Chapter 7: Eight Years of Marriage, Worth Eighty Thousand

Now every one of them had become a knife driven into Han Yansen's most painful places.

Even now, he wasn't sorry.

He was afraid.

Afraid the divorce lawsuit and disciplinary investigation would drag on indefinitely, leaving his career in limbo.

Afraid the institute would never again be recognized as a key research unit.

Afraid his superiors would hold him responsible, demote him, and force him out of military service.

From beginning to end, he'd thought only of his own interests.

I couldn't be bothered with him any longer.

I turned and went upstairs.

I messaged the gate security staff.

"Please don't admit unrelated visitors who aren't residents or affiliated with our unit in future."

The guard apologized repeatedly and immediately updated the notice in the system.

Just then, a message arrived from the discipline inspection officer.

"Engineer Shen, Han Yansen's team has contacted us to request negotiations."

"You can name your terms. Their only condition is that you withdraw the complaint."

My fingers paused over the screen.

So his appeal to sentiment hadn't worked. He was finally ready to play his last card.

I typed quickly.

"No negotiations."

"Follow the organization's procedures."

"What if they offer to restore your authorship credit for the research achievements?"

"No need."

"Proceed through the legal process. Don't shorten it by a single day or hour."

The investigation and lawsuit lasted half a year.

During that time, Han Yansen tried to see me countless times.

Either he couldn't enter the housing compound, or Zhou Hui drove him out of the institute with a scolding.

Later, even Lin Xuan came to find me.

Her belly had grown.

I'd heard she'd taken her pregnant self to the institute and caused a scene, trying to force him to marry her.

But he'd made up his mind not to register their marriage.

He even said he wasn't the only man she'd slept with.

Who knew whose child it was?

When she went up to the institute's roof and threatened to jump, he merely told someone to call the police.

She had none of her former arrogance left. She looked ten years older.

"Shen Zhihui, please let Han Yansen off."

"He won't even see me now. He says it's all my fault."

"I'll kneel and beg. Please, will you let him go?"

"Can't you do it for the baby I'm carrying?"

I stepped back, putting plenty of distance between us.

Then I called headquarters security.

If something happened to a pregnant woman at the unit's entrance, even being in the right wouldn't make it easy to explain.

I unblocked Han Yansen.

"You have ten minutes to get Lin Xuan out of here, or I'll submit additional material with my complaint!"

She left in less than ten minutes.

He didn't come. He only called her.

I watched her retreating figure.

I felt no satisfaction.

Only that some love burned so fiercely it could consume a person.

Over those six months, the Headquarters Equipment Research Institute developed rapidly.

It drew in core technical talent from my old institute.

And secured approval slots for numerous key projects.

Once, I led a team to a project event and happened to run into Han Yansen's team.

He'd clearly made an effort with his appearance this time, yet looked even more haggard than before.

Even his uniform hung loose on him.

Surprisingly, Lin Xuan was still beside him.

But although her due date hadn't arrived, her belly was flat.

Only her complexion looked poor.

Later, Zhou Hui told me what had happened.

After Lin Xuan went back, they'd had another argument. It had even become a physical fight at the institute.

She'd miscarried as a result.

And nearly lost her life.

She'd given him two choices: get back together with her, or she would send him to prison.

With no alternative, he'd kept her by his side.

But the news meant no more to me than a passing breeze.

In one ear, out the other.

After successfully negotiating several key projects in succession, I was promoted directly to research division director and given the rank of major.

In several encounters with Han Yansen, I beat him to some of the highest-level core research and development funding.

After all, the better you knew someone, the better you knew where to drive the knife.

On the day the Headquarters Equipment Research Institute's key laboratory was nominated for an award, I sat among the invited guests at the ceremony.

My subordinates and I listened to the host's congratulations.

But my thoughts drifted back.

The day I'd sold my entire dowry and taken out all my savings to support his research, he'd promised to repay me a hundredfold, a thousandfold.