“A Yan…”
The delicate voice made Jian Zhi’s hand tremble, nearly dropping her phone.
“A Yan, are you home? Are you alright?” Luo Yucheng sounded drunk too, her voice slurred. She continued speaking without waiting for a response, “I know your difficulties… I also… know that Jian Zhi has given a lot for you… You don’t need to feel guilty toward me… I… I’m fine with how things are now… I don’t care… if I’m not your wife… I just… just want you to remember me… Let’s keep things as they are… A Yan… She lives in your house, I live in your heart, I’m perfectly content with that…”
Clatter—the phone finally slipped and fell to the floor.
She lives in your house, I live in your heart.
How perfect…
Wen Tingyan, isn’t it just perfect?
Staggering, she left the room and went to the guest room.
She collapsed onto the bed, forcing all the voices in her head out, never wanting to remember them again…
When she woke again, it was Wen Tingyan’s voice that roused her.
He was speaking with Aunt Chen.
“Where did these flowers come from?”
“Madam brought them back last night.”
“Madam went out last night?”
“Yes.”
“Alone? Where did she go?” Wen Tingyan’s voice noticeably rose.
“She said she went to watch a performance, with her teacher.”
“Teacher? Who gave her the flowers?” He seemed skeptical.
“I don’t know.”
“What performance? Where did she watch it? What time was the show?”
Aunt Chen hesitated, “Sir, I really don’t know.”
The guest room door was pushed open.
She was actually awake, but she pretended to be asleep.
“Jian Zhi,” he said, “I know you’re awake. Your hand just moved.”
Jian Zhi opened her eyes.
Fine, no more pretending.
“Who did you watch the performance with yesterday?”
Why was he so fixated on this question?
“Teacher Zhao,” she replied flatly.
“Jian Zhi…” He seemed hesitant. “It’s good that you’ve reconnected with your teacher, but don’t discuss too many personal topics with her. You know, her husband and I…”
Understood. He just wanted her to keep up the pretense that Luo Yucheng wasn’t Mrs. Wen, right?
No wonder he was so hung up on who she watched the performance with—it was because of this…
She turned over, neither agreeing nor objecting.
“Jian Zhi…” He sat down. “Be good, alright?” He reached out to turn her back.
Suddenly, she remembered how he had pinned her to the bed last night, murmuring Luo Yucheng’s name and telling her to be good. A wave of nausea washed over her. She slapped his hand away forcefully, pulled the covers over herself, and hid.
“Jian Zhi, give me some time. I’ll tell them myself, alright?” He leaned down, tugging at the covers to uncover her face.
After a long wait, she still didn’t respond.
He gave up, abruptly changing the subject. “Jian Zhi, what were your ‘passion’ and ‘true love’ last night?”
“Definitely not you!”
His face stiffened, but in an instant, he wore an understanding expression. “Alright, stop throwing a tantrum. I know you’re still sulking and jealous. Didn’t I come back as soon as I saw your message yesterday?”
Wait, did he think her “passion” and “true love” referred to him? Did he think her saying “not you” was just her being petulant?
She poked her head out from under the covers. “I said…”
When he saw her come out, his expression softened, and he even stroked her hair. “That’s a good girl. I’ll be back tonight, but you don’t need to wait up for me. Go to sleep if you’re tired.”
After saying this, he didn’t wait for her to respond and turned to leave.
In truth, this scene was exactly the same as before.
Before Luo Yucheng appeared, he had always been like this—speaking to her gently, reminding her softly to rest early, and tenderly stroking her hair.
They had never argued.
But what did that matter? What did a marriage without arguments even signify?
Jian Zhi no longer wanted to dwell on the past between her and Wen Tingyan. Every time she recalled it, her head throbbed as if bound by a tightening spell. She’d rather spend that time studying.
She got up immediately, washed up, moved her laptop and phone to the guest room, and began searching for study abroad application agencies and related posts.
It had to be said, modern data algorithms were truly impressive. Just last night, she had watched a performance, and today her homepage was flooded with several posts about the dance drama from the previous evening.
It was through these posts that she learned the male lead’s name was Jiang Shifan.
It seemed there had indeed been someone like that in their department before…
Then, she stumbled upon a post by Jiang Shifan himself.
At first glance, the scene in the photo looked familiar—it was Jiang Shifan holding out a bouquet to her.
She was startled. Had she been captured in the photo?
She quickly clicked on it.
Thankfully, there was only this one photo in the post, taken from an angle that showed Jiang Shifan’s front view, with no trace of her in the frame.
However, the text in the post shocked her once again.
The title read: She came to watch my performance.
I thought she had vanished into the crowd, that we would never meet again. But in a fleeting glance, I saw her sitting in the audience, watching me dance. A belated thank you—without you, perhaps there would be no me on this stage today.
Jian Zhi was puzzled.
This post seemed to be about her, yet it didn’t quite feel like it.
What had she done to deserve such lasting gratitude from him? “Without you, there would be no me on this stage today”—those words carried too much weight. Had she ever done something so significant?
She couldn’t remember at all…
While lost in doubt, Teacher Zhao called, inviting her to a banquet that evening.
“It’s just a private gathering between Old Wu and me. We’ve invited a few close friends. I’m returning to Beijing tomorrow, so I wanted to get together one last time tonight.”
“Sure, I’ll be there on time.” Jian Zhi considered asking her teacher more about Jiang Shifan but then thought better of it. There was no need.
Jian Zhi knew Teacher Zhao had invited other friends, but she never expected Wen Tingyan and Luo Yucheng to be among them.
By the time she arrived at the banquet, Wen Tingyan and Luo Yucheng were already there, chatting with a few others.
Everyone seemed aware of Wen Tingyan’s collaboration with Mr. Wu, and they treated him with great respect, showering him with polished, PR-style compliments.
“Wow, Mr. Wen and Mrs. Wen were actually college classmates? From school uniforms to wedding dresses—isn’t this straight out of an idol novel? How enviable!” one guest exclaimed.
Luo Yucheng glanced sweetly at Wen Tingyan. “It wasn’t all smooth sailing. I can be quite willful, but luckily, A Yan is very patient with me. No matter how long I wander or how far I go, he always waits for me right here.”
Wen Tingyan responded with a tolerant smile, exuding the demeanor of a perfect gentleman.
“Oh my god, what a fairy-tale romance!” Some young single guests couldn’t stop exclaiming in admiration.
Wen Tingyan responded, “Not at all. When it comes to marital happiness, we should all learn from Mr. Wu and Teacher Zhao. They’re the true example of a deeply devoted couple who’ve weathered life’s storms together.”
Everyone immediately voiced their agreement.
Just then, an discordant voice chimed in, “I recall Mr. Wen’s wife used to be a dancer, but had to leave the stage permanently after her foot was permanently injured in a car accident. Yet looking at Mrs. Wen now, her feet appear completely fine.”