The 99th Divorce

He couldn’t shake this idea out of his head, as though it had been deeply planted in his mind.

Shen Luo’an sat on the edge of the hospital bed, cradling Little Moon in his arms. “I’m to blame for everything that happened today,” he confided.

Shen Manting’s eyes were closed, but her knuckles tensed up as she gripped the linen upon hearing Shen Luo’an’s confession.

“I have a terrible temper. I’m trying hard to change.”

Shen Luo’an had rarely let go of his ego and spoken this softly.

Shen Manting’s restless heart suddenly calmed down.

The fear, hatred, and disgust that she felt only a moment ago…

All these feelings seemed to have disappeared with the lull of his voice full of tenderness.

Shen Manting kept her eyes shut the whole time. She felt a dull ache in her heart.

She heard Shen Luo’an inhale deeply before uttering slowly, “I’ll try not to lose my temper in the future. The baby might be hungry. It’s time to feed him some milk.”

The calmness Shen Manting felt suddenly dissipated into thin air.

Such mockery!

She clutched the linen tightly. Tears rolled down her cheeks.

She remained silent, but her body trembled with anger.

She began to sob quietly. Her sobs were subdued yet audible and tinged with pain.

“You’re saying all this just so I’ll feed your son.”

Shen Luo’an’s body stiffened. He turned to glance at her.

Shen Manting buried her face in the linen, leaving only a small part of her pale forehead exposed.

“We’re both exhausted, Shen Luo’an. Why don’t we part ways amicably?”

Shen Luo’an’s heart sank.

“I’ll raise the baby on my own. I’ll repay all you’ve spent on the household expenditure for the past month. Give me some time. I’ll pay you back.” Her muffled, cracking voice came from beneath the linen.

Shen Luo’an let out a scornful laugh. He snapped derisively through clenched, “Are you really able to repay all you’ve owed me?”

Shen Manting avoided his question and continued, “You forced me into this against my own will all along. There’s no affection between us.”

Shen Manting felt calmer than ever after coming to her senses.

But every sentence she uttered became increasingly irritating!

“It’s not up to you to decide whether any feelings existed between us,” Shen Luo’an declared in a deep, stern voice. “Little Moon is my son. As his father, I have the right and responsibility to raise him. Are you thinking of taking him away from me? Over my dead body!”

“I’ll have to turn to the legal proceedings then.” Shen Manting stopped sobbing and suddenly hissed in a threatening tone, “You raped me. This child is solid evidence of your deed.”

“Is that so?” Shen Luo’an sneered. “How do you prove that I raped you? You gave birth to the child. If you really hate me that much, why did you decide to deliver the child?”

Shen Manting’s body went stiff.

Shen Luo’an bent down slightly and whispered in her ear, “You do love me after all, don’t you?”

She was reliant on him.

Shen Luo’an had been aware of that for a long time.

She hated him and wanted to break free from him. However, she was unable to leave him.

In reality, Shen Manting’s heart was deeply conflicted.

He knew it better than anyone.

But when Shen Manting heard his words, she burst out laughing.

Shen Luo’an lifted the linen and immediately felt a rush of her warm breath on his face. He found himself gazing straight into her reddened eyes.

“Who would fall in love with a rapist like you?”

Shen Luo’an was taken aback by her reaction.

He had a mind to suppress his urge to launch further verbal attacks on her.

But at the same time, he couldn’t help blurting out, “Have you ever heard of Stockholm syndrome?”