"Lin Banxia, were you blind back then? Ignoring me, the eldest son of the Huo Family, and marrying a scumbag—today, I must correct that mistake." As Yan Ting finished speaking, he suddenly tore off her clothes.
"Huo Yanba, you can't bully me like this..."
Lin Banxia clenched her fists and struck him, but the reality about to unfold could no longer be changed.
At the moment her body was forcibly taken, she froze completely.
Before her eyes, her husband and her cousin were deeply entangled in their affair, while she was being defiled by another man...
The relentless ravaging made her, inexperienced and naive, feel like she was caught in a storm.
Two hours later...
She fled the hotel in disheveled clothes, overwhelmed by panic.
Before she left, the man's magnetic and domineering voice echoed: "Tomorrow at ten, I'll wait for you at the Civil Affairs Bureau. Don't be late."
She was a proud woman, and her pride and self-respect wouldn't allow her to do such a foolish thing.
The only path left for her now was to divorce Huo Qinglin, block Lu Huan Ning, and cut ties forever.
She would go as far away as possible, never to cross paths with these two vile people again for as long as she lived.
And as for Yan Ting—his love left her uneasy, afraid.
The red Ferrari sped madly along the coastal highway.
In her ears, Lu Huan Ning's increasingly feverish moans mingled with the dominant forcefulness of a man's movements; Lin Banxia fought back her tears, refusing to cry.
As if not crying would make her defeat feel less disgraceful, she battled herself in silence.
Ahead, an elderly man suddenly began crossing the zebra crossing, and Lin Banxia was jolted out of her daze, pressing the gas pedal in confusion.
That familiar screech of brakes never came, lingering soundlessly.
Instead, the car's speed did not slow, and as she realized it would soon collide with the old man, Lin Banxia forcefully turned the steering wheel.
The red Ferrari soared off the road, flipping once in mid-air before plunging into the ocean.
Time seemed to slow abruptly, and in those fleeting seconds, Lin Banxia reflected on her three years of marriage.
Her husband Huo Qinglin's face was blurred, barely tangible; the only sharp image was another staunch and handsome face.
That man held a cigarette between his fingers as his voice, cool and distant, rang out: "Lin Banxia, do you regret marrying him?"
"Yan Ting, I regret it! Save me!" She shouted with all the strength she had.
But her voice ultimately disappeared into the icy waters.
Through the slightly open car window, water poured inside. Lin Banxia struggled, but finally and unwillingly, she shut her eyes.
"Cold, so cold..." Her crimson lips parted faintly before her body trembled violently. Lin Banxia suddenly opened her eyes wide.
Was this heaven? Did she die in the sea?
Lin Banxia's large, dark eyes shone with clarity as she looked around her surroundings.
Puzzled, she wondered—how strange! Why does heaven look exactly like the pear garden her grandparents left to her?
"Young Miss..." A familiar voice suddenly reached her ears.
Aunt Lan, the pear garden's housekeeper, walked toward her!
Lin Banxia stood up in shock, realizing she had been lying on her grandfather's favorite chaise lounge.
"Young Miss, your father just called. He wants you to come home tonight for dinner to discuss your engagement to the second young master of the Huo Family at the end of the month." Aunt Lan smiled warmly as she spoke.
When Lin Banxia heard that, she looked as if she'd seen a ghost. Her face went pale as she stared at Aunt Lan.
"What... what did you say?"
Aunt Lan was startled by her expression and hesitated for a moment before laughing softly: "Young Miss, you must be sleepy and confused. I just said your father called and asked you to come home for dinner. Your beloved Huo Family's second young master will surely come tonight too. Quickly, go get yourself dressed up beautifully and meet your lover."
Lin Banxia touched her face and then her hair—waist-length, straight, and jet-black.
What was going on?
After she married, she'd dyed it and styled it into big waves, hadn't she?
Why was it now straight and black again?
"Young Miss, what's the matter? Are you feeling cold?" Aunt Lan asked with concern.
"Aunt Lan, where's my phone?" Lin Banxia's thoughts were full of questions, but she dared not scream them out loud. Instead, she steadied herself and asked.
Aunt Lan's eyes crinkled in a smile as she pointed to the pearwood round table not far away: "Isn't it right there?"
"Oh, how forgetful of me!" Lin Banxia quickly rushed over, picked up the phone, and turned on the screen!
2013, autumn!