I’m Done with the Elite Marriage

Zhou Youling was trending online.

This time, she was trending because of a video posted on Weibo by “Gourmet Chronicles,” in which she participated. Huo Lianghan, being a professionally trained director, had a keen eye for capturing moments. He attempted a very realistic filming style in this video, showcasing Zhou Youling in her most authentic form, without any beauty filters.

After the video was posted, it initially garnered some shares, as “Gourmet Chronicles” was a fresh attempt by a popular account with millions of followers, offering a sense of novelty to its fans.

Huo Lianghan had anticipated that the video would attract attention for its culinary content. However, he was utterly surprised to find that everyone’s focus was on Zhou Youling’s looks. The video truly went viral due to a single person’s share-Xu Jiaze.

Two hours after the short video from “Gourmet Chronicles” was released, Huo Lianghan, having taken a shower and settled into bed, opened Weibo to find an overwhelming number of shares and comments. For someone who hadn’t experienced such a surge in interactions for a while, it was quite exciting.

Then, Huo Lianghan discovered the reason behind the frenzy of shares.

Xu Jiaze, recently gaining popularity from a talent show, had become an undeniable sensation. In just a few weeks, his Weibo followers skyrocketed from single digits to over five million, a level of popularity that caught everyone off guard.

Among Xu Jiaze’s few original and shared posts, the most recent was a share of the “Gourmet Chronicles” video, accompanied by the caption: “I want to taste the dishes made by Elder sister; they must be delicious.”

As a result, fans traced back from Xu Jiaze’s Weibo to “Gourmet Chronicles,” and from there, they discovered Zhou Youling.

No one cared much about the culinary content of “Gourmet Chronicles”; what caught their attention was the female lead in the video.

“Wow, she’s like a fairy!”

“Checking in from Jiaze’s Weibo, totally captivated by Elder sister’s looks.”

“Jiaze’s Elder sister is our Elder sister!”

“Suddenly feel like the recent hit period drama would suit Elder sister perfectly.”

“Now I’m craving a seafood feast.”

“Am I the only one who noticed the impressive filming technique in this short video?”

“Does anyone know Elder sister’s Weibo account?”

Zhou Youling did have a Weibo account, but it was entirely private, with almost no friends or family added. She used it to candidly document her life and occasionally vent. However, due to being busy with the restaurant lately, she hadn’t posted in a while. She enjoyed browsing Weibo when she had time, but it had been nearly two weeks since she last did so.

Somehow, the resourceful netizens managed to find Zhou Youling’s account, and in just a few days, her Weibo followers increased by nearly a hundred thousand.

Zhou Youling remained quite indifferent about trending online. It was Bai Lingxue who was more excited than she was.

“You’ve trended on Weibo twice now! Anyone would think you’re about to enter the entertainment industry!” Bai Lingxue exclaimed.

Zhou Youling chuckled, “Forget it, I’m not interested.”

“True, if you wanted to join the entertainment industry, you would have done it long ago, not waited until now when you’re supposedly past your prime.”

“What?” Zhou Youling looked displeased, “You’re the one who’s past your prime.”

Bai Lingxue laughed cheekily, “I remember back in our freshman year, someone approached you about signing with a talent agency, but you refused no matter what.”

Thinking back, it all seemed like just yesterday.

Good-looking people are naturally luckier than others.

Since childhood, Zhou Youling had been blessed with beauty, receiving more love letters and opportunities than most.

By her freshman year in college, Zhou Youling had blossomed into a stunning young woman. Whenever there was an important event at school, she was always chosen to represent. Back then, someone claiming to be from a talent agency even approached her, wanting to sign her to train in Korea.

But Zhou Youling had no interest whatsoever; all she talked about was opening her own restaurant. Now, that dream had come true.

“By the way, do you think you should delete some stuff from your Weibo?” Bai Lingxue suggested.

Zhou Youling looked puzzled, “What stuff?”

She opened her Weibo and was surprised to see a sea of red notifications.

Weibo comments 999

Weibo shares 999

Followers increased by 999

She clicked on some comments, and they were almost all compliments.

[Truly a goddess.]

[Elder sister’s Weibo is really eye-opening.]

[Definitely a wealthy lady.]

[Rich, beautiful, and classy, no doubt.]

[I’m so envious I could cry.]

Honestly, since she got her Weibo account in college, Zhou Youling had been casually documenting her life but rarely looked back at what she’d posted.

Prompted by Bai Lingxue, Zhou Youling opened her Weibo homepage. The first post was from the day she got divorced: “Starting anew…”

The picture was of a fallen leaf.

Since the divorce, Zhou Youling had stopped updating her Weibo, and this post had the most comments from netizens.

Scrolling down, there was a picture of a bracelet with the caption: “Not sure if you picked this gift, but I really like it.”

Seeing this post made Zhou Youling’s heart skip a beat.

The bracelet was quite valuable, a gift from Fu Xunzhou during one of his business trips. However, after the divorce, Zhou Youling had returned all the gifts he had given her, including this bracelet.

Curious, Zhou Youling clicked on the comments under this post, following the likes to see what people had said.

[Am I seeing things? The bracelet that was auctioned off to a mysterious buyer at the Xinghuo Charity Gala half a year ago??? Worth twenty million???]

[No, you’re not seeing things. Here’s a picture.]

[To add, the mysterious buyer was very insistent on buying this bracelet, saying it was for his beloved wife.]

[Did I accidentally follow a fairy? What kind of goddess is this! Oh my!]

[Introducing: The Christie Diamond Bracelet, composed of 42 round diamonds with a total weight of 88.88 carats. Designed by the renowned jeweler Currens, the bracelet is named “Love Scarlet.” ]

[Indeed, only a fairy deserves such a bracelet! ]

[Oh my, what kind of divine love is this! ]

[I’m turning into a sour lemon.]

Zhou Youling was almost unaware of the deep significance behind this bracelet until the online community enlightened her. She recalled that when Fu Xunzhou returned from his business trip, it was already late at night. She didn’t even know when he had come back. By the time she woke up the next day, he had already left, leaving behind this bracelet on her wrist.

Over the years, the gifts from Fu Xunzhou lacked novelty-mostly bags and jewelry, with jewelry being the most frequent.

Receiving this bracelet did make Zhou Youling quite happy, as she always had a fondness for shiny things. However, she never imagined that the bracelet would be so exorbitantly priced.

For Fu Xunzhou, he never intended to deliberately showcase anything in front of her. His demeanor, seen as cold by her, belied the fact that she was already special to him.

From childhood, Yu Wanrong taught Fu Xunzhou to keep a low profile, warning him that falling behind meant getting beaten. In truth, Fu Xunzhou wasn’t exceptionally smart; at least he couldn’t match the carefree Fu Hexu in anything he did. The only thing he could do was to spend more time working hard than others. The early bird catches the worm, and a good memory is not as reliable as a worn-out pen.

Fu Xunzhou never fantasized about what love should be like; his upbringing never taught him how to love. He was like a wind-up robot, dutifully accepting all of Yu Wanrong’s arrangements.

Of course, Fu Xunzhou did consider nurturing this marriage. The first time he stood before a shop window and saw an anklet, when Zhou Youling crossed his mind at that moment, a corner of his heart belonged to her.

After leaving the apartment, Fu Xunzhou called Fu Hexu.

He said, “I don’t want to hurt her anymore.”