Li Shiheng knelt before her, a rare lowering of his stature, as he pleaded softly, "Before that, come back home with me."
Bian Yue merely looked at her own hand which somehow had been held by Li Shiheng.
She shook her head slowly and said calmly, "Li Shiheng, that place is no longer my home. I despise betrayal and will never forgive it."
After she spoke, without a trace of hesitation, she withdrew her hand from Li Shiheng's.
The motion was like a slow-motion replay, frame by frame in slow motion, a piercing pain to the heart.
Before Li Shiheng could react, Bian Yue had already stood up and started walking upstairs.
Behind her, Li Shiheng remained motionless, maintaining the posture of being rejected.
Bian Yue fell asleep at night and dreamt again of the rainy season six years ago.
It was her 16th year.
The rainy season in Xiangjiang was humid, and the sudden downpours crushed lives without warning.
The Bian family had just completed the funeral, the somber funeral hall grand and solemn, its black and white decor complementing the relentless rain outside.
Two portraits were solemnly placed in the center of the funeral hall, those of the Bian family's patriarch and his wife. The Bian family was already divided, the once paramount Bian Family Mansion of Jiulong City would fall, already showing signs of collapse.
Inside the funeral hall, people were asking about Bian Yue's whereabouts, ready to collectively force this young lady who had just lost her parents to turn over the inheritance.
Nobody knew that on the aloof top floor, amidst torrential rain, Bian Yue sat on the floor holding a family portrait with raindrops hitting her sore swollen eyes, drained of tears.
Bian Yue, devoid of feeling, seriously considered in which posture she should leap from the top floor to die quickly and painlessly.
She was focused on this thought until a pair of white sneakers appeared in her vision.
The rain was blocked by a black umbrella, and Bian Yue, startled, looked up to see a white-clad Li Shiheng.
The 18-year-old Li Shiheng was matchlessly handsome, his occasional misarranged whites giving him an impressive flair, the only bright spot in the gloomy rainy day.
Behind him was a row of bodyguards holding black umbrellas and dressed in black.
He looked at her, with his lukewarm, shallow peach blossom eyes, gentle and tender smile. As soon as he spoke, he cast a spell over Bian Yue's heart.
He said, "Bian Yue, I have come to take you home."
Without any hesitation, Bian Yue placed her cold little hand into his.
How could their first encounter not be considered salvation?
It clearly fitted the opening scenes of all warm and touching stories of redemption.
So why has it come to such a desperate end now?
In her sleep, Bian Yue pondered without resolution until she was startled awake in the second half of the night.
Wen Jiao had unknowingly slipped into bed beside her, and by now, Miss Wen was heartlessly immersed in her dreams.
Bian Yue wryly watched her, then got up and walked to the floor-to-ceiling window.
The night was filled with heavy rain, obscuring the view outside the window, leaving her unsure where the scenery led.
Bian Yue watched the rain for a while, then subconsciously turned her face to look at the umbrella she had carelessly placed on the table.
The black umbrella with its wooden handle, dull and unobtrusive, seemed well matched with the current rainy season.
When should I return this umbrella? Bian Yue wondered.
Meanwhile, on a similarly stormy night, in the Li Family's hall, Shi An'an knelt at Li Shiheng's feet, her delicate and charming face showing a look of grievance.
Shi An'an hadn't actually thought about competing with Bian Yue for anything; she had simply... fallen for him, which is why, on a certain night when Li Shiheng was cold to her, she impulsively sent Bian Yue a message.
Shi An'an hadn't expected Bian Yue to respond to the invitation, nor had she foreseen that at this very moment, Li Shiheng would have her stay at the Li Family's house.
But now that she was living there, she couldn't be driven out again.
"Ah Hen..." Shi An'an's hand gently tugged at the edge of the man's trouser leg, her voice frail and harmless: "I didn't mean to make Bian Yue angry on purpose, she is your fiancée, how could I overestimate myself and provoke her?"
Li Sihe's gaze lightly swept over Shi An'an, from head to toe.
He said indifferently, "Take off your clothes."
Shi An'an felt a surge of joy in her heart. Other than that day they first got together when Li Sihe was drunk and touched her, he had never touched her again, until today...
The white silk nightgown was carelessly thrown onto the sofa, emitting a beautiful sheen under the light.
Shi An'an eagerly tried to embrace Li Sihe, but the man picked up the nightgown instead and carefully folded it.
Shi An'an had to admit, Li Sihe did not love her.
He treated Bian Yue's belongings with such solemnity, his gaze upon the nightgown was filled with much more warmth than when he looked at her.
The next moment, she heard Li Sihe's voice, gentle and insipid, as he said, "There's only one rule for living here: do not touch Bian Yue's things."
Shi An'an felt a chill run through her body.
She really wanted to ask Li Sihe what his feelings were for Bian Yue. Everyone else said he had changed his heart, but which person who has fallen out of love would still care so much about the other's belongings?
But it wasn't her place to ask such questions. The relationship between her and Li Sihe resembled a transaction with a clear price tag.
Li Sihe was the bidder, and she was the goods waiting to be sold.
The most romantic thing between them was nothing more than the man's charitable heart, offering her a price far above the market rate.
"Okay..." Shi An'an hadn't finished speaking when Li Sihe abruptly tugged her wrist and pulled her into his embrace.
His eyes inherently carried a tender quality, yet upon closer inspection, they were filled with a dark, cold indifference.
Shi An'an heard Li Sihe ask, "Have you taken the medicine?"
Shi An'an smiled dryly and, reaching out to wrap her arm around Li Sihe's neck, said, "I have."
Li Sihe's expression remained so serene it lacked any ripples. He carelessly patted Shi An'an's face, "You don't need to take it anymore; I won't touch you."
Shi An'an choked on her breath.
She truly couldn't understand Li Sihe and blurted out instinctively, "Why?"
Li Sihe pushed her away, stood up, and said, "Tired of it."
Tired of it?
Tired after just one time?
During those long years when Bian Yue was by your side, Li Sihe, how did you bear it?
Shi An'an's heart ached, with a visibly sorrowful expression, she looked at Li Sihe, "Then why do you keep me here? As a vase, or a mascot?"
Li Sihe turned his back to Shi An'an and took an umbrella from the butler.
He seemed not to have heard Shi An'an's questioning. In the face of her defiance, he remained entirely indifferent.
Shi An'an held her breath and watched as Li Sihe circled back.
The umbrella in his hand was exquisitely-fashioned and to Shi An'an, very familiar.
It was the umbrella from the Picnic Bay dock, the very one Bian Yue insisted she sign.
Li Sihe ignored Shi An'an's stiff expression. He tossed the umbrella in front of her, his voice gentle yet cruel, "You like signing so much, then fill up this umbrella with signatures."
Shi An'an wondered if she had misheard, looking up at Li Sihe in astonishment, only to see him remain composed and aloof.
She forced a smile, her expression rigid, "I don't like signing; it was Bian Yue who insisted I sign!"
'Bian Yue' was emphasized strongly.
But Li Sihe's heart was ironclad; he watched the beauty with tearful eyes, unresponsive.
He said, "What are you staring for? Sign."
Under the same heavy night sky, at Deep Water Bay, the Shen Family estate.
A black Maybach was parked on the grounds of the manor, in the rainy night, the air was heavy with the scent of grass and soil. Even the retro-Chinese style buildings seemed to bear an air of desolation.