The Husband From the Original Pairing is Now Divorced - Chapter 23

Chapter 23: Consent – “I only want to give my everything to you.”

Sheng Jia didn’t understand what “pursuing” meant; he had never been pursued before.

When he was with Yu Xianghang, they had simply walked to and from school together every day until one day Yu Xianghang kissed him, and they drifted into a relationship just like that.

“What… what does ‘pursue’ mean?”

Seeing Sheng Jia’s dazed expression, Zhou Zifei couldn’t resist gently ruffling his hair, pulling his hand back just before Sheng Jia could react.

“To pursue… It means I like you and want to be good to you. You can choose to accept it if you want, but if you find it annoying, you can run away, and I’ll follow behind you while trying to coax you back.”

“When the day comes that you don’t want to run anymore—when you feel that resting in place and standing with me, or even slowly walking forward together, isn’t so bad—that’s when I’ll have officially ‘caught’ you.”

Then, without a moment’s pause, Zhou Zifei spoke again:

“Sheng Jia, I really, really like you. I hope you can give me a chance to stay by your side.”

This time, he didn’t use any tact; he landed a direct blow that Sheng Jia couldn’t dodge.

Sheng Jia stood as if frozen. He looked at Zhou Zifei, who was looking down at him with intense focus.

At this moment, the world fell silent. The roar of the engines on the track and the screech of tires against the pavement all faded into the distance. Yet, Sheng Jia felt a chaotic noise in his mind, the sound in his chest deafening.

“No, Zifei, I can’t agree to this…”

Sheng Jia gripped the cola can, his knuckles turning white from the force, yet he had subconsciously used the intimate name “Zifei.” In his panic, he lowered his gaze, still trying to struggle.

“I-I’m divorced, and I have a father in prison. My personality is boring; I’m just an ordinary kindergarten teacher. I also… I have many scars on my body that people find repulsive. But you come from a great family, you’re handsome, you’re a good person, and such an excellent racer. We aren’t a match.”

“I’m ten years older than you. You’re still young; there’s no need to waste your time on me. You’ll meet someone better. I’m not worth you being this good to me.”

“Zifei, I’m grateful for how you’ve looked after me and for saving me that time, but… but we really can’t. We can’t be together. It’s such a loss for you to like me—”

Zhou Zifei suddenly took Sheng Jia’s hand, cutting him off. The warm, dry palm made Sheng Jia’s heart tremble; he could neither pull away nor squeeze back.

“Teacher Sheng, my pursuing you doesn’t require anything in return. You don’t need to consider the outcome, nor do you need to weigh the pros and cons for my sake.”

“As I said, accept it if you want, and run if you don’t. The only thing you need to consider is your own feelings. How I think and what I do—that’s for me to handle.”

Sheng Jia’s fingers moved slightly under Zhou Zifei’s hand. His other hand still clutched the cola can. He kept his head down in silence while Zhou Zifei waited patiently.

After a moment, Sheng Jia asked: “Why do you like me? We… haven’t known each other long. How can you be sure I’m the person you want most?”

Hearing this, Zhou Zifei laughed softly. He looked at Sheng Jia and spoke slowly:

“Teacher Sheng, there are people in this world who wear each other down for years, only to separate in the end—only then realizing that the other person wasn’t what they truly wanted.”

“But some people only need one look to know who the person is they want to love forever. Once you meet them, everyone else becomes unimportant.”

At these words, Sheng Jia fell into thought, instinctively thinking of his previous six-year marriage.

Zhou Zifei took a sip of cola, paused, and continued:

“I am certain that you, Teacher Sheng, are the person I am destined to love forever. It doesn’t take a long time to confirm this, because with just one look—the very first look—I knew I could never place my love, my passion, or my joy on anyone else.”

“I only want to give my everything to you.”

Sheng Jia was shaken to his core. He lifted his head and found that Zhou Zifei had been watching him the whole time.

No one had ever said “I only want to give my everything to you” to him—especially not in such a casual yet matter-of-fact tone. Even with Yu Xianghang, even during their most passionate days, Sheng Jia had never heard anything like it.

Love in this world is mostly conditional; few people are selfless enough to hand over their everything to another.

Sheng Jia murmured, “Give everything to me… then what if one day I hurt you instead? What will you do?”

“I believe you wouldn’t do that, Teacher Sheng.”

“But what if?”

Zhou Zifei took the deformed cola can from Sheng Jia’s hand. He walked a few steps forward and deftly tossed it into a nearby trash bin.

“If that day comes, it must be because I hurt you first. Perhaps I gave you things you didn’t want, or perhaps what you felt wasn’t what I described, leading you to make that choice.”

Sheng Jia stood up straight. Zhou Zifei turned around and held out his left hand in the sunlight.

“Teacher Sheng, true love doesn’t make a person want to resist or push it away.”

“Have you felt happy during the time we’ve spent together? Even if it’s just a little bit, that is reason enough for you to accept my pursuit.”

“Don’t think about the results, and don’t think about whether it’s ‘worth it.’ Just think for yourself for once, okay?”

Zhou Zifei’s palm was larger than his, his fingers long and slender. Every time they touched, they were warm—a sensation Sheng Jia could never bring himself to refuse.

Sheng Jia slowly walked forward and placed his hand in Zhou Zifei’s palm.

“Okay.”

Just for himself, for once.

Sheng Jia wanted to know what the love Zhou Zifei spoke of—the “giving of everything” and “never being hurt”—actually felt like.

However, while Sheng Jia didn’t quite realize it, Zhou Zifei knew clearly that agreeing to be pursued was essentially a prelude to becoming lovers.

He gripped Sheng Jia’s hand firmly, his fingers gently interlocking with Sheng Jia’s.

Sheng Jia thought about how Zhou Zifei said he only needed to consider his own feelings. Right now, being held by Zhou Zifei’s warm hand felt quite comfortable. Perhaps accepting wasn’t such a big deal?

They left the experience center hand-in-hand, only letting go when they went to pick up Zhou Jiayi.

Zhou Zifei always knew when to push and when to pull. Having gained Sheng Jia’s consent today, he didn’t overstay his welcome after dropping him off. He simply gave a few instructions, telling Sheng Jia to take a hot bath and get some rest.

Sheng Jia walked upstairs with a light step. As soon as he opened his door, his phone buzzed with a message.

“I broke up.”

It was another message from Yu Xianghang.

Sheng Jia’s heart, which had been floating, sank. He didn’t understand what Yu Xianghang had been trying to do these past few days. First, he asked about Sheng Qianlong, then he rambled about watching maple leaves in the park with Sheng Jia years ago, and finally, he even said he wanted to meet at their old home.

Now, he was even reporting his breakup.

But they had been divorced for months. The last time they had been in contact before this recent spree was over a month ago, when Yu Xianghang had unilaterally blocked him.

Looking at the message, Sheng Jia felt a sense of weariness. He was no longer willing to act as a sponge for all of Yu Xianghang’s negative emotions. So, he didn’t reply. He simply took a hot bath as Zhou Zifei suggested and went to bed early.

But the phone continued to vibrate occasionally.

“Sheng Jia, have you been doing well lately?”

“I haven’t eaten dinner tonight because I suddenly really missed the fish you make, and the braised beef you used to buy.”

“That vase that broke before—I searched the handmade markets for a long time before I found an identical one.”

“Our rings are still here. I didn’t throw them away.”

“I miss you. Ever since the divorce, whenever night falls, I miss you so much I sometimes can’t sleep.”

Seeing this, Sheng Jia finally couldn’t take it anymore. He realized how unreasonable Yu Xianghang was being.

How could Yu Xianghang say he missed him? How could he—how dare he—say that out loud? Was he not the person least qualified to say those words?

The vase was already broken, and the rings had been returned. Whether Sheng Jia was doing well now had nothing to do with Yu Xianghang. Even if things were bad before, they were over now.

“Yu Xianghang, I am doing very well. Stop sending these messages.”

After sending the text, Sheng Jia turned off his phone, lay down, and pulled up the covers.

He thought he would be kept awake by Yu Xianghang’s messages, but the moment his head hit the pillow, his consciousness blurred. Perhaps he had exhausted too much energy during the day; Sheng Jia quickly fell into a sweet, deep sleep.