Reborn as the Villain's Wife, I Shine in 80s-Chapter 500 - 484 News Live Li Shimae (3)

The scene descended into chaos. No one knew what had happened, and everyone was displeased about the speech being interrupted.

Li Yibai cut off the microphone in his hand and looked at Zhang Ying, suppressing his anger, as he said, "I’ve told you long ago that there’s nothing between us anymore. Why are you here? Get lost!"

Zhang Ying sneered, holding the microphone, and looked out at the audience as she said, "Li Yibai just told me to get lost. I’m his wife. Why should I get lost?"

"What? Li Yibai is married?"

"I’ve never heard of that."

"She’s probably here to cause trouble, right? How could someone as talented as Li Yibai marry a rural woman?" At a glance, this woman clearly looked like someone from the countryside, plain and unsophisticated. The crowd firmly sided with Li Yibai.

"What nonsense are you talking about!" Li Yibai was furious and tried to snatch the microphone away from her. When he couldn’t grab it, he picked up his own microphone and said, "I believe this woman is here to stir up trouble. This is a university; not just anyone can walk in." After saying that, he signaled for someone to escort her out.

A few staff members went forward, but Zhang Ying was strong and refused to leave the stage no matter what.

She glared at Li Yibai and pointed at him, cursing angrily, "Li Yibai, you abandoned your wife and child, pretending to be high and mighty, and now you’re here hosting some speech to mislead people! Everyone better not be fooled by this hypocrite!"

Zhang Ying continued, this time addressing the audience: "I am Li Yibai’s wife, and this is our son."

At first, everyone thought she was here to cause trouble, but upon hearing her claim, they all instinctively looked at the little boy. The boy had fair skin, and in his eyebrows and eyes, one could see hints of Li Yibai’s features. People began to grow suspicious and chose to silently observe to make their own judgments.

Yet, they didn’t want to believe that their beloved literary master had such a stain on his character. They also didn’t want to believe that Li Yibai could be someone who would abandon his wife and child. No matter how good a writer or how talented he was, if his morals were suspect, if he couldn’t even meet the basic standards of decency, how could he still deserve their admiration?

"Back when he was destitute and desperate, it was my family who paid for his education. When he got into university, we gave him money for his travel costs and living expenses. After he left, it was also our family that paid off his mother’s debts." The struggles of raising a child alone in the countryside over the years were something only she knew deeply. She wasn’t afraid of hardship; what she feared was having her toil neglected. As she spoke, Zhang Ying couldn’t stop her tears from falling freely. "But when he left, it was for years without a word, without sending a single penny back! When my father fell ill and our household struggled to make ends meet, I cared for the elderly and the child alone, through all the bitterness and hardship, without complaint. But then, not long ago, I suddenly received a letter from Li Yibai. He sent 50 yuan along with it, telling me he had found the woman he truly loved and wanted to divorce me! I’m just one woman—gave him a child, and now he wants a divorce! For what? Just because the woman he found is more educated and prettier than I am?"

"It’s her!" Zhang Ying pointed at Wenxiu and continued, "I refuse to be discarded so easily. I had to come find him and get answers. Pity me; I came to Beijing all by myself, couldn’t even afford to eat. If it weren’t for some kind-hearted people who helped me and gave me work at their factory, my son and I would probably have starved to death on the streets!"

"Li Yibai is just an ungrateful, heartless, and disloyal man!"

At this point, the university president stepped forward and asked Li Yibai whether what she said was true. Things like abandoning one’s wife and child weren’t unheard of. Many educated youths during that era had done such things, but no one had ever seen someone come forward like this. Properly handled, such situations could be resolved smoothly. The fact that this woman had caused a scene here likely meant that Li Yibai hadn’t dealt with it well.

The president wasn’t sure how to feel at that moment. But there was clearly displeasure. Such a well-organized speech had devolved into this, and this was a prestigious university. Heartlessness wasn’t necessarily terrifying—it was a personal relationship issue, complex and hard to judge. But ingratitude—that was truly terrifying. This wasn’t merely a matter of love but a matter of character!

Jia Wenxiu couldn’t stand to stay quiet anymore. Ignoring the camera behind her, she stepped forward and pleaded pitifully, "Big sister, Yibai and I truly love each other. Since you two are divorced, why can’t you let us be together? Can’t you let us fulfill our love? You and Yibai were never compatible."

Now that Jia Wenxiu had spoken, there was no point in hiding. Li Yibai simply decided to come clean.

He looked composed as he said, "Yes, as everyone can see, this is my ex-wife, Zhang Ying. But we’ve been divorced for a long time. I come from a rural background, and my previous marriage was arranged by my parents, through an antiquated matchmaking system. I had no say in it. But once I passed the college entrance exams and began to change my life, I realized that this is a new era. We should pursue freedom of love. Our destinies should not be controlled by old-fashioned traditions and parental commands."

"I met Wenxiu in college. We share a deep connection and mutual understanding. We have so much to talk about. Life is short, and meeting a kindred spirit is rare—I hope you all can understand that feeling of finding someone who truly gets you. The reason my ex-wife and I divorced was that we had little in common, and there was a vast chasm between us. By letting go, we can both pursue our own happiness and find partners who are truly suited to us. Marriage cannot be forced; it must be compatible for it to continue."

"But even after the divorce, I am not someone who repays kindness with ingratitude. Whatever I owe, I will repay. I will also take care of my son. There is no such thing as ingratitude in this." Li Yibai did his best to speak in a conciliatory tone.

What he said sounded reasonable, and the audience couldn’t help but begin to sympathize with Li Yibai. Nowadays, people value freedom and no longer wish to be bound by feudal traditions. A man as talented as him, forced to marry a rural woman who was uneducated and unsophisticated? It really didn’t seem like they would have much in common. 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

Then when the crowd compared Jia Wenxiu and Zhang Ying—one was poised, educated, a top student and journalist; the other was dressed plainly, had harsh features, and seemed rough and uncultured. It was hard to believe that Zhang Ying and Li Yibai were ever married.

Of course, some people didn’t completely approve of Li Yibai’s actions. They murmured that a man should never abandon a wife who had endured hardships with him in their poverty; this was clearly a case of someone who could endure tough times together but refused to share wealth. Someone even compared Li Yibai to Chen Shimei.

"Bah!" Zhang Ying spat on Li Yibai, furious. "Don’t twist your disloyalty and heartlessness into some kind of pursuit of free love, and don’t dress up your superficial judgments as mutual understanding! Life isn’t about compatibility or incompatibility. Live together long enough, and you make it work! All of that doesn’t matter. What matters is this: you claim you’re not ungrateful, but that’s a total lie. Li Yibai, you are ungrateful! The money you used for school, the funds for your mother’s funeral, our wedding expenses, the debts your family owed, and your university costs—every penny came from my family! You didn’t pay a cent. Not one cent!"