After Our Divorce, My Ex-Husband Wants to Live with Me

Shen Huanxi, a traditional Chinese painting restorer, married Lu Yanzhou to fulfill her grandfather’s dying wish. She loved him, but he never said he loved her. A year and a half into their marriage, his business partner Su Ni secretly set a trap: posting suggestive moments on social media, showing off jewelry, and leaving a self-portrait in his study until Shen Huanxi became convinced that her husband loved someone else.

Heartbroken, Shen Huanxi asked for a divorce. Lu Yanzhou was too tongue-tied to explain, and she forced him to go with her to the civil affairs bureau. On the first day of the divorce cooling-off period, he regretted it. He began pursuing her in his clumsy way: sending flowers, waiting around for her, and accompanying her to visit graves. When he noticed she was constantly sleepy and vomiting, he secretly confirmed she was pregnant, then bribed a doctor to tell her that “an abortion could leave her infertile for life.” With no choice, Shen Huanxi decided to keep the baby and was forced to sign an agreement: “We can divorce, but we have to live together until the baby is born.”

After they moved in together, Lu Yanzhou’s pursuit went from clumsy to excessive: making porridge in the early hours, staying up with her through morning sickness, and secretly learning how to restore antique paintings. Su Ni continued to cause trouble, and when Shen Huanxi’s father showed up to threaten her, he struck her so hard that she nearly miscarried. In a fit of rage, Lu Yanzhou bought out his father-in-law’s company, exposed Su Ni for who she really was, and sent her packing from his world.

The day the truth came out, Shen Huanxi asked him through tears why he hadn’t told her sooner. He said, “I thought you already knew.”

On the day of her prenatal checkup, her stepsister attacked her with scissors. Lu Yanzhou took the blow for her and was left gravely injured and unconscious. When he woke up, he said “I love you” for the first time. It wasn’t that he couldn’t say it. No one had ever taught him how.

On the day their daughter was born, Shen Huanxi posted on social media: “Restored.” He commented: “Mm.”

A tongue-tied man finally learned to say he loved her, and a woman afraid to believe in love finally believed.