Chapter 483: Chapter 483: You Are Cruel
As dinner time approached, Yang Chen finally managed to "kick" Christine out of the house after much persuasion. This woman, with her unrestrained and often inappropriate talk, would surely lead to Yang Chen facing endless scorn from his family. He didn't want his already low status in the family to take another hit.
Of course, sending a guest away like that wasn't without some nagging from Guo Xuehua, but Yang Chen had gotten used to it. Blood is thicker than water; although there had been significant estrangement between them, their interactions over time had naturally grown more accustomed to each other.
As the family sat down and was about to start eating, Yang Chen noticed that Lin Ruoxi was absent from the dinner table.
Normally, Lin Ruoxi would be home for dinner at this time since she rarely went out for social events. Yang Chen had assumed his wife was working upstairs, but it turned out that wasn't the case.
"Mom, where's Ruoxi?" Yang Chen couldn't help but ask.
Lin Ruoxi's usual routine was quite regular, and Yang Chen wasn't overly worried. However, her suddenly not coming home for dinner made him uneasy. After all, Lin Ruoxi, with her billions in assets, was a super-rich and beautiful woman. If she weren't so low-key, appearing in the newspapers frequently would be quite common. How could she just disappear without a trace? Could something have happened?
Guo Xuehua and Aunt Wang exchanged a knowing smile before Guo Xuehua said, "I thought you were just focused on eating and forgot you have a wife. At least you have the decency to remember her."
Yang Chen felt a bit embarrassed. Given Lin Ruoxi's usual coldness, he rarely took the initiative to speak much at home. It seemed that the elders were not entirely satisfied with this state of affairs, especially since the two slept in separate rooms.
"How could I forget," Yang Chen said.
"A while ago, Miss called. She mentioned having important matters tomorrow and not much time to work, so she's staying late to finish some documents and won't be coming home for dinner," Aunt Wang said with a smile.
Yang Chen frowned, "Did she say when she'll be back? She won't be sleeping in the office all night, will she?"
Aunt Wang shook her head, looking troubled, "No one knows for sure. Miss is very stubborn when it comes to work. No one can change her mind."
"My daughter-in-law is easy to talk to about everything except when it comes to work. She's too dedicated, and no one can persuade her otherwise," Guo Xuehua, having stayed with them for some time, had come to understand Lin Ruoxi's personality and found her work habits quite frustrating.
Yang Chen pursed his lips, picked up his bowl, and began eating. "Since that's the case, Aunt Wang, please prepare some food. I'll take it to Ruoxi. If she didn't mention a time to come back, she must be planning to work late."
Aunt Wang, seemingly having anticipated Yang Chen's words, smiled and said, "The food is ready. If you can take it to her, that would be best. Miss will definitely be happy."
Zhenxiu, who was nibbling on a chicken wing nearby, giggled, "She won't be. Sister Ruoxi will definitely be annoyed."
"If I don't finish these documents, I won't feel like eating. Leave the food and go," Lin Ruoxi weakly shook her head and continued reading the documents.
Yang Chen knew this woman wouldn't be so obedient. He chuckled and walked over to Lin Ruoxi, snatching the stack of papers from her hands.
"What are you doing?!" Lin Ruoxi turned around angrily, glaring at Yang Chen. Her beautiful face, which was pale, now had a touch of redness from her rising anger.
She was already troubled by work matters and had no appetite at all. This man didn't help her with her work, and while it wasn't his fault for bringing her food, did he really think she would do whatever he said?
Yang Chen looked at Lin Ruoxi's now cold face and smiled nonchalantly. "It's nothing. I just thought, since you can't let go of these things yourself, I'll keep them for you. That way, you can only eat first."
"Why should I listen to you?!" Lin Ruoxi asked angrily.
Yang Chen grinned, "Of course, you have to listen to me. After all, I am your husband."
"Hmph, what a joke," Lin Ruoxi sneered, glancing disdainfully at Yang Chen. "You don't care about your identity, always fooling around with other women outside. How come you've suddenly changed today? Go accompany your mistresses and leave me alone. I won't starve to death."
Yang Chen felt a bit embarrassed, rubbing his chin with his left hand, and forced a smile. "How can you say that? I've always cared about my Ruoxi darling. No other woman can compare to you. You are my legitimate wife, the one who married me officially."
"I don't care," Lin Ruoxi said through gritted teeth. "Give me back the documents and leave immediately, and I'll pretend nothing happened."
Yang Chen's face turned serious. "No, I've told you many times, you can't work yourself to death. Whether you stay up late or work all night, you have to eat first. I won't allow you to mistreat yourself like this."
"You—" Lin Ruoxi pointed a finger at Yang Chen, wanting to say something, but thinking about his thick skin, she felt it was useless.
Yang Chen watched Lin Ruoxi's angry yet delicate demeanor, finding her icy beauty irresistibly charming. With a hint of a wicked smile, he pretended to think for a moment, then bent down and said softly, "Darling, how about this: if you promise me one thing, I won't care if you eat or not, and I'll go home right away."
Lin Ruoxi sneered. "Why should I promise you anything? I don't owe you anything. Last time I borrowed money from you, I promised not to argue with your mistresses for a year and to get along peacefully. I've done that. I've been polite to both Qiangwei and Anxin. Don't you think you're being cruel?
You keep saying you're my husband. Is this how you act as a husband? What do you want me to promise this time? Just because I don't want to eat and want to work, you want me to promise you something? You might as well just divorce me!"
Her words were clear and sharp, falling like droplets of icy rain into the air.