Chapter 23: Witnessing the Depth of Fu Shiyong's Love for Her

"Shiyong, I am on my way to the small cabin now."

"I know how much that place means to you, but my sister, she..."

Having just received a WeChat message from Fu Shiyong, Yu Yue immediately climbed into her car. She pinched herself hard, forcing a sob into her voice.

"Forget it, Shiyong. You have a multi-billion dollar project to negotiate today; don't worry about this. No matter what happens, even if my sister tries to kill me, I will protect that cabin for you."

Without waiting for a response from the man—who wasn't actually missing at all—she swiftly hung up the phone.

"Yu Zao, enjoy the show."

Ha, ha, ha—

A frantic, sharp laughter erupted from inside the speeding Ferrari.

At the same time, in the most chaotic mining district in Jingbei, where all sorts of outcasts and lawbreakers congregated. Ever since the millennium, the massive factories here had gone bankrupt, and the residential buildings had slowly emptied out. For those with no money, it was at least a place to find a roof over their heads.

When they first started the business with Fu Shiyong, the two of them could stretch a single coin until it broke. To save on rent, they had found a vacant, ramshackle cabin in the mining district and moved in temporarily. Meals were scarce. At night, Yu Zao, who was beautiful, didn't even dare to go near the window. If she heard the slightest disturbance and Fu Shiyong wasn't home, she would be scared to death.

Even their first child—a lovely little girl, five months along—never got the chance to see the world. Fu Shiyong had spent seven days and nights revising a proposal, only to have the female client cancel because he refused to sleep with her. He fell deathly ill. With her belly swollen, Yu Zao ran out in the dead of night to buy medicine, crying. She hadn't gone far before several vagrants lurking in the shadows dragged her into the bushes. She struggled, kicked, and fought for her life, but blood began to pour from her.

It wasn't until a delirious, high-fevered Fu Shiyong charged out that she was saved. A man so sick he could barely stand had single-handedly fought off three or four brawny vagrants. But his arms, shoulders, and chest were covered in deep, jagged lacerations from blunt weapons; the wounds were severely infected, the raw flesh turned outward. On the way to the hospital, no taxi driver dared to take them, so Fu Shiyong simply gritted his teeth, his eyes bloodshot, and carried her horizontally all the way.

He never cried, but he was filled with self-reproach.

"Little Yu, it's my fault. Your husband is poor and has let you suffer."

"If you want to leave, then tomorrow... let's go to the Civil Affairs Bureau..."

*Slap!*

In the happiest memory Yu Zao held, that was the only time she had ever raised a hand against Fu Shiyong. She had abandoned all shame, standing right at the hospital entrance in front of the passing crowds, wailing hysterically.

"Fu Shiyong, you listen to me!"

"I, Yu Zao, in this life, the next, and the one after that, will only ever marry one man, and that man is you!"

"Don't worry, we won't be poor forever. Heaven has eyes. You are so hardworking and talented; I will stay by your side. I want to see my husband ascend to the clouds and look down upon the world!"

That night, it was raining in Jingbei, with thunder and lightning. They lost their first child—a girl who was destined to look just like her mother. With no money for a hospital stay, the couple sat on the emergency room bench and wept in each other's arms. Yet, even in their deepest poverty and misfortune, Yu Zao always felt that those were the happiest days of her life, a time that would never return.

"My goodness, isn't this a slum? When did it become so luxurious?" The taxi driver poked his head out the window, looking stunned.

High-rises stood in rows. The small cabin, nestled in the center, remained largely unchanged in appearance, but the small courtyard surrounding it was now filled with fragrant flowers swaying in the autumn breeze. Two or three familiar-looking servants were busy moving in and out of the house.

The housekeeper shouted, "The three paintings left by the Madam must be cleaned and maintained exactly according to the Master's instructions! And the gardenias in the greenhouse—someone is assigned to look after them all year round; keep your distance. Oh, and Lanlan and Yueyue need their shells scrubbed. Do it in groups of three and be careful; they are the Master's treasures."

Even the housekeeper was someone Yu Zao recognized. She was the "neighbor" auntie who had been the only one to bring her a roasted sweet potato during her first month in the slums! When she was pregnant with Yiyi, it was thanks to her that she had been rushed to the hospital in time during her hemorrhage.

Looking at the familiar people and the familiar environment, her heart, which had been scarred and broken for three years, felt as if it were slowly being warmed.

She stepped into the courtyard, but before she could stand still, the housekeeper, Auntie Zhao, spotted her. She flew over as if she had grown wings.

"Madam... is it really you? You're back? You're really back?"

Yu Zao wanted to explain that she and Fu Shiyong were already divorced, but between Auntie Zhao and the other servants chattering away, she couldn't get a word in as she was ushered from the courtyard into the cabin.

In the living room, Auntie Zhao pointed with a smile at the walls filled with picture frames. "For ten days every month, the Master stays here, and every night, he spends hours tracing his fingers over these paintings."

"Madam, and here, do you remember? Lanlan and Yueyue, the pets you and the Master raised. Once, young master Yiyi came and accidentally knocked over Yueyue, and the Master lost his temper at him so badly that he forbade Yiyi from coming back!"

Lanlan and Yueyue were kept in a lazy, pampered state. After much chattering, Auntie Zhao finally led Yu Zao to the master bedroom.

The moment the door opened, she felt her heart plummet. The old bed sheets, the cheap three-piece set bought from an online discount site, and even the nightstand made from a gasoline canister were exactly as they had been three years ago, sitting in the same spot.

"Madam, the Master has suffered so much these past three years. He would often lock himself in here, refusing to come out for days at a time." Auntie Zhao spoke earnestly, wiping away tears.

Yu Zao’s hand, hidden inside her sleeve, clenched tightly. Her nails dug into the tender skin of her palm, breaking the flesh and letting the pain spread.

"In any case, Madam, please come back. No matter how much the Master pretends to hate you on the surface, his heart still loves you to death!"

A diary and a stack of clinical reports for severe depression were pressed into her hands by Auntie Zhao before she quietly closed the door and left.

August 1, 2022.
—"Little Yu, where are you? I don't believe you are vain, and I don't believe you would abandon your husband and child."

October 1, 2022.
—"Little Yu, I couldn't control myself; I actually held Yiyi and thought about committing suicide..."
There was no more writing, only the traces of tears that had fallen onto the page.

June 3, 2023.
—"Yu Zao, I am with Yu Yue now. Are you happy that I won't pester you anymore? Then come back! Stop hiding from me!"

November 20, 2024.
—"Yu Zao, the Fu Group has gone public on two boards. My net worth is in the hundreds of billions. Didn't you love money the most? Then crawl back here!"

October 3, 2025.
—"Yu Zao, you have disappointed me so much!"
October 3rd was the day she had been kicked out by the old man at the Xuanwu Era.

She turned the page. It was stained with a smear of blood.
—"Wife, my depression has relapsed. Do you know how much pain I'm in? Being alive... is so painful..."