The Husband From the Original Pairing is Now Divorced - Chapter 13

Chapter 13: The Third Party

“Hello, Mr. Chen.”

“Are you sure you don’t want to stay a few more days?”

“I’m fine now. It’s better to go home early and rest there.”

Sheng Jia insisted on being discharged before Monday. Zhou Zifei clearly disapproved, but he didn’t stop him.

“Let’s go. I’ll drive you back, Teacher Sheng.”

Zifei had brought his car. As he backed out of the parking space, he continuously nagged Sheng Jia to tell him immediately if he felt unwell and suggested he take Monday off from the kindergarten. Sheng Jia sat upright with his hands on his knees, nodding obediently, promising to stay home on Monday.

“By the way, Zifei, remember to send me the bill for the medical expenses so I can transfer the money to you.”

“Sure, I’ll send it when I get home.”

Zifei didn’t refuse. He had anticipated Sheng Jia would want to pay him back, so when he settled the bill at the hospital, he had paid for someone in a general ward and saved a payment record that didn’t reflect the cost of the VIP suite Sheng Jia actually occupied.

Just then, Sheng Jia’s phone rang. He picked it up to find a stranger’s friend request. The message read: “A friend of Yu Xianghang.”

Sheng Jia frowned. Considering the recent trouble with Sheng Qianlong, he decided to accept. Almost immediately, the person sent a message:

“Hello, Mr. Sheng.”

“I am Yu Xianghang’s boyfriend. Are you free lately? I’d like to have a chat.”

The car pulled up at the apartment building. Zifei turned and saw Sheng Jia staring at his phone, motionless.

“Teacher Sheng, what’s wrong?”

The worried voice snapped Sheng Jia out of his daze. He looked up at Zifei blankly. Seeing his soul-shaken expression, Zifei softened his tone even further. “What happened?”

“He… my ex-husband’s boyfriend wants to meet me…” Sheng Jia murmured.

His memory was instantly dragged back to that sweltering evening filled with the sound of cicadas—the suggestive noises from the room, and the hurried glimpse of a tall, young man in white sneakers.

“Teacher Sheng?” “Sheng Jia, Sheng Jia!”

A warm hand gripped his shoulder. Sheng Jia blinked, realizing Zifei’s face was inches away. Once Sheng Jia’s gaze focused, Zifei slowly let go of his shoulder and gently lowered the hand holding the phone.

“If you don’t want to go, refuse him. There’s no rule saying you have to see him just because he wants to see you.”

“You’re divorced. Your ex-husband’s current partner is just a stranger who has nothing to do with you. You don’t need to acknowledge him.”

Zifei’s voice helped Sheng Jia’s sluggish brain start working again. He gripped his phone tight, lowered his gaze, and after a moment of thought, said: “I want to go.”

To say he didn’t care about the so-called “Third Party” was just a facade. Sheng Jia wanted to know what kind of person he was. It wasn’t that he was clinging to Yu Xianghang; he was just… a little curious. A little bit unwilling to let it go without seeing.

What kind of person could make a ten-year relationship vanish? What kind of love could move the man who Sheng Jia once believed would love him forever? He used to be afraid to meet this person, but now he had the courage to face his failed marriage. He wasn’t afraid of failure anymore; he just wanted to confirm that he had truly let go. To put it simply, he wanted to kill the last spark of hope.

“Okay. Did you agree on a time and place?”

“I’ll go with you. I won’t disturb you—I’ll just wait nearby. That way, if you run into trouble, I can help.”

Zifei never stopped Sheng Jia from doing anything, even if he knew Sheng Jia might get hurt. Sheng Jia’s life belonged to himself. If he wanted to walk in the rain or fall down, Zifei would let him. Sheng Jia looked like fragile porcelain, but Zifei knew he was an unpolished gem that had survived great hardship.

“You… you’ll accompany me?”

“Yeah. Just think of me as your driver and part-time bag carrier. Don’t worry, Teacher Sheng, I’ll be better behaved than Jiayi. I won’t disturb you.” Zifei looked at him with a light smile, making it sound as simple as a trip to the grocery store.

Sheng Jia couldn’t win the argument, but his heavy mood lightened. Ever since Zifei saved him two days ago, he found it impossible to be formal with him. Perhaps because Zifei had seen him at his most wretched, Sheng Jia felt he could safely expose his vulnerabilities to him.

…

Sheng Jia agreed to meet the man, who called himself “Mr. Chen,” on Monday morning. The man didn’t seem to have a regular office job, as he was perfectly free during a weekday.

When the time came, Sheng Jia left his house. He expected to be nervous, but instead, he found himself wondering what breakfast Zifei would bring him today. The night before, Zifei had insisted on bringing breakfast so Sheng Jia could get more rest.

Sheng Jia was starting to realize that Zifei’s actions had long since exceeded the boundaries of “friendship,” but having never dealt with such a situation, he was still looking for the right moment to talk to him about it.

“Finished eating? Do you want to rest before we go?” Zifei asked after packing the food containers and handing Sheng Jia a napkin.

“No need, let’s go now.”

Sheng Jia felt a delayed wave of nervousness. He took a few deep breaths and sat stiffly in the passenger seat.

“Teacher Sheng, don’t rush. You need to put on your seatbelt first.”

A faint scent of men’s cologne filled the air. An arm crossed over his chest. Sheng Jia instinctively leaned back. Zifei leaned in close, his hair brushing against Sheng Jia’s chin, causing a slight tickle.

Sheng Jia held his breath. His heart began to race, but with a satisfying click, Zifei’s warmth and scent retreated, leaving only a faint citrus note behind.

“Alright, let’s head out.”

Sheng Jia nodded silently, his palm resting over his heart, which was thumping rapidly against his chest.

…

Chen Lekang finally saw the man. At first glance, he thought he had the wrong person. The man didn’t look nearly as “terrible” as Yu Xianghang had described. If anything, he was a delicate, sickly beauty.

Sheng Jia’s skin was very pale, his hair jet-black, and his features small and refined. His eyes had a natural, gentle curve to them. Chen Lekang felt the man looked oddly familiar, but before he could place the face, Sheng Jia was in front of him.

“Hello, Mr. Chen.”

Sheng Jia’s voice was soft. He showed no resentment; he was perfectly calm. Chen Lekang was momentarily speechless. Sheng Jia was so different from what he had imagined. After a long pause, as Sheng Jia looked at him with confusion, Chen Lekang finally spoke.

“I know Xianghang went to see you the other day. I saw his phone and we had a huge fight. After thinking about it, I decided to come and see you myself.”

Crash—

The sound of a breaking cup came from a table behind them. Chen Lekang glanced over to see a red-haired man who had dropped his glass, his face dark with anger. Chen Lekang turned back, indifferent, but noticed that Sheng Jia looked worried and even stood up to call a waiter over to check on the other table.

“Are you usually this kind and helpful, Mr. Sheng?” Chen Lekang asked pointedly once Sheng Jia sat back down.

Sheng Jia’s mind was elsewhere, wondering if Zifei had been burned. He answered distractedly, “Not really.”

Chen Lekang nodded, studying him again. “Aren’t you curious why I asked to see you?”

Meeting Chen Lekang’s playful gaze, Sheng Jia thought for a moment before answering: “My divorce from Yu Xianghang was very thorough. We are not getting back together.”

Chen Lekang burst out laughing. “I didn’t come here for that. I was just curious what the ‘original spouse’ Yu Xianghang talked about looked like. When I was pursuing him, he rejected me for the longest time, saying he had a husband he loved very much and would never betray.”

Sheng Jia remained silent. He felt nothing hearing those words. His first thought upon seeing Chen Lekang was, So this is what he looks like, and then… nothing. No anger, no numbness—just total peace.

“Are you going to stay silent the whole time? If you didn’t want to talk, why did you agree to meet?” Chen Lekang was getting annoyed. Sheng Jia spent the whole time stirring his drink with a straw, his expression completely unmoved.

The only time Sheng Jia had shown any emotion was when the red-haired man dropped his cup. Otherwise, he sat there like a still pond.

Just as Chen Lekang thought Sheng Jia wouldn’t speak again, he did.

“Mr. Chen, I’ve already achieved my purpose in meeting you, so I really have nothing to discuss. I have moved on from my marriage with Yu Xianghang, and he clearly doesn’t care anymore either. As his current partner, you don’t need to dwell on this.”

“We are strangers. I don’t see any reason for a spouse and a third party to have a pleasant conversation. If you thought we’d get along, you were mistaken.”

Sheng Jia’s voice was soft, but his tone was unusually sharp. He finally looked up. His eyes curved slightly, and his pale lips quirked into a faint smile. He tucked a strand of hair behind his ear and stood up.

Looking down at Chen Lekang, he said in his usual quiet voice: “I won’t interfere with whatever is between you and Yu Xianghang. To me, he is just a stranger now. And you are a stranger too. There’s nothing to talk about with a stranger, so I won’t say ‘goodbye.’ I’ll be going now.”

Before Chen Lekang could react, Sheng Jia was already walking away. He pushed open the cafe door without a single backward glance, looking as if the meeting had been a total waste of time.

Inexplicably, Chen Lekang felt like he had lost.

Not in terms of winning Yu Xianghang, but in terms of attitude. He had dressed up meticulously and started with a strong opening, but Sheng Jia had shown up in simple cream-colored clothes, hair loose, and remained so calm that Lekang felt like he had tried too hard.

Sheng Jia was so peaceful; his life had already moved on to the next journey. Meanwhile, Lekang—who prided himself on being the dominant one—was still trapped in the drama of this illicit relationship.

Chen Lekang stared at the empty seat. After a while, he whispered, “Yu Xianghang, your taste is terrible. You actually divorced a person like that.”

He went to the counter to pay, only to find the bill had already been settled. He walked out of the cafe feeling incredibly unsatisfied.

Truthfully, he was already getting bored with Yu Xianghang. He had only wanted to satisfy his curiosity by meeting the “charmless husband” before breaking up with Xianghang. But after meeting Sheng Jia, he suddenly decided he wanted to wait a bit longer before ending things.

He wanted to know more about Sheng Jia. He had developed a profound interest in this man he had once looked down upon.