My boyfriend and I each contributed 400,000 yuan toward the down payment on our home.

Behind my back, he secretly put his mother’s name on the property deed.

When I confronted him about it, he said my 400,000 yuan had been used for the renovations. Since I hadn’t contributed a single cent to the actual down payment, what right did I have to demand that my name be added to the deed?

The problem came to light just before our wedding.

One evening, while I was tidying up his briefcase, a property ownership certificate accidentally fell out.

His mother’s name was printed prominently on it.

“What the hell is this? You told me the developer was delaying the paperwork and kept telling me to wait. This is what I’ve been waiting for?”

The certificate had been issued half a month ago, right around the time I’d been repeatedly asking him about it and he’d kept brushing me off.

Lin Qing had just finished showering, water still dripping from his hair onto the floor.

He casually dried his hair with a towel as he explained, “Technically, you didn’t contribute anything toward buying the apartment. My mother paid the entire down payment. What’s wrong with putting it in her name?”

My head nearly exploded.

“What do you mean I didn’t contribute anything? What happened to the 400,000 yuan I gave you?”

He leaned wearily against the sofa, acting as though I were the one being unreasonable.

“Your 400,000 yuan went toward the renovations. If you don’t believe me, check your bank records. The interior design company charged your card directly. The money for the apartment itself was paid from my mother’s card.”

I laughed bitterly.

“We’re about to get married. We agreed to contribute to the down payment together and pay off the mortgage together. And now you’re telling me this apartment has absolutely nothing to do with me?”

“So you do remember we’re getting married?” he shot back. “Are you planning not to live here after the wedding? I’m my mother’s only son. Everything she owns will eventually belong to us anyway. Why do you have to draw such a hard line between what’s yours and what’s ours?”

I was trembling with anger.

“So I should be grateful that you’re letting me live in your mother’s house for free? What happens if we divorce someday? The 400,000 yuan my parents spent half their lives saving, plus all the mortgage payments we’ll make together after marriage, just disappear into thin air?”

His patience finally snapped. He lit a cigarette.

“You’re going too far. We’re not even married yet, and you’re already planning our divorce?”

I was so furious I could barely breathe.

I’d trusted him.

That was why, before we bought the apartment, I’d handed him my bank card so he could make the payment conveniently.

I never imagined he’d been scheming behind my back from the very beginning.

After a while, he softened his tone and tried to coax me.

“Come on, stop making such a fuss. My mom already said that after you give birth, she’ll transfer the apartment to our child. Think of it as her gift to you.”

Slap!

I struck him across the face.

His head snapped to the side. He froze for five whole seconds, clearly unable to believe I’d actually slapped him.

My voice trembled as tears spilled uncontrollably down my cheeks.

“Lin Qing, was my family’s 400,000 yuan supposed to be the entrance fee for marrying into your family? Do I only earn the right to have a stake in the home I paid half the money for after I give birth to your child?”

His voice turned cold.

“What do you want, then?”

“Give me back my 400,000 yuan.”

“Impossible. It’s already been spent on the renovations.”

That 400,000 yuan was money my family had spent nearly half a lifetime scraping together.

After eight years together, did he really think he had me trapped?

“Just go to bed. If my parents find out you’re picking a fight with me over the apartment, they’re not going to be happy—”

“The wedding is off.”

Those few quiet words instantly silenced him.

He stared at me, stunned.

“What did you just say?”

I clenched my fists, blood pounding in my head as I forced myself to keep my emotions under control.

“There’s nothing left worth continuing. You have three days to transfer the 400,000 yuan back into my account. Otherwise, you can explain everything to my lawyer.”

“Chen Nianjin!”

I grabbed my handbag and stormed out, ignoring his furious shouting behind me.

At first, everyone thought I was only joking.

A young couple had gotten into a little argument. Surely we’d make up after a few days.

My future mother-in-law even called me personally.

“Nianjin, you’re still young. Don’t be so stubborn. Once you’re married and have a child, Lin Qing will do whatever you say. Sooner or later, that apartment will be yours anyway.”

Lin Qing sent me several messages too.

“We’ve already booked the wedding banquet, and all our relatives are watching. You don’t want everyone thinking you’re making a huge scene over nothing, do you?”

Only my parents stood firmly on my side.

They even posted a public announcement on social media.

“Chen Nianjin’s wedding has officially been canceled. Thank you all for your blessings. Our family will return every wedding gift in full.”

While Lin Qing’s entire family was still lost in the delusion that they had me firmly under their thumb and could pressure me into submission with their moral grandstanding, the lawyer I’d hired knocked on their door on the third day.

Soon after, I received another call from my future mother-in-law.

The moment I answered, she launched into a furious tirade.

“You shameless little gold digger! Didn’t your parents teach you any manners? Is your family going to starve without that 400,000 yuan? If I’d known you were this dirt poor, do you think my son would’ve ever agreed to marry you?”

“Auntie, if you have anything to say, you can discuss it with my lawyer. If we can settle this privately, fine. Otherwise, I’ll see you in court.”

“Don’t try to scare me with that nonsense! I don’t have time for it! You gave us that 400,000 yuan willingly. There’s no way we’re returning it. If you know what’s good for you, come back and go through with the wedding.”

I couldn’t even be bothered to listen to the rest of her rant. I hung up.

Lin Qing was almost certainly standing beside her listening in.

After eight years together, I knew perfectly well that he was the ultimate mama’s boy.

He couldn’t even decide what clothes to wear without waiting for his mother to check the next day’s weather forecast and tell him what to put on.

When I’d complained about it in the past, he’d simply brushed me off.

“It just proves how close my family is. Once you marry into our family, you’ll understand. I guarantee you’ll be treated ten thousand times better than you are at your parents’ house.”

After finishing everything with my lawyer, I deleted every possible means of contact with his entire family.

Eight years of love had ended with us becoming enemies over this.

Sometimes, I couldn’t help wondering whether I was taking things too far.

My best friend noticed how miserable I was and dragged me out shopping.

I’d gone from being a bride-to-be to single overnight.

Standing amid the traffic and crowds of the city, I suddenly felt strangely lost.

Ever since I’d fallen in love with Lin Qing, it had been years since I’d experienced what it was like to wander around a shopping district after eight in the evening.

According to him, respectable women didn’t stay out late.

My best friend nudged me on the shoulder.

“It’s been eight years. You’ve probably forgotten what handsome men even look like, haven’t you? That Lin Qing of yours kept you under tighter control than a prison warden. He even gave you a curfew. Let’s be real—he was terrified you’d meet someone better, dump him, and run off with another man.”

I gave her a helpless smile and pulled her into a hotpot restaurant.

But I never imagined that breaking up with Lin Qing was only the opening act of the drama that followed.

Before long, relatives and friends around us were whispering that Lin Qing and I had already slept together.

There were even rumors that I’d once gotten pregnant by him and had an abortion.

Somehow, the Lin family had gotten their hands on a fake ultrasound report with my name printed clearly across it.

The ridiculous part was that Lin Qing and I had never even had sex.

I was trembling with rage.

I pulled Lin Qing’s number out of my blocked contacts and called him directly.

His voice was smug.

“Finally come to your senses? You’ve been throwing this tantrum for long enough. Even my relatives are starting to complain.”

“Are you insane?” My blood pressure shot through the roof. “Where the hell did that ultrasound report come from?”

There was a brief pause on the other end.

“What ultrasound report?”

“Lin Qing, your family forged a medical document to make it look like I was pregnant and used it to spread rumors about me. Impressive. Are you all that eager to spend some time behind bars? Fine. Don’t delete anything. I’m going to the police right now.”

“Wait! Nianjin, what the hell are you talking about?”

I had no interest in listening to his excuses.

I hung up, gathered all the evidence I had, and headed straight for the police station.

As I approached the entrance, my phone started ringing like crazy.

Lin Qing called again and again.

Standing beneath a huge banyan tree outside the station, I finally answered.

“Nianjin, I’m sorry! My mom wasn’t thinking straight. I’ve already talked to her. She knows she was wrong. Please don’t blow this up, okay? Her health isn’t good. Don’t involve the police—you’ll scare her.”

I sneered.

“Why didn’t she think about the consequences when she forged the ultrasound report? She had the guts to do it but not the guts to face the consequences?”

“I’m sorry.”

Lin Qing immediately resorted to his usual tactic of playing the victim.

“My mom only did it because she likes you so much and wanted you as her daughter-in-law. We were together for eight years. She just couldn’t handle the shock of you suddenly breaking up with me.”

Every time I’d tried to leave him in the past, Lin Qing had pulled the same stunt.

If he wasn’t hiding behind his elderly mother, he was using our years together as emotional blackmail, shamelessly clinging to me and making enough of a scene for everyone around us to watch.

It made me sick.

My lawyer had told me that recovering the money through the proper legal process would still take some time.

But I’d run out of patience.

“I’m standing right outside the police station. You have five minutes to return my money. Otherwise, I’m walking inside and reporting your mother for forging documents and defaming me. The police can deal with the rest.”

“Nianjin!”

I hung up.

I was so angry that tears welled in my eyes.

Lin Qing really did panic.

Less than three minutes later, my phone chimed with a bank notification.

The money had arrived.

His family clearly had the money all along.

They’d simply wanted to swallow mine whole.

I immediately had my lawyer draft a statement and forced the entire Lin family to post a public apology to me across their social media accounts.

From that moment on, I permanently blocked every member of the Lin family on every platform.

Then I moved away.

Two years later, a work transfer brought me back to my hometown.

In the blink of an eye, I was already twenty-seven, and my parents had begun anxiously arranging blind dates for me.

Unfortunately, things were never that simple.

I hadn’t been back for long before Lin Qing started causing trouble again.

I had no idea where he got his information, but every time I went on a blind date, he’d somehow show up at the table next to mine and find an excuse to interfere.

He ruined one date after another.

After this happened several times, my mother finally reached the end of her patience.

She pulled some strings and arranged my next blind date at an upscale, members-only restaurant.

The scandal the Lin family had caused two years earlier had already destroyed my reputation around town.

Any prospective date only needed to ask around a little before hearing the story that I’d supposedly “had an abortion” because of Lin Qing.

If it hadn’t been for my parents’ anxiety, I wouldn’t even have considered looking for a partner in this city.

This time, my blind date was named Qin Weibai.

He was a lawyer.

His career kept him so busy that he’d remained unmarried all the way to thirty.

I had a habit of arriving early, but when I opened the door to the private room, someone was already waiting inside.

He had handsome, well-proportioned features and wore glasses that gave him a mature, composed appearance.

His suit was immaculate.

My first impression was that he looked exceptionally clean and refined—the kind of face most women would find attractive.

After exchanging a few polite greetings to ease the awkwardness, I decided to get straight to the point.

“Qin Weibai, there’s something I think I should be honest with you about. I had a boyfriend before, and our breakup turned into a rather ugly mess.”

“I know.”

Qin Weibai nodded.

“The matchmaker mentioned it. Besides, the dispute back then was handled by a colleague of mine.”

That surprised me.

“You already know everything?”

“More or less.”

Qin Weibai waited until the waiter had completely left the room before adjusting his glasses.

“Miss Chen, I didn’t come here because I want to waste time casually dating. My goal is to find a marriage partner. After we marry, your name will be added to the properties. My work keeps me extremely busy, so after marriage, I’ll hand over all my salary cards for you to manage.”

“But my reputation isn’t exactly good. Don’t you want to hear what happened—”

Qin Weibai looked completely unconcerned.

“Reputation is one of the cheapest and most worthless things in the world to me. Character, family background, career, ability—any one of those matters more than so-called reputation.”

When two mature adults chose to build a life together, love was only one part of the equation.

Compatibility mattered far more.

I’d stayed beside Lin Qing through the hardest years after graduation.

What had I gotten in return?

He’d schemed to take 400,000 yuan from me, then still had the nerve to hide behind our eight-year relationship and use emotional manipulation to guilt me into staying.

Without emotional baggage clouding everything, two people could simply lay their practical circumstances on the table and discuss them honestly.

Strangely enough, that felt far more comfortable.

Qin Weibai carried himself with an effortless sense of restraint.

He always knew exactly where the boundaries were.

And I had to admitmy heart skipped a beat.

After the blind date ended, Qin Weibai drove me all the way home.

I had just picked up my bag and was about to enter the lobby of my apartment building when a figure suddenly lunged out from a blind spot behind me and to the left, grabbed me roughly, and dragged me away.

He was frighteningly strong, and I was wearing high heels, so I had almost no traction. My feet skidded helplessly across the tiled ground as he dragged me along.

He didn’t stop until he’d pulled me into a patch of bushes hidden from view.

It was Lin Qing.

“Fuck, which guy did you just hook up with this time?” His face was twisted with rage.

“Let go of me first. We can talk about whatever you want after that.”

He had clearly lost all reason. His hands clamped down so hard that it hurt.

I stared straight into Lin Qing’s eyes.

The clarity that had once been there was completely gone. All that remained was hostility, irritability, and a terrifying darkness.

“Can’t you just leave me alone? Pretend I’m trash if you want. Don’t let someone like me dirty your precious life.”

Slap!

A sharp crack rang through the air.

I froze.

The burning pain spreading across my cheek told me that Lin Qing had just slapped me.

“I’m not fucking letting you go! I wasted eight years of my youth on you. After all that time, you never even let me touch you. How the hell are you planning to compensate me?”

Lin Qing grabbed my chin and leaned in, trying to force a kiss on me.

Disgust surged through me from the depths of my bones.

I shoved against him with all my strength, but that only made him more aggressive and violent.

Terror overwhelmed me.

Just as I was desperately struggling to escape his grip, a pair of glaring headlights suddenly swept over us, forcing me to squeeze my eyes shut.

Qin Weibai calmly stepped out of the car.

His voice was ice-cold.

“Let her go.”

“She’s my girlfriend! Who the fuck are you to interfere?”

I dug my nails hard into the back of Lin Qing’s hand and shouted, “He was trying to force himself on me!”

Qin Weibai’s expression instantly darkened.

He slowly undid his cufflinks, then drove a brutal punch straight into Lin Qing’s face.

I’d never imagined that someone like Qin Weibai would ever resort to using his fists.

Caught completely off guard, Lin Qing stumbled backward several steps and finally released me.

“Are there any surveillance cameras here?” Qin Weibai asked.

I shook my head.

“No.”

Qin Weibai removed his glasses and handed them to me.

“Perfect. Then even if I beat him to death here, no one will know.”

His sleeves were rolled all the way to his elbows, revealing an unexpectedly striking tattoo along his arm.

Even Lin Qing froze.

A flicker of panic appeared in his eyes.

“Who… who the hell are you?”

“Why don’t you guess?”

Qin Weibai slowly advanced toward him.

“Don’t you know which kind of people pay the most attention to surveillance cameras?”

Lin Qing’s face went deathly pale.

He staggered backward several steps before scrambling through the bushes and fleeing through the rear exit.

Even as he ran, he didn’t forget to throw out a threat that he wasn’t going to let this go.

Everything that had just happened felt like some suffocating nightmare.

My back was soaked in cold sweat. When the night wind swept over me, I started trembling uncontrollably.

Qin Weibai came back and carefully looked me over.

“Good thing I hadn’t driven away yet. Was that your ex-boyfriend?”

I nodded.

My gaze fell on the tattoo on his arm, and I forced a smile.

“With that aura of yours, anyone who didn’t know better would think you were some big-shot gangster with connections on both sides of the law.”

He took his glasses back from me and put them on.

“Criminal suspects aren’t the only people who pay close attention to surveillance cameras. Lawyers are extremely sensitive to them too.”

His joke made me laugh, but the movement tugged at the wound at the corner of my mouth and made me wince.

Lin Qing had split my lip.

Qin Weibai glanced at me.

“Come on. I’ll walk you upstairs. Make sure you treat that wound properly when you get home.”

“Okay.”

Two days passed after my blind date with Qin Weibai.

We’d added each other on WeChat, but neither of us had sent so much as a single message.

Most likely, Lin Qing had completely ruined this one too.

The day after the incident, I ordered several surveillance cameras to install outside my apartment.

I also went to the property management office and reported the blind spots created by the landscaping around the building.

Management responded positively and promised to install additional cameras.

However, purchasing and installing the equipment would take several days. In the meantime, they advised me to have a family member accompany me home at night.

I wasn’t even in the mood to feel disappointed about Qin Weibai.

I went to work as usual and submitted a request to my boss for another transfer to a branch outside the province.

My boss blew gently across the tea leaves floating in his cup.

“Little Chen, you just transferred back from another province. You need to settle down, establish yourself here, and produce some results first. Stop thinking about running off somewhere else all the time, understand?”

That was probably the lowest my mood had been in a long time.

I barely managed to eat anything at lunch.

When my coworkers invited me out for dinner that evening, I turned them down immediately.

The moment I stepped out of the office building, my phone rang.

It was Qin Weibai.

“Miss Chen, are you free for dinner tonight?”

The night breeze brushed past me.

Neon lights flickered along the street while the noise of the city cut through the darkness.

For just a moment, it felt as though some invisible barrier between me and the rest of the world had shattered, pulling me back into the bustling rhythm of ordinary life.

I hadn’t been deliberately waiting for his call.

Yet the instant I heard Qin Weibai’s voice, warmth unexpectedly spread through my chest.

So there was still someone in this world willing to approach me.

“Sure. What do you want to eat? It’s my treat this time.”

I tucked a windblown strand of hair behind my ear, unable to stop the corners of my lips from curving upward.

“Hotpot.”

Something lively and relaxing would be perfect for relieving stress.

I hesitated for a moment, then pulled a compact of waterproof setting powder from my handbag and lightly touched up my face.

That was when Qin Weibai’s voice came through my earphones.

“I’m standing across the street from your office. Is that you over there?”

Powder puff still in hand, I awkwardly looked across the road.

The familiar license plate immediately came into view.

“What a coincidence…”

Qin Weibai smiled faintly and ended the call.

Pretending to be perfectly calm, I crossed the street and climbed into the passenger seat.

The first thing Qin Weibai said was:

“The law firm has been extremely busy these past few days, so I haven’t had a chance to contact you. I managed to make some time to go home and inventory all my personal assets. Everything is listed here.”

I’d thought this was just going to be a casual dinner.

I hadn’t expected Qin Weibai to arrive ready for what sounded like a formal negotiation.

“Is something wrong?”

His sudden concern snapped me back to my senses. I shook my head.

“Do lawyers really have to turn even their meals and free time into work?”

Qin Weibai seemed to realize what he was doing and apologized.

“I’m sorry. Occupational habit.”

“Oh, right. I almost forgot to ask. Do you want us to notarize our premarital assets?”

“There’s no need. I don’t have any outstanding debts either.”

His answer was decisive.

He started the car and merged into the stream of traffic.

The window was half open, and a soft Cantonese love song played inside the car.

Resting my chin on my hand, I gazed out the window.

Suddenly, I thought that a peaceful life like this might not be so bad.

Qin Weibai was busy building his career, while my own job happened to give me enough flexibility to take care of a household.

We complemented each other.

Maybe that was already enough.

“I don’t have anything against marriage,” I said. “And I like children.”

Skipping the entire dating phase and jumping straight into marriage felt strangely surreal.

Without passionate, all-consuming love, perhaps there also wouldn’t be exhausting fights, jealousy, resentment, and all the tangled emotions that came with it.

Marriage would simply become the bond tying the two of us together as we worked side by side to build our future.

Qin Weibai smiled faintly.

“My schedule next month is relatively open.”

And just like that, Qin Weibai and I decided on a flash marriage.

When my best friend received our wedding invitation, she was so shocked her jaw practically hit the floor.

Back when Lin Qing and I had been preparing to marry, discussions between our families had rarely gone smoothly.

They’d argued until they were red in the face over the smallest details, and my mother had gotten so angry on several occasions that she’d lost her appetite entirely.

None of that happened while Qin Weibai and I were preparing for our wedding.

The first time his parents met me, they handed me an enormous red envelope.

Later, the betrothal gifts were prepared according to the highest local standard.

Because the weather at the end of August was unbearably hot, we postponed the wedding banquet until September.

Qin Weibai and I went ahead and registered our marriage first.

I didn’t have much luggage.

After packing a few things, I officially moved into Qin Weibai’s apartment.

It was located right in the city center, making his commute extremely convenient.

I, on the other hand, had to ride the subway for several stops.

On our wedding night, Mr. Qin sat on the sofa and calmly pulled out two property deeds.

I nearly jumped.

“We just got married and you’re already planning for us to live separately? Don’t tell me… there’s someone else you like?”

Or maybe…

He liked men?

Mr. Qin was silent for a long moment before replying in utter exasperation.

“One apartment is near your company, but it’s a little small. The other is a villa outside the Fifth Ring Road. Your parents can move there and live with us if you’d like.”

My temple started twitching.

“You… don’t have some strange fetish or something, do you?”

Mr. Qin stared at me with a face full of question marks.

“With your qualifications, you could choose practically anyone. Why would you need to do charity work by rescuing me?”

Mr. Qin neither confirmed nor denied anything.

He simply pushed the two property deeds toward me.

“I don’t have time to manage my assets, so I’ll have to trouble my wife with that from now on. And if I really can choose anyone, why can’t that person be you?”

That rendered me speechless.

It sounded reasonable.

Well…

Sort of.

By the time I’d recovered, Mr. Qin had already gone into the bedroom.

A short while later, the sound of running water came from inside.

That was when another extremely serious problem suddenly occurred to me.

Tonight was our wedding night.

So…

What were we supposed to do about the whole husband-and-wife bedroom situation?

The apartment had two bathrooms.

I immediately went to shower, wrapped myself up so thoroughly I looked like a ninja, then sat stiffly on the sofa pretending to watch television while drinking water.

When Qin Weibai came out, a drama about a single man and woman living under the same roof was playing on the screen.

He wore a bathrobe, and the fresh scent of mint body wash filled the air.

I’d never lived with a man before.

He sat down beside me to watch television.

Whenever either of us lifted our glass, our arms would occasionally brush against each other.

Those few centimeters between us somehow felt scorching hot.

It was the first time since I’d met him that the atmosphere between us had become this awkward.

I carefully controlled my breathing and waited patiently for him to go to the bedroom first.

I stubbornly stayed glued to the television until eleven-thirty at night.

Finally, Qin Weibai spoke.

“Aren’t you sleepy?”

“A little.”

I held my breath and pressed my lips together before sneaking a glance at him.

Only to discover that he was already looking at me.

There was absolutely nothing innocent about that gaze.

Between two adults, sometimes a single exchanged glance was enough to understand everything.

I forced myself to meet his eyes.

“Which room am I sleeping in?”

“The master bedroom.”

Qin Weibai seemed to find my question rather strange.

He switched off the television and stood up.

“You go ahead. I’ll turn off the lights.”

“Okay.”

There probably wasn’t another newlywed couple on Earth more awkward than Qin Weibai and me.

I practically walked like a malfunctioning robot into the bedroom.

I didn’t even turn on the light.

Instead, I fumbled my way through the darkness, climbed onto the bed, crawled beneath the covers, and curled into a ball while waiting for Qin Weibai.

The living room lights went out.

The apartment sank into silent darkness.

I could clearly hear Qin Weibai’s footsteps approaching.

He eventually circled around the foot of the bed to the other side.

There was a faint rustling sound.

He was taking off his bathrobe.

My heart immediately began pounding with nervousness.

What if Qin Weibai wanted to…

do that?

After all, I didn’t exactly have a reasonable excuse to refuse him.

The mattress dipped slightly.

Qin Weibai lay down.

Although we still kept some distance between us, I could clearly feel the warmth radiating from his body.

Suddenly, a hand landed on my shoulder.

His slightly rough fingertips accidentally brushed across my skin before stopping at the edge of the blanket.

I shuddered.

My entire body instantly went taut.

Should I take the initiative and hold his hand?

Well…

I’d already come this far.

Might as well go through with it.

I gently placed my hand over the back of Qin Weibai’s.

Then I froze, having absolutely no idea what I was supposed to do next.

To my surprise, Qin Weibai let out a low chuckle.

He pulled the blanket higher around me.

“The air conditioner is cold. Keep yourself covered properly or you’ll catch a cold.”

Then he gently took my wrist and tucked my hand back beneath the blanket.

My face burned like a furnace.

I wanted the earth to swallow me whole.

This was probably the worst part of a flash marriage.

Our relationship was stuck in that painfully polite newlywed stage where we treated each other like honored guests and couldn’t seem to move even a single step closer.

Qin Weibai behaved like a complete gentleman.

After tucking me in, it wasn’t long before I heard his steady breathing beside me.

He’d fallen asleep…

I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

I couldn’t tell whether I felt relieved or…

slightly disappointed.

My husband was lying right beside me, yet he’d simply fallen asleep on our wedding night.

Something about that didn’t seem quite right.

Still, the invisible pressure weighing on me vanished.

I relaxed and gradually drifted off to sleep.

The alarm rang on time the next morning.

Still half asleep, I shifted slightly—

only to discover that I was wrapped around Qin Weibai like a koala clinging to a tree.

The alarm had clearly woken him too.

He opened his eyes and found my face only inches from his.

For once, he looked genuinely startled.

Then I suddenly realized something felt very wrong.

My face turned scarlet.

I hurriedly pulled my arms and legs away from him.

“Good morning!”

“Morning.”

Unlike me, Qin Weibai remained perfectly calm.

He rubbed his face and sat up.

The blanket slid down, revealing his firm, bare chest.

So…

he’d slept without a shirt.

No wonder everything I’d been touching just now had felt so nice and firm…

I switched off the alarm and practically fled from the bedroom, rushing into the second bathroom to wash my face and brush my teeth.

Even after I’d gotten completely dressed, my face still hadn’t cooled down.

When I turned around, Qin Weibai emerged from the bedroom in a perfectly tailored suit, casually adjusting his tie.

“There’s a breakfast place downstairs. We’ll eat there, then I’ll drive you to work.”

“Oh. Okay, thank you—”

Qin Weibai paused while putting on his shoes.

He turned and looked deeply into my eyes.

“You don’t need to be so polite with me.”

I nodded.

Then I heard him add:

“After all, we’ve already slept under the same blanket.”

Thank God I wasn’t drinking anything.

Otherwise, I would’ve choked to death on the spot.

Could someone please explain this to me?

How did one night’s sleep suddenly change his personality?

Since when had he learned to tease people like this?

Still, thanks to that single joke, the awkward atmosphere of the morning disappeared.

Sitting in the breakfast shop downstairs, I was in such a good mood that I became much more talkative.

“I’ll stop by the supermarket after work today. Starting tomorrow, I’ll take care of breakfast.”

“Will you have enough time?”

Qin Weibai ordered a bowl of savory tofu pudding for me and placed it in front of me.

“Of course.”

I accepted the spoon with a bright smile.

“As long as you’re responsible for driving me to work, I’ll have plenty of time.”

Qin Weibai smiled.

“Deal.”

When I stepped into the company elevator, I ran into several coworkers from my department.

They immediately greeted me enthusiastically.

“Little Chen, you’re looking radiant today. Got some good news?”

I raised my hand slightly, showing them the diamond ring on my finger.

“I got married.”

The entire office erupted.

Everyone crowded around to congratulate me, gossiping from the elevator all the way to our desks.

They insisted on seeing pictures of Qin Weibai.

Not only did they want to see what he looked like now, they even demanded childhood photos.

Sister Song, who sat beside me, offered some heartfelt advice with the air of an experienced woman.

“Childhood photos are mandatory! That’s how you check the genes and figure out what your future kids might look like!”

With everyone relentlessly teasing me, I had no choice but to send Qin Weibai a message on WeChat.

“I want to see a photo of you from elementary school.”

For good measure, I attached a happy-kitten meme.

I knew perfectly well that Qin Weibai rarely checked his WeChat messages.

I’d planned to casually explain everything when we got home that evening.

To my surprise, he replied with a photograph only a few minutes later.

“Class 7A3 group photo, XX City Experimental Middle School.”

“I don’t have any elementary school photos. This is the earliest one I have.”

How embarrassing!

Wasn’t this man supposed to be the type who never checked his phone?

I quickly replied with a short:

“Okay!”

Then I tapped the picture and enlarged it.

His features in middle school were somewhat different from his handsome adult appearance.

I stared at the crowd for quite a while before finally identifying someone who vaguely looked like Qin Weibai, though I still wasn’t completely sure.

My coworkers gathered around and unanimously agreed that he’d been handsome even back then.

I was about to put my phone away when my eyes suddenly landed on one corner of the photograph.

If I wasn’t seeing things…

the boy standing right beside Qin Weibai was Lin Qing.

Lin Qing even had an arm casually slung around Qin Weibai’s shoulders.

They certainly didn’t look like mere acquaintances.

Were these two actually middle school classmates?

A terrible sense of unease suddenly washed over me.

Qin Weibai had been so determined to marry me so quickly.

Could it be…

that he’d married me as part of some elaborate plan to get revenge for Lin Qing?

That ridiculous thought left me restless for the entire day.

By evening, Qin Weibai’s car was waiting downstairs right on time.

My thoughts were a tangled mess.

Even climbing into the car felt unusually difficult.

“Did your boss chew you out?”

Qin Weibai immediately noticed my gloomy expression.

I shook my head.

After agonizing over it for a while, I finally pulled up the photograph on my phone.

“Is this person you?”

“Good eye.”

I moved my finger to Lin Qing.

“Then is this guy one of your close friends?”

Qin Weibai was fastening his seat belt.

He glanced at the picture indifferently.

“I suppose so. I don’t even remember his name anymore. We haven’t been in touch for years.”

They clearly knew each other.

Yet he sounded so casual about it that I couldn’t help wondering whether he was deliberately pretending in front of me.

For the rest of the drive, I didn’t bring up the subject again.

I only made random small talk with Qin Weibai.

Just as we were nearing home, Qin Weibai received a phone call.

Since he was driving, he asked me to put it on speaker for him.

“Class Monitor? We’re having a class reunion next week. Are you coming?”

Qin Weibai looked at me and raised an eyebrow before quietly asking:

“Middle school classmates?”

“Yes.”

I silently mouthed the words:

“I want to go with you.”

If Lin Qing and Qin Weibai really did have some secret connection, there was no way they could hide every clue at a reunion.

Qin Weibai immediately understood.

He asked the caller:

“Can I bring a family member?”

“Class Monitor, you’re married?”

“That’s right.”

“Of course you can!”

After ending the call, Qin Weibai turned toward me.

“You seem unusually interested in my middle school days today.”

I forced a smile.

My reflection in the mirror looked awful.

“I just discovered that you were pretty handsome when you were younger too.”

“Is that so…”

Qin Weibai replied casually as he expertly steered the car through the busy traffic.

Qin Weibai’s middle school reunion was scheduled at an all-night entertainment complex outside the Third Ring Road.

The place was huge but sparsely populated, and the surrounding area was unusually quiet.

By five in the afternoon, the VIP room was already packed.

Qin Weibai had to finish dealing with a pile of documents at the law firm before rushing over.

He carried a leather briefcase in his left hand while his right hand was firmly intertwined with mine.

The moment we pushed open the door, every pair of eyes in the room turned toward us.

I’d been anxious the entire way there.

As soon as we entered, my gaze immediately swept through the crowd in search of Lin Qing.

Thankfully, he wasn’t there…

But that did nothing to ease my uneasiness.

I stood there distractedly while Qin Weibai exchanged greetings with everyone around us, nervously twisting my fingers together.

Then, as we rounded a corner, another row of banquet tables suddenly came into view.

I immediately spotted a painfully familiar figure sitting near the entrance.

Lin Qing.

Someone beside him patted his shoulder, prompting him to turn around.

The smile on his face instantly froze.

His eyes went blank before slowly drifting downward and locking onto the wedding ring on my finger.

At that moment, panic made me instinctively tighten my grip on Qin Weibai’s hand.

He gently patted my hand in reassurance before calmly introducing me to everyone.

“Everyone, this is my wife, Chen Nianjin.”

Applause and congratulations erupted around the room.

Lin Qing’s expression changed spectacularly.

He abruptly stood up and, under everyone’s curious gaze, strode toward us.

“Hey, buddy. You look kind of familiar. You’re…”

The room instantly fell silent.

My heart pounded violently as I carefully watched both Lin Qing and Qin Weibai for their reactions.

Qin Weibai paused briefly and turned to look at me.

Our eyes met.

My throat went dry.

“So… it turns out you two really were classmates…”

Qin Weibai’s expression remained perfectly calm.

He turned toward Lin Qing.

“So the man from that night was you. Sorry, it was too dark that night. I didn’t recognize you.”

His words instantly lifted the enormous weight from my chest.

I could finally breathe again.

Qin Weibai and Lin Qing really had only been middle school classmates.

Thank God.

He hadn’t approached me and rushed into marriage just to get revenge on Lin Qing’s behalf.

The man who’d led us into the room looked confused.

“Wait, what? You two have already had some kind of run-in before?”

Qin Weibai didn’t bother explaining.

He adjusted his glasses and extended his hand.

“Hello, everyone. I’m your former class monitor, and this is my wife, Chen Nianjin.”

“We know you’re married, Class Monitor! Why are you introducing your wife twice?”

Qin Weibai completely ignored their teasing and patiently waited for Lin Qing to shake his hand.

Their gazes collided in midair.

The atmosphere was so tense that sparks might as well have been flying between them.

After a brief, awkward silence, Lin Qing finally extended his hand.

He squeezed Qin Weibai’s hand so hard that his knuckles turned white.

“Hello, Class Monitor.”

Middle school reunions like this were rarely just about reminiscing over childhood memories.

For those who’d remained in the city, they were mostly opportunities to expand their professional networks.

So even if everyone had long since forgotten one another’s full names, it didn’t stop them from acting warm and enthusiastic.

With Qin Weibai’s impressive credentials as a lawyer, he naturally became one of the main focuses of the gathering.

Whenever someone came over to toast him, he always made sure to include me in the conversation.

When someone tried to pour me a drink, Qin Weibai covered my glass with his hand and smiled apologetically.

“Sorry, everyone. My wife is responsible for driving her husband home tonight, so she can’t drink.”

Maybe I was imagining things, but tonight…

Qin Weibai seemed unusually affectionate.

That included, but was certainly not limited to, secretly holding my hand beneath the table, constantly piling food into my bowl, drinking on my behalf, and even leaning close to whisper in my ear.

“Are you full?”

“Don’t eat too much cold food.”

“Leave that alone. I’ll peel the shrimp for you.”

Sitting across from us, Lin Qing’s face grew darker and darker.

“Class Monitor… did you two just get married?”

“That’s right.”

Lin Qing curled his lips disdainfully.

“Must’ve been a flash marriage, right? You haven’t even had enough time to understand each other’s true personalities. Newlyweds are always sickeningly sweet at first. Just wait until you’ve lived together long enough to see each other’s true colors. Then who knows what’ll happen?”

“Lin Qing, why do you sound so jealous?”

A petite woman sitting nearby laughed mockingly.

“You’re not exactly young anymore. How come you’re still single?”

Lin Qing’s face darkened.

He shot me a resentful glare.

“My ex? She cheated on me and ran off with another man.”

The surrounding atmosphere instantly froze.

Qin Weibai paused.

Then, as though nothing had happened, he calmly continued peeling shrimp for me.

I regretted coming here so much that my stomach twisted.

Qin Weibai had been perfectly fine until I’d dragged him into this ridiculous reunion and forced him to endure Lin Qing’s jealous sarcasm.

No matter how I looked at it, this was my fault.

I leaned toward Qin Weibai and whispered:

“I want to go home.”

Qin Weibai nodded.

He called for a waiter, wiped his hands clean with a hot towel, then stood.

“Sorry, everyone. Something urgent came up, so we’ll be leaving early.”

Lin Qing tried to stand as well, clearly intending to cause more trouble, but several classmates dragged him back down and forced him to keep drinking.

Qin Weibai didn’t say a single word on the drive home.

The silence inside the car was suffocating.

I sat behind the wheel feeling as though I were sitting on a bed of nails.

I had no idea how to explain myself, so I could only force myself to concentrate on driving.

The moment we got home, Qin Weibai left me in the living room and went straight into the bathroom.

I washed up in the second bathroom, climbed into bed, pulled the blanket over myself, and sighed.

I’d thought that after getting married, we’d simply live a peaceful life without interfering too much in each other’s affairs.

Who would’ve thought we’d already run into trouble after only a few days?

I wasn’t exactly inexperienced when it came to coaxing a boyfriend.

But our current relationship hadn’t reached that level of intimacy yet.

Wouldn’t it be horribly awkward if I suddenly tried to coax him?

The bathroom door opened.

The familiar scent of mint immediately filled the dim room.

I squeezed my eyes shut and pretended to be asleep.

I heard his footsteps approach the bed.

Then the mattress dipped slightly.

He sat there without moving for a long time.

I secretly cracked one eye open.

Qin Weibai was sitting there with his head lowered, silently staring at me.

Caught red-handed, I coughed awkwardly.

“You… you’re still awake?”

“Mm.”

His voice was completely even.

A moment later, he lifted the blanket and lay down.

As always, he politely kept to his half of the bed, maintaining a perfectly proper distance without crossing even an inch into my territory.

For some reason, that made me feel strangely upset.

I reached out and took Qin Weibai’s hand.

“I’m sorry.”

He remained completely still, as though he’d already been asleep for hours.

I didn’t care whether he was listening.

I simply continued mumbling.

“I honestly had no idea you and Lin Qing used to be classmates. I was just afraid the two of you might secretly be working together to manipulate me or trick me. Because ever since we got married, the way you’ve treated me hasn’t felt like how a normal married couple would act—”

Qin Weibai suddenly rolled over and moved above me, bracing his arms on either side of my pillow.

The faint scent of mint became even more intoxicating when mixed with the warmth of his body.

Our faces were so close that all I had to do was lift my head slightly and my lips would brush against his chin and throat.

“Why didn’t you say anything?” Qin Weibai asked.

A tingling sensation traveled from my ears all the way down my spine.

My entire body instantly heated up.

He wasn’t wearing a bathrobe.

Our bare skin brushed directly against each other.

“S-say what?”

My voice was barely louder than a mosquito.

“Tell me to take the initiative.”

Qin Weibai’s hand settled firmly around my waist.

“You’re my wife. I have absolutely no objection to fulfilling my duties as your husband in bed. All you have to do is ask, and I’ll gladly oblige.”

So all this time…

he’d simply been waiting to see how I felt.

My awkwardness that first night had apparently given him the mistaken impression that I was nervous or afraid of him.

I turned my face away, too embarrassed to meet those deep eyes.

“Then… you should get on with fulfilling those duties…”

Before I could finish, Qin Weibai lowered his head and sealed my lips with a fierce kiss.

A crescent moon shone through the bedroom window.

Its pale silver light fell across his still-damp hair, making the droplets of water glimmer as everything else disappeared into the heat of the moment.

The invisible wall of awkwardness that had always stood between us vanished along with the bedsheets being hopelessly crumpled beneath us.

“You went to see that troublesome ex-boyfriend of yours tonight.”

Qin Weibai raised an eyebrow, his expression carrying the same intimidating pressure he had when negotiating in court.

“I didn’t like it at all.”

“I’m sorry…”

“Apology rejected.”

Qin Weibai pinned my hands down, the heat of his body surrounding me.

“I demand compensation for emotional distress.”

Reality proved one undeniable truth:

Never underestimate a man’s capacity for jealousy.

“But… don’t you have work tomorrow?”

“I’m a night owl.”

“You’re already thirty. Can your body really handle staying up all night?”

Qin Weibai gave a low laugh.

“Wife, tonight I’ll personally prove whether or not I can handle it.”

Men really were absurdly competitive creatures.

The moment their abilities were questioned, they’d throw everything they had into proving themselves.

The next morning, I had no choice but to call my company and ask for the day off.

“Little Chen, did you catch the flu? Why does your voice sound so hoarse?”

My boss sounded genuinely concerned.

My face burned with embarrassment and irritation.

I glared at Qin Weibai, who was calmly tying his necktie across the room.

“Yes… that’s right, Boss. I feel completely exhausted today. I can barely get out of bed…”

“Then make sure you take your medicine.”

After I ended the call, Qin Weibai teased me from across the room.

“You lie remarkably smoothly without even blinking.”

After one extremely eventful night, every trace of awkward politeness between us had disappeared.

I glared at him, pulled the blanket over myself, and sank back into bed.

“Go to work. I’m going back to sleep.”

“Oh… what do you want for lunch?”

“Didn’t you say you’re usually too busy to come home at noon?”

“We’re newlyweds. How could I possibly leave my wife home all alone?”

Fully dressed in his immaculate suit, Qin Weibai walked to the bedside and leaned over me.

“The law firm isn’t too busy today. I can come home for lunch.”

“I want pan-fried buns.”

“Approved.”

Married life turned out to be nowhere near as terrible as I’d once imagined.

I should’ve been able to sleep peacefully until noon.

Unfortunately, my phone rang halfway through my nap.

It was my mother.

“Nianjin, does that Lin Qing boy still not know you’re married?”

I immediately became alert.

“What happened, Mom?”

“He just showed up at our house carrying a whole pile of gifts. He says he came to visit your father and me.”

That woke me up completely.

I hurriedly grabbed some clothes and threw them on.

“Mom, stay calm. Don’t argue with him. There’s no point exhausting yourself. I’m driving over right now!”

Lin Qing clearly knew that I was officially married.

Yet he still had the nerve to harass my parents.

Had he completely lost his mind?

What the hell was he trying to pull this time?

I floored the accelerator and rushed back to my parents’ home.

The moment I pushed open the door, I saw Lin Qing sitting comfortably in the middle of the living room.

I’d opened the door so violently that the impact knocked a framed family photo from the wall.

The glass shattered across the floor.

I didn’t even bother changing my shoes.

I marched over, grabbed Lin Qing by the arm, and dragged him outside.

“Nianjin, I couldn’t contact you. I had no choice but to come here and ask your parents.”

The moment I’d dragged him into the stairwell, I spun around and shoved him hard against the wall.

“What the hell are you trying to do?”

Lin Qing’s expression was complicated.

After standing there for a while, he cautiously reached for my hand.

“I’m sorry. I know I was wrong. Can you stop being angry with me?”

“Lin Qing, are you seriously delusional enough to think this is just some petty lovers’ quarrel? I’m married! Whatever relationship we had ended two years ago!”

“Didn’t you only rush into marrying Qin Weibai because you’re greedy for his money? We were together for eight years!”

I sneered.

Two years had passed, yet Lin Qing still hadn’t understood why I’d left him.

Because he’d never shown me even the most basic respect.

When I was with him, I wasn’t allowed to go shopping after his ridiculous curfew.

I wasn’t allowed to go out at night with my girlfriends.

Whenever he wanted to see me, I had to show up immediately.

I was expected to cater to him and make sure he looked good in front of his friends.

Even when we went out to eat, I was always the one who reached for my wallet and paid.

As for his salary?

He claimed he needed to save it to buy a home and prepare the betrothal gifts for our marriage.

There had been countless small things like that.

Each one sounded too trivial to complain about without seeming petty.

But swallowing all that resentment year after year had been suffocating.

I slapped Lin Qing’s hand away.

“If you have any sense, get the hell out of here. I’ve had surveillance cameras installed all around this area. If you come here to harass us again, I’m calling the police.”

Lin Qing stared at me in disbelief.

His lips twitched.

Then he suddenly flung open the stairwell door and shouted at the top of his lungs so everyone nearby could hear.

“You gold-digging bitch! You threw away your boyfriend of eight years just so you could marry into money! You’re fucking shameless!”

Click.

I heard the door of the apartment upstairs open.

Afraid he’d keep screaming and humiliate my parents in front of the neighbors, I shoved him farther away from the hallway and lowered my voice.

“That’s right. I dumped you because you’re broke. I married a rich man because I wanted his money. Happy now? You’ve insulted me enough, and I’ve accepted every word. Now can you finally get the hell out of here?”

Lin Qing suddenly grabbed my collar.

Then he stared at something behind me and shouted:

“Did you hear that? This woman married you for your money! She’s not a good woman at all! If you’re smart, divorce her while you still can!”

I immediately realized Qin Weibai was standing behind me.

Lin Qing wasn’t merely trying to destroy my reputation.

He was trying to destroy my marriage too.

All the rage I’d suppressed for so long finally exploded.

I raised my hand and slapped him across the face with all my strength.

Hard.

So hard that Lin Qing froze for several seconds before stumbling sideways into the wall.

“I’ve finally figured it out.”

I raised my phone and pulled up the photograph of the fake ultrasound report from two years ago.

“If you ever come here and harass my family again, I’ll release every piece of evidence online and let the internet deal with you. I know shameless people like your family don’t care about a few days of administrative detention. So tell your precious mother to prepare herself for thousands of calls from angry netizens.”

Uncertainty flickered across Lin Qing’s face.

Still, he stubbornly tried to provoke me.

“Go ahead. Make it public. Then everyone will know you slept with me too. As long as Qin Weibai doesn’t mind being cuckolded, I couldn’t care less.”

He deliberately looked behind me.

I gritted my teeth and pretended Qin Weibai wasn’t there.

Everything had become such an ugly mess.

He’d probably seen my true colors now.

A woman endlessly entangled with her awful ex-boyfriend, turning into a foul-mouthed shrew whenever she lost her temper.

How ridiculous.

“If Nianjin wants to do that, I certainly have no objections.”

My entire body froze.

A warm hand suddenly wrapped securely around my waist.

At the same time, Qin Weibai stepped forward and stood beside me.

At that moment, all the frustration and humiliation I’d suppressed for so long finally found somewhere safe to escape.

Tears spilled from my eyes before I could stop them.

I looked up at Qin Weibai’s profile.

There was a faint scent of cigarette smoke clinging to him.

One hand rested casually in his trouser pocket, and his tie sat slightly crooked around his collar.

“Anything else, buddy?”

Qin Weibai looked at Lin Qing.

“Or did you miss the beating I gave you last time? Do you need a few more punches today before you’ll feel satisfied?”

Every now and then, Qin Weibai gave off a faintly dangerous aura.

When he needed to be refined, he looked every inch the cultured gentleman.

When he needed to act like a thug…

he was surprisingly convincing at that too.

With all those laws and legal codes stored in his head, could he possibly be the type to knowingly break the law?

The thought immediately straightened my spine.

I boldly raised my chin and backed up my husband.

“If my husband beats you up, every single punch will carefully avoid your vital areas. You wouldn’t stand a chance even if you tried to sue him. So watch yourself from now on! Every time we see you, you’ll get another beating!”

Qin Weibai cooperated beautifully.

He calmly began rolling up his sleeves.

He worked out regularly, so the muscles along his arms were clearly defined and powerful.

Lin Qing finally panicked.

After throwing out one last meaningless threat, he disappeared around the corner of the stairwell.

“Why are you here?”

Qin Weibai gave me a meaningful look.

“Your parents were worried something might happen to you, so they called me.”

“But haven’t you been incredibly busy at the law firm lately?”

His shirt was wrinkled.

His tie was crooked.

There was even cigarette smoke lingering on him.

He had clearly rushed here straight from work.

Instead of answering, Qin Weibai used his height advantage to plant one hand against the wall, trapping me in the narrow space beneath him.

“You sounded pretty fierce threatening him just now.”

His deep eyes reflected my face, amusement flickering in them.

“You even encouraged your own husband to knowingly break the law?”

“I wouldn’t dare.”

I smiled awkwardly and slowly tried to duck out from beneath his arm.

My breathing had already begun to quicken.

Suddenly, he grabbed the back of my collar and pulled me right back.

I had barely opened my mouth to protest when Qin Weibai lowered his head and silenced me with a passionate kiss.

“Don’t start yelling. Let me finish kissing you first, then I’ll take you upstairs.”

Only as our lips tangled together did I finally realize that Qin Weibai wasn’t someone who never got jealous.

He absolutely hated seeing me argue with Lin Qing.

That was why his movements now were so forceful and possessive.

By the time he’d finally vented his frustration, my lower lip was swollen and red, and my face was burning as he took my hand and led me inside.

This was Qin Weibai’s first official visit to my parents’ home after our marriage.

My parents welcomed him enthusiastically and deliberately avoided any mention of the troublesome subject known as Lin Qing, afraid it might affect our relationship.

In the end, Qin Weibai was the one who brought it up.

“The villa outside the Third Ring Road is still empty. You two can pack your things and move there for the time being. It’ll be more comfortable.”

My parents both shook their heads.

I’d actually discussed this with my mother before.

She’d told me:

“When your father and I look at a son-in-law, all we want is someone who genuinely loves and treats our daughter well. We aren’t trying to live off our son-in-law’s wealth, and we certainly don’t want you to feel inferior to his family because of us. If he brings it up again, politely decline on our behalf.”

The 400,000 yuan my parents had prepared when I married had been transferred directly into my bank account.

Qin Weibai refused to touch a single cent of it.

That was also why I’d kept putting off transferring the properties into my name.

After leaving my parents’ home, Qin Weibai suddenly called me to stop.

He studied me seriously for a long moment.

“Nianjin, why do you insist on being so overly polite with me?”

Perhaps my terrible relationship with Lin Qing had left too deep a psychological scar.

Lin Qing had been like a bloodsucking leech.

For eight years, he’d lived off my savings until he’d completely drained away the last traces of affection I’d once had for him.

I despised Lin Qing.

And because of that, I was terrified of repeating his mistakes and becoming the same kind of person toward Qin Weibai.

Whenever Qin Weibai gave me something or showed me kindness, I instinctively calculated whether I had enough to repay him equally.

Even an eight-year relationship could eventually be worn down to nothing.

Qin Weibai and I hadn’t even known each other for a full year.

I forced myself to sound casual.

“It’s nothing like that. My parents are simply used to living here. They’re afraid they wouldn’t be comfortable at the villa. I’m not treating you like an outsider.”

“Good.”

Qin Weibai nodded, apparently accepting my explanation.

I stood there staring at his back, lost in thought.

What if one day Qin Weibai suddenly asked me for a divorce?

After two failed relationships in a row, something like that would probably destroy me completely.

I was always extraordinarily careful with my marriage to Qin Weibai.

I only accepted what I believed I rightfully deserved and never allowed myself to greedily demand anything more.

Perhaps, deep down, I simply wanted to prove to the entire world that I hadn’t been the one in the wrong.

After that day, Lin Qing completely disappeared from my life.

Our parents soon began eagerly urging us to have a child.

I asked Qin Weibai what he thought.

He told me the decision was entirely mine.

So I began preparing my body for pregnancy.

Whenever work wasn’t too busy, I’d regularly drive to the law firm and pick Qin Weibai up after work.

More than once, I overheard his coworkers whispering that Qin Weibai was hopelessly devoted to his wife and spoiled her rotten.

Whenever he heard them, he merely smiled helplessly without bothering to deny it.

Then, one evening, while I was waiting across the street from his law firm, I unexpectedly ran into Lin Qing’s mother.

At first, I didn’t even recognize her.

She deliberately gave a loud snort and rammed her shoulder into me, making me stumble and nearly fall into a flower bed.

I didn’t want to make a scene outside Qin Weibai’s workplace and embarrass him.

So I endured it, pretended not to recognize her, and lowered my head to brush the dried leaves from my skirt.

Unfortunately, this woman was still exactly the same as before.

Give her an inch, and she’d take a mile.

“I heard you were planning to sic the internet on me and have people cyberbully me?”

Lin Qing truly was the ultimate mama’s boy.

Did he seriously have to report every single thing to his mother?

Before I could answer, she punched me hard in the shoulder.

“Quite capable, aren’t you? A low-class shrew like you! I opposed Lin Qing dating you from the very beginning. See? Was I wrong?”

I steadied myself.

I kept reminding myself not to cause a scene outside the law firm.

Without saying anything, I stepped to the left and tried to leave.

She immediately grabbed my arm.

A smug, triumphant expression spread across her face.

“I heard your new husband works here, doesn’t he? I’ll go inside and ask him myself what kind of shameless man would marry a woman who’s already been through one husband!”

At that moment, I noticed several of Qin Weibai’s coworkers beginning to leave the building after work.

I yanked my arm away.

“Mrs. Lin, your son and I ended our relationship two years ago. Get your filthy hand off me!”

Realizing I was afraid of causing a public scene only made her bolder.

She raised her voice and shouted loudly enough for everyone nearby to hear.

“Everyone, come look! Look at this pair of shameless adulterers! They deceived my son’s feelings! Heartless scum like them deserve to be struck down by heaven!”

Lin Qing’s mother had always been notoriously unreasonable.

Back when she’d visited her son at university, she’d once pointed directly at me and said:

“My Lin Qing studies very hard. It takes a tremendous toll on him, so you’d better take good care of him. He never eats fruit on his own, so make sure you watch him carefully. If his health suffers later, your life won’t be any easier either.”

There was simply no reasoning with a woman like her.

“Oh? Sister-in-law! Boss Qin is still finishing up some work, so… uh…”

One of Qin Weibai’s colleagues had cheerfully rushed over to greet me.

The moment he saw the scene in front of him, his words died in his throat.

How humiliating.

To make matters worse, Lin Qing’s mother immediately grabbed his trouser leg and launched into an elaborate story that completely twisted the truth, accusing me of cheating on her son.

My blood boiled.

“That’s enough!”

I forcefully knocked her hand away.

I didn’t know whether I’d used too much strength or whether she simply had terrible balance.

Either way, the old woman toppled straight onto the ground.

“Oww!”

She clutched her backside with one hand and grabbed Qin Weibai’s colleague’s trouser leg with the other.

“I’m injured! I’m going to sue this woman! I want to hire you as my lawyer!”

“S-Sister-in-law… this…”

Her professional-level performance immediately attracted a crowd of curious spectators.

I was so angry that my limbs went weak.

For a long moment, I simply stood there unable to recover.

A few minutes later, I was sitting miserably in Qin Weibai’s office with my knees drawn together and my head lowered.

How had everything turned into such a disaster?

I clearly hadn’t used that much force.

Yet she’d immediately collapsed onto the ground.

Even if she’d deliberately staged the fall to extort me, the fact remained that I’d pushed her.

One of Qin Weibai’s colleagues had already taken her to the hospital for an examination.

A while later, the office door opened.

Qin Weibai calmly walked inside and placed a glass of warm water in front of me.

“Don’t worry. My colleague is waiting at the hospital for the examination results. If she really staged the fall to extort money from you, we’ll file a case against her.”

“I’m sorry.”

Once again, guilt and embarrassment washed over me.

I’d caused trouble for him again.

Qin Weibai was already overwhelmed with work at the law firm.

Sometimes he worked through the night without coming home.

He was at a crucial stage in his career and constantly had to attend business dinners and social engagements.

That was precisely why I drove over to pick him up from work every day.

I wanted to act as his driver so he wouldn’t risk an accident by driving while exhausted.

Yet I’d still managed to cause trouble.

Qin Weibai gently ruffled my hair and smiled.

“Well, what should we do about this? I suppose you’ll have to pay my legal fees.”

“How much are you charging?”

“We’ll follow the law firm’s standard rates. Little Zhang, how much do I normally charge for taking a case?”

His assistant, Zhang, cheerfully poked his head through the doorway.

“Boss, seriously? You’re charging your own family? Sister-in-law, when you get home tonight, make him kneel on the washboard as punishment!”

Qin Weibai laughed.

“My wife is practically a fairy—beautiful, kindhearted, and gentle. How could she possibly bear to punish her husband like that?”

So the two of them had only been teasing me to make me feel better.

Warmth spread through my chest.

I pouted, then leaned forward and wrapped my arms around Qin Weibai.

“Why are you so good to me?”

“Because you’re good too.”

Qin Weibai gently patted my back.

“My parents actually looked into you long ago. You keep saying your reputation is terrible, but those rumors were mostly spread among Lin Qing’s relatives. Most of the people in your neighborhood speak very highly of your family. They say your parents raised you well, and that their daughter is sensible, reasonable, and considerate.”

He paused before adding with a smile:

“There’s a saying that true quality speaks for itself. On the matchmaking market, someone with your profile is in such high demand that people would fight over you.”

“You’re exaggerating…”

His praise made my face heat with embarrassment.

Qin Weibai pointed toward the cup of floral tea I’d prepared on his desk.

“Then how do you explain this?”

He glanced through the glass to make sure Assistant Zhang had left, then openly leaned close to my ear and whispered sweetly:

“Go around this entire law firm and see how many people’s wives personally come to pick their husbands up from work every day. And even if they do, how many of them thoughtfully prepare floral tea to soothe their husband’s throat?”

“That’s only because I’m worried your throat will hurt from talking so much…”

“Exactly. Which means that in this entire office, you’re the person who treats me best.”

Qin Weibai took my hand and pulled me to my feet, wearing an expression that made it clear he wouldn’t accept any argument.

Evening settled over the city.

Traffic began flowing steadily along the streets.

His fingers intertwined firmly with mine as we walked out of the law firm together.

I followed beside Qin Weibai at an unhurried pace.

A ray of sunset happened to fall across his right hand.

His warm palm rested firmly against the inside of my wrist.

He treated me so well.

So well that sometimes I felt guilty, as though I didn’t deserve that much affection.

Suddenly, I became a little greedy.

I wanted to hold on tightly to this happiness.

I quickened my pace, wrapped both hands around his arm, and nestled closer against him.

Qin Weibai lowered his head and glanced at me.

There was an unmistakable smile in his eyes.

I couldn’t help smiling back.

And at that moment, a powerful conviction suddenly rose inside me.

Maybe…

Qin Weibai and I really could hold hands like this until our hair turned white.

Maybe we really could spend the rest of our lives together.

That evening, the results of Lin Qing’s mother’s full medical examination came back.

She was perfectly fine. There wasn’t even a scratch on her.

Qin Weibai wanted to file a case against her for defamation and making false accusations, but I stopped him.

Lin Qing’s family was notoriously shameless and unreasonable.

I didn’t want their ridiculous nonsense draining Qin Weibai’s energy or interfering with his work.

The best way to deal with professional troublemakers like them was to ignore them completely and treat them as if they didn’t exist.

Qin Weibai was clearly unhappy with my decision.

He leaned over and bit my cheek hard enough to leave a visible mark.

“If you dare use that ‘just endure it and let yourself suffer’ attitude again, I won’t go easy on you next time.”

“Fine!”

I’d barely finished making that solemn promise to my husband when Lin Qing’s mother turned around and posted the entire incident on social media, deliberately stirring up public outrage.

When my best friend sent me the link to the video, I happened to be sitting on Qin Weibai’s lap.

Before I could turn off my phone, he snatched it away.

Qin Weibai stared at the screen, his expression instantly turning icy.

“Chen Nianjin, she’s openly spreading false rumors and defaming you. You haven’t forgotten what you just promised me, have you?”

If something like this happened again, I’d promised to leave everything to him.

In the news clip being circulated online, both Lin Qing and his mother had agreed to be interviewed by a reporter.

Lin Qing said:

“She and I were together for eight years. Things didn’t exactly end on good terms when we broke up… My mother has always been warmhearted and kind. She happened to run into someone she knew and only wanted to chat for a while. You know how older people can sometimes get confused. She accidentally interfered with the relationship between that married couple. My ex did use quite a bit of force, but I’m sure she didn’t mean any harm. I hope everyone online will show some mercy and not cyberbully my poor mother.”

His mother, meanwhile, lay sprawled across a hospital bed with her back to the camera, her face dramatically pixelated.

“Our family is poor, and because of that, my precious son has suffered. He’s still single to this day. He devoted eight years of his youth to that woman, and he’s such a sentimental person that he hasn’t even wanted to find someone new.”

The comment section was overwhelmingly one-sided.

Countless netizens joined in and condemned me as a gold digger who’d abandoned an old lover after finding someone richer.

“How can she treat an elderly person like that? If they already broke up, why take her anger out on an old woman?”

“Older people’s bones are fragile. One bad fall could literally kill her. This is practically attempted murder.”

“I hope the family reports her to the police and gets her arrested.”

“I heard her new husband is a lawyer. What kind of lawyer can’t even defend his wife in a case like this?”

Over the next few days, my phone was bombarded with abusive messages and calls from unfamiliar numbers.

Someone had leaked my personal contact information online.

Lin Qing had beaten me to the punch.

He’d pushed me directly into the center of an online witch hunt.

That day, I happened to be driving over to pick Qin Weibai up from work.

He had just stepped out of the law firm when I suddenly noticed a man in the distance charging toward him with a bucket in his hand.

My heart stopped.

I rushed forward without thinking, desperate to reach Qin Weibai first.

I threw my arms around him and used my own back to shield him completely.

I squeezed my eyes shut.

My entire body went rigid with fear.

“Are you crazy?”

The man’s angry voice suddenly came from behind me.

Water sloshed out of his bucket, soaking the back of my skirt.

He muttered a few more curses before carrying the bucket past us and continuing on his way.

Qin Weibai stared at me in complete confusion.

“What the hell was that?”

Cold sweat poured down my back.

My throat tightened so badly that I could barely speak.

“I… I thought he was going to throw acid at you…”

At that moment, I’d genuinely been prepared for the possibility of my back being horribly burned in order to protect him.

Qin Weibai froze for several seconds.

Then his expression darkened.

“What were you trying to prove?”

Looking back on it now, even I was terrified.

But at that moment, my reaction had been entirely instinctive.

There hadn’t been enough time to weigh the consequences.

Qin Weibai firmly pulled me away from him and dragged me into the car.

“If something like that happens again, you get out of the way. Understand?”

“I’d still do the same thing.”

“You—”

Qin Weibai was furious.

He immediately pulled out his phone and called Assistant Zhang.

“There won’t be a next time. I’m dealing with Lin Qing right now.”

I grabbed Qin Weibai’s wrist.

“Let me handle it myself this time.”

“Chen Nianjin!”

Qin Weibai had clearly lost his temper.

“Why won’t you put your complete trust in me?”

“It’s not that I don’t trust you or your abilities. This mess exists because of me. I need to clean it up myself.”

I looked at him seriously.

“I promise. This will absolutely be the last time.”

Before this, I’d had too many concerns.

I’d been afraid Lin Qing might retaliate against my family.

But reality had proven that bad people wouldn’t suddenly leave you alone simply because you kept backing down.

Lin Qing had dragged Qin Weibai’s profession into the scandal.

My personal information had been dug up and spread online within days.

There was no way Lin Qing wasn’t behind the scenes manipulating public opinion.

My previous desire to keep the peace had only convinced them that I was too afraid to make a scene.

But this time was different.

Lin Qing had publicly attacked Qin Weibai’s career and allowed things to escalate until the safety of someone I loved was threatened.

There was no chance in hell I was letting him off easily this time.

If I was going to make a scene…

then I might as well turn the entire damn table over.

Qin Weibai still didn’t look entirely convinced.

He rubbed his face helplessly.

“Fine. But you’re absolutely forbidden from meeting Lin Qing alone. Your safety comes first.”

“I know.”

That night, I contacted the reporter who’d published the story, along with several well-known social media bloggers.

We arranged to meet at a café near the city center.

I stayed awake the entire night printing and organizing every piece of evidence I had.

Throughout the process, Qin Weibai remained beside me.

Every time he glanced through the screenshots of my old conversations with Lin Qing, he couldn’t help cursing aloud at least once.

The next day, the reporters and bloggers arrived before I did.

When I entered the café, all three of them immediately looked up and carefully studied me.

There was one man and two women.

Professional cameras and recording equipment had already been arranged on the table.

I tightened my grip around the folder in my hands, took a deep breath, and walked toward them.

“Hello. I’m Chen Nianjin, Lin Qing’s ex-girlfriend.”

Because they’d only heard the other side of the story, none of them looked particularly welcoming.

There was even a faint trace of disdain in their expressions.

I ignored it.

I ordered an iced Americano and calmly sat across from them.

“Miss Chen, can we begin?” one of them asked.

They clearly expected to watch this supposed gold-digging woman desperately “make excuses” for herself.

I smiled.

“Of course.”

The first things I presented were an audio recording and the fake ultrasound report.

Lin Qing’s voice could be heard clearly in the recording, begging me not to expose the fact that his mother had fabricated the ultrasound report.

“This is the fake ultrasound image they made two years ago, around the time Lin Qing and I broke up. His mother wanted to destroy my reputation, so she had someone Photoshop this and posted it publicly online. Lin Qing and I never had sex, yet she spread baseless rumors claiming I’d gotten pregnant by her son and had to deal with the consequences.”

One of the women sitting across from me looked skeptical.

“How can you prove the man’s voice in this recording belongs to Lin Qing?”

I unlocked my phone and opened my WeChat chat history with him.

I’d restored the data from my old phone the previous night.

The WeChat account was unmistakably Lin Qing’s current personal account.

Inside was the complete history of how our relationship had deteriorated until we’d finally become enemies.

There were also screenshots proving that his family had attempted to swallow my 400,000 yuan, using moral pressure and manipulation to force me into going through with the wedding.

There were even messages from his mother insulting me and calling me a gold digger.

“After we broke up, I was afraid of neighborhood gossip, so I worked in another province for two years. I only went on blind dates and married my current husband after I came back. How exactly did I cheat on Lin Qing or leave him for a rich man?

“When Lin Qing found out I was going on a blind date, he hid in the bushes outside my apartment building and nearly sexually assaulted me. You can check the surveillance footage. He repeatedly loitered around my home and even went to harass my parents.”

The three people across from me looked increasingly horrified.

Their expressions shifted from skepticism to outright disgust as they learned what Lin Qing’s family had actually done.

“Then why didn’t you report him to the police from the beginning?”

“He hadn’t managed to physically injure me. Even if I reported him, at most he’d probably receive a few days of administrative detention. Meanwhile, my parents and relatives still have to live here. I was genuinely afraid of what he might do afterward.”

I took a sip of my iced Americano.

Its bitter taste spread across my tongue.

“This time, I went to pick my husband up from work and happened to run into Lin Qing’s mother. She grabbed me and started insulting me. I brought the complete surveillance footage with me.”

They spent an entire hour piecing together the full sequence of events.

By the end, all three were furious.

“Miss Chen, what would you like us to do?”

I tilted my head back and finished the rest of my Americano.

For the first time in a long while, I felt completely liberated.

“Publish everything. I’m not afraid, and neither is my husband. They falsely accused me. Am I not allowed to clear my own name?”

“Absolutely.”

And with that, our discussion officially came to an end.

If I hadn’t had family to worry about, I’d have taken Lin Qing’s entire shameless family to court long ago.

It was precisely because I had people I loved that I couldn’t simply act however I wanted.

But now…

I was going to fight back using the one method they feared most.

Just one day later, screenshots and evidence exposing the truth spread like wildfire across every major social media platform.

With surveillance footage providing undeniable proof, public opinion immediately reversed.

Of course, there were still plenty of trolls who continued attacking me.

But most people were perfectly capable of distinguishing right from wrong when the evidence was laid out in front of them.

Many of those who’d previously insulted me publicly posted apologies.

The scandal became so widespread that it eventually reached our old classmates through their WeChat Moments.

Before long, people who’d known both Lin Qing and me began messaging and calling to comfort me.

“Oh my God, I never imagined he was such a complete scumbag! I almost agreed to introduce him to someone. I’m calling her immediately and telling her to block him forever.”

“His family’s reputation is completely ruined now. Everyone in their neighborhood knows what happened. People are talking about them everywhere. They probably can’t even show their faces outside anymore. Talk about karma.”

One of the bloggers messaged me asking whether I wanted them to publish Lin Qing’s home address and phone number as well.

I immediately refused.

Online insults were nothing compared to the pressure of being judged and mocked by the relatives and neighbors they actually saw every day.

This was already enough.

When Qin Weibai came home from work, I ran barefoot straight into his arms.

Grinning from ear to ear, I excitedly reported the results of my counterattack.

“Oh.”

Qin Weibai lifted me effortlessly with one arm while lowering his head to change his shoes.

“So I suppose congratulations are in order?”

“How are we celebrating?”

“I’ll buy my wife a car tomorrow.”

My jaw nearly dropped.

I stared at him.

“Do you have a fever?”

We’d only recently gotten married.

Where were we supposed to get enough money for a new car?

Qin Weibai tilted his chin, signaling for me to remove his tie.

“My parents’ orders. How does a Porsche sound? You can choose whichever color you like.”

“Wait…”

I immediately jumped down from his arms and pushed him away with both hands.

My expression turned deadly serious.

“You… you haven’t been knowingly breaking the law to make money, have you? Where did that much money come from?”

Qin Weibai laughed.

“So in my wife’s heart, I’m apparently some criminal who specializes in illegal business?”

Back when we’d first been introduced for marriage, the matchmaker had only vaguely said that Qin Weibai’s family was fairly well-off.

I’d checked that he didn’t have any financial debts and considered that good enough.

I’d never bothered digging deeper.

Who would’ve guessed that he wasn’t merely debt-free?

Apparently…

he might actually be secretly filthy rich.

Seeing how suspicious I looked, Qin Weibai couldn’t stop himself from laughing.

“Relax, young lady. Your in-laws are very wealthy. Your husband really is a spoiled young master born with a silver spoon in his mouth.”

He’d hinted at it several times before.

I’d simply never believed him.

“Seriously?”

“Mm. One hundred percent.”

Qin Weibai nodded solemnly.

I was still reeling from the realization that I’d somehow married a handsome rich heir when my phone suddenly rang.

An unfamiliar number appeared on the screen.

Qin Weibai answered it for me.

Lin Qing’s furious roar immediately blasted through the speaker.

He was absolutely livid and threatened to sue me.

Qin Weibai gave a mocking laugh.

“What a coincidence, Mr. Lin. I happen to be an experienced professional who specializes in litigation. Do you need me to provide any legal consultation or representation?”

The moment things entered Qin Weibai’s professional territory, Lin Qing didn’t stand a chance.

After only a few sharp responses from Qin Weibai, he was completely defeated.

Qin Weibai hung up.

Then he lifted me into his arms and carried me into the bedroom, setting me down on the bed.

“Wife, tell me something. What does it feel like to live off a woman for eight whole years?”

“How would I know?”

Jealousy practically dripped from his voice.

“Oh? Then I suppose I’ll have to trouble my wife tonight and experience it for myself.”

The moment he finished speaking, he lowered his head and gently bit my earlobe.

His hot breath brushed against my ear.

I laughed and tried to dodge him, but he quickly pinned me in place.

“Did you ever kiss him like this before? How did you two hug?”

“What kind of kissing?”

“Like this? Or like this?”

Qin Weibai seized the opportunity to thoroughly bully me.

My entire body soon went weak beneath him.

Eventually, I didn’t even have the strength to laugh anymore, only broken gasps escaping my throat.

“We never… we never…”

The moment Qin Weibai heard that, his competitive spirit seemed to surge even higher.

“Shh. I just did you a huge favor and thoroughly put Lin Qing in his place. Doesn’t your husband deserve some kind of reward?”

My face instantly turned bright red.

“Why do you always find some excuse to… bully me?”

“I can’t help it.”

His voice was thick with jealousy.

“I’m jealous. If I don’t bully you, who else am I supposed to bully?”

Click.

With one practiced movement, he effortlessly undid the metal clasp on my clothes.

Every motion was smooth and decisive.

“Be good, wife. Let’s go take a shower…”

Two months after that particularly passionate night, I officially discovered I was pregnant.

That day, I was lounging around in Qin Weibai’s office near closing time.

Assistant Zhang and several other colleagues were gathered nearby chatting.

I had no idea who brought it up first, but somehow the conversation turned toward an enormous piece of gossip involving Lin Qing.

During the two years after I’d left the city, Lin Qing had apparently changed girlfriends constantly.

His first new girlfriend had started dating him barely half a month after our breakup.

By coincidence, she lived next door to one of my coworkers.

Lin Qing had tricked her out of 2,000 yuan before blocking her everywhere.

Then, last winter, Lin Qing had been dating two women at the same time.

The two victims accidentally discovered each other’s existence after both happened to leave comments beneath one of my social media posts.

Not long ago, several of the women he’d deceived joined forces and stormed his workplace together.

Once his habit of manipulating women and scamming them for money was exposed, his employer immediately fired him.

The scandal made him infamous overnight.

Assistant Zhang cheerfully handed me a lollipop.

“Sister-in-law, I looked into it. Lin Qing’s reputation is completely ruined now. There’s no way he can stay in this city anymore. Apparently, he’s already gone to another province to find work. I doubt he’ll ever have the nerve to come back and disturb your peaceful life again.”

The glass door suddenly opened.

Qin Weibai leaned halfway into the room.

“Nianjin, let’s go.”

Assistant Zhang immediately winked at me mischievously.

His expression clearly suggested that Qin Weibai had prepared some enormous surprise for his wife.

The moment I got into the car, I noticed a thick stack of property documents sitting on the passenger seat.

“I told you before that I wanted to add your name to the property deeds. My parents gathered all the deeds for their properties too. We’ll go handle the paperwork tomorrow.”

Ever since I’d found out I was pregnant, my in-laws had called every few days to check on me.

Not long ago, they’d even insisted on buying me a Porsche, though I’d politely refused.

The car sped along the coastal highway toward the outskirts of the city.

Eventually, we stopped beside an elegant restaurant overlooking the beach.

Its tables had been beautifully arranged directly on the soft white sand.

Gentle waves rolled toward the shore.

The setting sun slowly sank toward the vast ocean, its final brilliant rays fading into the horizon.

Golden light stretched across the sea and blended with the flickering candlelight.

Deep red roses seemed to glow with golden edges beneath the warm flames.

The evening breeze swept past, gently lifting my hair behind me.

Qin Weibai reached out and intertwined his fingers with mine.

Holding my hand, he led me toward the water.

“I’ve always owed you a proper proposal. It took me until today to finally prepare one.”

He looked at me.

“People always say that marriages arranged through blind dates are destined to lack romance. But I’ve always believed that you’re the woman I’m meant to spend the rest of my life with.

“So you deserve the very best.”

My eyes immediately stung.

My nose tingled, and my throat tightened until I couldn’t speak.

Every couple who walked into a wedding hall hoped to build a stable life together and stay together forever.

I’d been prepared for a calm, practical marriage in which Qin Weibai and I simply respected each other’s boundaries.

Who would’ve thought that after getting married…

I’d end up falling into such a sweet, passionate romance with him?

The melodious sound of a violin drifted through the evening air as the final rays of sunlight disappeared beneath the sea.

Qin Weibai opened his arms and pulled me tightly against his chest.

“Chen Nianjin, will you marry me?”

I laughed through the tears.

“I’m already married to you.”

The sea breeze lifted the hem of my dress.

Barefoot, I playfully stepped onto his leather shoes and wrapped both arms around his neck, laughing uncontrollably.

“Be good. Stop moving.”

Qin Weibai helplessly suppressed a smile and held me firmly against him.

“It’s time for the groom to kiss his bride.”

Our lips met.

As I sank into the endless tenderness of his kiss, a phrase suddenly appeared in my mind.

Love born from familiarity.

A marriage that had begun because we were compatible, practical, and mutually suitable…

had somehow blossomed into genuine, profound love.

Only then did I realize just how incredibly fortunate and happy I truly was.

Night slowly descended, painting the vast ocean black.

Only the gentle sound of waves washing against the shore remained.

Above us, the timeless moon hung quietly in the sky, bearing witness to the promise we’d made to one another.

Whether our future brought wealth or poverty, health or sickness, prosperity or hardship…

we would remain faithful to each other and walk side by side until the very end of our lives.