And the other person was such a beautiful woman.
The shock of suddenly knowing the truth, the inferiority that followed, and her position in this relationship caused her great pain.
She realized she truly didn't understand men at all.
How could they separate sex and love so clearly?
How could they play around with others when they were about to get married?
Was she, from beginning to end, merely an actress being played with?
With such a bloody proof laid out before her, no one would fail to feel defeated.
Hearing the door close, her younger brother ran out of his room.
Seeing his sister's tired face, he rushed to catch her bag.
"I saved food for you. I'll heat it up, you go wash up first. You can eat when you come out."
Xiang Wan hadn't eaten dinner. By this time, she should have been very hungry.
But she was too upset today to eat.
"No need. I don't want to eat today, I'm just going to sleep."
"What's wrong? Why don't you want to eat? Did you order takeout?"
"I'm a bit unwell. Don't talk to me. Let me go to sleep."
She didn't even want to wash.
She lazily kicked off her slippers and entered the room, throwing herself onto the bed.
Their father had died of cancer when her brother was six.
The following year, their mother disappeared, leaving the siblings behind.
For so many years, the sister had played the role of both father and mother, taking care of him while also looking after their grandmother, managing the household with great difficulty.
Sometimes she was under immense pressure and felt very troubled, and her brother could sense it.
But his sister never spoke to him about it.
Her brother had grown up, and the feeling of being unable to help made him feel distressed as well.
So, he quietly slipped to the door of her room to check on her.
Seeing how distressed she was, her brother decided to go out and buy her medicine.
"Do you have a cold? Is it a headache or something else? I'll go buy you some medicine."
Xiang Wan was listless.
"I don't know. I'll be fine if you let me sleep. Stop talking and go to sleep quickly."
Her brother closed the door for her, grabbed his car keys, and quietly went downstairs.
Lu Mingzhe slowly exhaled the last puff of smoke, stubbed it out in the ashtray, and was about to roll up his car window and drive away.
Xiang Wan's car headlights suddenly turned on.
Soon, a familiar figure ran towards the car.
Upon closer inspection, it was her brother.
Her brother was quick and agile, quickly starting the car and driving out.
Since Lu Mingzhe was also leaving, he simply followed behind him, and they both got on the road one after another.
Following him all the way, ten minutes later, her brother parked the car outside a pharmacy.
Lu Mingzhe waited by the roadside. Soon, he came out with a large bag of medicine.
Who was sick so late at night?
Lu Mingzhe couldn't help but get out and call out to him, leaning against his car.
"Hey!"
Her brother looked over, realizing it was him.
Without his usual enthusiasm, he stood still with a neutral expression.
"Why are you here? What do you want?"
This reaction was completely different from before.
Indeed, people drift apart when they are no longer in power.
Lu Mingzhe smiled.
"It's nothing, I was just passing by and saw you. Why are you buying so much medicine so late?"
"Of course, I'm not feeling well, otherwise, why would I buy it?"
Her brother pulled open the car door and threw the medicine onto the passenger seat.
"Are you done? If you're done, I'm leaving."
He didn't look unwell.
At home, they told him it was either him or Xiang Wan who was sick.
Could it be that she was ill?
Lu Mingzhe walked over and placed his hand on the car door.
"What's wrong with your sister?"
It was better not to ask, but as soon as he did, her brother became angry.
He sharply slapped the hand Lu Mingzhe had placed on the car door.
"Take your hand off! What does it have to do with you?"
Kid.
He had been so enthusiastic towards him just a few days ago, and today he was like he had a chip on his shoulder.
Lu Mingzhe raised an eyebrow and didn't argue with him.
"Why are you so aggressive? Did your sister tell you we broke up?"
"You broke up? When did you break up? You were at our house just a few days ago!"
Hearing him say that, Lu Mingzhe raised his eyebrows again.
"Your sister didn't say anything? Then why are you treating me like this?"
Her brother was young and couldn't keep things to himself.
After being questioned a couple of times, he couldn't help but confront him.
"You're asking me? I want to ask you too! What's going on between you and my sister?"
"I went out for a part-time job today and saw your wedding photos. Are you getting married to someone else?"
"I asked my sister, and she told me not to interfere. She didn't eat when she got home late and went straight to sleep, saying she was unwell."
"I don't know if she's really unwell or if it's because of you. Tell me, you two were fine a few days ago, so why are you suddenly getting married to someone else?"
Lu Mingzhe didn't know how to explain it to him.
But hearing him say that Xiang Wan knew about his marriage made him even more agitated.
He took his hand away, no longer stopping her brother from leaving.
"Children don't understand adult matters. Since she doesn't want you to interfere, then don't. Alright, hurry back."
But her brother had finally caught him and had a chance to get a clear answer, and he didn't want to let him go so easily.
"You still haven't answered my question. Even if you two broke up, it's only been a few days? And you're already getting married to someone else, what's going on?"
"Are you two-timing? Did you betray my sister?"
Lu Mingzhe, staring into his serious and clear eyes, met his gaze for a few seconds before letting out a self-mocking laugh.
"As expected, youth is good. Simple minds. The world is only black and white."
"You don't know that there are many gray areas in this world, do you? Do you really want to know the answer that badly?"
Her brother nodded with certainty.
"I think my sister would definitely want to know too."
"Are you inviting me to your house, or do you want me to call your sister?"
"Whether you come to my house or not, shouldn't you clarify things?"
Her brother's gaze gradually lost its earlier harshness.
"A breakup should be a proper breakup. If it's a muddled breakup, she'll carry this question in her heart forever. You can't torment her."
More than ten minutes later, Lu Mingzhe followed her brother back to Xiang Wan's house.
The house was quiet.
Her brother handed him the medicine and tactfully returned to his room.
Lu Mingzhe put on his slippers, took the medicine, and quietly pushed open Xiang Wan's door.
A small lump was visible on the white bed.
But she was clearly not asleep.
Because as soon as Lu Mingzhe entered, he heard faint, suppressed sobs coming from under the covers.
She was crying.
Crying alone, secretly, under the covers late at night.
He suddenly felt a pang of heartache.
His heart felt as if it had been clutched and pulled.
He tossed the medicine onto the bed, walked over, lifted the covers, accurately found Xiang Wan, and pulled her into his arms.
Xiang Wan was startled.
Because she could clearly tell from the breathing and the strength that this was not her brother.
Who would come into her room in the middle of the night?
She instinctively tried to push away and dodge.
Lu Mingzhe hugged her tighter.
"Don't move, it's me."
Xiang Wan froze, too scared to move.
Because she looked very disheveled at the moment.