The Stepmother’s Counterattack: Raising a Child in a Bygone Era
Chapter 693 - 692: Zhou Shuhuan’s Hatred

Chapter 693: Chapter 692: Zhou Shuhuan’s Hatred

"Honey~"

"Get lost."

"I haven’t even said anything, and you’re already snapping at me."

Shen Mingzhu didn’t even look up, "As soon as your butt sticks out, I know whether you’re shitting or farting."

"Honey, you’re so rude nowadays."

"Don’t wanna be together anymore?"

A glance from Shen Mingzhu sent Pei Yang immediately switching to a more appeasing tone, "Of course, I want to, I was just joking."

As he spoke, he nuzzled his head into the crook of Shen Mingzhu’s shoulder and wrapped his long arms around her waist, cooing, "I’ve got something to tell you."

"Spit it out."

"Shuhuan came to me for a loan. He’s getting a divorce from Shen Baolan, and Baolan demanded five million. He doesn’t have that kind of money on hand..."

Shen Mingzhu was taken aback.

She knew that Shen Baolan was greedy, but she was surprised that Zhou Shuhuan would actually agree to her terms.

Five million at that time was no small sum, equivalent to one billion thirty years later.

"Qiao Ya is pregnant. Shuhuan wants to get married sooner, so he’s eager to settle things quickly with Shen Baolan."

That was the reason for divorce Zhou Shuhuan gave Pei Yang.

Nevertheless, Shen Mingzhu felt it might not be the whole story; at least, it wasn’t solely because Qiao Ya was pregnant. There must have been some other reason forcing Zhou Shuhuan to compromise.

But she was uninterested in the affairs of the Zhou family and Shen Baolan and didn’t care to get involved.

"How much did he ask to borrow from you?"

"One million."

Another look from Shen Mingzhu, and Pei Yang quickly said, "I haven’t agreed yet. Isn’t that why I’m discussing it with you now?"

She had one million, but didn’t wish to lend it.

In Shen Mingzhu’s view, Zhou Shuhuan was a scoundrel.

Back then, they had invested money for Zhou Shuhuan to start his electronics factory, but less than a year after it was up and running, Zhou Shuhuan kicked them to the curb.

Now that he was short on cash, he came knocking on their door for help again. What nerve!

"There’s nothing to discuss. Don’t lend it to him, and that’s final."

Pei Yang looked at her for a moment, saw she was serious, and nodded in agreement.

Lights out, time for bed.

Pei Yang was clearly troubled tonight, tossing and turning in bed, disturbing Shen Mingzhu’s sleep.

She got up to turn on the light, then glared at the baffled man, "Are you annoying or what? If you can’t sleep, go outside. Don’t disturb me."

"My bad, I’ll stop bothering you. Let’s sleep."

Pei Yang pulled her back into bed, turned off the light, and soothingly held her, whispering, "Let’s sleep, forget about their nonsense."

Shen Mingzhu felt inexplicably irritable.

"Don’t you hold a grudge about the electronics factory incident? He’s a thankless wretch, and yet you still consider lending him money. What if he doesn’t repay it?"

"I remember it well. Actually, I felt pretty bad about it, like a real slap in the face. Today when Shuhuan came over to borrow money, I made an excuse to turn him down, and he didn’t say much. But then I really thought about it. After so many years, I don’t seem to care that much about that incident anymore. Instead, I often miss the times we played together as kids. Everything was so innocent back then, carefree, all about eating and playing."

Shen Mingzhu didn’t respond.

In her eyes, Zhou Shuhuan was no good, but from Pei Yang’s perspective, the two were brothers for decades. Despite all of Zhou Shuhuan’s faults, being selfish and greedy,

people are creatures of emotion, and feelings are the most complex and uncontrollable things in the world. You can’t simply measure and choose based on right or wrong.

And Pei Yang, in particular, was a man who highly valued loyalty and brotherhood.

Even if he had to sever this brotherly bond, he wouldn’t be the one wielding the knife.

"If you want to lend it, just lend it. But from now on, don’t talk to me about the Zhou family’s matters. I don’t want to deal with it."

Pei Yang hugged her tight, "I’ll listen to you, won’t borrow."

Shen Mingzhu turned around, nose to nose with him, "If you don’t lend the money, will you be able to sleep?"

"Yes, I will."

Saying this, he closed his eyes in front of her.

Shen Mingzhu reached out and pinched his tall nose.

Pei Yang grabbed her hand and pressed it to his chest, muttering in a hoarse voice, "Someone’s trying to murder her husband."

Shen Mingzhu hummed, "No more than 500,000, there must be a note written, specifying the final repayment date, and we must include interest. If he agrees, we’ll lend it to him; if not, forget it!"

"Okay, I’ll talk to him tomorrow. Let’s sleep, wife, good night."

His tone was obviously much cheerier.

Shen Mingzhu relaxed into his embrace, her mood also lightened a lot.

She had agreed to lend the money not to help Zhou Shuhuan, but to indulge her man’s dedication to loyalty.

...

When Zhou Shuhuan learned that Pei Yang could lend out 500,000, he was very happy. He repeatedly agreed that the note and interest Pei Yang demanded were fair.

After completing the bank transfer with Pei Yang, Zhou Shuhuan received a call from Qiao Ya, saying she had already transferred 3.5 million yuan into his account.

"Is that enough for five million?"

"Yeah, it’s enough. Actually, there’s an extra 500,000."

Qiao Ya was puzzled, "Why is there an extra 500,000? Didn’t you only have 1.5 million in your account?"

"Pei Yang lent me 500,000."

"Well, at least he has some conscience, claiming all the while to treat you like a brother but not willing to lend you a bit of money."

"They say adversity reveals true friends; I’ve truly come to realize that now. Xiaoya, in this world, you’re the only one who truly cares for me. I promise you that I will never let you down in the future, or may heaven strike me down."

Originally, when Pei Yang took the initiative to agree to lend the money today, he felt touched, thinking that this brotherhood was not in vain.

Pei Yang insisted on a written note for 500,000 and he accepted it; after all, that’s not a small sum.

But the fact that Pei Yang wanted a clear calculation of interest and specified he must repay in installments within two years...

After thirty years of brotherhood, it turned out a woman treated him better than his brother; he had seen through it all now.

Having gathered enough money, Zhou Shuhuan didn’t want to drag things out. That night, he contacted the lawyer and brought forward the divorce date to tomorrow.

After the phone call, Zhou Shuhuan took out a cigarette and sat pondering in the smoke, while staring at the bank card on the table.

He had struggled for so many years and had never had five million in the bank before, yet now he had to hand over such a large fortune.

Feelings of unwillingness and resentment wrapped around his heart like thorny vines, causing him unbearable pain.

For the first time in his life, he hated a woman so much he wished her dead.

...

The next day, when Zhou Shuhuan arrived at the Civil Affairs Bureau, Shen Baolan was already there, accompanied by a lawyer and Gao Hualiang.

Zhou Shuhuan had seen his photo before, but this was the first time he was seeing him in person.

There was no denying Gao Hualiang’s looks, but the greed and shrewdness in his eyes couldn’t escape Zhou Shuhuan’s scrutiny.

Seeing Zhou Shuhuan staring at Gao Hualiang, Shen Baolan hooked her arm into Gao Hualiang’s, ostentatiously showing off:

"I have to thank you all for finding me such a good man. As soon as our divorce is finalized, I’ll marry Xiaogao. The villa you’re giving me will be just perfect for Xiaogao and me to live in as a married couple. You’re welcome to come for the wedding if you like."

Any normal man would probably become enraged and lash out upon hearing this.

The hard-earned fortune that he had scraped together was now easily falling into the hands of a gigolo.

Yet Zhou Shuhuan calmly instructed the lawyer to proceed with the formalities.

Both lawyers were efficient, and within an hour, the two had completed all the formalities and obtained their divorce certificates.

With the five million hefty sum in her pocket, Baolan was happily preparing to take Gao Hualiang to the Civil Affairs Bureau for their marriage certificate when Zhou Shuhuan called out to her.

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