Chapter 215: Chapter 215

After parting with Lu Yanzhi at the bar entrance, Fu Jichen returned to Yunding Palace.

Cheng Jin, hearing the noise from the opening door, came out from the servant’s room. Seeing the gentleman looking desolate and weary, and smelling the strong scent of alcohol on him, he sighed silently and asked if he needed some late-night food before resting.

Cheng Jin suggested making him some sobering soup, which he also declined.

Cheng Jin watched the elevator doors close, sighed again, turned off the living room lights, and returned to the servant’s room.

In the third-floor hallway, Fu Jichen’s footsteps were heavy, and he stopped outside the bedroom where Shen Jianian used to live.

Everything inside remained just as it was when she left three years ago. He would occasionally go in and sit for a while, not daring to stay too long. He couldn’t explain why, perhaps not wanting to disturb the room’s essence that belonged to her.

Fu Jichen turned on the light, and each scene and object came into view. Perhaps he had drunk too much tonight, and with his mind unclear, he kept feeling that if he just glanced sideways, she would emerge from the bathroom, wearing a nightgown, her wet long hair wrapped in a towel, wrinkling her nose at him, saying: "Why does it smell so strongly of alcohol?"

He looked toward the bathroom, waited for a moment, but that scene didn’t appear.

Fantasy is ultimately just fantasy, impossible to become reality.

Fu Jichen placed his hand on the cello case, hesitated for a few seconds, and opened it. The cello lay quietly inside, untouched by its owner for three years.

His fingertips brushed over the strings as Fu Jichen recalled her sitting by the window playing the cello, even in pajamas, still so elegant and beautiful.

Although the room’s arrangement hadn’t changed, Fu Jichen could feel that the aura belonging to her was growing fainter, increasingly faint, until almost gone now.

He sat by the bed with his eyes lowered, unmoving for a long time.

About an hour later, Fu Jichen got up and left. The lights went out, the door closed, and besides himself, no one knew he had been there.

Fu Jichen returned to the bedroom next door, opened the bottom drawer of the nightstand, and took out a small black velvet box, which he opened slowly. The brilliance of the diamond was dazzling.

Three years ago, he went on a business trip to Switzerland, and Shen Jianian escorted him to the airport. On the way there, he held her hand, carefully measuring the base of her ring finger, secretly calculating the size, then personally contacted a renowned jewelry designer to create this ring with the intention of proposing to her at the right moment.

The ring was obtained six months later, by which time she was gone.

Fu Jichen took the ring out of the box, clutching it tightly in his palm. The diamond’s facets pressed against his skin, yet couldn’t alleviate the pain in his heart.

The next day, around ten in the morning, the sky was bright.

Today, Beicheng was a complete contrast to yesterday’s gloom, a sunny day, and the uncurtained room was filled with sunlight, leaving nothing concealed.

The man’s jeans draped over the bed’s edge, next to the woman’s white dress, torn open at the zipper, turned into a rag, with underwear on the nightstand.

On the snow-white bed, half a beautiful back was exposed, covered with ambiguous red marks, hair scattered across the neck and shoulders, with strands brushing the man’s arm.

Xu Jingyi woke up, her eyes still closed, eyebrows furrowed first. The soreness in her body accelerated the clearing of her mind. She suddenly opened her eyes to see the man’s bare chest.

Her first reaction wasn’t to scream; she was completely bewildered.

Last night, she and her girlfriends had a gathering at a bar. Four or five strangers joined to play games, and she lost many rounds, continuing to drink.

Afterward, a man drove her home, and they clumsily kissed, then...

Xu Jingyi sat on the bed with the quilt, a tremendous fear sweeping over her, her mind in a chaotic mess, her heartbeat faster than she could bear.

If the incident got out, would the Fu Family still want her?

Xu Jingyi didn’t realize she had begun to cry, regretting how last night’s overexcitement and indulgence led to the current irrevocable situation.

"Why are you crying?"

The man’s concerned voice suddenly came from beside her, making Xu Jingyi shiver. Through tear-blurred eyes, she glared at him and picked up a pillow beside her to throw at him, finally giving a scream: "Why did you do that to me? Do you know who I am? Do you believe I’ll kill you?!"

The man didn’t dodge, nor did he take her menacing words seriously, sitting up against the headboard. The quilt slid down, revealing scratch marks on his chest and a conspicuous tattoo, a design of a woman’s curvy figure.

Having such a tattoo, it was clear he wasn’t a decent person. Xu Jingyi felt she must have been blind last night to think he seemed alright.

For a moment, her tears flowed even more intensely.

"Don’t be . Last night, it was consensual. You didn’t refuse when I kissed you," the man said nonchalantly, picking up his jeans from the bed’s edge, pulling out a cigarette pack from the pocket, putting a cigarette between his lips, then searching another pocket for a lighter to light it. He squinted, exhaling smoke, stealing a glance at Xu Jingyi, "Don’t believe me?"

He fiddled with the phone on the nightstand, opened a video, and tossed it to Xu Jingyi. A wanton voice echoed from it.

It was her own voice; she couldn’t mistake it.

She didn’t know the man’s name, and in the heat of passion, she called him "Brother."

In an instant, Xu Jingyi’s face turned completely pale. She didn’t continue watching, trembling as she grabbed her phone and deleted the video. The sound seemed to have embedded itself in her mind, impossible to shake off.

"Pervert!" Xu Jingyi covered her ears with her hands, breaking down in tears. Her heart was a mix of regret and resentment. She picked up her phone and smashed it on the floor, pointing at the man outside the door and screaming, "Get out, get out of my sight, I never want to see you again!"

What else could you call shooting a video , if not perverted?

"Alright, let’s not make a fuss. We had such a good time last night." The man leaned over to hug her, attempting to comfort her.

Xu Jingyi punched and kicked him: "I told you to get out, didn’t you hear me!"

After several solid hits, the man stopped trying to placate her. Naked, he got down from the bed, picking up his clothes from the floor and putting them on, finally retrieving his phone to check it. Although the screen was cracked, it was still usable.

Standing by the bed, he bent slightly and spoke in a gentle voice, "You can still come to me when you’re unhappy."

"Get out!" Xu Jingyi didn’t spare him a glance, using all her strength to drive him away.

After the man left, the room was terrifyingly quiet. Xu Jingyi threw everything on the bed to the floor. Once she had vented enough, exhausted, she hugged her knees, burying her face between them and sobbed.

She felt as defeated today as she had felt triumphant last night.

She never thought something like "drunken mistake" could happen to her. If Fu Jichen found out, would he think she was indiscreet?

Would that man tell anyone?

Xu Jingyi bit her lower lip, tears streaming down. The more she thought about it, the more panicked she became. Earlier, she should have threatened that man, warning him not to think about staying in Beicheng if he dared to spread the word.

She had no idea what to do next and didn’t dare tell her family. Her parents would kill her if they found out.

Xu Jingyi put on some clothes, scrambling off the bed, heading to the living room to find her bag, rummaging for her phone, tossing the bag carelessly to the ground.

On the screen were two missed calls, both from her mother.

Xu Jingyi ignored her mother’s calls and dialed Xu Youxuan’s number. It was Tuesday, and her sister might be at work.

After a few seconds, the call connected, and her sister’s gentle voice came through the receiver, "Yiyi, what’s wrong?"

Xu Jingyi stuffed her fingers into her mouth to stifle her sobs, and the person on the other end, hearing no response, asked in confusion, "Yiyi, are you listening?"

Xu Jingyi muttered a vague "Mm," wiped away her tears, took a deep breath, and spoke, "Sis, where are you right now?"

The sound of a child crying came through the phone, followed by Xu Youxuan’s voice, "The baby’s got a cold. I just got home from the hospital. Is something the matter?"

"Can I come see you?" Xu Jingyi let a hint of her choked voice slip out.

Xu Youxuan finally detected that something was off with her sister’s emotions, as if she’d suffered a great grievance.

Xu Jingyi, who had been spoilt from a young age, rarely felt so lost. Xu Youxuan immediately grew anxious: "Come over, I’m at home." She comforted in a soft voice, "Don’t worry, whatever happens, I’m here. I’ll help you."

Xu Jingyi hung up, crying even harder, curling up and squatting on the floor. She had once been jealous of her sister, blamed her for being outstanding in everything, making her feel like she was nothing; blamed her family for seeing only her sister, ignoring her; blamed her sister for not understanding, for not appreciating their parents’ intentions in arranging a marriage for her.

But when something went wrong, only her sister would help her unconditionally.

After getting married, Xu Youxuan moved out of the Xu Family home and lived with her husband.

Chu Siyuan had bought them a duplex halfway between their workplaces, a 200-square-meter place, paid off in installments.

Xu Jingyi didn’t think much of Xu Youxuan’s husband and hadn’t seen him many times. Today was her first time visiting here, only to find that the neighborhood’s environment and amenities were no worse than Silver Bay.

Xu Youxuan had already informed the security guard at the gate, so when Xu Jingyi came by and mentioned Xu Youxuan’s name, the guard opened the barrier gate to let her in.

Taking the elevator upstairs, Xu Jingyi’s mind was still in chaos, and her body felt unwell, constantly reminding her that everything that happened last night was real.

Tears welled up in her eyes as she took a sharp inhale, holding them back.

Arriving at the designated floor, Xu Jingyi went over to ring the doorbell, and it was Chu Siyuan, her brother-in-law, who answered.

The man was dressed in casual home attire, a loose white T-shirt and light gray shorts, looking very youthful. No one would doubt he was in his twenties, not his thirties.

Xu Jingyi hadn’t expected him to be at home and suddenly felt flustered, turning her face to the side to conceal her disarray. She hadn’t put on makeup before going out, only wearing a fisherman’s hat.

Chu Siyuan bent down to bring her a pair of slippers, "Come in."