“Right? Professor Jiang is pretty famous at our school—handsome, highly skilled in his field. I hear that many of the grad students he supervises are already being scouted by the municipal bureau and police departments in other provinces, just waiting to snatch them up after graduation! The news about him having a fiancée came from his students. Apparently, a few classmates have already met that ‘Professor’s wife,’ and they say she’s really beautiful—a perfect match for Professor Jiang.”
Chu Luyu was panicking inside. She didn’t understand why a student from another department was so gossipy about a forensic medicine professor’s private life.
The female lead was supposed to be the male lead’s one true love in the future! If she heard now that the male lead was involved with another woman, what if it affected her impression of him!
Just then, the female lead’s voice rang out again from outside the curtain: “They won’t last.”
Her tone was warm and steady, carrying an inexplicable certainty between the lines.
Chu Luyu was startled, and Jiang Hezhou, standing pressed close beside her, immediately darkened his expression, his brows furrowing deeply.
Her companion, unaware that anyone else was nearby, continued in the same gossipy tone: “How do you know they won’t last? I heard from the forensic medicine students that they have a pretty high opinion of that ‘Professor’s wife.’ Professor Jiang has kept a clean record all these years—no scandals at all. Then suddenly, a woman appears, and he openly acknowledges her as his fiancée. That’s probably someone he’s definitely going to marry.”
“Professor Jiang’s family background isn’t simple. His engagement was most likely arranged by his family. As for why I think he and his fiancée won’t last…” The female lead paused for a moment before continuing, “When I was working part-time at a restaurant, I saw Professor Jiang having a meal with his fiancée. Their personalities and approaches to things are worlds apart. It felt like… they’re not from the same world.”
Hearing the female lead say this, Chu Luyu roughly understood. So, at some point the plot hadn’t covered, the female lead had already seen the male lead—and even witnessed him with the original owner.
That wasn’t surprising. After all, given how the original owner used to be, standing next to the male lead, any normal person would think they didn’t match, and it was hardly unusual for people to gossip and predict doom for them behind their backs.
But compared to Chu Luyu, Jiang Hezhou’s mood was far from pleasant.
He didn’t understand why a student would presumptuously judge a teacher they barely knew, nor did he appreciate the other person using such a pessimistic tone to determine the future trajectory of his relationship with Chu Luyu.
He didn’t see anything incompatible between them. He was going to go the distance with Chu Luyu. As long as neither of them encountered any fundamental issues, he believed their future would proceed smoothly—marriage, children, growing old together while supporting each other.
The two outside chatted a bit more, then left without buying anything.
Chu Luyu listened quietly for a while longer, and only after confirming that they had truly left did she let out a sigh of relief.
As she turned inadvertently, she caught Jiang Hezhou’s deep gaze without any warning.
She had no idea how long he had been looking down at her. His head was slightly tilted, and his cool, clear peach-blossom eyes were quietly fixed on her.
“Why did you hide?” That was the question Jiang Hezhou had wanted to ask earlier.
Chu Luyu was stumped by his question.
She swallowed nervously, and under the man’s calm yet unwavering gaze—one that clearly wasn’t about to let her off—she managed to squeeze out a reply.
“Because I think a guy helping a girl pick out lingerie is a very private thing. I… I didn’t want anyone else to see.”
Surprise flickered clearly in the man’s eyes. Behind the clean, cold lenses, his gaze hesitated for a moment.
“Can I interpret that as a form of jealousy?”
Jealousy?
As if reminded, Chu Luyu immediately nodded, her eyes sparkling.
“Yes! That’s exactly it—I’m jealous! You’re so good-looking, with such a great figure. I can put up with girls staring at you on the street normally, but when you’re helping me pick out lingerie, I just don’t want anyone else to see… This is my own exclusive memory!”
After saying that, she even felt a bit smug and told the system: 【Cuihua, wasn’t that a super quick reaction from me? Not only did I handle the male lead’s question, I might have even racked up some disgust points.】
System Cuihua: 【What else can I say? No normal person would care about something like that. The male lead definitely thinks you’ve got issues.】
Chu Luyu couldn’t help the proud little expression that crept onto her face.
Jiang Hezhou, unaware of what was really going on in her mind, only saw that after she said those words, she showed no shyness nor any sense that something was wrong. Her little head was tilted up in a bold, defiant manner, like a small animal jealously guarding its food.
How could she be this adorable.
Jiang Hezhou’s gaze unconsciously softened. Meeting her eyes, he gave a rare smile—the kind that felt like a gentle breeze sweeping across a lake, stirring the willow branches hanging by the shore.
“Now that there’s no one else around, shall I keep picking for you?”
Chu Luyu nodded eagerly. “Mm, mm, mm!”
When the two of them came out, they ran straight into the auntie who had been sitting at the counter by the door. Her expression was still as numb and cold as before. After giving them a look, she walked over, pulled back the curtain, and peeked inside the fitting room.
As if confirming that there were no suspicious traces inside, the auntie drew the curtain back, returned to the counter without a word, and sat down.
Chu Luyu instantly thought of some social news stories she’d seen before and felt her face heat up.
She glanced over at Jiang Hezhou, but his expression showed nothing unusual—as if he hadn’t noticed the auntie’s actions at all. He simply continued helping her pick out items.
The system couldn’t help but remind her at this point: 【Don’t forget, you still have the key line to say. You haven’t told the male lead yet that you’re a 32C.】
Chu Luyu remembered that too.
She pressed her lips together, her voice laced with discomfort, and said very softly to Jiang Hezhou: “Um, my size is 32C…”
The man’s pale, slender fingers paused on the strap of a bra. After a moment, a single syllable hummed from his throat in response: “Mm.”
·
Her roommate was still chattering away beside Meng Wantian—first about some new dish at a cafeteria stall, then about a pretty lipstick shade another roommate had recently bought, saying she planned to ask for the link later and get one too.
Meng Wantian listened absentmindedly, replying half-heartedly, while her mind was entirely consumed by her own thoughts.
In the days since her rebirth, Meng Wantian kept dreaming about her previous life.
Back then, she had met Jiang Hezhou through an unexpected turn of events.
He had been harassed by his ex to the point of developing a physical aversion to women, living a reclusive life. Aside from necessary work, he rarely contacted the outside world and refused to communicate with others.
She had been introduced to work as a housemaid at his home.
At the time, Meng Wantian had just graduated. Without connections or a strong network, and with only average academic performance, she couldn’t get into major hospitals, and smaller clinics didn’t feel like where she belonged.
So she decided to find a job that could sustain her temporarily while she worked and waited for the right opportunity.
From their first meeting to getting to know each other and eventually falling in love, everything with Jiang Hezhou felt like fate. Their relationship had no turbulence or obstacles—even when there were dissenting voices, they quickly faded away.
She was truly happy back then, well cared for by Jiang Hezhou. But everything changed after he proposed, just when everyone thought it was heading for a perfect ending.
Overnight, it was as if some shackle had been released from her, as if her former self wasn’t really herself anymore.
She was no longer the positive, sunny person she used to be. She became picky, somewhat selfish, and gradually grew dissatisfied with Jiang Hezhou—the man she had once considered the perfect partner.
He was still the same person—steady, mature, disciplined, polite, impeccable in every way.
But she was no longer satisfied with him always being that way.
She inexplicably craved something more thrilling. She grew tired of his unchanging emotions and his monotonous, day-in-day-out care.
So Meng Wantian really did change.
She stopped excluding contact with unfamiliar men, and no longer kept her distance from them as she once had.
She met many new people, including quite a few men from backgrounds as good as Jiang Hezhou’s. One of them perfectly matched all her fantasies about the opposite sex at that time.
He would ride a motorcycle to take her up the mountain to watch the stars at one or two in the morning. When someone caused her trouble, he’d snap their wrist without a word.
That man was wild and ruthless, carrying a casual air yet brimming with favoritism and possessiveness toward her. That feeling completely satisfied Meng Wantian’s ultimate expectations for love at that time.
So eventually, she broke up with Jiang Hezhou because of that man.
Meng Wantian still remembered the scene when she told Jiang Hezhou she wanted to break up.
He sat on the sofa, wearing a loose turtleneck sweater, his handsome face still wearing that indifferent, expressionless look.
It was as if he had already foreseen her saying those two words. He wasn’t surprised, nor did he show any intention of stopping or persuading her.
“If this is your decision after careful consideration, then I wish you happiness.”
Meng Wantian couldn’t quite describe what she felt at that moment—her chest felt a little tight and heavy, but more than that, she felt an exhilaration at finally no longer being responsible for the relationship, and at not being condemned by him from some moral high ground.
She even absurdly thought afterward that this man clearly didn’t love her enough—otherwise, how could he remain so calm and composed even when he learned she had cheated and was breaking up with him?
She became more convinced that her choice was right. She and Jiang Hezhou were indeed incompatible—at her core, she actually preferred the man she met later.
As Jiang Hezhou had wished, Meng Wantian and that man did have a period of happiness.
But that man was too much of a player. His life seemed filled with endless things to do and enjoy. Once the novelty wore off, the time he allotted to her dwindled to almost nothing.
She began crying and making scenes, comparing him to Jiang Hezhou.
She said her previous boyfriend had always put her first, spending almost all his time outside of work with her. Why couldn’t he be like Jiang Hezhou?
That man sneered at her with cold mockery. When he looked at Meng Wantian, there was no longer the intense affection from before.
“Jiang Hezhou did treat you well, but in the end, you still betrayed him, didn’t you?”
“I only pursued you back then because I wanted to taste what it was like to have Jiang Hezhou’s woman. But I really didn’t expect you to be so easy to get—no challenge at all.”
“You don’t actually think that just because I fought a few times for you, gave you some flowers, and took you to see the stars a couple of times, that means I really loved you, do you? Don’t be so naive, babe.”
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