Chapter 1 : June

June, Hua City

Summer heat was just settling in, and the temperature was steadily climbing.
The city, with its soaring skyscrapers, grew increasingly stifling.
The outdoor heat intensified, even the leaves on the trees lining the gray-white roads curled under the sun’s glare, gleaming with an oily sheen.
Bar business thrived during this season, with customer traffic surging daily.
Every evening, people flocked in, claiming to seek relief from the heat, but really to revel in their nightlife.

Warm light bathed the glass cups.
In a quiet corner of the bar, a musician strummed a guitar, accompanied by an accordion, playing a slow, soothing melody.
“I’m not interested in you. I’m asexual.”
Qi Yuanhan brushed off the advance from the woman beside her.

The woman toyed with the glass in her hand, ice cubes clinking against the sides.
She mulled over Qi Yuanhan’s words.
“Not interested, asexual?”
Qi Yuanhan nodded with a hum.

“Asexuality just means you haven’t found the right spark, haven’t unleashed your true self.”
The woman’s red lips grazed the rim of her glass.
“Even a gentle touch can stir something.”
Qi Yuanhan dismissed the comment.

Stir something?
She was only here to meet a friend, not to entertain strangers or discuss s*x.
The woman’s wavy hair cascaded over her shoulders, exuding a mature, sultry aura.
Her presence carried a palpable tension.

Qi Yuanhan ignored her, reaching for her juice glass.
The ice inside had melted.
She signaled the bartender for a fresh glass with ice.
The bartender glanced at the woman next to her.
“And what would this lady like to drink?”

“Absinthe.”
The mixed drink arrived, a striking emerald green, starkly different from the orange juice in Qi Yuanhan’s hand.
The woman swirled her glass.
“Different color from yours.”

Qi Yuanhan replied offhandedly, “Yours looks radioactive.”
The woman laughed softly, amused.
“You’re quite funny.”

The liquor was green and crystal clear.
It started with a slight bitterness, but the wormwood and anise soon melded into sweetness.
A sip left a refreshing hint of mint.
The taste was exquisite, but the alcohol content was dangerously high.
One glass alone could tip someone toward drunkenness.

The woman boldly ordered another and slid it toward Qi Yuanhan, her fingertip lingering on the rim.
Qi Yuanhan raised her arm.
The woman thought she might accept the drink, but Qi Yuanhan merely rested her arm on the bar.
“I don’t drink alcohol,” she stated firmly.

She was resolute, dressed in long sleeves and black trousers despite the crowd’s light summer attire.
The dark fabric amplified her cold, distant demeanor.
A beauty mark under her eye added an air of innate aloofness when she met someone’s gaze.

The woman’s hand was close to Qi Yuanhan’s arm, the chill between them indistinguishable—perhaps from the ice in the glass or Qi Yuanhan’s icy presence.
The woman leaned in, her breath brushing Qi Yuanhan’s ear, carrying a faint minty scent.
Her red lips hovered just a millimeter from Qi Yuanhan’s earlobe.
The beauty mark was impossible to miss at this distance.

Qi Yuanhan didn’t pull away, as if daring the woman to make a move.
The woman murmured, “Your ears are red.”
Qi Yuanhan shot back, “Because I’m allergic to alcohol.”

“Oh, is that so?”
The woman seemed to catch something in her tone.
She whispered a few more words into Qi Yuanhan’s ear, then stood and melted into the vibrant crowd.

The band, Just Right, wrapped up their sentimental love song.
Qi Yuanhan turned her attention back to her juice, finishing the glass.

A few minutes later, her friend arrived.
Qi Yuanhan propped her chin on her hand, glancing at her.
“Why are you so late?”

Shen Yaoyu tossed her car keys onto the bar and ordered a Mojito.
“Traffic jam. Plus, I didn’t expect fans to still recognize me these days.”
“You were pretty famous back then,” Qi Yuanhan said, stating the obvious.

Shen Yaoyu snorted, her eyes catching the wine glass on the bar.
She picked it up, noticing a lipstick mark on the rim.
“Who was just here with you?”
Qi Yuanhan tilted her chin, gesturing for Shen Yaoyu to look.

Shen Yaoyu caught a glimpse of a figure—a woman with a slender frame, dressed in a striking red dress, her waist swaying gracefully under the bar’s dim lights.
“Wow, she’s stunning. A rare find.”
Shen Yaoyu half-joked, “Why does she look familiar?”

“No surprise there. She’s Zhou Weichuan’s mistress…”
Qi Yuanhan paused, then clarified, “One of them.”
“?”
Shen Yaoyu froze, her fingers trembling.
“Your scumbag husband’s mistress?”

Qi Yuanhan nodded.
The woman, Ye Qinghe, had admitted it herself moments ago.
She corrected Shen Yaoyu, “Ex-husband. We’re divorced.”

Their marriage had been a whirlwind, followed by an equally swift divorce.
They hadn’t announced it publicly.
Qi Yuanhan had her own reasons for keeping it quiet.
The divorce was final, handled discreetly, without drama or fuss, leaving others with the impression she was soft or easily pushed around.

Shen Yaoyu was questioning everything she knew.
In her mind, when a wife met her husband’s mistress, it should end in a dramatic showdown—slaps, hair-pulling, chaos.
She glanced back, but the woman had vanished.

The bartender had taken the wine glass, wiping away the lipstick mark with a damp cloth.
Shen Yaoyu looked at Qi Yuanhan, who seemed unfazed, not a trace of anger on her face.
“So, what did she want? To taunt you? To make you back off?”

“Not sure. Her tone didn’t give much away.”
“Huh?”
“She just said…”
Qi Yuanhan recalled Ye Qinghe’s words.
“She said, compared to my husband, she liked me more.”

Her words were a slight embellishment.
Ye Qinghe’s actual line was, “Compared to your husband, I’m more interested in you.”
“…”
Shen Yaoyu was floored, downing two glasses of wine in quick succession.

As she reached for a third, Qi Yuanhan stopped her.
They still had to head to the private club next door.
The bar wasn’t their main destination tonight.
They were attending a high-society gathering at an upscale club nearby.

These events, for the city’s elite women, happened once or twice a month.
Qi Yuanhan had only recently started attending and wasn’t fully accustomed to them.
The club was a different world—a haven of wealth.

The club’s ambiance was refined, with bamboo gardens on the ground floor and winding streams.
Every detail screamed luxury.
They headed to a private room on the fifth floor, reserved entirely for the event.
Entry required an invitation card.

Women in dazzling gowns lounged by a champagne tower, chatting.
Their outfits boasted high-end brands, and the handbags casually strewn on the bar were worth six figures at minimum.
As soon as Qi Yuanhan sat down, she was swarmed.
“Yuanhan, you’re late today. Did your husband hold you up?”

“Her husband dotes on her so much, letting her spend freely. If I buy a bag, my husband calls it a waste.”
“I remember when my husband couldn’t wait to buy me ten diamond rings. Now look at my finger…”
Qi Yuanhan glanced at the woman’s hand, adorned with a massive, sparkling diamond.
“This one’s worth more than most. A true gem.”

“Stop bombarding Yuanhan with questions. Let’s play a game.”
Shen Yaoyu claimed a sofa, pulling out dice to start a round of truth or dare.
The night dragged on, filled with laughter and small talk, but it was draining.

Qi Yuanhan suddenly found herself missing the bar’s candid conversations about s*x.
Despite their designer clothes, these women’s chatter was no less crude than gossiping aunts.
Flesh and bones, skin over flesh—beneath the glamour, they were all the same.

By the time they left the club, it was eight in the evening.
Shen Yaoyu was exhausted, gasping dramatically.
“Buy me dinner! I deflected so many topics for you tonight!”
Qi Yuanhan, grateful, agreed instantly.

She knew a quiet restaurant, perfect for a relaxing meal with Shen Yaoyu.
As she reached into her bag for her card, her phone buzzed with a message.
[Zhou Weichuan: Is the party over? Should I pick you up?]
– Not going back yet, Qi Yuanhan replied.
– I’m having dinner with Yaoyu. Pick me up later.

[Zhou Weichuan: Why are you hanging out with her again? Fine, text me after dinner. I’ll come get you.]
Shen Yaoyu peeked at the message and muttered a curse under her breath.

The bar sat on a bustling street, a prime spot with constant foot traffic.
Restaurants of all kinds lined both sides, and a breeze carried the smoky aroma of barbecues.
They hit traffic for over ten minutes before the car reached a smoother road, heading toward a quieter area.

The surroundings grew lush with greenery, trees shading one another.
The soil beneath them was worth more than most people’s annual salaries—every inch of land was precious.
Qi Yuanhan arrived at her door and pulled out her house key.

The housekeepers and staff had been dismissed for the day.
The sprawling villa, hundreds of square meters, was eerily silent, like an abandoned estate.
She headed straight to the bedroom.

The room’s lights were on.
A pair of black high heels sat by the entrance.
Women are attuned to shoes, and Qi Yuanhan was no exception.
These weren’t hers.

She opened the shoe cabinet and slipped into her own slippers.
Soft orange light spilled across the white floor.
An open bottle of red wine sat on the bar, one glass half-drunk.

Zhou Weichuan stood in the living room, wrapped only in a bath towel, holding a glass of wine.
He was smiling, savoring the drink, until he saw Qi Yuanhan.
His expression shattered.
“You… why are you back?”

Qi Yuanhan’s voice was calm.
“Didn’t you tell me not to hang out with Yaoyu?”
At that moment, the bathroom door opened.

A woman’s long, slender legs stepped out, still glistening with water droplets.
A familiar face appeared—not in a red dress this time, but in Qi Yuanhan’s own light white nightgown…

[TL Note: The original text used the Chinese term “闹” to describe quarreling or causing a scene, which was adapted to “fuss” for clarity and natural flow in English. The term “佣人” (servants) was translated as “housekeepers and staff” to better fit the modern, wealthy context of the story.]