If his ex-ex-girlfriend hadn’t immediately pointed at him and shouted “Chu Tingyun” aloud, President Chu would probably have turned around with his little husband and quickly avoided her.
But unfortunately, even though they were about twenty meters apart, she still recognized him at a glance and not only called out his name, but Yan Xun also heard it.
… Now Chu Tingyun couldn’t avoid this.
Damn.
How did he run into her again, here of all places?
And it just had to be when he was celebrating his wedding anniversary with his little husband today?
Although Chu Tingyun had broken up with this ex-ex-girlfriend ten years ago and hadn’t had any contact with her since, he did feel guilty back then…
The most important thing is that running into an ex-ex-girlfriend on your wedding anniversary would surely make Yan Xun very unhappy.
For a moment, Chu Tingyun thought about many things, to the point that Yan Xun waited for a response for a long time but didn’t get one. By now, the woman was already striding over in her high-heeled boots with a very imposing presence.
Yan Xun instinctively took a closer look at her.
She was a very bright and cute woman, with delicate features and a slender figure, looking about twenty-six or twenty-seven years old. She wore a coat over a dark red pleated skirt, and as she walked, the lotus flowers embroidered on the hem of her skirt swayed with her steps, making her quite eye-catching.
“Long time no see, Chu Tingyun.”
Ten years had passed, and Tang Shiyu was no longer the girl who cried her heart out over her first love. She greeted Chu Tingyun confidently.
“I was wondering why the venue was suddenly booked. Turns out it was you.”
“…What a coincidence,” Chu Tingyun said with a wooden expression.
Having broken up ten years ago, and the fact that their relationship lasted less than two weeks, he had naturally long forgotten about her. Besides, after the breakup, they had never seen each other again.
He thought they’d never meet again in this lifetime. But today, of all days, and here of all places?
What a coincidence… or more like a deadly coincidence.
At this point, Tang Shiyu’s gaze fell on Yan Xun, who was standing beside him. She paused briefly and looked at him with a hint of admiration for a few seconds before asking Chu Tingyun:
“This handsome young man, how should I address him? Is he your brother? Or a friend?”
As an ex-ex-girlfriend, she knew that Chu Tingyun was already thirty-three this year, while the young man beside him looked very young and had a clean-cut aura.
Given the age difference and her understanding that Chu Tingyun was a heterosexual playboy, Tang Shiyu didn’t even consider the possibility of them being a couple.
Yan Xun glanced at Chu Tingyun without saying a word.
At that moment, President Chu felt a chill down his spine and quickly explained.
“He’s not.”
He grabbed Yan Xun’s hand, revealing the matching wedding rings on their fingers for the woman to see.
“He’s my husband. We’re married.”
Tang Shiyu: “…”
Married?
The guy who had only ever given her the cold shoulder not only played with her feelings but actually liked men?!
At that moment, Chu Tingyun’s already tarnished image in Tang Shiyu’s heart completely collapsed.
When Tang Shiyu met Chu Tingyun, she was a freshman in college, a young girl full of romantic fantasies and willing to throw herself into love without hesitation.
At the time, she genuinely liked Chu Tingyun, and she racked her brain, using every trick in the book, spending months trying to win him over. She even stayed up two nights planning an elaborate confession, which finally succeeded.
Back then, Tang Shiyu was ecstatic and couldn’t wait to announce it to the world. Not only did all her friends and family know, but even her elementary school teacher knew she was dating a super handsome mixed-race boyfriend.
But she didn’t expect that as soon as they started dating, Chu Tingyun would give her the cold shoulder, driving her crazy with internal conflict. In the end, she had no choice but to break up with him. Initially, she only wanted to scare Chu Tingyun by suggesting a breakup and didn’t really want to end things.
But Chu Tingyun immediately said, “Fine, then let’s break up,” and even offered her money as compensation.
“…Go to hell, jerk!!”
Tang Shiyu was devastated and took a whole year to recover. For the rest of her college years, she avoided men like the plague.
Ten years had passed, and the memories had faded with time. Tang Shiyu had matured and no longer liked Chu Tingyun, which is why she could greet him so casually today.
But to find out that this guy actually married a man???
The long-forgotten anger and resentment surged back into Tang Shiyu’s mind, and she couldn’t help but take a step forward, questioning:
“Chu Tingyun, you like men?!”
If that was the case, why didn’t he say so earlier?!
If Chu Tingyun had told her that back then, she wouldn’t have liked him! Let alone invest so much time, energy, and emotion into him!
“…”
Chu Tingyun really wanted to say that back then he didn’t know he liked men either—he was as straight as an arrow.
But today, in front of Yan Xun, he had no desire to argue with Tang Shiyu and only wanted to get away from her as soon as possible.
“Yes, I like men, and we’ve been married for three years.”
On the surface, Chu Tingyun seemed calm, but inside he was panicking.
“Miss Tang, is there anything else? We booked the venue, so we need to head over.”
“…”
Tang Shiyu knew she had no right to question him. After all, he married years after their breakup—there was no cheating, no betrayal. She didn’t like Chu Tingyun anymore, but she just couldn’t swallow this bitter pill.
However, at this moment, the panicking Chu President was already dragging Yan Xun away, trying to escape.
“Wait.”
But Yan Xun didn’t move. He even smiled gently at Chu Tingyun.
“Aren’t you going to introduce me to Miss Tang?”
“…”
Chu Tingyun felt doomed.
Yet under Yan Xun’s “gentle” gaze, Chu President had no choice but to stiffly explain,
“She… she’s an old…”
“Enemy!”
Tang Shiyu gritted her teeth as she said the word.
She took a deep breath and, while facing Yan Xun, maintained a polite smile.
“Hello, I’m Tang Shiyu. I had some… issues with Chu Tingyun in the past, but it’s not worth mentioning.”
Chasing after a gay man in her past—it was practically the most embarrassing chapter of her life.
Looking back now, Tang Shiyu (识语) wanted to curl up in shame.
Yan Xun was puzzled: “…?”
Tang Shiyu?
The name Chu Tingyun had always struck him as poetic because “Tingyun” came from a line in Tao Yuanming’s poem—
停云霭霭，时雨(Tíng yún ǎi ǎi, shí yǔ)—.
And this woman was named Shiyu (时雨)?
Yan Xun originally wanted to confirm if her name was written with those characters, but for some reason, he swallowed the words.
What if… she really was called Shiyu?
Yan Xun introduced himself and politely responded:
“Hello, Miss Tang. Your name is quite beautiful.”
“Really? Thank you.”
Tang Shiyu had no grudge against Yan Xun, only against Chu Tingyun. Surprisingly, the conversation between the two flowed smoothly.
“…”
Meanwhile, Chu Tingyun stood there, feeling more uncomfortable with every passing second.
What was happening?!
This was nothing like the romantic, happy wedding anniversary he had envisioned!!!
Finally, after his ex-ex-girlfriend and little husband exchanged greetings, Chu Tingyun couldn’t wait to drag Yan Xun away again.
But Yan Xun showed no signs of leaving and kept the conversation going:
“Miss Tang, are you here to skate as well?”
“Yes, I’m meeting some friends. But since you’ve booked the venue, well…”
Tang Shiyu shrugged.
At this moment, Chu Tingyun was practically itching to grab a broom and chase her out.
“Yes, I booked it, the whole day.”
The implication was clear: you should leave now!
His urgency and panic were so obvious that Yan Xun’s eyes darkened slightly, and he turned to ask Tang Shiyu,
“Miss Tang, has your friend arrived? How many of you are there?”
“Just one, my best friend.”
“Oh.”
Yan Xun thought for a moment and then suggested to her:
“Why don’t you two stay and have some fun? This venue is large, and there’s more than one ice rink.”
“???”
Chu Tingyun immediately snapped his head around to look at Yan Xun, his expression full of disbelief.
Tang Shiyu was also stunned. She had originally planned to message her friend to suggest they find another place.
But…
She glanced at Chu Tingyun’s dazed and nervous expression beside her, and suddenly, she felt much more at ease. Smiling, Tang Shiyu was just about to nod and agree.
“No way!!!”
Of course, Chu Tingyun couldn’t agree to that.
Today was no ordinary day. Let alone an ex-ex-girlfriend, even if it were a complete stranger or a close friend of theirs, Chu Tingyun didn’t want anyone to disturb the world he had with Yan Xun.
“I’m sorry, Miss Tang, but today is our wedding anniversary. If necessary, I can arrange another venue for you right now.”
Even if there were more than one ice rink at the venue, Chu Tingyun didn’t want Tang Shiyu to stay.
This time, Yan Xun gave him a look but said nothing more.
Tang Shiyu was taken aback as well. She hadn’t expected today to be such a special occasion, and she had never seen Chu Tingyun care for and protect someone else in this way.
“…”
Tang Shiyu stood there in a daze for a long time, thinking that this must be what Chu Tingyun is like when he truly likes someone.
He wasn’t cold at all, he didn’t shy away from their intimate relationship, and he didn’t even try to hide his possessiveness…
The impression she had of him as a cold and heartless jerk contrasted sharply with the man she saw today. Just after a few words, Tang Shiyu realized that they were worlds apart.
It turns out that Chu Tingyun wasn’t a cold person, he was just cold to her.
With such a stark contrast, Tang Shiyu finally confirmed that this man truly didn’t like her in the slightest back then.
He didn’t care because he didn’t like her. That’s why he had no desire to confide in her, to share with her, or to miss her. Naturally, when she mentioned breaking up, it didn’t even faze him.
“Chu Tingyun, suddenly, I want to ask you something.”
“What?”
“Many years ago, I treated you to a dessert. You clearly didn’t like it, so why did you accept it and even tell me it was delicious?”
She had asked this question before, crying as she questioned why Chu Tingyun had accepted her confession if he didn’t like her.
At the time, he had only been silent, and after a long pause, he squeezed out a single “sorry.”
But now, Tang Shiyu didn’t ask that way anymore. She was no longer the naïve girl she once was, and Chu Tingyun was already married, in a relationship full of love.
Today was his and his partner’s wedding anniversary, and she didn’t want to disrupt them—she just wanted to get an answer for her younger self.
“…Because there were many people watching, and you had put in a lot of effort.”
Back then, Tang Shiyu had been young and radiant, twirling gracefully in a beautiful figure skating costume on the ice rink, making a passionate confession, with all eyes on her.
Perhaps, in a certain moment, Chu Tingyun saw a reflection of his mother on the ice rink years ago through her. In the end, he couldn’t bring himself to say no.
“…”
Tang Shiyu pressed her lips together, then suddenly looked down and smiled slightly. It seemed like the knot in her heart that had been tangled for years finally had an answer.
“Alright, I won’t intrude on your time together any longer.”
She asked no more and left decisively.
Seeing the woman finally leave, Chu Tingyun let out a long breath of relief.
“Shall we go, Xun Xun?”
“…”
Yan Xun still didn’t move. He withdrew his gaze from Tang Shiyu’s departing figure and looked at Chu Tingyun.
“Wasn’t she supposed to be an enemy? Why did she give you dessert to eat?”
Chu Tingyun: “…”
“Before the conflict, she was… a friend.”
“Oh, so she was a friend.”
Yan Xun nodded, as if he believed him. He released Chu Tingyun’s hand and turned to walk toward the inside of the venue with large strides.
“Hey…”
Chu Tingyun hurried to catch up and asked:
“Yan Xun, are you angry?”
“Of course not. Why would I be angry? Why should I be angry? The two of you were friends, right? Oh, and now you’re enemies. So why would I have any reason to be upset?”
Yan Xun’s expression was calm, with no sign of anger whatsoever.
In fact, he even smiled, looking like he was in a great mood, even complimenting Tang Shiyu—
“Besides, I think Miss Tang is quite pretty, and she seems nice. She looks like she comes to the rink often, so her figure skating must be good, right?”
Chu Tingyun’s attention immediately shifted: “Yan Xun, do you think she’s pretty? She’s just a slightly cute girl at best.”
Yan Xun paused for a moment, then followed up on his words: “Hmm, long curly hair, oval face, big eyes—yes, she’s quite cute. She also has good fashion sense; I thought her coat was very nice.”
“…”
Chu Tingyun choked, suddenly feeling an inexplicable sense of danger.
“But as for her skating, she’s not really that good. Just passable. Tang Shiyu’s just a pure enthusiast—she looks fine to outsiders, but her fundamentals aren’t all that solid.”
Yan Xun chuckled: “Really? You know her quite well. You must’ve come skating with her a lot in the past, right?”
Chu Tingyun: “…”
If Chu Tingyun couldn’t tell that Yan Xun was super jealous and angry now, he might as well not bother keeping his brain.
Of course, he was happy his little husband was jealous, but this time Chu Tingyun couldn’t be as straightforward and happy as he had been when Yan Xun had asked about Gu Shanqing. After all, Tang Shiyu was indeed, in name, his ex-ex-girlfriend, and his first girlfriend at that.
Chu Tingyun knew very well how smart Yan Xun was; clearly, he had already guessed a lot. Having learned from experience, Chu Tingyun immediately tried to organize his thoughts, eager to explain quickly.
“Xun Xun, that was all ten years ago…”
“Ten years ago, what?”
“…Well, um, Tang Shiyu… she’s, um… kind of… my ex-ex-girlfriend…”
The last two words were mumbled, but Yan Xun heard them clearly, and in fact, he had already guessed.
At this moment, Yan Xun suddenly stopped and turned to ask Chu Tingyun:
“Hmm? Weren’t you two friends? Or enemies?”
“We’re sort of enemies… because the breakup didn’t go very well back then.”
“Oh, who initiated it?”
“…She did.”
Yan Xun was silent for two seconds, then said expressionlessly:
“Oh, so you got dumped, huh, Chu Tingyun?”
“…”
Chu Tingyun really wanted Yan Xun to stop smiling like that—he felt a chill down his spine.
“Xun Xun, it’s like this, I and she were just…”
But before Chu Tingyun could explain, Yan Xun interrupted him, continuing to ask:
“Miss Tang looks quite young. How old was she when you two were dating?”
“…Huh?”
It had been so long that Chu Tingyun couldn’t remember clearly. After thinking for a moment, he said:
“She was a freshman at the time, so about eighteen, maybe nineteen.”
“…”
Yan Xun raised an eyebrow.
“Oh~ eighteen, huh.”
Chu Tingyun: “…”
