Chapter 196 What Have You Ever Done for Them?
Nathaniel realized what was happening and stepped forward to pull Norman away. Norman, still shouting about how Aurelia should spare Chelsea and give her a chance to live, kept insisting that as a sister, she couldn't be so heartless and indifferent to her sister's life.
Every word from Norman was a blatant appeal to morality.
In his desperation to protect Chelsea, Norman had reached the point where he was willing to turn against his own daughter.
Aurelia stood there in a state of numbness, frozen in place. For a fleeting moment, she envisioned herself decades from now, her own child being treated this way by Nathaniel, and the thought was so painful it nearly took her breath away.
Norman continued to struggle, trying to lunge toward Aurelia, but Nathaniel held him back, rendering him immobile.
"Enough!" Nathaniel shouted, his voice so loud it stunned everyone present.
"I agree to the divorce, and none of you are to bother her again."
Nathaniel's resolute words left everyone in shock.
They tacitly understood that "her" referred to Aurelia.
Somehow, hearing this, Aurelia felt a sense of relief, as if a shackle had suddenly been unlocked. She could finally choose her own life. For the rest of her days, she would live an ordinary life with her babies, free from this strange entanglement.
She was liberated.
Aurelia let out a small laugh and said, "Thank you."
Nathaniel seemed to have his spirit drained from him, his pride visibly dissipating. He hadn't given in to Chelsea and Norman's threats, nor had he agreed to Aurelia's repeated pleas.
But seeing Norman blame everything on Aurelia, he felt heartbroken.
He knew that Aurelia was profoundly insecure, longing for a father's love deep down. And now, being treated so badly by Norman was all his fault. He couldn't even imagine what Norman might do to Aurelia if he didn't intervene.
He compromised.
Norman finally calmed down, his earlier anguish over nearly losing his daughter fading away. His face softened, shifting to that of a father-in-law regarding his son-in-law with a mix of fear and affection.
With a smile, he asked Nathaniel, "Mr. Heilbronn, why don't you take Chelsea and get married on the same day you finalize the divorce? Save yourself another trip."
Nathaniel's face turned extremely grim as he said, "Tomorrow at 2 PM, bring the documents."
He directed this to Aurelia.
Aurelia didn't come in vain; she got her answer. She silently repeated the time he gave and vowed not to be late.
"I will definitely be there," she said.
Nathaniel felt a tight pain in his chest, seeing her indifferent attitude.
After Aurelia left, he chased after her.
"I agree to the divorce, but I have some conditions. The agreement needs to be revised."
Aurelia kept walking while saying, "Why don't you state your conditions now? That way, if the agreement needs changes tomorrow, it won't delay the divorce."
Nathaniel took a deep breath, feeling pain from her eagerness to divorce.
"My conditions are simple. First, before the baby is born, all prenatal checkups, hospital visits, and childcare arrangements will be under my control. Second, after the babies are born, they will come with me to the Heilbronn family. You can visit them anytime. Third..."
Before he could finish, Aurelia interrupted, "Nathaniel, you're dreaming. Why should the babies I give birth to go with you to the Heilbronn family? Besides those few minutes of effort, what else have you contributed? What right do you have to make such demands?"
Nathaniel was left speechless by her retort.
After a moment, he said, "Aurelia, comparing our financial situations, the children would have a better life and education with me. Besides, I never said they couldn't acknowledge you as their mother. You can visit them anytime, even live with us if you want."
Aurelia was so infuriated by his shamelessness that she could barely speak, "Nathaniel, first of all, after the divorce, I don't want to go to the Heilbronn Estate to watch you and Chelsea flaunt your love. Secondly, I don't think the children would learn well with you. Haven't you heard the saying, 'With a stepmother comes a stepfather'? I don't think you would cherish the children I give birth to. You might even favor Chelsea's children. You already have someone calling you 'Dad,' so why fight me for the kids?"
The two argued fiercely over the custody of the children, neither willing to back down.
These babies were Aurelia's lifeline, her only family in the world. She wouldn't compromise on this.
She wouldn't allow her precious babies to suffer the same fate as she did. She wouldn't give Nathaniel the chance to be biased.
Nathaniel sensed her strong stance and, rubbing the back of his neck in frustration, took a step back and asked, "How about this: we each take one baby. That would be fair, right?"
Aurelia let out a mocking laugh. "Nathaniel, you have children, so can you leave mine alone? I don't want any of my children growing up in the Heilbronn family environment. They would be corrupted."
Given the characters of the Heilbronn family, the kids would have the best living conditions but not the right values.
She didn't want her precious babies to grow up to be like Ashley.
For the first time, Nathaniel felt her sharp tongue and realized her hatred had escalated to the whole Heilbronn family. But despite his dissatisfaction, he didn't dare say anything.
He compromised further and said, "If the children stay with you, I want to be with them 24/7."
Giving up custody, he fought for visitation rights.
Aurelia paused, turned to look at him, and let out a cold laugh. "Do you have a misunderstanding about divorce? After we divorce, you still want to live in my house 24/7? Isn't that inapproriate, Mr. Heilbronn?"
Nathaniel was repeatedly rejected. As they spoke, the taxi Aurelia had called arrived. She checked the license plate and waved to the driver.
Nathaniel watched her slender back and saw her get into the car.
After Aurelia left, he stared blankly in the direction she had gone for a long time. After a while, he called the villa, "Aurelia will be back soon. Is the seafood ready?"
After a brief exchange on the other end, he gave a few more instructions before heading back to his car.
With Zack absent, he drove himself back to the office.
The entire night, he couldn't sleep, tormented by the memory of her smile when he agreed to the divorce.
She was so indifferent, so eager to divorce him.
For the first time, he felt like a failure in life. Even if he could manage the company well, he couldn't keep his wife and children around.
His wife would rather leave with nothing than stay with him.
As a father and a husband, he felt he had failed miserably.
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