After the Divorce, My Wife Is Impossible to Coax - Chapter 39

Chapter 39

It was the middle of the day, with the sun beating down and heat shimmering up from the ground. Wen Yuncheng’s words hit An Zhaoyu’s brain like a sudden wave of heatstroke.

“What did you say…”

“Captain, you didn’t know?” Seeing her expression, Wen Yuncheng realized she wasn’t faking. Did they really not communicate at all on the plane? How is that possible?

“That day, we were originally going to roll dice to decide who would join you for the competition. But when we reached the training aircraft, we found Dr. Lu was already inside.”

The other team members found it hard to believe as well and stepped forward to back Wen Yuncheng up.

“Yeah, Captain. The person on the plane with you was 100% Dr. Lu. We saw it with our own eyes.”

“If you don’t believe us, you can check the flight data recorder from that day.”

“All of you, go back to training. Let me be alone for a minute.” The helmet in her hand slipped onto the grass with a soft thud. An Zhaoyu took a step back, leaned against a tree, and slowly slid down to sit on the ground.

Her mind was a mess. She had suspected it was Lu Shen, but Lu Shen told her she was working overtime. Why would Lu Shen lie to her?

She accompanied her on the flight but refused to tell her—why? An Zhaoyu didn’t know whether she should be happy or sad.

Did Lu Shen care about her?

If she cared, why wouldn’t she say so? Why lie about working overtime?

If she didn’t care, why would she choose to fly with her knowing there was danger?

Lu Shen loved the baby so much; had she not considered for even a second that a plane crash would leave the baby alone in the world?

If she had known from the start that the person behind her was Lu Shen, An Zhaoyu didn’t know how happy she would have been. She wouldn’t have been impatient with the “mute,” she wouldn’t have gone to the bar to drink herself into a stupor—she would have wanted to pick Lu Shen up and spin her around.

She would have torn that divorce agreement into a million pieces.

She felt so wronged.

“Captain, are you okay?” Wen Yuncheng had already sent the others to practice. He handed An Zhaoyu a pack of tissues and sat on the grass beside her.

This was the first time he had ever seen the Captain’s eyes turn red. Seeing an always competitive and powerful Omega looking this hurt was truly painful to watch.

Does Dr. Lu really not feel for her?

Wen Yuncheng considered himself a veteran of watching messy couples, but he had never seen a pair like An Zhaoyu and Lu Shen. They refused to communicate, yet both did things that showed they cared deeply for one another, creating a world no one else could enter.

He “shipped” them, so the news of the divorce had made him incredibly angry.

An Zhaoyu plucked two blades of grass in silence, then stood up, grabbed her helmet, and started walking out.

“Where are you going?” Wen Yuncheng called out from behind.

“Inpatient Department.”

An Zhaoyu intended to find Lu Shen and ask her face-to-face. she couldn’t hold it in any longer.

The inpatient department was crowded. Some people were crouching in corners eating lunchboxes, while others occupied several seats to nap loudly with thunderous snores. An Zhaoyu usually came to find Lu Shen after work and had never seen it this busy.

Despite the dozen elevators on the first floor, long lines snaked outside. Different elevators serviced different floors, and the Glandular Department could only be reached by two specific ones.

An Zhaoyu waited in line. Her flight uniform drew many eyes, including those of Liang Wei, who was returning from a patient transfer.

Recognizing the iconic burgundy curls, Liang Wei’s heart pounded with excitement. She nudged the person next to her. “Look, look!”

The person next to her was Jiang Chu. She had seen An Zhaoyu the moment she entered but pretended not to. Look at what? Jiang Chu rolled her eyes. They’re divorced; what is she doing here looking for Lu Shen?

“It’s An Zhaoyu! She’s even prettier in person than in photos, sob…” Liang Wei looked like a total fangirl. She fumbled in her white coat pockets—she had pens, but the only paper she had was black-headed medical charts, which felt like bad luck.

“Since you like her so much, Senior, go ahead and pursue her.”

“What are you talking about? She has a lover and a child,” Liang Wei replied. Her admiration wasn’t “that kind” of liking.

“Not for long,” Jiang Chu muttered under her breath. She had no intention of letting her senior know the truth about An Zhaoyu and Lu Shen’s relationship, or else her senior would spend all day shipping them, which would be a huge obstacle to Jiang Chu’s own pursuit of Lu Shen.

The elevator arrived. An Zhaoyu was about to step in when the crowd from the neighboring line surged over. In an instant, the overload alarm blared.

This was the daily elevator struggle in a hospital. Elderly people and their families often cut in line at exactly this moment. An Zhaoyu should have made it in, but she was squeezed out.

Forget it. Most were patients or their families. An Zhaoyu’s mind was in such a state that she didn’t feel like arguing with them.

“This is too much. It’s one thing to crowd the doctors, but these people have no bottom line,” Liang Wei complained. She had started out polite, wanting to yield to others, only to find that those who came later would shamelessly refuse to get out even when the alarm rang, waiting for a younger person to give up their spot out of frustration.

They were “repeat offenders.”

“Don’t try to be a hero, you’ll get hit,” Jiang Chu pulled her back. “Next time you want to play hero, don’t wear your white coat.”

They ended up taking the next elevator with An Zhaoyu.

An Zhaoyu noticed Jiang Chu but didn’t want to speak to her, so she feigned ignorance. Jiang Chu, naturally, was happy to ignore her, pulling Liang Wei to the furthest corner. Only Liang Wei stole glances at An Zhaoyu, immersed in a fan-girl fantasy of a “beautiful encounter” in an elevator.

When they reached the Glandular Department, everyone got off together.

“She’s coming to our department!” Liang Wei mouthed silently to Jiang Chu.

Duh, Jiang Chu snorted inwardly, keeping her head down to flip through reports.

“Dr. Liang, we have a new patient!” The nurse’s station was surrounded by new admissions waiting for vitals. An intern nurse shouted for Liang Wei, the doctor on duty.

“Coming!” Liang Wei called back, casting one last lingering look at An Zhaoyu’s back, regretful that she didn’t get to say hello.

“You’ll have another chance,” Jiang Chu said without looking up.

“Fine. Go do the ECGs for beds 13 and 15,” Liang Wei said before jogging off.

An Zhaoyu walked toward the doctors’ duty room and was about to knock.

“Dr. Lu isn’t here right now. She went out with Professor Fu on business,” Jiang Chu said from behind her.

An Zhaoyu turned. Jiang Chu stood at the corner, clutching a folder, her expression icy. If Liang Wei hadn’t been there earlier, she would have blocked An Zhaoyu on the first floor.

There were other patients around, so An Zhaoyu walked toward Jiang Chu. They were about the same height, but An Zhaoyu’s aura completely suppressed her.

“The day of my competition—where was Lu Shen?”

Wary surprise flashed in Jiang Chu’s eyes. She even took a step back. “Working overtime.”

An Zhaoyu suddenly laughed, her beautiful eyes narrowing. “It’s been so long. How do you remember so clearly?”

“…” Jiang Chu realized she had walked right into a trap.

“I could get the correct answer from every single doctor and nurse here. And even if I couldn’t, I recall you have shift records.”

“So what? You’re already divorced,” Jiang Chu said expressionlessly.

“I’m going to win her back,” An Zhaoyu took a deep breath, suppressing the emotions churning inside her.

Jiang Chu watched her leave, her eyes flashing with sparks and her left hand clenched into a fist inside her pocket.

Having verified the answer again, An Zhaoyu felt even more wronged. She desperately wanted to see Lu Shen.

Wei Jinlin, having been beaten once, didn’t dare take secret photos of Lu Shen to send to An Zhaoyu anymore. After work, An Zhaoyu changed out of her uniform and drove around the area of the cafe from yesterday. Lu Shen was so busy now she couldn’t get off work at the same time as her.

She could have gone home to wait, but she couldn’t help wandering here. Maybe she’d run into her?

She spotted Lu Shen’s car in front of a tea house. Looking up at the second floor, she saw Dr. Lu sitting by the window, her posture straight and elegant. Opposite her was a different Alpha—a woman with short hair in a crisp black suit.

That Alpha was staring at Lu Shen like a predator watching prey, her excitement barely concealed. Lu Shen, in a simple white silk shirt and a high-waisted black pencil skirt, maintained her usual elegant distance. She wore no jewelry, but even in a crowd, she stood out like a crane among chickens.

An Zhaoyu parked and went upstairs. She saw Professor Fu Xinglan sitting at a nearby table with a laptop, acting as a bodyguard. An Zhaoyu walked over, pulled out a chair opposite Fu Xinglan, and ordered tea in one smooth motion.

Interesting, Fu Xinglan thought, raising an eyelid.

“Let’s add each other on WeChat, Professor Fu,” An Zhaoyu said, displaying her QR code.

The socially anxious Fu Xinglan added her. Speaking through an app was easier than face-to-face anyway. She looked at her new shoes and silently retracted her feet by ten centimeters.

An Zhaoyu ignored her; she only added her to make it easier to ask for Lu Shen’s location next time.

Through the screen, they could hear the conversation at Lu Shen’s table. Lu Shen was introducing the inhibitor in her cool, pure voice.

“Dr. Lu, let me be straight with you,” the Alpha interrupted with a smirk. “Your inhibitor can’t be promoted. Mr. Wei has issued an ultimatum to all pharmaceutical companies here: no one is allowed to cooperate with you.”

Lu Shen froze. “Then why didn’t you say so earlier?” She had been explaining for an hour.

“Because you sound so good when you talk. I wanted to hear more,” the Alpha’s eyes shamelessly roved over Lu Shen’s neck. She swallowed audibly. “Now you have two choices. One, go find Mr. Wei. Two, see if you’re willing to accompany—”

Before she could finish, a cup of cold tea was splashed in her face.

“Get out,” An Zhaoyu’s voice was like frost, her eyes burning with fire.

Fu Xinglan’s lips twitched. She had seen An Zhaoyu stand up with her tea and had quickly swapped the Captain’s scalding hot tea for her own cold red tea. Otherwise, that Alpha would be missing a layer of skin. Saved the young lady some medical compensation fees, she thought.

The Alpha, initially furious, was stunned by An Zhaoyu’s beauty and suppressed her anger. An Zhaoyu picked up the Alpha’s business card from the table with pure disdain. “A tiny, broken company like this thinks it can have designs on her? Do you think you’re worthy?”

The Alpha saw An Zhaoyu’s unreasonable arrogance and realized she wasn’t someone to mess with. She fled before An Zhaoyu could pour a second cup.

Lu Shen sat there, looking exhausted. Her snow-white cheeks were flushed with anger, though her upbringing prevented her from making a scene.

“Lu Shen, let’s go home,” An Zhaoyu’s voice became soft when she turned to her.

Lu Shen looked up. The sharp aura An Zhaoyu had just used on the Alpha was gone, replaced by a warm, smiling gaze. Amidst a world of bitter malice, it felt incredibly safe. Lu Shen’s heart rate, which had sped up from anger, began to skip beats for a different reason. She looked away, feeling that if she looked any longer, she would fall.

An Zhaoyu sent Professor Fu away with a deluxe takeout order and took Lu Shen home. In the living room, Lu Shen played with the baby, appearing somewhat distracted. An Zhaoyu cooked in the kitchen.

The home now felt different. An Zhaoyu had added a beige lampshade that softened the light, creating a warm, hazy glow. Photos of the baby’s growth on the wall were bathed in a golden shadow.

“Mama, here,” An Zhou sat on the floor, handing Lu Shen building blocks one by one.

The sounds from the kitchen reminded Lu Shen of her childhood. Back then, her own mother and “Mommy” (Jiang Nian) would play with her just like this. Her mother was mischievous, often smearing Lu Shen in mud and calling it “sunscreen,” only to hide the little Lu Shen like a naughty child whenever Mommy appeared.

Mommy was gentle. She never scolded the wild mother but would carefully bathe Lu Shen after they had played their fill. Lu Shen had been a happy child until Jiang Nian left and the protection vanished.

She hugged her innocent baby tightly.

An Zhaoyu came out with the food and saw them hugging. She didn’t want to interrupt the warmth. She was now preparing one of Lu Shen’s favorite dishes every day, slowly improving her culinary skills.

While Lu Shen ate, An Zhaoyu fed the baby—a rare privilege.

“Aah, take a bite and you’ll grow up fast,” the Captain coaxed.

As Lu Shen prepared to leave for the night, her reluctance was palpable. She kissed the sleeping baby’s cheek.

“Lu Shen, I have something to ask you,” An Zhaoyu was waiting for her at the entrance.

“What is it…” Lu Shen felt a sense of foreboding. The narrow hallway felt suffocatingly close.

“The person sitting behind me that day… it was you, wasn’t it?” An Zhaoyu looked her in the eye, her emotions undisguised.

Lu Shen lowered her gaze, her palms sweating as she gripped her bag. She had been found out.

“Yes.” It wasn’t a question, so Lu Shen couldn’t deny it.

“Why did you lie to me?”

An Zhaoyu suddenly stepped closer, her presence looming. Even without touching, the air between them felt pressurized. Panic flashed in Lu Shen’s eyes. She didn’t know how to answer. Should she say she was afraid An Zhaoyu would find her annoying?

The cold wall behind her contrasted with the rising heat in her cheeks. Her heart hammered a frantic rhythm. She stole a glance at An Zhaoyu’s deep, burning eyes—there was nowhere to hide.

Her mind went blank. She wanted to escape and calm down, but An Zhaoyu’s hand was braced against the door, blocking her way.

“I don’t know!” Lu Shen suddenly pushed her away with force and ran out of the house.

An Zhaoyu didn’t chase her. The baby was sleeping inside, and this wasn’t high school anymore. She watched the empty hallway, her eyes swirling with hidden intensity.

Can you really run away?

You can’t.

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