Xia Chu saw that some neighbors had already started opening their doors to see what was going on, so she had no choice but to let Xia Benjun and Ye Shuhua into the house and close the door.
Then she asked Ye Shuhua, "Mom, what did Xu Pei tell you? Did he just say that I wanted to break up, impulsively married a stranger, and not explain why I did it?"
Ye Shuhua fell silent for a moment, then nodded, "He did explain. He said it's all his fault for hurting your feelings, and if you hate him, it's nothing but what he deserves. Panpan, you really suffered. And you too, why didn't you inform me and your dad first? If it weren't for Xu Pei calling us, we still wouldn't know."
Xia Chu's nose suddenly felt sore.
When Jiang Ziyao said she was wronged, she could still bear it, but when her mother said she was wronged, she really couldn't hold it back.
Just as she was about to speak, "Mom, I..."
Ye Shuhua started speaking again, "But no matter how angry or wronged you feel, you shouldn't have acted so recklessly. Marriage is a serious matter, you can't treat it as a way to vent your anger or as a joke!"
"You must have kept the man's contact information, right? Call him now and tell him to go get a divorce certificate tomorrow. Xu Pei said he won't tell his family about this, and next month you two will have your wedding as originally planned. As for the marriage certificate, it's up to you whenever you want to register for it, he'll listen to you."
Xia Chu's feelings of grievance and the tears she'd been holding back all rushed back.
She forced a smile, "Mom, why do I get the feeling that you're quite grateful to Xu Pei? He just betrayed your daughter, and you don't feel the slightest bit of pain or anger, and you're even grateful to someone who betrayed your daughter. Are you Xu Pei's mom or mine?"
A flicker of embarrassment crossed Ye Shuhua's face, "I, of course, I'm your mom, what are you talking about? If I weren't your mom, I wouldn't have immediately taken the high-speed rail with your dad from Su City to Hai City upon hearing the news. We're all doing this for your sake."
Xia Chu scoffed, "Considering my welfare? Parents who genuinely care for their daughter would have hated that scumbag by now. You're really doing this for yourselves, not wanting to lose your golden son-in-law, not wanting to lose the high status in-laws you finally managed to connect with!"
Xu Pei's dad is a member of the leadership in Su City, and his mom is also a deputy director at some bureau.
Compared to the Xia family, where both parents took early retirement and could only receive a meager pension, wasn't this indeed a significant step up?
So, the first time Xu Pei brought Xia Chu home to formally establish their relationship in the presence of elders, Pei Xin, his mother, strongly opposed it.
Still, it was Xu Pei's grandmother—the retired principal of Su City's first middle school—who remembered how diligent Xia Chu was in her studies and took a great liking to her.
Because of Xia Chu's hardworking and unassuming nature, Pei Xin gradually changed her impression of her.
Their relationship was able to carry on from there, all the way till today.
Ye Shuhua was left speechless by her daughter's words, "No, no, that's not it, we didn't…"
Xia Benjun had initially planned to stay quiet while sitting on the sofa, thinking his unfilial daughter wouldn't listen to him anyway, and decided to let her mother handle it.
Unexpectedly, Ye Shuhua stumbled and struggled to speak almost immediately.
So, of course, he had to step in himself, "How have we not done anything for you? You're already twenty-six, and by missing out on Xu Pei, where else can you find a man with such good conditions? It's impossible even in your dreams. The house and the law firm are also co-owned; have you thought about how these would be divided if you really split up?"
"Any division will only leave you at a loss! Our family can't afford to lose face over this, and neither can Xu Pei's. So tomorrow, go get the divorce certificate and hurry up to register with Xu Pei, and stop causing any more complications!"
Xia Chu's nose soured again, but this time it was from anger, "Where has Xu Pei been good to me, by cheating right under my nose? Losing out is my own business. It's my money, so what if I lose every penny? I'm willing!"
Xia Benjun felt like hitting someone again, "Your own business? You think you don't have parents and just sprang out of the rocks? All the money being yours, without your old man paying for your education, where would you get the ability to earn money? Keep going crazy, and I'll really hit you. It's not like we need your stinking money in the future!"
Ye Shuhua quickly tried to calm him down, "Dad, why are you starting this again? Can't you just talk nicely to the child? Panpan, your dad is just speaking out of anger, don't mind him."
She paused, "But his intentions are truly for your good. You two have feelings for each other. In these years, how well has Xu Pei treated you? Which of your cousins and classmates doesn't envy you? You don't need to worry about the house or money after getting married; how much better do you want your life to be?"
"The key thing is that Xu Pei truly knows he was wrong, and he reassured both me and your dad multiple times that he would never do it again in this lifetime. Why not forgive him this time? He was drunk, and besides, he said that you've always...not given it to him. He's a young man and has been holding back for years; it's forgivable that he couldn't hold back when he was drunk. As long as his heart is with you, doesn't that..."
Xia Chu couldn't listen anymore.
She coldly interrupted her mother's earnest talk, "When dad had an affair back then, mom, did you comfort yourself like this, deceive yourself, and then allow dad to repeat it countless times? Or have you still not suffered enough humiliation over the years and plan to let your daughter try it out too?"
"What nonsense are you talking about, disobedient girl?"
Before Xia Chu could finish speaking, Xia Benjun, overwhelmed by frustration and embarrassment, slammed his hand hard on the coffee table with a loud "bang," "We're talking about your issue, why bring me into it? Okay, let's talk about me. Even if back then... aren't your mom and I still getting along well now? Where has your mom suffered any pain or humiliation?"
"Because my heart has always been in this family. Those things on the side were just for show, just fooling around. Xu Pei must be the same; they're all just fooling around. Otherwise, how could he be so successful at such a young age? He's not playing around, some things simply can't get started. Do you think money is that easy to make?"
Xia Chu sneered angrily, "Right, according to what you say, all these successful men owe their success to cheating and fooling around. You've fooled around so many times over the years and yet your career hasn't amounted to much... Ah..."
Suddenly, she screamed because Xia Benjun had grabbed a glass from the coffee table and hurled it at her, "You think you can defy the heavens, you disobedient girl? If I don't beat you to death today, I'm not surnamed Xia!"
Fortunately, Xia Chu dodged quickly, but the glass still crashed to the floor, emitting a harsh shattering sound.
This utterly chilled Xia Chu's heart. She grabbed her phone from the sofa, prepared to dial 110, "Fine, if you've got the guts, then kill me. But you better act quickly, run after you kill me because once the police arrive, you won't be able to escape!"