Volume One, Chapter Two: The New Laugh, The Old Weep

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Stepping out of the banquet, Song Nanyi got into the car. She asked the driver to wait outside and then called her lawyer friend.

“I want a divorce from Huo Shixu.”

There was a stunned pause on the other end. “Are you serious?”

“Help me investigate Huo Shixu’s situation as soon as possible, and draft a divorce agreement. The sooner, the better.”

Song Nanyi’s voice was chillingly calm.

After ruling out any impulse from an argument or drunkenness, her lawyer friend agreed, “Alright, I’ll get on it right away.”

“Thank you.”

After hanging up, Song Nanyi stared blankly at her phone.

The wallpaper was still their wedding photo.

Back then, she had smiled so happily; now it felt bitterly ironic.

“Nanyi, I will love you forever, in this life, the next, and all the lifetimes beyond, unwavering until death.”

“Nanyi, marrying you is a blessing I’ve earned over several lifetimes. I want you to be happy every day. I will never let you cry.”

“Nanyi, let’s have a baby, the fruit of our love. He’ll be the most adorable baby in the world.”

“Nanyi...”

“Nanyi...”

Song Nanyi felt her heart being gnawed away inch by inch.

A cold smile curled on her lips. “Huo Shixu, you have long forgotten your vows, our child...”

She closed her eyes.

Her nails dug deeply into the leather seat.

Her lips trembled as tears streamed down her face.

She deliberately waited until nightfall before returning to that familiar home.

Except for a few servants, there was no sign of Huo Shixu’s return.

“Has Master not come back yet? Even if he didn’t return, he should have sent his beloved home.” The servant was questioned, “And Miss Su? Has she returned?”

The servant was stunned, “Madam, Master hasn’t come back. I haven’t seen any Miss Su either.”

Song Nanyi was momentarily taken aback.

Then, she slowly changed into slippers.

A bitter smile tugged at the corner of her mouth.

It seemed tonight, he wouldn’t be coming home.

“That’s enough. You may rest now.”

“Yes, Madam.”

In her previous life, when Huo Shixu introduced Su Yuan to her, wanting to bring her home, she refused.

Not only did she refuse, but she also slapped Huo Shixu.

Her words to Su Yuan were harsh and unforgiving.

Huo Shixu was furious on the spot. Ignoring the shocked gazes of everyone present, he left with Su Yuan.

It looked very much like they had eloped.

In truth, Huo Shixu hadn’t changed.

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His love remained reckless as ever.

Only the object of his affection had changed.

In his own words, every man in high society has several confidantes outside.

Whether they sleep together or not is just a matter of a thought.

Huo Shixu was simply more thorough in living this out.

He probably didn’t even remember that when he whispered sweet nothings to Su Yuan, he had once told Song Nanyi he would love her forever.

Song Nanyi took a deep breath.

It no longer mattered.

Having been given a second chance at life, she wasn’t here to salvage a marriage that wasn’t worth saving.

Turning off the light, she quietly ascended the stairs.

Just before reaching the second-floor corner, the door opened.

Huo Shixu and Su Yuan walked in together.

“Is Sister Nanyi not back yet? Or is she already asleep?” The girl’s voice was soft and melodious.

The man looked up, glancing around.

“She should be asleep. She always goes to bed early.”

Su Yuan nodded peacefully. “Brother Shixu, is it really okay for me to move in here? Today, Sister Nanyi looked unhappy. Does she dislike me? Maybe…”

She hesitated, then turned to leave.

Huo Shixu raised his hand to stop her. “Of course not.”

Su Yuan’s eyes reddened, looking fragile and pitiful, staring unwaveringly into his eyes.

Their gazes locked.

His lips slowly leaned toward hers.

Under the faint nightlight by the door, their entwined figures pierced Song Nanyi’s eyes with sharp pain.

Love always brings laughter to the new and tears to the old.

Song Nanyi withdrew her gaze.

With a barely perceptible shrug of her lips, she turned back to her room.

That night.

Huo Shixu did not go straight to his room.

Instead, he went to the room next door — the one prepared for Su Yuan.

Though they tried to keep quiet, Song Nanyi still heard the seductive sounds only made by lovers together.

In her past life, she had been so foolish.

They had already loved each other to such a degree, and she never noticed.

Song Nanyi thought Huo Shixu would stay with Su Yuan all night.

Perhaps his conscience pricked him, or he suddenly remembered his wife was next door; in any case, he restrained himself.

After getting into bed, he wrapped his arm around her waist and kissed her cheek. “Why have you been so tired lately? Could it be that you’re pregnant?”

In the darkness,

Song Nanyi’s eyes instantly lit up.

Pregnant?

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Indeed, three months before the end of her last life, she had already begun trying to conceive, and around this time, she had found out she was pregnant.

She could not let the tragedy of the past repeat itself in this life.

Under the covers, her slender fingers tightly gripped the sleepwear over her abdomen, trembling as she whispered, “No.”

“We’ll go get checked another day. If it’s not, we’ll keep trying.” He kissed her neck gently, fingers interlaced with hers, desire unmistakable.

Song Nanyi couldn’t quite understand.

How could a man who had just gotten out of another woman’s bed speak so casually about having a child?

Perhaps, he had lost all sense of shame.

“Huo Shixu,” Song Nanyi wanted to know his thoughts, “do you think we still need to have a baby?”

Huo Shixu was silent.

For about five or six seconds.

He hesitated.

Because he already had Su Yuan.

Only due to pressure from their elders did he have to have a baby with her, not because he wanted to create a love child.

“If you’re not done playing, we can wait a bit longer,” his tone grew cold, yet there was a slight sense of relief.

A chill spread through Song Nanyi’s heart.

In the end, he was passing the responsibility back onto her.

“Huo Shixu, do you still love me?”

The question felt jarringly out of place in the darkness.

Song Nanyi guessed whether Huo Shixu would answer truthfully or evade the question.

After all, he had Su Yuan now.

Protecting her in some way was part of his role as a proper lover.

In her previous life, during their fiercest fights, she once asked why he loved someone else.

He had only glared fiercely and said, “Song Nanyi, you can’t even compare to a little finger of Su Yuan’s. How could I love you anymore?”

That answer had already been spoken in the past.

She just wanted to know if, when she obeyed him, he would feel guilty enough to lie and say, “Of course I love you.”

The result was predictable.

Huo Shixu remained silent, using that to replace an answer.

He no longer loved her; the moment Su Yuan appeared, he ceased to love her.

“Are you still bothered by the fact that Yuan moved in here?”

Song Nanyi gazed blankly at the faint moonlight outside the window.

Did her answer matter?

If it did, he wouldn’t have asked such a question.

“She’s just a homeless girl. We’re just lending a hand to pull her out of the mud. Why not?” Huo Shixu’s patience wore thin. “Nanyi, can’t you rein in your jealous nature?”