The "plague" gone, Lin Wan finally sighed in relief. After being bombarded with his sweet words and pressure from every direction, to be honest, she was starting to get exhausted. She hadn't expected these supposedly peaceful days to still be anything but. The first day after work, she bumped into Tan Xizhe at the gate of the office, a red Maserati parked behind him.
Once in the car, Tan Xizhe said, "I heard about what happened at Xishan. You didn't go and do something reckless, did you?"
Lin Wan rubbed her temples and replied, "No, it was just an accident."
"That's good. As the saying goes, 'As long as the green mountain stands, there's no need to worry about firewood.' Health is the foundation, and if you have that, you have the chance to turn things around." After a brief pause, he added, "Maybe your light is just about to shine."
Lin Wan turned to him in surprise.
"Chen Jin's family is arranging his marriage. His grandfather had picked out a granddaughter-in-law from a well-connected family, and everyone was on board. Even Chen Jin hasn't opposed it." He paused, then added, "But considering how he's treating you, even if he gets married, I doubt he'll let you go. After all, nowadays, it's not uncommon for married men to have multiple families."
Lin Wan was silent for a moment, then smiled faintly and said, "In that case, I guess I'll just bring a bottle of gasoline to his wedding and wish him well."
Tan Xizhe laughed and replied, "In that case, I guess I'll skip his wedding to avoid getting caught in the mess."
Lin Wan turned her gaze out the window, where rows of tall French plane trees stood, their branches stripped bare, with only a few leaves clinging on, shaking in the wind—much like her own life. She sighed inwardly and asked, "Is that the reason you called me here?"
"Of course not," he replied, glancing at her seriously. "Lin Wan, I think I know what you're worried about."
"You know?" Lin Wan turned to him, surprised.
"Not long ago, I was talking to someone about the accident from sixteen years ago, and that's when I realized the connection. Then I started wondering if Chen Jin was using this to pressure you into quieting things down, so I had someone look into it. And guess what?"
"What?" Lin Wan asked, her heart racing.
"The investigation report was taken."
"What?" Lin Wan froze. She remembered Mama Wang saying that Chen Jin had shown them a copy. "Did he take it?"
"Not everyone can do this. I can barely manage, but the fourth person... I don't even know who else would be interested in digging into such old matters."
Lin Wan slumped back in her seat, feeling even more desolate than the scene outside the window. After thinking for a moment, she asked, "So who's the third person?"
Tan Xizhe chuckled. "It's my cousin. He's never involved himself in matters like this, but it seems he's trying to rescue you from your predicament."
Seeing Lin Wan freeze for a moment, he scratched his head thoughtfully and said, "Lin Wan, you probably don't know, but a girl like you is quite attractive to men like us." Seeing her about to react, he smiled and added, "Don't get mad. Let me finish. It's perfectly normal. People are naturally curious about those who are different from them. The more they dislike someone, the more they want to conquer them. I think at first, Chen Jin probably felt that way about you. But after the Xishan incident, I'm not so sure. It seems like he's sinking deeper and deeper."
Lin Wan snorted. "It's just his possessiveness."
Tan Xizhe smiled. "Lin Wan, the person in the situation, is always confused, but the outsider can see clearly. Both of you have deeply ingrained beliefs, making it hard to see the truth. I'll be honest with you, I've thought about pursuing you. Maybe taking you away would be the best blow to him..."
Lin Wan's eyes widened in disbelief. She stared at him as if he were some kind of monster. Tan Xizhe laughed and said, "But seeing as it looks like you're not that easy to win over, and honestly, love is an expensive game I can't afford to play."
Lin Wan thought for a moment and asked, "Is this how you guys treat love—as a game?"
"Yeah, there are so many people in this world, and everyone has a different attitude towards love. There are people like you who take it seriously, like me who don't take it seriously, and then most people are somewhere in between. Of course, some people are like Chen Jin, even if they themselves don't know what they're doing. Compared to that, most people are happier. You, on the other hand, are the most miserable. As for me, I won't be too miserable, but I won't be really happy either. As for Chen Jin, all I can say is, confidence is not as good as self-awareness."
"Chen Jin is playing with fire. I originally wanted to wait for him to burn himself, but I can't bear to watch you suffer. That's why I'm warning you. You should know, even an iceberg has its day of melting in the fire."
Later that night, Lin Wan couldn't sleep, and the next day, when Milan invited her to go shopping, she thought she must be seeing things. They had visited a few shops and bought a piece of clothing each. While Milan went to the restroom, Lin Wan stood outside waiting, carrying their shopping bags. Suddenly, she caught sight of a familiar profile in the crowd. Her heart skipped a beat, and the two bags she was holding dropped to the ground. The profile quickly disappeared among the pedestrians, but without thinking, she chased after it, following him down the escalator. When the person reached the revolving door, he turned his head briefly, and Lin Wan froze.
The young man with light brown hair was not who she thought he was—it was just a side profile that looked similar.
Lin Wan covered her mouth in disbelief. She could recognize him even if he turned to ash. How could she have mistaken him? Was it another hallucination?
She stood there in a daze for a long time, letting the crowd rush past her. Eventually, Milan's voice called out behind her, "Wan Wan?"
Lin Wan mechanically turned around. Milan, relieved, asked with a smile, "What are you doing here? I had a hard time finding you. Hey, where's the stuff?"
Lin Wan looked down—her hands were empty. Her mind felt like it was tangled in a mess. She quickly made up an excuse, "Someone just stole my wallet, and I... I chased after them..."
"Seriously, what kind of mall is this, openly stealing!" Milan's loud voice immediately attracted a lot of attention. Lin Wan quickly grabbed her and whispered, "Keep it down. I'll buy you another one."
"What? No, we're going to the mall's office to report it, and we'll look at the security footage..."
Lin Wan quickly interrupted, "Forget it, forget it. They've already run off. I dropped it. I'll pay you back."
"Why should you pay? It's not your fault. Besides, you've lost more than I have."
"Stop it, let's go." Lin Wan tugged her hand and headed for the elevator, stumbling and almost falling.
Milan quickly steadied her, "Be careful, you're going to buy something, right? Didn't you just lose your wallet?"
"I still have my cards," Lin Wan muttered.