[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-a-marriage-in-name-only-my-stepbrother-won-t-let":3,"chapter-a-marriage-in-name-only-my-stepbrother-won-t-let-a-marriage-in-name-only-my-stepbrother-won-t-let-chapter-155":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","A Marriage in Name Only? My Stepbrother Won't Let Me Go",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1326531,1761,"Chapter 155: Not an Abandoned Wife","a-marriage-in-name-only-my-stepbrother-won-t-let-chapter-155",155,"\u003Cp>Xue Xingyao had already brought up divorce with Chen Shujing. Besides, her loved ones had already escaped that prison.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With no more worries holding her back, there was no need to put on an act for Chen Shujing anymore.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Shujing chattered on, but Xue Xingyao didn’t even spare him a glance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She had been wounded on her back, and the injury was particularly severe.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To call it a mangled mess of flesh and blood would be an understatement.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The day Mrs. Xue was released from prison, she saw her daughter’s injuries and was so overcome with tears she nearly fainted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A wound on her child is a pain in the mother’s heart; Mrs. Xue wished she could take the pain onto herself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She was now personally brewing her daughter’s medicine and preparing her food, which had given Chen Shujing the opportunity to approach Xue Xingyao.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With the injury on her back, Xue Xingyao could only rest by lying on her stomach. The position was uncomfortable, and the wound hurt terribly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The pain drained all the color from her face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her lips were cracked and pale. One didn’t even need to see the burn under the gauze to guess how severe it was.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xue Xingyao kept her eyes closed, not responding to Chen Shujing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With or without him, the matter was already resolved. She didn’t need to argue with Chen Shujing about anything.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It would be utterly pointless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now, there was only one matter between them: divorce.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Beyond that, there was nothing to say.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She couldn’t be bothered to drive him away. For one, Chen Shujing wouldn’t leave easily.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For another, she was afraid she might tear open her wound.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Third, she truly had no strength left.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this moment, Xue Xingyao was in pain and exhausted. She just wanted to get some proper sleep and not waste her energy on a useless war of words.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She had given Chen Shujing chances, but he had proven with his actions that the Shen family’s affairs would always come before her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That would have been one thing, but to make her submit, Chen Shujing had resorted to any means necessary to crush her, leaving her isolated and helpless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’Is that any way to treat your own wife?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’That’s how you treat an enemy!’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’I’m a living, breathing person. I feel pain, sadness, and fear.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’How could I possibly just brush this off and continue being a \"loving\" couple with Chen Shujing?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’I can’t do it.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’The only path for us is divorce. There’s nothing else to discuss!’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The woman on the bed remained silent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If not for her labored breathing and the slight movements she made from the discomfort of lying on her stomach, Chen Shujing would have thought she had fainted from the pain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He knew what he had done wrong, and he was filled with regret.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’If only I had known she would use such an extreme method to save her family, I would have ordered men to guard her no matter what.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’By withdrawing my men, I not only allowed others to kick Ah Yao while she was down, but I also caused her to be so grievously wounded.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’I was truly wrong.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Shujing was filled with regret and heartache, feeling anxious and at a loss.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’Will Ah Yao forgive me?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’She probably will, right...?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since Ah Yao was ignoring him, he had to be the one to take the initiative and apologize properly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’This is my lawfully wedded wife. There’s no shame in admitting I’m wrong to her.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Shujing pressed his lips together, mentally choosing his words, terrified of upsetting Xue Xingyao.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He began cautiously, \"Ah Yao, that incident was my fault. I should have explained everything to you long before we were even engaged.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xue Xingyao frowned. Perhaps because she had truly moved on, the sound of Chen Shujing’s voice now merely irritated her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There was no longer any flutter of her heart, nor any pang of sorrow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’I don’t care about what happened between Chen Shujing and Miss Shen anymore!’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’And I don’t want to hear it!’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xue Xingyao opened her eyes and looked at the man beside her bed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was the heir to a noble house, always meticulous about his dress and bearing. But now he was unshaven and disheveled, his eyes bloodshot, completely devoid of his usual refined and dignified air.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her eyes were devoid of any emotion as she said earnestly, \"You are very irritating. Could you please leave?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her tone was just as calm, as if he were a complete stranger.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Shujing stared at her, stunned, completely unsettled by her attitude.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’She was never like this before.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’Even on the day she’d mentioned divorce, she hadn’t been this cold.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A wave of bitterness washed over his heart, along with a dull ache.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Shujing couldn’t help but wonder, if he hadn’t left that day, and especially if he hadn’t withdrawn the Chen Family’s help, would the outcome have been different?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His voice was halting. \"I didn’t mean to. I... I just...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xue Xingyao said indifferently, \"You just wanted to teach me a lesson. To make me recognize my situation—that with the Duke Mansion fallen, my fate would be miserable if I left you.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In his anger and panic that day, Chen Shujing’s clouded judgment had led him to make the wrong decision.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Looking back now, he realized just how shameless his decision had been.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xue Xingyao was his wife; he absolutely, under no circumstances, should have used such vile tactics on her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She was a daughter of the Duke Mansion, with a pride all her own. How could she ever be forced into submission like that?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His actions would only push Ah Yao further and further away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had been so terribly, utterly wrong.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Shujing was speechless. Xue Xingyao took a breath and continued, \"As you wished, I have indeed learned my lesson. If I leave you, I will be gossiped about. They will call me an abandoned wife...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You’re not!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Shujing hurriedly declared, \"I won’t divorce you. I never will!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From the day he decided to marry, he had already made up his mind that Xue Xingyao would be the only woman in his life.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had never thought of taking a concubine, let alone leaving her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Never!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The man looked distraught, as if he were the one who had suffered some great injustice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His eyes held a pleading look, and even a trace of being wronged.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xue Xingyao thought, ’What does he have to feel wronged about?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’Aren’t I the one who’s injured?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"We get a divorce, or... *I’ll* divorce *you*!\" Xue Xingyao’s tone left no room for argument.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Divorce him?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Shujing’s heart gave a violent lurch. ’Has Ah Yao’s loathing for me really reached this point?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His lips trembling, he rushed out, \"I refuse!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Ah Yao, things between us haven’t reached the point of splitting up. Xiaoxiao is gone, and Ah Ji has settled down in the barracks. I don’t have to worry about anything anymore. We can live a good life together...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Under Xue Xingyao’s frigid gaze, Chen Shujing’s voice gradually died away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was the one who had done wrong.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ultimately, he lacked the conviction to continue.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A corner of Xue Xingyao’s mouth lifted in a sneer. \"This whole affair has finally shown me how unreliable you are. Since you can’t protect me, I don’t have to hold my nose and choke down this rotten meal!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’A rotten meal?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Shujing’s already haggard face grew even paler, as if he were the one who was seriously injured.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xue Xingyao merely thought he was putting on an act.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’Again, I’m the one who’s hurt. What \"pain\" is he supposedly feeling?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Since you chose to stand against me, you should have been prepared for us to make a clean break. Chen Shujing, I’m not the coward you take me for. This marriage... I’m done with it!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Get the hell away from me, and stay away. Don’t ever let me see you again! The sight of you makes me sick!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Saying all this exhausted the last of Xue Xingyao’s strength. Her body ached, her head was spinning, and she was utterly exhausted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But once the words were out, she felt a wave of relief wash over her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even setting aside the fact she had Ah Yin to back her up, she wouldn’t take Chen Shujing back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She could endure being wronged; after all, there was more to life than romance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But she could not accept her own husband kicking her when she was down.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If it weren’t for Ah Yin and Pei Yan’s help, Chen Shujing’s actions really would have been the death of her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’How terrifying is that!’\u003C\u002Fp>",1456,"2026-06-05T19:26:55.507Z",1,"novelbin.me","ffb634241a1a98d189d33aa73c50f2dd2ea4e9762c1923b8750630495f9cdf04","a-marriage-in-name-only-my-stepbrother-won-t-let-chapter-156","a-marriage-in-name-only-my-stepbrother-won-t-let-chapter-154",175,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fa-marriage-in-name-only-my-stepbrother-won-t-let-cover.jpg"]