"Haha, then why don't you two…"
Xiao Guanyun and Shen Zhaoyue, who had been holding hands and emotionally moved by each other, simultaneously turned their heads to look at their son and daughter standing side by side.
Xiao Guanyun gave an awkward smile.
"Your mother and I are serious every time we get divorced~"
Shen Zhaoyue nodded in agreement.
"Your father and I are serious every time we remarry too!"
Faced with such parents who were only good-looking but otherwise utterly unreliable, Xiao Changyan and Shen Jiaren responded with identical cold sneers. Both crossed their arms over their chests, standing in the same posture with raised eyebrows, waiting to see how their parents would save face.
Or rather, how they would explain themselves.
Among twins, identical siblings often look exactly alike, but fraternal twins rarely share complete resemblance. For example, Xiao Changyan and Shen Jiaren, aside from sharing equally brilliant minds, bore little physical similarity.
Yet standing there now, their postures, movements, and auras were perfectly synchronized—anyone could tell they were siblings.
Seeing their son and daughter angry, Xiao Guanyun grew nervous and glanced at his wife for help. But Shen Zhaoyue immediately released his hand, blinked her eyes innocently, and shook her head.
"Darling, you should explain it to the kids~ After all, Ms. Zhuge fell in love with you at first sight~"
She completely abandoned her earlier solidarity, quickly distancing herself with an "I know nothing" expression.
…
Abandoned, Xiao Guanyun stood there—tall and straight yet somewhat deflated. He tried to maintain his gentle composure, but his voice betrayed unease.
"Well… Changyan, Jiaren, your mother and I share a common dream, as you know."
"With our outstanding looks, we shine like fireflies in a crowd. Sooner or later, two wealthy individuals will recognize our beauty, fall in love with us at first sight, and insist on marrying us! Then we'll successfully marry into wealthy families! That way, both of you can live a good life too~"
He started somewhat guiltily but grew increasingly confident as he spoke. His originally refined face took on a comically fervent expression, making Xiao Changyan unable to resist rolling his eyes.
"Fireflies went extinct in cities long ago, you silly old man! They can't possibly shine in crowds! And why do you and mom make wealthy people's shallow attraction sound so romantic? What could they possibly want besides your pretty faces?"
Shen Jiaren couldn't help correcting her father's logic. To this day, she couldn't understand why two already-married, attractive adults didn't focus on building a good life together, but instead hoped for each other to successfully land a rich partner who would then support the other.
What kind of bizarre thinking was this!!
"Isn't your father's face worth coveting?" Hearing his daughter's words, Xiao Guanyun immediately straightened up, his expression perfectly controlled, instantly transforming back into the gentle lover from the restaurant.
"Besides, I have such a great figure. They could want my six-pack abs too, look…"
He actually started unbuttoning his shirt to show his well-maintained abs, startling Shen Jiaren into covering her eyes and loudly protesting.
"No no no! I don't want to see my own dad's abs! Don't ruin my love for abs, Dad!!"
Xiao Guanyun finally put his hands down with a wronged expression, then had a sudden flash of inspiration and proudly declared.
"And I don't just have abs, I also have back dimples, and my butt is so perky it can hold up…"
"Dad, my sister and I aren't adults yet, we don't need to hear your adult content. Just tell me, what's really going on with Aunt Zhuge? Do you really plan to divorce Mom and marry Aunt Zhuge?"
Xiao Changyan finally interrupted his father's self-praise, unable to resist glancing at his mother who seemed unaffected beside him.
"Mom, you must know about Dad's situation. Are you willing for Dad to marry Aunt Zhuge?"
Shen Zhaoyue, questioned by her son, immediately nodded like a chick pecking at rice.
"Willing, willing, willing."
Xiao Guanyun then looked at his son with a wronged expression, trying to salvage his dignity again.
"I've already gotten the divorce certificate with your mom. Actually, we divorced when I first met your Aunt Zhuge. If I could marry Aunt Zhuge, I'd be quite willing."
Wait, Xiao Changyan suddenly remembered those several booklets at home. He reached out, rubbing his temples with difficulty, and looked at his mother.
"Mom, tell the truth. You and Dad have divorced eight times in total, with marriage and divorce certificates piled up like a small mountain. When Jiaren and I asked you before why you kept divorcing, you said it was for fun. What was the real reason?"
Thinking of that abstract outcome, Xiao Changyan felt his temples throbbing violently.
Shen Jiaren's eyes behind her glasses widened instantly, sharing the same thought as her brother, looking at their parents in disbelief.
Shen Zhaoyue, under their gaze, felt somewhat guilty. But since the children were already grown up, she couldn't keep hiding it forever. So she braced herself and softly complained.
"Well… Jiaren, Changyan, your dad and I have always shared a common dream. I feel like… we were both born to marry into wealthy families. So all those previous divorce certificates were because we encountered rich people and thought there might be a chance to marry into wealth, so we discussed divorcing in advance. But it wasn't just me! Your dad met two, and I met two! We just didn't succeed!"
"This time we got the divorce certificate because it's your dad's third time meeting a wealthy woman. And your Aunt Zhuge is really nice! She doesn't plan to keep your dad as an outside lover or as a mistress. She was very generous to your dad from the moment they met, and she's generous to me and you kids too. What a wonderful person! If I weren't a woman, I'd definitely want to marry her too!!"
…
His suspicions confirmed, Xiao Changyan's temples throbbed wildly. Gritting his teeth, he squeezed out a sentence almost from his throat.
"Hah, then why don't both of you marry Aunt Zhuge together?"
He felt their family's financial situation was pretty good! Why were his parents always thinking about marrying rich people?!
He'd often heard them talk about their "marry-rich plan" before, and Xiao Changyan thought they were just joking. But now you're telling me it's real?
Shen Jiaren's eyes behind her glasses suddenly lit up with understanding.
"So last year when you two remarried and hugged each other crying, was it because the rich person didn't marry either of you? You remarried only after failing to marry into wealth?"
From childhood, Xiao Changyan and Shen Jiaren knew their parents were not in love—at least not like the loving parents many people described. They came from the same orphanage and often acted more like siblings taking care of each other. When men or women asked for the other's contact information, neither of them felt jealous.
Even the sensible and clever Xiao Changyan and Shen Jiaren had once asked their parents why they became a couple if they weren't in love.
Shen Zhaoyue and Xiao Guanyun didn't hide the truth: their marriage was a result of a shotgun wedding, orchestrated by someone who drugged them. To escape retaliation, they fled their hometown overnight, got married for the sake of the unborn child, and gradually settled down in Jinghai City.
"…I originally met a wealthy man, but he wanted to keep me as a mistress without marrying me, so I dumped him."
Shen Zhaoyue wrinkled her nose in disdain. She could marry and divorce countless times, but she would never be someone's mistress or lover.
Xiao Changyan was too angry to speak and didn't even want to dwell on the matter of Aunt Zhuge anymore. For the first time, his clever little mind couldn't figure out what his parents were thinking.
Shen Jiaren, however, seemed to understand. She blinked her eyes and said:
"So when we were having dinner with Aunt Zhuge today, Mom, you cried and pinched my brother and Dad. Were you actually happy that Dad is marrying into a wealthy family?"
Upon hearing his daughter's words, Xiao Guanyun suddenly felt a twinge of pain in his leg. He couldn't help but touch the spot where Shen Zhaoyue had pinched him and shot her an accusatory glance.
"Of course not!" The mention of Zhuge Rui made Shen Zhaoyue instantly excited. She rushed over and grabbed her daughter's hand.
"I was excited because your Aunt Zhuge is so generous! Not only is she good to your dad, but she's also good to me and you kids. A villa in Jinghai City costs at least three hundred million yuan, and your Aunt Zhuge just gave it away without a second thought! She even gave me twenty million in cash! Oh my god, just thinking about the day I can become a millionaire makes me so happy~"
As she spoke, Shen Zhaoyue let go of Shen Jiaren's hand and cupped her face, gazing at her daughter with immense happiness.
"Jiaren, as long as your dad marries into a wealthy family, you can become a wealthy heiress in the future. Even if it's just for show, Mom will split the twenty million cash with you, so you can become a millionaire too. And Changyan, you have no idea how much it pains me to see you studying so hard every day just for scholarships. If only your dad and I were rich, you two wouldn't have to struggle so much…"
She then looked pitifully at her son, reaching out to gently stroke his cheek, partly to make amends and partly to soften him with a coquettish tone.
"Changyan, apart from our lifelong dream of marrying into a wealthy family, your dad and I feel the most guilty about not giving you and your sister a better life. You've suffered because of us. Once we get the money, Mom will give you ten million too. Mom doesn't want anything for herself—Mom just wants you both to be happy."
Even as she said this, Shen Zhaoyue kept one hand behind her back, forming an "OK" gesture to signal Zhuge Rui to give an extra ten million—thirty million in total! Twenty million just wasn't enough to split!
Xiao Guanyun immediately understood and followed his wife's lead, standing before their children with a look of guilt.
"It's all because your dad is useless. Aside from having an overly handsome face, I have no social status to speak of, and I can't earn much money, making you two siblings suffer along with me. Rest assured, after having you both, I got a vasectomy, so I can't have any more children. Even if I marry your Aunt Zhuge, my only biological children will still be you two…"
The two of them skillfully painted a rosy picture, but unfortunately, Xiao Changyan and Shen Jiaren were far more clever than them and immediately saw through it.
Xiao Changyan took the lead.
"Do you really have to do this? Our family has a house in Jinghai City, and it's even in a school district. I get 120,000 yuan in scholarships every year—isn't that enough? Aunt Zhuge may be wealthy, but Dad, you're so naive. What if you get bullied after marrying into a wealthy family?"
His words of concern immediately moved Xiao Guanyun, who hadn't even spoken yet, when Shen Jiaren chimed in.
"Mom, if Dad marries into a wealthy family, you'll be left all alone. Are you really willing to separate from Dad just like that? You've been with Dad for so many years—can you really accept suddenly being apart?"
Shen Jiaren hoped her mother would think it over, but Shen Zhaoyue immediately nodded, looking excited.
"Of course I can accept it! I've grown tired of your dad over the years, both in looks and in play. Once he's gone, I'll find a new man to have fun with—preferably a rich one. Otherwise, after your dad marries Aunt Zhuge, I'll have him find a wealthy man from their circle for me to marry. Then our family will still see each other all the time…"
Hearing this, Shen Jiaren couldn't help but glance at her older brother, only to find Xiao Changyan looking back at her.
The siblings exchanged a knowing look.
It's over. There's no saving them. Dad is dead set on marrying Aunt Zhuge, and Mom is dead set on marrying him off…
What kind of embarrassing dream is this? Can't they have a more respectable dream?
Even wanting to go to the moon would sound better than trying to marry into wealth!
Author's Note:
See you tomorrow! Comments on the new chapter will receive red envelopes! Love you all!!