The night had already grown deep by the time Fu Sheng left Wei Meilan’s house. The streets were quiet, and only the faint sound of dripping rainwater echoed through the narrow alleyways as he walked slowly beneath the dim lantern light. The rain had fully stopped, but the ground remained wet, carrying the cold scent of damp earth and soaked wood into the air.

Fu Sheng walked without rushing. For the first time in many years, his mind felt unusually heavy, not because of war or danger, but because of memories he thought had already disappeared long ago.

His footsteps slowed slightly as he moved through the empty streets. Wei Meilan’s face still lingered in his mind, not the young girl he once knew in Wu Village and not the girl who used to wait near the river with flowers woven into her hair while smiling at him like he was the only person she could see.

No.

The woman he saw tonight was completely different.

Life had carved something out of her. The softness she once carried had long disappeared, replaced instead by quiet restraint and exhaustion hidden carefully beneath calm smiles, and somehow that hurt him more than he expected.

Fu Sheng lowered his gaze slightly as he continued walking beneath the lantern light. Years ago, he truly believed they would marry. Back then, everything had felt simple. He would return from war, she would wait for him, and the rest of their lives would naturally follow after that. At least, that was what he believed at the time.

But war destroyed many things.

Not only people.

Not only homes.

Sometimes it destroyed timing itself.

Fu Sheng let out a quiet breath. By the time he finally returned, everything between them had already changed beyond repair, and tonight made him realize something clearly for the first time in years. Neither of them had truly betrayed the other. They were simply crushed beneath circumstances neither of them could control.

The thought left bitterness in his chest, not because he still loved Wei Meilan, because that feeling had already faded away somewhere along the years without him noticing when it disappeared, but because there had once been a future between them, a real future, and now that future no longer existed anywhere except in memories neither of them could ever return to again.

Fu Sheng stopped briefly beneath one of the lanterns. The dim light illuminated the exhaustion hidden beneath his calm expression, and slowly another face appeared in his mind.

Su Long.

The moment he thought about her, something inside him eased slightly without him realizing it. Fu Sheng lowered his gaze and let out the faintest breath of helpless amusement because even after leaving Wei Meilan’s house, his thoughts still returned to Su Long naturally.

To her sharp eyes.

Her stubborn temper.

The way she questioned everything without fear.

And the way she looked at him now.

Not with disgust anymore.

Not with hatred.

But with trust.

A faint warmth slowly settled in his chest, and only then did Fu Sheng realize something he had unconsciously avoided admitting to himself for a long time. At some point along the way, the person his heart searched for first had quietly become Su Long.

The realization felt strange.

But not unpleasant.

He continued walking quietly through the night, and as he approached the house, he noticed the lanterns near the courtyard were still lit. The gate was closed but not fully locked, and Fu Sheng paused briefly before pushing it open quietly.

The courtyard was silent. Most of the lights inside the rooms had already gone out, and only a few lanterns still burned beneath the roof while rainwater reflected faint golden light across the wet stone paths.

Fu Sheng stepped inside carefully, not wanting to wake anyone, but the moment he entered, he froze slightly.

Someone was still awake.

Su Long sat quietly beneath the covered corridor with a candle beside her. Several papers were spread neatly across the table in front of her, and an abacus rested near her hand while her brush moved steadily across the page she was writing on. Her sleeves were rolled slightly upward as she focused on her work, looking calm and composed, completely unaware that he had already returned.

Fu Sheng stood there silently for a moment, simply watching her.

Then slowly, Su Long lifted her head.

Their eyes met instantly.

She looked at him briefly before lowering her gaze back to the papers in front of her.

"You came back late."

Her voice was neither warm nor cold, only steady and calm.

Fu Sheng stepped closer slowly.

"Yes."

Su Long continued writing without looking at him again.

"I thought perhaps you got lost."

Fu Sheng immediately understood what she was doing, and a faint helplessness appeared in his eyes.

"No."

The brush in Su Long’s hand paused slightly before she finally looked up at him again, and this time her gaze lingered on him longer than before.

"You smell like tea."

Fu Sheng paused briefly before realizing the scent of herbs and tea from Wei Meilan’s house still lingered on him.

Su Long leaned back slightly in her seat while continuing to watch him calmly. Her expression remained composed, perhaps a little too composed.

"Did your old acquaintance treat you well?"

Fu Sheng looked at her quietly, and for some reason, standing in front of Su Long at this moment made him feel more nervous than facing enemies on a battlefield.

And Su Long noticed immediately.

Fu Sheng stared at Su Long quietly after her question.

The candlelight beside her flickered softly, casting warm light across her face, but the calmness in her expression only made him feel more uneasy.

He already knew—

She was not someone easy to fool.

Especially not now.

Especially not after spending so much time together.

Fu Sheng let out a faint breath before answering carefully.

"I went to see someone," he said.

Su Long rested her chin lightly against one hand.

"A very mysterious answer," she replied calmly.

Fu Sheng remained silent for a moment before speaking again.

"An old friend," he added.

The moment those words left his mouth—

Su Long smiled.

That smile alone immediately made Fu Sheng feel something was wrong.

She slowly placed the brush in her hand down onto the table before finally looking at him properly.

"Wei Meilan?" she asked calmly.

Fu Sheng froze slightly.

Only slightly.

But Su Long still noticed it immediately.

The courtyard became quiet.

Fu Sheng looked at her silently for several moments before finally speaking.

"How did you know?" he asked.

Su Long leaned back slightly in her seat.

"Because you are terrible at lying," she replied.

Fu Sheng frowned faintly.

"I was not lying."

"You were hiding it," Su Long corrected immediately.

Her tone remained calm.

Too calm.

Fu Sheng stared at her quietly.

Then after a moment, he walked closer and stopped across from her.

"I did not tell you because I did not want you to misunderstand," he said honestly.

Su Long raised a brow slightly.

"And what exactly should I misunderstand?" she asked.

Fu Sheng hesitated briefly.

That hesitation alone already answered part of her question.

Su Long let out a soft scoff before leaning back further in her chair.

"You disappeared in the middle of the night to secretly meet a woman you clearly have history with," she said calmly. "And now you are telling me not to misunderstand?"

Fu Sheng immediately spoke.

"It is not what you think."

Su Long looked at him steadily.

"Then explain it."

Fu Sheng opened his mouth slightly—

Then closed it again.

Because for the first time in a long while—

He genuinely did not know where to begin.

Su Long watched his expression carefully before speaking again.

"You looked at her strangely from the moment we entered that shop," she said quietly. "And she looked at you the same way."

Fu Sheng rubbed lightly between his brows.

"She was someone I knew before the war," he admitted finally.

Su Long’s expression did not change.

"How close?" she asked.

Fu Sheng became quiet.

And that silence immediately answered everything.

Su Long nodded slowly to herself.

"I see."

Fu Sheng frowned slightly at her reaction.

"It is not like that anymore," he said immediately.

Su Long looked at him.

"And what was it before?" she asked calmly.

Fu Sheng’s jaw tightened faintly.

The courtyard became silent again.

The candle flame moved softly between them.

Then finally—

Fu Sheng answered honestly.

"We were supposed to marry."

The moment those words settled into the air—

Everything became completely quiet.

Su Long’s fingers paused slightly against the table.

For the first time since he returned—

Her calm expression finally cracked a little.

But enough for him to notice.

Fu Sheng watched her carefully.

"She left before I returned from war years ago," he explained quietly. "By the time I came back, everything was already over."

Su Long lowered her gaze briefly.

Then she let out a soft laugh.

But there was no amusement in it.

"So while I was here planning how to destroy Tiger Alley," she said calmly, "my husband was secretly reconnecting with his former lover."

"That is not what happened," Fu Sheng said immediately.

Su Long looked back at him sharply.

"Then what happened?"

Fu Sheng took a slow breath.

"I needed answers," he said quietly. "That was all."

Su Long held his gaze steadily.

"And did you get them?"

Fu Sheng became silent again.

Because the truth was..

He did.

And somehow, that only made things feel more complicated.

Su Long watched him for several seconds before finally standing up slowly from her seat.

The papers on the table shifted lightly as she moved.

Fu Sheng instinctively stepped forward slightly.

"Su Long—"

But she raised a hand immediately, stopping him.

"I am tired," she said calmly.

Her expression had already returned to normal again..

And somehow that was worse.

Fu Sheng frowned slightly.

"You are angry."

Su Long looked at him quietly.

"I am thinking," she corrected.

Then after a brief pause, she added calmly,

"You once told me not to hide things from you."

Her gaze held his steadily.

"So why are you doing exactly that to me now?"

Fu Sheng’s expression tightened slightly.

Because this time he had no answer.