The night air outside Lanting Pavilion was cool, carrying the faint scent of maple leaves and distant rain.
Ye Fen stood at the restaurant entrance long after Shen Xuer disappeared down the lantern-lit street. The quiet promise he had made echoed in his chest.
I won't.
It sounded simple when spoken aloud. But Ye Fen knew better than anyone that promises meant nothing without actions.
For the first time in a long time, he wasn't thinking about winning.
He was thinking about becoming someone worthy.
Meanwhile, Shen Xuer walked slowly along the stone pathway that led toward the main road.
The city lights blurred faintly in her vision, and she wasn't sure if it was because of the wind… or the emotions she had spent the whole evening holding back.
She hadn't expected him to say those things.
Not Ye Fen.
Not the boy who used to brush off her feelings with an easy laugh.
Not the man who had once hidden an entire marriage from her.
Yet tonight… there had been no arrogance. No excuses.
Only regret.
Her fingers tightened around the strap of her bag.
Is he really changing…?
The question lingered in her mind like a fragile thread.
Just then, her phone buzzed.
She glanced down at the screen.
Lin Yao.
Her best friend.
Shen Xuer answered the call.
"So?" Lin Yao's voice exploded through the speaker immediately. "Did the great Ye Fen finally confess his sins or did you throw your drink at him like I suggested?"
Despite herself, Shen Xuer laughed softly.
"He apologized."
There was a pause on the other end.
"A real apology?" Lin Yao asked suspiciously.
"Yes."
Another pause.
"...Wow."
Shen Xuer slowed her steps.
"I didn't forgive him," she said quietly.
"But?"
"But… I didn't push him away either."
Lin Yao groaned dramatically. "Xuer, you are too soft for that man."
"Maybe," Shen Xuer admitted.
But her voice carried something calmer than before.
"Or maybe I'm just giving him the chance he should have taken years ago."
Back at the restaurant, Ye Fen finally left the private room.
But instead of going home, he walked toward the quiet garden behind the building.
The maple trees swayed gently above him, their leaves whispering in the night wind.
He pulled out his phone and stared at a number he hadn't dialed in a long time.
After a moment, he pressed call.
The line rang twice.
Then a woman's voice answered.
"Ye Fen?"
His expression hardened slightly.
"We need to talk," he said.
Because if he was going to rebuild the future with Shen Xuer…
He had to close the doors of the past first.
Across the city, in a luxurious high-rise apartment overlooking the river, a woman stood by the window holding the phone.
Her lips curved into a slow smile.
"So," she murmured softly, swirling the wine in her glass. "You finally decided to call."
Her eyes glinted with something sharp and unreadable.
"I was wondering how long it would take."
She stepped closer to the window, watching the glowing city below.
"And here I thought you had forgotten about me."
The line went quiet for a moment.
Then Ye Fen's voice returned — calm, but firm.
"I haven't forgotten."
The woman's smile widened.
"Good."
Because neither had she.
And some stories…
Were far from over.