ABOES 73: Reason For Divorce

Duan Zhiyan was stunned for a moment before he frowned and looked at Chi Xiwen. “What happened?”

Chi Xiwen looked uncomfortable. To be honest, he wasn’t sure what exactly had gone down between them either.

He drank too much last night and fell asleep as soon as he got home.

He slept straight through until this morning, when he heard a commotion outside. At first, Chi Xiwen didn’t think much of it and was about to go back to sleep until he heard Tan Yao and Chi Ling arguing.

Right then, Chi Xiwen sensed something was wrong and hurried out of bed.

As soon as he opened the door, he could already hear the heated argument before he even went downstairs.

He was just about to step in, but the noise he made coming down the stairs was too loud. Tan Yao and Chi Ling heard him and immediately stopped arguing.

Chi Xiwen had just woken up and was still groggy. “Mom, Dad—what’s going on?”

The living room was dead silent. Neither Tan Yao nor Chi Ling answered him.

Chi Xiwen paused at the top of the stairs for a moment, then slowly made his way down.

That was when Tan Yao suddenly moved. She grabbed her phone off the table and headed for the door.

Chi Ling’s face darkened instantly. He stepped forward and grabbed Tan Yao’s arm. “Let’s talk this through.”

Tan Yao flung his hand off without even looking back. “There’s nothing left to talk about.”

With that, she drove off.

Chi Xiwen was completely stunned. He stared at Chi Ling, wide-eyed. “Dad, what happened? What did you do to make Mom so angry again?”

Chi Ling opened his mouth, seemingly wanting to say something but looking at Chi Xiwen, he ended up saying nothing at all.

“I’m going to the office,” he said and left right after.

Chi Xiwen was left clueless and had no choice but to ask the housekeeper.

The housekeeper didn’t know much either. He said that morning he saw the couple leave their room one after the other. They were even chatting and laughing over breakfast but for some unknown reason, they started arguing right after.

He had wanted to step in but Madam asked him to leave, so he didn’t know what happened after that.

Chi Xiwen frowned deeply after hearing this.

The housekeeper thought for a moment, then added, “Sir and Madam had quite a serious fight this time. Madam even said she wouldn’t be coming back… Young Master, maybe you should tell the Second Young Master?”

“Even though they divorced, it’s obvious to anyone that there are still feelings between them. Since the Second Young Master came back, their relationship’s gotten a lot closer. Maybe if the Second Young Master steps in, the two of them can sit down and calmly work things out.”

Chi Xiwen understood the housekeeper’s suggestion came from a good place but the fact that Tan Yao and Chi Ling had divorced was something the whole family had agreed to hide from Chi Yunxing.

He was worried that Chi Yunxing might overthink things and blame himself for their divorce.

So at first, Chi Xiwen didn’t agree. He just said he would go talk to Tan Yao himself.

When he got to her place, he hadn’t expected that she even didn’t want to see him.

Chi Xiwen waited at the door for an hour, but Tan Yao didn’t soften.

She even had the maid pass along a message: if he still wanted to be her son, he’d better not speak up for Chi Ling.

That was when Chi Xiwen realized that this time, the issue between them might be serious.

If things weren’t handled carefully, Tan Yao and Chi Ling might really part ways for good.

That was why he finally made up his mind to go find Chi Yunxing.

Deciding to go see Chi Yunxing also meant he would inevitably learn about the divorce.

Sure enough, the first thing Chi Yunxing said when he found out was, “Mom and Dad got divorced… because of me?”

“Of course not!”

“No way!”

Chi Xiwen and Duan Zhiyan both answered at the same time.

Chi Xiwen glanced at Duan Zhiyan and said reassuringly, “Don’t take everything onto yourself. We didn’t tell you before because we didn’t want you to overthink it.”

Duan Zhiyan looked at Chi Yunxing’s furrowed brow, heart aching for him. He quietly reached over and squeezed Chi Yunxing’s hand.

Chi Yunxing’s lashes fluttered. He turned to look at him.

“Yunxing, marriage is between two people,” Duan Zhiyan said softly, trying to comfort him. “It has nothing to do with anyone else.”

Chi Yunxing pressed his lips together and nodded, then quickly looked away. His eyes stared blankly into the distance, lost in thought.

Duan Zhiyan knew he was still overthinking it. At this point, the only way to stop him from spiraling was to take him to Tan Yao and ask her directly.

After thinking it over, he pulled out his phone and called He You.

When Duan Zhiyan hung up the phone, Chi Xiwen couldn’t help glancing at him and happened to catch sight of the ring on Duan Zhiyan’s middle finger. He paused, a bit surprised. “You’re moving pretty fast, huh? Already wearing rings?”

Chi Yunxing was still lost in thought and didn’t catch what Chi Xiwen said.

Duan Zhiyan paused and glanced at Chi Yunxing sitting on the sofa. His left hand was resting by his side, just out of Chi Xiwen’s line of sight. His expression didn’t change, and he quickly changed the subject. “Let’s go to Aunt Tan’s place first.”

Chi Xiwen had no objections. He nodded. “Alright,” Then he looked at Chi Yunxing. “Yunxing, let’s go see Mom.”

That brought Chi Yunxing back to reality, and he nodded.

Chi Xiwen had been drinking the night before. Although he was sober now, to be safe, he didn’t drive himself and had the driver bring him over.

Duan Zhiyan decided not to drive his own car either and got into the backseat with Chi Yunxing.

Chi Xiwen, for once, didn’t chatter and sat in the front passenger seat.

Once the car started, Duan Zhiyan reached over and took Chi Yunxing’s hand when Chi Xiwen wasn’t paying attention.

Chi Yunxing turned to him in confusion.

Seeing how troubled he looked, Duan Zhiyan’s heart ached. But he still tapped Chi Yunxing’s middle finger and mouthed, “The ring.”

Chi Yunxing’s eyelid twitched hard. He quickly glanced toward the front seat to make sure Chi Xiwen hadn’t noticed, then hurriedly pulled off the ring.

But for a moment, he didn’t know where to put it and turned to Duan Zhiyan for help.

Duan Zhiyan held out his hand.

Chi Yunxing reluctantly placed the ring in his palm.

Duan Zhiyan closed his hand and slipped the ring into the inner pocket of his shirt.

Chi Yunxing stared at it, then took out his phone and texted Duan Zhiyan. 

[Chi Yunxing: When are you giving it back?]

Duan Zhiyan smiled at the message. 

[Duan Zhiyan: Anytime you want.]

Only then did Chi Yunxing put his phone away.

Duan Zhiyan set his phone down and reached out again.

Chi Yunxing made sure Chi Xiwen wasn’t checking the rearview mirror before secretly placing his hand in Duan Zhiyan’s palm.

The rest of the ride was silent.

When the car stopped, Chi Yunxing realized they weren’t at the Chi family house.

He froze, then quickly figured out that this must be the villa Tan Yao moved into after the divorce.

It was a standalone villa, smaller than the one near Chi Yunxing’s school. Judging by the full bloom of flowers in the garden, it was clear that Tan Yao spent a lot of time here.

Chi Yunxing suddenly remembered that whenever he video-called her during filming, she was always at the company. Not because she was busy, but because she didn’t want him to know that she and Chi Ling had already divorced.

His chest tightened with emotion, and his eyes reddened.

Chi Xiwen rang the doorbell, but the house was quiet. No one came to the door.

He pulled out his phone and called Tan Yao. This time, she picked up quickly, but her voice was cold, “Stop calling me. Just go home. I told you, I don’t want to see you…”

“Mom,” Chi Yunxing suddenly spoke up beside him, his voice hoarse. “But I want to see you.”

Tan Yao fell silent on the other end.

Then came the sound of hurried footsteps. A second-floor window was pulled open from inside, revealing half of Tan Yao’s figure.

When she saw Chi Yunxing and Duan Zhiyan at the door, her face turned pale, and her voice trembled. “Chi Xiwen, what did you do?”

Chi Xiwen genuinely didn’t dare challenge her in this state. He opened his mouth but said nothing. Instead, it was Chi Yunxing, eyes red, who said, “It wasn’t my Ge, it was me. I suddenly felt like eating your cooking today, so I wanted to come home but when I got there, I realized… you weren’t home. Not only that, Dad wasn’t home either…”

His lips trembled. He didn’t finish, just looked up at her with quivering eyes. “Mom… can I come in and talk with you?”

Tan Yao stood at the window, her eyes also red-rimmed.

She didn’t say a word, just closed the window and hung up the phone.

A few moments later, a maid opened the door and let the three of them in.

Tan Yao was sitting on the sofa in the living room. Up close, Chi Yunxing noticed her eyes were obviously swollen. She must have been crying.

He felt a sharp ache in his chest. He quickly walked over, sat beside her, and wrapped her in a hug.

“Mom…”

Tan Yao had been furious with Chi Xiwen, but the moment she heard Chi Yunxing’s tearful voice calling her “Mom,” her heart softened completely.

She patted his shoulder and gently said, “It’s okay. I’m okay.”

Chi Yunxing didn’t let go. He asked in a hoarse voice, “Did you and Dad get divorced because of me?”

Tan Yao couldn’t stand to hear him say that. She immediately turned to Chi Xiwen. “Chi Xiwen, what did you tell him?”

Surprisingly, Chi Xiwen didn’t try to defend himself.

Tan Yao had no time to argue with him. She continued to gently pat Chi Yunxing’s back. “How could it be because of you? Yunxing, don’t take all the blame. If it really were because of you, your dad and I would’ve divorced the year you first went missing, we would have not waited until just a few years ago!”

Chi Yunxing still looked doubtful. “Really?”

Tan Yao nodded. “Really,” She paused, then said, “Since so much time has passed, I think it’s time I told you. It truly has nothing to do with you. Your father and I got divorced because of issues between the two of us…”

Hearing that, Chi Yunxing finally let go. His eyes shimmered with unshed tears.

Tan Yao’s heart ached at the sight. She reached for tissues, but Duan Zhiyan handed one to her first.

She smiled at him and gently wiped the tears from Chi Yunxing’s face.

The maid brought flower tea for everyone. As the steam rose in gentle tendrils, Tan Yao finally began to speak.

“Five years ago, I was the one who asked Chi Ling for a divorce because I had wronged him.”

The moment she said that, all three people present were stunned.

They had guessed that it was Tan Yao who brought up the divorce, but none of them expected her to say she felt she had wronged Chi Ling.

Chi Xiwen, hearing this for the first time, showed a flash of confusion on his face and couldn’t help but ask, “Why?”

Tan Yao actually felt a bit guilty toward Chi Xiwen as well.

Back then, her decision to divorce Chi Ling had been made unilaterally. Chi Xiwen had even dropped everything at the company and came home to beg her not to go through with it. Even then, she didn’t relent.

Nearly a year after the divorce, she happened to hear from someone that Chi Xiwen’s company had almost gone bankrupt during that time. She investigated and found out that because he had come home to plead with her, he’d missed a critical opportunity for the company.

For the next six months, Yunxing Entertainment struggled to survive in the industry. Artists terminated their contracts, and employees quit in waves.

In the end, it was only thanks to Duan Zhiyan that Yunxing Entertainment barely weathered the year-long storm and stabilized.

If it hadn’t been for her, how could Chi Xiwen’s company have missed such an important chance?

As for why she only found out a year later, it was because during that first year after the divorce, Tan Yao was in no better shape herself.

She had spent the whole year in a fog, rarely going out, working entirely from home.

Later, seeing her spiraling, Yu Qiu had returned from abroad to stay with her for a while.

With Yu Qiu’s companionship, Tan Yao had slowly started to heal.

She remembered Yu Qiu asking her, “You loved Chi Ling so much, how could you bear to divorce him?”

Tan Yao could still recall her own answer clearly, “It’s because I loved him that I didn’t want to drag him down. That’s why I left.”

Yu Qiu had wanted to ask more, but back then, Tan Yao hadn’t wanted to talk about it.

Now, looking at Chi Yunxing, she finally felt ready to open up.

To be honest, Tan Yao had always felt she had “married up” by being with Chi Ling.

They met in university. Tan Yao had just arrived in Haishi then, a city so big and unfamiliar it felt both intimidating and full of promise. She had resolved to stay and make a life there.

Her first meeting with Chi Ling was during a student council interview.

She was the applicant, and he was her interviewer.

Tan Yao had been nervous and barely remembered the details of the interview. All she could recall was that her interviewer was incredibly handsome and spoke with a gentle voice.

After getting accepted into the student council, she later learned from others that the handsome senior who interviewed her was named Chi Ling, the student council president and the sole heir of the Chi family.

Tan Yao didn’t fully understand the weight of the Chi family name back then, but she knew instinctively that someone like Chi Ling lived in a world completely different from hers. Their paths, she thought, probably ended at that one encounter.

What she never expected was that Chi Ling would actually pursue her.

Others praised her as the campus beauty, so it wasn’t surprising for Chi Ling to be interested. Some were quick to cast doubt, saying Chi Ling was just flirting for fun, and once he got what he wanted, he’d break things off.

After all, their backgrounds were worlds apart.

Still, with such a handsome and kind pursuer, who wouldn’t be moved?

Tan Yao was no exception. Despite being moved, she was clear with herself. She didn’t have any real feelings for Chi Ling at the time, so she turned down his pursuit.

Chi Ling seemed disappointed but didn’t give up. Instead, he suggested they just be friends.

At that time, even being close friends with a guy could spark rumors, and Tan Yao didn’t dare get too close.

Eventually, Chi Ling stopped reaching out, and Tan Yao, after graduation, stayed in Haishi to work.

By pure coincidence, she ended up joining a company owned by the Chi family.

That was how she and Chi Ling met again.

Chi Ling began pursuing her once more. This time, everyone in the company knew about it, including Old Master Chi himself.

The gossip became intense, and Tan Yao found herself in a difficult position.

In the end, Old Master Chi stepped in and transferred her to a branch office closer to her apartment. He even promoted her and gave her a raise, telling her to focus on work and reassuring her that he wouldn’t let Chi Ling bother her anymore.

Even then, Chi Ling didn’t give up. This time, he courted her more discreetly.

He knew she didn’t want office gossip, so he only visited after everyone else had left.

Each time, he’d bring her flowers.

Sometimes red roses, sometimes baby’s breath. He gave her sunflowers he had grown himself once.

Before that, she had never accepted any of his flowers or gifts but upon learning that the sunflowers were personally grown by Chi Ling, her resolve started to waver.

Once it cracked, it was hard to resist.

Their relationship grew closer.

When Chi Ling asked her again if she’d give him a chance, she finally said yes.

Tan Yao still remembered the way he had beamed that day. A man in his twenties, blushing as he picked her up and spun her around in circles.

What she hadn’t expected was that the very next day, Chi Ling brought her home and told his parents he wanted to marry her.

Even more unexpectedly, his parents agreed right away and urged them to hurry up with the wedding, they were eager for grandkids!

Tan Yao was stunned.

Chi Ling was overjoyed.

Her own parents were soon brought to Haishi too. The Chi parents even invited them to live together.

But Tan Yao’s parents, protective of their only daughter, never gave their approval easily when it came to her marriage with Chi Ling. They dragged it out for a full year until they found out Tan Yao was pregnant.

Her parents were teachers, not especially traditional but since she was pregnant, they couldn’t hold off the marriage any longer.

Tan Yao had her doubts even then but after a year of being with Chi Ling, she had truly fallen in love.

So she agreed.

From there, everything fell into place.

She and Chi Ling got married. Chi Xiwen was born.

That first year of marriage, she was treated like a treasure by the whole family. Even after Chi Xiwen was born, Tan Yao remained the one everyone prioritized.

Her loving family and supportive husband gave her a deep sense of security but Tan Yao had always been career-driven. So once Chi Xiwen was old enough for preschool, she started working alongside Chi Ling again to manage the company.

Old Master Chi appreciated her a great deal. He passed on all his experience to her.

She was a fast learner. In just three years, she had risen to almost the same level as Chi Ling but fate had other plans.

When Chi Xiwen was six, Tan Yao’s parents were killed in a car accident while visiting Haishi.

Tan Yao was devastated and fell into deep depression.

For half a year, she couldn’t function. Chi Ling put aside his own work to be with her every single day.

With his support, she eventually recovered and then she discovered she was pregnant again.

The whole family was overjoyed, and it threw everyone into a flurry of activity. Throughout that year of pregnancy, no matter what Tan Yao said, no one in the family would let her go to the company. They insisted she stay home and take it easy.

If she felt bored, Chi Ling would take her out for trips.

Months passed, and eventually, Chi Yunxing was born.

Tan Yao remembered that the first thing she thought after giving birth was—finally free!

Once she finished breastfeeding, she asked to return to work. This time, no one stopped her.

Chi Ling did mention a couple times that she didn’t need to push herself and could spend more time with Yunxing but Tan Yao felt like she had lost touch with work after being home for two years. She was determined not to let that continue.

Chi Ling stopped bringing it up, but made sure she didn’t overwork herself.

Tan Yao, now busy with work again, naturally had less time for the kids.

So the person who spent the most time with young Yunxing was the nanny.

On the day Yunxing turned one and a half, the nanny who had always cared for him resigned because she was going home to arrange her son’s wedding.

Tan Yao searched extensively and finally hired another nanny she was satisfied with.

Yet none of them knew… It was this new nanny who would bring disaster upon their once-happy family.

The day Chi Yunxing went missing, Tan Yao and Chi Ling had gone to the office as usual. Grandma Chi had plans to go shopping with her friends. Old Master Chi had recently retired and picked up fishing as a hobby so he had gone out for a day trip with his buddies.

At home, only the three children were left.

No one could have expected that such a peaceful day would turn into a nightmare for the entire family.

In the first month after Yunxing disappeared, Tan Yao couldn’t sleep a single night. Every evening, she would wait until Chi Ling had finally dozed off, then quietly sneak into Yunxing’s room to cry.

She was filled with regret—deep, crushing regret.

It was the first time she had truly blamed herself. Why had she been so focused on her career? If she had just paid a bit more attention to her child, maybe Yunxing wouldn’t have been taken.

What Tan Yao didn’t know was that every night, as she broke down in Yunxing’s room, Chi Ling was always silently awake, keeping her company from the shadows.

As her condition slowly improved, she began making daily visits to the police station and putting up missing child posters in every alley and street she could find.

Chi Ling never let her go alone. He followed behind every time, and when she was exhausted or on the verge of collapse, he would be there, catching her and holding her up.

By the third year of Yunxing’s disappearance, Tan Yao finally returned to the company but something had changed.

Every time she sat behind her desk, she felt a suffocating heaviness. At first, she forced herself to get through the work, but over time, the pressure only grew more unbearable.

Eventually, Tan Yao gave up. She stayed home, throwing herself into the kitchen, experimenting with new dishes every day.

When Chi Ling returned from work each night, he would be greeted by a table full of carefully prepared meals.

That was when Chi Ling began to gently urge her again, “Yao Yao, you don’t need to stay home every day waiting for me with dinner. You can come back to the company with me, just like before…”

“What would I do there?” Tan Yao asked him. “I like it better at home. I don’t want to go.”

Chi Ling hesitated, wanting to say something, but in the end said nothing. Still, he didn’t give up. He kept trying to persuade Tan Yao to go back to the company.

Eventually, Tan Yao became so frustrated that she started picking fights with him.

Chi Ling never argued back. He would just sit there with a frown, letting her vent.

When emotions run high, people sometimes say things they don’t mean and Tan Yao did just that.

In the wrong place at the wrong time, she said the cruelest things she could, and those words cut deep into Chi Ling, leaving wounds that couldn’t be undone.

It was the first time she ever saw Chi Ling cry.

The man’s voice was hoarse and his eyes red as he asked her, “Do you really want to divorce me?”

Tan Yao was stunned into silence. She lowered her head, confused and lost, not knowing how to respond.

That night, for the first time since their marriage, Chi Ling didn’t come home.

Tan Yao tried to call him, but his phone was off. She didn’t know where he had gone, and all she could do was sit on their bed alone, hugging her knees and sobbing uncontrollably.

She didn’t even know when she fell asleep.

At some point, she stirred, disoriented and thirsty. She tried to sit up to get water when suddenly a hand helped her up, lifting a cup of warm water to her lips.

Then, she heard Chi Ling’s voice whisper softly beside her ear, “Yao Yao… please don’t divorce me, okay?”

Her tears came instantly, flooding down her cheeks.

She nodded as she cried.

They reconciled. Their love reignited, and Tan Yao’s spirits lifted again.

With Chi Ling’s encouragement, she slowly began easing back into the company’s affairs. Chi Ling was overjoyed. He stuck to her like glue at work, as if making up for all the years they had lost.

In the eighth year after Yunxing’s disappearance—when Yunxing was ten—Tan Yao unexpectedly got pregnant again.

At this point, Tan Yao looked at the three of them and smiled. “When I found out, I was already two months along. Honestly, I wanted to keep the baby.”

Even Chi Xiwen and Duan Zhiyan were surprised, they hadn’t known this part of the story.

Chi Xiwen couldn’t help asking, “Then… why didn’t you?”

He didn’t finish the question, but Tan Yao understood.

“Because I was the only one who wanted to keep it,” she said with a soft smile, eyes downcast.

After Yunxing’s abduction, it wasn’t just her. Everyone in the family had been deeply traumatized.

Tan Yao had thought, since this child had come into their lives, she would keep it. She wanted to bring joy to the grandparents and give Chi Xiwen a younger sibling.

What she hadn’t expected was that both Chi Ling and the Chi parents strongly opposed it.

She still remembered what Chi Ling told her then. Every word seared into her memory.

“Yao Yao, I married you because I love you. Not because I want you to prove anything through childbirth. My parents love you like their own daughter and they couldn’t bear to let you suffer through another pregnancy.”