The Sweetness of the Seventies-Chapter 1185 - 1154: Afraid, Not Daring to Face

Back then, as soon as he finished work, he couldn’t wait to get home.

Because he had a beautiful and gentle wife and an adorable daughter waiting for him.

But what about now?

As soon as he got home, he was faced with his mother’s nagging, Yuan Hua’s silence, his daughter’s evasiveness, and his father-in-law’s sighs.

In truth, he knew everything but just didn’t want to change.

The words of He Tiantian today had panicked him, and he was worried that his marriage was really coming to an end.

He really liked Yuan Hua and loved his daughter, but he also couldn’t be unfilial to his parents.

He was caught in a dilemma!

Coach Wu passed by Zhu Zhitao’s office door and, seeing that there was still a light on, pushed the door open. He saw Zhu Zhitao smoking alone and asked, "Why aren’t you going home? It’s so late."

On seeing this, Zhu Zhitao stood up and said, "I’ll head back soon, Coach. I’m just wrapping things up here."

Seeing that Zhu Zhitao was preoccupied with worries but not talking about them, Coach Wu didn’t feel it was right to probe further. He nodded and said, "If there’s something to deal with, you better handle it quickly and get some good rest."

"Understood, Coach," Zhu Zhitao responded.

After Coach Wu had left, Zhu Zhitao slowly picked up his coat and briefcase, and got up to leave.

Since Yuan Hua had a high income, she had already bought Zhu Zhitao a car the year before last, so even when it rained outside, Zhu Zhitao didn’t need to get wet; he could just drive home.

Zhu Zhitao felt gloomy as he drove home and went straight to the study to avoid his mother’s nagging.

It was only at dinner time that Zhu Zhitao came out of the room.

At the dinner table, there were only his father and mother.

Zhu Zhitao asked, "Mom, where are Yuan Hua and Xiao Xiao? Oh, and speaking of dinner, why isn’t my father-in-law coming over to eat?"

Mother Zhu frowned, clearly displeased, and said, "Stop asking so many questions and just eat your meal."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Zhitao was unhappy. This was his home, after all. Even if his wife, child, and father-in-law didn’t come home for dinner, there had to be a reason. ’

His mother didn’t even give a proper reason, which made Zhu Zhitao feel discontent. He looked towards his father and asked, "Dad, what’s going on? It’s impossible for all three of them to go out without telling us at home."

Father Zhu felt awkward inside but didn’t have the thick skin like his wife, so he hesitantly said, "Xiao Xiao has a fever. Yuan Hua took the child to the hospital..."

Fearing for Xiao Xiao’s health, probably her grandfather had gone along with them to the hospital.

As soon as Zhu Zhitao heard this, he became furious and said, "Xiao Xiao is sick, why didn’t you tell me?"

Mother Zhu was displeased and retorted, "As soon as you came home, you locked yourself up in your study; I didn’t get a chance to tell you!"

"But I came out, didn’t I? Why didn’t you tell me then?" Zhu Zhitao said anxiously, "Never mind, do you know which hospital the child is in?"

Father Zhu and Mother Zhu both looked embarrassed; they didn’t know which hospital the child had been taken to.

They didn’t dare ask their daughter-in-law because she was so angry just now.

"Dad, mom, that’s your own granddaughter who’s sick. Even if you didn’t follow them to the hospital, that’s one thing, but you don’t even know which hospital they went to... you... you... I’m so disappointed in you," Zhu Zhitao said loudly.

Mother Zhu was not happy and snapped, "I worry myself sick over the elder, and now I have to worry about the younger one too? Do you think I’m a god with three heads and six arms..."

He didn’t have time to argue with his mother; Zhu Zhitao left without eating, grabbing his car keys and heading out the door.

It must be a few hospitals nearby, he had to search them one by one.

It was very dark outside, and Zhu Zhitao’s heart felt cold.

At the same time, he started to feel scared, afraid of seeing the disappointment in Yuan Hua’s eyes, the accusing eyes of his daughter, and the helpless expression on his father-in-law’s face.

After Zhu Zhitao left, Father Zhu felt somewhat uneasy and said, "Our son is angry!"

"What can anger do? We are still his dad and mom," Mother Zhu said. "It’s just a fever that girl has. She’ll be fine with some antipyretics. As if their child is made of gold."

Father Zhu became uneasy again and said, "Zhitao only has one child; we can’t be too excessive. After all, there’s still the daughter-in-law."

"What about it? What’s the use of earning money if you can’t produce a son?" Mother Zhu said. "Now only the second child’s son can carry on the family line for the Zhu family. If we don’t support them a bit, all these things will end up in that girl’s hands."

"Ah, you see, they often quarrel over these things. It’s already good that Yuan Hua has borne with it until now. Tone it down a bit. Didn’t you see the way Yuan Hua looked at us just now? After all, this time we didn’t take good enough care of Xiao Xiao," Father Zhu said, advising his wife not to go too far.

Mother Zhu scoffed and said with a laugh, "So what if I did? She’s a woman who has been married before, does she still want to get divorced? It’s easier for a man to find someone after a second marriage; it’s not the same for a woman, especially one with a child."

Mother Zhu’s apparent lack of concern made Father Zhu feel uneasy.

Ah, actually, even though he was displeased, he didn’t stop his wife and deep down, he also hoped that Boss’s family, which was better off financially, would help pull up the second son’s family.

Zhu Zhitao went from one hospital to another, finally finding his daughter receiving an IV in the third one.

Yuan Hua held their daughter, whispering to her softly.

The father-in-law was at the side, feeding Xiao Xiao, who had no appetite and needed coaxing.

Seeing this scene, Zhu Zhitao’s eyes started to sting, and he felt dissatisfaction towards his parents.

"Xiao Xiao, Dad is here," Zhu Zhitao hurried over, "Dad, give her to me, I’ll feed Xiao Xiao."

Seeing her dad, Xiao Xiao didn’t smile with joy like she did every other time before; instead, she turned and buried her face in her mom’s arms, ignoring her dad.

Seeing his daughter’s reaction made Zhu Zhitao feel even worse.

It felt like ever since his parents had moved in with them, Xiao Xiao had changed.

"Yuan Hua, have you eaten?" Zhu Zhitao cautiously asked. Yuan Hua’s expression made him feel nervous inside.

Yuan Hua gave a distant smile and said, "I’ve eaten. Xiao Xiao, shall grandma hold you? Mommy needs to go to the restroom for a bit."

"Okay!" Xiao Xiao nodded, then climbed onto her grandpa’s lap herself.

She was well-behaved and smart, the needle didn’t move out of place.

Zhu Zhitao wanted to stay with his wife, but Yuan Hua had already pulled him away.

"Yuan Hua, why are you pulling me out here? I want to stay with our daughter," Zhu Zhitao said, feeling somewhat guilty. To be honest, he was a bit afraid to face Yuan Hua.

Yuan Hua continued pulling Zhu Zhitao away without a word.

"Zhu Zhitao, I need to talk to you about something," Yuan Hua said, looking at him with eyes that lacked any emotion.

The arguing and grievances of the past year had eroded the love from Yuan Hua’s eyes.

Zhu Zhitao couldn’t bear to look into Yuan Hua’s eyes and quickly lowered his head.

Yuan Hua didn’t care and said slowly, "A life like this has already drained the affection between us. I don’t want Xiao Xiao to always live amidst the guilt and scolding of the elders. She is a girl. Perhaps your parents don’t value that, but she is everything to me, even more important than you, so I don’t want to wrong my child or myself. I will have the lawyer draft the divorce papers soon, and when the time comes, I hope you’ll sign them quickly."