"Li Zhen, come on, our private room is still ahead."
"You guys go first, I'll come in a moment." Li Zhen stood still without moving.
"Alright." The colleagues who came to dinner together went ahead first.
From this angle, Li Zhen could just see through the door gap and make out a figure in the private room ahead.
It was her husband, Yu Sheng.
He wore a bespoke western suit, the delicate fabric giving him an aura of cold aloofness. With his tall nose and dark eyes, his thin lips exuded a forbidding coldness.
He was born with flawless looks, outstanding and dazzling.
A glamorously dressed beautiful woman sat on Yu Sheng's lap, kissed his face, and said with a smile, "President Yu, let's drink a toast. With this, I'll sign the contract as is, right now."
Yu Sheng slightly tilted his head to look at the woman on his lap, revealing his sharp Adam's apple. He smiled as he drank the toast, one hand still holding the woman's delicate waist to steady her soft body.
Li Zhen took out her phone. Her fair fingers trembled slightly as she typed, "Be home by 11pm tonight. I'll wait for you."
In the private room, Yu Sheng felt his phone vibrate and glanced at it, leaving it on the table.
Li Zhen withdrew her gaze, a sharp pain transmitting from her heart.
The two had dated for years before getting married. They had a secret marriage this year, and Yu Sheng had been overseas for half of it. For the remaining half year, he either worked overtime or attended social functions every day, coming home at 2 or 3am. He would leave for work again before dawn.
Li Zhen understood his focus on his career, but the scene before her eyes was too glaring for a wife.
Before going home after dinner, Li Zhen went to the mall and bought a sexy silk nightgown and a rose. She sprinkled the rose petals on the bed and changed into the new nightgown.
But as she expected, when the clock struck 11, the person she was waiting for did not come home.
At 3am, Yu Sheng returned.
After showering, he came out of the bathroom with a white towel around his waist, revealing his firm, rugged abs. He went to the bed, took off the towel, and got into bed naked.
He gently took Li Zhen into his arms. His hand touched the slippery silk of her nightgown.
His breath froze in that instant.
He slid his palm under Li Zhen's spaghetti strap from her neckline.
"Yu Sheng, I have something to tell you," said a soft, low voice.
"Did I wake you?" Yu Sheng lowered his head to meet Li Zhen's clear eyes. He restrained himself from moving his hand on her chest, gave her a kiss, and said, "Let's talk tomorrow. It's too late now. Go to sleep."
Li Zhen thought, if she waited until tomorrow, she would never get a chance to speak.
He always left before she woke up in the mornings.
Li Zhen reached out to turn on the bedside lamp and looked at him intently. "I just have one thing to say. From now on, you must come home by 10pm at least twice a week. Don't say you can't do it. I'm not asking you, I'm telling you."
"Alright, I'll try my best." The alcohol and social obligations made Yu Sheng tired. His tone was languid.
"It's not try your best. It's must," Li Zhen wanted a definite answer from him.
Yu Sheng opened his eyes again, his handsome features slightly sinking. "I just became the Marketing Director last month. Today I signed a major project. I'm very busy right now. Don't throw a little tantrum with me now."
Of course Li Zhen knew he signed a major project today.
Not only did she know, she also saw it happen.
Thinking of the scene in the private room, Li Zhen gave a bitter laugh. "A wife asking her husband to come home earlier is considered throwing a little tantrum. How ironic."
Yu Sheng kissed her crimson lips again, lingering on them ingratiatingly. He murmured, "If you're bored, you can bring Grandpa to stay with you for a while..."
At the mention of Grandpa, Li Zhen pushed him away. She was barely keeping her temper in check. "What's the point of bringing him here? To let him find out his granddaughter has been married for a year but her husband hasn't touched her? That she's just a prop?"
"I didn't intentionally neglect you. I'm already exhausted when I get home every day," Yu Sheng massaged his temples.
He had to get up early tomorrow to arrange work for the new project. He could only sleep 3 hours tonight.
Yu Sheng looked at the time. Not wanting to argue further with Li Zhen, he said, "I can't come home early. If you insist on forcing me like this, we can only get a divorce."
"Divorce?" Li Zhen was stunned for a moment.
She only wanted some of his time and for him to balance his life and work. Yet in exchange she got talk of divorce?
For Yu Sheng, she had given up the job she loved and followed his arrangements to join Macro Ocean with him. She rushed home early every day waiting for him longingly.
All these concessions were so unlike her.
After a year of such stifling days, talk of divorce was the last straw.
Li Zhen turned off the bedside lamp. Her tone was unexpectedly calm in the darkness. "Fine, let's divorce."
Yu Sheng's breath hitched. "You're so lustful? I can't come home early to satisfy you, yet you actually want to divorce over this?"
"Mr. Yu is right. I'm just lustful. Go divorce me tomorrow. I'll immediately find a man to let me experience heavenly bliss!" Li Zhen flipped over with her back to Yu Sheng and said coldly, provoking him, "My husband is useless. There must be men who can satisfy me!"
Yu Sheng laughed angrily through gritted teeth. The veins on his forehead throbbed wildly. "Fine, since you insist on making trouble, let's divorce. See you at the civil affairs bureau tomorrow."
Yu Sheng was wide awake now. He got dressed and went to the office.
The next morning, the two got their divorce certificate on the spot at the civil affairs bureau.
The procedures were completed much faster than Yu Sheng imagined.
Back at his office, Yu Sheng looked at the divorce certificate on his desk, feeling utterly exhausted.
A month ago, the company discovered that the Deputy CEO and the then Marketing Director had embezzled a huge amount of public funds. These two crucial positions became vacant.
Yu Sheng had been promoted to Marketing Director despite his lack of experience. Because it wasn't a proper handover, the former Marketing Director had left a big mess.
The Deputy CEO was transferred from Macro Ocean's headquarters to the Southwest branch. He would arrive in a couple days. As a new official sweeping clean, who knew what temperament this new Deputy CEO had. There would be a period of adapting at work.
Being separated for a while was good too. Take this time while he was busy for Li Zhen to calmly reflect on herself.
-
Certificate in hand, Li Zhen went to the HR department and applied for employee dorm housing.
Macro Ocean's employee dorms were all near the company, scattered in small suites of around 50 sqm in different neighborhoods. They generally housed two people per suite. Not wanting to share, she chose a rundown one far away that no one lived in. This was where she had stayed before marrying Yu Sheng.
The application process was simple. Li Zhen just had to fill out a form to get the key.
She moved her things out before Yu Sheng returned home after work and moved into the dorm. She thought she would feel heartbroken and unable to fall asleep.
But instead, after leaving Yu Sheng, with no expectations and no need to wait for her husband to come home, she actually slept very soundly.
An emotionally draining relationship had ended. She felt refreshed!
What a mistake. She should have left sooner!
The next day after work, Li Zhen went to a bar.
Tonight she had a meeting with a female colleague from the Legal department to discreetly ask about the company's employment contract.
Three years ago when she and Yu Sheng graduated, she had originally wanted to join an entertainment company. But Yu Sheng asked her to join Macro Ocean with him. So she joined the Advertising department as a contracted hand model.
Now that she had divorced Yu Sheng, she should resign this job too.
Li Zhen sat alone at the bar drinking while calmly waiting for her colleague. In high stiletto heels, a tight pencil skirt, a simple white shirt, and her long silky hair down just past her waist, the curve of her slender waist was barely concealed, inevitably attracting eyes that couldn't look away.
One after another, emboldened men approached trying their luck with her, only to leave disappointed.
When Yu Sheng arrived, this was the scene he saw. An imposing shadow moved to sit next to Li Zhen. She turned to see Yu Sheng.
"You said you'd find a man to experience heavenly bliss with. So you're here today to pick one?"
Li Zhen looked Yu Sheng up and down mockingly. "President Yu actually has time to come to a bar? How surprising."
Yu Sheng wore a very formal suit. His sharp side profile and whole body radiated a precocious gravitas belying his age.
His tone was light. "I'm here with the company's top management to welcome the new Deputy CEO. Don't think my work is so easy."
"I never thought President Yu's work was easy. President Yu doesn't need to put me down," frowned Li Zhen disgustedly. "Moreover, since we're divorced, whether President Yu is busy with work or not has nothing to do with me. There's no need to specifically come tell me."
"I just wanted to see what kind of man you've picked, to help you see if he measures up," Yu Sheng let out a cold mocking laugh.
"That's perfect, President Yu, thanks for keeping an eye on things," Li Zhen said with a smile, beckoning to the bartender, "Hey handsome, what kind of services do you offer here?"
The handsome bartender had already noticed the stunning beauty and overheard their conversation. He eagerly came over and winked at her.
"We have plenty, anything you want, I'll make sure you're completely satisfied!"
