Huo Mian couldn't remember how she got home. She sat alone in the darkness for a long time, everything that had just happened feeling like a dream, so unreal. A faint pain lingered on her cheek—that was the handprint Ning Zhiyuan had just left.
They had met in college, and Ning Zhiyuan had pursued her for a long time. She had carefully considered before agreeing to be with him. Ning Zhiyuan wasn't a particularly outstanding boy, but he was genuinely kind to Huo Mian. She thought... she would just live an ordinary life like this.
Unexpectedly, at this critical juncture, such an incident occurred. Qin Chu's return seemed to disrupt all her rhythms.
After a long while, she snapped back to reality and picked up her phone. There were over a dozen missed calls, all from Zhu Lingling.
There were also three unread WeChat messages.
Huo Mian slowly opened the WeChat page, and Zhu Lingling's three messages were clearly visible.
"Xiao Mian, why aren't you answering your phone? Did something happen?"
"Xiao Mian, Qin Chu left shortly after you did. What's going on with you two? Is he trying to reconcile with you?"
"Xiao Mian, speak up, are you okay?"
Though Huo Mian had a thousand words she wanted to say, her mood at that moment had hit rock bottom, and she had no desire to speak.
After a moment's thought, she simply sent a reply to Zhu Lingling.
"I'm a bit tired today. I'll tell you the details when we meet another day. I'm fine, no need to worry."
Tens of seconds later, Zhu Lingling sent another reply.
"Okay, good to know you're alright, Xiao Mian. Some things, once they arrive, always have to be faced. I hope you understand."
Regarding all the past events between Huo Mian and Qin Chu, no one understood them better than Zhu Lingling.
As Huo Mian's best friend throughout her three years of high school, Zhu Lingling had witnessed her passionate love affair with Qin Chu back then.
Unfortunately... after that incident, they went their separate ways.
She picked up her phone and tried Ning Zhiyuan's number again. It showed that his phone was off.
She knew this matter was too sudden and too cruel for Ning Zhiyuan.
Her past had ended up making him pay the price. Whose fault was that?
In the darkness, Huo Mian sighed softly. She knew that what was meant to come would always come, and there was no hiding from it.
Wealthy suburbs
A silver-gray Audi R8 slowly drove into an ancient-looking estate. A dozen security guards saluted respectfully.
With a creak, the car stopped at the entrance. Qin Chu got out with an expressionless face, opened the door, and walked inside.
Mrs. Qin immediately stood up and smiled, "Ah Chu, you're back. Your father and I have been waiting for you to eat. Go wash your hands quickly."
Qin Chu didn't reply. Instead, he walked directly to the dining room, sat down beside his father, Qin Yumin, and stared at him with a complex expression.
"Dad, I want to ask you something."
"What?" Qin Yumin looked at his son's unfriendly gaze, feeling an inexplicable unease.
"Back then, what methods did you use against her family to break up Huo Mian and me?"
After Qin Chu asked this, both Qin Yumin and Mrs. Qin's faces changed dramatically.
"Ah Chu, what... what are you talking about?" Mrs. Qin chuckled awkwardly.
Qin Chu remained silent, just staring fixedly at his father, trying to find something in his expression.
After Qin Chu went abroad, he hadn't returned for seven years. All these years, he didn't know what had happened.
However, he had heard a strong sense of hatred in Huo Mian's tone just now.
With his intelligence, he couldn't help but suspect that his parents had used some despicable means against Huo Mian's family.
Being stared at like this by his son made him very uncomfortable.
After a long pause, Qin Yumin lowered his eyelids, seemingly intentionally avoiding the topic, and replied, "Why bring up something that happened so long ago?"
"Just tell me directly whether you did or not. I want an answer."
The expression on Qin Chu's face as he said this was terrifyingly cold.
"Ah Chu, we were doing it for your own good back then, anyway, it's all in the past, so you just..." Mrs. Qin's words were cut short as Qin Chu suddenly stood up.
"So that's how it is."
From his mother's tone, he had already heard the answer he wanted, which seemed to be expected. After saying this, Qin Chu got up and walked towards the bedroom on the second floor.
"Ah Chu, rest after you've eaten," Mrs. Qin said, worried about her son, still reminding him as she watched him leave.
But she received no response, only an extremely cold back.
"Yumin... Ah Chu... is he still unable to forget that girl? So many years have passed, and our son has finally returned to the country. Please, don't let anything go wrong again, what do you think?" Seeing her son's attitude, Mrs. Qin felt a chill in her heart.
It had been seven years, and her son had finally returned. She really didn't want things to be as tense as before, all because of a woman.
"Don't worry about it. He's an adult; he can make his own judgments," Qin Yumin said, picking up his chopsticks and continuing to eat with a hint of anger.
Qin Chu returned to his room, picked up his phone, and dialed a number.
"Help me look into something, the faster the better." He said, then decisively hung up the phone.
Then he slowly opened a locked drawer and took out a yellowed photograph.
In the photo, a girl with a ponytail had delicate features and a sweet, charming smile with a pair of small dimples.
Although she wore a loose school uniform, it didn't detract from her beauty at all.
"Xiao Mian, I miss you so much."
He spoke in a low, hoarse voice, as if spellbound.
Memories, along with the photo, seemed to drift back to seven years ago.
Blue sky, white clouds, the school field, and... his beloved girl.
The next morning,
Huo Mian woke up early and took the bus to the hospital for work. After finishing her tasks, she brought the bone soup she had prepared that morning to find Ning Zhiyuan, wanting to explain what happened yesterday.
Ophthalmology Clinic
When Huo Mian entered, she saw a nurse named He Man carefully bandaging a wound on Ning Zhiyuan's forehead.
"Oh my goodness, how did you get this, Dr. Ning? How could you be so careless?" The female nurse's voice was overly sweet and uncomfortable to listen to.
"Zhiyuan," Huo Mian softly called from the doorway.
Both of them turned around. The moment they saw Huo Mian, Ning Zhiyuan's face was expressionless, and she couldn't tell what he was thinking.
"Oh, Huo Mian, you're here. Well then, you two talk. I'll go out first."
"Don't go, continue bandaging me," Ning Zhiyuan suddenly reached out and grabbed He Man.
"Dr. Ning, well... perhaps your girlfriend should bandage you instead, huh," He Man said with an awkward smile.
Just as Huo Mian was about to say something, she heard Ning Zhiyuan say, word by word, "She's no longer my girlfriend."
"What did you say?" Huo Mian slightly frowned.
"I said we broke up yesterday. You're not my girlfriend anymore. I'm not worthy of a distinguished girlfriend like you, so you should go find your wealthy ex-boyfriend. He has luxury cars and mansions, while I'm just a poor doctor. It would be too unfair for you to be with me," Ning Zhiyuan's words were very bitter.
"Zhiyuan, I came today precisely to explain yesterday's events to you," Huo Mian said, taking a deep breath and speaking calmly.