Chapter 76: Chapter 76 She truly realized that this is the real face of Zhou Lin.

"Aunt Wang really does favor you," came a voice that was neither salty nor bland. Zhou Lin, who had been in the living room, appeared at the kitchen door, arms folded, leaning against the door frame, his eyes half-closed as he looked at Cheng Zhiwei.

He had been there for a while, but Cheng Zhiwei only had eyes for the chicken soup and hadn’t noticed him.

Of course, he saw Cheng Zhiwei squinting her eyes in satisfaction while enjoying the chicken soup, a content smile curving her lips, her demeanor as lazy as a cat’s.

As she moved, her shawl playfully slid down from one shoulder, revealing a half-exposed, round, fair shoulder beneath it. In the white light of the kitchen, it was dazzlingly bright, striking straight into his heart’s softest spot.

Cheng Zhiwei set the bowl down and pulled the shawl back up to cover her shoulder before turning to leave.

Not even sparing Zhou Lin a glance.

With a stretch of his long arms, Zhou Lin blocked Cheng Zhiwei’s path. "Cheng Zhiwei, your temper has been growing lately. Do you plan to keep ignoring me like this?"

How chatty he’s been lately. Cheng Zhiwei raised her face to look at Zhou Lin. There used to be months where they would hardly exchange a few words, not to mention chatting on messaging apps; their WeChat conversation history was still nonexistent.

"What else am I supposed to do, greet you three times a day?" Cheng Zhiwei’s retort was blunt, her tranquil features filled with impatience towards him.

Zhou Lin’s face became as still as water, with a chilly curvature. "Cheng Zhiwei, drop the lawsuit, let Zhuzhu go."

The words he uttered slowly, each syllable weighed with importance, were not a discussion, nor a transaction, but a simple and crude command.

Cheng Zhiwei turned her head to stare at Zhou Lin, her eyes flashing, her voice soft, yet slightly hoarse, "Only if we divorce."

"Zhou Lin, if you don’t divorce me, the whole world will know Seo Zhenzhen is the other woman. Can you bear that?"

If he didn’t agree to a divorce, she would expose their marriage situation to the entire world, and let everyone know that Seo Zhenzhen broke into someone else’s marriage.

Who could threaten whom.

Zhou Lin’s expression darkened instantly.

Cheng Zhiwei’s lips curled mockingly. See, before it was Bai Zhuzhu, now it was Seo Zhenzhen. He was unwilling to let go of either.

But, compared to Zhou Lin, Cheng Zhiwei had too many vulnerabilities.

While Zhou Lin had money, power, and people, Cheng Zhiwei had nothing.

A pang of pain shot through her chin as it was pinched, forcing Cheng Zhiwei to tilt her head back, revealing her fair and slender neck that bent into a beautiful curvature.

Zhou Lin’s voice was cold and stern. "Think about where your father is now before you say such things to me."

A blatant threat.

Cheng Zhiwei’s complexion turned pale, only the circle around her chin showing a piteous red as she gritted her teeth and cursed, "Zhou Lin, have you no shame?"

That man was her father, and yet he was also someone Zhou Lin should call "Dad."

"Right, and there’s your mother, Xu Tian... Meng Qiancheng, He Ye... Heh, Cheng Zhiwei, there are so many people. Can you look after all of them?" Zhou Lin leaned in close, his gaze sharp and indifferent, his breath fluttering on her lashes, sending shivers down one’s spine.

"Considering my mother’s feelings, I’ve been lenient with you for a long time, Cheng Zhiwei. Don’t overstep your boundaries and forget the nature of our relationship."

Their relationship had never been equal.

Cheng Zhiwei remained silent and unyielding, looking at Zhou Lin with a smile that was not quite a smile, grateful that she hadn’t been swayed by his recent actions or even wavered in her resolve to divorce. Otherwise, his capriciousness now would have deeply scarred her heart.

Look, now that she knows she’s unwilling to let Bai Zhuzhu off the hook, she has finally revealed her true colors.

The sarcastic look in her eyes was so piercing that Zhou Lin felt extremely uncomfortable. He let go with no expression on his face, and the words he uttered were still full of threats and intimidation, "Cheng Zhiwei, the rest of their lives depends on your whim. If you sincerely want to work against me, I don’t mind making an example out of someone first."

He paused and showed a malicious smile, "Or perhaps this time, let’s start with Xu Tian. After all, she’s really unlikable."

"Or Meng Qiancheng, your childhood friend and brother. I heard he’s the principal’s key protege, perhaps even the successor. I wonder if he’d be willing to be dragged down by you."

The way he said it was as casual as if it was as simple as eating a meal.

Indeed, for Zhou Lin, it was even simpler than eating. All he had to do was give the order, and his people would come up with countless ways to torture someone.

Cheng Zhiwei also smiled, her profile shining pearlescent white and cold under the light, her steady voice covered with deep mockery, "Zhou Lin, you finally can’t keep up the act anymore?"

For Seo Zhenzhen’s sake, he had even accompanied her to An City, truly a hardship for him.

Zhou Lin narrowed his eyes, and with a flick of his lighter, the pale blue flame burned quietly in the air, followed by the smell of tobacco, "You don’t think that I married you, truly to make you the Young Madam of the Zhou Family, do you?"

The tone was full of contempt, the expression gloomy in the extreme.

It was a complete and utter breach, wasn’t it?

"I’ll give you one night to think, if I don’t get the answer I want by tomorrow morning, you’ll bear the consequences." Zhou Lin dropped those words and turned to leave, but after just a few steps, he turned back, his expression obscured by smoke, "And I must remind you, it’s better if our elders don’t get involved in our matters. Maybe one day when I’m in a bad mood, I might pick someone to relieve the boredom."

At the end of the threats, there were still threats.

But such threats truly had Cheng Zhiwei cornered.

She held onto the doorframe, her complexion growing even paler. At this moment, she truly realized that this was Zhou Lin’s real face.

The previous indifference and those days of accompaniment were nothing but his remaining patience in dealing with Bai Zhuzhu. Now that his patience was gone, he naturally became ruthless in pursuing the outcome.

The chill grew inch by inch from the cracks in her bones.

Cheng Zhiwei raised her head, forcing the tears in her eyes back. She deeply realized that she couldn’t leave this marriage.

Outside in the car, Secretary Zhang reported softly, "Meng Qiancheng has returned."

Having stayed awake all night, Cheng Zhiwei was in very poor spirits.

Lacking any strength, she climbed out of bed, freshened up, and then went downstairs for breakfast. It was exactly eight o’clock, and her phone started ringing. Xu Tian’s piercing scream almost went through the phone, "Zhiwei, what’s going on, I saw Meng Qiancheng being taken away by the police at the hospital entrance."

"Crash! Bang!"

The glass holding the soy milk slipped from her palm and shattered on the floor.

She was suddenly struck by a severe headache.

Cheng Zhiwei staggered to grasp the chair but fell over due to her own weight, rolling into the broken glass, her blood staining the fragments red.

"My goodness, Young Madam, are you alright?" Aunt Wang rushed over to help Cheng Zhiwei.

But Cheng Zhiwei had already climbed up, her palm pressing onto the glass shards, immediately slicing open a wound, yet she acted as if she felt no pain, holding her phone and stumbling out the door, loudly calling the driver to take her to the police station.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay Read