Lin Yuxi arrived at the airport just as the flight from the United States touched down.
Today was the day Fu Tingchuan was returning to China.
When she thought about it, she and Fu Tingchuan had known each other for a full ten years.
Three years in university, and seven years after graduation.
If it weren’t for that night at the graduation ceremony, when they mistakenly drank something tainted and ended up in bed together, Fu Tingchuan would never have married her.
To him, she was just an ordinary classmate, nothing special at all.
But Fu Tingchuan was the heir of the Fu family in Jing City—born into a prestigious family, a favored son of heaven.
They were worlds apart.
Perhaps misunderstanding her intentions as a social climber, Fu Tingchuan had angrily boarded a flight to the United States the day after they registered their marriage.
And he had been gone for seven years.
But it didn’t matter.
He was back now.
As long as she could clarify that she hadn’t been the one who spiked their drinks that night, there might still be hope for their marriage.
Lin Yuxi stared at the arrivals gate.
Passengers streamed out one after another, but as the crowd thinned, she still hadn’t spotted the person she was looking for.
Had he changed his flight?
Just as Lin Yuxi was about to make a call, she caught sight of Fu Tingchuan in her peripheral vision.
He was pulling a suitcase with one hand, his pace unhurried.
With his perfect physique, striking features, and the sleeves of his shirt casually rolled up to reveal his strong forearms, he exuded the charm of a mature man even more than he had seven years ago.
Time had been kind to him.
But the purple suitcase in his hand seemed rather eye-catching.
Lin Yuxi was about to step forward when she suddenly froze.
A tall woman in a black trench coat, whose outfit complemented Fu Tingchuan’s suit, hurried up from behind and fell into step beside him.
Lin Yuxi recognized her.
Qin Ruoshi.
Fu Tingchuan’s childhood friend and an outstanding graduate of Jingbei University.
Everyone used to say that Qin Ruoshi was the one most likely to marry Fu Tingchuan.
But no one had expected that incident to happen, allowing Lin Yuxi to beat her to it.
That suitcase must be Qin Ruoshi’s.
Had they been together all these seven years in the United States?
Lin Yuxi took a deep breath.
Don’t overthink it.
A bond forged over more than twenty years as childhood friends wasn’t something that could be easily broken.
Besides, Fu Tingchuan had misunderstood her, and she needed to seize this opportunity to clear things up.
Lin Yuxi forced a smile and walked up to them.
“Tingchuan.”
The man she called slowly came to a stop, his brow furrowing slightly. “What are you doing here?”
Lin Yuxi’s smile stiffened, but she quickly composed herself and uttered a pointless remark: “I came to pick you up.”
“Thank you for the trouble, Yuxi,” Qin Ruoshi interjected with a smile. “I haven’t been back in seven years, so I’m not too familiar with the roads anymore. Did you drive here?”
So they really had been together these past seven years.
Lin Yuxi’s eyes stung with unshed tears. “Let me give you a ride.”
…
Ten minutes later, a small white electric car pulled out of the parking garage.
Lin Yuxi kept her eyes on the road, her hands gripping the steering wheel tightly.
She wasn’t a very skilled driver.
Her company was only a ten-minute walk from her rented apartment, so she had hardly any need for a car over the past seven years.
The air in the car was still.
Fu Tingchuan and Qin Ruoshi sat in the back, while Lin Yuxi sat alone in the driver’s seat, looking more like a ride-hailing driver than anything else.
“Where shall I drop you off, Miss Qin?”
Qin Ruoshi turned to Fu Tingchuan, her tone cheerful. “I heard from your assistant that you just bought a large apartment in the western suburbs. Would I have the honor of being your tenant?”
Fu Tingchuan pulled out his phone, typing with his head lowered, “I’ll arrange it.”
“That would be perfect.”
Qin Ruoshi flashed a brilliant smile and turned to give the address.
The air grew quiet again.
Perhaps my presence is making them uncomfortable, Lin Yuxi thought to herself.
During university, thanks to her close friend Shen Xiaoxiao, she was often invited to their circle’s dinners and gatherings.
But compared to their dazzling group, she was just a nobody.
The kind no one paid attention to.
The more unnoticed she was back then, the more famous she became after marrying Fu Tingchuan.
Now, in the circles of Jing University, everyone knew that Lin Yuxi was the one who climbed into bed to marry into wealth.
She wanted to explain, but there was no way to do so.
Because the next day, the problematic wine bottle was nowhere to be found.
With the evidence missing, Lin Yuxi had no choice but to bear the blame.
After all, she was the only one who benefited.
Bang—
A collision sound came from the front of the car.
Lin Yuxi slammed on the brakes, her mind reeling as she snapped back to reality.
Her car had hit a Porsche 911, denting the other vehicle’s rear end.
Driving distracted—a cardinal sin.
Annoyed, Lin Yuxi pushed the car door open, her limbs weak and her body feeling utterly drained.
This is going to bankrupt me.
A portly middle-aged man stepped out of the Porsche’s driver’s seat. When he caught sight of Lin Yuxi’s face, his eyes glazed over momentarily.
She was a beauty.
With a delicate, oval face, thick and slightly arched eyebrows, and soft pink lips that made one want to steal a kiss.
She looked like someone easy to bully.
“I’m sorry, sir. Please let me know how I should compensate you. I’ll cooperate fully.”
Her voice was pleasant too.
The middle-aged man’s temper instantly softened. “Oh, it’s not a big deal. How about this, little beauty? Let’s find a café and discuss it slowly?”
His gaze made Lin Yuxi uncomfortable. “Let’s call the police first.”
“Hey, what’s the rush?”
The middle-aged man reached out to grab her. Lin Yuxi stepped back repeatedly but stumbled into a warm embrace.
Turning around, she saw it was Fu Tingchuan.
She immediately took a step to the side. “Why did you come down?”
The faint scent at the tip of her nose lingered for only a second before fading, as if he carried some kind of virus.
Fu Tingchuan frowned. “You looked like you needed help.”
A very polite remark.
And not entirely wrong—their relationship was only slightly closer than that of strangers.
“I can handle it.”
Fu Tingchuan glanced back at the person in the car. “Don’t waste time.”
Lin Yuxi pressed her lips together.
Right, how could she dare delay Qin Ruoshi’s time?
“Then you handle it.”
The middle-aged man hadn’t expected the beauty to already have an owner, and one who seemed wealthy at that. He suppressed his thoughts.
Fu Tingchuan quickly called a lawyer and settled the compensation.
Lin Yuxi sat in the driver’s seat, calculating how long it would take to repay the debt.
Perhaps several years.
This scrape had not only worsened her already depleted savings but also dealt a heavy blow to her already precarious marriage.
What could be worse than having your husband become your creditor?
The car window was tapped.
Fu Tingchuan’s distinctive voice came through faintly: “Get out.”
Confused, Lin Yuxi pushed the car door open.
The next moment, she heard him say, “Move to the passenger seat.”
Was he going to drive her car?!