2

It was a long while before she received his reply. He simply said, “Okay.”

As concise and emotionless as ever — clean, cold, and indifferent.

After returning to Yancheng, Meng Yu went to Japan for work and stayed there for a few days. She didn’t contact Xiao Qi during that time, and he never reached out to her either.

It was only while she was in Japan that she learned about Ai Qing from one of Xiao Qi’s friends. Ai Qing was indeed his neighbor from back home — an older girl who had left after high school to work elsewhere. She’d married a wealthy man and had a daughter, but the man had a history of domestic violence. Eventually, Ai Qing divorced him and brought her daughter to seek help from Xiao Qi.

Xiao Qi, ever so considerate, bought her an apartment in Shenzhen and helped her find a job. He even paid for her daughter to attend one of the most prestigious kindergartens in the city.

But he had never mentioned any of this to Meng Yu. Whatever he chose to do had nothing to do with her. To him, she really seemed like someone utterly insignificant.

After returning from Japan, Meng Yu had a long chat with her best friend, Xia Han. Somehow, those few days abroad gave her the courage to finally speak about Xiao Qi and his “white moonlight.”

Just as she expected, Xia Han advised her to break up with him after hearing everything.

She had thought about it too but in the end, she just couldn’t let go. This was the man she had loved for so many years—she had already made up her mind to stay with him no matter what. How could it be so easy to walk away?

But that day still came.

Meng Yu remembered it clearly—it was a bright, sunny morning. She had heard that Xia Han had gone to Shenzhen. Whether it was just to see her best friend or because she might run into Xiao Qi there, Meng Yu decided to go the next day as well.

Xiao Qi worked at the same company as Xia Han’s husband, Han Moran. In fact, Han Moran was Xiao Qi’s boss and the one who had recognized his potential. Ironically, it was thanks to Meng Yu that the two had even met.

Back when Xia Han married Han Moran, Meng Yu hadn’t yet won Xiao Qi over. It had taken a great deal of effort to convince him to attend the wedding with her. At that wedding, she introduced him to Han Moran. Both of them were in the tech industry, and they hit it off immediately. Not long after, Han Moran made a generous offer to bring Xiao Qi into his company.

Now that Xia Han was at Pangda Navigation, Meng Yu went there too, hoping to see her. Xiao Qi was a vice president at the company—maybe, just maybe, she’d run into him.

They hadn’t seen each other in days, hadn’t even spoken. If they happened to meet by chance… maybe that could be the opening they needed, a moment for both to step back, to soften.

But reality caught her completely off guard.

Yes, she did run into Xiao Qi. But she also ran into Ai Qing—and her daughter.

They were there to see Xiao Qi too.

The moment Meng Yu stepped through the front doors of Pangda Navigation, she saw them. Xiao Qi was crouched beside the little girl, speaking to her gently, a calm smile on his face. Ai Qing stood nearby, looking on with quiet contentment.

For a split second, Meng Yu wondered if she was hallucinating. They looked so natural together, like a family. So warm, so at ease. It felt like they were the ones meant to be together.

And she—she was just a bystander, wearing the empty title of “Xiao Qi’s girlfriend,” utterly irrelevant to the scene before her.

She had never seen this side of him before. She never knew Xiao Qi could be so tender, that he could smile so gently.

But none of that softness had ever been shown to her.

The weather in Shenzhen was still as warm and pleasant as ever, but to her, it felt like a biting wind howling past her ears—cold and piercing.

Standing there, she felt like a complete joke.

Xiao Qi noticed her soon enough. He slowly stood up, and the warmth on his face—the gentle affection—faded bit by bit.

“What are you doing here?”

His voice snapped Meng Yu back to reality. She saw Xia Han waving to her from nearby. Taking a slow breath, she steadied herself and replied as calmly as she could, “I came to see Xia Han.”

He glanced over at Xia Han, paused for a moment, then asked, “Want to join us for lunch?”

“No, thanks.”

He said nothing more after that.

Just then, the little girl—Huan Huan—suddenly ran up to her. She pulled a lollipop out of her tiny bag and held it out to Meng Yu. Looking up at her with wide, innocent eyes, she said sweetly, “I brought candy for Auntie.”

Meng Yu stared at the child, and for a moment, she genuinely wanted to kick her away.

She didn’t know whether Ai Qing had done it on purpose or not—bringing her child to Xiao Qi’s office like this, knowing full well he had a girlfriend. Was she trying to make a statement? Trying to show the world how close they were? Did she not understand the concept of boundaries—especially with someone who was already taken?

Because of that, even the child rubbed her the wrong way.

But… a child was innocent. It wasn’t fair to take her anger out on a little girl. She didn’t want to look petty.

She clenched her jaw and forced down the urge to curse, managing a strained, “Thank you.” Just as she reached out to take the candy, the little girl beamed at her and said, “Want me to unwrap it for you?”

With clumsy fingers, she peeled off the wrapper and handed it to her. “Auntie, here—eat.”

She glanced at Xiao Qi and the woman named Ai Qing. A few employees from Pangda Navigation were standing nearby as well. In the end, she didn’t want to let the coldness between adults wound the heart of an innocent child. Whatever grievances existed between grown-ups should stay between grown-ups.

So she crouched down.

The little girl held the lollipop up to her mouth—but just as she put it in, she suddenly didn’t let go. Instead, she tightened her grip and shoved it hard toward the back of Meng Yu’s throat.

The candy nearly lodged itself down her windpipe. A sharp pain shot through her, triggering a violent coughing fit. Instinctively, her hand flew up and shoved the child away.

Maybe she used too much force—because the girl fell back hard and hit the ground. She burst into tears on the spot, wailing loudly.

Ai Qing rushed over immediately to pick her up. The girl was crying so hard it tore at the air. When Ai Qing lifted her pant leg, she saw the child’s ankle was visibly swollen. Her eyes welled with panic and distress as she looked at Xiao Qi, voice shaking, “What should I do?”

Xiao Qi, by contrast, remained calm. “Take her to the entrance and wait for me there. I’ll drive you both to the hospital.”

Clearly worried, Ai Qing scooped the girl into her arms and ran off toward the door.

When Meng Yu had pushed the child, the recoil had knocked her backward too. She’d fallen hard onto the ground. But Xiao Qi didn’t spare her a single glance—his full attention was on the mother and daughter.

In the end, it was Xia Han who walked over to help her up.

Just before leaving, Xiao Qi finally looked at her—but it wasn’t with concern. His eyes were cold, filled with silent accusation.

“It wasn’t on purpose, Xiao Qi,” Meng Yu said, her voice tight. “She shoved the lollipop into my throat.”

He didn’t say a word. He simply turned and walked toward the elevator. She knew he was in a hurry—to get that little girl to the hospital. He never liked it when she acted out, and she had always done her best to rein that part of herself in around him.

But watching the panic on his face now, something inside her snapped.

What exactly was he so panicked about? Was he really that worried about the little girl?

She was his girlfriend. Did he truly not care about her at all?

And so, she called out to his back: “Xiao Qi, I’m hurting too.”

I need your care, too.

Don’t leave. Don’t make me give up on you completely.

He paused when he heard her.

But only for a moment.

Then he kept walking—without even looking back.

In that moment, she finally made up her mind.

Her heart wasn’t made of iron—it couldn’t withstand being hurt over and over again.

Enough was enough. After all these years, his indifference had already cut deep. And now, there was another woman for him to worry about, someone else who could tug at his heart. If she stayed, the pain would only grow.

She was tired—utterly exhausted.

So this is it, Xiao Qi. It’s over.

She knew it would take some time for him to return from the hospital with the little girl, so she asked Xia Han to take her for a walk along the beach, and afterward, to bring her to Xiao Qi’s apartment.

This time, she didn’t use the fingerprint lock. She knocked on the door.

It wasn’t long before it opened.

It was Ai Qing who answered. She had an apron on and flour on her hands—clearly just stepped out from the kitchen.

Inside, she saw Xiao Qi sitting in the living room with Huan Huan, helping her go through her schoolbooks. She had always thought his apartment felt too cold, too sterile. But now, it was filled with laughter and warmth. It felt like a home.

And to Meng Yu, that felt like the cruelest irony.

Ai Qing, upon seeing her, didn’t show even a trace of resentment—even though her daughter had just been hurt because of her. Instead, she greeted them warmly and invited them in.

Meng Yu hadn’t even broken up with Xiao Qi yet.

But somehow, Ai Qing already felt more like the woman of this house than she ever had.

Meng Yu stepped inside with Xia Han. The moment Huan Huan saw her, the little girl shrank back, hiding timidly behind Xiao Qi. He gently patted her head, as if to comfort her.

“You don’t look well. Are you feeling sick?” Xiao Qi asked.

Was that supposed to be concern? Maybe it was. But whatever concern he had for her now, it no longer meant anything.

“I need to talk to you,” she said. “Can we speak alone?”

He studied her face for a long moment before nodding. “Okay.”

They stepped out onto the balcony. The sun was setting, casting golden light across the sky. On the small platform were a few succulents she had planted—still alive, still growing.

“What did you want to say?”

She looked at him—the same man she had met all those years ago. Still as handsome, still as captivating.

It was early in their first semester of university. A classmate had dragged her to an event hosted by the computer science department, and that’s where she’d first seen him. From the very first glance, she had been completely drawn in—his looks, his presence, even the timbre of his voice. Everything about him struck a chord in her.

It was the first time she had ever fallen for someone. Back then, she’d made a silent vow to herself: I’m going to make this man mine.

She had been so confident then. Looking back now, it felt like a cruel joke.

She turned her eyes to the fading sun on the horizon. Her voice, when it came, was calm and steady.

“Xiao Qi, let’s break up.”

She had never imagined saying those words to him.

She had loved him so much.

But strangely, it didn’t feel as heavy as she had imagined. In fact, there was a flicker of something close to satisfaction. Look at me, Xiao Qi— I loved you so much, gave you all the power, let you decide everything… but in the end, I’m the one who walked away.

=^_^=