Chapter 60: Surprised? Unexpected?

Chapter 60: Chapter 60: Surprised? Unexpected?

’Reason with Shen Zhenwu calmly and kindly?’

’The pride I’ve nurtured for half my life is stuck in my throat, impossible to swallow...’

While she was scheming with her eyes closed, Shen Shuangshuang was already doing as she’d been told, throwing herself onto the edge of the bed and crying her heart out. "Mom! You can’t leave me! If you’re gone, there’ll be no one left in this world who truly loves Shuangshuang... How will Shuangshuang live?"

She wiped her face with the back of her hand as she cried, soaking a large patch of her sleeve.

When Shen Zhenwu and Song Yao pushed the door open, the scene before them was enough to make one’s nose tingle and eyes burn.

Yao Yuzhen’s face was deathly pale. Her eyes were closed, and her breathing was extremely faint.

Good grief, they almost thought Yao Yuzhen had stopped breathing!

Shen Zhenwu’s face turned white, and he bolted toward the hospital bed.

"How’s my wife?!"

His voice was so urgent and harsh that a few nurses flinched back.

The doctor quickly waved his hand. "Mr. Shen, don’t panic! She’s awake, her blood pressure has stabilized, and she’s out of danger for now."

Shen Shuangshuang had sharp ears. Hearing her father arrive, she started crying even more dramatically, her whole body convulsing as she clung to the side of the bed.

"Mom... Don’t leave me! If you really go, what’s the point of me living in this world? Besides you, who else will truly love me?"

She grabbed Yao Yuzhen’s wrist and shook it forcefully.

Just as Shen Zhenwu frowned and was about to speak, Song Yao lazily interjected, "Oh, come on. Is all this really necessary? Isn’t it just about my dad getting my household registration sorted out?"

Her words were like a needle, stabbing right into Shen Shuangshuang’s heart.

She hated Song Yao more than anyone.

Ever since this person appeared, she had gone from being the esteemed Miss Shen to a joke people gossiped about in their spare time.

"Song Yao!"

She shrieked, "This is all your fault! My mom slit her wrist because you pushed her to it! How can you be so vicious? Do you just have to ruin our family?!"

Shen Zhenwu had just opened his mouth to scold her when Song Yao, already brandishing the little red booklet in her hand, stepped forward with a grin. "Shuangshuang, my dear little sister, you can’t just say things like that~ I’m not here to tear the family apart, I’m here for a family reunion."

She flipped to the newest page and pointed it out for Shen Shuangshuang to see. "Look, the household registration page, freshly stamped. From now on, the Shen Family will have a prosperous life. Let’s all live together in peace and harmony~"

Yao Yuzhen couldn’t lie down any longer. She sat bolt upright, her chest heaving violently.

"Shen Zhenwu!"

She ground her teeth so hard they audibly clicked. "I was lying here waiting to breathe my last, and you actually went and added her to my family’s household registration?!"

Song Yao immediately chimed in, "That’s right, Comrade Yao Yuzhen! Aren’t you surprised? Isn’t it unexpected?"

Yao Yuzhen’s eyes instantly turned bloodshot. She roared, her voice raw, "You! Shut your mouth! It’s not your place to spew nonsense here! Shen Zhenwu! Say something!"

Shen Zhenwu was actually taken aback for a moment.

’He had never seen Yao Yuzhen this furious in his entire life.’

’Angry before?’

’At most, she would give him the cold shoulder. He’d foolishly thought his wife was just composed and didn’t hold grudges against him.’

’Who knew that was the silent treatment? He didn’t understand it at all.’

"When I got the call, the paperwork at the police station was already halfway done... And I’m not a doctor, I couldn’t have stopped the bleeding even if I ran over..."

Before the words were even out of his mouth, Yao Yuzhen grabbed the water glass from the bedside table and hurled it at him.

"Get out! The sight of you makes me sick! I’m filing for divorce tomorrow! A divorce! We have to get divorced!"

This divorce would be difficult to get, but if Yao Yuzhen was truly willing to bet her life on it, not even the organization could force her to stay.

A vein throbbed on Shen Zhenwu’s forehead. He said urgently, "Yu Zhen, calm down first! About our daughter, I’ve investigated it and figured it out..."

The door to the hospital room was suddenly pushed open.

Several women stood at the entrance, holding fruit baskets, their faces filled with concern.

"We heard Comrade Yao Yuzhen had an accident, so the organization specially sent us to visit."

The woman in the lead had a gentle smile. She turned and nodded to Shen Zhenwu. "Mr. Shen is here as well."

Shen Zhenwu immediately straightened up and nodded in response.

Yao Yuzhen sat there in a daze. When the woman saw her in this state, she let out a soft sigh.

She raised a hand to adjust her glasses, then turned to Yao Yuzhen.

"Mr. Shen, if it’s convenient, I’d like to speak with Comrade Yao Yuzhen alone for a few moments."

Shen Zhenwu’s voice was a bit hoarse. "Please, go ahead."

He shot a look at the medical staff nearby, and they immediately withdrew.

Song Yao was sensible enough not to linger either, quietly slipping out the door.

The only one left in the room was Shen Shuangshuang, her small hand clutching her mother’s, her palm slick with sweat.

"Child, why don’t you wait outside for a bit? Auntie needs to discuss some serious matters with your mother."

The woman’s tone was soft, but her words carried an unnegotiable weight.

Shen Shuangshuang didn’t know her at all and had just opened her mouth to refuse when she caught sight of Yao Yuzhen discreetly shaking her head.

Yao Yuzhen could throw a tantrum in front of Shen Zhenwu, but in the presence of someone with real power, her heart hammered in her chest.

’How could I dare let my daughter be stubborn at a time like this?’

Shen Shuangshuang pouted and dawdled for a long time before finally leaving, looking back every few steps.

The door closed, and the room became so quiet you could hear them breathing.

The woman took a file folder from her bag and pushed it in front of Yao Yuzhen.

"Comrade Yao Yuzhen, this is the organization’s conclusion from the investigation into Mr. Shen’s conduct issues and Comrade Song Yao’s background."

Yao Yuzhen’s hands rested on her lap, completely still.

Seeing this, the woman’s lips curved into a slight smile.

’It was as if she had expected this reaction.’

"It seems you’re perfectly clear about it in your heart. Mr. Shen didn’t actually do anything wrong, did he?"

Yao Yuzhen’s expression tightened instantly.

She lowered her head, her voice dry. "No... that’s not it. I’m just... so tired. With life having become like this, I don’t even care about the truth anymore."

"Tired?"

The woman asked in return. "What exactly are you tired of?"

Yao Yuzhen froze, as if she’d never expected to be questioned so directly.

After a few seconds, she suddenly clenched her fists, her jaw tightening so hard her teeth audibly grated.

"For a daughter who wasn’t even on the household registry, he was ready to abandon his family! I’ve managed this household for twenty years and loved Shuangshuang since she was a child. Does none of that count for anything?"

"You’re wrong."

The woman’s tone was calm, but her gaze was piercingly bright. "Comrade Yao Yuzhen, we must speak the truth. Especially someone with your family background, you should adhere to this baseline. Surely you haven’t forgotten the trouble the Yao family caused back then, and the criticism they faced?"

As soon as she said this, Yao Yuzhen’s face turned white as a sheet.

"This isn’t the past anymore; the world doesn’t revolve around you. Song Yao said something very clearly back in Nanhui: what you think is useless. Whether something is true or false depends on evidence, not on your baseless assumptions."

Yao Yuzhen’s throat tightened, and her mind went blank.

She wasn’t in a hurry. She laid out the results of the investigation point by point, which were exactly the same as what Shen Zhenwu had told Song Yao.

Finally, looking at the visibly shaken Yao Yuzhen, she said slowly, "Don’t forget, the comfortable life you’ve had for the past twenty years has been thanks to the great tree that is Mr. Shen, someone the organization trusts. But you? If you insist on pulling up the roots and tearing up the ground..."

"You, of all people, should know just how hard the Yao family fell back then."

Yao Yuzhen’s back was already soaked through, cold sweat dripping down ceaselessly.

When Shen Shuangshuang came out of the room, tears were streaming down her face as she stared daggers at Shen Zhenwu.

Shen Zhenwu frowned and asked, "Why are you staring at me like that?"

"Dad..."

Her voice trembled. "You put Song Yao’s household registration directly under our family’s name... so what am I? After being with you for over a decade, don’t I even deserve an explanation?"