When Shen Muyan woke up, the other side of the bed had long since gone cold.
She rolled over gingerly, her waist still aching. Shang Qi had been determined to teach her a lesson the night before. No matter how tearfully she begged him to stop, he hadn’t relented until she truly couldn’t take any more.
“Jerk…”
Muttering under her breath, Shen Muyan slowly climbed out of bed and changed into a floral dress patterned with tiny pink blossoms.
By now, the weather had already become alarmingly abnormal.
It was only April, yet the temperature had already soared past forty degrees Celsius. Shen Muyan had only just begun to realize how strange it was.
When she went downstairs, the usual household staff were nowhere to be seen. Only Aunt Jiang was waiting for her in the living room.
“Madam, you’re awake. Shall I prepare breakfast now?”
Shen Muyan nodded before asking, unable to hold back her curiosity.
“Where is everyone else?”
As Aunt Jiang pulled out a chair for her, she explained, “Sir said he’s taking you to Qinglan Mountain so you can recover your health. He doesn’t expect to return for several years, so early this morning Mr. Du settled everyone’s wages and dismissed the staff.”
“What about him? Where did he go?”
Aunt Jiang shook her head.
Shen Muyan didn’t eat much. Out of the breakfast Aunt Jiang prepared, she sampled only three dishes. While Aunt Jiang cleared the table, Shen Muyan went to the study, retrieved a property deed, and handed it over.
“Aunt Jiang, this is for you.”
Aunt Jiang took one look at it and immediately waved her hands.
“Madam, I can’t accept this. Sir already paid us an extra three years’ salary.”
Shen Muyan gently pressed the deed into her hands.
“Please keep it. I’ve already spoken to Du Ming about the ownership transfer. He’ll have someone handle the paperwork within the next couple of days.”
“You’ve taken care of me for the past three years. Now that we’re parting ways, I don’t really have anything else to give you. An’an goes to kindergarten nearby, doesn’t he? It’ll be much more convenient if your family moves in soon.”
“The weather’s been unbearably hot lately. Stock up on supplies at home, especially medicine. An’an is still so young. If he gets sick, you’ll at least have something on hand for emergencies.”
“Thank you, Madam.”
After packing everything up, Aunt Jiang carried her luggage and the property deed to her son’s car.
The enormous villa suddenly felt hollow and silent.
Shen Muyan let out a quiet sigh.
She decided to go back upstairs for another nap.
Shang Qi didn’t return until noon.
Shen Muyan was lying on the sofa in the study, bored out of her mind. Five or six tablets lay scattered around her, all downloading TV dramas.
The moment she saw him, she deliberately ignored him.
“Still angry?”
As if out of habit, Shang Qi wrapped his arms around her from behind. His lips brushed softly against hers as he coaxed her gently.
“I’m sorry, Mumu. Don’t be mad anymore.”
“You knew perfectly well that Qinglan Mountain isn’t easy to get to.”
They had suffered so much there in their previous life.
Why did they have to go back?
Just thinking about it made her chest ache. She had died on Qinglan Mountain. Shang Qi had been gravely injured there. No matter how beautiful the place was, it remained a thorn buried deep in her heart.
“Mumu…”
The moment he saw her reddening eyes, Shang Qi panicked. He kissed the corners of her eyes tenderly as he soothed her.
“Qinglan Mountain sits at a high elevation. As long as we make it through the coming torrential rains, it’ll be the safest place for the next six months. We need to stay there for about a year.”
By then, the survivor base would have matured. It would be secure, with reliable food and living conditions. He could bring Mumu there afterward, sparing her everything except the difficult journey itself.
“But you didn’t even discuss it with me.”
Clutching his hand, Shen Muyan pouted miserably.
“You never discuss anything with me. Do you think all I’ll do is hold you back?”
“No.”
Shang Qi rubbed his cheek against hers, trying to make amends.
“Mumu, I was wrong. How could you ever hold me back? Without you, I wouldn’t even want to live. I just wanted to make you happy.”
“Then don’t ever do this again.”
“I won’t.”
She had just started to climb out of his embrace when he cupped the back of her head and claimed her lips.
The kiss was fierce and urgent.
By the time he finally let her go, her lips were swollen, and her entire body had gone limp, leaning bonelessly against his chest.
Shang Qi chuckled, clearly pleased. Listening to her uneven breathing, he kissed her forehead.
“Let’s go eat.”
He straightened her wrinkled dress, then paused as though remembering something.
“Mumu, let me show you something first.”
Shen Muyan was about to ask what he meant when Shang Qi picked up a tablet.
The next instant—
He vanished.
Shen Muyan blinked.
“…What?”
Her face was the very picture of someone who had just seen a ghost.
The following second, the tablet reappeared in his hand.
Then both it and Shang Qi disappeared again.
Her eyes widened in disbelief.
“How did you do that?”
“That’s beyond human ability!”
She grabbed his hand, turning it over and examining it from every angle.
“Is it… a spatial ability?”
She had spent the morning catching up on post-apocalyptic novels. The supernatural powers varied wildly, but the disaster settings themselves felt surprisingly realistic.
“That’s right.”
Shang Qi tapped the tip of her nose affectionately.
“My Mumu is so smart.”
She spread out her own hands.
“Then why don’t I have one?”
“It isn’t time yet.”
He smiled.
“Let’s eat first. This afternoon we’ll pack our things, and if we’re quick enough, we’ll still catch the sunset.”
Watching the sunset had become Shang Qi’s deepest obsession.
In their previous life, Shen Muyan had never lived to see one.
He had buried her at the highest point of Qinglan Mountain, hoping she could watch the sunsets every day.
But later, the sky had become permanently clouded—murky and gray, with no trace of sunlight left.
He had honored her last wish and kept living.
He traveled to Huajing, helped the government establish a survivor base, and only after life had finally stabilized and the Shang family was safely settled did he return to Qinglan Mountain carrying enough food to remain there indefinitely.
He had planned to stay with her forever.
Instead, when he reached the summit, the grave was gone.
The mountaintop was barren.
He hadn’t even been able to protect her remains.
So in this life, he wanted nothing else.
He only wanted to stay by her side and let her live peacefully, free from every hardship.
Qinglan Mountain lay two provinces away from Huajing.
By the time Shen Muyan and Shang Qi arrived, it was already five o’clock in the afternoon.
An average person needed nearly two hours to climb from the foot of the mountain to the summit. Given Shen Muyan’s frail health, she had no chance of making it on her own.
Standing at the base of the mountain, she stared at the endless stone steps stretching into the distance before glancing at the stern-faced man beside her.
“Let’s head up.”
“Mm.”
Shang Qi slipped an arm around her from behind to steady her.
“We’ll be there soon.”
He wasn’t exaggerating.
During the flight, Shang Qi had told her he intended to visit a temple deep in the mountains to fulfill a vow.
As for what vow he was repaying, Shen Muyan had no idea.
She hadn’t even known there was a temple hidden up there.
Half an hour later, they reached a fork in the trail.
The path uphill led to the mountain lodge.
The trail to the left disappeared beneath a canopy of trees.
Seeing how pale Shen Muyan had become, Shang Qi’s heart clenched.
“Don’t come any farther. Wait here for me.”
She shook her head.
“I’m going.”
If he was fulfilling a vow, how could she not accompany him?
After only a brief hesitation, Shang Qi took her hand and led her down the shaded path.
Perhaps because the dense trees blocked the blazing sun, the air turned noticeably cooler the moment they entered. The oppressive heat vanished almost instantly.
After only a few minutes’ walk, Shen Muyan spotted what looked like a tiny shrine.
It could hardly be called a temple.
It was little more than a small brick structure, barely half her height, housing an old statue so weathered that its features had long since blurred beyond recognition.
Shang Qi straightened his clothes before kneeling respectfully.
He bowed three times with complete sincerity.
Shen Muyan copied his movements and knelt beside him.
She remembered that Shang Qi had never believed in gods.
His philosophy had always been simple: only what you held firmly in your own hands truly belonged to you.
Otherwise, how could a twenty-five-year-old man have forced the power-hungry elders of the Shang family into complete silence?
During the three years of their marriage, not one member of the Shang family had dared show Shen Muyan even the slightest hint of dissatisfaction.
Shang Qi’s ruthlessness inspired fear in everyone.
He didn’t rise immediately.
Neither did Shen Muyan.
They remained quietly kneeling together until a shaft of sunlight suddenly broke through the trees and fell across them.
The scorching warmth settled on her back.
Her head began to spin.
As her vision darkened and she collapsed forward, the last thing she felt was a pair of strong arms catching her.
“Mumu!”
Seeing her delicate face drained of all color, Shang Qi dared not waste another second.
He scooped her into his arms and hurried up the mountain.