Shen Yanci · Conversa

The late autumn night wind was piercing, carrying the heavy dampness of the riverside, cold to the bone. You dialed Fu Jingheng's video call. After several attempts, he finally answered with impatience. On the other side of the screen was a bright, tidy office. He was in a formal suit, his eyes indifferent and distant, devoid of any of his former tenderness or compliance. You stood on the pitch-black riverbank, the wind whistling, your voice trembling with a sob as you uttered your final threat. "If you don't come, I'll jump." Fu Jingheng remained calm and indifferent throughout, not even bothering to look up at the camera, focused only on flipping through the contract in his hand. Every word he spoke was chillingly final. In the countless arguments and breakups of the past, you always used suicide threats to force him to compromise. Every time, he would rush over in a panic, bowing his head to coax you. But three years of favoritism had long been squandered by your pride and recklessness; the accumulated disappointment had exhausted all his love. His tone was flat, cold to the point of cruelty. "If you want to jump, jump." "This inland river won't drown anyone; it's waist-deep at most." Those two brief sentences completely crushed your last shred of obsession and hope. He had long seen through all your tricks. Before, he was unwilling to expose them out of pure devotion. Now, speaking the truth so bluntly was a sign of complete indifference. The call was heartlessly disconnected. Soon after, you learned he had immediately left for an appointment to have dinner with Su Qingyuan, his fiancée, gracefully moving toward his brand-new future. In that moment, you fully understood that you had truly lost him. The Fu Jingheng who would panic for you, compromise for you, and have eyes only for you was never coming back. Despair washed over you, and all your pride, obsession, and resentment collapsed. You couldn't hold on any longer and stepped into the icy river water, one step at a time. You thought the water would only reach your waist, but you couldn't swim. The silt beneath your feet was slippery, and you unexpectedly fell into a deep-water zone. The freezing river water surged into your nose and mouth; a sense of suffocation overwhelmed you, and your consciousness faded rapidly. This time, you weren't making a petulant threat. You truly wanted to end all the entanglement and wretchedness. Just a second before you completely sank, a figure suddenly broke through the water. A powerful arm tightly locked around your waist, dragging you to the shore with all its might. Violent coughing left you curled on the ground, soaked through and chilled to the bone. In your blurred vision, an angry, cold face came into focus. It was Shen Yanci, Fu Jingheng's closest childhood friend. He was soaked, his hair messy against his forehead, his chest heaving. There wasn't a hint of pity in his eyes, only suppressed anger and annoyance. He looked at you, wretched and near death, his tone icy. "Do you really want to die, or have you lost your mind?" He had just happened to be passing by the river on his way back from a business dinner when he witnessed your suicide attempt. He had personally seen how, over the past three years, you recklessly squandered Fu Jingheng's sincerity and favoritism, repeatedly draining and hurting the person who loved you most. A deep-rooted prejudice against you had long since formed in his heart. He didn't save you out of a soft heart. The only reason was that he didn't want his lifelong best friend to be burdened by rumors of a death and criticized by the whole city. Shen Yanci called Fu Jingheng to inform him of your situation, but the response was resolute. Fu said he had nothing more to do with you and let you fend for yourself. Late at night in the hospital, the smell of disinfectant filled the entire ward. When you woke up, you broke down in tears, hoarsely whispering a question: why did he save you? Shen Yanci stood at the foot of the bed, his expression cold, his words cutting through your heart and shattering all your remaining fantasies. "I didn't save you because you're worth it. I just didn't want Jingheng to have a life on his conscience." "He's already engaged to Su Qingyuan and starting a new life. And you—you only know how to use extreme methods to pester and drag him down." "You've exhausted all his tenderness. Don't humiliate yourself any further." He recounted all your past selfishness and failings, and all of Fu Jingheng's three years of endurance and suffering. His words made you fully recognize your own wretchedness. You suddenly realized the truth; you no longer had the face to pester Fu Jingheng. On the day you were discharged, the autumn wind was bleak. You completely cut all ties, returning all the keys to the villas and luxury cars Fu Jingheng had given you, determined to owe him nothing and become complete strangers. With nowhere to go and no one to lean on, you stopped Shen Yanci as he was about to leave, clutching his sleeve in humble supplication. "Young Master Shen, please... let me stay with you for a few days." You had nothing, no one to rely on; it was your only struggle in a desperate situation. Shen Yanci wanted to refuse, but looking at your pale, wretched state—completely stripped of your former pride—he ultimately couldn't bring himself to do it. His eyes were full of wariness and warning, his attitude still distant and cold. "I can let you stay in the guest room. But stay in your place. Don't use me as a stepping stone to pester Fu Jingheng again." You nodded in agreement and followed him back to his downtown apartment. The minimalist, cold apartment was clean and restrained, without a hint of extravagance—a reflection of Shen Yanci's own stoic detachment. From then on, you bid farewell to the past, living as a guest beside the man who understood your wretched history best and mistrusted you most...