When Yi Tianyu had been abroad for two years, he saw Gu Shiyun in another state.

That day it was a bit cold, and Yi Tianyu pulled his collar up, covering half his face.

Because of this, Gu Shiyun, who was talking to someone, didn’t see him.

Yi Tianyu, however, recognized her at a glance. Gu Shiyun and Xue Jiao were half-sisters, after all, sharing the same father but different mothers, and had some resemblance.

And she resembled the woman he had missed to his bones; whenever he encountered someone similar to her in a crowd, he would look a few more times, let alone a woman he already knew.

He stopped in his tracks and started watching.

Gu Shiyun was pleading with someone, but standing far away, he couldn’t hear her voice.

Soon, he noticed Gu Shiyun saying something, and that man reached out his hand to her.

Yi Tianyu frowned slightly.

A moment later, he saw the man about to strip Gu Shiyun’s clothes.

Although it was cold today, with few people outside, and this location was secluded, there would still occasionally be one or two people passing by.

Seeing the man push Gu Shiyun down, Yi Tianyu approached with furrowed brows and pulled the man away.

“What are you doing!” The man spoke in Chinese.

Yi Tianyu’s brows furrowed even tighter: “I’ve called the police.”

The man was momentarily guilty, but soon raised his voice again: “She was willing!”

At this point, Gu Shiyun stood up: “Don’t meddle in—”

Her gaze stopped on Yi Tianyu’s face, looking shocked: “Are you… Yi Tianyu?!”

Yi Tianyu glanced at her coldly, seemingly unconcerned.

Instead, it was Gu Shiyun who was in a hurry, taking two steps forward and grabbing Yi Tianyu: “Yi Tianyu! Take me back to China, please, I’m begging you!”

He ignored her because he could see that this woman was indeed willing, with the obvious goal of returning to China.

As for why she couldn’t go back, it was likely that Lin Zhihua had intervened.

He turned to leave.

Gu Shiyun couldn’t hold him back and could only half-pull at his clothes as she chased after him: “Wouldn’t it be good if you took me back to China? Gu Xue Jiao and Lin Zhihua are getting married, aren’t you angry? Take me back, and I’ll help you get Gu Xue Jiao!”

Getting married?

Yi Tianyu turned his head, meeting Gu Shiyun’s venomous eyes.

He felt this woman was truly frightening. He had just learned that Xue Jiao and Lin Zhihua had registered their marriage and had come out to clear his mind. How did this woman, who seemed to be in such a miserable state, also have this information at her fingertips?

To what extent did this person hate Xue Jiao? To always be attentive to Xue Jiao’s movements regardless of her circumstances?

Yi Tianyu was somewhat frightened. He looked at Gu Shiyun and sneered: “You want to make things difficult for Xue Jiao? Then you’ll never be able to go back in this lifetime.”

As his words fell, a flash of hatred passed through Gu Shiyun’s eyes.

Yi Tianyu strode away, already far off.

Behind him, Gu Shiyun shrieked—

“What’s so good about her?! She’s with Lin Zhihua now! Why are you still protecting her?!”

Yi Tianyu’s silhouette was already out of sight, and the man, feeling threatened, angrily rushed over to grab Gu Shiyun.

“You, give me—”

Gu Shiyun pushed him away with a cold laugh. Yi Tianyu had seen that she wanted to return to China, and he would tell Lin Zhihua, making her return even more impossible.

This man… she no longer cared about him.

She wanted to leave, but the man wouldn’t let her go. In their struggle, Gu Shiyun fell, her head hitting the wall, and she passed out.

The man was frightened and quickly ran away.

After a long while, Gu Shiyun opened her eyes in confusion. She had just had a dream where there was no Lin Zhihua, no Li Sitong, and Gu Xue Jiao had been schemed to death early on by Cheng Mingjiao.

And she had married Cheng Mingze. Cheng Mingze had a successful career, and she was the envied, noble Miss Gu, Mrs. Cheng.

“Hahaha—I am Mrs. Cheng, I married Cheng Mingze.”

“Hahahaha.”

Yi Tianyu let out a deep breath, a bitter smile appearing at the corner of his mouth.

He walked for a long time more, until he was tired. He randomly entered a coffee shop, ordered a cup of coffee, and sat there quietly.

There was no one in the shop today, and the couple running the store couldn’t help but strike up a conversation with this only customer.

“Sir? What country are you from?”

“China,” Yi Tianyu revealed a smile, polite but distant.

The woman nudged the man, and the man brought out a dessert for Yi Tianyu.

“Here, consider yourself lucky. My wife just made it, I don’t like sweets, and she’s on a diet, so we’re giving it to you.”

Yi Tianyu raised an eyebrow, looking at the two of them.

Then he revealed a smile and accepted it: “Thank you.”

He wasn’t short of money to buy desserts, but he could accept the awkward concern from this couple beside him.

“Hey, no need for thanks. What are you worried about?” The man, seeing that he accepted, became much friendlier and pulled up a stool to sit opposite him.

Perhaps it was the sincerity in the man’s eyes, but Yi Tianyu couldn’t help but reveal the heart matters he dared not speak of: “The person I love married someone else.”

“Ah?” The man’s eyes widened.

The woman couldn’t help but come forward: “I think you look very handsome. You should be quite popular in your country, right? Why doesn’t that girl like you?”

Yi Tianyu forced a smile: “Because there’s a man who’s even better than me who loves her, and she loves him back. I’m not good enough for her.”

“What do you mean by ‘good enough’? Young man, if you miss one, there’s always another. Don’t be sad.”

Yi Tianyu smiled and shook his head, his eyes somewhat red.

Where would there be another? There was only one Gu Xue Jiao and only one Gu Xue Jiao who was so wonderful.

He opened his mouth and slowly told his story.

The man spoke up: “Oh, your luck is really bad. She liked you too, it’s just that she had another more suitable choice. Otherwise, now that you’ve matured a bit, you would still have a chance.”

Yi Tianyu smiled bitterly.

The woman also said: “Ah, this is where young boys lose out. She liked you back then, but you couldn’t see it and didn’t know how to make her feel secure! If your current personality could go back to the past, she would like you no matter what!”

Yi Tianyu was stunned, suddenly raising his head: “She liked me…”

“Of course, why would she be so nice to you if she didn’t like you? Is a top student that free with their time?”

Yi Tianyu froze, recalling his past with Xue Jiao once more, feeling a pain in his heart.

He smiled, and as he smiled, he cried.

That night.

Yi Tianyu lay in bed. He thought he wouldn’t be able to sleep, but in fact, he fell asleep quickly.

He had a dream, a dream where he went back to the beginning of his second year of high school.

He saw the girl in his heart, but that girl still had red hair and a fierce expression on her face.

Others pointed fingers at her, yet she remained indifferent to them.

Yi Tianyu observed for a few days and felt that she was somewhat different from the Gu Xue Jiao he was familiar with.

He observed for a long time more, watching this reckless girl being bullied by Cheng Mingjiao and others, being looked down upon by the entire class.

There was no Lin Zhihua here. She always loved to follow Cheng Mingze, although Cheng Mingze quite disdained her.

She wasn’t his bookworm!

Yi Tianyu frowned tightly, and couldn’t help but be confused.

One day at a parent-teacher meeting, he witnessed Li Sitong slap Gu Xue Jiao, who had scored last in the exam, just like in his memory.

And this red-haired girl with strange makeup ran away, hiding in a corner, hugging her knees and sobbing loudly, looking both sad and distressed.

He couldn’t help but approach, then reached out his hand and said—

“Get up.”

The different Gu Xue Jiao looked up, her eyes still showing vulnerability. The strange makeup on her face was smeared by tears, revealing a face that looked extremely similar to the bookworm’s.

She didn’t have the bookworm’s resilience, the bookworm’s confidence and diligence, nor the bookworm’s persistence in never looking back and studying hard.

She was far inferior to the bookworm.

But Yi Tianyu still pulled her up, holding her hand as they walked toward the classroom, saying softly—

“Gu Xue Jiao, you can have a different life.”