Eighties Sweetheart Wife-Chapter 599: Retreat Without a Fight

Jin Ju calmly asked again, "Do you have feelings for her now?"

Meng Zhaolin: ...

Is it okay to lie?

He thought, anxious and uneasy.

Xia Xindong said, "My sister-in-law told me that she detests Meng Zhaolin. He’s heartless and fickle. Ever since he went to Hai City, she’s spent her time being beaten and scolded. To force her into a divorce, even Meng Zhaolin’s mother laid hands on my sister-in-law.

The two children were even denied enough food to eat, and the younger daughter nearly got thrown away.

The 300 yuan my sister-in-law brought from home was Sixth Aunt Ma’s life savings. She gave it all to her daughter, hoping that her daughter’s life in Hai City would be a bit easier.

But once in Hai City, the money was taken away by Meng Zhaolin’s mother the very next day, who then turned around and accused my sister-in-law and the two children of freeloading.

But in truth, my sister-in-law started taking odd jobs just a week after arriving. This can be investigated in Hai City; she worked at a street factory, and there’s no faking that.

From the day she arrived in Hai City, my sister-in-law has been continuously scorned by Meng Zhaolin.

He scorned her for being a rural person, for being uneducated, saying he had nothing in common with her and had no feelings for her. When the divorce came, he was more than eager.

Then, having bought only a single bus ticket for her, he drove the mother and her two children out of Hai City.

If it weren’t for kind-hearted people helping them on the road, who knows if this mother and her two children could have survived the journey back to Erdao River Village!"

Meng Zhaolin’s face turned red.

Jin Ju seemed not to have noticed the ashamed and annoyed expression on Meng Zhaolin’s face.

But Jin Ju was writing furiously.

After finishing, she still asked Xia Xindong, "Can you stand by what you just said?"

Xia Xindong laughed softly, "I’ve spoken nothing but the truth; of course I can stand by it."

Jin Ju looked up at Meng Zhaolin, who seemed to be stunned into silence.

"Continue with your demands. You say you still have feelings for Ma Cuifen. But if all the aforementioned actions were yours..."

Suddenly, Jin Ju’s expression changed. Just a moment earlier, she had been smiling, but now her face was frosty. She slammed her pen onto the table with a snap, causing Meng Zhaolin to flinch and shrink his shoulders.

Jin Ju asked Meng Zhaolin with a stern look, "Are these facts that were just mentioned the truth?"

Meng Zhaolin’s mouth opened and closed. He dared not speak. Were these facts? Certainly, they were.

But he wanted to deny them.

After all, Editor-in-chief Jin had connections in Hai City.

And the Xia family was no ordinary family.

If an investigation were to be conducted, it wouldn’t stand up to scrutiny.

"Why are you not speaking?"

Jin Ju picked up her pen again, her expression changing in an instant, even offering Meng Zhaolin a smile, "Sorry about that. I’m someone who cannot stand injustice, and being a woman myself, I am indeed very angry hearing about how you treated Ma Cuifen.

But I should not let my emotions affect my judgment. There are two sides to every story, and perhaps there are aspects of this I am unaware of, so please continue.

But first, tell me, on what basis do you seek reconciliation with Ma Cuifen?

Has Ma Cuifen called you, or written to you?

Has she made any such requests?

If you have any evidence, written proof, I will include everything in my article."

With that rapid-fire delivery, Meng Zhaolin’s face turned pale.

He couldn’t help but ask, "What... what do you mean, include everything in the article?"

"Hmm, just as it sounds. I’ve been thinking, and your case is quite representative.

Educated youth returning to the city with a country wife and children.

Is there a difference between city and countryside?

Do parents at home acknowledge them?

After Ma Cuifen returned to the city, what have you done for her?

Ma Cuifen claims you were abusive, do you have any evidence to refute that?

Why did you initially get a divorce?

Why are you now turning around and wanting to remarry Ma Cuifen, even disregarding the fact that she is now married?

Today, I want to conduct a thorough interview with you, and then write an article for the daily newspaper.

Our newspaper has started a social column, and you alone may not necessarily succeed in your search.

If I write about your story in the paper, letting everyone see and comment, perhaps you will be able to achieve your goal."

Meng Zhaolin’s heart thumped wildly.

Being featured in the paper for other matters was an honor, even something to frame and hang on the wall as a family heirloom.

But being in the paper for this matter, even if Meng Zhaolin’s mind was in utter chaos at the moment, he knew there would likely be very few who would praise or support him.

And once the matter hit the papers, many people in Hai City would know about it.

Classmates, colleagues, neighbors—it would be like a public execution or a criticism meeting.

Suddenly, Meng Zhaolin stood up and hurriedly said, "You can’t write about my affairs in the newspaper." ƒrēenovelkiss.com

Jin Ju: "Why can’t I write about it in the paper? You ran from Hai City to Nanshan County Town and then from Nanshan County Town to Beidu. You are so confident, isn’t it because you believe you are not at fault?

If that’s the case, what are you afraid of? Rest assured, I will make sure to place it in a prominent position on the social page."

Meng Zhaolin stood up, his entire being somewhat dazed, but as he saw the journalist’s notebook filled with dense text, his head felt like it was about to explode.

He said to Jin Ju with a trembling voice, "I... I’m not looking to remarry Ma Cuifen, I just want my son back."

Jin Ju’s expression changed. "You’re a worker at a state-owned factory, why are you going back on your word? What was decided when you divorced?"

Meng Zhaolin felt a wave of panic and guilt.

At the time of the divorce agreement, Meng Zhaolin had written that he would not care about anything, not wanting the children either, and from the day of the divorce, the two children would have nothing to do with him.

The divorce agreement was on record with the civil affairs bureau.

Jin Ju was the editor-in-chief at the Daily, and she could probably retrieve it with a single phone call.

Meng Zhaolin was at a loss for words.

Looking at Jin Ju’s notebook, an innate fear began to well up inside him.

If these things were truly published in the newspaper, his reputation for the rest of his life would be ruined.

Not only would it be ruined, but it would also affect his family members. By then, his eldest brother and sister-in-law wouldn’t let him off.

And about the 300 yuan from Ma Cuifen, it seemed like his mother had already given part of it to Ma Cuifen.

But now it looked like nothing had happened.

None of these matters could withstand scrutiny.

Even if he wanted his son back, it wasn’t going to happen so directly, because it was already clearly stated in the divorce agreement.

He could only resort to filing a new lawsuit through the court.

But now that he had changed his mind, would the court really support him strongly?

It might be fine if Ma Cuifen didn’t want the son, but if Ma Cuifen firmly disagreed, he really might not get him back.

But all of these were not the main point; the main point was to prevent Editor-in-chief Jin from turning this into an article for the daily newspaper.

In the end, after several confrontations, Meng Zhaolin was thoroughly defeated.

He was made to write a letter of guarantee and pressed his fingerprint, promising that from then on, he would never again bother Ma Cuifen and the two children.

He also sycophantically told Xia Xindong that someone had tempted him with 1,000 yuan.

He had entertained the idea himself, to begin with.

So that’s why he did such a foolish thing.

However, he didn’t know the name of that person, but that person was very familiar with his and Erdao River Village’s affairs.