Chapter 180: Do as You Wish
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
As the saying goes, husband and wife might be living in the same forest, but when faced with adversity, they would fly away in different directions.
He was in a car accident, and the man who hit him ran off. He was taken to the hospital and was in urgent need of a large sum of money for surgery. Although Old Ding did not abandon him at that time, what was the difference between Old Ding’s behavior and abandoning him? He felt bitterly disappointed either way.
They had no money, and he was sent to the operating room. Yet, his wife did nothing but sat down on the ground and cried, sobbing that they had no money. Qiao Dongliang was chilled and bitterly disappointed.
What was the difference between Ding Jiayi’s actions and leaving him behind right away?
No, there was a slight difference.
If Ding Jiayi had left with Zijin, Ding Jiayi would not have known what happened to him. Though Ding Jiayi stayed in the hospital and did nothing but cried and ranted, she could watch him as he died at the very least.
Thinking of the years they spent together, even though Ding Jiayi did not give birth to a son and had two daughters, he had never shortchanged her. He gave all the money he earned to her.
Did Ding Jiayi do the right thing?
During the past half month he stayed in the hospital, he saw that Zhou Bing’s wife was very considerate toward her husband. In comparison, whenever Ding Jiayi came to the hospital to take care of him, she would pull a long face. She would look at him with resentment, blaming him for not making enough money, and that he was biased toward Nan Nan and did not treat Zijin well enough.
Qiao Dongliang was tired.
Given how his wife treated him, it was meaningless to stay as a couple.
When he saw how the other couple treated each other, and he compared it to himself, he was seized with an impulse to divorce his wife.
But Qiao Dongliang was a traditional man. He would not bring himself to divorce his wife unless she went over the limits.
Besides, Qiao Dongliang was worried that both of his daughters, especially the younger daughter, might not understand his reasons for divorcing his wife and would want them to stay together as a couple.
At Qiao Dongliang’s factory, he would occasionally hear the news of some couples who were on bad terms with each other and wanted a divorce. However, their children would refuse or even skive off school, objecting to their parents’ divorce.
The only worry Qiao Dongliang had was that Qiao Nan might be hurt. He did not want Qiao Nan, who was such a good child, to suffer.
Hence, he stopped his words midway.
“Dad, no matter what is going through your mind, as long as you are happy, I will support you.” After thinking about it, Qiao Nan looked at Qiao Dongliang fixedly.
“Nan Nan, do you know what you are talking about? Or rather, do you really understand what I am talking about?”
“I understand.” Qiao Nan took a deep breath and said with certainty.
Although she had no feelings for her mother, she was her mother after all. She could not disregard their blood relations. After all, she had given birth to her and raised her up.
After the rebirth, besides having the conviction that she must complete her studies, Qiao Nan had never intervened in the affairs between Qiao Dongliang and Ding Jiayi.
In the previous life, Qiao Dongliang and Ding Jiayi would quarrel often, but it was especially common in every household for the couple to quarrel over basic daily necessities. Up till the day she died from a car accident, her father might have some quarrels with her mother, but he had never thought of divorcing her mother.
Qiao Nan would not encourage her parents to divorce just because she disliked Ding Jiayi. She would never do such things.
However, it was a different matter if Qiao Dongliang had such an idea himself. Qiao Nan was not a sixteen-year-old child. She did not harbor any love and feelings for Ding Jiayi. Though Ding Jiayi was her biological mother, she could not stand it that she was biased to her elder daughter.
In the event that their parents filed for a divorce, what should she do if her father remarried and she had a stepmother?
If it was Qiao Nan from the past life, she would rather be bullied by her mother than to see her parents divorced.
But in this life, Qiao Nan had matured.
If her father had no wish to divorce her mother, she would not speak a word about it or lead her father into thinking that way. But if her father had such a thought, she would definitely support her father to do so.
“Nan Nan, you…” Qiao Dongliang had a bitter smile on his face. Nan Nan might have kept her silence, but she remembered by heart the deeds Old Ding did.
Among the many other children Qiao Dongliang had seen, Qiao Nan was the only person to remain calm and supportive when she learned that her parents had divorce in mind.
“Dad, don’t think too much. The reason why I agree to it is not what you imagine it to be. Dad, you should know better how life is with Mom, be it good or bad, bitter or sweet. My sister and I cannot make the judgment. If you feel that you are leading a good life, I will not say a word. But Dad, now that you are considering divorce, I hope you can lead a happier life. At the very least, I do not want to hold you back from making the right decision for yourself. Dad, I do not want to suffer as well. I don’t want you to hold on to this family because of me.”
Qiao Nan had heard that parents stayed in the marriage for the sake of their children.
In her previous life, whenever her mother came up with this excuse, she would have to give in to her unreasonable requests in order to stop her parents from ending their marriage.
If Qiao Dongliang wanted a divorce, Qiao Nan would not object to it. If Qiao Dongliang wanted to stay as a family with Ding Jiayi, Qiao Nan would not express her disapproval as well.
Qiao Nan did not want to bear the responsibility or to be the reason for her parents to stay together as a couple.
She was not worried that her parents would suffer. Instead, she was genuinely worried that she would suffer any grievances.
There was no need for it!
“Dad, you need to think it through whether you want a divorce. No matter what your decision is, you do not have to take me into consideration.” In order not to affect Qiao Dongliang’s decision, Qiao Nan did not say what was on her mind: ‘For me, it would be better if you have a divorce.’
“Nan Nan, you really suffered a lot of grievances. For you to have such a mother, it is …” The calmer Qiao Nan appeared and the way she washed her hands off their affairs, the more Qiao Dongliang could tell that she was disappointed and disheartened with Ding Jiayi.
Since Nan Nan could stay calm and clear-headed when he mentioned about divorcing Ding Jiayi, it suggested that she did not have any feelings for Old Ding.
Sins. They had committed sins.
“I owed Mom in the previous life, and I am here to repay the debts. But I have already repaid all the debts.” Her mother gave her a life, and she had repaid her by living her life for her and dying in the end.
In the previous life, she had been knocked down by a car. Her body organs must be suitable for transplant. Her mother and Qiao Zijin must have gotten the kidney that they had longed for.
In ancient times, there was a legend where Nezha carved up his own flesh and dismembered his bones to return to his parents, in repayment for the debt of his birth.
She had given her life back to her mother and returned the kidney to Qiao Zijin. It was more than enough. She had repaid her debts.
“Dad, I don’t blame the situation at all. We can determine our own fates. Mom may have a nasty temper and bad character traits, but as long as I work hard and don’t give in to her, I will be able to lead a good life.”