For a long time now, there was something that Lin Jiage wanted to tell Shi Yao. However, it would be much, much later before he would get the chance to say it.
"Every moment with you was beautiful." ——Ye Fei Ye. "My Beautiful Time With You."
It was already late at night. Shi Yao was lying on her bed with her eyes closed, but sleep refused to come to her. Eventually, she gave up and fumbled for the cell phone by her pillow before pulling aside her sheets and heading for the window.
Shi Yao gazed into the deep night for a long moment, and finally, as if having made up her determination, she lifted her phone, swiped the screen, and tapped on the 'Messages' icon.
She swiped down her screen before stopping at the name at the very bottom of the messages menu— Lin Jiage .
Shi Yao stared at those two words for a very long time as her eyes flickered with uncertainty. But eventually, she still tapped on the name.
Her initial intention was to make a call, but before her finger could reach the 'Call' icon, she abruptly halted.
Her expression reflected her internal struggle for a brief moment before she opted to send a text message instead.
Tapping on the keyboard, she crafted a message:
[Lin Jiage, this is Shi Yao.]
[The reason I'm texting is to tell you that I want to cancel our engagement.]
After typing out those two sentences, Shi Yao didn't even bother checking what she'd just typed before tapping on the 'Send' button.
When a notification sound confirmed that the message was successfully sent, Shi Yao heaved a long sigh of relief before gazing intently at her phone screen.
It was already two in the morning, so Shi Yao assumed that Lin Jiage was most likely asleep. It would probably be tomorrow before he responded to her message.
For a moment, she stared at the message she'd just sent before she switched off her screen to return to bed and sleep. However, before she could reach her bedside, the phone in her hand rang— ding dong! She instinctively lifted her phone to look at the screen. Surprisingly, Lin Jiage had replied to her message. His answer was short and simple, containing only a single word: [ Fine ].
Other than that, there was nothing else.
Shi Yao stared at that single word for quite some time as a smile gradually crept to her lips.
He must have waited for this message for a very long time now. That's why he could reply so decisively after receiving it.
With this thought in mind, Shi Yao's eyelids drooped down.
A moment later, she tossed aside her phone, climbed back into her bed, and closed her eyes.
The next day, Shi Yao woke up groggily to the din of her phone. It was only after hearing the lively voice of Liang Mumu did her head finally clear up. "Yaoyao, let's meet at SKP 1 later on. I want to buy two sets of clothes. We can have dinner at the hot pot 2 store after that. I haven't eaten there for a very long time…"
After hanging up the phone, Shi Yao took a look at the time and noted that it was already close to noon. She lazed in her bed for a moment longer before climbing up to brush her teeth and have her breakfast. Following which, she cleaned up her room a little and then headed out.
Liang Mumu and Lin Jiage were neighbors who grew up together. It was only after getting engaged to Lin Jiage that Shi Yao became acquainted with Liang Mumu.
Liang Mumu was a cheerful and welcoming person. Whenever there was good food to be had, she would always share a portion with Shi Yao first. As time went by, Shi Yao gradually grew closer to her.
Liang Mumu was an avid shopper, and Shi Yao was a ravenous glutton. By the time they were done shopping and had their dinner, it was already ten at night, about the time for them to part.
Shi Yao hailed for a taxi through her phone. By the time the taxi driver called to inform her that he would soon arrive at the entrance of the shopping mall, Shi Yao and Liang Mumu finally made their way out of the restaurant and entered one of the elevators.
On the third floor, the elevator came to a halt.
The doors opened, and a group of young men and ladies entered.
The man at the front of the group had a tall and slender figure paired with a fair complexion, making him particularly eye-catching. Even while dressed in a simple white T-shirt, he had a strong and exquisite presence. However, what stood out the most was his face, which was astoundingly perfect. Each of his five facial features was indescribably delicate and aesthetically pleasing.
Shi Yao knew who this exceptionally handsome man was.
He was the fiancé she'd messaged last night to cancel their engagement— Lin Jiage.
SKP refers to Beijing SKP, previously known as Shin Kong Place. It is a high-end shopping mall that sells mainly luxury goods. Hot pot is a dish consisting of a rich, simmering soup stock accompanied with plates of uncooked ingredients, typically thinly sliced meat, fish, enoki mushroom, fish balls, vegetables, tofu, and such. The various ingredients will be gradually added to the soup stock to be cooked and eaten.