Finally, she had said it.
Zou Weijun let out a long breath.
When a woman was betrayed and hurt in marriage, others sympathised.
But once the hurt woman demanded divorce and a share of the assets, those sympathisers often changed faces, urging her to endure a bit longer.
Endure more, be more tolerant, be more virtuous; the man would surely turn over a new leaf one day.
It was not as if the woman had erred. What was the point of making only her suffer?
Some women, driven beyond endurance to seek divorce urgently, even took losses in property splits, willing to forfeit money just to escape quickly.
Zou Weijun had once thought the same.
With the family gone, what was the sense in fighting over money?
Fortunately, she had woken up in time.
The law stipulated that joint marital property was at least half hers. Why should she forgo it?
Back in the capital, Mrs Peng often invited Zou Weijun for tea, subtly and overtly brainwashing her. Precisely because love was lost, a woman should clutch the remaining money tightly. Love filled the belly with water alone; with love gone, should she live on thin air?
Zou Weijun could afford to be lofty and refuse the money, but as a mother, she had to consider her son Xie Qian.
Though Xie Qian was clever and could make his way alone, why should he?
Must everything be handed to the illegitimate children, forcing her to struggle penniless from scratch to prove backbone?
Mrs Peng’s main aim was not really to push Zou Weijun towards divorce, but to urge her to seize every chance to gather wealth.
Unhappy? Have a row, make Xie Jinghu bleed a little.
Discovered him contacting a mistress? Kick up a fuss, make him bleed more.
Snatch extra shares to Xie Qian’s name while at it. As for the future, play it by ear.
Zou Weijun agreed with some of Mrs Peng’s words, disagreed with others. Such tactics might suit Mrs Peng, but not her; they were utterly different women.
Zou Weijun laid out her divorce demands.
Xie Yuping found them reasonable.
The guilty party should get less in the first place, and Zou Weijun sought no extra, just an equal split.
The crux was, would that beast Xie Jinghu agree to such terms?
Zou Weijun also demanded recovery of assets Xie Jinghu had gifted to his mistresses and illegitimate children… that demand too was fair, though hard to enforce in practice.
Xie Yuping had placed a friend in “Jinhu” before precisely to monitor Xie Jinghu and stop further transfers to his foreign mistress.
With vigilance, oversight was easier; past transfers, being long ago, were tough to reclaim. After all, by the age of that illegitimate daughter abroad, Xie Jinghu’s rekindled affair had lasted over a decade!
How much had he gifted the mistress and illegitimate children in those years?
How much value had those assets accrued? It was truly hard to tally.
In just two or three minutes, Xie Yuping weighed every angle. After deliberation, he offered his suggestion:
“Weijun, you are a clever woman. The secret gifts to that foreign trio are hard to quantify. My advice is to let bygones be bygones on old accounts. Third Brother may have given them plenty, but over these years ‘Jinhu’ has grown mighty, and your joint assets have appreciated too. Settle the past with him, and he can hide it; tally the current assets, and he cannot conceal them easily.”
Zou Weijun took it in without reaction, but Old Madam Xie reacted strongly:
“No equal split. It looks fair, but truly Weijun and Qianqian would lose out!”
If Xie Jinghu had not fooled around outside, all of “Jinhu” would go to Xie Qian.
Now with illegitimate children, once Zou Weijun divorced, her half would go to Xie Qian, while Xie Jinghu’s half would likely feed the bastards.
Old Madam Xie valued blood ties, of course.
But beyond blood, there was affection.
She shared no bond with Xie Jinghu’s illegitimate offspring. That brother’s and sister’s births carried original sin. Was the old lady bored enough to consider those unaffectionate bastards?
To split the vast estate equally between Xie Qian and the illegitimate children was the greatest injustice.
It was not the mistress who had stood by Xie Jinghu at startup.
It was not the mistress who stepped up during his business crises.
What right did her spawn have to an equal share?
Seeing his mother tremble with rage, Xie Yuping hurried to explain. “I do not favour an equal split either. I advise Weijun against chasing old debts to grasp what she has now, not to make her accept loss as fate. A 5:5 split at divorce disadvantages Weijun. What if it becomes 7:3? No matter how muddled Third Brother is, his secret gifts to the mistress cannot exceed 20 per cent of total assets!”
Giving two billion out of ten was not keeping a mistress; that was tribute to an ancestor!
Xie Yuping proposed a 7:3 split. Old Madam Xie still thought it too generous to Xie Jinghu, but Zou Weijun gently shook her head. “Big Brother, I know you mean well for us mother and son. He may not agree even to 5:5; 7:3 is impossible.”
A 5:5 split was already carving flesh from Xie Jinghu.
A 7:3?
He would never consent.
If the man refused divorce, Zou Weijun had only to sue.
In the past, she would not have minded suing, but now with mother-in-law and brother-in-law considering her, and her no heart of stone, how could she not spare a thought for the Xies?
She could afford the lawsuit, but a public brawl would harm the family badly, especially Xie Yuping.
Xie Jinghu’s rise rode the era’s winds; China’s economy boomed, and he soared with it.
Further back, it was Xie Jinghu’s shamelessness in marrying Zou Weijun for her father Professor Zou’s technical backing.
Zou Weijun knew these histories, as did the Xies, but the public did not.
If the suit for assets blew up and drew scrutiny, the public would question Xie Jinghu’s wealth origins and speculate how many backdoors Xie Yuping opened for him.
Zou Weijun voiced her concerns. Xie Yuping sighed inwardly.
This sister-in-law always thought of others first, hence bullied by that beast Third Brother.
Man or woman, sometimes selfishness was needed for a comfortable life!
He said as much in his mind, yet felt no surprise at her words.
That was just who Zou Weijun was.
If she were selfish, how could she raise such a fine child as Xie Qian?
Xie Qian was upright, a true Xie.
Zou Weijun bore no Xie name, yet seemed one.
Only Xie Jinghu was no true Xie!
“Avoiding court is best, of course. If it goes there, no choice. Since I said 7:3, I will not let you mother and son suffer. Endure a few months…”
If that beast Third Brother balked at 7:3?
Then first carve out 40 per cent to Xie Qian’s name; split the rest 5:5.
Snatching 40 per cent at once was unrealistic, but Xie Yuping saw this as a fine chance to draw some blood from Xie Jinghu.
Of course, it needed Zou Weijun’s cooperation!
Xie Yuping outlined his plan. Old Madam Xie nodded repeatedly. Xiao Tian, eavesdropping from the kitchen, grew more excited with every word.
Zou Weijun hesitated. “Big Brother, will this work?”
Xie Yuping sneered. “Why not? Tomorrow after Qianqian finishes exams, I will confront that beast Third Brother.”
After all, blank share transfer forms sat unused in the study; just a signature, no fuss.
Xie Yuping was a master of mind games. Before, he had spared his own brother such tactics. Now that the brother chose beast over man, Xie Yuping had no qualms.
Old Madam Xie sealed it. “Do as Yuping says.”
