Even though her family could be unreasonable, they were still her parents. She couldn’t just stand by and watch them, in their old age, burdened with massive debts, living out the rest of their lives in misery. So, she had no choice but to go abroad, to improve herself and ensure they had some security in the future.

Yet, even after making this decision, the hole in her heart only seemed to grow larger.

In just one night, she had lost her closest friend, who she dared not contact anymore. The man she had secretly loved was now untouchable—someone she had no right to approach.

That was the person she had loved for ten years.

From her youthful, bashful crush, to the fervent affection of adulthood, she had thought age wasn’t an issue, nor was identity.

But now… she had to give up.

—

At the Kuang household.

Kuang Zhongbai slammed the phone down in fury after receiving yet another call about a project termination. He nearly crushed his phone in anger.

The scandal involving Kuang Hongxuan had caused massive damage to their reputation. Now, everyone was saying that the Kuang Group had risen to prominence by stepping on the 3.18 consumer rights cases and exploiting the Shenzhou Bank corruption scandal. The backlash against the Kuang Group’s products was widespread.

Combined with the negative fallout from Kuang Shuyu’s earlier incidents, the shareholders were now up in arms, rushing to offload their shares at a loss.

At this rate, the Kuang Group would soon collapse completely.

Zhou Yun’s face was etched with anxiety. She had tried reaching out to her old socialite friends, but the Kuang family was now like a plague; no one wanted to be associated with them.

Kuang Zhongbai roared, “That girl Kuang Xingran ran off abroad. And where the hell is Kuang Shuyu? With the family in this mess, where’s he hiding now?”

Zhou Yun snapped, “How would I know? Didn’t you freeze his bank card and send him off to the branch office to ‘train him further’?”

Kuang Zhongbai immediately called the branch office manager, only to learn that Kuang Shuyu hadn’t shown up for work in over ten days.

After an exhaustive search turned up nothing, they had no choice but to report him missing to the police.

—

The news reached the Mu family.

Mu Wan suddenly remembered that Kuang Shuyu existed. She turned to her father.

“Dad, didn’t Zhao Yao say where he had locked up Kuang Shuyu? Didn’t the police rescue him?”

Mu Jianhua tilted his head in thought. “I don’t know. Things have been so busy lately, I forgot.” He then feigned seriousness. “Let me call the precinct and ask about it.”

Three hours later, the police found Kuang Shuyu locked in an abandoned warehouse on the outskirts of the city.

After being trapped for fifteen days, he was a shadow of his former self—his eyes lifeless, his body emaciated, and his stench unbearable. Traces of his own excrement clung to his clothes.

The warehouse, an old storage facility for a large supermarket, had food and water but was sealed so tightly to keep out pests that it was uninhabitable.

He wouldn’t die, but he wouldn’t live well either.

Mu Jianhua had deliberately omitted this detail from Zhao Yao’s confession.

“Twenty days tops,” he thought. “The warehouse forklift operators would’ve found him eventually.”

—

Mu Wan pieced together the truth and looked disapprovingly at her father.

Though she understood he wanted to avenge her, she didn’t want him to break the law or risk their family’s reputation.

Mu Jianhua, though clearly feeling justified, said defensively, “His grandfather altered records and ruined your life in your past incarnation. I just left out a line in the confession to let him suffer for twenty days—what’s so wrong about that?”

Mu Wan: “…”

She was about to reason with him when her father pushed a pen and paper toward her.

Mu Wan: “??”

Mu Jianhua looked at her seriously. “Wan wan, you were reborn at 25, right?”

Though confused, Mu Wan nodded.

“Then write down every major event you can remember from these two years. Especially those involving natural disasters or events with heavy casualties. Specific dates and locations if possible.”

Mu Wan’s eyes widened in shock. “Dad, you’re thinking—”

Mu Jianhua stroked her hair, his expression solemn.

“Wan wan, your rebirth should bring new life to many others. It’s a gift from heaven, so don’t fear your uniqueness.”

Her heart warmed at his words, and Mu Wan smiled in response.

“Dad, I understand.”

She had never been afraid of her rebirth. But her father’s careful consideration filled her with warmth and comfort—an unshakable sense of security.

—

After spending two more days at their apartment, Mu Wan and Kuang Ye finally returned to their cozy little home.

As soon as the door closed, they looked at each other and, as if reading each other’s minds, kissed passionately.

After all the stress of recent events—and having stayed with her parents—they hadn’t had any private time together in a while.

Discarded clothes and shoes lay scattered from the door to the upstairs bedroom.

Soon, the room filled with soft moans and the rhythmic creak of the bed. The entire night burned with passionate heat.

—

The next morning, Mu Wan woke up to the smell of food.

After washing up, she went downstairs and saw a plate of steamed grouper on the table.

Just as she was about to comment on how troublesome it was to prepare such a dish early in the morning, she suddenly gagged, her stomach lurching.

Mu Wan: “??”

Clatter!

Kuang Ye dropped the spatula in his hand, his expression stunned. He looked at the seafood on the table, then at Mu Wan’s pale face, before hurriedly removing his apron and grabbing his coat.

“Wan wan, we’re going to the hospital.”

At first, Mu Wan was baffled. Then, realizing what he was implying, she felt a mix of shock and disbelief.

“Ah Ye, this is probably just a misunderstanding—you!”

She gagged again, this time less certain of herself.