The Husband From the Original Pairing is Now Divorced - Chapter 9

Chapter 9: The Visit

He Simply Isn’t Worth This Much Money

“Teacher Sheng, you’ve brought soup every day this week! Did you make it yourself? It smells amazing!”

Jiang He sat down next to Sheng Jia, noticing today’s soup was Lily and Lotus Seed, with a few red goji berries floating on top.

“It’s because… my throat hasn’t been feeling great lately.”

Sheng Jia didn’t answer whether he made it himself. He just lowered his head and used a spoon to gently stir the contents of the thermal flask.

After accepting the first soup from Zhou Zifei, Sheng Jia had brought the cleaned flask to work the next day intending to return it. However, he was stopped before he even crossed the street to the kindergarten. That familiar black sedan was already parked there, and a red head poked out of the lowered window.

“Teacher Sheng, here is today’s soup.”

Zhou Zifei handed over a mint-green flask. He was smiling and didn’t get out of the car. Their conversation was hidden under the shade of the trees in the summer morning.

“Today’s?”

“Yes. Your throat isn’t better yet, and I’m really worried about your health. Let’s do a full week’s worth; making these soups isn’t a hassle anyway.”

Zhou Zifei spoke with such earnesty. Seeing Sheng Jia hesitate, he gestured again with his hand. Noticing the faint trace of anxiety in Zifei’s eyes, Sheng Jia’s thoughts drifted for a moment.

He couldn’t help but compare the twenty-two-year-old Zhou Zifei to the twenty-two-year-old Yu Xianghang. Back then, Yu Xianghang had just graduated; he would act spoiled or sulk, and Sheng Jia, being three years older, always looked after him like a younger brother, coaxing him with patience.

But Zhou Zifei was entirely different. Even though he was ten years younger than Sheng Jia, Sheng Jia felt that Zifei was more like a steady, reliable older brother.

Granted, Zifei occasionally showed his youthful side—like his flamboyant red hair, or the way he would triumphantly blow kisses and high-five the crowd at the racetrack. But those moments were rare. And it was precisely because those moments were so rare that Sheng Jia found it hard to refuse him.

Zifei said Sheng Jia was special, but wasn’t Zifei special too?

“Okay, thank you.”

Sheng Jia accepted the flask, and Zifei’s lips immediately curled up in a grin he couldn’t hide, looking like a child who had just been praised by a teacher. After taking back the cleaned flask from the day before, Zifei called Jiayi out of the back seat. Only after watching the two walk hand-in-hand into the kindergarten did he drive away.

“Teacher Sheng?”

Jiang He’s voice rose, snapping Sheng Jia back to reality. He turned and asked what was wrong.

“I was just saying, it seems your throat really has improved these past few days. This soup is quite effective.”

Jiang He spoke with admiration, but his eyes were inconspicuously studying Sheng Jia’s face.

It wasn’t just Sheng Jia’s throat that had recovered; his overall complexion had improved. Previously, Sheng Jia always carried a faint air of worry. Even though he had smiled more recently, he had become despondent again on Monday. But starting Tuesday, he had slowly begun to recover.

Now, although he was still pale, his lips were no longer colorless. Coated by the Lily and Lotus Seed soup, they glistened with a healthy moisture. He was like a parched flower that, after being watered, had stopped wilting.

Why such a big change in just a few days? Jiang He wanted to ask, but since Sheng Jia hadn’t volunteered any information, he felt it would be inappropriate to pry.

“Is that so? I feel much better too. Not just my throat…” Sheng Jia looked at Jiang He, his lips curving into a shallow, clear smile. “Although there are still many worries, it seems some things have improved a little.”

Jiang He’s face flushed at the sight of that smile. Before he could respond, Sheng Jia stood up with his tray and flask.

“I’ve finished. I’ll head out first to get the children ready for their nap. Take your time, Teacher Jiang.”

His voice was gentle, and he turned to leave politely without lingering. Jiang He sat frozen, his eyes following Sheng Jia’s back.

This was Sheng Jia: gentle, yet always maintaining a shred of distance. He would smile and listen to you silently, but the next second, he would say goodbye and drift away like a cloud. Jiang He realized that even though they talked often, Sheng Jia had never truly opened up his heart. It seemed like someone like Sheng Jia would never easily let anyone inside.

Jiang He felt a strange sense of loss. What kind of person would make Sheng Jia stay? Who would he open his heart to? For whom does he lose himself in thought, and for whom does he truly smile?

…

Tomorrow was the weekend, so school ended a bit early today. By 5:30 PM, Sheng Jia was standing at the gates.

“Teacher Sheng, can we go to the new aquarium tomorrow afternoon?”

Zhou Jiayi was the last child left, as usual. He didn’t mind being the last one; he just sat obediently at Sheng Jia’s feet with his backpack.

“The aquarium?”

“Yes! Uncle said he’d take me, then he said he couldn’t. So I want you to take me, Teacher Sheng. That way I don’t need him!”

Jiayi had only been at the school for a month, but his uncle’s status in his heart had plummeted. Teacher Sheng was now his favorite person in the world after his parents.

Sheng Jia thought it over and, seeing no reason not to, agreed. As they were making a “pinky promise,” Zhou Zifei arrived.

“Teacher Sheng, I’m here for Jiayi.”

To Zifei’s surprise, Jiayi didn’t run to him. Instead, he buried his face in Sheng Jia’s arms, shouting, “I like Teacher Sheng the most!” in a voice sweeter than any he used for his uncle.

Sheng Jia looked at Zifei with a helpless smile. “Jiayi said you promised the aquarium and then canceled. He asked if I could take him tomorrow. I just agreed… is that okay?”

His voice carried a hint of uncertainty at the end, his eyes searching Zifei’s. Seeing those smiling eyes—cautious yet hopeful, like a mother cat watching over a kitten—Zifei couldn’t possibly say no.

“Actually, I’ve already requested time off from training. I can go tomorrow. Let’s all go together.”

“Yay! I love Uncle the most!” Jiayi finally acknowledged his uncle with a loud cheer.

“You just said you liked Teacher Sheng the most,” Zifei teased, ruffling the boy’s hair. Jiayi giggled and hugged Sheng Jia’s neck, rubbing his face against his shoulder.

“Mom and Dad are first! Uncle and Teacher Sheng are second!”

Jiayi’s words made Sheng Jia laugh. His cheeks flushed a faint pink, his eyes curved into lovely arcs, and his lips parted to reveal his white teeth. For a rare moment, he looked vibrant, almost like a high school student.

Zifei watched him silently. This is why I came, he thought. As long as Sheng Jia could laugh healthily and happily, nothing else mattered.

…

“Teacher Sheng, it’s a plan then. Tomorrow morning I’ll drop off the soup, and in the afternoon I’ll pick you up, then we’ll get Jiayi after his extracurricular class and head to the aquarium.”

Zifei parked at the entrance of Sheng Jia’s complex and confirmed the schedule.

“Do you really need to bring soup tomorrow? I think I’m mostly better…”

Sheng Jia didn’t want Zifei to make an extra trip, but the man in the driver’s seat cut him off. “Teacher Sheng, a promise is a promise. A full week means a full week. Jiayi, isn’t that right?”

“Yes! Teacher Sheng, Uncle can’t lie. If you don’t keep a promise, you’re not a good boy!”

The uncle and nephew were perfectly in sync. Sheng Jia tried one last time: “Then… how about you bring it when you pick me up in the afternoon?”

“No can do. Jiayi will be playing all afternoon; he’ll definitely get hungry and cranky halfway through.” Zifei was shamelessly slandering a five-year-old just to have an excuse to see Sheng Jia alone in the morning.

Sheng Jia tried to protest over Jiayi’s loud “I will not!”, but Zifei settled it. “It’s decided. Get home and rest, Teacher Sheng. I’ll message you before I arrive tomorrow morning.”

Sheng Jia gave in. He had realized by now that Zifei was a man of his word; once he decided on something, Sheng Jia had no hope of stopping him.

“Teacher Sheng—” Zifei called out as Sheng Jia was leaving.

Sheng Jia turned back in the glow of the sunset. The evening wind blew his hair back. He looked at Zifei with a questioning gaze.

Zifei’s eyes softened. Amidst the sound of the wind, he spoke: “See you tomorrow.”

Sheng Jia froze for a second, then his eyes curved. He looked at Zifei intently and replied, “See you tomorrow.”

…

Walking home with a light step, Sheng Jia ate dinner and stood at the sink washing the dishes and Zifei’s flask. The kitchen window reflected a constant, gentle smile on his face.

The aquarium…

He had been once before, back in university when he and Yu Xianghang were dating. He had loved it. Back then, Yu Xianghang promised that once they had money, he would take Sheng Jia to every aquarium in every city and country.

But after graduation, they were busy finding jobs and buying a house. Once things stabilized, Yu Xianghang was always working overtime. Sheng Jia, worried for him, suggested he switch jobs, but Yu Xianghang refused: “Sheng Jia, the work is hard, but the pay is high. I want to give you a better life.”

And so, those plans were never mentioned again.

Thinking of his past with Yu Xianghang made him a bit restless. He looked out the window at the night sky and whispered to no one in particular, “Actually, the life I wanted was just for you to be by my side.”

No matter how decisively he had left, Sheng Jia’s heart couldn’t turn completely cold. Eventually, he drifted into a hazy sleep.

In his dream, he was nineteen. He had saved enough money from working to finally attend a private high school. He had promised Sheng Qianlong that he wouldn’t ask for a penny for tuition and that he would give him all the money he earned while studying. In his second year there, he met Yu Xianghang.

In the dream, Yu Xianghang knocked on the door of the study room, flashed a brilliant smile, and asked, “Classmate, can I share this room with you? There are no other seats left.”

Knock, knock.

The sound of knocking continued, getting louder, turning into a heavy thudding.

In his half-asleep state, Yu Xianghang’s voice rang out: “Sheng Jia! Are you in there? Open the door!”

Sheng Jia snapped his eyes open. It wasn’t a dream. Yu Xianghang was at the door.

He scrambled out of bed, checked himself in the mirror briefly, smoothed his hair, and ran to the living room. For a moment, he felt a surge of joy. His heart raced. I just dreamed of him, and now he’s here.

“Xianghang, how did you—”

Before he could finish, Yu Xianghang burst in and grabbed him by the collar.

“Sheng Jia, how can you be so shameless?”

Yu Xianghang’s cheekbone was swollen and red, as if he had been punched. The eyes that Sheng Jia remembered as always being full of light were now glaring at him with pure rage.

The joy drained from Sheng Jia’s body. The smile on his face froze.

“Wasn’t sucking my blood for ten years enough? You had to send your father to my company to make a scene?”

“And to think you even kept photos like this… were you just waiting for today to blackmail me?”

Yu Xianghang threw several thin sheets of paper at Sheng Jia. His tone was dripping with sarcasm.

Sheng Jia’s lips trembled. He wanted to explain, to ask what happened, but the moment he saw the papers on the floor, his whole body began to shake.

They were blurry photos. The setting was the room Sheng Jia had lived in during high school. The images were intimate. Yu Xianghang was pressing him against the bed, kissing him. They were both partially covered by a quilt. Sheng Jia’s hand was on Yu Xianghang’s chest—a gesture that looked like resistance, but Sheng Jia knew that in that moment, he had been happy.

Why did this photo exist?

Why, after he had found the camera Sheng Qianlong hid in his room, and after he had smashed the hard drives containing those images, did this still exist?

“No… it wasn’t me… you…”

Sheng Jia’s voice sounded like gravel. He stared at the photos, trying to tell the truth, but the words were stuck in his throat. He looked at his former lover, the man who had been his only salvation, and reached out to grab his hand. Yu Xianghang pulled away.

Yu Xianghang’s expression was ice-cold. His gaze pierced through Sheng Jia like a frozen needle.

“He asked me for five hundred thousand. He said I forced myself on you back then and that I owe ‘compensation’ for the pleasure.”

“I forced you? Heh. Your father doesn’t know that you were the one who kissed me first. He doesn’t know that you were the one crying from pleasure every time, does he?”

The familiar voice was spitting out words of contempt and humiliation.

The air suddenly felt thin. Sheng Jia felt like he was suffocating. His limbs felt as if they were dissolving; he had no sensation, no ability to move. He wanted to scream that it wasn’t true, that he didn’t do it, that Sheng Qianlong was far more disgusting and despicable than Yu Xianghang ever knew. He wanted to reveal everything he had hidden.

But—

“Sheng Jia, five hundred thousand is a losing deal for ten years of sleeping with you.”

Yu Xianghang grabbed Sheng Jia’s wrist and roughly shoved up his sleeve, exposing the heavily scarred arm.

“The scars on your arms.”

He yanked Sheng Jia’s collar aside, revealing the two raised scars just below the collarbone.

“The ones on your chest.”

Yu Xianghang let out a sneer. He stopped talking, but a strange expression crossed his face.

Sheng Jia somehow understood exactly what that look meant. It said:

Sheng Jia, you simply aren’t worth this much money.