The wounds on his hands dried and cracked, cracked and dried again, blood crusting stickily over his knuckles.
The night passed just like that.
As dawn broke, Jiang Heng numbly picked up his phone and sent a message to Pei Yi:
【Transfer all the shares in Lingxi Interactive to Jiang Ningchu.】
It was dinnertime back home, and Pei Yi replied almost instantly:
【What do you mean?! Lingxi's momentum is huge right now—you don't want it anymore??】
A few seconds later, another message followed:
【Ohhh, you're transferring it to little Jiang, right?】
Then a third popped up:
【Big spender, boss! This isn't just about hundreds of millions… Let me guess—this is you, as her big brother, preparing a dowry for your little sister in advance?】
The word "dowry" pierced his heart without warning.
The darkness in Jiang Heng's eyes deepened.
He didn't reply. He cleaned the wounds on his hands, changed his clothes, and headed straight for the auction.
Top floor of ChillPark, the "Outbounds" lounge.
A row of cocktails at the bar refracted brilliant streaks of light. The bartender's shaker whirled through the air, ice clinking crisply.
The photographer kept adjusting the camera angle, snapping close-ups.
Lin Wei confirmed the last set of footage and called it a wrap. The colleagues dispersed, chatting and laughing.
"Honestly."
Lin Wei sank into the sofa and scooted closer to Jiang Ningchu. "Your brother's friend is really something. ChillPark's beer festival was a massive hit—you're basically our little lucky star at Firefly Creative!"
She picked up her sparkling water from the table and took a sip, nudging Jiang Ningchu lightly with her elbow: "To be precise, it's our bro who's reliable!"
Ever since learning that Lin Wei and Jiang Ningchu were childhood friends, Pei Yi had looked after Firefly Creative in every way.
Not only did he send suitable projects their way, he also warmly put in a word for them among his connections whenever anyone needed marketing planning.
Jiang Ningchu looked at the thumbs-up Lin Wei held out to her and smiled, gently clasping it.
But thinking of "our bro," who had "disappeared" for several days, the smile at the corner of her mouth faded somewhat without her noticing.
"All done?"
Pei Yi exchanged greetings with the other colleagues, pushed open the door, walked straight over, and sat down in the armchair across from the two of them.
He tilted his chin toward Jiang Ningchu. "How's it going, little Jiang? Is the work going smoothly? If it's too complicated, just tell me, and I'll get you something easier."
"Thank you, Big brother Pei Yi."
Jiang Ningchu wanted to make some polite small talk, but the words stuck in her throat—she didn't know how to phrase them—so she could only nudge Lin Wei's leg lightly with her knee.
"President Pei."
Lin Wei caught on immediately, picked up the bottle, poured a full glass, and pushed it in front of Pei Yi.
Leaning forward, she raised her own glass and smiled politely. "On behalf of Firefly Creative, allow me to toast you. Rest assured, we'll complete all these projects with quality and quantity guaranteed. We won't let your trust down."
"Hey, that's not right."
Pei Yi caught the undertone and waved his hands repeatedly. "Don't get the wrong idea—I'm absolutely not saying you got the work through connections and don't actually do anything."
He raised his glass and clinked it against Lin Wei's, his tone sincere: "I know your company's capabilities well. I've seen your previous breakout campaigns. Getting this partnership was the result of the procurement department's evaluation process. At most, I just made the introduction."
With that, he took a leisurely sip of his wine and raised an eyebrow at Jiang Ningchu. "Little Ginger is my own little sister—this small matter isn't worth mentioning."
With the client putting it that way, Lin Wei and Jiang Ningchu didn't know what to say in response, and could only quietly take a sip from their glasses.
The private room fell silent for a moment.
"So…"
Pei Yi absently rubbed the side of his glass, his gaze shifting to Jiang Ningchu. In the end, he couldn't hold it in. "Little Ginger, have you… been in touch with your brother lately?"
Jiang Ningchu had been planning to find a chance to ask him about that very thing. She shook her head. "No. He seems pretty busy?"
"Ah…"
Pei Yi let out a long sigh, his eyes drifting toward Lin Wei, but the words died on his lips.
Lin Wei caught the deeper meaning and stood up briskly. "You two talk. I'm going to the restroom."
The door closed softly.
"What is it?" Jiang Ningchu looked away from the door and turned to Pei Yi, her heart rising slightly. "Is it about my brother?"
Pei Yi didn't answer right away.
He leaned forward, poured himself a full glass of wine, drained it in one go, and let out a heavy sigh.
"Ah, your brother…"
Jiang Ningchu frowned.
Pei Yi had always been blunt and quick-spoken, wearing his emotions on his face. This hesitant, roundabout manner of his today was truly out of character.
The unease in her heart slowly grew. "Big brother Pei Yi, just say it. My brother… what happened to him?"
Seeing how anxious she was, Pei Yi clicked his tongue and downed two more glasses.
He set down his glass and looked at her steadily.
After a long moment, he spoke as if steeling himself. "Little Ginger, Big brother Pei Yi knows this isn't my place to say, but the thing is, with your brother's personality, he'd never tell you himself…"
He sat up a little straighter, his tone unusually solemn. "Promise me first—no matter what unpleasant things I say in a bit, don't take them to heart, okay?"
Jiang Ningchu was even more bewildered by his whole demeanor, and could only nod. "Okay. Go ahead."
Pei Yi took a deep breath, straightened his posture, and said gently:
"You're kind-hearted, good-tempered, and you don't like to quarrel with people—all of us brothers see that. But some things, especially major life decisions, really can't be handled so carelessly…"
"Take Dr. Zhou, for example. He's certainly handsome, and his career is respectable. But the fact that he made you suffer—that's not okay. It's just not okay!"
As he went on, his brows knitted tighter:
"It makes me hurt for your brother just thinking about it. A little sister he raised in the palm of his hand, married off just like that…"
Jiang Ningchu finally caught the point, her eyes going wide. "Married off?!"
"That's right…"
Pei Yi froze for a second before realizing she hadn't understood at all, and his tone softened:
"I know, he hasn't officially proposed yet, and you haven't said yes, but it's pretty much a done deal, right?"
"Just treat this as Big brother Pei Yi talking drunk nonsense. Think it over carefully—don't do anything on a hot-headed impulse…"
Jiang Ningchu finally understood.
Pei Yi had heard something somewhere and gotten the wrong idea.
Then Jiang Heng…
"Where's my brother?" Jiang Ningchu suddenly grew a little anxious. "Did my brother tell you this?"
"No, nothing like that."
Pei Yi didn't notice the change in her mood and kept talking on his own:
"It was me who told your brother. You know how he is—he'd never tell you any of this himself…"
"All he'd do is quietly hand over half his fortune to serve as your dowry and back you up, then stay up all night, drinking alone in silence."
"Oh, and this time he really outdid himself—went abroad and came back covered in wounds."
Half his fortune, a dowry, covered in wounds…
Jiang Ningchu's heart sank.
She bit her lower lip and pressed further, "Covered in wounds? My brother is back?"
"He's back, alright…"
Only after finishing his rant did Pei Yi actually see the look on her face. Belatedly, he added, "He's on the rooftop right now. I just got chased off by him…"
Jiang Ningchu rose and headed straight for the door.
As her hand reached for the doorknob, she paused, turning back to look at the still-dazed Pei Yi. "Brother Pei Yi, thank you for telling me all this. But you've got it wrong. Zhou Yichi and I have already broken up—it's been a while, and we're not getting back together."
With that, Jiang Ningchu pushed open the door and headed straight for the rooftop.
ChillPark's rooftop was maintained to the standard of a private garden and not open to the public on ordinary days.
Jiang Ningchu unlocked the access gate through facial recognition and pushed open the heavy fire door.
The night breeze greeted her, carrying a faint floral fragrance.
The rooftop was arranged with tasteful simplicity—elevated flower beds on both sides, and warm yellow ground lights embedded along the edges of the broad wooden platform in the center.
At a corner, before a small tea table, a familiar figure reclined in a rattan chair.
His arm was draped over his forehead as usual, but this time his palm was wrapped in a bandage, strikingly conspicuous.
Jiang Ningchu hesitated a moment, then slowly walked over.
When she'd rushed up to the rooftop, it seemed like so many words were clogged in her chest.
But now that she actually saw him, she didn't know where to begin.
Standing in front of him, she only asked quietly, "What happened to your hand?"
Hearing her voice, Jiang Heng looked up, a flicker of surprise crossing his eyes. He instinctively sat up a little straighter, tucking the injured hand to his side. "How did you get up here?"
"I already saw it."
Jiang Ningchu caught his movement with sharp perception. She sat down beside the rattan chair, her gaze falling on his hand. "What happened to your hand?"
"Boxing. Just a minor injury."
Jiang Heng said it casually, leaning forward to pick up the crystal glass from the tea table and downing the wine in one gulp.
Then he settled back into the chair, crossed his long legs, and closed his eyes to rest again.
Jiang Ningchu frowned.
An inexplicable surge of anger suddenly welled up from the bottom of her heart, running wild in every direction.
She quietly watched his cold, distant demeanor, her chest tight with suffocation.
There was so much she wanted to ask:
How bad is the injury? Does it still hurt?
When did you get back? Did everything go smoothly abroad?
I promised to treat you to dinner—why didn't you tell me you were back?
And…
When you heard I was getting married, why would you rather suffer alone than come ask me face to face?
"You already know?"
Jiang Ningchu pushed down the thoughts churning in her heart and spoke in a low voice, "Did Brother Pei Yi tell you?"
Silence.
Still silence.
After who knows how long, Jiang Heng's throat bobbed heavily, and he gave a low grunt of acknowledgment.
"…"
Jiang Ningchu bit her lower lip, her nails digging deep into her fingertips. "And then?"
Jiang Heng lazily lifted his eyelids, rose, picked up the document envelope from the tea table, and placed it in front of her. "Sign it."
Jiang Ningchu froze for a moment.
She slowly picked up the envelope and drew out the documents inside.
A Lingxi Interactive equity transfer agreement.
Jiang Heng's entrepreneurial experience during his university years—Lin Wei had briefed her on it after the industry cocktail party.
On the surface, he was the man in charge of Jiang International, but beyond that identity, he was also the founder of Lingxi Interactive and Xindong Technology.
As the most sought-after leading company in the domestic Brain-Computer Interface field, the value of Lingxi Interactive's equity went without saying.
Not long ago, Lingxi Interactive had officially announced a strategic partnership with the Medical School of Nancheng University, and Professor Zhuang Mingyuan's team had formally moved into the laboratory.
The moment the news broke, the stock price climbed steadily.
Pei Yi's words crashed back into her ears without warning:
"He'll just quietly hand over half his fortune to serve as your dowry and back you up, then stay up all night drinking alone."
Half his fortune.
Backing her up.
Zhou Yichi had joined Lingxi Interactive's laboratory, and then, Jiang Heng had given Lingxi Interactive to her.
Her eyes stung uncontrollably, growing damp.
Plop—
A tear landed on the paper, blooming into a small blurry water stain.
Then a second drop, a third…
She hurriedly raised her hand to wipe them away, but the more she wiped, the more they came.
The grievances she had suppressed all night, mixed with anger, suddenly all dissolved into bitterness and guilt.
Fragmented details pieced themselves together without warning: he remembered her allergens, knew her favorite desserts, had been part of the highlights of her life, had even helped her keep it from Su Wanqing so she could do the work she wanted…
When he heard she was getting married, despite his doubts and worries about "her choice," he had still given her half his fortune as a safety net.
So…
All these years.
She had been avoiding him, and he knew perfectly well she was avoiding him.
He had chosen to protect her silently, in a way that left no trace.
Jiang Ningchu had always believed that after her parents died, she was all alone in this world.
With no one to depend on.
The Jiang family had given her so much love—so much that receiving it always made her uneasy.
Afraid of becoming a burden, afraid of never being able to repay it, afraid that she was ultimately just an outsider being kindly taken in…
The transfer agreement in her hands was too heavy; it weighed on her until she could barely breathe.
It was only at this moment that she realized there really was someone who could support her decisions unconditionally, regardless of right or wrong;
Only now did she belatedly understand how profound a love she had ignored all these years…
Jiang Heng noticed something was wrong with her, his brow furrowing slightly. "What are you crying about?"
"Big brother…"
Jiang Ningchu lifted her tear-soaked eyes, met his unfathomable gaze, and the tears broke loose. "I broke up…"
"Sob, sob, sob…"
"I broke up, Big brother…"
She buried herself in Jiang Heng's arms, sobbing uncontrollably.
"I broke up, so these… aren't needed anymore…"
"Take them back… sob, sob… I don't want them, take them back…"
Jiang Heng caught the back of Jiang Ningchu's head with one hand, his whole body going rigid.
His mind went completely blank.
She broke up.
He didn't know how to react.
There was none of the expected relief, nor any sharp pain—only a numb, hollow blankness.
Then came a dizziness, like blood rushing backward to the top of his head.
He couldn't think.
"How many times have you cried over him?"
His throat moved, his palm resting against her soft hair, his voice pressed very low. "Can't you really let him go?"
"…"
"Sob, sob, sob…"
Hearing his misunderstanding, Jiang Ningchu cried even harder.
Gasping for breath, she choked out through her sobs, her words muffled:
"It's not because of him… it's my fault, I made you angry…"
"It's because I kept avoiding you that you never told me anything, I know…"
"I'm sorry, Big brother, I should have told you sooner. I'm sorry, don't give up on me…"
Jiang Heng froze completely.
Her sobs, mixed with her muffled words, burrowed into his ears, piecing themselves together and reassembling in his blank mind.
Not over Zhou Yichi.
Was it… for his sake?
His breathing stalled for an instant.
Almost on instinct, he gripped her shoulders and pushed her slightly away from his chest.
The dim yellow glow of the floor lamp lit up the tear stains on her face, her nose tip red from crying, and her glistening eyes…
They were filled with guilt, and utterly undisguised heartache.
"You…" His Adam's apple bobbed, his voice terribly hoarse. "Say what you just said again."
Jiang Ningchu had cried it all out, most of her emotions spent. She pulled out a tissue and wiped her face haphazardly, mumbling softly:
"Pei Yi told me—you all misunderstood…"
"Zhou Yichi and I broke up a while ago. I didn't know anything about a proposal, and I have no intention of getting back together."
Jiang Heng froze, as if he couldn't comprehend.
Seeing his look of disbelief, Jiang Ningchu's eyes grew hot again. She lowered her head and muttered, "I'm sorry, Big brother, for worrying you…"
A single tear fell onto the back of his hanging hand, sliding along a vein into his bandage, bringing a wave of coolness.
Unconsciously, he clenched his fist. The wound pulled, but he felt no pain.
He relaxed, then clenched it again.
Crimson blood slowly seeped out.
At last, he was beginning to come back to himself.
"You can look after me…" Jiang Ningchu's voice was muffled, thick with congestion.
Yes, of course he would look after her.
He was the one who picked her up in the rain, the one who took her away on the mountain road, the one who put his arm around her at the banquet.
As her Big brother, how could he not worry…
But he hadn't said a word about it.
As if afraid he would vanish the next second, Jiang Ningchu buried her head back into his chest, her arms wrapping around his waist. "Big brother, you can look after me… Please don't stop caring about me."
Jiang Heng's breath caught.
The hands hanging at his sides almost lost control, aching to pull her into his very body, to press her into the depths of his heart.
He could hardly believe it.
He had thought it was all over.
It turned out—it had only just begun.
If this was the gamble fate had set up, then it was his turn to hold the dealer's hand.
"I won't."
Jiang Heng suppressed everything he felt, his arms closing around her. Restraining himself, he lowered his head and pressed a barely perceptible kiss to the top of her hair. "How could I ever stop caring about you."