Remarried to a top-tier playboy, her reborn ex-husband is filled with regret.

Eight thousand taels?

He's almost out of money to buy rice, so where would he get eight thousand taels?

Where is Su Yuyan?

He asked through gritted teeth, his voice filled with hostility.

"I haven't seen her for three days."

Afu murmured.

"I asked Uncle Li, who was in charge of the estate, and he said..."

The other evening, I saw Miss Su leaving with a man dressed in silk, saying they were going to town to buy things…

Gu Jinghuai gripped the straw mat beneath him tightly, his knuckles turning white.

He suddenly laughed, laughing so hard that tears almost came out.

It turned out to be the case.

What he perceived as "deep affection and loyalty" was nothing but a complete deception.

Su Yuyan never loved him as a person, but rather the wealth and status he could provide.

Once he fell on hard times, that woman ran away faster than anyone else.

But Yun Shuyao, whom he discarded like trash, spent eighteen years silently guarding a true love that he was not worthy of.

The wind blew in through the window, making the torn window paper whistle and rattle, as if mocking his foolishness.

Gu Jinghuai clutched his chest, coughing violently until he spat out a mouthful of blood.

Afu was terrified and hurriedly wiped him clean.

Gu Jinghuai showed no reaction, staring blankly at the top of the tent, motionless.

The most painful thing in this world is never the physical injury.

It is the regret of knowing you've made a mistake, but being unable to go back.

After a while, Gu Jinghuai suddenly struggled to get out of bed.

Afu quickly helped him up.

"Young Master, where are you going?"

"Find her."

Gu Jinghuai's voice was as cold as ice.

"I want to see which man she's hooked up with this time."

Gu Jinghuai staggered out, each step hitting painful spots, yet he was more lucid than ever before.

He needs to see for himself just how blind he really is!

The main gate of Zhuangzi.

Gu Jinghuai, supporting Afu's arm, stood under the old locust tree outside the manor, the cold wind making the wounds on his face sting.

At the intersection not far away, there was an elaborately decorated carriage.

A short, stout middle-aged man stood beside the car, wearing a robe embroidered with gold silk.

With a belly as big as a pot, he was none other than Wang Yuanbao, a famous tea merchant in Beijing.

Gu Jinghuai recognized him; in his previous life, most of the tea in the Marquis's mansion was purchased from his shop.

Standing opposite Wang Yuanbao was Su Yuyan.

The woman changed into a light red ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress), which made her skin appear even whiter. Her hair was neatly combed, and a fresh pearl flower was tucked into her temple.

That beaded flower was something I brought out from the Marquis's residence for her a while ago.

At this moment, Su Yuyan was tilting her head slightly, listening to Wang Yuanbao speak.

A smile played on her lips, and her eyes sparkled with a charm she knew all too well.

"Manager Wang, you must have traveled to many places while running your business, right?"

Su Yuyan's voice was soft, with a touch of deliberate naiveté.

The woman reached up and tucked a stray hair behind her ear, revealing her slender neck.

"In all my years, apart from the capital, this is the only place I've ever been to."

I've heard that the Jiangnan region, a land of fish and rice, has a peach blossom season in spring and lotus-picking boats in summer; it's so beautiful…”

Wang Yuanbao smiled so hard his eyes narrowed into slits, rubbing his hands together as he said:

"If Miss Su wants to go, I'll take you with me next time I go to Jiangnan to buy tea."

"Really?"

Su Yuyan's eyes lit up, then she lowered her head and pretended to be shy as she twisted her handkerchief.

"Actually, I don't ask for much. For a woman in this life, it's enough to find someone who truly cares for her."

Conditions are secondary; as long as someone cares for me, I'd be happy even with simple meals.

Gu Jinghuai stood behind the tree, feeling a chill run down his spine as he listened.

She had said these words to herself countless times in her past life.

Back then, she chased after him to the border, wearing faded old clothes, and said with her head down in the same way:

"Cousin, I don't ask for any title. I'd be content just to be with you, even as a concubine."

Gu Jinghuai believed it.

For her sake, he defied his parents, divorced his wife, and drove Yun Shuyao to the brink of death.

They thought they had found true love that didn't crave wealth and fame, but little did they know what kind of greedy appetite lay hidden beneath this "true love."

Unfortunately, in his previous life, he never saw Yun Shuyao's true colors until she died.

Su Yuyan never wanted to "follow him"; what she wanted was the position of mistress of the Marquis's mansion.

He lived to be eighty, and lived happily ever after with Su Yuyan, enjoying a lifetime of bliss together.

Before he died, he held Su Yuyan's hand and said, "Language, thank you for your companionship."

accompany?

That peace was bought with Yun Shuyao's blood and tears!

"Miss Su is a good girl."

Wang Yuanbao's voice interrupted Gu Jinghuai's thoughts.

The fat man leaned forward, his eyes glued to Su Yuyan's face.

"Unlike those noble ladies in the capital, who have their eyes on the top of their heads."

To be honest, my backyard is in dire need of someone to manage it, and if Miss Su were to..."

"Manager Wang!"

Gu Jinghuai couldn't listen anymore. He took a few steps forward, his voice hoarse like a broken gong.

Su Yuyan and Wang Yuanbao turned around at the same time and saw him.

Su Yuyan's face turned pale instantly, and the charming look in her eyes turned into panic. She subconsciously hid behind Wang Yuanbao.

Wang Yuanbao frowned, looking at the injuries on Gu Jinghuai's face and his shabby clothes.

She recognized him, but only gave him a perfunctory bow.

"So it's Young Master Gu. What, is this one of your people?"

"My people?"

Gu Jinghuai laughed, but his laughter was more like a grimace.

"Manager Wang, judging from her appearance, doesn't she genuinely want to go to Jiangnan with you and live a simple life?"

Su Yuyan's face flushed red and then turned pale as she bit her lip.

"Cousin, don't talk nonsense... I was just asking Manager Wang about the scenery in Jiangnan..."

"Inquiring about the scenery?"

Gu Jinghuai approached step by step, each step causing his wounds to ache, but the pain in his heart was even greater than that in his body.

"Do I need to smile so sweetly to inquire about the scenery? Do I need to say 'I don't seek wealth, I only seek sincerity'?"

Su Yuyan, you said these words to me not long ago, word for word!

He pointed to the pearl flower at Su Yuyan's temple.

"This beaded flower is a gift from me, and the dress you're wearing was bought with the money I got from pawning my brocade robe!"

You eat my food, wear my clothes, and now you turn around and tell other men you 'don't care about wealth'?

Is your sincerity so cheap? You'll only give it to whoever offers you favors?

"I don't!"

When Su Yuyan was exposed, she was so anxious that tears welled up in her eyes, not because she felt wronged, but because she was embarrassed by being caught.

"It's your own fault for being useless! You couldn't protect me, and you still owe the Jiaofangsi money!"

"If I follow you, are we going to starve to death together?"

These words were like a knife, piercing deeply into Gu Jinghuai's heart.

He stood frozen in place, staring at the woman with the狰狞 (zhengning, meaning ferocious/hideous) face in front of him, suddenly feeling utterly unfamiliar with her.

How could he have been so blind in his past life to treat such a person as a treasure?

Yet they regard a pearl like Yun Shuyao as mere dust?

Yun Shuyao never said "I love you," but when he owed a huge gambling debt, she silently took out her dowry to help him make up for it.

He never complained about the hardship, but when his father punished him by making him kneel, he secretly placed a cotton pad under his knees.

She never said "wait," yet while he frequented other residences, she stayed in an empty room for eighteen years, managing the Marquis's mansion in an orderly manner.

And what about yourself?

He stayed with a woman who was full of lies, ruined the person who truly loved him, and was still smugly thinking that he had finally found someone to love wholeheartedly.

"Hahaha……"

Gu Jinghuai suddenly burst into laughter, laughing so hard that tears streamed down his face. The wound on his chest reopened, and blood seeped out, staining his clothes red.

"Yes, I'm useless... My biggest weakness is that I was blind and mistook a fish eye for a pearl!"

Seeing that things were not going well, Wang Yuanbao pulled Su Yuyan to get into the carriage.

"Miss Su, this is not a place to stay any longer. I'll escort you away."

"stop!"

Gu Jinghuai suddenly grabbed Su Yuyan's wrist, his eyes filled with chilling coldness.

"You're not taking any of my money or my things!"

Su Yuyan screamed and struggled.

"Let me go! Gu Jinghuai, you're a madman! You're just a piece of trash!"

Her fingernails scratched his hand, leaving several bloody marks.

Gu Jinghuai, however, seemed not to feel any pain, and held her tightly.

It was as if he wanted to reclaim the eighteen years he had wasted on her, to reclaim the life he had personally destroyed.

The wind whipped up the fallen leaves, swirling them as if playing a mournful elegy for this belated awakening.

Gu Jinghuai finally realized that the most ridiculous thing about his two lifetimes combined was not his downfall.

They mistook pretense for sincerity, exchanging a lifetime of happiness for a fleeting, illusory deception.

At this moment, the people from the Jiaofangsi (Imperial Music Bureau) heard the commotion and rushed over.

Two tall, burly servants blocked the entrance to the manor, fiddling with iron chains in their hands, their eyes sweeping over Su Yuyan as if she were livestock.

"Young Master Gu, without further ado, hurry up and return the money."

Today, you either pay up or hand over the person!