Chapter 2: Returning the Ring

Wen Zhixian buried her head in Qin Zhaoli’s shoulder, and soon Qin Zhaoli felt her shoulder becoming damp. She gently patted Wen Zhixian’s back.

After crying for a while, Wen Zhixian whispered, “Gu Yuchen.”

Qin Zhaoli was stunned. The four of them had grown up together since childhood, and she could hardly believe it was Gu Yuchen. No matter what, she never thought he would actually hit Zhixian.

Between sobs, Wen Zhixian explained, “I accidentally broke the cup his ex-girlfriend gave him.”

Rage flared up within Qin Zhaoli as she gently stroked Zhixian’s back. Everyone knew that they were about to get married, with the wedding registration likely happening soon. But who would have thought things would turn out like this?

“The eggs in the pot are ready; I’ll bring one to help with your face.”

As Qin Zhaoli applied the boiled egg to Wen Zhixian’s face, she noticed the scrapes on her knees. “And what happened here?”

Wen Zhixian lay on her side on the bed, eyes closed. “I accidentally tripped and fell.”

After Wen Zhixian fell asleep, Qin Zhaoli left her house and made a call to Song Kairui.

At the Hepburn Bar—

Qin Zhaoli walked in, grabbed a bottle of red wine from the counter, and casually said, “Put it on Gu Yuchen’s tab,” before striding into a private room.

She was a regular here, and the staff all recognized her. Seeing her come in with such a fierce demeanor, no one dared to stop her.

She pushed open the door to the private room and hurled the entire bottle of red wine toward Gu Yuchen. The bottle missed, shattering at his feet.

Song Kairui sucked in a sharp breath and quickly stepped between Qin Zhaoli and Gu Yuchen. “What’s going on? I’m just here to have a drink; don’t murder me!”

“What’s going on? Why don’t you ask him?” Qin Zhaoli, standing at 1.73 meters tall, exuded a powerful aura with a cold expression.

Gu Yuchen downed the rest of his drink, his right hand clenched so tightly that his knuckles turned white. The memory of slapping Zhixian was still painfully vivid.

Song Kairui turned to Gu Yuchen. “What happened?”

“He hit Zhixian.”

Song Kairui’s playful demeanor immediately vanished, replaced by seriousness. “You hit Zhixian? No wonder you’ve been drinking with me for the past two days. So, I’ve been helping you drown your sorrows because you hit her?”

The four of them had been childhood friends, and their families were close. It wasn’t a matter of taking sides—hitting someone was just wrong, especially considering Zhixian was slightly younger than them. If there was any favoritism, it would naturally lean toward her.

“How is she?” Gu Yuchen loosened his grip on his right hand and asked weakly.

“Can’t you go see for yourself?”

Gu Yuchen slowly closed his eyes. “Let her cool off, and I’ll cool off too. I’ll go see her after some time.”

Qin Zhaoli suddenly let out a short, sharp laugh and nodded. “Fine.”

With that, she turned and left. As she was about to exit the private room, she glanced at Song Kairui. Song Kairui swallowed hard and said to Gu Yuchen, “I’m leaving too, or she’ll be mad at me.”

---

When Wen Zhixian woke up, she smelled a delicious aroma in the air, and her stomach growled with hunger.

There were sounds coming from the kitchen, and she thought it might be Zhaoli.

“Zhixian, you’re awake?” Song Kairui said as he brought out the final dish, a steamed fish, to the table.

She rubbed her sore, swollen eyes. “Kairui, you’re here too.”

When Song Kairui saw her slightly swollen face, he thought to himself that Gu Yuchen really hit her hard.

He didn’t bring up Gu Yuchen and instead chuckled, “I had to come, or I was afraid Zhaoli might poison you.”

No sooner had he finished speaking than a chilling voice sounded behind him. “Song Kairui, next time, lower your voice when you speak. Don’t let me hear you.”

Despite her words, she had indeed brought Song Kairui over to cook. The noodles she had made earlier were barely edible; Zhixian only finished them because she was starving. Otherwise, they would have been impossible to eat.

Throughout the meal, only Wen Zhixian ate seriously, while Song Kairui and Qin Zhaoli barely took a few bites, spending most of the time watching her.

“You and… ah—” Song Kairui had just started speaking when he was abruptly kicked by Qin Zhaoli.

Wen Zhixian looked up at them and said, “I’m fine. If you have questions, just ask.”

Song Kairui glanced at Qin Zhaoli. Seeing that she had no intention of stopping him, he finally asked, “You and Yuchen, are you still…”

But before he could finish, Wen Zhixian interrupted, saying, “Wait a moment,” and quickly ran into the bedroom. When she returned, she was holding a small blue velvet box.

She placed the box next to Song Kairui’s hand. “Please take the ring back to him.”

There was no need to ask anymore. She was even returning the engagement ring they had picked out together. Forget about getting married—they were likely going to break up now.

“You’ve liked him for so many years. Can you really just let go like that?” Song Kairui had always sensed that whenever the four of them were together, Zhixian’s gaze was always on Gu Yuchen. It wasn’t just about the relationship of the past two years.

Wen Zhixian touched her still-throbbing left cheek. “I can’t, but I’m afraid of the pain. He woke me up with that slap.”

If it weren’t for that slap, she could have comforted herself by thinking it was just a cup. But that slap shattered all the hope she had for him.

In her mind, there was no middle ground when it came to someone raising their hand against her—it was either once or countless times. This time, it was because of a cup left behind by his ex. What about next time? What if it’s because of something else related to his ex?

She had loved Gu Yuchen for many years, watching him from afar, always standing quietly behind him. But everyone has their limits, and she couldn’t keep lowering hers just for him.

Wen Zhixian knew that Gu Yuchen was like a festering wound on her body, and she couldn’t let her emotions cloud her judgment just because she had grown used to the pain. This wound would only continue to corrode her, reaching deep into her bones. The only solution was to endure the pain and cut it out, leaving the rest to time, which would eventually heal the wound.

And her first step was to move on.

“If that’s your decision, then don’t regret it.” Both Gu Yuchen and Wen Zhixian were their good friends, but when it came to matters of the heart, it wasn’t something they could intervene in. All they could offer was comfort.

Wen Zhixian forced a pale smile and said, “Okay.”

After they left, she closed the door and took a deep breath. There was a tube of ointment on the table. She picked it up and felt a warmth in her heart; the pain seemed to ease a little.

She immediately sat down in front of the vanity mirror and began applying the ointment. After all, this was her face!

What if it gets disfigured?

As she applied a thick layer of ointment, she chided herself for being so careless, hoping that by tomorrow, the swelling would completely subside.

She took her phone out of her bag, plugged it in to charge, and turned it on. There were several messages from Zhaoli, and besides those, there were some from the staff at the coffee shop. Her finger hovered over the top of the chat list, where the name “Yuchen Chen Chen (Future Husband)” was saved, complete with two heart emojis.

He hadn’t sent her a single message.

The more she looked at that contact name, the more ironic it felt. She clicked into it, intending to delete it, but her finger hesitated over the screen. Deleting him as a contact—what good would that do besides momentary satisfaction? Their families were close, after all…

With that thought, she promptly deleted him from her contacts. Momentary satisfaction is still satisfaction, she thought. It was time to erase him from her life.

She went to the study and gathered all the photos and items related to Gu Yuchen. She was surprised at how much there was.