Chapter 9

As I walked out of Zhou Jingcheng’s company building, Lin Manman’s voice came from behind.

“Miss Shen.”

She quickly caught up to me.

With a contrived gesture, she brushed her hair away from her ear.

“Thank you for letting us be together and for letting Ah Cheng go.”

I saw the bright smile on her face and in her eyes.

Like a victorious conqueror flaunting her success.

“You’re welcome. Just hope you don’t end up like me.”

I chuckled softly.

A bit of advice from someone who’s been through it.

Lin Manman’s smile faltered slightly but quickly returned to its original state.

“How could I end up like you? You’ve seen how Ah Cheng feels about me, haven’t you?”

She reminded me.

She was referring to something that happened a long time ago.

Back then, Zhou Jingcheng took Lin Manman to a gathering with his friends.

During the gathering, one of Zhou Jingcheng’s friends inadvertently mentioned my past with him.

One of them revealed, “Once, Brother Jing came back late from a business trip, and Shen Yue was waiting for him outside by the flower bed, where she was harassed by a homeless man.”

At the time, Lin Manman was nestled in Zhou Jingcheng’s arms.

Upon hearing this, her delicate brows furrowed, and she uttered a disdainful “Ew.”

“Isn’t that dirty?”

I wasn’t sure if she was referring to me sleeping in the garden or being harassed by the homeless man.

Regardless, the room was filled with uproarious laughter.

I was standing outside the door at that moment.

Originally planning to catch them in the act.

Unexpectedly, I heard these words, and I felt as if I had fallen into a frozen hell.

Cold and hot, tormented.

What immobilized me even more was Zhou Jingcheng’s attitude at the time.

He sat on the sofa, loosely holding Lin Manman.

Amidst the crowd’s wanton ridicule and laughter, he remained silent with a faint smile, his demeanor indifferent.

As if they were mocking someone insignificant.

And not the person he once genuinely cared for.

During the final game session, Zhou Jingcheng indulgently swallowed the wine Lin Manman passed to him with her mouth.

Under her coquettish command, he uttered the words “Shen Yue, dirty.”