CHAPTER 441: CHAPTER 443: DIVORCE, GETTING IT TOMORROW

"Auntie, I want to take a bath too," Weilin said.

Sun Yuhua, however, took the initiative, "Mommy will bathe you."

Weilin nodded, "Mom, if you could just prepare the water for me, I can wash myself."

Xia Xiao was outside in the yard helping Feiyang, Feiyue, and Feiyi with their baths, while Sun Yuhua took Weilin into the bathhouse, and she also took the opportunity to prepare water for her own bath.

By the time Sun Yuhua had finished bathing, Gao Jiaxing and Gao Jiazhi were not at home, Gao Guoqiang and Zheng Xianghong had taken a few grandchildren out, and Weilin had just finished her bath and followed them.

Xia Xiao got her clothes ready to bathe, and Sun Yuhua called out to her, "Xia Xiao."

"Yep, you’re done, so it’s my turn."

Saying so, Xia Xiao, with clothes in one hand and a bucket in the other, entered the bathhouse, closing the door behind her without giving Sun Yuhua another thought.

Sun Yuhua stared blankly at the closed bathhouse door, at the empty house, and suddenly felt stifled, as if everyone was ganging up against her.

As soon as Xia Xiao finished her bath, she too went straight out, to swing by the Youth Point.

Yang Xuehua had just finished bathing as well, and Xia Xiao suggested, "Why don’t we go see Ning Hui tomorrow? I’ve been back for so long, it’s about time we found an opportunity to visit her."

Yang Xuehua naturally had no objections and agreed immediately.

Meanwhile, Sun Yuhua, full of frustration, was at home looking for something to eat. She hadn’t eaten at Wang Aihua’s, nor had she eaten in the large dining hall; thus, she was very hungry now.

With no one else from the Gao Family at home, Sun Yuhua had no choice but to cook for herself.

Before long, Gao Guoqiang and Zheng Xianghong returned with the children, and seeing Sun Yuhua eating, they said nothing.

Sun Yuhua was unaccustomed to this treatment by everyone, yet she wanted to save face, so she asked Weilin, "Weilin, have you had your meal?"

"I have. We ate at a restaurant, it was so tasty," Weilin replied with an eager look on her face.

Sun Yuhua felt even more sullen; everyone had eaten at a restaurant, leaving only her hungry, but she couldn’t blame them.

Next, Gao Guoqiang and Zheng Xianghong went to have their baths in turn, and not long after, Xia Xiao returned. Both Gao Jiaxing and Gao Jiazhi came back dripping wet, carrying fish — they had obviously gone to bathe at the river.

The river by the village was a popular spot for bathing, especially in the summer, and while men could do so freely, it was different for women.

"Wow, Dad caught fish to bring home."

The children were all very happy, and Gao Jiaxing said, "Tonight, we’ll all have fish soup."

It was past seven in the evening when Xia Xiao made the fish soup, and everyone had a bowl each; Weilin, Feiyang, Feiyue, and Feiyi were very happy with the fish meat to eat.

The remaining two fish were set aside for the next day’s meal, and Gao Jiazhi, taking his pillow and blanket, lay down on the long bench in the yard with mosquito-repelling plants placed nearby.

"Gao Jiazhi, what is this supposed to mean?" Sun Yuhua was completely enraged.

Gao Jiazhi glanced at Sun Yuhua and said, "So you mean to say, you have a problem with me sleeping here?"

"You—" Sun Yuhua was furious, but Gao Jiazhi paid no attention to her and continued lying down.

"Do you not want to continue this marriage?" Sun Yuhua asked coldly.

"Whatever." To Gao Jiazhi, it made no difference whether they continued or not. Sun Yuhua had never truly regarded him as her husband or as a man, otherwise, why would she hurt his pride like this?

"Let’s divorce then, we’ll do it tomorrow," Sun Yuhua said angrily.

"Then let’s divorce." Gao Jiazhi toughened up as well. The one who was clearly in the wrong had come back and acted so arrogantly; Gao Jiazhi was no longer going to indulge Sun Yuhua.

Sun Yuhua was taken aback. She had indeed used the threat of divorce as a bluff, but had not expected Gao Jiazhi to agree so readily.

"Fine, so this was your plan all along! Let’s divorce, we must, because I can’t live this life anymore, with your entire family ganging up against me," Sun Yuhua broke into sobs.

The Gao family was speechless. Gao Jiazhi said, "Over the years, you know how I’ve treated you, and how my family has treated you. To say that we’ve ganged up against you, have you ever thought about what you’ve done that hurt everyone?"

"We’ve been married for nearly ten years. Ten years—enough time to warm even a stone. When you said you wanted to marry me, I was over the moon, but now my disappointment in you only grows. If you don’t want to stay with the Gao family and feel that you’re being wronged, you can leave. I’m not begging you to stay. I, Gao Jiazhi, can live just fine without you. Even without you, I can still lead a good life."

Had it not been for the profound anger and disappointment he felt inside, Gao Jiazhi would not have spoken such words, which clearly showed how cold his heart had become.

Had Sun Yuhua shown any willingness to reconcile in front of the Suns’ house, things might have been different. But Sun Yuhua had merely looked on as her own family confronted her in-laws with an unwelcoming attitude, which naturally upset the Gao family.

They had no prior relationship with the Sun family, knowing them only through Sun Yuhua. Her attitude had deeply wounded them.

Gao Guoqiang and Zheng Xianghong no longer wanted to indulge Sun Yuhua or even to speak on her behalf. If it were any other family, Sun Yuhua might not have been allowed back in, perhaps stopped right at the doorstep.

Moreover, Sun Yuhua had returned without apologizing or even acknowledging her wrongs. Seeing the coldness from the Gao family, she remained arrogant. This made Gao Jiazhi angry enough to prefer sleeping in the yard rather than returning to the room. Sun Yuhua was angry but did not consider why Gao Jiazhi would react that way.

"What can I do when my family behaves that way?" Sun Yuhua cried, feeling deeply wronged. She had thought of Gao Jiazhi and their child even as her family advised her to leave. But upon returning, to be treated coldly by everyone and ignored, Sun Yuhua was devastated. "Who else can I blame but you all?"

"Go back to your room and sleep. I don’t want to talk to you right now, and I don’t want to argue with you," Gao Jiazhi said coldly as he sat on the bench.

"Jiazhi, why won’t you defend me?" Sun Yuhua asked.

Gao Jiazhi looked at Sun Yuhua’s aggrieved face and said, "What about you, then? Have you ever considered how I feel, or how my family feels? No, you’ve only ever cared about yourself. I’ve seen through you now."

Weilin started crying.

Sun Yuhua embraced Weilin and said, "Weilin, if mom and dad separate, who will you follow?"

"Don’t worry about Weilin. Her surname is Gao, so naturally, she’ll stay with the Gao family," Gao Jiazhi stated flatly.

"Weilin, let’s go to sleep, stop crying," Sun Yuhua said as she held Weilin.

"I want to sleep with dad," Weilin said.

Gao Jiazhi looked at his daughter and said, "Go back to sleep with your mom, or go sleep in your grandparents’ room."

Sun Yuhua looked at Gao Jiazhi. This side of him, so heartless and unforgiving, was something she felt for the first time, and it hurt her so deeply that she found it difficult to breathe.