubbed his chest soothingly. "Dear, calm down. Don’t think about that dream anymore."

But Zhao Guangyuan pressed on urgently. "Su Lan, let’s stop worrying about Zhao Shuo and Zhao Mingshi. Let them go their own way, since they don’t listen to us anyway."

"Let’s go find Jiang Luo again, okay?"

"We’ll apologize to him, make amends to him, give him money, buy him a house—give him everything we have, everything that should have been his. Okay?"

"Okay, okay, alright. Whatever you say, we’ll do it."

Su Lan agreed, worried he might have another attack.

Finally, they stopped discussing the dream Zhao Guangyuan had described. After resting calmly for a while, Su Lan suddenly thought of something, and her eyes reddened, her nose stung with tears. Her voice breaking, she said, "I never expected Ming Ming to do something like this."

"How could he flee abroad by himself at a time like this?"

"Now that he's run off, what will we do? What about that girl? How will we explain things to her family?"

Zhao Guangyuan remained silent for a long time.

After a moment, he spoke. "Pay them off. At this point, there’s no other way. We can only make a financial settlement."

Su Lan cried, "I'm too ashamed to face them. How can I?"

"Should I say we regret it? Say we’re not taking responsibility anymore and just offer them money, and let them think what they will?"

Zhao Guangyuan calmly replied, "After I’m discharged, I'll handle it with them."

He added, "As for Zhao Mingshi, that's it. I can't consider him my son anymore. Our father-son bond ends here."

"Since he’s chosen to go abroad and be a deserter, let him be."

Su Lan was also deeply disappointed, but a part of her clung to hope. "Maybe he’ll return in a few days. With something as serious as your crisis—once he finds out, he’ll surely be worried and come back immediately."

Zhao Guangyuan didn’t share her optimism. "I wouldn't count on it."

"Go ask Zhao Shuo. Ask him if he called and told Zhao Mingshi about my hospitalization and the emergency. Ask if Zhao Mingshi would come back if he knew."

"Su Lan."

Zhao Guangyuan sighed. "I think we really did a poor job raising Zhao Mingshi."

"He's just selfish. When things happen, he only thinks of himself, never others."

This time, Su Lan couldn’t argue.

In the afternoon, when Zhao Shuo arrived, Su Lan immediately asked him in front of Zhao Guangyuan, "Ming Ming must have arrived in the U.S. by now, right? Did you call him? Did you tell him about your father’s emergency?"

Zhao Shuo shot a guilty look at Zhao Guangyuan, then at Su Lan, and said nothing.

"We’re asking you. Answer us! Now!"

Zhao Guangyuan’s tone was stern.

Only then did Zhao Shuo mumble under his breath, "I called him. I told him."

"What did he say?"

Zhao Guangyuan’s face was tense.

Zhao Shuo fell silent again.

His silence spoke volumes, and both Zhao Guangyuan and Su Lan understood.

Su Lan brought her hand to her mouth in shock and disappointment. "We raised him for nineteen years—nineteen years of love and care. His father had a medical emergency, and it was because of him! He won’t even come back to see him or show any concern?"

Shaking with anger and hurt, Su Lan gritted her teeth and said to Zhao Shuo, "Come with me to the post office! Call him this instant!"

"I must ask him what on earth he's thinking!"

"Is he even human? Does he have any conscience at all!?"

Zhao Shuo hung his head, ashamed and disappointed. "He said you guys are angry with him. If he comes back, you’ll only get angrier."

Zhao Guangyuan, ignoring his poor health, suddenly yelled, "It’s not that he’s too ashamed to come back! Nor is it about not wanting to upset us! He’s just selfish! Only cares about himself!"

"Dad!"

"Guangyuan."

Su Lan and Zhao Shuo hurried to calm him down, too frightened to say much. "Don’t get worked up, you can’t afford to."

Zhao Guangyuan’s face instantly turned purplish-red with anger. "I, Zhao Guangyuan, have no such son! None!"

On his way back to Haicheng, Jiang Luo received a call from Yu Dong.

Yu Dong said over the phone, "I’ve thought it over. You’re right—we should cut our losses."

"I’ll head back to Singapore in the next couple of days. Once I’m back, I’ll start the process of shutting down the factory right away. It might take some time."

"When I return, I’ll check in with you and start working officially."

"Okay."

Jiang Luo laughed.

Yu Dong’s tone was light and confident again, with a hint of laughter. "Just asking in advance—what kind of job does Jiang have in mind for me?"

Joking, she added, "Don’t tell me it’s working at a sewing machine in the workshop? I can’t do that."

Jiang Luo replied, "That would be a waste of your skills."

"Don’t worry, it’ll be something you’re capable of and that helps you move up."

"You’ll like it."

Just after handling Yu Dong’s situation, Jiang Luo returned to Shengfei not long after, only to find a commotion at the factory gate—a crowd had gathered, blocking the entrance so cars couldn’t pass.

"Beep! Beep!"

Old Fourth kept honking the horn.

The crowd slowly parted, clearing a path for the car.

"What’s going on?"

Jiang Luo was also puzzled.

"Not sure."

Old Fourth drove further into the factory.

When they reached the newly installed electric sliding gate, he took a closer look and thought it was odd. "Hey," he said to the back seat, "Jiang, there’s an elderly woman at the gate."

Jiang Luo glanced over and saw the elderly woman sitting on the ground. He didn’t look closely or pay much attention. "Keep moving."

The car entered the factory and parked. As Jiang Luo got out, he noticed many workers gawking curiously toward the gate, crowding around to watch the spectacle. Only then did he pay attention and asked a nearby worker, "What’s everyone looking at?"

"President Jiang."

Several workers greeted him.

One man said, "That seems to be Factory Manager Zhang’s wife."

Zhang Ningfu’s wife?

"What’s going on?"

Another worker added, "I heard they’re splitting up. Factory Manager Zhang’s wife doesn’t want to, but he insists. She came here, couldn’t get in, and started making a scene at the gate. Everyone’s watching."

Divorce?

Jiang Luo was surprised and even smirked to himself. *Zhang Ningfu has some nerve now, huh? Finally decided to shake off those leeches of a mother and son?*

Jiang Luo signaled to Old Fourth, "Fetch Zhang Ningfu. Tell him to come to my office."

Then he said to Old Third, "Go let the dogs out at the gate."

Old Third asked, "Won’t we have to pay if the dogs bite that elderly woman?"

Jiang Luo looked at him. "If you don’t follow my orders, should I dock your pay?"

Old Third immediately raised his hands in surrender, indicating he’d go right away.

Old Fourth nudged him, laughing. "You talk too much."

Jiang Luo entered his office, and Zhang Ningfu came in right behind him. Thinking it was about work, Zhang Ningfu quickly asked, "What’s up?"

"Getting a divorce?"

Jiang Luo sat down behind his desk and looked up at him.

Zhang Ningfu: "..."

Jiang Luo immediately praised him, "Nice going, pretty good. Go see the finance department—I’ll give you a 500 RMB bonus."

Zhang Ningfu: ?

Jiang Luo: "For taking the initiative to file for divorce, 500. If you keep at it, another 500. If you see it through to the end, another 500. Once it’s done and you bring me the divorce certificate, I’ll give you an extra 3,000 in cash."

Zhang Ningfu: "..."

Old Fourth, standing by the door, couldn’t stop laughing.

Zhang Ningfu frowned and looked at Jiang Luo. "Are you... making fun of me?"

"Who’s making fun of you? I’m serious."

Jiang Luo added, "When you remarry, I’ll give you another large red envelope."

He continued, "Don’t worry about that elderly woman at the gate. We’ve got the gate, the guard booth, people, and dogs—she can’t get in."

"If she wants to cause a fuss, let her. I don’t feel embarrassed."

Zhang Ningfu sighed. "I am embarrassed."

Jiang Luo scoffed and looked at him. "What do you have to be embarrassed about?"

"You have a job, a salary, and you're a legitimate Deputy Factory Manager. Who's going to laugh at you for getting a divorce?"

"Believe it or not, the moment you get that divorce certificate, there'll be a line of people trying to set you up with a new wife. They might even introduce you to someone ten years younger."

"You're not embarrassing yourself—you're coming to your senses and getting out of a bad situation."

Jiang Luo waved his hand. "Go on, go collect your money."

Zhang Ningfu still felt Jiang Luo was making fun of him. "Since when do people collect money like this?"

"Cut the crap."

Jiang Luo said, "When I tell you to go, you go." Then he raised his voice: "Fourth Brother!"

"Here!"

Fourth Brother came in, took Zhang Ningfu by the arm, and headed to the finance office: "Come on, come on, let's go together."

At the factory entrance, Zhang Ningfu’s wife was sitting on the ground, wailing and carrying on: "He must have found some woman in the factory! I’m sure of it!"

"He thinks I’m old, useless, not as young as that fox spirit in his factory!"

"You tell me if this is fair? After spending half our lives together, he wants to kick me aside, dump me, and go find some young woman."

"My life is so miserable!"

The onlookers pointed and chattered among themselves.

Suddenly, there was a series of loud barks—"Woof! Woof! Woof!"—followed by a deep, resonant shout from the diaphragm: "Release the dogs!"

The crowd immediately scattered. The old woman on the ground, thinking the dogs were coming, scrambled to her feet in a flash, cursing in her local dialect as she moved.

Several fierce dogs ran to the spot where the old woman had been sitting, barking wildly. She had already fled to a safe distance, still grumbling and cursing, and even spat contemptuously in the direction of the factory gate. "Want a divorce? Dream on!"

"I won’t agree! I won’t! I'm not making things easy for some homewrecker!"

Suddenly, she tripped, let out a sharp "Ah!", and fell face-first.