The sea breeze blew gently. The window wasn’t completely closed, leaving a crack through which the gauze curtains fluttered.

She said neither yes nor no, clearly exhausted to the extreme, about to fall asleep the next second.

In her daze, Bei Yao sensed someone undressing her. She asked softly: “Pei Chuan?”

He answered in a low voice: “Mm.”

When their fingers intertwined, Bei Yao felt the man’s palm—completely covered in sweat.

Bei Yao became somewhat alert. She opened her eyes to see a pair of pitch-black eyes before her, reflecting her image. Three parts desire, seven parts affection. Fine perspiration beaded on his forehead, his gaze no longer quite rational.

The man’s voice was low and hoarse: “May I?”

Emboldened by alcohol, she nodded randomly.

His kisses then fell like an overwhelming net. She heard the sound of him unbuckling his belt with one hand.

Bei Yao looked at the fluttering curtains and asked slowly: “Should I cover my eyes?”

“No need.”

“Oh.” Then she’d watch.

She turned her head back, and a kiss fell on her eyes. Bei Yao instinctively closed them.

Then it hurt a bit.

Hard to describe exactly, but it hurt somewhat.

Very uncomfortable. Usually, Bei Yao would accommodate him. But now she was drunk, a bit petulant, and somewhat angry. Wasn’t this still not letting her see?

She squirmed.

The man pressed her down, groaning low: “Yaoyao!”

She said pitifully in a small voice: “It hurts.”

Pei Chuan also froze.

Neither had much experience. He wasn’t much better off than her, just certainly far more comfortable than she was.

Bei Yao said: “You get out first.”

This was simply being unreasonable.

He remained silent, not making a sound. Before starting, things could be discussed, but now nothing she said would work. Pei Chuan just kept panting and didn’t listen to her.

The first time was quick. That sensation was too unfamiliar, stimulating enough to make his tailbone tingle, beyond self-control.

Afterward, Pei Chuan’s expression was somewhat stiff.

The young woman only added fuel to the fire, saying with a tearful tone: “Uncomfortable. I want to sleep.”

She said uncomfortable.

No matter how inferior he’d once felt, how could a man hear such words? Pei Chuan pleaded through gritted teeth: “Try again, alright?”

Bei Yao said no.

His forehead was covered in sweat. He pressed his lips together, paused, then kissed downward.

Between the fluttering gauze curtains.

Later on, she also experienced some of that unfamiliar sensation—novel, uncomfortable yet not quite.

Like light blooming before her eyes, unable to distinguish what time or day it was.

Hazily, she heard a very low, very low “I love you.”

*

Pei Chuan woke very early, or rather, he hadn’t slept all night.

Excited at first, excited later too.

Perhaps because the first time felt like a defeat, the time spent redeeming himself afterward went on excessively long, coaxing her with many words.

When dawn barely broke in the morning, he discovered something wrong.

Bei Yao’s body was somewhat hot, the young woman’s cheeks flushed. Pei Chuan touched her forehead—much hotter than his own body temperature.

Pei Chuan didn’t bother washing up and hurriedly found a doctor.

A blonde, blue-eyed female doctor came to examine Bei Yao’s body while she remained feverish and unconscious.

The foreign doctor smiled meaningfully: “Had quite a good time last night, didn’t you?” She spoke in English, but for a top student like Pei Chuan, communicating with her presented no language barrier whatsoever.

For someone as cool and composed as Pei Chuan, this was his first time blushing to the roots of his neck in front of an outsider.

The female doctor whistled lightly: “No need to be so nervous. Your wife isn’t adjusting well to the environment. Last night she also ate seafood and had an allergic reaction.”

The doctor pulled back the covers. Bei Yao on the bed had her long lashes closed. The doctor looked at her arm: “The allergy caused a rash.”

On that fair, tender arm, the rash wasn’t obvious, but the love marks covered a large area.

The doctor laughed out loud without mercy.

Pei Chuan struggled to maintain composure: “My wife has a fever.”

“Ah, yes, the fever—that’s on you. After intercourse, you need to clean her body, understand? You showed no restraint and didn’t clean her afterward. She’s lucky this is all that happened.”

Pei Chuan’s face turned red then white, looking awful. He truly hadn’t known this. Now he ached so much he couldn’t speak.

The doctor, seeing he looked rather pitiful, teasingly glanced down at the Chinese hunk’s pants, almost whistling again.

However, the sick beauty also looked quite heartbreaking. The doctor said: “Should I help clean up this young woman, or will you do it?”

Pei Chuan said: “I will.”

“Mm, then you do it yourself. I’ll prescribe some anti-inflammatory medication. Seeing how heartbroken you look, rest assured, it’s not that serious. It’s just that fevers from environmental adjustment tend to recur. If she doesn’t improve in our country, I suggest you take her home.”

*

Bei Yao didn’t wake groggily until nearly noon. Her breathing was labored.

Pei Chuan was right beside her, hadn’t blinked once. Seeing her awake, he hurriedly said: “I had the hotel keep some porridge warm. Eat something first, alright?”

Bei Yao knew she had a fever because even her breathing was scorching.

Bei Yao belatedly recalled some scenes from last night. She slowly blushed too, though covered by the fever it wasn’t obvious. She didn’t blame Pei Chuan—after all, this was normal married life.

It was just that the environment here probably wasn’t quite suitable for her body.

Pei Chuan fed her after the meal. Bei Yao sat in a wicker chair looking at the ocean below.

The ocean stretched endlessly, but she was listless and spiritless, her gaze somewhat envious. This scene was like roasting Pei Chuan’s heart over a fire. He could promise almost anything: “When you feel better, we’ll go surfing, alright?”

Bei Yao raised her hand to touch the man’s face: “It’s fine. I won’t go. I’ll keep you company.”

His heart felt sour and astringent as he grasped her hand: “This is all my fault.”

Pei Chuan cared for her meticulously, not daring to let her eat foreign food anymore. He found a chef from their own country to come make her varied meals.

However, as the doctor said, Bei Yao’s fever recurred repeatedly over the next few days.

Pei Chuan couldn’t wait for her to recover. He could only bring Bei Yao home early. He couldn’t even spare attention for whatever trouble Huo Xu and Jiang Huaqiong were causing domestically. For Pei Chuan, there was only one kind of panic that Bei Yao could bring.

Returning home, Bei Yao felt somewhat regretful. She felt so embarrassed—clearly they’d taken long leave to honeymoon, but after just one night of trouble, she’d gotten a fever and couldn’t stay abroad.

After getting off the plane, Pei Chuan took her directly back to C City. After all, it was their hometown—for people living outside, the most nourishing place.

Pei Chuan had previously bought an apartment here. The Bei family home was now empty—Zhao Zhilan and Bei Licai weren’t living here. Bei Yao’s family home hadn’t been cleaned in ages. Bei Yao wanted to go home and look, but Pei Chuan said: “I’ll go clean. Once it’s clean, you can go home.”

He didn’t hire cleaning workers. He had Bei Yao sleep at the apartment while he returned to the old residential complex, rolling up his sleeves to clean for her.

The old residential complex still looked the same as before.

Pei Chuan used the key Bei Yao had given him to open the Bei family door. His gaze contracted almost imperceptibly.

Someone had been to the Bei home. Though unoccupied, it had gathered some dust. However, other places were mostly untouched, but Bei Yao’s room had been disturbed.

Her former boudoir—the bedding was disheveled, as if someone had slept there one night. Given Zhao Zhilan’s degree of doting on her daughter, when the family left this old house, it was impossible they would have left Bei Yao’s room this messy. Pei Chuan’s thoughts ran deep. He guessed almost immediately what had happened.

Even with the best temperament and cultivation, Pei Chuan was so furious his fists trembled.

Nothing else in the Bei home had been touched. No valuables were missing. Only his delicate wife’s things had been rifled through.

Pei Chuan suppressed his rage and called Bei Yao: “Do you have anything important in your room?”

Bei Yao hadn’t quite processed the question when she answered the call: “What’s wrong? Nothing valuable.”

Pei Chuan didn’t want her to know about this disturbing matter. Though his blood churned, his tone remained normal as he smiled and said: “Nothing. Just asking. What do you want for dinner? I’ll come back and make it for you.”

After Bei Yao hung up, she suddenly remembered something serious.

She hurriedly called Pei Chuan back: “What are you doing?”

“Organizing your room.”

Bei Yao’s scalp tingled instantly: “Don’t clean my room anymore, alright?”

“What’s wrong?”

She thought of something she’d forgotten for many years—that little notebook where she’d written her rebirth secret. She hurried to say: “Come back. I don’t want to stay at home recently. I’m not feeling well.”

That notebook absolutely couldn’t be seen by Pei Chuan. Though given Pei Chuan’s respect for her, he wouldn’t unlock her little box.

Hearing her say she wasn’t comfortable, Pei Chuan said: “I’ll come back right away.”

However, when Pei Chuan closed the door, he took the bedding from her room downstairs to throw away. He used all his strength to restrain himself from immediately going to stab Huo Xu to death.

*

In early June, B City’s biggest news was nothing less than the century-old Huo family’s complete downfall.

The two major shareholders had successively sold their shares for cash. Like a farce, a century-old foundation actually ended this way.

In C City’s mountain villa district, Huo Xu looked at the woman kneeling on the ground with her hands bound behind her back. He used his leather shoe to lift her chin, examining the woman’s wretchedness.

Shao Yue’s face was bruised and swollen, a tooth missing.

She kept trembling. Huo Xu had gone mad.

At the end of May, she could have escaped, but later Huo Xu caught her and brought her back. That night, Huo Xu had people bind her up, saying mockingly: “Didn’t you say you’d stay with me forever? The Huo family hasn’t even fallen, and you’ve already deserted. Is this your love, Shao Yue?”

Shao Yue had smiled stiffly then: “Huo Xu, listen to me…”

He’d slapped her: “You don’t need to speak. Just staying with me is enough.”

Shao Yue knew the situation had driven him mad too. Nothing she said would help.

She could only hold onto one last hope, pleading with him: “Let’s leave together, alright? Jiang Huaqiong won’t let you go. The Huo family can’t hold out much longer. She fought her way through the Huo family for so many years in her youth—more than half the people inside are hers. If we leave together, there’s still a thread of hope.”

At the time, Huo Xu seemed moved by her words and sold the shares he held.

He sold his assets and took the Huo family’s valuables. Indeed, he didn’t plan to keep fighting Jiang Huaqiong head-on. Just when Shao Yue saw a glimmer of hope, Huo Xu tied her up with a rope.

Shao Yue screamed: “What are you doing!”

“What am I doing? If not for you, this cheap woman, would our Huo family have fallen to this state today? Don’t worry—if I live another day, you won’t have a good day. If I die, you’ll come down with me.”

Originally planning to go abroad, Huo Xu somehow went crazy. Before leaving, he went to the Bei family home in C City and didn’t return all night.

When he came back, his entire person seemed possessed, clutching a small notebook.

Half crying, half laughing, half mad, half crazed.

Shao Yue now feared him, shrinking into a corner.

That small notebook was the kind children used for writing practice, with square grids. He put it away carefully and unexpectedly didn’t mention going abroad again.

Shao Yue boldly asked him: “You’re not leaving anymore?”

Both knew very well that even going abroad meant living a fugitive life, never knowing when Jiang Huaqiong would find and kill them. Still, at least there was some way to live. Yet after one trip to the Bei home, Huo Xu unexpectedly didn’t plan to leave!

Huo Xu crouched before her: “Why should I leave? All this was clearly mine. The Huo family is mine, and Bei Yao should also be my wife.”

He laughed coldly: “I’m not resigned! That cripple should have lived spurned by everyone. Do you know what he was supposed to be?”

Shao Yue looked at him as if he were insane.

Huo Xu slapped her: “He was supposed to be an anti-social element! My wife has now been taken by him. If I leave, I’ll live in constant fear, while he has everything. Tell me, shouldn’t I be angry!”

Shao Yue was terrified.

Huo Xu said: “No wonder I liked Bei Yao at first sight. Turns out from the very beginning, I was meant to love her. It’s just that I made too many mistakes. She refuses to forgive me in this life, so she went to that cripple’s side instead. Shao Yue, for the first time I feel you truly deserve to die.”

Shao Yue felt Huo Xu’s mental state was problematic, but Huo Xu felt he’d never been more lucid in his life.

Painful, dejected, yet seeing all reality clearly.

The timeline in Bei Yao’s notebook should be the memories she possessed.

Actually, it wasn’t wrong. At first, he indeed wanted Bei Yao to replace Shao Yue—not just to protect Shao Yue, but also for himself. Only later it changed. Even though Huo Xu didn’t know what happened later in that notebook, he could guess that he eventually fell in love with Bei Yao and presumably regretted it.

He should have left, but he was unwilling to leave now.

Pei Chuan had ruthlessly schemed to harm him this badly. Why should he hand over his beloved woman?

Huo Xu had long regretted it. Even though he’d been wrong from the start, why wouldn’t Bei Yao even look at him properly in this life?

If he couldn’t have her, Pei Chuan couldn’t have her either.

Huo Xu looked at Shao Yue with disgust.

In quite a good mood, he thought—if Pei Chuan knew that initially Bei Yao had been willing to accept that cripple because of gratitude, his expression would surely be spectacular.

Pei Chuan was very afraid Bei Yao didn’t love him, right?

Never truly obtaining—for someone like Pei Chuan, that was hell.