Shen Yu jolted awake.
He tried to call for a servant, but his throat was so swollen and painful that only hoarse, broken sounds came out.
With no choice, he struggled to sit up and made his way downstairs to get some water.
“You’re kind of pitiful.”
That childish voice still seemed to echo in his ears.
Shen Yu had never imagined that the word “pitiful” would ever be associated with him.
But the pity in Gu Nianqing’s eyes back then had been so clear, so real—like a dull blade, slowly carving away at his pride.
Those words felt like a verdict. In the years that followed, no matter how many times he tried to deny them, reality kept proving them true.
Growing up, he had countless followers, yet very few he could truly call friends.
As a child, most of those kids were simply obeying their parents’ arrangements—doing everything they could to please him and stay close to him, as proof of their families’ ties to the Shen family.
Now that they were all grown, their thoughts had become even more complicated and calculating. In their circle, “friendship” had become something almost laughable.
None of them would ever stand up for him the way Gu Nianqing did for Xu Yingjia.
At nine years old, Shen Yu realized with frustration that he envied Xu Yingjia.
At twenty-five, he still did.
No matter how often he told himself that the Xu family was just an upstart and their daughter wasn’t worthy of his envy, the emptiness in his heart couldn’t be denied.
Sometimes, Shen Yu felt like he had been cursed by Gu Nianqing.
At first, all he wanted was to take away Xu Yingjia’s most loyal protector—to make her his.
He never expected it to be this difficult.
Whether he tried to pressure her, win her over, or even threaten and bribe her, that woman was always like the wind—slipping through his fingers again and again.
And now, she had even become someone else’s wife.
—A choice she made just to break free from his control.
He had pushed the woman he had longed for over a decade—the “white moonlight” in his heart—into another man’s arms.
Shen Yu sat on the stairs, clutching his head, letting out a low, unwilling growl.
…
At that very moment, that “other man” was cooking slices of beef for that “other man’s wife.”
Although Qin Fu was nearly 1.9 meters tall, he was a true southerner at heart. His taste in food was the complete opposite of his style in bed—very light and mild.
Coincidentally, Gu Nianqing couldn’t eat anything spicy these days, so the two of them quickly agreed on having a lighter dinner.
Thanks to a newly launched travel app by Qimeng, Gu Nianqing managed to find a beef hotpot restaurant near her residence—an area she herself wasn’t very familiar with.
Rumors were already spreading in their social circle that Shen Yu had gone crazy over her. Gu Nianqing had no intention of being spotted while eating and having someone tip him off, so she avoided the high-end restaurants typically frequented by wealthy second-generation elites.
Besides, Qin Fu was from a province famous for its food culture. If he approved of a place, it was unlikely to disappoint.
After ordering, Gu Nianqing looked at the clear, almost transparent broth with some suspicion.
“Isn’t this a bit too bland?”
Qin Fu pushed a bowl of dipping sauce toward her and smiled.
“Trust Chairman Qin’s judgment.”
“Tch~”
Gu Nianqing huffed playfully, dipped her chopsticks into the sauce, and tasted a bit. Her eyes immediately lit up.
“Oh, this is amazing!”
Qin Fu rested his chin on his hand as he watched her. His usually sharp features softened, gentle enough to make one lose themselves in them.
“You really haven’t changed at all.”
He murmured.
“What?”
“…Nothing.”
Qin Fu stood up and walked toward the open kitchen with its glass panels.
Gu Nianqing looked puzzled.
“Old Qin, where are you going? The meat’s already here.”
Without turning back, he said, “Going to get you something good.”
She watched as he started chatting with the chef, who wore a tall white hat. The dialect they spoke drifted over in fragments—she couldn’t understand a single word.
Whatever Qin Fu said made the chef smile knowingly. He then pulled out a plate of fresh, red slices of meat from below—beautifully marbled with streaks of white and red, so appetizing it made one drool just by looking at it.
Gu Nianqing: ?
Qin Fu took the plate and strode back with his long legs.
Gu Nianqing clicked her tongue.
“What kind of move is that?”
Qin Fu lowered his voice.
“Mm… a little special treatment for a fellow townsman, maybe?”
With practiced ease, he used a strainer and long chopsticks, timing it perfectly as he swished the beef slices in the broth until they turned a soft pink, then placed them into Gu Nianqing’s bowl.
“Go on, try it.”
The tender, melt-in-your-mouth texture filled her senses. Gu Nianqing nodded eagerly, giving him a big thumbs-up.
“This is amazing! It’s so good—and the sauce is incredible too!” she praised sincerely. “Old Qin, with skills like yours, your future wife is going to be so lucky!”
Qin Fu: …
How could such warm lips say something so cold?
He forced himself to hold onto his crumbling good mood and tried to correct her way of thinking.
“Why wait for the future? Aren’t you happy right now?”
“That’s exactly because I’m happy right now!” Gu Nianqing picked up some meat for him, her eyes full of sincerity. “That’s why I’m so sure that in the future—”
“Why don’t we just stay like this?”
Qin Fu couldn’t help but interrupt her.
“Nian Nian, even after the agreement ends, we can still keep going.”
Gu Nianqing froze.
The steam rising from the pot blurred his expression, but she thought she heard a hint of strain in his voice.
Her heart skipped a beat.
And then, just as she always did, she forced her reason to take over—locking away every flicker of emotion.
Under the table, she lightly nudged his leg with her knee.
The intimate gesture softened his expression. Across from him, the young woman spoke gently:
“Qin Fu, do you know how much I like you as a person… You’re so good—how could I possibly bear to…”
Qin Fu let out a breath of relief.
As long as she couldn’t bear to let go, that was enough.
“…how could I bear to let a marriage that started as a transaction bind you for life?”
The rest of her words froze the faint smile on his lips.
“Nian Nian—”
“I’m already selfish enough. Even if I don’t regret my choices… once everything here is over, if I shamelessly keep occupying this place, I’d feel guilty too.”
Gu Nianqing imitated his earlier action and tried to cook the meat herself, but her timing was off—the slice came out overcooked.
“…So that’s how you see it.”
Qin Fu didn’t complain about her poor skills. Ignoring her attempt to stop him, he calmly ate the tough, overcooked piece of meat.
“Nian Nian, the way you love people is just as bad as your cooking.”
Gu Nianqing: …
That stung.
But Qin Fu was wrong about one thing.
It wasn’t that her way of loving was bad—she simply didn’t know how to love at all.
Gu Nianqing was painfully self-aware.
A child’s behavior is a reflection of their parents.
Gu Sheng’s madness, Xu Mingzhen’s avoidance—those patterns had left deep, indelible marks on her life.
Just keeping her own behavior within the bounds of “normal” already took all her effort.
She knew this marriage, at its core, was just a deal—to free her company, Qimeng, from the constraints of the Xu and Shen families. And she also understood the feelings she had gradually developed for Qin Fu along the way.
Precisely because of that, once everything was settled, she knew she had to walk away.
Gu Nianqing was afraid of becoming another Gu Sheng.
Or rather, she didn’t want Qin Fu to discover that she had always been a second Gu Sheng.
Her phone suddenly vibrated.
She snapped out of her thoughts and looked down at the message.
“Oh…”
She blinked, her tone instantly returning to its usual playful warmth, as if the heavy conversation moments ago had never happened.
“Old Qin, Madam wants to meet us.”