The police nodded in understanding.

It was He Jinsheng’s mother who came to me for reconciliation. “He’s still in the ICU right now. Xiao Yu, for the sake of the past, can you let him go this time?”

“Auntie, if I let him go, will he let me go?”

His mother pushed a card towards me. “This is 10 million yuan. If you’re willing to let Ah Sheng go, I promise he won’t bother you anymore.”

10 million yuan.

I thought again about the beginning of all this—the 10-million-yuan bet that started it all.

So, who won in the end?

He Jinsheng? I doubt it.

---

“Did you agree to the reconciliation?” Ji Mingxin asked me.

I shook my head as I packed my things.

Ji Mingxin sighed in relief. “As long as you didn’t agree.

“Yu-ge, just wait. I won’t let He Jinsheng off the hook.”

I focused on organizing what I needed to take with me and didn’t respond.

The doctor suggested that I take Cheng Xinxin abroad for treatment, which fit perfectly with my plans to develop my career overseas.

Ji Mingxin wanted to invest, but I turned him down. “The risks are too high. If I go bankrupt, you’ll still have money to lend me for food.”

Fortunately, five years later, my company successfully went public.

Recently, Cheng Xinxin entered her rebellious phase. She didn’t want to stay in the hospital with her aunt anymore. “Brother, can you take me home for a few days?”

---

When I went to pick her up, Ji Mingxin was there too.

“Yu-ge, Xinxin says I’ve gained weight recently. Want to feel and see if it’s true?”

I laughed and pushed him away.

On our way home, we found an envelope left by the door.

With Xinxin in my arms, I asked Ji Mingxin to pick it up and check it.

Inside was a black card and a piece of paper with just three words written in Chinese: “I’m sorry.”

I recognized the handwriting as He Jinsheng’s.

“Just throw it away,” Ji Mingxin guessed it was from him too.

I smiled and shook my head. “Ji Shao, you’re really rich, huh? Just throw it away?”

Hearing this, his expression fell, like a wilting plant.

“So, what should we do with it? Keep it?”

I glanced at the black card. “Donate it to an orphanage. It’s what he owes me.”

---

That envelope didn’t stir any emotions in me, but someone else couldn’t sleep because of its appearance.

Two days later, Ji Mingxin came to find me.

“Yu-ge, can’t I get promoted to ‘official’ status with you?”

Today, he even wore a formal suit and styled his hair.

It was rare to see Ji Mingxin so serious.

I told him sincerely, “I don’t plan on pursuing any romantic relationships in this lifetime.

“I just want to see Xinxin grow up and earn enough money for her to spend.

“So, don’t waste your time on me.”

---

Later, when Cheng Xinxin’s condition improved, I took her to Iceland to see the Northern Lights.

It was just the two of us.

With her head raised, Xinxin suddenly said to me, “Brother, I’ve stopped praying for Mom to come back.”

—The End—