United States, New York.
In the glass-partitioned bathroom, beneath the metal showerhead, stands a naked man.
His skin is bronzed, his physique well-proportioned, his abdomen tight, his legs long, but most importantly, he possesses a sexy rear end that would leave any woman breathless upon sight.
Due to his long legs and appealing backside, he has a penchant for wearing jeans that accentuate his figure. One former girlfriend once commented that when he goes shirtless and wears jeans alone, he exudes maximum charm, emitting a voltage of several million volts.
Yet, he never doubted these words were excessive praise.
He is quite confident in his appearance, but even more so in his sharp mind, which is what has allowed him to secure a place in the competitive world of Wall Street.
Having struggled for six years in a foreign land, he is no longer the clueless boy he once was. He can now proudly stand in front of anyone, showcasing his exceptional ambition and talent.
He has succeeded.
By conventional standards, that is. That’s why he could afford to buy a luxurious penthouse in the most expensive area of the Upper East Side in New York. Standing in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows in the living room, he overlooks the beautiful scenery of Central Park.
He is wealthy, he has status, he has achieved extraordinary things, and he is surrounded by all sorts of beautiful women eager to be in his arms. And he doesn’t hesitate to accept them to add some entertainment to his overly busy life.
After all, life is too dull if all you do is work. People aren’t machines; occasionally, they need to relax to move forward more actively.
Water cascades like a waterfall, washing over every inch of his skin. He closes his eyes, enjoying the sensation of the water rushing over him, and after a while, he turns off the faucet.
He dries his hair slightly, puts on a white bathrobe, and steps out of the bathroom. The marble floor is chilly, but he can’t be bothered to put on slippers, so he walks barefoot on the cold surface.
He approaches the bar and pours himself a glass of whiskey, throwing in a couple of ice cubes before swirling it around. Sipping on the drink, he walks into the study and opens his laptop on the desk.
The light below the screen flashes, indicating new emails. He opens the email software, clicks into his inbox, and quickly browses through.
Most are work-related emails, a few are spam, and then there’s one—
He narrows his eyes suddenly, scrutinizing the sender’s name, which is both familiar and unfamiliar at the same time. After a moment, a cold smirk forms on his lips.
The email is written in English, with a simple title, “Divorce Notice.”
It’s her again.
This is the third email she has sent him, the first two were in Chinese, and now she switches to English?
He reads it, his smile turning even colder.
Feifei, oh Feifei, after six years, his so-called wife seems to have become even more audacious.
Although he can anticipate what the contents might be, he still reads the entire email carefully. Perhaps he was too focused on reading because he suddenly fails to notice a blonde beauty approaching from behind, who suddenly wraps her arms around his waist.
“What are you looking at, Sean?” The blonde woman’s English carried a hint of a Southern accent, soft and languidly charming. As she asked, she curiously leaned in to see. “Divorce notice? Who sent that?”
“Nothing,” Xin Zhihuan immediately closed the laptop lid, not letting the woman see the contents of the email. He turned around, smoothly pulling away her clingy hand. “Weren’t you asleep? Why are you awake again?”
“I’m thirsty, wanted something to drink.” Seeing him holding a glass of whiskey, the woman playfully snatched it from his hand and took a sip, her blue eyes gleaming as she looked at him. “So, you really had a wife in Taiwan. When they told me, I didn’t believe it!”
“Who told you?” he asked casually, not particularly wanting to know. Gossip always spreads like wildfire and never dies out.
“Some people,” the woman shrugged, tossing her shiny golden hair. “They said you still love her and that’s why you won’t divorce her or seriously date other women.”
“They’re wrong.” Xin Zhihuan smirked ambiguously. “We haven’t divorced yet, just some annoying reasons.”
“And now? Why is she writing again asking for a divorce?”
“Things change,” he explained indifferently, leaning in to kiss the woman’s cheek before gently pushing her out of the study. “Go back to sleep; I have work to do.”
Closing the door, he shut out the annoying curiosity of the woman. Xin Zhihuan returned to his desk. Sitting down, he opened the drawer.
Deep within the drawer, quietly nestled a crystal music box. He took it out, and as the tinkling melody flowed out, he noticed a compartment beneath the dancing ballerina. Inside the compartment, there lay a male wedding band.
This was his wedding ring, unworn for six years. Yet, the promises made during the wedding ceremony seemed vividly present.
“Mr. Xin Zhihuan, do you, with all your heart, take Miss Qi Feifei as your lawful wedded wife?”
“Damn it, I do!” With this thought, Xin Zhihuan couldn’t help but curse aloud. He took off the ring and played with it between his fingers, a sharp edge of mockery forming at the corners of his lips. “Back then, you begged me not to divorce, now you’re urging me to do it. Qi Feifei, what do you take me for? A dog that comes when called and leaves when dismissed?”
The more he thought, the angrier he became, and the dark pools of his eyes lit up with smoldering flames of resentment.
“Do you think I don’t know why you suddenly want to finalize the divorce?” Because of Fang Jiajun, right? Because there’s a young entrepreneur chasing after you, so you can’t wait to marry into wealth.”
To want a divorce just to marry another man.
That’s the kind of selfish woman she is.
Suddenly, he clenched the ring tightly, the tip of his finger digging into the flesh of his palm—
“Don’t be foolish; I will never let you have it your way.”
______________
Taiwan, Taipei.
In a brightly lit restaurant, seated by the window, two women face each other. In front of one of them is a laptop and a voice recorder.
She is a journalist from a commercial magazine, and sitting across from her is her interviewee for today, Qi Feifei, the powerful woman who has been making waves in the catering industry in recent years.
“Miss Qi, I’ve always been curious, what’s the significance behind the name of your restaurant? What does ‘New York Ex’ really mean?”
“What do you mean?” Qi Feifei lifted a bone china cup, elegantly taking a sip of herbal tea.
This restaurant serves American cuisine, and during late-night hours, it also doubles as a bar. These health tea drinks are not listed on the menu; they are just the personal preference of the proprietress.
When regular customers come, if they have a request, Qi Feifei will personally brew herbal tea for them. The tea she concocts has a unique flavor, and those who love it often become addicted.
Even this journalist couldn’t resist, praising it endlessly.
“What I mean is, this is an American-style restaurant, so naming it ‘New York’ makes sense, but why add ‘Ex’?”
“New York Ex” is the full name of this restaurant.
“…If I understand correctly, ‘Ex’ usually means ‘former,’ like Ex-Wife or Ex-BF, but New York Ex? ‘Former New York’?” The journalist guessed randomly, shaking her head with a laugh. “It can’t be that, right? Or maybe this ‘Ex’ stands for Exclusive, which means ‘besides,’ so the name of this restaurant can be translated as ‘Besides New York’?”
“Hehe.” Listening to the journalist’s guesses, Qi Feifei chuckled softly. When her laughter reached her eyes, they would sparkle brightly, like neon lights suddenly lighting up at night, or like meticulously crafted diamonds. “Your conjectures are partly right, and partly wrong.”
“What does that mean?” The journalist didn’t understand.
“It means, I’m leaving it to everyone’s imagination. Whatever ‘Ex’ means, it’s up to everyone to interpret it as they please.”
“So, you’re keeping it a mystery, right?”
“A little mystery adds to the charm, don’t you think?” Qi Feifei blinked playfully with one eye. “People always like solving mysteries; when things are too clear, they lose their appeal.”
“That’s true,” the journalist agreed, admiringly looking at Qi Feifei for a while. “Just like how everyone is curious about how Miss Qi built her successful business. I heard you started from selling breakfast from a food truck and have been working like this since your student days.”
“That’s right, I started my business with a food truck…”
For nearly an hour, Qi Feifei recounted her entrepreneurial story to the journalist. While attending vocational school, she sold breakfast, and after school, she pushed the same food cart to sell late-night snacks. From that time, she excelled at brewing various types of herbal teas and pairing them with refreshing and nutritious sandwiches, which became extremely popular.
After graduation, she enrolled in a technical college’s culinary management program. In her second year, due to her mother’s serious illness, she had to drop out and shoulder the family’s financial burden.
Several years later, she saved up a sum of money for her business venture, returned to university to study, and simultaneously took out a loan to open a self-service restaurant.
Later on, her business flourished, and she opened the American-style restaurant “New York Ex” in a prime location in the city center. It boasted comfortable decor, delicious cuisine, and received rave reviews for the live bands that performed there at night, quickly making a name for itself in the industry.
Last year, she opened a branch in Ximending, with a more lively and youthful rock theme. This year, she plans to open another one, focusing on the jazz style of the American South. Just after the news was released, it already garnered enthusiastic anticipation from many mature customers.
She was young, capable, elegant, and beautiful, already a legend in the industry. She was not only admired by many white-collar women, but also pursued relentlessly by men.
Her work was busy, but her social life was equally colorful. It was rumored that her current suitor was a young entrepreneur from a listed company, with a very prominent background.
“May I ask about your romantic life?” Towards the end of the interview, the journalist couldn’t resist digging for gossip.
Qi Feifei smiled thoughtfully, contemplating how much she could reveal to maximize publicity for herself and her restaurant. Suddenly, there was a commotion at the restaurant’s entrance.
It was lunchtime, there shouldn’t be any customers arriving now…
She felt a bit surprised and looked around, only to see a delivery truck outside, two deliverymen unloading crates of fresh and delicate flowers, as well as various beautifully wrapped gifts.