[Location: Chen Family Villa | Time: 8:45 PM | Weather: Cold Breeze, Clear Sky]
The ornate hallways of the Chen estate glowed under chandelier light, but Chen Yao sat alone in the darkened sitting room, the glow of the screen before her casting shadows across her sharp cheekbones.
The video was grainy—an old recording from her wedding.
"I now pronounce you husband and wife."
The screen froze on his face. Young. Hopeful. Not yet hardened by silence and betrayal.
She stared at it for a long time, unmoving.
"This wasn't supposed to be our ending."
She leaned back against the velvet cushion. The dress she had worn that day was still hidden in the attic—untouched. Her mother had insisted she burn it after he left.
She hadn't.
And now, it mocked her from its hidden corner of the past.
A soft knock at the door interrupted her thoughts.
It was a maid.
"Miss Chen… there's someone at the gate."
"Who?" she asked without moving.
"Mr. Du Haoran."
Her brows furrowed. Why him? Why now?
[Location: Chen Villa – Courtyard | Time: 9:00 PM]
Du Haoran stood near the fountain, a bouquet of white tulips in his hand. He smiled when she approached, but the smirk didn't reach his eyes.
"You look the same," he said.
"You don't," she replied, folding her arms. "You reek of desperation."
He chuckled, unbothered. "I wanted to check in. After the storm that walked back into your life."
"Is this about Yichen?" she asked sharply.
"Of course it is," he said, stepping closer. "I warned you once. He was never going to choose you. He left you like a coward."
"And you… what are you doing here? Gloating because he reclaimed what was his?"
Du Haoran's smile faltered, just slightly.
"I was protecting the company. You wouldn't understand what it means to carry that weight."
"No," she said coldly, "but I understand cowardice when I see it. And ambition without a spine."
He sighed, offering her the flowers. "You don't have to face this alone. We were friends once."
She didn't take them.
"We were pawns once," she corrected. "That's not the same."
[Location: Qin Lingxi's Apartment | Time: 9:15 PM]
Lingxi sat with a sketchpad in her lap, pencil moving with deliberate grace.
A pair of clasped hands.
Two rings—one returned, one refused.
She stared at the drawing, her mind wandering.
The ghost of their wedding. Not hers. Not yet.
Her phone buzzed.
[Message from Yuan Fei]He's preparing for a confrontation with Chairman Qin. Do you want to be warned before it happens—or after?
Lingxi didn't reply immediately.
Eventually, she typed:
Let him do what he needs. But not everything is his to fix anymore.
She set the phone aside, and her fingers brushed over the unfinished sketch.
Her voice was soft.
"He didn't even know I was at that wedding. Standing at the back. Watching them say vows I knew he didn't mean."
[Location: Xu Corporation HQ | Time: 9:30 PM]
Xu Yichen stood by the floor-to-ceiling windows of his office, the city a river of light below. Behind him, Yuan Fei reviewed the latest updates on a tablet.
"Chairman Qin will be arriving tomorrow evening. Private schedule. No PR leaks."
"Good," Yichen said, folding his hands behind his back.
"And… Du Haoran attempted to meet with Miss Chen tonight."
That got his attention. He turned.
"Did she entertain him?"
"Briefly. But her driver reported that she turned him away."
Yichen didn't respond immediately. His expression didn't change.
"He's testing waters. I expected that."
"Shall I take action?"
"Not yet," he replied. "Let him believe he still matters."
Yuan Fei nodded. "Understood."
As she left, Yichen moved toward his desk. He opened the drawer once more.
Not for the rings this time.
A wedding invitation card. Torn in half. Folded again and again until the edges frayed.
Chen Yao & Xu Yichen.
He remembered how many times he tried to write his vows. How many drafts ended up in the bin.
Not because he didn't know what to say.
But because he didn't believe she'd understand.
[Location: Flashback — Private Beach, Five Years Ago | Time: Sunset]
Yichen and Lingxi sat on the sand, barefoot, shoes forgotten beside a driftwood log.
He stared at the ocean. She stared at him.
"You're marrying her," she said finally.
"It's the right move," he said quietly. "The families, the business, the optics."
"And the heart?"
He didn't answer.
She rose to her feet, brushing sand off her dress.
"That heart you gave me in the forest—are you taking it back?"
"Lingxi…"
"No. I get it now. You were never meant to be mine in the light."
She walked away.
He didn't stop her.
He never did.
[Location: Present — City A Rooftop | Time: 10:00 PM]
Chen Yao lit a cigarette with trembling fingers, though she never smoked. The lighter clicked several times before it caught.
The wind threatened to snatch the flame.
She took one drag and exhaled hard.
"You're haunting me, Xu Yichen," she whispered.
Behind her, the city skyline blinked like a thousand reminders.
The headlines. The silence. The unanswered questions.
Was it a mistake to send those papers again?
Or a mistake to marry him in the first place?
She turned her face toward the wind.
And if she came back… would he still leave?
[End of Chapter 5]