Xiao Yunting was utterly stunned, his mind gone completely blank. “A divorce? Why?”
Had he lost his mind? A thirty-eight-year-old man marrying a lovely young girl as pretty as a porcelain doll—how could he ever have the nerve to ask for a divorce?
Yu Wanzhi blinked her large, limpid almond-shaped eyes. They were clear and bright, like pools of purest water strewn with glimmering stardust—yet what she said was enough to infuriate anyone. “Best not to ask. I’m afraid the guilt would drive you to jump into the lake.”
Xiao Yunting nearly laughed in exasperation. “Explain it to me! What on earth have I done that I should feel guilty enough to drown myself?”
“Because you were having an affair!” Yu Wanzhi said, face perfectly innocent.
“—!”
His thoughts ground to a halt. His mind went utterly empty, save for his heart pounding wildly in his chest.
“Xiao Yunting, you’re nothing but a heartless scoundrel!”
Whether his words back then were true or not, she had grieved for so long. Especially that first month after the divorce—she could neither eat nor sleep. Lying in bed day after day, she’d pictured him with Liu Xinyue: wondering if he held that woman in his arms just as he’d held her; if he demanded her body with the same feverish hunger he’d once shown her!
Fresh tears spilled over, rolling in great drops down her flushed cheeks.
“I begged you so hard back then! I told you I couldn’t bear to be without you—said if you’d just apologized, I could pretend none of it ever happened! But you still forced me to sign those papers. You said you didn’t want a spoiled, delicate little wife like me—you needed a capable partner who could run a home like her!”
“You told me you hated how I relied on you, how spoiled I was! But I was left abandoned at an orphanage gate the day I was born. I don’t even know when my own birthday is! And then I found you—of course I’d lean on you! Who else was there for me?”
Her cherry-pink lips ran on and on with grievances, all the while her shoulders shaking with quiet sobs. Soon, stifled whimpers escaped her throat, tears streaming down her face like loose pearls. She looked exactly like a tiny, hurt kitten—so sweet, yet so heartbreakingly pitiful.
Xiao Yunting’s heart felt seized in an invisible fist, the ache burning his throat dry. He lifted a hand to brush the tears from her cheek—but the moment his fingertips touched the dampness, it felt searing hot, burning into his skin until his whole body trembled uncontrollably.
“I…” he began, voice cracking and rough as though scraped raw by sandpaper.
Yu Wanzhi turned her face away from his touch. “And so I’ve made up my mind. I won’t marry you in this life. Just as you once said—let’s be ordinary friends forever. That way, I’ll never again have to endure that heart-shredding pain!”
Xiao Yunting lowered his gaze, staring at the tear drops upon his knuckles, his Adam’s apple bobbing slowly. Then he looked up again and asked, voice low and hoarse, “Who was she?”
Yu Wanzhi pouted. “Why? Trying to fix your regrets from the last life? Decided you’d met her too late back then, so this time you want to marry her while you’re still young?”
Why indeed?
Right now, he wanted to strangle the woman who had ruined their life together! And to strangle himself, for making his sweet girl weep so bitterly…
Abruptly, as though possessed, Xiao Yunting spun and splash—leapt straight into the lake. He dove deep, vanishing beneath the surface in an instant, leaving only ripples and spray, as if the very water applauded his madness.
“Xiao Yunting!” Now it was Yu Wanzhi’s turn to be stunned. They were talking perfectly calmly—what on earth had gotten into him?
At the sound of her cry, Xiao Yunting surfaced quickly. Gripping the side of the boat, he swiped the water from his face, then let out a low, breathless laugh. “Feeling better yet? If not, I’ll keep jumping. I’ll stay in the water until you smile again!”
Yu Wanzhi burst into laughter through her tears. “You’re ridiculous! Hurry up and get back in—don’t let the lake monsters drag you down!”
Her skin, flushed from crying, glowed with a soft, rosy hue. Her long lashes fluttered; her almond eyes, bright and alive, curved now like crescent moons, and two dimples showed sweetly in her cheeks.
That radiant smile bloomed like spring blossoms—and in that instant, it lit up his entire world.
He pushed off the water, vaulted effortlessly back onto the boat, and lay down, gazing up at the vast blue sky. “Yu Wanzhi… will you promise me something?”
“What is it?”
Sunlight gilded his firm jaw and straight nose, carving his features into sharp, striking relief. Yu Wanzhi found herself staring, momentarily lost for words.
“Let’s never speak of anything from our past life again. Let’s just live this one—properly, together.”
His gaze rested on her face, heavy with feeling: tenderness, sorrow, and a quiet, fragile hope for what lay ahead.
He never wanted to see her hurt like this again. Never wanted to feel that crushing, suffocating pain in his chest—like being squeezed in a vice! It was unbearable.
“Oh?” She tilted her head. “So you don’t want to know who that woman in your ‘affair’ really was? Nothing about Qin Mengshuang or Tian Xiao’e—Fu Zhoujing’s stepmother—and how they ended up? And your friends—Su Nian and He Liangchen—aren’t you curious how all of you turned up twenty years from now?”
Xiao Yunting’s brow furrowed faintly. “What I meant was… let’s leave the feelings part behind. Us. The rest? I’m all ears. And tell me about this ‘Yanjing Department Store’ you mentioned—what kind of place was it?”
Yu Wanzhi shifted closer and sat beside him. A soft whiff of gardenia drifted over—fresh and pure as spring water, winding into his chest and tugging fiercely at his heartstrings.
“Yanjing Department Store was your creation. Ever since it opened in 1992, it became famous for carrying the finest, most expensive goods. To many, Yanjing itself was a luxury—you could find almost anything you could ever need there.”
“Grains, cooking oil, fresh produce, clothing, shoes, bags, household goods, furniture, electronics… whatever you wanted, you could buy it. Back then, it was the largest shopping center in the capital.”
Xiao Yunting edged a little closer, a quiet, happy warmth stealing over his face. “I’ve dreamed of a place like that. So I built it—with my own hands—in another life? That’s wonderful. I want to build one here, too.”
“You know… ever since I turned sixteen, Grandfather’s been pushing me to join the army. Every time he brings it up, I refuse. I’ve never cared for being a soldier. What I truly love… is making money.”
Yu Wanzhi glanced up at him, a faint, knowing smile playing in her eyes. “So that’s why you got involved in the black market at eighteen? You must have made quite a fortune these past two years.”
Xiao Yunting chuckled low and leaned his head. “You really do know everything, don’t you, little one? I’ve done well enough. The capital’s black market is a murky place—full of all sorts of shady characters. But luckily, Zhoujing and I had both capital and backing. Things have gone remarkably smoothly.”