The spacious VIP departure lounge was nearly empty, with only a few people scattered around. It was very quiet, and a faint floral fragrance lingered in the air, coming from the freshly replaced camellias in the corner.
Li Yafu sat on the sofa, composing a text message. The recipient displayed on her phone was “Bai Junyan.” She would finish writing a message, delete it, and start over. After nearly half an hour of this, she still hadn’t sent anything.
“I don’t think we’re right for each other. When I get back, I’ll explain everything to my family. I don’t want to continue this relationship anymore.” That didn’t seem quite right, so she deleted it and started again. “Let’s cancel the engagement ceremony. I’ve thought it over carefully, and I don’t think I’m good enough for you.” That still didn’t feel right. In the end, she decided to be more straightforward. “Bai Junyan, let’s break up.”
She stared fixedly at those words, her finger hovering above the send button, but she simply couldn’t bring herself to press it.
The sudden ringing of her phone startled her. The caller ID displayed “Bai Junyan.” Li Yafu took a deep breath before answering.
“When are you coming back?”
His voice was soft. Perhaps it was because he was speaking through a phone, but Bai Junyan’s voice sounded even more resonant and magnetic over the line.
“I’m in the departure lounge now. My flight boards in half an hour.”
“Then you should arrive tomorrow morning. I’ll pick you up at the airport.”
“Okay.”
After hanging up, Li Yafu leaned back against the sofa, feeling utterly helpless. The line of text was still sitting in the message box on her screen. She deleted it and slipped her phone into her bag.
She had long forgotten when this had started. Whenever things grew quiet, she would inevitably find herself wanting to end things with Bai Junyan. Yet every single time, she found herself unable to actually go through with it.
The plane arrived twenty minutes later than scheduled. By October, the weather in Luocheng was already turning chilly. Li Yafu wore a wide-brimmed hat and a spaghetti-strap beach dress. The moment she stepped off the plane, the cold wind in Luocheng made her shiver.
Wearing sunglasses, she emerged from the passageway. A crowd of reporters had gathered on both sides, and she was still wondering whether there might be a celebrity on her flight when, to her surprise, the reporters swarmed toward her the moment she came out.
“Congratulations, Miss Li, on winning first prize in the Panilag International Violin Competition! We’ve heard that the first prize has gone unawarded for two consecutive competition seasons. Thirty years after our country last achieved this honor, you’ve once again put our nation’s name on the sacred stage of Panilag. I imagine you must be overwhelmed with excitement right now. Could you share your joy and sense of achievement with us?”
Li Yafu was a little bewildered. She hadn’t expected to attract so much media attention just for winning an award in the relatively small world of classical violin.
“Miss Li, there are rumors that you’ve had the quiet support of a powerful benefactor all along, and that your achievements today are largely thanks to this person. Are these rumors true? Could you tell us who this benefactor is?”
Li Yafu frowned. What powerful benefactor? Where had this completely baseless rumor come from? She had assumed the reporters had gathered because she’d won an award. She hadn’t expected them to be here for this kind of fabricated gossip.
“Miss Li, could you tell us who this mysterious benefactor is, the person who has been supporting you all along? We’ve heard that he’s already married. Is that true? Are you his secret mistress?”
The more Li Yafu heard, the darker her expression became. Since when had she been involved in a scandal like this? Why hadn’t she heard about it herself? These reporters really had too much time on their hands. If they wanted gossip, why not go after celebrities instead of a violinist like her? She hadn’t even brought an assistant with her to the award ceremony. Now, alone and surrounded by more than a dozen reporters, she was finding it difficult to handle the situation. Besides, she had never rehearsed how to respond to questions from the press.
Still, as someone in the arts, surely all she needed to do was maintain a cool and composed demeanor. She adjusted her sunglasses and walked forward expressionlessly. She wasn’t even sure whether her family had sent anyone to pick her up. The reporters pursued her like a swarm of flies, following her all the way and pressing closer with every step. Li Yafu felt her carefully maintained composure gradually slipping away.
Just as she began to feel that the reporters’ cameras were about to poke her in the face, a group of uniformed security guards appeared from somewhere.
“We’re sorry, but please step aside. Miss Li is exhausted from her travels and is unable to answer any questions at the moment.”
The man leading the group wore a suit. Li Yafu recognized him immediately: Zhang Ce, Bai Junyan’s assistant. The uniformed security guards separated the reporters and cleared a path. Zhang Ce stepped forward, placing one hand protectively behind Li Yafu while using the other to shield her head.
A black Maybach was parked at the entrance. Zhang Ce opened the car door for her. Li Yafu glanced inside and, unsurprisingly, saw Bai Junyan sitting in the back seat. She climbed in and removed her hat and sunglasses.
“Sorry, there was a bit of traffic, so I arrived late. Are you all right?”
Bai Junyan wore a custom-tailored suit in a shade of lead gray. Its simple design was perfectly fitted to his well-proportioned physique, the result of years of discipline and self-control.
He was the kind of man who was crisp and precise in everything he did, and his entire presence conveyed the same impression. His hair was meticulously trimmed, his suit impeccably pressed, and even the smallest detail, down to the cuff of his shirt, reflected that clean-cut precision.
His excellent family background had shaped him into a courteous gentleman with impeccable manners. However, having occupied a position of power for so long, he always held something back in his smile. He was usually busy with work, and even when he spoke to someone politely, he carried an inherently intimidating aura, as though silently warning them: My patience is limited, and my time is precious. Have the sense not to waste too much of it.
Li Yafu smiled at him. “I’m fine. You arrived just in time.”
“I forgot to congratulate you. First prize at Panilag—another step up for our great violinist.”
“Stop making fun of me. What great violinist? I’m nowhere near that level.”
By the time they finished speaking, the car had already left the airport. Li Yafu asked, “Where are we going?”
“I’ve already had dinner prepared. We’ll celebrate your return first.”
“Then I should call my dad.”
“No need. I’ve already called him for you.”
Well, that was thoughtful of him. At least she didn’t have to go to the trouble herself.
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
The car drove to Bai Junyan’s villa on Shallow Water Bay Avenue. There was a room here that belonged to Li Yafu as well, but she had never spent the night at his villa. Bai Junyan never asked her to stay, and she had no particular desire to do so either. She only occasionally had meals here, though she did keep a few changes of clothes at the villa.
Li Yafu took a shower and changed into a light purple evening gown. Its mermaid-inspired design perfectly accentuated her figure. Li Yafu had the kind of beauty associated with a refined, girl-next-door elegance. Her face was neither long nor round, and her features were delicate and exquisite. She had almond-shaped eyes and a small mouth. Viewed from the side, the tip of her nose had a delicate, almost translucent quality. The natural bone structure that framed her face so beautifully gave her an air of sophistication, elevating her appearance to another level and keeping her beauty from looking too generic or cookie-cutter.
Suddenly, several knocks sounded at the door. Li Yafu answered, and someone pushed the door open. She saw in the mirror that it was Bai Junyan. He was holding an exquisite box. He handed it to her and opened it, revealing a finely crafted necklace nestled inside. It looked as though it had been custom-made.
“This is my congratulatory gift.”
Li Yafu turned around and smiled at him. “Thank you.”
He politely asked, “Would you like me to help you put it on?”
“Sorry to trouble you.”
Bai Junyan took out the necklace, stepped behind her, and fastened it around her neck. When he was done, he naturally slipped his arms around her from behind and looked at her through the mirror. “It suits you very well.”
Li Yafu studied his expression in the mirror. His smile was perfectly measured, but his expression remained calm, without much change. He really was doing nothing more than offering her a simple compliment.
Even as he held her like this, he remained perfectly rational. For him, such an intimate gesture was no different from eating a meal or reading a book in his daily life. It didn't need to carry any particular emotion. Or perhaps it was simply a matter of observing a familiar ritual.
She held the arm he had wrapped around her waist and lowered her head with a smile, looking somewhat bashful. This wasn't an act. She was naturally like this; whenever she smiled with her head lowered, she always gave people a shy, demure impression that instinctively made them want to cherish and protect her.
So Bai Junyan lowered his head and kissed the corner of her lips once more.
They had been together for several years, and she was already accustomed to his hugs and kisses. In the spirit of returning the gesture, she kissed the corner of his mouth as well. Of course, it meant nothing more than that. It was simply a habit.
“Shall we go eat?” he asked.
“Sure,” she replied.
The dinner spread was lavish. Bai Junyan had specifically arranged for a hotel chef to come over and prepare the meal. Several of the dishes were her favorites, each presented with exquisite care, and they tasted quite good as well.
“The engagement ring is ready. I'll take you to see it in a few days.”
Li Yafu paused mid-bite. That's right. Her engagement date with Bai Junyan was drawing closer and closer. She lowered her head and continued eating without answering. Suddenly, a storm began brewing inside her.
What was it brewing into? Probably something like this:
Bai Junyan, let's just forget it. We should cancel the engagement ceremony.
Bai Junyan, let's break up.
Bai Junyan, I don't want to continue this anymore.
Countless voices tangled together in her mind until Bai Junyan's question pulled her back to reality. “What's wrong?”
She looked up and smiled at him. “Nothing.”
Nothing unpleasant had happened. The storm of thoughts had erupted fiercely and subsided just as quickly. She continued as usual, sharing a pleasant dinner with Bai Junyan.
After the meal, Li Yafu tactfully took her leave. Bai Junyan didn't try to persuade her to stay.
“I'll have the driver take you home.”
Li Yafu was equally sensible and didn't cling to him, insisting that her fianc personally escort her home. “Okay,” she replied.
Just as she was about to get into the car, Bai Junyan called out to her again. “Yafu.”
Li Yafu stopped and turned to look at him. “Is there something else?”
He walked toward her. He had taken off his suit jacket and was now wearing only his shirt and trousers. The shirt fit him more closely than the jacket, accentuating his physical advantages even more. His tall, sturdy physique was the result of day-after-day discipline, and it complemented his handsome face perfectly.
There was no denying that, purely in terms of appearance, Bai Junyan was an incredibly charming man. What made him even more attractive was his remarkable success in his career.
He stopped in front of her, slipped one hand behind her head, and gently cradled the back of it. Then he lowered his head and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Goodbye. Love you.”
Even after saying that, he didn't release her. He waited for her response. This, too, had become a habit, much like how they always exchanged their goodbyes before hanging up the phone.
Li Yafu smiled at him. “Goodbye. Love you.”
Only then did he let her go and open the car door for her. Li Yafu got into the car, and it slowly drove away from Shallow Water Bay. When she looked back through the rearview mirror, Bai Junyan was no longer standing at the entrance.
Bai Junyan treated her quite well. He never failed to give her gifts on holidays, and whenever she needed something, as long as it was within his power to provide it, he would almost always grant her request. He hugged her, kissed her, and told her things like “I love you.” But to him, these were merely formalities, as routine as using chopsticks to eat.
In reality, she knew perfectly well that Bai Junyan didn't love her. To him, Li Yafu was nothing more than someone who filled the vacant position of his wife.
For instance, he never let her spend the night at his villa. Whenever he kissed her, he always kept it brief and restrained. He had never once deepened a kiss by slipping his tongue into her mouth. And when she fell ill, he would express his concern and might even send her a few things, but he never genuinely cared about how she was doing.
She had even come to understand a cruel truth: Bai Junyan didn't really care whether she was healthy or sick. All he needed was a wife, someone to fill that role. Li Yafu had simply happened to appear at the right time, and her identity and circumstances happened to meet his requirements, so he had chosen her. If it hadn't been her, it could have been someone else. Even if she died, he could simply choose another woman to take her place. She wasn't irreplaceable.
Moreover, she knew that Bai Junyan had always reserved a place in his heart for someone else, a place no one could ever take. Bai Junyan had a first love, the woman who remained his unattainable ideal, his white moonlight. She was the woman he had loved and suffered for. He had given her all his love and passion, and ever since then, every woman who came into his life had been nothing more than a compromise.
As Bai Junyan's fiance, Li Yafu understood this perfectly. But she didn't care.
He didn't love her. And actually… She didn't love him either.
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