My Alleged Husband

How desperately I wish we still had a reason to embrace.

Let all your pain melt away in my arms. Can I give you all of me? Would that be enough?

After Xia Jing spoke to her son, she hung up the phone. She needed to go back and pack her things to leave. Xia Jing had come to terms with it; she felt she had done so much damage that she had no face left to stay. She didn’t want to continue disturbing her father, husband, and son’s lives, knowing that her presence brought so much trouble. She couldn’t make these things disappear because they had already become an unchangeable outcome. Maybe only by leaving could all of this return to how it was before, as if nothing had ever happened.

Zhang Yichen heard the sound of the phone being hung up, and his anxiety grew stronger. Was his mother really going to do something irreversible? Now, he had only one thought in his mind: he needed to quickly call his father to find his mom. Things had already progressed this far, and he couldn’t let anything happen to his mom. Everything related to his mom, even though it had affected him personally, he couldn’t treat her like a stranger. After all, half of his blood came from his mom!

Zhentian was still at home with Old Master Zhang, chatting casually. Old Master Zhang wanted to make sure once again that his son’s mind was made up and that there was no turning back.

"Zhentian, have you really thought it through? Is the bond from so many years really going to end just like that? Can you truly bear to let your wife leave you? For so many years, through the storms, you’ve walked hand in hand. Without her, will you still be happy?" Old Master Zhang asked Zhentian.

Zhentian let out a long sigh. He didn’t know how to answer his father. He felt conflicted about this matter too—he didn’t want to let go, but he was a man of his word. If he said ’divorce,’ then there was no turning back.

"Father, I don’t want to offer any more explanations for this matter. My mind is made up, and I must divorce. We have done so many wrong things before, caused so much harm, and despite being forgiven by both you and my son, I feel guilty in my heart. I can’t let us continue down the wrong path. Do you know? Over the years, I’ve often dreamt of you and my son. Sometimes, I wake up suddenly from those dreams, feeling scared. I fear that heaven will pay me back for abandoning my father and my son. Whenever I think of these things, my heart is in agony, but I have no choice. I can only walk down the path I chose, step by step, because I always believed that as long as I chose the path, even if it’s filled with thorns ahead, I must keep going forward and not look back. But now I understand that many times, it’s not about there being no road back; it’s about whether you choose to turn back. As Buddhism says, good and evil shall be rewarded, the sea of suffering is boundless, turn back, and there is the shore. Why always seek endless pain? Why not live happily with my family? Father, the truths I didn’t understand before I now fully comprehend. I can’t continue being selfish like before, abandoning you and my son. I want to be by your side, taking good care of you, watching my son grow step by step. I can’t be absent in your lives anymore. The gap of feelings from over a decade isn’t something that can be made up with just a few days and nights. Only with eternal companionship can it be filled!

Old Master Zhang didn’t expect his son’s insight to be so deep this time, but he still had to argue against him: "Zhentian, in reality, you’re still mistaken. You’re right that the emotional gap of over ten years can’t be filled with just a few days and nights. Even if you spend every day with us after this, it can’t make up for those years. Those years weren’t just about simple emotions; they were the most important stage for you to build a bond with your son and honor me as your father. But you missed that crucial stage. Do you think now there’s any way to make up for it? I don’t oppose how you and your wife live. I know you truly love each other. But I hope you both calm down and consider whether divorce is really what you want after cooling off. It’s not a small matter for you, for Zhang Corporation, or for your son. Doing this will pressure your son even more. Can you really bear it?"

Listening to his father’s words, Zhentian indeed felt a bit shaken. He couldn’t bear to see his son suffer because of his actions, nor did he want Zhang Corporation, which his father built with great effort, to face ruin due to his marital woes. He couldn’t let misfortune fall on his father and son anymore; he’d rather it fall on himself. But that’s not how life works—you make mistakes, and it might not be you who gets hurt but your family.

"Honestly, hearing your advice, I indeed feel a bit shaken inside. Now, I’m uncertain whether I should divorce my wife. You’re right; the bond of over a decade isn’t easily severed. The relationship of over ten years isn’t something that can be abandoned in a few words. We’ve endured so many trials together, never separating, but now, because of one lie from her, I want to abandon her. I don’t know if what I’m doing is right or wrong?"

"Since you’re unclear about your feelings now, don’t rush to decide—calm down and think about it carefully. You should consider whether you really want to do this and what the consequences might be. Can you assure that you won’t regret it afterward? If you do this and end up regretting, there won’t be a remedy for regret. There’s no turning back!"

"Father, I understand. I realize now that I’m acting impulsively. Rest assured; I will carefully consider how to handle this situation, and I’ll provide an account to ensure neither you nor my son will be hurt. I’m sorry for troubling you with such significant matters—for a son to bring you such trouble is unfilial..."

"My child, no matter what you do or have done that disappointed me, as a father, I’ll never blame my son. Go ahead with your affairs, but think carefully so that you won’t regret your actions years from now..."

I love you so much, and I’ve always longed for you to be by my side, never leaving!