As the villa door swung open, a melodious piano melody drifted through the empty space.
Gu Tingyan walked step by step toward the piano room, the music growing louder with each stride.
No one knew of this villa’s existence—except for the deceased Chu Sheng and Gu Tingyan himself.
Even Qin Shu, who had been by his side for five years, had no idea it existed.
Gu Tingyan kicked open the piano room door with a single thrust. The door slammed open with a loud “bang,” yet the piano music inside remained clear and beautiful, completely undisturbed.
His tall, imposing figure stepped inside. When his gaze landed on the woman in white seated by the piano, his pupils contracted violently.
The woman in white stopped playing. She turned around, a smile on her face as she looked at Gu Tingyan, the corners of her lips curving slightly upward. “Tingyan, I’m back.”
Her gaze fell upon the love bite on the man’s neck, and a sour ache swelled in her heart. Her eyes dimmed.
Tingyan and Qin Shu—they were actually this intimate already.
Gu Tingyan’s mind went completely blank. Seeing Chu Sheng alive and well before him, his eyes were filled with sheer disbelief. He stood rooted to the spot, staring at her intently, not daring to blink, afraid that she might vanish the very next second.
“Sheng Sheng?”
The man murmured softly, his voice steeped in deep affection and lingering tenderness. The corners of his eyes reddened, and his fists clenched tightly at his sides.
By the time Qin Shu arrived home, it was already 11 PM.
She placed her shoes in the shoe cabinet, then went into the bathroom to soak in a bath, feeling the exhaustion drain from her body.
She stayed in the tub for half an hour.
In her drowsy state, she heard the sound of the door opening, which jolted her awake.
She had almost fallen asleep in the bathtub!
“Qin Shu?” Gu Tingyan stood outside the door, knocking. His voice was low. “Are you done washing?”
The sound of splashing water came from the bathroom.
“Almost.” Qin Shu was slightly startled to hear Gu Tingyan’s voice.
She hadn’t expected him to be back this soon.
Wasn’t he going to see Chu Sheng?
Old lovers reuniting—shouldn’t they have a chat before coming home?
Gu Tingyan knew she wouldn’t be out of the bath for at least an hour. He sat on the sofa, lit a cigarette, and let the smoke curl upward, making his handsome face appear even more cold, aloof, and distant.
Qin Shu turned on the shower head to rinse off the foam, then wrapped a towel around herself and walked out.
The moment she opened the bathroom door, she saw the man sitting on the sofa, smoking, his mind heavy with thoughts.
She looked up and studied Gu Tingyan carefully. This man had always been skilled at hiding his emotions—even when something was wrong, he masked it well.
Sure enough, hearing Qin Shu come out, Gu Tingyan’s expression immediately smoothed over. He stood up with an air of calm composure, his eyes utterly unreadable.
Qin Shu pressed her lips together, a hint of melancholy creeping into her heart.
Chu Sheng was back. What was he planning to do?
He wouldn’t divorce her, would he?
If Gu Tingyan truly wanted a divorce, all she could do was wait for the day he handed her the divorce papers.
“I’m done. You can go wash now.” Qin Shu lowered her gaze, grabbed a towel to dry her hair, then used a hairdryer to finish the job.
In the beginning, Gu Tingyan had been polite but distant with her—the two of them had practically slept in separate rooms.
Even after having a child, it had been much the same. Even when forced to share a room, they slept apart.
It wasn’t until the past two years that her relationship with Gu Tingyan had begun to thaw.
Qin Shu loved him. Now that they were getting along well, she didn’t want a divorce.
Gu Tingyan: “Okay.”
Gu Tingyan picked up his clean pajamas and walked into the bathroom. The “humming” sound of the hairdryer drifted into his ears, calming his mind somewhat.
Qin Shu finished drying her hair and sat on the bed in a daze, feeling uncertain.
Gu Tingyan’s phone vibrated on the table. She called out toward the bathroom, “Gu Tingyan, someone’s calling you.”
She called out again, but only the sound of rushing water answered.
Qin Shu glanced down and saw an unfamiliar number with no saved contact name. She picked up the phone and answered, “Hello, may I ask who’s calling?”
“Where’s Tingyan?”
Qin Shu thought the voice sounded somewhat familiar, but she hadn’t heard Chu Sheng’s voice in five years, so she couldn’t quite place it.
Qin Shu said, “He’s in the shower.”
Click. The other party hung up.
The moment Gu Tingyan came out, he saw Qin Shu holding his phone. He guessed someone must have called.
Qin Shu had answered his calls before, so Gu Tingyan didn’t think much of it.
He asked, “Who called?”
Qin Shu said, “I don’t know. I asked who it was, but she didn’t say and just hung up.”
Gu Tingyan took his phone back. His WeChat buzzed several times in succession.
It was a message from Chu Sheng’s mother.
Jiang Chenxue: “Tingyan, Sheng Sheng found out about your marriage.”
“She also knows you have a four-year-old child with Qin Shu.”
Jiang Chenxue: “She couldn’t take it and tried to kill herself in the bathtub.”
Gu Tingyan’s pupils shook violently. Qin Shu didn’t miss the flash of panic and fear that darted through his eyes.
Jiang Chenxue: “Can you come see her?”
Gu Tingyan’s heart sank heavily. He raised his head and stared at Qin Shu with icy eyes. “What exactly did you say to her?”
Qin Shu was taken aback, not expecting Gu Tingyan to be so furious. She took a deep breath and said, “She asked me what you were doing.”
Qin Shu continued, “I said you were taking a shower.”
“Then she hung up the phone.”
Gu Tingyan’s gaze was terrifyingly cold, his knuckles white as he gripped his phone. “Chu Sheng slit her wrists in the bathtub and tried to kill herself!”
Qin Shu froze, rooted to the spot in shock.
Gu Tingyan threw on his coat, his face dark as he stormed out, slamming the door behind him.
Qin Shu stared at his furious expression and his retreating figure, her nose stinging with bitterness and her eyes turning slightly red.
It wasn’t like she did it on purpose.
At the hospital.
By the time Gu Tingyan arrived, Chu Sheng had already been taken into the emergency room and hadn’t come out yet.
Jiang Chenxue and Chu Xuanming sat on chairs in the hospital corridor, their faces filled with bitterness.
Chu Xuanming gave Gu Tingyan a slight nod, his face full of regret.
If only he hadn’t married Qin Shu off to Gu Tingyan back then, Sheng Sheng wouldn’t have been so desperate when she came back.
Chu Yu was sobbing uncontrollably nearby. She looked up and saw Gu Tingyan arrive, then threw herself into his arms, wrapping her arms around his waist. “Brother-in-law, you’re finally here.”
Gu Tingyan reached out and pulled her away, saying coldly, “How’s your sister doing?”
Chu Yu wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes. “I don’t know. She’s still in the emergency room.”
She looked at Gu Tingyan with a pitiful, aggrieved expression. “Brother-in-law.”
Gu Tingyan pulled a cigarette from his pocket and wanted to light it, but remembering he was in a hospital, he held back.
Hearing her call him that, he furrowed his brows slightly and turned his deep, dark eyes toward Chu Yu, warning, “Don’t call me that.”
Chu Yu pressed her lips together.
“You’ve always been my brother-in-law.”
“I didn’t call you wrong.”
“If it weren’t for that car accident back then, you would have married my sister.”
“How would that little bitch Qin Shu have gotten the chance?”
When Gu Tingyan heard her call Qin Shu a bitch, he lifted his gaze to look at her. His eyes were ice-cold, utterly merciless, as if he were looking at a dead person.
Chu Yu’s whole body trembled. She shuddered and shut her mouth.
She clenched her fists tightly, her hatred for Qin Shu burning even fiercer in her heart.
If it weren’t for her stealing someone else’s love back then, butting in, and taking advantage of the situation.