On the sofa, a man pressed a woman beneath him in a scene of wanton passion.
Their suit jackets lay tangled together on the floor.
Jiang Wan never believed in the excuse of losing control after drinking.
So-called drunken indiscretions were nothing but premeditated acts.
Like a madwoman, Jiang Wan stormed into the villa and pulled Sheng Lianjue away.
His blue shirt was stained with lipstick marks.
Seeing Jiang Wan, Jiang Lan showed no trace of guilt. Instead, she sat up as if it were her right.
She straightened her clothes, her eyes even holding a hint of dissatisfaction.
“Jiang Lan, have you no shame? Are you so desperate that you’d seduce a married man?”
Faced with Jiang Wan’s hysterical outburst, Jiang Lan slapped her. “Watch your tone, Jiang Wan! Who do you think you are? Just because you’re the Jiang family’s biological daughter, you think you can look down on me and shout at me? You’re nothing!”
“If this slap doesn’t calm you down, I won’t mind giving you another.”
That night, Jiang Wan didn’t sleep. Instead, she sat by Sheng Lianjue’s bedside, quietly wiping away tears until dawn.
The next morning, Sheng Lianjue awoke.
With reddened eyes, Jiang Wan confronted him, “I went to Heaven on Earth looking for you last night. Why didn’t you answer my calls?”
“I told you not to call me unless it’s urgent. Whatever you have to say, wait until I’m back.” Sheng Lianjue removed his shirt, noticed the lipstick stains, and carelessly tossed it onto the bed.
Jiang Wan grabbed a pillow from the bed and threw it at his back, tears streaming down her face. “You don’t want me to contact you because I’d get in the way of you and Jiang Lan, is that it?”
“Sheng Lianjue! How could you do this to me!”
“I’m your wife!”
Sheng Lianjue stepped closer to Jiang Wan, his gaze icy and piercing. “Stop making a scene here. Get out.”
He commanded.
“Do you even know I waited outside the club you were at for three hours last night? I called you multiple times, and you didn’t answer. I sent messages, and you ignored them. Sheng Lianjue, do you even see me as your wife? If I mean nothing to you, why did you marry me in the first place? I’m going to tell Grandma. I want a divorce!”
Sheng Lianjue dismissed her words indifferently. “A marriage between wealthy families is only about interests. Understand?”
“Get out!”
“I won’t leave. Sheng Lianjue, even if you have other women, why did you have to bring her home? And on the sofa I bought, doing those things…”
Sheng Lianjue narrowed his eyes, his gaze frigid. He pinched her chin, his muscular upper body exposed to her view as he leaned in slightly. “Apart from the marriage, everything about the Sheng family is none of your concern. Jiang Wan, know your place as Mrs. Sheng. Don’t meddle in things you shouldn’t, and don’t ask questions you have no right to.”
“You’re not the only one who wants this position.”
He shoved her away, and Jiang Wan tumbled onto the bed, utterly humiliated, like a pitiful clown.
In truth, Sheng Lianjue never crossed any lines with Jiang Lan at Junlin Mansion…
Two years later, on the very day they were truly heading for divorce, she stumbled upon Sheng Lianjue and Jiang Lan’s affair once more.
Her heart died a death greater than sorrow, and it was only after losing the child in her womb that Jiang Wan finally woke up completely.
Sheng Lianjue had a heart—it just never belonged to her, Jiang Wan.Now, she no longer sought Sheng Lianjue’s heart; she only wished for her elder brother and his family to be safe and well.
That night, Jiang Wan slept fitfully, dreaming of a girl in a pink doll dress who bore a striking resemblance to her—big-eyed, sweet, and adorable. The girl said, “Mommy, don’t be sad!”
“Baby, I’ll be your child again someday.”
“Mommy, be happy every day. Goodbye!”
Jiang Wan woke in the pitch-black night, tears streaming down her face, her heart gripped by a suffocating pain as if squeezed by a large hand, crimson blood dripping ceaselessly.
Sitting on the bed, she clutched her chest in agony, tears falling and soaking into the quilt.
“I’m sorry… It’s all my fault!”
“I didn’t protect you…”
She was not a good mother.
Like a puppet who had lost its soul, Jiang Wan sat numbly on the balcony until dawn, watching the sun rise.
Hearing faint movements next door, she snapped back to reality, wiped her tears, and stood up, her vision darkening as she nearly lost her balance. Supporting her dizzy head, she slowly walked to the bathroom, turned on the faucet, and splashed cold water on her face. Lifting her head, she saw her haggard reflection in the mirror and instantly felt years older.
She told herself: Jiang Wan, don’t be so wretched anymore.
Her hair was disheveled, her eyes red, swollen, and dry from crying all night.
She tied up her long hair, tidied herself up a bit, and prepared to go downstairs to make breakfast for Sheng Lianjue.
With the nanny absent, some tasks fell to her.
Timing it to when Sheng Lianjue would leave for work, Jiang Wan put on an apron downstairs and simply cooked a bowl of tomato and egg noodles.
Following his preference, she used less salt, brewed hand-ground coffee, and placed it on the table.
Just as she finished, Sheng Lianjue appeared in a smoke-gray shirt, exuding an air of noble elegance, tall and upright, with a suit jacket draped over his arm and a briefcase in his other hand.
Jiang Wan said to him, “There weren’t many ingredients in the fridge, so I made you a bowl of noodles.”
Sheng Lianjue handed her his suit jacket and briefcase.
She took them and set them down by the dining table.
The man stared at the bowl of noodles, his gaze fixed. Jiang Wan knew he usually preferred Western breakfasts, but she didn’t know how to make those.
Lowering her eyes, she nervously tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. “If you don’t like it, I can make something else.”
Sheng Lianjue glanced at his watch, his tone cool. “No need. I’m in a hurry.”
Just then, Jiang Lan walked in from outside, dressed in a professional pencil skirt. “Lian Jue, ready to go?”
Jiang Lan held a plastic bag containing breakfast.
Sheng Lianjue took a sip of coffee as if granting a favor. “I won’t be back tonight. Don’t wait for me.”
“I understand.” Expressionless, Jiang Wan picked up the bowl of noodles, returned to the kitchen, and dumped it into the trash.