Jie Jingwei looked at Lin Yaru. Seeing her dazed and showing no particular reaction to Xu Chunyan’s presence, he arched an eyebrow. A hint of displeasure tinged his raspy voice. "Stop the car."
When Jie You saw the car stop, he cheered and ran over. "Grandpa."
"Xiao You." Jie Jingwei opened the car door, got out, and scooped Jie You up into his arms.
Jie You froze. ’Isn’t this Grandpa? How did he turn into Dad?’
Held by Jie Jingwei, the little boy stiffened. He had lived with his father for a while, and it had been an unpleasant experience.
"Jing Er." Xu Chunyan’s eyes lit up when she saw Jie Jingwei get out of the car. She hurried over, but when she caught sight of Lin Yaru sitting inside, her expression soured, and her mood worsened.
"What happened to your face?" Jie Jingwei asked, looking at Xu Chunyan’s bruised and swollen face.
"Your older sister’s mother-in-law and sister-in-law did it," Xu Chunyan complained, embellishing the story.
After she finished, Jie Jingwei said nothing. He and Xu Chunyan were already divorced, and Lin Yaru was sitting in the car. It wouldn’t be appropriate to show righteous indignation or concern for Xu Chunyan.
Besides, Xiao Wang was also in the car. He had to maintain some boundaries.
Seeing Jie Jingwei’s indifference, Xu Chunyan was thoroughly disappointed. She snatched Jie You from his arms. "Xiao You, let’s go. Your father is very busy right now and has no time for you."
Xu Chunyan expected Jie You to cry for his father, but to her surprise, the little boy obediently said to Jie Jingwei, "Bye, Dad."
Xu Chunyan was so angry she could have spat blood. She pinched the little boy on the bottom.
"Mom, why did you pinch me?" the little boy asked, looking at Xu Chunyan with an innocent expression.
Xu Chunyan glared at him and snapped, "Why do you think I pinched you?"
"Mom, you’re glaring at me," the little boy accused again.
Jie Jingwei watched the mother and son’s figures recede until they disappeared from view before he retracted his gaze and got back in the car.
"If you can’t bear to part with her, why did you divorce her?" Lin Yaru asked out of the blue.
With Xiao Wang present, Jie Jingwei didn’t lose his temper. He shot Lin Yaru a warning glare. ’Does she really not know why I got divorced?’
Xiao Wang could feel the oppressive atmosphere in the car. He focused on driving, not even daring to breathe too loudly, trying his best to fade into the background.
"Jie Jingwei, you’re not human! You’re a monster in human skin," Lin Yaru accused.
"Shut up," Jie Jingwei said, suppressing his rage. He felt like strangling her.
He and Xu Chunyan used to argue too, but Xu Chunyan was always considerate of his public image. Lin Yaru, on the other hand, was not. She would lash out anytime, anywhere, completely disregarding the situation. She had done the same at the hospital, cursing him out and causing him to lose face completely.
’Wasn’t Lin Yaru supposed to be understanding?’
"Jie Jingwei, I want a divorce!" Lin Yaru yelled.
Hearing this, Xiao Wang was both curious and desperate to abandon the car and run. They had just gotten their marriage certificate, she was pregnant, and the wedding banquet was tomorrow, yet here they were, already talking about divorce.
"Xiao Wang, my dad needs the car urgently, and we’re almost there anyway. Why don’t you just stop here?" Jie Jingwei said to Xiao Wang with a smile.
"Okay." Xiao Wang stopped the car.
Jie Jingwei didn’t get out right away. He said to Xiao Wang, "About what my wife just said..."
"Mr. Jie, did your wife say something just now? I don’t think I heard anything," Xiao Wang said, playing dumb. As the factory director’s driver, he was quite quick on his feet.
Jie Jingwei smiled in satisfaction and patted Xiao Wang’s shoulder. He pulled a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and handed it to him. "Xiao Wang, thanks for your hard work."
"Thank you, Mr. Jie." Xiao Wang didn’t smoke, but he knew Mr. Jie would overthink it if he refused.
"Xiao Wang, you’ve got a bright future. Keep up the good work." Jie Jingwei opened his door and half-dragged, half-pulled Lin Yaru out of the car.
As soon as Jie Jingwei shut the door, Xiao Wang drove off, leaving a cloud of dust behind.
"Jie Jingwei, let go of me!" Lin Yaru struggled.
"Lin Yaru, have you forgotten what the doctor said?" Jie Jingwei snarled, glaring at her through gritted teeth.
Lin Yaru hadn’t forgotten the doctor’s words. But she didn’t want this child in her belly. This child was her nightmare, and Jie Jingwei was an even bigger one.
Last night, something must have set Jie Jingwei off. He had ignored her pregnancy and forced himself on her. She was utterly disgusted. No matter how much she struggled, she couldn’t break free. He had even declared that they were husband and wife, and she had to fulfill her spousal duties to him.
It had even woken up her parents. If they hadn’t been at the Lin Family’s home, she couldn’t imagine how terribly he would have tormented her.
She didn’t know if it was because she struggled too violently or if he was too forceful, but she had started bleeding. Her frightened parents had given Jie Jingwei a harsh scolding before they rushed her to the hospital. After an examination, the doctor said the baby was fine but reminded them to be restrained and wait until after the first trimester to be intimate.