My Alleged Husband

Chapter 363 - 343 Are You Okay Now?_1

Ran Zhihan heard her grandfather calling her from behind, and her heart ached terribly. However, she couldn’t turn back on this matter, which was originally caused by her husband’s lies. Why should she bear the consequences now? She didn’t need to shoulder the blame for someone else’s mistakes!

Zhang Yichen had heard his grandfather calling his wife’s name urgently from downstairs. He sensed something was wrong, and when he hurried down from upstairs, he found that his wife, who had gone to take care of some business, was no longer in the living room; only Elder Zhang was sitting there, staring blankly into the distance.

"Grandfather, where’s Zhihan?" Zhang Yichen asked Old Master Zhang.

"Your wife has left. You don’t need to ask me about it anymore. And don’t think about maintaining your lies to her. She has already left this house— are you satisfied now? If it weren’t for what you told her, why would she have left so resolutely? You’ve driven away your own wife right after your wedding, and do you think that reflects well on our family’s reputation? Yichen, I’ve watched you grow up with my own eyes, and I believe your heart has always been kind. But what you did was wrong; by doing so, you’ve pushed away the woman you love the most. Trust between people is mutual, as is respect. If you don’t trust your wife, why should she trust you? How can she believe her partner is honest when you’ve lied like this? It’s not right for me to criticise, but this shouldn’t have started like this in the first place. Just like your wife said to me, if you truly see your wife as the person you trust the most, then is there anything you can’t tell her? Your secrecy has now driven her to leave the house. You’ve barely married, and your wife moved out on the second day of your marriage— what do you think outsiders will say about our family?"

Zhang Yichen, hearing his grandfather repeat these words, felt incredibly uncomfortable. Why was all the blame being put on him for a trivial matter? Wasn’t it because she was petty that she left? What did it have to do with him? Did he have to coax her just because she didn’t feel like staying?

"Grandpa, if she has left, then let her be. If she had me in her heart, I believe she wouldn’t have left. But her resolute departure has proven to me that the woman I loved most didn’t only have me in her heart. Perhaps she has someone else in mind. When she left, didn’t she think that I am still her husband and she is still my wife? Since she so wishes to leave, then let her. If she’s gone, she shouldn’t come back. Wherever she wants to go, she can go. I won’t care about her anymore..."

Really, it was shocking how cold-hearted he could be— she’s his wife, the wife he brought up with love, and yet he could speak such ruthless words. Is this child, whom he had raised so painstakingly, still the son he knew? He simply couldn’t believe the person before him was the same one he had brought up.

"Yichen, how could you become like this? Is this what I taught you, to behave in such a way? Don’t you know it breaks my heart? I never thought my grandson, whom I raised with such effort, could turn out to be this kind of person. I once thought my grandson had a very kind and righteous heart. But I never expected that you would drive your wife out over such a trivial matter, making it impossible for her to return. Is that truly what’s in your heart? Didn’t you love your wife deeply? How could you bear letting her walk alone on deserted streets? Sometimes by not taking things so seriously, you would understand that her leaving is also because you lied to her. She treated you as her closest person, hoping for mutual honesty. But how can she accept a partner who lies on the very first day of marriage?"

"I did it so that she could be with me. Is that also wrong? All I did was overlook a small request she had— I wanted her to be with me for a lifetime. Is that not allowed?" Zhang Yichen retorted to Old Master Zhang.

"Child, you still don’t understand what I am saying. It’s not that what you did was necessarily wrong, or that it was without reason. Even if your actions were driven by motives, you shouldn’t have placed such conditions on your wife on your wedding day. How do you expect a new bride to accept it? I can see she cares a lot about you. It’s because she cares that she doesn’t want to be a part of a transaction between you and her parents. She truly hoped you both could walk through life together. But you made a decision that hurt her deeply; how do you expect your wife to cope with that? Initially, this was a matter between husband and wife and I shouldn’t interfere, but now that you’ve driven her out of the house, are you satisfied? Are you happy? I can see that you’re not happy, because you care for her as much as she cares for you. You both care for each other so much, why do you still do things that hurt one another? Do you think it’s right? Watching the person you love leave your side, doesn’t your heart ache even the slightest?"

"Grandfather, I really don’t ask for much. I only hoped my wife would understand me more. But when she decisively left the Zhang Family, I realized that perhaps she didn’t love me as much as I thought. Maybe forcing her to stay by my side was also a mistake..."