Jiang Wanyi returned to her apartment and tossed her handbag casually onto the sofa.
At that moment, her phone screen lit up, showing over a dozen missed calls, all from Li Jinchuan.
She curled her lips in disdain, wondering what madness this man was acting out again. Back when she treated him well, he discarded her like worn-out shoes and threw her affection away like garbage. Now, of course, he was in a panic.
How utterly ridiculous!
Too lazy to bother, Jiang Wanyi was about to put her phone down when another text message popped up:
[Call me back, we need to talk.]
It was Li Jinchuan again.
It seemed this jerk was truly desperate, frantically bombarding her with messages.
Jiang Wanyi's fingers tapped quickly across the screen:
[Sign the divorce agreement, then I'll answer your call.]
After tapping send, Jiang Wanyi switched her phone to silent and headed straight for the bathroom.
Her good life was about to begin; she wouldn't let some filth ruin her mood.
On the other end, Li Jinchuan stared at Jiang Wanyi's final text for a long time before abruptly hurling his phone onto the bed.
This woman was getting more and more daring lately; how dare she use a divorce to threaten him? It seemed he had been far too lenient with her!
"Young Master, why are these pieces of luggage left out here?" Mother Wang asked cautiously, looking at the mess of suitcases scattered across the living room floor.
"Mother Wang, pack some clothes for me to wear on my business trip tomorrow." Li Lechuan loosened his tie irritably, his tone tinged with impatience.
Mother Wang looked somewhat troubled. "Young Master, it's not that I don't want to help you pack, but every time you went on a business trip before, Madam was the one who matched your clothes. I really don't know what kind of outfits you prefer."
Before previous business trips, Jiang Wanyi would always carefully coordinate Li Lechuan's outfits for each day in advance, matching his tie clips and cufflinks down to the last detail.
Such trivial matters had never required anyone else's assistance.
Li Lechuan naturally knew this as well, and said impatiently, "Just pack whatever you want."
Mother Wang acknowledged the order and hurried away with the luggage to pack.
The moment she left, Li Cheng'an came out of his room holding his teddy bear and rubbing his eyes.
"Daddy, when is Mommy coming back? There's no one to read me stories anymore." The little fellow's voice was heavy with sleep and thick with anxiety.
Previously, Jiang Wanyi had never left him for this long.
The old Jiang Wanyi used to revolve around their father and son twenty-four hours a day, pouring all her devotion especially into Li Cheng'an.
This was the first time she had vanished for so long!
Li Jinchuan's expression turned gloomy. "Doesn't Grandma Wang tell you stories?"
"But I want to hear Mommy tell them. I've listened to them since I was little and I'm used to it." The more Li Cheng'an thought about it, the more aggrieved he felt. He raised his small face and asked with a hint of a sob, "Is she really going to divorce Daddy?"
Li Cheng'an was still just a child, right at the age when he relied heavily on his mother.
"Divorce?" Li Lechuan sneered. "Impossible! She's just a housewife with no job and no income. Once she leaves the Li Family, what will she use to support herself?"
"Do you think she can make money like your Auntie Jiaojiao?"
Li Cheng'an's eyes lit up. "Really? Mommy is really coming back?"
"Of course." Li Lechuan was confident that Jiang Wanyi could not live without him.
Leaving aside the fact that she lacked the ability to support herself outside the Li Family, just her love for him alone meant she could never actually divorce him.
Li Lechuan was certain Jiang Wanyi couldn't leave him.
Everything she was doing was merely a tactic to force him and his son to bow their heads, but she didn't even stop to think—was she worthy of competing with Jiang Jiaojiao?
The anxiety instantly vanished from Li Cheng'an's face, replaced by a smug smile.
He knew it! Mommy was so useless, she would definitely come back!
Aunty Jiaojiao was right; she was just an ordinary housewife who only knew how to ask for money, not even worth half of Auntie Jiaojiao's little toe.
"When she comes back, I'm going to make her know the consequences of ignoring us!" Li Cheng'an snorted coldly, resolving in his heart to teach Jiang Wanyi a lesson.
Jiang Wanyi cared nothing about any of this. Ever since she left that pair of blood-sucking father and son from the Li Family, her life had been endlessly comfortable.
Even her complexion had improved significantly.
So much so that Liao Xiner was somewhat startled when she saw her.
"What skincare products have you been using lately? You're maintaining yourself so well."
"Staying away from toxic men brings peace of mind. Without all those frustrating things messing with you, your complexion naturally improves," Jiang Wanyi said with a faint smile.
Hearing this, Liao Xiner sat up straight. "When you told me about getting a divorce last time, you couldn't possibly have been serious, right?"
Seeing her best friend's utter disbelief, Jiang Wanyi understood why. After all, her past-life self had truly been too foolish. It wasn't as though Liao Xiner hadn't dropped hints about something being off between Jiang Jiaojiao and Li Lechuan, but blinded by her brainless crush, she had refused to believe it.
Fortunately, in this lifetime, she still had a chance to fix things.
"Of course it's real." Jiang Wanyi recounted recent events, then looked at her best friend's furious face opposite her. "Xiner, I need you to help me find a reliable divorce lawyer."
Fighting a divorce lawsuit against the Li Family was no easy feat, and there were probably very few lawyers in Hong Kong City who would dare take the case.
However, Liao Xiner knew plenty of people in this field and could definitely help.
Liao Xiner slammed her wine glass down hard, the base making a crisp ring against the bar counter.
"That bastard Li Jinchuan! I knew he had something going on with Jiang Jiaojiao! Don't worry, my senior brother is a partner at Shengheng Law Firm, and he specializes in handling these high-society divorce cases."
"I refuse to believe the Li Family can just run roughshod over everyone!"
"As long as I can get what rightfully belongs to me, the rest doesn't matter." Jiang Wanyi had thought it through clearly. Being reborn meant she wouldn't waste time on such petty matters.
There were many things she needed to do, and the divorce was merely the most trivial of them all.
"Are you going to fight for Li Cheng'an's custody?" Liao Xiner asked instinctively.
Jiang Wanyi fell into a brief silence. No matter how poorly Li Cheng'an had acted, he was still the child she had carried for ten months. To completely cut ties was impossible.
Yet, whenever she recalled how heartlessly Li Cheng'an had treated her in her past life, she felt a wave of nausea.
"An'an is still young. Although he's been corrupted by the Li Family, he's not beyond redemption. As long as the child can see reason and is willing to stay with me, I'm still willing to fight for custody." Jiang Wanyi didn't entirely close the door on the possibility.
"It's hard to say, though. Li Cheng'an is nothing more than Jiang Jiaojiao's lackey." Liao Xiner didn't hold a high opinion of him.
Just as they were talking, a sudden burst of warm applause erupted from the center of the bar.
A well-dressed manager stood at the second-floor stairwell and announced, "Distinguished guests, tonight's entire tab is on Mr. Duan!"
Customers all around raised their glasses in toast. "Thank you, Mr. Duan!"
Jiang Wanyi looked up toward the second floor.
"Who is this Mr. Duan? He certainly seems to carry quite a bit of clout."