Dong Lili gazed at the increasingly dashing Sheng Shijing, especially when his eyes were on his fiancée.

The light in his eyes was like the soft, pearlescent sheen of fine jade—gentle, yet resolute.

"Guoguo, are you getting used to our Qing City cuisine? Guoguo, you should eat more. Guoguo..."

Every single word was like a rope, tightening around Dong Lili’s heart until it hurt so much she could barely breathe.

It wasn’t for any other reason. The words were all too familiar; they were the very same things she used to say.

Whenever they had a chance to eat together, she would fuss over him endlessly, but he would only ever frown in silence.

She had assumed he found her too talkative, so as she got older, she learned not to say such things so readily.

Yet here he was, saying them now without a hint of annoyance, repeating them again and again. And that Guoguo just responded happily, "I know, I know! Heh heh... You’re the only one at the whole table nagging, Eldest Brother Sheng."

"Heh heh... That’s just him. He’s usually not one to talk much," Mrs. Sheng said, trying to cover for her son. "Guoguo, your cooking is delicious. Have you been cooking since you were a child?"

"Mom, if you like it, just eat more. Stop pestering Guoguo with questions, she hasn’t had her fill yet!"

After chiding his mother, Sheng Shijing turned back to Fu Guoguo. "I’m just worried about you! Be good, eat some more..."

Dong Lili felt the metallic taste of blood well up in her throat. ’So he does know what it’s like to worry about someone!’

’Did he really never know how I felt about him?’

’All our friends and relatives, even my own parents, they all knew what was in my heart.’

’Isn’t this Sheng Shijing’s way of blatantly betraying me? Isn’t he deliberately flaunting this in my face?!’

’He’s grinding my dignity into the dirt, so why am I still stubbornly sitting here on the Sheng family’s sofa, refusing to leave?’

It was because she couldn’t accept it. When she thought no one was looking, Dong Lili stole a glance at Sheng Shijing.

His eyes were only for Fu Guoguo; he paid no mind at all to her pain.

"Uncle Sheng, Auntie, please take your time eating. I’m going to head out now." Dong Lili finally rose to her feet, making her escape.

"Ms. Lili, what’s wrong? Your voice sounds a little off," Sheng Shiwu said, standing up to see her out.

"You idiot, she probably just has a cold. Tell her to go home and take some medicine for it." Sheng Shijing’s words nearly made Dong Lili stumble.

She couldn’t hold it in any longer. Covering her face, she fled from the Sheng residence in tears, a complete mess.

"What’s wrong with her? We invited her to eat, but she refused. Surely she didn’t start crying just because she saw how much we were enjoying our food!"

Mr. Sheng glanced at his clueless elder son but ultimately said nothing. He just lowered his head and dug into his food. His future daughter-in-law’s cooking was fantastic.

As she reached the door, Dong Lili fought the urge to turn around and scream, ’I’m only like this because of you!’

After everyone had eaten their fill, Sheng Shiwu insisted on washing the dishes, leaving Fu Guoguo and Sheng Shijing to chat with Mr. and Mrs. Sheng in the living room.

Fu Guoguo was happy and a little relieved to see that Sheng Shijing’s parents seemed to like her a lot.

’I’ll definitely do my best to build a good life with Sheng Shijing.’ She’d had a heart-to-heart with Mrs. Sheng while they were cooking earlier.

She felt Mrs. Sheng was just as Gu Jiaojiao had described: not a bad person at heart, but someone whose actions always ended up causing harm. ’It’s like a sickness.’

’In the past, she always felt she owed her biological daughter, so she developed a pathological need to make her adopted daughter compensate the biological one as endlessly as she did.’

’She had no regard for her adopted daughter’s feelings. If that’s not a sickness, what is?’

’But after paying such a heavy price, she seems to have come to her senses. Does that mean her sickness is cured?’

Mr. and Mrs. Sheng were divorced. Although they still had feelings for one another, they couldn’t just go back to their room and sleep together.

Yet they couldn’t bear to separate and go to their respective rooms alone, so they stayed and chatted with their son.

Even though Sheng Shijing and Fu Guoguo were engaged, they weren’t living together yet. He was worried his fiancée would feel scared in the unfamiliar Sheng home.

He wanted to spend more time with her, so the four of them sat and talked about anything and everything, and before they knew it, the night had grown deep.

Seeing how late it was, Mrs. Sheng got up. "I’ll go prepare a late-night snack. Shijing, take Guoguo upstairs to get washed up."

With that, she turned and headed for the kitchen.

"Oh, no late-night snack for me. I’ll just go upstairs to wash up and get ready for bed," Fu Guoguo said, a bit shyly.

But the thought of going to get washed up with Eldest Brother Sheng... ’Even if I’m shy, I have to bear with it.’ There was even a little thrill of anticipation.

"Silly child, you and our Shijing are already engaged. What’s there to be so formal about?" Mr. Sheng said with a kind smile.

After he spoke, he went to the kitchen and called to Mrs. Sheng, "Cui Ping, don’t trouble yourself. The kids aren’t having a late-night snack, and neither am I. You go sleep in your room; I’ll sleep in Xiao Wu’s room."

Mrs. Sheng looked at the husband she hadn’t seen in months. She could see the love in his eyes, but they were already divorced!

She turned her head away. "Xiao Wen will be back later. You should sleep in your room. I’ll just sleep in Yueyue’s room for now."

"Alright." Mr. Sheng gazed at the woman who had been his companion for half a lifetime. ’I’ll wait until after the New Year,’ he thought, ’and then I’ll ask her if she wants to remarry.’

Mrs. Sheng watched her husband walk away without a backward glance. This was all her doing. Tears began to stream down her face uncontrollably.

Since the divorce, the only thing that had gotten her through the agonizing pain was clinging to their beautiful memories.

Back in the living room, Fu Guoguo’s face turned beet red at Mr. Sheng’s words. "I... I’m going to go take a shower."

Sheng Shijing followed her, laughing. "Haha... Guoguo, you’re blushing! Do you even know where the bathroom is?"

"..."

Seeing his fiancée fall silent, Sheng Shijing stopped teasing her. "I’ll show you the way. I’ll wait for you outside."

"Thank you, Eldest Brother Sheng," Fu Guoguo said, recovering her composure. She wasn’t one to be overly fussy.

She followed Sheng Shijing into the bathroom. After her shower, he led her back to his bedroom to rest.

He held her gently and murmured, "Guoguo, you sleep in my room. I’ll go sleep in Xiao Wu’s room."

Fu Guoguo leaned against his chest, listening to his strong, steady heartbeat and feeling the warmth of his body. A strange, wonderful sensation washed over her.

She opened her mouth to say something, but Sheng Shijing glanced down at her luscious, red lips. His heart stirred, and he leaned in to kiss her...

Dong Lili ran out of the Sheng residence in tears. She found a corner just outside and squatted down, sobbing her heart out.

She couldn’t understand it. How could Sheng Shijing, who had always been so cold and distant, suddenly become so attentive?

’How did he just fall in love with someone else?’

’In the past, I put him on a pedestal. Even though I never got a response, I still felt like the happiest woman in the world.’

’It was because he never spared another girl a glance. That cold, indifferent attitude he had toward everyone was precisely what made me fall for him so deeply I couldn’t escape.’

’I kept deluding myself, believing that one day he would accept my feelings, that we would get married and have children.’

’The hope was slim, but I refused to go on any blind dates. And yet... he was the one who got engaged first.’

’So, he could laugh after all. He could ask after someone’s well-being, he could even serve them soup and peel their shrimp... it just wasn’t for me.’

The more she thought about it, the more Dong Lili’s heart felt as if it were being sliced by a knife. Suddenly, two hands came to rest on her shoulders.