The 99th Divorce

Ou Ming was facing a dilemma. Just as he was about to say something, Yu Lili spoke up, “Apologies, Auntie. I didn’t know that I would feel this unwell today. We just got back from the hospital…”

“Was I speaking to you? How rude!” Jiao Ziqing was angry and hollered, “A person should be aware of her own station in life and where she stands. Have you no idea at all? What a lack of proper upbringing!”

All Yu Lili knew was that her abdomen was hurting badly. Her complexion was horrible. She pressed her lips into a thin line and said, “Auntie, it’s true that I grew up without any parents. But, Auntie, you just interrupted me without my permission while I was still talking. Is insulting a younger person this way the proper upbringing you were talking about?”

Ou Ming’s held his head in his hand and grimaced. He stepped forward in a bid to stop Yu Lili. Both the young and old lady had stubborn temperaments.

His mother had been pampered by his father for too long, and she never had to watch her words in front of others. There was no way she’d let Yu Lili get away with this.

As for his wife, she too, was hard character to handle. If he didn’t deal with the situation right, it was possible that the two of them would end up in a fight.

Jiao Ziqing looked at Yu Lili in disbelief when she heard her say that. Her anger triggered a sardonic laughter from her. Before she could reply, Ou Ming inserted himself between the both of them and whined, “I’m so hungry. If the both of you continue arguing, I’m going to starve to death!”

“Younger person? Just look at your attitude! Are you acting as a younger generation should? You have no manners at all!” Jiao Ziqing’s was very angry. “Did you think that you could be my daughter-in-law just because my son likes you? I’ll tell it to you in no uncertain terms now. Not a chance! As long as I’m still alive, you will never be allowed to be part of our family.”

Jiao Ziqing’s words were harsh indeed.

An evil thought suddenly popped up in Yu Lili’s mind. Your son and I have already registered our marriage. So let’s watch you die!

She quickly erased that thought. That is too evil!

Yu Lili opened her mouth, but no words came out. Instead, she looked at Ou Ming.

“I’m hungry!” Ou Ming looked at them doe-eyed.

Both of them were important women in his life. He couldn’t afford to offend either of them. He could only hope to gain their sympathy by feigning hunger.

Jiao Ziqing was his biological mother after all. When she heard him, she harrumphed and turned around. “Look at how useless you are. If you’re hungry, eat! Who’s stopping you from eating?”

With that, she folded her arms and marched down the stairs.

Ou Ming heaved a sigh of relief and tugged Yu Lili by her hand. Gently, he said, “Let’s go down to eat something.”

Yu Lili was still feeling aggrieved and retorted, “Will your mom still have an appetite if she’s forced to look at me?”

“It’ll be fine. I’ll be there,” Ou Ming pulled her along after him. “Furthermore, my mom has already eaten. She’s very punctual with her meal times. She won’t go hungry. At this hour, she’s definitely eaten already.”

Only then did Yu Lili follow Ou Ming down the stairs. They found Jiao Ziqing had already opened the containers that held the porridge, and she’d gone into the kitchen to retrieve two sets of bowls and chopsticks. She was in the midst of ladling the porridge into the individual bowls.

When Yu Lili saw that, her heart twisted. Two sets of bowls and chopsticks meant one was for herself and the other was for Ou Ming, didn’t it? The feeling of being deliberately left out was a hard pill to swallow. But, there was nothing much Yu Lili could do.

Bearing with the pain in her abdomen and the ache in her back, Yu Lili walked into the kitchen. She washed her hands and took a set of chopsticks and a bowl for herself before walking out.

Jiao Ziqing had already set the porridge in the bowls to cool. When she Yu Lili walking out with another set of chopsticks and a bowl, she commented unhappily, “Oh wow, is what I scooped not good enough for you that you’d rather do it on your own?”

–

At that moment, Yu Lili felt that everything Ou Ming’s mother said to her at every turn was a slap to her face. Ha. Ha. Ha.