Back Then, I Adored You

Before her eyes could fog up, she lifted her arms and covered her face. Tilting her head back, she inhaled a deep breath and forcefully suppressed the urge to cry. She was no longer Wu Hao’s girlfriend and, unlike she had during the past 10 years, she could no longer lean on his shoulder and bawl her eyes out when she felt sad. Now that she only had herself, even if she cried her heart out deep in the night, no one’s heart would ache for her, and neither would anyone be concerned.

Thus, there’s nothing to cry about.

Furthermore, Lu Bancheng is nothing to me, so why should I cry over him?

He has me locked in a contract and then places me in a difficult position in front of another woman.

We merely crossed paths in the past, and now that his prospects are good while I’m suffering from excruciating misery, there was a starker contrast between our predicaments tonight.

As a woman, Xu Wennuan could be coquettish; she could also cry and be weak, but only because she had once a man who loved her deeply and who allowed her to indulge herself.

When she had been betrayed by Wu Hao, when she had been raped by Lu Bancheng, and when she had aborted the child who should not have existed, the only path that she could take was to toughen up and treat herself better. There was no other option for her.

Thus, instead of being upset, she decided that she would have a good rest and then think about finding an even better partnership than the one she had lost with Director Li.

……

Xu Wennuan had a spare set of clothes at her company office for emergencies, thus she did not return to Lu Bancheng’s apartment. She spent the night sleeping at the company on the sofa in the resting lounge.

The following day, she was busy in the office all day and into the evening. She had dinner at a restaurant in the food district near her company, and afterward she worked another two hours of overtime. When she finally felt that her body was fully drained, and that she would be able to fall asleep immediately after taking her shower, she then packed up and took the bus back to Lu Bancheng’s apartment.

Because Lu Bancheng had brought the secretary back home last night, when Xu Wennuan reached the apartment building, this time she looked up and searched for his apartment. When she saw that the lights were completely out, she went upstairs confident that no one was there.

She randomly turned on one of the lights in the living room and found her way into the guest bedroom. After tossing her purse on the bed and grabbing her towel and pajamas, she headed into the bathroom.

Feeling much better after a hot shower, Xu Wennuan then walked into the dining room and poured herself a cup of water, but just as she was taking the cup and returning to the guest bedroom, she heard the sound of the front door opening. Her back stiffened and, when she turned her head, the door fully opened and Lu Bancheng walked in.

He hasn’t been coming home at night for quite some time. Why is he returning home so frequently these past few days?

Xu Wennuan tightened her grip around her cup of water and was briefly stupefied. Subsequently, she looked down and hid her eyes, which had been staring at him.

Lu Bancheng noticed Xu Wennuan the moment he entered the apartment, including the strange expression that flashed across her face the moment she saw him enter the room.

She probably doesn’t welcome my presence? That’s right… She probably wishes that she’ll never see me again…

Lu Bancheng mocked her in his heart and mindlessly tossed his car keys down before he bent over to change his shoes. When he got up, Xu Wennuan, who did not exchange any words with him, had already walked to the guest bedroom door and unlocking it.

Of course she wants to lock up the room…

Lu Bancheng mocked her even harder in his heart. He leaned against the shoe rack at the entrance and stared at Xu Wennuan, who was holding onto a glass of water with one hand while fiddling with the door lock with the other. Annoyed by her silence and the clicking lock, he suddenly blurted out, “Didn’t you leave last night? Why are you back again?”