Divorced at fifty, I embarked on my path to success.

Mei Yusheng paused, thought for a moment, and said, "Give the property certificate to your Aunt Xie and have her transfer it to me. I won't take the account book back until I get the money!"

"Mom! How could you do this? Do you really have to get a divorce? What good will it do you?" Yue Guangzhi's voice on the phone was exasperated. "You're satisfied with just money and a house? What about me? What about Xuanxuan? Don't you want any of that?"

Mei Yusheng felt a pang of sadness and suppressed the sob rising in her throat: "As long as you still acknowledge me as your mother, I will not lose you. However, I will no longer compromise and maintain that broken marriage for your sake."

"Mom! How can you be so selfish!" Yue Guangzhi raised his voice, his tone sharp. "You know how much a divorce will affect Dad's reputation, how much the company will suffer, and maybe even go bankrupt! Just because of you, you want to ruin our company?"

Mei Yusheng couldn't help but get angry: "What do you mean by 'because of me alone'? Just because your dad cheated on me, I should swallow my anger, pretend nothing happened, and continue to maintain a facade of harmony? You're all comfortable, but I'm the only one suffering, and that's all right? Does that mean I'm not selfish?"

"Yue Guangzhi, let me tell you, I will never again degrade myself to please you and your son!" Mei Yusheng said, tears welling up in her eyes. "You keep accusing me, but who has ever considered my feelings? Your father has been having an affair for twenty years, and you and he have been keeping it from me. You watch me toil for you every day, don't you feel any remorse?"

"Mom, why do you have to think this way?" Yue Guangzhi's tone softened. "You're so old, what do you still care about love? No matter how many women Dad has outside, it won't threaten your position. Besides, he's only had Han Caiyu all these years. So many women have done it this way, why can't you? Can't you be more realistic? As long as your position remains unchanged, and we give you enough money, if you don't want to do housework, we'll hire a housekeeper. You can do whatever you want in the future, no one will restrict you, isn't that better? Why make things lose for both of us?"

Mei Yusheng blushed deeply at her son's words, feeling both ashamed and angry: "I've long since given up on love! But in marriage and family, both husband and wife should have at least basic respect and loyalty, and both have necessary obligations and responsibilities! He betrayed me, which is torn up the marriage contract! Shouldn't I, the victim, receive the necessary compensation?"

Yue Guangzhi was speechless for a moment.

Mei Yusheng's chest heaved with anger, and Qin Chu looked at her with concern, handing her a cup of hot milk.

She took it and drank a couple of sips to calm herself down.

“Yue Guangzhi, since you don’t understand, I won’t say anything more to you. You hand over the property certificate to Xie Mingqi, and I’ll pick it up when I have time.” Mei Yusheng took a deep breath and tried to calm her voice. “Two more days. I’ll give you an account number. You transfer the money to this account, and then have your father give the divorce agreement to Xie Mingqi. I’ll sign it immediately!”

"I'll return the ledgers to you immediately after I sign the divorce papers. Don't even think about it until then!" Mei Yusheng never imagined she'd speak to her son in such a tone, and a wave of desolation washed over her. "Don't test my patience. You should know what the consequences will be if the ledgers are leaked!"

After saying that, she hung up decisively without waiting for Yue Guangzhi's reply.

"Sister, don't be angry. It's not worth it with them." Qin Chu's deep eyes were filled with anger, and her gaze was cold and sharp. "You'd better not go out. I reckon Yue Jiangting will send people everywhere to look for you."

Mei Yusheng felt a chill run down her spine. Yes, how could Yue Jiangting possibly surrender so easily? Just putting him on the defensive was enough to enrage him.

He couldn't just do nothing and wait obediently for Mei Yusheng to return; he would definitely try to find her.

“Okay, I won’t go out. But if the property certificate is with Xie Mingqi, I’ll still have to go get it.”

"Have her deliver it to Qin Zhan. I'll go get it or have Qin Zhan bring it over." Qin Chu gazed into Mei Yusheng's eyes. "Sister, don't be afraid, I'm here for you! Yuejiang Pavilion can't cause any trouble, trust me!"

“Okay,” Mei Yusheng felt relieved. She had thought she would be fighting alone, especially after Xie Mingqi’s obvious retreat yesterday. She was unsure of herself and actually a little panicked.

So when Qin Chu was willing to accompany her to the bank and help her find a house, she felt like she had grasped a straw, temporarily saving herself from drowning.

When she learned that Qin Chu was the same person as Little Stone from back then, her anxiety immediately subsided. She was very grateful, and her mood gradually calmed down, which is why she slept so well last night.

"Sister, why don't you go to my study and find a book to read? That way you won't be bored." Qin Chu cleaned up the dishes and changed into a suit. "I have some things to take care of. My phone is always on, so contact me if you need anything."

"Okay, go ahead and get busy." Mei Yusheng was a little puzzled. Besides writing every day, what else did Qin Chu have to do? Judging from his appearance, he seemed to have more official duties than Yue Jiangting and his son.

But she didn't ask any more questions, saw him to the door, and watched Cullinan's figure disappear from sight.

Mei Yusheng turned around and went back into the house. She went straight upstairs to the second floor, pushed open the door to the study, and was greeted by the fragrance of ink.

Her heart found solace in the aroma, and she randomly picked up a book from the bookshelf—Zhang Ailing's "Red Rose and White Rose"—and was momentarily stunned.

In Yue Jiangting's heart, Han Caiyu is that red rose. If one day they really get married and live a mundane life, will Han Caiyu eventually turn into a mosquito bite?

She never aspired to be a white rose; at best, she was just a long-term live-in nanny hired by Yue Jiangting.

She gave a self-deprecating smile, but lost interest in continuing. She walked to the window and gazed at the scenery outside the neighborhood.

My gaze was suddenly drawn to a clump of trees in the distance. There were actually goldenrain trees planted in this community?

Tall and lush, there are about a dozen of them, planted in the northeast corner of the community, resembling a small grove.

In late summer and early autumn, the leaves of the goldenrain tree gradually darken in color, and many small lantern-shaped flowers with three leaves embracing each other bloom.

The sound of the plum rains reminded me of the goldenrain tree in Shi Tiesheng's writing. Looking at that patch of yellow in the distance, with a few magenta mixed in, there must be little lanterns falling under the tree, right?

I didn't notice it when I came in by car yesterday, so this is quite a surprise.

Mei Yusheng's gaze lingered on the distant goldenrain trees, their green, yellow, and red hues resembling the different colors that bloom at different stages of life.

She should be in the yellow stage now, right?

Or has it already entered the red phase, where it is about to fall?

No, she's not old yet!

She hopes that when she truly grows old, she will be a vibrant, life-filled red, not a withered, sallow yellow.

Mei Yusheng put the book back on the shelf, stepped downstairs, wanting to get a closer look at the goldenrain tree and see if any small lanterns had fallen from it.

Her phone rang, and she frowned slightly. Only after seeing Xie Mingqi's name did she answer the call.

"Yusheng, Lao Yue just called me and said you should have him leave the property certificate with me and then come to pick it up?"

“Yes, that’s what I said,” Mei Yusheng replied calmly. “But I’ve changed my mind. I’ll have someone else pick it up for me. Don’t tell him.”

"Huh? This..." Xie Mingqi seemed surprised and embarrassed.

Mei Yusheng's eyes immediately turned cold.