Chapter 17: Whose Fault Is It?

“This photo is quite interesting. Let me try to interpret it.”

Yu Hui regained his composure and began to speak proactively. “Look, there’s a pile of dirty—or rather, old—clothes between the two of them. It clearly symbolizes the long-standing accumulation of conflicts between them. And Ye is holding a bunch of clothes in his hands; he’s still adding to the pile, throwing more clothes in, representing ongoing conflicts. There’s even a trash bin in the corner, which means those old clothes haven’t gone where they should have—they haven’t been resolved, right?”

He turned to Huang Liling for confirmation.

Before this, Huang Liling hadn’t paid much attention to Yu Hui. Perhaps his earlier remarks changed her perspective a bit. She nodded lightly, “There’s some truth to that.”

Yu Hui widened his eyes and said, “What do you mean ‘some truth’? That’s a brilliant interpretation! I’ve been good at interpreting images since I was a kid.”

A burst of laughter followed.

Yu Hui indeed had a knack for lightening the mood, and everyone was amused.

Huang Liling rolled her eyes.

Chen Linye said, “Let me explain. This issue had troubled me for a long time; it was one of the biggest conflicts between us. For at least a month afterward, I couldn’t get over it. It caused me prolonged emotional pain.”

“One day—during the day, we had no conflicts—but that night, while she was tidying the wardrobe, she said, ‘Look at this wardrobe, so big, yet after all these years, I hardly have any clothes of my own.’ This wasn’t the first time she said something like this. I wondered why she kept bringing this up, and I got a little angry. I was upset because I never stopped her from buying clothes for herself; I always hoped she’d treat herself better. But she didn’t buy them herself and kept saying she had nothing. At that time, we were about to move to a bigger house with a large wardrobe—I thought this issue should have been resolved by then.”

“After a few heated words, I started packing my clothes and shoes into bundles and carrying them downstairs, making several trips. I ended up throwing away at least half of my clothes and shoes. This photo was taken after we told the photographer about this incident. The photographer asked us, if we could go back to that moment, would we continue throwing away these clothes, or would we fold them back? The photo was taken under those circumstances.”

Lin Xiaoxian pondered for a moment, then asked Pan Yun, “I’ll ask you a question on his behalf: Do you not want to buy clothes for yourself and feel reluctant, or are you bothered by him buying a lot of clothes?”

Pan Yun crossed her arms and shook her head. “I’m definitely not bothered. He has all kinds of performances, so he needs many outfits.”

Huang Liling said, “Then why do you keep bringing this up?”

Pan Yun thought for a bit, gesturing as she answered, “Well, at that time, we had a couple of friends we were very close with. I would often see her husband constantly buying her various things. I think I was influenced by them.”

Chen Linye, who had been biting his lip with his head down, probably feeling he hadn’t explained clearly enough, added, “When we first got together, no matter where we went, I would buy her lots of things. At first, she was happy to accept them, but gradually she stopped wanting anything, as if she lost interest in material things. She would even return what I bought her, so my behavior naturally decreased over time.”

Pan Yun also added, “He did buy me things before, but sometimes I didn’t want them. Sometimes when he gave me gifts, they just didn’t touch my heart, so I would return them. He thought that I wanted things but only if they were cheap; if they were good but expensive, I wouldn’t want them. He felt I was being difficult.”

Huang Liling frowned. “Linye, I think you might have misunderstood Yun’s point. Yesterday, you said she’s extremely frugal. You attribute her behavior to that frugality, but I don’t think that’s entirely accurate. Yesterday, I stayed in the same room with Yun, and we talked a lot. I asked her about the ranking of family members in her heart. She said she puts you first, then the child’s grandparents, and finally herself.”

“That means her world revolves more around you and the child. You keep expressing your feelings, but I think you focus more on your own. You are able to concentrate on your career and your feelings because Yun has created that environment for you behind the scenes.”

Chen Linye listened seriously to Huang Liling’s words, feeling that this interpretation didn’t quite fit. He tried to clarify, “I don’t think I can fully recreate this part, nor explain it well. You’re saying she’s frugal, and I should spend on things freely, which seems fine on the surface, but psychologically, it makes me uncomfortable.”

“It’s just… I feel like I’m making the person I love suffer. I can’t stand seeing that. What am I earning money for? The person I love is growing older every day, and I’m powerless to keep her at her most beautiful when she’s young…”

Before Chen Linye could finish, Zhang Qidong interrupted, “I think you’re just not appreciating your blessings. Your understanding of happiness is too shallow. You want to feed a rabbit meat—you think you must buy her nice clothes, good cosmetics, and expensive bags. That’s how you show love. But your wife wants to save money, build up savings, and create a deep sense of security. She believes that’s the most irreplaceable happiness. You just need to understand that better, stop imposing your spending habits on her, and pay more attention to the emotional value she needs. Then you’ll be perfect and happy.”

After saying this, Zhang Qidong looked at them as if he had seen through the couple completely. Indeed, he felt he had grasped the essence of their relationship.

Because fundamentally, neither of them truly wanted a divorce—they were both caught in a cycle of misunderstanding. If he could help solve their marital issues, Zhang Qidong believed he was doing a good deed.

The atmosphere had been a bit tense due to Xu Shujian’s sharp remarks, which made Zhang Qidong uncomfortable. He wanted to change the mood, so he tried to mediate peace.

This attempt was also his way of salvaging his own image somewhat. Strictness toward his wife Lin Xiaoxian was for publicity’s sake, but outwardly, he needed to show some personal charm.

Likewise, Pan Yun and Chen Linye—Pan Yun was clearly the stronger side, while Yu Hui and Huang Liling leaned a bit toward Xu Shujian. Zhang Qidong felt he should side with Pan Yun, which was another reason he spoke up for her.

Chen Linye looked visibly uneasy; he felt Zhang Qidong had misunderstood him but lacked the courage to argue. After thinking a moment, he asked, “May I pose a question? To the three gentlemen here—can you really accept your partner being extremely frugal while you spend money freely and feel completely at ease?”

Yu Hui glanced at Huang Liling and laughed, “I can’t imagine it. I can’t fathom a wife spending less than her husband—it must be such a wonderful life.”

Laughter erupted across the room.

Pan Yun had remained serious, even a bit flushed, but Yu Hui’s joke made her laugh, and she let out a long sigh of relief.

She vaguely felt there might be something wrong with her, but everyone was speaking up for her. Zhang Qidong, as a big boss, had openly pointed to his own husband as the problem. Yu Hui, who dared to challenge anyone, even expressed envy of her husband’s situation.

So damn it, what problem could I possibly have?