Hong Xingwen at the old house, after a night of contemplation, had actually decided to divorce Ding Yun. He wasn't sure if his wife's depression could be cured and was worried about future trouble.
There were so many young women in the world.
And many good-looking young women too.
There was no need to hang himself on a sick, crooked tree.
However, he had taken his mother's words to heart and didn't intend to bring up divorce immediately. He planned to drag it out for another year or so, at least until his wife's condition improved. Otherwise, if she were to become agitated and do something regrettable, it would affect their family's reputation.
Then, he returned home at noon.
And received the divorce agreement sent by Ding Yun.
Good heavens, it angered him so much that he was barely able to refrain from shouting and jumping around like a monkey. He never expected his wife to get ahead of him and serve him with a divorce agreement first. This was truly a slap in the face.
He was always the one who dumped people.
No one had ever dumped him.
He was still agonizing, worrying about his wife's mood and condition, and hadn't dared to mention divorce, yet his wife had already struck first. How could he not be angry, feeling like all his kindness had been fed to dogs?
This was just his reaction upon seeing the words "divorce agreement." When he saw the contents, including both children going to Ding Yun and the division of half their assets, he became even more enraged. It wasn't that he was angry about dividing assets, as the assets he personally held were mere trifles compared to his family's wealth; the main portion was still in his father's hands, and he hadn't received any of it.
He was primarily angry that Ding Yun wanted the children.
For years, both inside and outside the circle, not a single female celebrity who married into a wealthy family had managed to take the children after a divorce.
Even if they did manage to take them.
It was likely only after the wealthy family had gone bankrupt.
Therefore, Hong Xingwen considered this a complete pipe dream. Not only would he not agree, but his father and mother would definitely not agree either. After reading the divorce agreement, he immediately called Ding Yun, wanting to argue with her and make her give up on custody.
However, he couldn't get through; Ding Yun had blocked him.
And as he was about to storm off to find Ding Yun, the email she had scheduled to send finally arrived in his inbox. He saw the notification for the new message pop up on his email client.
[The Sins and Punishments of Hong Group]
He used a personal email address that only a few close individuals knew. Coupled with the somewhat sensational title, he naturally opened it casually. He then discovered it was from his wife, a threat for child custody.
And he also saw the large attachment below.
Upon seeing this, he immediately suppressed the urge to go find Ding Yun and instead returned to his room to open his laptop and download the attachment for a closer look.
The more he read, the more cold sweat trickled down his back.
Because the evidence in the attachment was overwhelming. Not only did it contain much he was aware of, but also a lot he didn't know. Judging by the parts he knew,
the parts he didn't know were likely true as well.
At this moment, he had no idea how to respond, nor where his wife had collected all this evidence. It was too terrifying, more so than having a spy in the house. Had he married a wife or a private investigator?
...He even began to doubt his wife's true intentions for marrying him. Wasn't it to go undercover at Hong Group and collect evidence of their illegal activities?
This matter was truly frightening, and quite significant.
He dared not make a decision on his own, so the next moment he quickly grabbed his laptop and went to find his father. He pulled his father into the study, locked the door, and then showed his father the contents of the attachment.
Needless to say, his father also broke out in a cold sweat.
What followed was extreme rage:
"Damn it, damn it! What the hell did you marry? Wasn't she just staying at home peacefully? Where did she find all this evidence? Did it fall from the sky, or was it delivered to her?"
"How dare she be so bold, threatening me and demanding custody of the two children!"
For someone who had held a high position for a long time, even normal demands, as long as they went against their will, would make them angry. Much less Ding Yun presenting him with sweat-inducing evidence as a threat. This wasn't just slapping his face; it was practically walking all over him. How could he not be furious?
His explosive rage was perfectly normal.
This could also be seen as an external manifestation of his attempt to cover up his inner panic. After all, if he weren't panicking, he could have simply sneered and said, "Is that all?"
After a chaotic scene, the father and son finally calmed down a bit and began to discuss countermeasures. They mainly discussed how to deal with Ding Yun and how to investigate where this evidence came from.
And how much of it there was.
Although this evidence wasn't terrifying enough to send them to jail, it was certainly extremely detrimental to their group. The real estate industry was already on the decline, and their company had considerable debt. Once a major scandal broke out, the impact would be considerable.
A single misstep could lead to losing everything.
Therefore, in the end, father and son unanimously decided they needed to have a talk with Ding Yun. However, they didn't plan to talk immediately. Instead, they intended to thoroughly investigate the specific situation first, ideally getting a full picture of how Ding Yun obtained this evidence, and then talk with some preparation.
After all, if they went to talk to Ding Yun without knowing anything.
They would be far too passive.
...
Ding Yun didn't know what the situation was on their end. After returning home with bags full of stuff, she laid everything out for her parents. She also told them about the grievances she had suffered at the Hong family's home, including the fact that these were not voluntary pregnancies but planned pregnancies, and her prenatal and postpartum depression.
Her father, Ding Huai, and mother, Xu Aiju, initially reprimanded her a few times, saying she didn't listen to elders and brought trouble upon herself. But in the end, they couldn't help but feel sympathetic. With red eyes, they expressed their support for the divorce.
And helped Ding Yun tidy up her bedroom.
After that, her elder brother and sister-in-law learned the news and specially came from the neighboring community to visit Ding Yun.
They even asked Ding Yun if she needed a lawyer.
He knew a few good ones.
In short, Ding Yun was treated well at her parents' home. She wasn't looked down upon, and everyone supported her decision. The only major concern was the children. They all felt that Ding Yun would have a very difficult time fighting for custody of the children. Perhaps she could get custody of her daughter, but it was highly unlikely she could get custody of her son.
The Hong family would definitely not let go easily.
However, they didn't advise Ding Yun to give up. They just gave her a heads-up, telling her not to have too high expectations. A lawsuit would definitely be filed, and custody would certainly be contested, but she shouldn't expect an easy victory.
Ding Yun didn't tell them that she had the Hong family in her grasp. She just said that she wanted to try, that she didn't want the two children to have to face a stepmother in the future, and that even if she failed in the end, at least she had tried.
Everything went smoothly during her visit to her parents' home.
She didn't encounter any unpleasant or difficult relatives.
(End of this chapter)
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