Duality

"Konnichiwa, I'm An Siyi." An Shiyu's opening line completely threw Chen Hai off.

"What 'ko' what 'chi'?"

"Sister An, why are you wearing this?" Chen Hai looked at An Shiyu and finally recognized her. Wasn't she one of the girls in that group with Bai Yuyou? The one who always acts all aloof.

It was just this maid outfit that had almost made Chen Hai fail to recognize her.

"She's here to hang out for a while, currently acting as my assistant." Ye Shuang casually mentioned An Shiyu's situation, then intended to have a private chat with Chen Hai.

"Koukou, go make some tea for me."

"Oh, okay."

...

In Ye Shuang's office now, both assistants were absent, leaving only him and Chen Hai sitting on the sofa drinking tea.

"That day at your place wasn't really convenient either. So, tell me, what exactly are you thinking? Don't you want your wife and child anymore?" Ye Shuang said, "Back then, it was you who said you were afraid Qiaoqiao would find out about this. And now?"

Chen Hai remained silent.

"Damn it, can't I even talk to you about it?" Ye Shuang gave Chen Hai a light kick.

"I know this isn't right," Chen Hai sighed. "But this isn't the lifestyle I want..."

"To be honest, I really don't like my married life at all. You know how it is, my wife has a terrible temper... sometimes her yelling and screaming really gets on my nerves."

"But I never argue with her. I always give in to her, to the point where everyone thinks I'm henpecked."

Ye Shuang asked, "Aren't you, though?"

Chen Hai glared, "Bullshit!"

"Being 'henpecked' is essentially about loving your wife, but a lot of the time I feel really wronged, you know? No one understands me." Chen Hai lowered his head. "When I talk to my parents about this, they always say a man should just give in more."

"But after a long time, that feeling is really hard to bear. No matter what it is, you can only keep it bottled up inside." Chen Hai sighed again.

"Are men just supposed to take it? I don't understand."

"But Zhou Min isn't like that. She's really considerate. She thinks about me in every way."

Chen Hai rubbed his hands together. "Even though I know she might not be completely sincere, I really love feeling like this."

"Going out to eat, I can choose places I actually like. I won't get yelled at or hit over a minor mistake... She always protects my dignity. Even watching a movie, she thoughtfully asks if I'm getting bored."

"You have to understand, before, when my wife watched a movie, if she didn't enjoy it, she could give me the cold shoulder all night."

Chen Hai went on and on. Perhaps it was because of the contrast—one a tyrannical dragon, the other a gentle, caring woman—that he poured out all the dissatisfaction he'd held in his heart for so many years.

Ye Shuang listened, somewhat stunned. He never would have imagined Chen Hai was so unhappy, especially since he used to always brag about his daughter.

"Even if it's a lie, a life like this feels like a dream to me." Chen Hai's voice, for some reason, began to choke up. "I may not be very capable, but I'm not that bad, am I? I'm a second-generation rich kid, after all, and I don't fool around with women... Am I really that worthless?"

"It's not like I do it on purpose. My wife is still giving me the silent treatment, and she won't even let me see Qiaoqiao."

"Zhou Min, at the very least... fulfills a lot of my fantasies."

Ye Shuang: "..."

"What if that's not Zhou Min's true face?" Ye Shuang asked. "And is your wife really that bad?"

Chen Hai didn't speak. Clearly, he was avoiding the question. Often, a comforting illusion was enough to let him drown in it.

"Getting into the group... that was Zhou Min's idea, wasn't it?" Seeing Chen Hai's emotions were a bit out of control, Ye Shuang reached out and patted his back.

"Aren't you really afraid she has ulterior motives?"

"Even... that she could harm the entire group."

"She won't. What can a little woman like her do? I understand your concerns... but I know what I'm doing." Chen Hai said. "Such a big group, can it really be ruined by her?"

"Fine, as long as you know what you're doing." Ye Shuang didn't feel he could say much more. As long as Chen Hai was aware that Zhou Min's motives weren't pure, that was something.

He was just afraid his buddy was being used as a pawn by that woman.

With emotions running high right now, Ye Shuang could only try to keep an eye on things as much as possible.

"But you should shave that beard. You look all scruffy." Ye Shuang looked at Chen Hai's stubble and couldn't help but say, "At the very least, you should tidy yourself up."

"Zhou Min says I look good like this too." Chen Hai said. "My wife just nags me to shave, always finding fault with me."

"That's not necessarily finding fault. Going to work clean-shaven maintains your own image, doesn't it?" Ye Shuang smiled slightly.

"Has your wife really never thought about you?"

"Maybe she's just loving you in her own way... Have a good talk. As long as you can communicate, nothing is unsolvable... Running away doesn't solve any problems." Ye Shuang spoke slowly, noticing that Chen Hai seemed lost in thought.

"Alright, I won't say any more." After patting Chen Hai's shoulder, Ye Shuang began to arrange some work for him.

Although such minor tasks didn't require his attention, this was his brother after all, so he had to do it properly.

"Hmm..." Ye Shuang thought for a moment, then decided to go ask if there were any suitable positions for Chen Hai.

Having skills that don't match the position is no good, but Chen Hai wasn't completely useless. At the very least, he was a proper graduate from a top-tier university and had spent two years studying abroad to gild his resume.

If you really compared the few of them, Ye Shuang was actually the one with the lowest academic qualifications, just a regular undergraduate degree.

Ye Shuang said, "I'm going out for a bit."

"Okay."

After seeing Ye Shuang leave the office, Chen Hai also sat staring blankly at his phone.

When emotions cloud your vision, you can no longer see love itself.

Chen Hai was the same. After hearing Ye Shuang's advice, he did realize his wife wasn't that bad. Although she liked to hit and scold him, there were many times she showed concern for him too. For example, when he had a fever, his wife would get up several times in the middle of the night to check his temperature.

And also...

He couldn't think of anything else for the moment.

"..."

Chen Hai took out his phone and then called Zhou Min.

"The number you have dialed is busy."

...

...

Elsewhere, the Chen Family Estate.

On the vast expanse of green lawn, Zhou Min, now heavily pregnant, sat on a chair enjoying the surrounding scenery, a phone held to her ear.

"Yes, Master. Chen Hai has already entered the group..."

A woman's voice came from the other end of the line. "How is Chen Hai treating you?"

"He treats me very well and trusts me completely."

"That's good. As long as you give birth to the child, staying with the Chen family won't be a problem at all." The woman on the phone said. "Stay there and behave."

"That goes without saying, Master." A smile curled on Zhou Min's lips.