Chapter 1: Confessing

Before I transmigrated, I had just kissed my husband and daughter goodbye and headed out for drinks with a friend who’d recently been dumped.

Yet when I opened my bleary eyes, the world before me had completely changed.

The air was thick with loud, chaotic noise. Someone leaned right into my ear and whispered, “Xu Zhizhi, you lost Truth or Dare! Hurry up and tell Jiang Yu’an you like him. Don’t be a sore loser!”

“Haha, isn’t he the most famous poor scholarship kid in our department? Complete weirdo. Forcing Xu Zhizhi to confess to him is going to be hilarious!”

I blinked, utterly confused, looking around. The dim lighting of the VIP room, the clinking of glasses, the crowd of familiar yet distant faces…

Zheng Xian, the childhood friend I hadn’t seen in years, sat in the main seat. Swirling his glass of wine, he looked at me with an amused glint in his eyes. “They told you to go, so just go. What, Zhizhi, do you actually have a secret crush on me? Is that why you’re hesitating?”

His words set off a wave of laughter across the room. Lin Xi giggled so hard her whole body shook as she leaned against Zheng Xian’s shoulder, her tone laced with subtle mocking. “If she wants to date you, she has to get through me first! Can’t have her spoiling you, can we?”

My head was spinning, my mind still completely blank. Just as I opened my mouth to speak, the door creaked open, and a tall waiter stepped inside.

Instantly, someone winked and gestured toward him. “Jiang Yu’an’s here! Xu Zhizhi, what are you standing around for?”

Someone gave me a hard shove toward the boy. He slowly raised his head. His face was pale, his dark eyes like stagnant, lifeless pools of water.

Before I could even process the situation, staring at the face of the man I had shared a bed with for years, instinct completely took over. I grabbed his freezing hand and blurted out, “Hubby, what are you doing out here instead of staying home to watch the baby?”

The entire room fell dead silent.

The boy’s dark, hollow eyes widened instantly, frozen in utter shock.

Only then did I remember—his right ear was deaf. I immediately stood on tiptoe, leaned into his good left ear, and whispered softly, “Where’s our daughter? What kind of cosplay are you playing here?”

A deep flush crept up his neck to his cheeks as he gently pushed me back. “Miss… please respect yourself.”

What an idiot. We’ve been an old married couple for years—what is he blushing for?! I looked around anxiously. Where on earth was my sweet little girl?

A sneer broke the silence. “Haha, Xu Zhizhi, you’re really committing to the act, aren’t you!”

It was Lin Xi, covering her mouth with a condescending chuckle. The rest of the crowd caught on, and someone even gave me a thumbs-up. “Sister Xu really knows how to play the game! Sacrificing herself like this!”

The lights in the room suddenly flickered fully on, blinding me for a second. I blinked. These wealthy second-generation kids… every single one of their faces looked so young, barely twenty. In the center of the room stood a massive birthday cake topped with the words: Happy 19th Birthday, Young Master Zheng Xian.

The realization finally hit me like a ton of bricks: I transmigrated! And right on the night of Zheng Xian’s nineteenth birthday.

I turned my head stiffly, meeting Zheng Xian’s sharp, scrutinizing gaze. “Xu Zhizhi, do you really need to go that far? You even pulled out ‘hubby’? How close are you two supposed to be, anyway?”

At this point in time, Jiang Yu’an and I had no connection whatsoever. We were complete strangers. Back then, I was a proud, spoiled rich young heiress, while he was just an impoverished student working part-time jobs to survive.

I knew Jiang Yu’an had heard every word. He lowered his face, silently pouring wine, his expression resigned—as if he had long grown accustomed to these cruel pranks. In my past life, being teased like this made me feel so humiliated that I ran off in tears, becoming the laughingstock of their circle for a long time afterward.

But things were different now.

I stood rooted to the spot, only one thought echoing in my head: My young boy looks… so tender right now. Just looking at him makes my heart melt.

No sooner thought than done. I took off after him into the hallway, ignoring Zheng Xian’s irritated shout behind me: “Xu Zhizhi!”

I caught up with Jiang Yu’an down the corridor. He was leaning slightly forward, being harshly berated by the shift manager.

“Look at yourself!” the manager barked, spittle practically flying into his face. “Who gave you permission to piss off those rich kids? I took pity on you because you’re a college student, and now one complaint just cost me five hundred yuan!”

Anger and heartache surged through me simultaneously. How long had he been enduring these cold, dismissive glances and harsh words?

“Hey, sir,” I stepped in, my voice sharp and firm. “I’ve already canceled the bad review, and the compensation will be sent over immediately. Stop yelling at him.”

The manager glanced at my designer clothes, his attitude flipping instantly into servile flattery. “Ah… Miss Xu. Well, the complaint came directly from Young Master Zheng’s private room, so…”

Only then did I remember that this venue was owned by the Zheng family. Suppressing the furious rage boiling inside me, I reached out and took Jiang Yu’an’s hand. “We’re done here. Let’s go.”

I tugged at him, but he wouldn’t budge. Standing at six-foot-one, Jiang Yu’an remained anchored in place, his dark eyes fixed on me with deep confusion, his lips pressed into a tight line.

I paused, thought for a second, then stood on tiptoe to whisper into his left ear: “Listen to me. Come with me. This isn’t a good place for you.”

He instinctively tilted his head. The tip of his ear brushed softly against my lips. The gentle touch sent a sudden jolt through both of us, freezing us in place.

“Student Xu,” Jiang Yu’an began, his voice raspy. His long eyelashes fluttered downward, veiling the unnamable emotions in his eyes. “I’m not interested in your games. I just need a job.”

I froze. Right. At this point, we weren’t close at all. He must think I was just using another “Truth or Dare” stunt to make fun of him.

Panicking, I held up four fingers in a solemn vow. “Hubby, I’m dead serious! You have to believe me!”

Visible fluster washed over his face. “Could you… please stop calling me that?”

“Sure thing, hubby! Got it, hubby!” I replied cheerfully.

He whipped his head back toward me, and we ended up staring at each other point-blank. I remained leaning close over his shoulder, blinking innocently. At this distance, I could clearly see the faint, delicate peach fuzz on his porcelain-white skin.

“You’re… standing too close.”

“Wait, aren’t you…” I pointed at his ears, my eyes lighting up. “Can you hear out of both ears?!”

Though bewildered by my bizarre question, he still gave a soft, quiet, “Yeah.”

Suddenly, this whole transmigration felt 100% worth it. “I’m going to take care of you from now on! Quit this job, pack your bags, and move into my place right now!”

Jiang Yu’an flatly refused. Left with no choice, I compromised, stubbornly demanding his contact info before finally letting him go.

That night back at home, I lay starfish-style on my bed, clutching my phone tightly to my chest, my mind floating somewhere up in the clouds.

Jiang Yu’an and I had gotten married the year I graduated from college. At that time, my family was on the brink of bankruptcy. It was he—having just been brought back into the wealthy Jiang family as the long-lost heir of the richest clan—who proposed a business marriage to save my family.

Everyone was stunned that he had his eye on a fallen heiress like me. Back then, my world revolved entirely around Zheng Xian; I never had the time or inclination to pay attention to anyone else. It wasn’t until much later, after we reconnected, that I realized the cold, reclusive poor boy from my past was actually the soulmate meant for me all along.

Back then, his right ear was already completely deaf. Dressed in sharp, tailored suits, his status was worlds apart from before. Yet every time he looked at me, he would unconsciously lower his eyes, hiding an unspeakable sense of inferiority.

Much later, long after our daughter had fallen fast asleep, he had buried his head in the crook of my neck, softly recalling the past in a low, deep voice before asking: “Does a person who is secretly loved… ever know they’re being loved?”

I had laughed softly. “Of course. How could anyone stand beside a fire and not feel the warmth?”

He had gently bit my shoulder, his voice tinged with a quiet sadness. “Yeah… My fire back then just wasn’t big enough, I guess.”

Only in that moment did I finally understand: his secret, unrequited love for me had spanned our entire college years. I had just been too stupid, blindly ignoring his warmth for so many long years.