At eleven at night, Xia Ran lay on the sofa with a face mask on, scrolling through her phone. As Shu Jin’s best friend since high school, she habitually opened Shu Jin’s Moments first. The moment she saw the latest post, she shot upright, the mask on her face slipping halfway down without her noticing.
In the photo, Shu Jin leaned against a man’s shoulder. The candlelight painted her cheeks a soft blush, her eyes curved in a bright, unguarded smile. Xia Ran’s gaze locked onto the man’s hand in the picture. The wrist resting on Shu Jin’s shoulder wore a distinctive black obsidian bracelet.
She remembered that bracelet.
Just last week, when she had afternoon tea with Shu Jin, Gu Chen had suddenly come to see her, and he had been wearing it then. Shu Jin had even shown it off proudly, saying Gu Chen had gone to a temple to have it blessed, a charm meant to ensure his career would go smoothly.
What unsettled Xia Ran even more was that she clearly remembered today was the fifth anniversary of Shu Jin and Jiang Yi’s marriage.
Last year at this time, Shu Jin had excitedly shown her the gift Jiang Yi gave her, a diamond brooch worth a considerable sum. Back then, Shu Jin had said sweetly that although Jiang Yi was busy, he never forgot a single anniversary.
Xia Ran’s finger hovered over the phone screen for a long time.
She tapped on Shu Jin’s profile picture. The chat window was still stuck on a message from three days ago, where Shu Jin had complained to her about Jiang Yi’s emotional coldness. As her best friend, she should have stood on Shu Jin’s side. But this time…
She enlarged the Moments photo.
The brand new Cartier bracelet on Shu Jin’s wrist stabbed at her eyes. It was clearly not something Shu Jin would have bought herself. It looked more like a man’s taste. Moreover, with Shu Jin’s current financial situation, she simply could not afford something so expensive.
Xia Ran suddenly recalled what Shu Jin had said when she borrowed money from her last month. Jiang Yi had frozen all her cards, and she did not even have money to buy skincare products. That meant this bracelet was most likely bought by Gu Chen using Shu Jin’s money.
An indescribable anger surged up in her chest.
Xia Ran had known Jiang Yi for many years. She understood how much he had given to Shu Jin. Even during the hardest days of his startup, he had never treated her poorly. And now, Shu Jin was using Jiang Yi’s money, on their wedding anniversary, to celebrate another man’s birthday.
She opened Jiang Yi’s profile.
The chat window was completely empty. She had never spoken to Jiang Yi alone before. Yet at this moment, she felt that someone had to tell him the truth.
Her fingers trembled slightly as she typed, Jiang Yi, this is Xia Ran. I know Shu Jin is my friend, but this time I think she has truly done something wrong. Find the original chapter at g.com.
She sent the screenshot of the Moments post. Just before pressing send, she added one more line, I hope I’m not disturbing you.
After the message was sent, Xia Ran let out a long breath, yet her heart felt even heavier. She knew this message might end her years of friendship with Shu Jin. But she simply could not stand by and watch Shu Jin walk further and further down the wrong path.
At that moment, Jiang Yi was standing in front of the floor to ceiling window in his office.
His phone chimed. He glanced at the name Xia Ran, frowned slightly, and opened the message.
The instant the screenshot came into view, the warmth in his eyes vanished.
Shu Jin’s smile in the photo was so radiant, so genuinely happy. It was an expression he had not seen on her face for a very long time. As for the man whose side profile was barely visible, even with just half his face, Jiang Yi recognized him instantly as Gu Chen.
Jiang Yi’s gaze shifted to the details in the photo.
The half finished glass of red wine in front of Shu Jin was her favorite brand. The cake peeking out from the corner of the table was Gu Chen’s favorite chocolate flavor. Even the pair of new diamond earrings on Shu Jin’s ears were purchases he had noticed on his credit card statement just last week.
The most ironic part was that when Shu Jin posted this Moments update, she had deliberately hidden it from all contacts related to him.
If not for Xia Ran’s message, he might never have known that on this day, which should have belonged to the two of them, his wife was celebrating another man’s birthday.
Jiang Yi slowly walked back to his desk and pulled open the bottom drawer.
Inside lay a velvet box, quiet and still. It contained the starlight necklace he had originally planned to give Shu Jin tonight. He still remembered the sales assistant explaining that the meaning behind this necklace was eternal protection.
He picked up the box, weighed it lightly in his hand, then without hesitation tossed it back into the depths of the drawer. The drawer closed with a soft thud, as if sealing away the last trace of warmth left in his heart.
Outside the window, the city’s neon lights continued to flicker.
But Jiang Yi’s eyes had already turned cold as frost.
He picked up the intercom and connected to his assistant, Tomorrow at eight in the morning, have Lawyer Li bring the divorce agreement to my office.
After hanging up, he opened the screenshot again.
This time, he looked at it very carefully, as if forcing himself to completely let go.
Shu Jin’s smile, Gu Chen’s hand resting on her shoulder, the candlelight on the table, and that glaring birthday message… every detail reminded him how absurd these five years of marriage had been.
He replied to Xia Ran with two words, Thank you.
Then he deleted the chat history, and along with it, the last trace of attachment he still held for this relationship.
It was late into the night, yet Jiang Yi felt no trace of sleepiness.
He turned on his computer and began dealing with the backlog of work. Only by keeping himself busy could he temporarily forget the sharp pain piercing his chest.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the city, Xia Ran stared at Jiang Yi’s brief reply, her emotions tangled and heavy.
She knew this message would become the final straw that broke this marriage.
And she… had been the one to hand it over.