A New Life Begins

Jiang Fan had an optimistic attitude. After buying a pack of cigarettes, he went to a real estate agency to look for a house. Eventually, he chose a duplex penthouse with a relatively high price. A debt of four million couldn't be repaid by simply saving money and living frugally. Repaying the debt required more than just being thrifty.

The landlord, a kind older sister, learned through their conversation that Jiang Fan was job-hunting and didn't have a fixed income. She generously allowed him to pay monthly, but he still needed to pay a deposit of two thousand five hundred yuan for one month.

When Jiang Fan handed over the five thousand yuan to the landlord, his heart was bleeding. During their chat, Jiang Fan also learned some things about the landlord. She was a single mother with a child who was already in the third year of junior high school. Her husband had earned some money through business, but after getting rich, he began to squander it, chase women, and go to casinos. In just a few years, he had lost all his money and eventually committed suicide by jumping off a building, leaving behind two houses. The landlord and her son lived on the second floor, while the eleventh floor was rented to Jiang Fan.

Opening the door revealed a living room that wasn't particularly spacious. On the left-hand side was a sink, and further inside was the bathroom. On the right-hand side stood a shoe cabinet, and beyond that was the kitchen.

Behind the wall separating the kitchen from the living room was a staircase leading to the second floor. Upstairs, there were two bedrooms, one on the north side and one on the south, with a bathroom between them. Additionally, there was another bedroom located behind the TV wall on the first floor.

Jiang Fan was quite satisfied with this small duplex apartment consisting of three bedrooms and two bathrooms. Considering the monthly rent of two thousand five hundred yuan, he was grateful that he wasn't in one of those first-tier cities, where even finding a place to live would be a challenge. The apartment had everything one could need, including a TV, sofa, and brand-new dishes and utensils in the cabinet. The only thing missing was bedding, but even if it were provided, Jiang Fan wouldn't use it due to his slight洁癖 (cleanliness obsession).

After taking a look around the apartment, Jiang Fan was preparing to go downstairs to buy some daily necessities when there was a knock on the door. Curiously opening it, he found the landlord, the older sister, holding some household items.

"I work at a supermarket, so these things aren't expensive. If you don't mind, you can use them. They're all new," she said, holding out toothbrushes, towels, and other items.

Jiang Fan smiled and accepted them, not offering to pay. He thanked the landlord with a grin.

"Meeting you, sister, is even more fortunate than meeting relatives. Then I won't hesitate to ask for your help. If the child has any questions about his studies in the future, he can always come to me for assistance. After all, my grades in junior and senior high school were quite good."

"That's great! Sister sees that you're a down-to-earth young man. When there's a girl you like, I'll definitely introduce her to you. You're busy, so I won't disturb you anymore."

The landlord sister came suddenly and left in a hurry. Jiang Fan smiled at the toothbrush in his hand. He didn't think he had given too much money; he only felt the kindness of people.

Jiang Fan, who had been staying at home as a "full-time homemaker" for three years, had been out of touch with people for a long time.

Jiang Fan spent the whole afternoon outside, and he suddenly felt that this kind of life was also very comfortable. Without Tang Wan, the surgery fee for his mother would not have been sufficient, and he would not have the freedom he now enjoys. Although the past three years had restrained him, the starting point he now has is higher than that of those who have just graduated from school.

Jiang Fan, despite feeling a pang in his heart, spent 700 yuan to buy a third-hand laptop that seemed only capable of browsing the internet. He didn't have many hobbies, and his knowledge of computers was limited.

During this time, he went to the bank and transferred 8,000 yuan to his mother, but he didn't tell her about his divorce from Tang Wan.

His mother treated Tang Wan just as Li Jinhe treated Jiang Fan. Although she didn't provide Tang Wan with any material satisfaction, she gave Tang Wan the warmth of a mother that Tang Wan had never experienced. On the other hand, Li Jinhe made Jiang Fan feel the severity he had never experienced.

Ear-twisting and shoulder-hitting were common occurrences, and Li Jinhe treated not only Jiang Fan but also Tang Wan and Old Tang in the same way.

Jiang Fan only kept 2,000 yuan in his hand, with 1,000 yuan for living expenses and the rest for emergencies. The first thing he did after opening the laptop was to search for the Glorious Group. Although this group was a newcomer, it was a corporate enterprise that could compete with Changxiang.

The Glorious Group had industries in all the sectors that Changxiang Group was involved in, including real estate, shopping malls, electronics, food and beverage, and pharmaceuticals.

"Glorious Group Planning Department." This was Jiang Fan's ultimate goal. He was prepared to return to his old profession, but he wouldn't be pressured into taking reckless actions again. He wouldn't be too conspicuous when joining the Glorious Group; he had already learned his lesson at Changxiang.

On the other hand, Tang Wan was on the verge of a breakdown.

The house had been sold, and Li Jinhe casually told Tang Wan that he had lost the house to her Aunt Zhao in a mahjong game. If she had any objections, she should take it up with Aunt Zhao.

Tang Wan had always kept a respectful distance from Aunt Zhao, who had forced her to call her "Auntie Zhao" since childhood. This disrespectful elder would chase after her, asking about Jiang Fan's physical stamina, which made Tang Wan, who had no experience with men, unsure how to respond.

In this aspect, Tang Wan was as pure as a blank sheet of paper.

Feeling agitated, she dialed Lin Xuan's number, intending to seek some comfort and ask when he would return. However, her calls were hung up three times consecutively. Finally, Tang Wan sent a message telling Lin Xuan that if he didn't pick up her calls again, they wouldn't need to contact each other anymore.

Then the phone rang, but Tang Wan hung up after only three seconds of connecting.

Although she didn't mind if Lin Xuan had a woman in a foreign country, she couldn't accept that he was doing those things with another woman when she called him. Soon after, the phone rang again, and Tang Wan shared her grievances. However, Lin Xuan kept asking why that man had picked up the phone and whether something had happened between them.

Feeling neither comforted nor understood but instead suspected, Tang Wan angrily hung up the phone and sat on the bed, asking herself,

"Do I really like Lin Xuan? Or do I just see him as a spiritual support?"

It had been three years since he went abroad.

In fact, time had diluted everything.

When Tang Wan and Jiang Fan had just gotten married, she would talk with Lin Xuan on the phone until late at night. As time passed, those late-night conversations shortened to just an hour, and eventually, she would hurriedly hang up the phone when Jiang Fan said it was time for dinner.

Suddenly, the image of Jiang Fan appeared in her mind. There was one night when a strange man pretending to be a deliveryman came to the door. Tang Wan, without suspicion, opened the door and was frightened by the man. Jiang Fan, who was covered in soap bubbles in the bathroom, rushed out and stood in front of her, driving the strange man away.

During the most difficult days of each month, Jiang Fan would wake up early to cook a fish head and tofu soup, or maybe pork rib soup. He would prepare ginger and goji berry water in a vacuum flask for her to take to work.

Suddenly, Tang Wan felt confused.

The image of Lin Xuan in her heart became increasingly blurred, while the image of Jiang Fan became clearer and clearer.

Tang Wan couldn't bear this.

She had been dumped by Jiang Fan, and she couldn't allow herself to think of this man in such a situation. Feeling like she was about to break down, Tang Wan grabbed her keys and phone and rushed out of the house.

On the road, the bright red Alfa Romeo Quadrifoglio sped past on the empty street at 120 miles per hour, like a ghostly apparition.

The bright red Alfa Romeo parked at the entrance of a bar immediately attracted attention. It wasn't because the car was expensive, but because the woman who stepped out of the car made the men outside widen their eyes.

Wearing a white T-shirt and a pair of light-colored jeans that accentuated her long legs, with a simple ponytail and a bare face, she looked out of place here.

Tang Wan looked at this unfamiliar place. She gathered her courage and walked into this place she had never been to and was also very resistant to.

But she needed to vent.

Tang Wan had no friends.