After speaking, Lu Yanshen got out of the car.
Xie Wantang adjusted her breathing inside the car before stepping out.
Pei Xiao drove the car to the parking spot.
Old Cat, wearing a white chef’s coat, walked toward the two with a cheerful smile. Ignoring Lu Yanshen, he greeted only Xie Wantang. “Mrs. Lu, welcome! I’m the owner of this little shop. You can call me Old Cat, just like Mr. Lu does.”
“…Hello, Old Cat.”
Xie Wantang followed suit and extended her hand.
However, she gently corrected him, “Also, I prefer to be called Miss Xie.”
Old Cat tilted his head slightly and shot Lu Yanshen a glare. This guy really doesn’t know how to pamper his wife.
His wife is already upset, yet he can act as if nothing’s wrong and go on some business trip to Milan?
No business trip is more important than soothing your wife, okay?
Besides, if he really loses such a wonderful wife, he’ll have no one to blame but himself.
“Of course, Miss Xie. I only just learned that it was your birthday on the night of my opening. Mr. Lu was practically dragged here by me to make up the numbers, which caused him to miss celebrating your birthday with you on time. I’m truly sorry.”
“It has nothing to do with you. You don’t need to apologize to me,” Xie Wantang said calmly.
The issues between her and Lu Yanshen are solely their own. If he truly cared, things wouldn’t have come to this.
Without genuine care, words are meaningless.
“Mr. Lu had me prepare a surprise earlier. Would you do me the honor of enjoying it later?”
“We’ll see,” Xie Wantang relented.
She didn’t believe Old Cat’s words. How could someone as cold as Lu Yanshen arrange a surprise for her?
It was probably Old Cat taking matters into his own hands and trying to save face for Lu Yanshen.
They had been married for over three years, and in every interaction, hadn’t she always been the one to take the initiative?
If she didn’t make the first move, he would never take a step toward her.
This kind of dynamic was truly exhausting.
“Alright, please come into the private room,” Old Cat said with a smile, bowing slightly as he invited Xie Wantang.
As he passed by Lu Yanshen, Old Cat deliberately bumped into him and gave him a meaningful look, urging him not to keep such a stiff, expressionless face.
To pamper your wife, you have to smile.
Lu Yanshen couldn’t bring himself to smile; his expression grew even more serious than before.
He had only asked Old Cat to prepare a meal, not to arrange any surprise for Xie Wantang. Who gave him the right to assume things?
Upon entering the private room, Xie Wantang saw a table full of steaming dishes, with a cake placed in the center.
“Enjoy your meal, you two. If you need anything, just ring the bell,” Old Cat said, noticing Lu Yanshen’s continued cold demeanor. “Mr. Lu, make sure to apologize properly.”
Lu Yanshen: “…”
Click. The door to the private room closed, leaving just the two of them.
Lu Yanshen pulled out the nearest chair, intending for Xie Wantang to sit there. Instead, she walked to the seat opposite his, keeping her distance, and pulled out the chair to sit down.
“You’re right. We’re not made of iron. Even if the sky were to fall, we should feed ourselves first,” Xie Wantang said, directly serving herself a bowl of soup and scooping a bowl of rice.
She drank half the bowl of soup before starting on the rice.
Every dish on the table was exquisitely prepared. Though they looked like home-style dishes, the flavors were truly exceptional.
“Lu Yanshen, your friend Old Cat is more considerate than you are. However, he’s a bit too naive. You, the esteemed second young master of the Lu family, pampering me? That would only happen if the sun rose from the west.”
“Don’t talk while eating,” Lu Yanshen reminded coldly.
“Hah…” Xie Wantang let out an angry laugh. “Fine, no talking.”
After that, the two remained quiet, each focused on filling their stomachs.
Once they had eaten and drunk their fill, Xie Wantang stood up to leave.
Lu Yanshen spoke unhurriedly, “No need to rush. Sit down and talk.”
“…”
Xie Wantang truly couldn’t understand—who was it that just said not to talk? Why did he want to chat now?
She completely ignored the fact that Lu Yanshen’s “no talking” rule was only meant for mealtime.
“Lu Yanshen, I have nothing to talk to you about unless it’s about divorce,” Xie Wantang challenged him with a defiant look.
“Then let’s talk about divorce,” Lu Yanshen said calmly, his eyes turning cold.
Xie Wantang sat back down. “How do you want to talk? You weren’t satisfied even when I offered to leave with nothing. Are we going to discuss how much money you plan to give me?”
“Don’t overthink it,” Lu Yanshen bluntly cut off her speculation, then spoke again before she could fully lose her temper. “If you want a divorce, you need a reasonable basis.”
“‘Irreconcilable differences’ isn’t reasonable. Our families still have upcoming collaborations. I’ve said it before—if you insist on divorce, I definitely won’t let the Xie family handle this ecological project anymore.”
“You said at the old house that I emotionally cheated, but you couldn’t provide evidence. So, I believe you’re insisting on divorce because you’re still angry and acting out of spite.”
“I don’t want you to act impulsively.”
“Hah, Lu Yanshen, you’re so considerate,” Xie Wantang scoffed.
“Couldn’t it just be that I don’t want to serve you anymore?” she retorted.
“That reason isn’t enough to convince me to agree to a divorce. We have servants at home. If you don’t want to do anything in the future, you don’t have to. You can completely avoid serving me.”
“Lu Yanshen, what kind of reason would make you agree to divorce?”
“For example, what you mentioned earlier—if I cheated, even emotionally, and you caught evidence, I’d agree to divorce. As for other reasons, I think there are ways to resolve them.”
“Fine, then what if I cheated?” Xie Wantang shot back, her mind racing.
She couldn’t let Lu Yanshen take control; she had to seize the initiative.
She was determined to divorce him.
She simply didn’t believe the story about him and Old Cat conspiring to deceive her.
They were good friends—birds of a feather.
Anything Old Cat said would definitely be protecting Lu Yanshen.
So, even if he was at Old Cat’s shop that night, it didn’t mean he couldn’t have gone up the mountain to accompany Xia Meng, watching fireworks and celebrating her birthday.
“…”
Lu Yanshen paused. “If you insist on causing trouble like this, as long as you can bear the consequences yourself, I don’t care.”
“…”
Sure enough, three years of genuine feelings were wasted on a dog.
He actually said he didn’t care.
He didn’t care, huh?
Fine!
Xie Wantang stood up. As her hand grasped the doorknob, Lu Yanshen caught up and grabbed her wrist. “Xie Wantang, there’s a limit to being willful. I’m trying to appease you now. Shouldn’t you—”
“Appease me? Mr. Lu, tell me, do you appease Xia Meng the same way? With such indifference?”
“…”
Lu Yanshen froze.
Seizing the moment, Xie Wantang shook off Lu Yanshen’s grip, hailed a taxi alone, and went straight to her best friend Xu Yanqiu’s house.
At Xu Yanqiu’s place, Xie Wantang slept soundly the entire afternoon.
By the time she woke up, it was already dark outside.
Xu Yanqiu was cooking noodles with gravy in the kitchen. As soon as Xie Wantang opened the door, she could smell the aroma.
“Qiuqiu—” Xie Wantang called out from the kitchen doorway.
Xu Yanqiu turned around, putting down the large ladle in her hand. “Awake, my dear? Go wash your hands quickly—the noodles with gravy are ready.”
“Mhm.”