My hand instinctively clenched into a tight fist, but Jiang Tian immediately took it, giving me a gentle squeeze to ground me and helping me slowly relax.

Perhaps afraid of the atmosphere turning too heavy, someone let out a nervous chuckle and joked, “Mr. Chi never comes to events like this. What wind blew you in tonight?”

The striking man didn’t answer right away. He casually traced the rim of his glass with a fingertip before slowly draining the rest of his drink. Setting the empty glass aside, he locked his eyes straight on me.

“Me? I came for Li Yao.”

The room seemed to freeze for a few agonizing seconds. Nobody dared to utter a word, and even the guy who had joked around lost his smile. After all, plenty of people in that room knew the truth: I was the coldhearted girl who had dumped Chi You five years ago and vanished without a trace.

I used to think he had forgotten all about me. But the truth was, he had never stopped looking.

Not wanting to let the gloom swallow the room, I raised my glass and offered a quiet toast. “Thank you all for making it tonight. I hope everyone has a great evening.”

A flicker of something unreadable flashed through Chi You’s eyes, but my straightforward move broke the ice. The rest of the crowd visibly loosened up, and the party slowly returned to its lively rhythm. I pulled Jiang Tian toward a quiet, shadowed corner to sit down.

The second we sat, Jiang Tian threw up her hands in frantic protest. “I swear on my life I didn’t know he was coming!”

I let out a soft laugh. “I believe you. The look on your face earlier wasn’t something you could fake.”

My fingers mindlessly tapped a rhythm against the tabletop, my eyes unable to stay away from Chi You as he stood in the middle of the crowd. Even after all these years apart, he hadn’t changed at all—still as impossibly hard to read as ever.

Maybe I was staring for too long. Chi You tilted his head slightly, shifting his gaze straight toward me. The moment our eyes collided, I flinched and immediately looked away.

Jiang Tian leaned in close, her voice dropping to a playful whisper. “What’s up with that? Planning to rekindle the old flame?”

I kept my eyes fixed ahead, giving a flat reply. “Are you crazy, or am I?”

I was just about to make up an excuse to slip out early when Jiang Ran suddenly walked in, carrying Zuo Zuo in his arms.

Zuo Zuo scanned the room for a second, and the moment he spotted me, his face lit up. “Mommy!” he cried, breaking into a run toward me.

The chatter in the room instantly died down. I caught faint snippets of whispering in the air:

“Is that Li Yao’s kid? Why does he look so much like Mr. Chi?”

“Don’t go jumping to conclusions. Can’t you see the guy with him? For all we know, that’s her husband.”

I ducked my head with a soft smile and pulled Zuo Zuo into a tighter hug.

Jiang Ran stepped up, taking Zuo Zuo back into his arms, and naturally took hold of my hand. “Zuo Zuo and I came to take you home.”

Once again, dead silence fell over the room.

Jiang Tian sat beside me, her eyes practically popping out of her head as she stared at the scene in utter disbelief.

I just offered her a calm smile and stood up. Before stepping away, I murmured softly to her, “I’m heading out first.”

As Jiang Ran led me out by the hand, I could feel sharp, burning glares digging straight into my back like thorns. The exact moment my foot crossed the threshold, Chi You’s low, raspy voice echoed from behind:

“Li Yao. If you walk out that door tonight, we are truly over.”

I froze. I felt Jiang Ran’s hand tighten around mine. Turning my head back, I answered with quiet composure:

“Chi You… didn’t we end things five years ago?”

The moment I stepped through the doorway, the sound of shattering glass burst behind me—cold, sharp, and dripping with raw agony.

Once we reached the car, Jiang Ran let go of my hand, an apologetic look on his face. “I’m sorry for barging in with Zuo Zuo like that.”

“It’s okay,” I said, gently patting Zuo Zuo’s head with a soft smile. “Besides… none of it really matters anymore.”

A man like him, proud and stubborn to the core, would probably never want to see me again. Maybe it was better that way.

After Zuo Zuo was fast asleep, Jiang Ran went to take a shower. I sat alone in the living room, staring blankly into the dim glow of the lamp. Suddenly, a sharp knock at the door broke the silence.

Looking through the peephole, my heart skipped a beat. Standing outside was Chi You.

Terrified he would wake Zuo Zuo, I cracked the door open as quietly as I could.

But the second the latch cleared, Chi You barged his way inside. He slammed the door shut behind him, grabbed my shoulders, and spun me around, pinning my back firmly against the cabinet.

His eyes were bloodshot, his voice choked with emotions he could no longer hold back.

“How could you just break up and leave like that? How could you just walk away? I missed you so much, Yao Yao…”

My shoulders felt heavy under the crush of his hands, his warm breath fanning against my ear. Just like all those years ago, he murmured my name over and over again:

“Yao Yao…”

Then came his kisses—tracing down from my cheek to my lips, desperate and full of heartbreak.

Where our skin met, it felt hot and wet. I couldn’t tell if the tears belonged to him or to me.

For a single, weak second, my heart caved, allowing myself to be greedy for the warmth I had tried so hard to forget for five long years. But reality snapped me back just as fast.

I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and shoved the man in front of me away with everything I had.

“Chi You, I have a husband now. I have a child. Get out.”