When her tears dripped onto his skin, Zhui Ye at first thought the night sky had suddenly started drizzling.

Only then did he belatedly realize that it was Wu Man shedding tears.

Her emotional shift was so dramatic and came from nowhere, making Zhui Ye panic instantly. He hurriedly coaxed her in a low voice: “Why are you crying?”

However, Wu Man said nothing, only silently flowing tears, like a mountain spring that had flowed past many rocks along its route, stumbling into gentle terrain. But to Zhui Ye, this fine spring was comparable to Niagara Falls—he was the one getting drenched.

He couldn’t help feeling a bit sad, wondering if Sister still harbored lingering attachment to Yu Jiaze.

Although he believed Yu Jiaze wasn’t a good person—he didn’t respect his Sister, therefore he didn’t deserve to have her—how could a third party truly see clearly into two people’s affairs? What kind of feelings Wu Man held for Yu Jiaze, he could never see through, and she always avoided discussing it.

But the ten years between them was an undeniable fact.

Actually, he didn’t mind. For him, he just needed to charge forward.

If once didn’t work, then twice. If twice didn’t work, then three times. Being rejected didn’t matter either. He wanted to give her the chance to choose, not force her into a corner with no way out.

He hadn’t expected this day would arrive so quickly, though this result wasn’t brought about by him.

—He Huiyu told him it was because Yu Jiaze got engaged, and the other party wasn’t Wu Man.

So that’s why she finally made up her mind to leave.

Though he’d always told himself it didn’t matter, when he personally witnessed what seemed to be tears Wu Man shed for him, he realized how much he actually cared.

It was like knowing spring was coming soon, jumping into the water full of anticipation, only to find the river hadn’t thawed—getting his head bloodied by the ice.

*

When she woke the next day, Wu Man found herself lying in the bedroom bed.

Her head was still throbbing faintly. She stared blankly at the ceiling in a daze, wondering inwardly, so this is what blacking out from drinking feels like? She only remembered watching “Loser Becomes King,” but she couldn’t recall what the movie was about.

As for what happened after, she had even less recollection.

She looked down at herself—no stickiness, changed into a brand new set of pajamas.

…He bathed and changed her?!

Wu Man’s heart jumped in alarm. She didn’t quite dare leave the room to confirm.

Although when filming the bed scene portion of “Spring Night,” she’d also gone half-naked into battle, this time…

Her face turned green with regret piling up in her heart. Getting drunk really was a mistake. Having experienced it once, she definitely didn’t want a second time.

Wu Man took a deep breath and still pushed the door open to leave the room.

A person sat on the living room sofa outside. Wu Man looked carefully—it was actually Wei Wei.

“Sister Man, you’re awake!” She’d been playing on her phone and immediately put it down, pointing toward the kitchen, “I made porridge, please drink some quickly.”

“What are you doing here?”

“I came last night…” She spoke evasively with a strange tone, “Zhui Ye called me, said you were drunk and asked me to come take care of you.”

“So…” Wu Man pointed at the clothes on her body.

Wei Wei nodded: “I still helped you clean up without your permission, otherwise sleeping would be very uncomfortable. Please don’t mind.”

Wu Man’s shoulders slumped as she breathed a sigh of relief: “Oh, it’s fine.”

She pulled out her phone and sent him a message asking: “When did you go back last night?”

The other end replied almost instantly.

“Yeah, Sister woke up so early. Does your head feel uncomfortable?”

“It’s okay… but I absolutely won’t drink this much again next time.” She hesitated for a while but still typed: “I didn’t make a fool of myself when I was drunk last night, did I?”

“Of course you did… I even recorded it all.”

“?!”

“Delete it!!”

“Just teasing you. When Sister gets drunk, she’s very cute.”

These last three words gave Wu Man goosebumps all over her arm.

Wei Wei curled herself in the corner, observing Wu Man’s Sichuan opera face-changing—sometimes frowning, sometimes speechless, sometimes revealing a hint of a smile. She couldn’t help but sigh: beautiful women really have it good. She’d just said goodbye to a rich and powerful big shot, and now a young Best Actor was showing up at her door late at night… Hopefully when she turned thirty, she’d have such romantic fortune too. Amen.

*

Wu Man hastily finished the porridge. Her muddled brain finally cleared somewhat. Remembering she had to return to the Tang residence tonight for a family dinner made her feel annoyed from the bottom of her heart.

A sanctimonious father, a sister whose ambitions exceeded her abilities, and…

Thinking that Yu Jiaze would probably also be present, Wu Man’s brow never relaxed.

At seven in the evening, Wu Man drove into the Tang family estate half an hour early.

This enormous mansion was where her blood-related father and sister had grown up. She got out of the car and roughly swept a glance—once again confirming she really hated this kind of incredibly spacious large house. It always made her think of the old foreign houses in horror movies—gloomy, decayed, deathly still.

The butler came from the main hall to greet her: “Eldest Miss, please follow me.”

Wu Man paused, saying: “Just call me Wu Man.”

He turned a deaf ear, continuing on his own: “It’s a bit dark, please watch your step.”

…Was this person deaf?

After Wu Man helplessly followed him into the main hall, her facial expression immediately changed, becoming full of smiles.

Tang Jiarong was already seated, wearing a blue-green traditional Chinese outfit, trying to add some ethereal aura to his vulgar flesh.

He satisfactorily beckoned to Wu Man: “You came quite early. Tangtang and Jiaze are coming together, they’ll arrive soon.”

“Do you really think it’s appropriate for me to be here?” Wu Man lowered her eyes, pretending to say very uneasily, “After all, Yu Jiaze and I…”

“He’s your brother-in-law now, what other thoughts could he have!” Tang Jiarong furrowed his brow, “Don’t worry, I’ll lecture him a couple times. From now on, we’re all family—you’ll always see each other. Settling down is fundamental.”

“Mm, Dad is right.”

The corners of Wu Man’s mouth, hidden in shadow, lifted slightly upward—this was precisely the purpose of her agreeing to attend tonight’s family dinner.

She wanted to make Yu Jiaze recognize more clearly and profoundly that she was no longer a caged bird for him to manipulate at will.

Wu Man took out one of the gift bags and handed it to Tang Jiarong.

“This is a gift I prepared for Dad.”

Tang Jiarong’s expression brightened: “Coming to dinner and even bringing gifts, really.”

But his hands couldn’t wait to tear open the box, seeing a canister of tea leaves inside.

“This is yellow jade tea. When you get older, blood sugar easily runs high. Drinking this regularly can lower blood sugar, promote water metabolism, and benefit qi.”

Someone of Tang Jiarong’s age and background—what rare treasures hadn’t he seen? So Wu Man didn’t pick anything precious either.

But down-to-earth concern was rare for him.

Tang Jiarong let out a slight sigh, this breath containing too many emotions.

He beckoned to the butler: “Brew me a cup now.”

When the butler brought the brewed yellow jade tea to the table, the other two also arrived. The sound of an engine turning off came faintly from the courtyard, followed by the alternating sounds of high heels and leather shoes drawing closer.

Wu Man faced away from the entrance but immediately felt two gazes from behind.

Tang Jiarong smiled: “You’re here, sit down quickly. Your sister already arrived first.”

Wu Man glanced at the two people. Tang Yingxue intimately held Yu Jiaze’s elbow, while Yu Jiaze was like a support frame for disabled people’s rehabilitation, lifeless as she hung on him.

The two people’s gazes met in midair. She immediately looked away.

Hearing Tang Jiarong’s words, Tang Yingxue didn’t respond, but she also didn’t confront Wu Man.

Wu Man guessed Tang Jiarong had already informed Tang Yingxue about the transplant exchange. Though Tang Yingxue was arrogant, she wasn’t stupid. Who didn’t hope to live a long life? Having life meant continuing to enjoy the mortal world. Being reborn, one couldn’t necessarily be born into such a good situation again.

In her eyes, she was no longer any kind of sister, but a mobile backup organ reserve.

Wu Man didn’t mind her attitude at all. She took out two gift boxes she’d prepared early, pushing one to Tang Yingxue and the other to Yu Jiaze.

She said word by word: “This is a lovers’ knot prepared for Tang Tang and brother-in-law, wishing you a hundred years of harmonious union.”

Hearing this, Tang Yingxue’s expression finally wasn’t so sour.

She’d always been bothered by Wu Man’s former identity, even thinking she’d entered the Tang family through every means to continue entangling with Yu Jiaze, since she could no longer stay by his side with the status of mistress.

But now she’d given this gift and said this in front of Yu Jiaze—at least she knew her place.

As for this lovers’ knot… heh.

Tang Yingxue snorted coldly, sweeping the gift aside, saying: “I’m hungry. Where’s Liu Ma? Hurry up and serve the food!”

Tang Jiarong furrowed his brow and sighed darkly, but ultimately said nothing.

Yu Jiaze opened the packaging, his gaze lingering on that lovers’ knot with an inscrutable expression.

“As an older sister, Manman put thought into this gift.” Tang Jiarong took advantage of the moment to say: “Jiaze, although you just got engaged to Tangtang and haven’t had much contact before, there may be many things you still don’t know. Our Tangtang has a big temper and a childish nature—you must be more accommodating. Between husband and wife, just like this lovers’ knot, as long as hearts are together, everything else is negotiable.”

Tang Yingxue immediately said loudly: “Dad, why do you only belittle me in front of Brother Jiaze? I’m not like that!”

Tang Jiarong laughed: “See, see, there it is.”

Yu Jiaze’s fingers pinched the red tassel of the lovers’ knot, smiling very appropriately.

But Wu Man had spent ten years with him and clearly knew what every corner of his eyes and brows expressed. The so-called appropriate smile was actually a kind of weariness that flowed out after extreme restraint of disgust and irritability.

“Father-in-law is right.”

“Still calling me father-in-law?”

Yu Jiaze paused: “Dad.”

Tang Jiarong satisfactorily sipped the yellow jade tea in his hand. Yu Jiaze stared fixedly at Wu Man, raising his lips: “I also need to thank Sister for this great gift. I like it very much.”

Wu Man endured his gaze. He was like a deity who’d caught a believer who betrayed him among thousands, and she was Jesus nailed to the cross.

But sorry, today Jesus was going to rebel. Who told her she’d never been someone who believed in deities?

Wu Man ate as if seeing nothing, thinking about finishing early and leaving early.

Yu Jiaze withdrew his gloomy gaze. When he turned his face away, it was already full of tenderness.

He picked up Tang Yingxue’s empty bowl, ladling soup for her, asking with concern: “The weather’s cold, drink some soup before eating to warm your stomach.”

Tang Yingxue froze, receiving the soup he handed over with both hands: “Thank you, Brother Jiaze.” Not caring that the soup was still hot, she poured it into her mouth.

“Drink slowly.” He directly used his thumb to wipe away the traces at the corner of Tang Yingxue’s mouth.

Wu Man watched this scene without batting an eye, unable to name the feeling in her heart.

It was like being forcefully pinched without warning, then lightly pulled.

Her body’s automatic memory took her back to countless dinner tables where Yu Jiaze had forced her to eat spicy food.

When had he ever been this gentle?

As if her lowly stomach wasn’t a stomach but an iron wall that could withstand whipping. Unlike this kind of high-class flower grown in a greenhouse—even afraid a sip of cold water would freeze her.

Even though Wu Man knew full well this so-called gentleness was merely Yu Jiaze’s extremely inferior disguise, it didn’t prevent her from finding it laughable and pitiful.

After all, she didn’t even deserve this kind of inferior gentleness.

Even her cheap father immediately followed by serving Tang Yingxue food with his chopsticks—this was already his body’s instinct, doing it so skillfully.

He served several chopsticks-full before remembering there was still a daughter on his left side. So he perfunctorily added some to her bowl.

Wu Man politely said thank you.

She didn’t know if it was because she’d recalled the scene of eating spicy food, or the scene before her was too nauseating, but her stomach began feeling uncomfortable again, gradually losing her appetite for eating.

Clearly very good dishes—she couldn’t help finding it a pity.

Her phone in her pocket vibrated twice. She looked down—it was a message from Zhui Ye.

“Sister, you’re not home?”

She hid her phone under the table, typing a reply with one hand: “I’m eating out.”

After a moment, the phone vibrated again.

Wu Man clicked it open to see—he’d sent a selfie, pitifully crouching at her front door like a stray little dog who’d decided on her door and was guarding there.

Looking at that photo, her heart suddenly filled with joyful fullness, chasing away all the earlier affectation.

The spacious hall became even more spacious. The heating and central air conditioning couldn’t block the fierce cold wind from outside. At this moment, she only wanted to fly back to her little nest.

Wanted to see him.

Wanted to sit head-to-head with him, sharing steaming hot hotpot in that cramped living room.

Wanted to drink alcohol with him without restraint—even if she got drunk, he’d accept all her foolishness.

“Manman?”

She came back to her senses, hearing Tang Jiarong calling her.

He slightly furrowed his brow: “What are you doing with your head down? I called you several times without response.”

Wu Man clutched her phone, the corners of her mouth unconsciously revealing a smile.

“Oh… my boyfriend just messaged me, I was replying to him.”

As soon as the words fell, clang—Yu Jiaze’s chopsticks accidentally fell to the floor.