Rain fell in a steady drizzle over the mountains, shrouding Long Township in a hazy mist.
Wen Yue saw off the last few students and stood alone under the classroom eaves, staring blankly at the rain.
It had been almost a year since she came here to teach.
This was the place where her grandfather had grown up. Life here was hard, but it gave her a rare chance to breathe.
No need to endure the scrutinizing gazes of the Fu family, no need to listen to the relatives’ veiled, snide remarks…
And no need to face that careless coldness of his—the way he looked at her as if she were nothing more than a piece of furniture.
“Teacher Wen, heading back yet?” a colleague passing by with an umbrella glanced at the sky. “This rain looks like it’s going to get heavier.”
“Just about to.” Wen Yue smiled and turned to grab her lesson plans from the podium.
The sound of an engine tore through the mountain’s silence at that very moment.
She looked up and saw a black Mercedes G-Class churning through the mud, braking abruptly outside the school gate.
The door opened, and a tall man ducked out of the car.
The rain had dampened his black hair, a few strands falling across his forehead.
His sharply tailored suit was completely out of place in this drab mountain village.
It was Italian bespoke—Wen Yue recognized it. There was an entire row of that brand in his walk-in closet.
Her breath caught.
Is it him?
No. It couldn’t be him.
She quickly closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and opened them again.
The figure was still there in the rain. Those brows and eyes, that silhouette—she would recognize them even if they were burned to ash.
It really was him.
Why would he come here?
When she had decided to come teach here, she had asked for his opinion.
At the time, he’d been looking down at financial reports, not even lifting his eyelids, and just waved a hand at her casually: “Up to you.”
No questions, no concern. That was how Fu Chengyan had always been with her.
Their closest moments came at night, but by dawn, he would revert to that untouchable young prince of the Fu family.
So she had come to Long Township, and she hadn’t even thought of going back during holidays.
Going back meant being alone anyway. He never asked about her affairs.
Yet now, across the curtain of rain, Fu Chengyan’s gaze seemed to pass straight through the rain and land on her.
He walked toward her.
As he approached, Wen Yue instinctively lowered her head.
It was a habit she had developed over the past two-plus years.
In the Fu household, she was always meek and deferential, as docile as a porcelain doll without a temper.
She asked quietly, “Why are you here?”
Fu Chengyan looked at her and felt an inexplicable irritation.
Nearly a year without seeing her, and she seemed to have grown even thinner, her face unnaturally pale in the mountain humidity.
Her clothes were simple to the point of shabbiness, and she just stood there with her head lowered, like a flower wilted by the rain.
“Pack your things,” he said impatiently. “You’re coming with me. Now.”
Wen Yue’s eyes flew up, and she froze. “…What happened?”
“Grandmother isn’t feeling well. She says she wants to see you.”
“What’s wrong with her? Is it dizziness again?”
“Ask her yourself.”
“…”
In the Fu family, Old Madam Fu was one of the few people who had genuinely treated Wen Yue well.
Before Wen Yue came to teach here, the old madam had gone with the old master to Switzerland to visit their granddaughter, staying away for a whole year.
They had occasionally spoken on the phone during that time, and after returning to the country, the old madam often thought of her, always calling to ask how she was doing.
Hearing now that the old madam was unwell, Wen Yue’s heart tightened.
After a moment of silence, she answered softly, “All right, then let me ask the principal for leave first.”
She had just pulled out her phone when footsteps sounded behind her.
“Teacher Wen, why aren’t you back at the dorm yet?” The principal hurried over, his gaze pausing on her before landing on Fu Chengyan beside her. “And this is?”
Wen Yue had never mentioned to her colleagues that she was married.
When she’d left the capital in the first place, it was precisely to temporarily cast aside the identity of “Mrs. Fu” and go back to being simply Wen Yue.
Caught off guard by the question, her mind raced, and she blurted out a cover story: “He’s… he’s my cousin.”
The words had barely left her mouth when a very soft snort drifted over from beside her.
Wen Yue didn’t dare turn around to look at his expression. She gritted her teeth and kept going: “He came back to our hometown on some business and stopped by to see me on the way.”
“Oh, your cousin!” The principal greeted him warmly, looking Fu Chengyan up and down. This man carried himself with such an air—he was nothing like an ordinary relative.
“The rain is so heavy, and the mountain roads are treacherous. Why not stay the night? You can leave tomorrow once it clears up.”
Fu Chengyan looked at the rain, which was falling harder and harder. The mountain stream in the distance had already begun to turn murky. Forcing a descent would be too risky.
“Fine,” he agreed.
……
Wen Yue took him to the small dormitory where she lived.
The dorm was right behind the classroom—a single room of barely ten square meters, with a narrow balcony and a compact bathroom attached.
The furnishings were extremely simple: a bed, a desk, two chairs, plus a half-faded wardrobe standing in the corner. That was everything.
“You live in a place like this?”
Fu Chengyan’s gaze swept around the room and landed on the hard board bed, his brow knitting into a knot.
“Did the Fu family starve you of food and clothing, that you had to come out here to experience the hardships of the common people?”
Wen Yue: “…It’s nice here. Quiet.”
“Quiet?” Fu Chengyan gave a soft scoff. “What a novel way to be Mrs. Fu.”
Mrs. Fu.
Wen Yue’s heart gave a bitter twinge.
Yes, she had carried that title for two years and eight months now.
But in the end, it was all propped up by a cold, impersonal contract.
The three-year term was almost up.
When it ended, even this hollow title wouldn’t be hers to keep.
She didn’t respond to his remark. She pulled out a chair. “Have a seat first. I’ll go get dinner.”
Longxiang Primary School was close to the township government office, and the principal had specially arranged for the teachers to take their meals there.
The food was simple, but it beat instant noodles.
He said nothing, watching her hurry out the door.
Soon, Wen Yue returned with the food—two dishes and a soup, simple home-style fare served on standard cafeteria trays.
The two of them ate in silence, the room so quiet that only the sounds of chewing remained.
Fu Chengyan had little appetite. From the corner of his eye, he watched her taking tiny bites of rice from her bowl.
“How long do you plan to stay in this godforsaken place?”
“The teaching term is one year. It’s almost over.”
“Oh.” He tugged at the corner of his mouth. “And here I thought you were planning to put down roots in this little paradise and be a village woman for the rest of your life.”
Wen Yue gave a dry laugh or two, then thought for a moment before speaking carefully: “Uh, tonight you can sleep here. I’ll stay at a colleague’s place.”
Fu Chengyan’s chopsticks paused mid-motion as he looked up at her.
“What, you’re really treating me like a cousin you need to avoid?”
“It’s not that… the bed’s a bit small… I’m afraid…”
“Squeeze in,” he cut her off directly.
Wen Yue opened her mouth, but no words came out.
Squeeze in, then.
It wasn’t as if they’d never slept together before.
It was just a different place now—what difference did it make?
……
It was only after her shower that Wen Yue remembered a far more practical problem—
There were no condoms in the dorm.
Deep in the mountains, the little shop would have closed long ago at this hour.
Was she supposed to go door to door asking, “Excuse me, do you have any condoms?”
Just imagining that scene made Wen Yue cringe so hard her toes curled.
She stole a glance at Fu Chengyan.
Over the past two-plus years, he had always been direct about this kind of thing—and always… very careful about protection.
Wen Yue remembered clearly: in the bottom drawer of the master bedroom’s nightstand, there was always a full unopened box stocked.
Sometimes, when he woke her in the middle of the night, she would catch the silhouette of him tearing open the packaging, his movements brisk and practiced.
But now…
She bit her lip, her mind racing through calculations.
If tonight he really wanted to… what then? Refuse? On what grounds? Say it wasn’t convenient here? But back at the Fu family’s old estate, he had never once stopped just because things were “inconvenient.”
Wen Yue’s thoughts were a complete mess; even her motions of toweling her hair slowed.
Fu Chengyan glanced at her. “What are you spacing out for?”
“…Nothing.” Wen Yue lowered her eyes. “Just a little sleepy.”
“Then sleep early.” Fu Chengyan walked to the bed, lifted the covers, and lay down as naturally as anything.
Wen Yue shuffled slowly over to the bed and turned off the light.