Chapter 142: Teaching You a Lesson

Chapter 142: Chapter 142: Teaching You a Lesson

The moment she finished speaking, she jutted out her chin and shot a sideways glance at Shen Zhenwu, who sat stiffly on the sofa. Her eyes were filled with absolute certainty.

It wasn’t just her; Shen Shuangshuang believed it too.

Shen Shuangshuang wasn’t the least bit panicked by Yao Yuzhen’s threats to break up the family. Why?

Because she had Shen Zhenwu figured out completely.

Even if they actually got divorced, he would be bowing and scraping, begging her to come back in less than six months.

Then, she would have Yao Yuzhen state her terms.

Shen Rongdan had to marry her, and only then would Yao Yuzhen agree to take Shen Zhenwu back.

But what happened instead?

Yao Yuzhen changed her mind at the last second. All she wanted was for Shen Zhenwu to kneel on the spot?

Then what about her?

What about her marriage?

Her heart skipped a beat. She reached out and tugged on Yao Yuzhen’s sleeve.

"Mom, Dad’s not young anymore. Isn’t this a little... too cruel?"

Yao Yuzhen’s hand trembled as she flung Shen Shuangshuang’s grasp away.

"Stay out of it! You’re not the one being asked to kneel!"

She turned her head, about to squeeze out a few more sarcastic remarks, when suddenly...

SLAP!

A sharp crack echoed through the room. Her left cheek burned, and the force of the blow sent her head whipping to the side.

Yang Wanqing strode forward, her eyes wide with fury.

"Your parents died young, so no one ever taught you how to be a decent human being. Today, I’ll teach you that lesson for them!"

She raised a hand and pointed at Shen Zhenwu.

"Open your damn eyes and look! That’s your husband! The man who’s supported you for decades, provided for your every need, and always had your back!"

"What gives you the right to be so arrogant?"

"Who was it that went against all the gossip to bring you into this family? Who else would have dared to marry a woman with your kind of family background?"

"It was him! The good-for-nothing loser you’re always badmouthing! He’s the one who personally carried you through the gates of the Shen Family, who cherished you, protected you, and doted on you..."

At this, her voice trembled, and her eyes turned bloodshot.

"And what’s the result? To hear you talk, he’s worth less than a watchdog..."

Shen Zhenwu wanted to stop his mother, but he swallowed his words.

He’d known since before they were married that Yao Yuzhen looked down on him.

He wasn’t panicked, nor was he angry.

In his eyes, it was perfectly normal for Yao Yuzhen to find him coarse, provincial, and reeking of the barracks.

If it hadn’t been for those troubled times, why would a high-born lady from the Yao family ever give a rough man like him—who’d clawed his way up from the mud—the time of day?

Anyone else would have chosen a gentle, well-read scholar, wouldn’t they?

A couple who could discuss poetry and paintings, who could discern three different notes in a single cup of coffee.

But he had always believed that with something like true affection, being slow didn’t matter—being fake did.

Sooner or later, she would see it. Sooner or later, her heart would be warmed.

Years ago, when they stopped fighting, their life became as still as an old well.

He’d secretly sighed in relief, thinking, ’This is it, isn’t it?’

’Her heart has finally softened.’

But what was the reality?

Her heart hadn’t warmed at all. In fact, the ice around it had only grown thicker.

Thirty years.

Even a stone would be steaming by now if you left it by the fire for that long.

Yet a living, breathing heart hadn’t given the slightest echo of warmth in return.

Shen Zhenwu lowered his head, a short, guttural laugh escaping his throat.

He wasn’t mocking anyone else. He was laughing at how absurdly foolish he’d been.

So Yao Yuzhen looked down on him?

Fine. He could accept that.

But how could she, for the sake of another man’s daughter, push her own flesh and blood away with her own two hands?

A push that had lasted for twenty long years!

His own daughter was out there, eating cold scraps and facing her troubles all alone.

Meanwhile, that other girl wore silk pajamas, ate air-freighted fruit, and was spoiled rotten in the palm of his hand for twenty years...

"Urk!"

Shen Zhenwu suddenly doubled over, a spray of blood splattering onto the sofa cushion.

"Zhenwu!"

"Dad!"

"Commander!"

"Brother-in-law!"

The room instantly dissolved into chaos.

Only Yao Yuzhen and Shen Shuangshuang remained standing motionless by the door.

Shen Shuangshuang was genuinely stunned, secretly stealing a glance at Yao Yuzhen’s face. Her heart was pounding like a drum.

’Mom... she didn’t actually anger him to death, did she?’

’Is it illegal to drive someone to death with anger?’

The world spun. Her knees went weak, and she nearly collapsed.

"Mom, is he... is he... not going to make it?"

Yao Yuzhen’s eyelid twitched. Her face was an ashen mask as she coldly spat out two words.

"He’s faking."

Shen Rongdan, who had just rushed to the door, heard her. His feet froze to the spot.

He slowly turned his head, his heavy gaze sweeping over his mother’s face. Without a word, he spun around and bolted out the door.

Yao Yuzhen’s shoulders stiffened almost imperceptibly.

But only for half a second. Then she lifted her chin high and turned her head away.

Still, her gaze drifted uncontrollably toward the man on the sofa who had just coughed up blood.

’Faking?’

’Could someone fake coughing up blood? Fake having their lips turn blue?’

She felt a flicker of uncertainty herself.

But she had never backed down in her entire life, and she certainly wasn’t about to show weakness now. The thought only hardened her resolve.

The doctors and nurses arrived quickly. After a flurry of activity—stethoscopes, blood pressure cuffs, blood draws, and medical history questions—they had their findings.

The final conclusion: his constitution was fundamentally sound, but he was suffering from extreme stress and a sudden spike in blood pressure. He needed several days of complete rest.

The entire family breathed a collective sigh of relief.

The medical team packed up their stretcher and bags and departed.

Shen Zhenwu was carefully carried upstairs and put on an IV. Only then did the house finally fall quiet.

Yang Wanqing clutched her son’s hand, muttering over and over.

"You scared your mother to death, you really did..." she said, wiping away her tears.

In truth, she wasn’t the only one who was frightened. Shen Zhenwu himself was bewildered.

He was usually as healthy as a horse. Who could have imagined that a fit of anger could actually make him spit blood?

’Good thing it wasn’t serious,’ he thought. ’Otherwise...’

He glanced around at the people in the room.

His gray-haired father; his mother, whose eyes were swollen from crying; and his recently-reunited daughter.

In a few more months, the little one in his daughter’s belly would be born. He hadn’t even had the chance to meet his grandchild yet...

Shen Zhenwu managed a weak grin for his mother’s sake.

"I guess I took it too hard. I always thought ’furious’ just meant yelling and stomping your feet. I never thought you could actually get angry enough to cough up blood..."

Shen Songyao was rolling her eyes internally.

’I didn’t expect it either!’

’I’ve only ever seen this stuff in cheesy soap operas. This is the first time I’m seeing it in real life since I transmigrated into this book.’

"Dad! You scared us half to death!"

"I went through all that trouble to find my dad, and before I can even get used to having you around, you’re trying to check out? What’s that all about?"

The more she spoke, the more aggrieved she felt, and tears began to stream down her face.

She might have called him her "convenience dad," but in her heart, she already revered him as her real father.

Seeing his daughter’s nose turn red from crying, Shen Zhenwu raised a hand and beckoned her closer.

Shen Songyao pushed Shen Rongjing aside, squeezed her way to the front, and immediately took her father’s hand.

Shen Zhenwu let out a long sigh.

"All these years, I’m the one who has wronged you. Song Yao, I don’t expect you to forgive me right away, it’s just..."

Shen Songyao’s nose stung, and her eyes welled up again.

"What’s the use of just saying you’re sorry? You have to make up for it with your actions!"

Shen Zhenwu chuckled.

"I wasn’t finished. What I mean is, we have a long time ahead of us. I have to make up for all those years I owe you, day by day, month by month. So, you see, I can’t afford to collapse."

"I have to hold on for at least another twenty years."

Those twenty years he should have spent by her side.

Song Yao wiped her face with the back of her hand.

"Twenty years? Are you kidding me? You’d better live to be a hundred! When you retire, you can just sign your paycheck over to me. I’ll officially retire from the rat race and let you support me!"

Hearing this, Shen Zhenwu laughed and nodded.

"Deal. The card is yours, you set the PIN."

Her spirits immediately lifted. She turned to Shen Rongjing and Shen Rongdan, who were standing nearby.

"You two really don’t want in on this? This is a solid-gold retirement fund we’re talking about!"

The brothers shook their heads in unison. Shen Rongdan even smiled and threw up his hands in a gesture of surrender.