Xie Wantang said this because Lu Yanshen had always indulged Xia Meng without any limits, spoiling her endlessly.
When she returned from Yujing Zundian, it was already very late, yet he could still rush out from home overnight to find Xia Meng. If it weren’t Lu Yanshen but her brother’s acquaintance, that man named Lu Chen, where would such deep affection come from?
Whether a man loves a woman or not cannot be faked.
“Tangbao, no rush. Sleep early, goodnight.” Qin Muyang replied quickly.
Xie Wantang pouted: “…”
Her brother was truly calm.
Then again, what if this person really was her brother’s lifesaver?
Just like her—after recognizing Lu Yanshen as her lifesaver, didn’t she also throw caution to the wind, single-mindedly scheming all of this just to marry him smoothly?
Xie Wantang took the advice and saved these photos.
Last time, she hadn’t managed to capture evidence from Xia Meng’s social media. Tonight, someone had generously sent her so many photos for free. She refused to believe that, faced with such evidence, Lu Yanshen would still dare to claim with a clear conscience that he hadn’t emotionally cheated.
Before falling asleep, Xie Wantang lit a homemade floral-scented sleep aid incense.
Naturally, the things she made herself were of guaranteed quality. In less than five minutes, she drifted into a deep sleep amidst the floral fragrance.
After leaving the hospital, Lu Yanshen escorted Xia Meng home. When Pei Xiao asked where he was going, he still chose to return to the Lu family.
On the way back, Pei Xiao reminded him, “Mr. Lu, last night at Liujin Club and the hospital, someone was taking photos.”
“Expected,” Lu Yanshen replied, completely unsurprised.
“If it doesn’t make headlines tomorrow, then all those photos are probably with Mrs. Lu.”
“Do you think Xie Wantang will demand a divorce from me once she has those photos?” Lu Yanshen raised an eyebrow slightly.
“Not sure, probably.”
“Pei Xiao, how was my acting tonight? Satisfied? Could it fool everyone?” Lu Yanshen didn’t comment further and changed the subject.
“Pretty good.”
“Mr. Lu, once this matter is over, I sincerely suggest you try the entertainment industry. You’d definitely become a legend.”
“Get lost.”
“Got it.”
After Pei Xiao left, Lu Yanshen returned home. From entering the door to reaching his room, he didn’t turn on any lights.
Even so, he knew that the entire house was filled with eyes monitoring him.
Back in his room—the only space free from surveillance—Lu Yanshen stood by the window and lit a cigarette. In the darkness, the crimson ember flickered, brightening and dimming intermittently. From a distance, Lu Yanshen’s silhouette looked quite lonely.
After finishing the cigarette, Lu Yanshen turned to take a shower before lying down on the bed.
…
Early the next morning.
Xie Wantang was awakened by knocking.
Frowning, she got out of bed to answer the door.
Only when the door opened did Xie Wantang realize that Lu Rourou wasn’t knocking on her door but on the master bedroom opposite.
“Lu Rourou?”
Xie Wantang’s voice sounded from behind Lu Rourou, who turned around in surprise and disbelief. “Xie Wantang, has my second brother finally separated from you?”
Xie Wantang frowned.
Separated?
And her second brother had finally separated from her?
What if she told her that last night, that hormone-driven second brother of hers had almost lost his mind and still wanted her to fulfill her marital duties?
What would this little sister think then?
Fortunately, she hadn’t been swayed by temptation and remained clear-headed. Otherwise, with so many unexpected incidents last night, it was entirely possible that just as they were about to reach their climax, Lu Yanshen would have been called away by a phone call.
If that had been the case, she thought, she might have wanted to strangle Lu Yanshen.
Even though he had saved her when she was fifteen, over these past three years, that debt of gratitude should have been repaid by now.
“You’re out of the hospital?” Xie Wantang asked, lightly furrowing her brows.
“Yes, I’m out. Xie Wantang, I heard you brought a lawyer from Haishi, didn’t you?”
“You’re quite well-informed.”
Xie Wantang assumed it was Xia Meng who had told Lu Rourou, since Lu Rourou and Xia Meng were close friends, and Xia Meng had seen her with Qin Muyang at Yujing Zundi.
“Don’t worry about how well-informed I am. I’m just curious, Xie Wantang—why did you hire a lawyer? Don’t tell me you think my second brother refuses to divorce you?”
Lu Rourou raised an eyebrow.
In her view, before, when Mengmeng hadn’t returned, it was fine. At that time, when many women were unwilling to marry her second brother, Xie Wantang had appeared.
She had taken care of her second brother without complaint or regret, willingly serving him, which was a good thing for their whole family.
So, even though she had grown up in the countryside and lacked any sense of propriety, given how devoted she was to her second brother, Lu Rourou was still willing to lower herself and call her “second sister-in-law.”
But now, times had changed.
Her second brother had stood up again, and Mengmeng had returned to the country. Of course, she believed that a golden boy should be matched with a jade girl.
Even if the jade girl had made mistakes.
To recognize one’s mistakes and correct them is the greatest virtue.
If Xie Wantang had any self-awareness, she should step aside and give the position of Mrs. Lu to Mengmeng.
Mengmeng had also suffered terribly—all her assets had been swindled away by her damned ex-husband, leaving her with a mountain of debt before he fled with the money.
Her second brother was willing to help Mengmeng repay the debts, but Mengmeng felt it was inappropriate and kept refusing.
She knew that Mengmeng was bound by a sense of morality.
Feeling that her second brother had Xie Wantang, especially since Xie Wantang had personally cared for him and helped him stand again, Mengmeng didn’t want to ruin her second brother’s marriage to Xie Wantang.
Ultimately, Xie Wantang was just an obstacle on her second brother’s path to happiness.
She understood that if she wanted Mengmeng and her second brother to reconcile, she had to remove Xie Wantang, this stumbling block.
And this matter could only be handled by her.
“Otherwise? You can ask the butler. I drafted the divorce agreement and signed it. It’s your second brother who has refused to sign it all along. So, if it’s not your second brother refusing to divorce, is it me?”
“Xie Wantang, I don’t believe you,” Lu Rourou said sharply.
She refused to believe that, between Xie Wantang and her second brother, the one unwilling to divorce would be her second brother.
After all, she, along with their entire family, had witnessed the journey her second brother and Mengmeng had shared.
The Xia family had fallen on hard times, and when Mengmeng was ten, she had come to live with them.
Even now, her parents’ home still had Mengmeng’s room, yet Mengmeng had refused to come back and live there.
“Believe it or not.”
With that, right in front of Lu Rourou, Xie Wantang slammed the door shut with a bang.
Lu Rourou: “…”
It took a full minute of stunned silence before Lu Rourou slowly processed what had just happened.
She was furious, pounding hard on Xie Wantang’s door. “Xie Wantang, have you lost your mind? How dare you slam the door in my face? Who gave you the nerve?”
“…”
Xie Wantang snorted with a cold laugh, dismissing Lu Rourou as nothing but a rabid dog.
She went to the bedside drawer, took out a pair of noise-canceling headphones, put them on, and headed to the bathroom to freshen up.
After finishing her routine and getting dressed, she opened the bathroom door only to find that Lu Rourou had the housekeeper bring a spare key and barged right in.
Now, seeing Xie Wantang emerge from the bathroom, Lu Rourou swung her arm and charged toward her.