"Ah!!!"

Chen Yinuo's voice jolted Ye Chen out of his thoughts, snapping him back to reality.

"What's up?" he asked, smiling. "Did Youyou fall asleep?"

"Mm-hmm. She hugged her little Peppa Pig toy and drifted right off," Chen Yinuo replied.

Ye Chen's eyes gleamed. "You sure she won't wake up again later?"

Hearing his question, how could Chen Yinuo not know what he was plotting? Her face flushed slightly.

Even though they were as close as an old married couple, nearly two years of sleeping in separate beds had taken its toll. She wasn't as accustomed to his boldness anymore.

Clearing her throat, she replied awkwardly, "She's gotten used to sleeping in her room. She probably won't wake up."

"Then what are we waiting for?!"

Ye Chen sprang off the couch, excitement written all over his face, and pulled Chen Yinuo toward the master bedroom.

"What are you doing? We haven't even showered yet!" she protested, her cheeks burning.

"Then we'll shower together in the master bathroom!" Ye Chen said slyly, a mischievous grin on his face.

"That's ridiculous! No way!" she reflexively refused.

Though their daughter was already four or five years old, Chen Yinuo had always been somewhat conservative. Even in the past, their intimate moments had been straightforward and simple. Whenever Ye Chen suggested trying something new, her traditional values would immediately shut him down.

"What's ridiculous about it? It's the modern age! Besides, for a couple like us, showering together is totally normal. Let's go, before Youyou wakes up and causes a fuss!"

With that, Ye Chen firmly led her toward the bathroom.

Chen Yinuo bit her lip, letting herself be guided. Although she no longer resisted, her face was still glowing red.

Sometimes, the line between rejection and acceptance is just a single step.

Inside the shower, under the warm spray of water, Chen Yinuo gradually accepted something she had once found hard to imagine.

Even though it felt a little awkward at first, the thought of them being an "old married couple" eased her mind.

However, as the water poured down, Ye Chen's eyes reddened. It was hard to tell if it was the shower or tears streaming down his face.

The scars marking Chen Yinuo's delicate body told a silent story.

Although the miraculous ointment could show results in just a few days, it would still take time to erase the marks completely.

In that moment, overwhelming guilt surged through Ye Chen's heart.

He raised his hand and slapped himself hard across the face.

Smack!

The crisp sound startled Chen Yinuo. "What are you doing? Why are you hitting yourself? Have you gone mad?!"

Tears in his eyes, Ye Chen gently caressed the scars on her skin. "Yinuo, I'm sorry. For all those years, I was wrong. So very wrong..."

He couldn't even bear to meet her gaze.

Chen Yinuo, caught off guard, froze for a moment.

Under the warm cascade of water, her own eyes grew misty.

Taking a deep breath, she said softly, "The past is the past. Let's not bring it up again. Honestly, I should have left you long ago. But fate brought us here, to this moment. This is my final choice. If this choice turns out to be a mistake, then I wouldn't have the strength to go on..."

Her trembling hand gently rested on Ye Chen's face.

Just like Ye Chen, it was impossible to tell whether her face was wet from tears or water.

Despite her usual reserved nature, she leaned forward and pressed her lips to his cheek.

It started in the bathroom and ended on the mattress.

Sixty years of pent-up passion met two years of drought, igniting a blaze of love.

When the flames finally subsided, Chen Yinuo, drenched in sweat and utterly spent, lay with a long-lost look of contentment on her face.

"I'm going to shower again and then go back to Youyou's room," she said weakly, her legs trembling as she tried to get up from the bed.

"What? Why go back to Youyou's room?" Ye Chen sat up quickly, surprised.

"Are you stupid? If she wakes up and doesn't see me, she'll cry! It's time to help her learn to sleep independently, but we need to take it step by step, don't we?"

She playfully flicked his forehead before heading to the bathroom, a renewed glow in her expression.

Ye Chen wanted to follow her, but this time, she shooed him away.

After the storm came a calm.

Moonlight streamed through the curtains as Ye Chen, still sweaty, showered again and returned to bed.

Just as he lay down, his phone buzzed with a WeChat message.

[Old classmate, are you awake? 🙁🙁🙁]

The sender was none other than his former school goddess, Lin Mengxi.

Ye Chen hesitated but chose not to reply, instead scrolling through his Moments feed.

With only a handful of contacts, there wasn't much to see.

A few hours earlier, Lin Mengxi had posted another update.

Unlike the shadowy light photo she'd shared last time, this one showed a glorious sunset sky.

The caption read: "Watching the sky at dawn and the clouds at dusk..."

Ye Chen frowned.

"Watching the sky at dawn and the clouds at dusk... Thinking of someone no matter where I am?"

He wasn't being narcissistic, but Lin Mengxi's frequent messages made it hard not to wonder about her intentions.

He briefly considered deleting her contact but decided against it. Even though he had no interest in reconnecting, not even as casual classmates, he let it be.

Meanwhile, in her upscale apartment, Lin Mengxi sat in disappointment after waiting ten minutes for a reply that never came.

However, the melancholy was short-lived. She turned her attention to the lively group chat of their high school class.

[Hey everyone, it's been so long since we've seen each other. How about organizing a class reunion?]

The chat instantly exploded:

"OMG, the goddess Mengxi has spoken!"

"Yes! We have to do it if Mengxi says so!"

"I've been suggesting a reunion forever, but no one paid attention. Thank you, Mengxi!"

"If there's a reunion, I'll chip in 2,000 yuan as a fund!"

"Count me in for 1,000!"

Watching the donations roll in, Lin Mengxi couldn't help recalling the time Ye Chen had casually spent 20 million yuan on a house and drove his G-Class Benz.

These classmates, who once mocked and ostracized him, were now excitedly chipping in mere hundreds or thousands.

Shaking her head in amusement, she typed in the group chat:

[Since everyone's so enthusiastic, let's invite our old homeroom teacher and other teachers too. A proper reunion wouldn't be complete without them, right?]

Lin Mengxi knew that if it were just a regular class reunion, Ye Chen would never attend.

But if the teachers were involved, he might feel obliged. After all, as an orphan, Ye Chen had received much kindness from them, especially the homeroom teacher.

This was her way of ensuring his presence.