Ding Mujie had mingled in the political arena for decades and remained standing, thanks to his true abilities. He was incredibly adept at reading people’s minds and using various means to achieve his goals. The Lin Wan of today was no match for him. Seeing that he not only insisted on marrying her but also wanted to move the wedding date up to three days later, Lin Wan panicked and quickly shouted, “Don’t go, I don’t want to marry! I don’t want to marry you!”

Finally hearing Lin Wan’s true feelings, Ding Mujie felt a deep sorrow welling up in his heart, making his eyes sting.

“You’re the one who tampered with the birthdates, right? Your mother is the Saintess of Miaojiang. Poisoning a pond of fish is nothing to her, let alone driving cats and dogs in my house mad.” He stood with his back to Lin Wan, his eyes tightly shut, fearing that if he opened them, tears would spill out. In his previous life, no matter how tough things were, he only cried once— when Lin Wan died. It seemed that all the tears of two lifetimes had been spent on her, yet this was the result……

“I don’t know what birthdates you’re talking about.” Lin Wan denied it flatly. “I just don’t like you and don’t want to marry you.”

“If you didn’t like me, why didn’t you say so earlier? If you didn’t like me, why did you blush and avoid my gaze every time you saw me, pretending to feel the same affection for me? Do you truly dislike me, or do you despise my humble background?” Ding Mujie continued, “That day by the lake, I tried to save you, but when you turned and saw it was me, your face showed shock and resistance, and you instinctively pushed me away. In moments of crisis, a person’s actions reveal their truest thoughts. You didn’t want me to save you, I know that, but I didn’t dare think further.”

He forced himself to suppress the grief. “And that golden hairpin— you were the one who broke it, weren’t you? Yet you framed Ding Xiang. You invited her here and brought up the topic of jewelry little by little to pique her curiosity until she took the initiative to ask about Old Madam Lin’s hairpin. However, you didn’t tell her how precious it was. Once she touched it, you led her to shake the hairpin, causing the already cracked golden wing to fall off. You then pretended to take the blame for her, knowing full well that her upright and kind nature wouldn’t allow her to let you do that. In front of Ding Xiang, you were a loving, responsible sister-in-law, and in front of the old madam, you were a loyal and dutiful granddaughter. You gained everyone’s favor but pushed the innocent Ding Xiang into the fire. She treated you sincerely but this is how you repay her?”

At this point, Ding Mujie’s breath became unsteady. In his youth, he might not have seen through such intricate schemes, but after decades of navigating the political world, how could he still be fooled by such petty tricks? Every step of the plan was carefully crafted, exploiting Ding Xiang’s weaknesses and leading her deeper into the trap, while Lin Wan remained outside it all, gaining a reputation for virtue. She had truly mastered the art of manipulating people’s hearts.

Having been reborn, Ding Mujie wasn’t blind to her true nature. He simply couldn’t bring himself to believe it. Lin Wan had been his obsession for two lifetimes so how could he let go of her so easily?

But now, he had no choice but to give up. Lin Wan had not only pushed him to a dead end but had also trapped herself. To achieve her goals, she was ruthless toward others and even more so toward herself. At this thought, Ding Mujie suddenly turned around, his bloodshot eyes locked on her. “That day at the Jiang family’s residence, when I almost got entangled with Lin Dan— was that your doing too?”

Lin Wan’s expression became flustered, her gaze evasive, yet she still denied it, “I broke the hairpin, I admit that, but I know nothing about anything else. Don’t falsely accuse me! You know that my grandmother never liked my mother and me. If she found out I broke her treasure, my mother and I would be doomed and we’d fall even further out of favor. I’ll be getting married, so it doesn’t matter to me, but what about my mother? She still has to serve my grandmother! Ding Xiang is just a guest. Shouldering the blame for me won’t affect her at all, so I called her over. I was just a little scared and had some small thoughts. Is that enough for you to think so badly of me?” She finished speaking, sobbing pitifully.

But her tears no longer had any effect on Ding Mujie. In a daze, he remembered his past life. Lin Wan had used that same pitiful appearance to extract countless secrets from him. For a while, all his strategies had been foiled by Prince Kang, nearly allowing the man to overturn everything. Fortunately, Ding Mujie had left for the capital and avoided Prince Kang’s eyes and ears, allowing him to turn the tide. At the time, Ding Mujie thought Prince Kang had a brilliant advisor, someone who could predict Ding Mujie’s every move. He even considered finding that person, either to recruit or eliminate him/her. He had never imagined that the ‘advisor’ was Lin Wan all along, selling him out for her own gain to live a lavish life in Prince Kang’s rear courtyard.

Eventually, he and the Ninth Prince won the battle for the throne, Prince Kang was imprisoned, and naturally, Lin Wan fell out of favor. She was later poisoned and sent away from the capital for treatment, likely Prince Kang’s last move to lure Ding Mujie out. But before Ding Mujie could fall into the trap, Prince Kang succumbed to his illness and that move was rendered useless……

Having lived through it all again, Ding Mujie could now see clearly the things he had missed in his past life. He could no longer bear it, his bloodshot eyes closed slightly and two hot tears finally fell. In his past life, at this very moment, he had already been forced to marry Lin Dan. Life had been calm back then and there was no reason for the pain he felt now. Lin Wan had easily escaped from the engagement to him, her worthless fiancé, so naturally, none of this drama had ever occurred and her true face had remained hidden.

She had deceived him for an entire lifetime, using his love and power to gain benefits for herself. Even in death, he couldn’t forget her, and he had been buried with her memorial tablet.

The more Ding Mujie thought about it, the more he felt like a complete fool. Tears streamed down his face as he mocked himself, his blood slowly turning cold.

“If the engagement is to be broken, it will be your family that does it. I won’t wear the hat of being heartless.” With that cold remark, he turned to push the door open and walk out. In both his past and present lives, he had given Lin Wan more than enough. From now on, he wouldn’t spare her another thought. She had chosen this path, so let her walk it herself.

“My father would never break the engagement. Mujie, please, help me one last time. I beg you!” Lin Wan hurriedly jumped out of bed, grabbing onto Ding Mujie’s sleeve.

Up close, Ding Mujie realized that her pale complexion was just makeup. It wasn’t illness at all. It was clear that deception had become second nature to her. To live a better life, she had no qualms about betraying anyone, even herself.

This time, Ding Mujie’s heart had not only grown cold but had frozen solid. He stared at her for a long while, then left without looking back.

Lin Wan chased after him, shouting anxiously, “Mujie, will you or won’t you call off the engagement? Give me a clear answer!” She ran to the door but didn’t dare follow any further, standing there anxiously. She watched as his figure gradually disappeared from view.

———pr


Ding Mujie’s mind was in turmoil as he rode his horse, galloping aimlessly. Unknowingly, he ended up at a temple he used to frequent in his previous life. He stood at the entrance for a long time, and finally unable to resist the inner torment, he slowly walked in. There, he saw a figure so familiar that it startled him. The other person stood before a wall, seemingly observing something.

“Lin Dan, why are you here?” He asked in a hoarse voice, his expression as if he had been transported from another lifetime.

“You know me?” Lin Dan naturally recognized Ding Mujie. His strikingly handsome features had been deeply engraved in the other Lin Dan’s memory, making it impossible to forget him. However, as far as she knew, the other Lin Dan had only secretly observed Ding Mujie a few times and he had never met her. At this moment, they shouldn’t have known each other.

Ding Mujie was stunned for a while before replying, “I am Ding Mujie, Lin Wan’s fiancé. I’ve seen you outside the mansion before and you’ve even written letters to me. Have you forgotten?”

The other Lin Dan had indeed sent Ding Mujie a few letters under the pretense of asking about poetry, deliberately mimicking Lin Wan’s handwriting. But Lin Dan would never admit to such disgraceful deeds. After all, it wasn’t her doing in the first place, so why should she take the blame? Ding Mujie and Lin Wan were nothing but trouble and she had no intention of getting involved with either of them.

“I don’t know you and I never wrote you any letters.” She replied firmly. Then, turning to the young monk beside her, she said, “Please bring me ink and a brush. I want to write something on this wall.” It turned out the wall was meant for visitors to inscribe their writings, and it was covered in poems, densely packed and interesting to read.

Lin Dan had originally been content to simply appreciate the writings, but after seeing Ding Mujie, she changed her mind.

The young monk quickly brought her the items. Lin Dan chose the largest wolf-hair brush, dipped it in ink, and with a swift movement of her wrist, wrote in bold characters, 「Three thousand worldly glories, gone in a flicker; after a hundred years, all that remains is a handful of dust.」 Finishing, she handed the brush back to the young monk and turned to leave.

Ding Mujie stared in disbelief at the line of text. After a long pause, he began to laugh bitterly, his laughter filled with shock, suppression, and pain. The writing was bold and powerful, a masterpiece of cursive script, entirely unlike the awkward and ugly handwriting in the letters he had received. Now that he thought about it, those letters, though crude, bore hints of Lin Wan’s writing style. She must have written them in Lin Dan’s name, deliberately creating the false impression that he and Lin Dan had already shared an intimate connection.

That scandal in his past life, the one that had changed the fate of everyone involved, had likely been Lin Wan’s careful orchestration. Lin Dan, like him, had been unable to defend herself, and so she had been forced to marry into the Ding family. And yet, he had resented and mistreated her, refusing to even look at her until her death. In truth, Lin Dan had been the most innocent and pitiable of them all. How ridiculous it was that he, having been reborn, had pretended he could give her a happy ending.

Not getting involved with them would be the best ending for Lin Dan……

The more Ding Mujie thought about it, the more ashamed and sorrowful he became. He covered his eyes and wept silently. The person he owed the most had never been Lin Wan, but Lin Dan. Yet even with a second chance at life, he still couldn’t find a way to make it up to her.

Suddenly, he recalled the terrible massacre that had befallen the Lin family. Hastily wiping away his tears, he rushed out. As he reached the temple gates, he turned back and gazed at the words Lin Dan had inscribed on the wall, 「Three thousand worldly glories, gone in a flicker; after a hundred years, all that remains is a handful of dust.」 It was then that he realized that Lin Dan was the one who understood life the most clearly. She was the one who lived with the greatest wisdom, while the rest of them had been nothing but fools.