"You're truly heartless. What immense hardship are you hiding from all of us?"
Zhan Bei Jue stroked her hair.
"There aren't any immense hardships, it's just that things happened so suddenly, and I only found out recently. I haven't figured out how to explain it to you all."
"You only recently found out you have a twin sister?"
"Sounds preposterous, right? But that's the truth."
Jiang Nan Fang believed him. "Given what your mother is capable of, it's not entirely preposterous."
Mentioning Madam Zhan, Jiang Nan Fang couldn't help but make a sarcastic remark, and Zhan Bei Jue raised an eyebrow.
"Your issues with my mother were so long ago, you're not still holding a grudge, are you?"
"Of course not. The dead should be respected. Even if I wanted to argue with her, I can't anymore."
Zhan Bei Jue's eyes darkened, and he swallowed the words he was about to say.
Seeing him flustered, Jiang Nan Fang felt a pang of guilt.
When there's discord between a mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, the son caught in the middle suffers the most.
Even Zhan Bei Jue was no exception.
Speaking ill of his mother in front of him, she was the one who gave birth to him and raised him; he must have felt uncomfortable.
"I was just kidding. It's been so long, I've long since let it go."
"And I've reflected on myself. I also made mistakes in our conflict."
"Look at Chen Jiao Jiao and Zhou Jin Bei, they can dote on their mothers-in-law so happily. Why can't I?"
"Ultimately, I'm the one with a clumsy tongue, and I don't know how to handle things. It's my fault too."
Zhan Bei Jue couldn't be happier to hear her say this.
However, it was still a bit short of what he desired.
"You still haven't answered my question. How did you know about Melody's existence?"
Jiang Nan Fang said proudly, "Not only do I know about Melody's existence, but I also know that Mrs. Gao has an unusual relationship with Hu Jia Sheng, and Director Gao has an unusual relationship with Ke Jing Yu."
"Your project's failure this time, I suspect Director Gao is the one causing trouble. He's not afraid to target you just to make his wife happy."
"Being a woman is truly a skill. I need to learn from Mrs. Gao in the future, how to make my husband dote on me."
Jiang Nan Fang was still Jiang Nan Fang; her ability to see the big picture from a small detail was always there.
She had figured out the overly close relationship between Director Gao and Ke Jing Yu so quickly.
"You're right, Mrs. Gao and Hu Jia Sheng's relationship is indeed unusual."
"I never expected her to end up like this after breaking up with my father. I've always suspected that the incident in Switzerland was orchestrated by Mrs. Gao, but I couldn't find any evidence."
"This woman has that kind of identity protection, making her difficult to deal with. Although you are a smart person, I still want to remind you to stay away from her, and also keep your distance from me."
"Otherwise, with her psychology twisted for over 20 years, who knows what kind of twisted tricks she might come up with."
Jiang Nan Fang was unfazed by his reminder.
"It's only those who have much to lose who are constantly wary of her. What do I have to fear from her, having nothing?"
"On the contrary, she has more than me, so she should be the one fearing me."
"What if I expose her secrets..."
Zhan Bei Jue said, "I've already had people investigate. Hu Jia Sheng's social circle is very simple, and there's no indication of any past interactions with her. To her, Hu Jia Sheng is at most a romantic entanglement from her youthful recklessness; it's been over thirty years, and it won't shake her."
"Then..."
"To bring her down, you can only target her husband. Without her husband as a shield, she's nothing."
Since Zhan Bei Jue had a clear plan for these matters, why did he lose control so many times?
Zhan Bei Jue explained, "Everyone has their weaknesses. In front of Director Gao, my weakness is you."
"I'm not sure if there's a greater conspiracy behind their efforts to transfer me to Nan City. I don't want you and the children to be involved, so..."
It was pretty much as Jiang Nan Fang had guessed.
They were doing so well before, and besides unavoidable hardships, she couldn't think of any reason for them to divorce.
"So, it was all for my own good. Should I be thanking you for divorcing me?"
Zhan Bei Jue hugged her. "Don't say that, Nan Fang. You know how guilty I feel. I've wronged not only you but also the children. This is a mistake I can never rectify."
Jiang Nan Fang wasn't afraid of Zhan Bei Jue making mistakes, but she was afraid of him being serious.
Every time he spoke so earnestly, pouring out his heart, Jiang Nan Fang would be deeply moved and couldn't bear it.
In front of the person she loved, she truly didn't want him to suffer any grievances.
"Since these weren't your intentions, now that we've cleared the air, there's no need to say all those unnecessary things. I never said I wouldn't forgive you."
Zhan Bei Jue's eyes lit up, and he couldn't help but smile.
"You forgive me so easily? Are you sure? Why are you so good?"
"I'm inherently good!"
Jiang Nan Fang kissed him, then gritted her teeth.
"But thinking about it the other way, you're too useless. When you encounter problems, you just hide. You don't even dare to tell me the truth. Do you look down on me so much, thinking I can't face it together with you?"
"I just didn't want you and the children to suffer with me..."
"I'm willing! As long as I know you have me in your heart, and you're always steadfastly heading towards me, I'm willing to endure any hardship!"
"Alright, alright, I'm sorry. Then I promise you, from now on, no matter what happens, I won't push you away again and try to solve it alone."
Jiang Nan Fang's nose tingled, and she pulled back slightly, meeting his gaze.
"You mean what you say. I don't think I've ever made you swear or promise me anything before. Today, you'll make a vow for me."
"I promise what I say is true, and I will never make this mistake again. Otherwise, if I find out you're lying, even if I die, I will never forgive you!"
Zhan Bei Jue raised his left hand, preparing to swear.
But thinking of his mother, he hesitated.
"I'm sorry, I can't make this oath."
"What?!"
"Actually, there's one more thing I haven't confessed to you. The source of all the lies I've told stems from here."
Jiang Nan Fang, who was being moved, heard this and was so angry she wanted to slap him to death.
"Do you have a single truthful word in your mouth? What you just said sounded so convincing, and now it's all for nothing?"
"No. If my mother hadn't done something so wrong to you at the hospital back then, I wouldn't feel so guilty."
Zhan Bei Jue sighed pitifully, took his phone, and opened a doctor's contact list for her to see.
There, interspersed, were conversations about his mother's treatment.
"When Ke Teng fell from upstairs and was declared a vegetative state, I knew that after you woke up, you would hate her to death and never want to talk to me again, so I..."
"I told the first lie, and then used many lies to cover it up. I truly regret it."