Yun City, known as the Night on the Sea.
Brilliant lights flickered on a luxurious cruise ship as attractive, fashionable men and women raved, their laughter rose as the lively party kept going.
He Yi could not focus on the party despite the hype. She was actually in immense burning pain.
'Hot! So hot! I'm dying!' She tugged on her clothing as her vision blurred. She struggled to grab a glass of water from a waiter's tray before gulping it down.
However, the water did not do much good for the parched He Yi. Worried that she might lose control of herself, she stumbled her way out under the crowd's strange looks.
He Yi held onto a railing weakly as her vision darkened. She could not see anything clearly.
She was aware that she was drugged, but she had no idea who schemed it. The world was murky darkness, she did not even have the stamina to moan and she was losing the balance of her body.
Due to the influence of the drugs, she wanted to find a cool spot to rest. She even thought of jumping into the cold seawater to cool down her scorching body.
Her urge was so strong that she was worried that she might lose control and jump from the deck. She held onto her tiny bit of rationale left to force herself to leave the dangerous area before she staggered toward the cabin.
*
He Yi's vision was still in a blur as she stumbled on and she was on the verge of collapsing. Holding onto the wall with her arms to support her heavy body, she gasped for air as she tried to fight her exhaustion.
She finally found a door. Like a drowning person with a life-saving log, she shifted all her weight over to knock the unlatched door open before falling.
She was unhurt from the fall because of the heavy carpet in the room. However, the burning sensation became even more unbearable and she cried out.
In her daze, she could sense a towering figure approaching her slowly, a strange and vehement aura engulfing her.
Sensing danger, He Yi opened her eyes like a frightened bunny. She could see the desire burning within the pair of deep, dark eyes like a beast's despite the room was in darkness.
He Yi could only let out a short squeal before her voice was consumed by the beast-like man.
Knocked over, she could sense the man's scorching body through their clothes. He was the most deadly, thirsty beast, and yet she foolishly submitted herself to his claws.
She wanted to struggle but she did not have the stamina and she started blacking out. It was only when she felt a sharp pain in her body when she realized she lost something extremely important to her that night.
*
Six years later.
It was drizzling when He Yi walked out of the prison compound. The chilling wind and cold rain made the early spring season feel even more hopeless.
She stood in front of a mansion in the villa area located in Xingyue Bay. She wore thin clothing and held an old tote bag as she shivered in the cold rain.
Those who stayed in the villa area of Xingyue Bay were all wealthy people. No one would have believed that He Yi who looked so pitiful at the moment was absolutely familiar with this area because she stayed there. She used to, anyway.
She lost her home when her ex-husband Chu Tianyi took it five years ago and that was the day she lost everything. She lost her home, her father, her daughter, her love, and her high hopes for the future when she went into prison.
It was a nightmare that she still could not face at present.
She returned to the familiar villa once again after five years for her only family left, her daughter, Wan Wan.
'Wan is a gentle name.' He Yi's father, He Hanlin, wanted his granddaughter to be well-behaved when he named her. He wished her to be kind and considerate so that she could be a delight for her future husband.
'Kind and considerate?' He Yi lifted the corners of her mouth into a sneer as she thought. She almost lost it and threw her tote bag to the guard in front of her who was blocking her from entering as if she was a burglar. Of course, she refrained from doing that as she was taught to behave herself no matter how angered she got. "You can go ahead and tell them that He Yi, Wan Wan's mother is here!"
The guard was clearly taken aback when he heard that. He took out his walkie-talkie hurriedly and reported to the butler.
"Master says that she can enter!" replied the butler after a few minutes.
*
The butler's surname was Yu and she was in her mid-forties. She looked capable and experienced in her smart uniform. She gave He Yi a polite smile as she looked at her from top to toe, her thin clothing and worn-out shoes included.
Although she could not believe that the woman in front of her was Wan Wan's mother and she had no idea of what happened five years ago, she still talked to her politely, "Follow me, please."
He Yi did not bother to utter another word. She did not intend to say anything before she could meet Chu Tianyi.
She was in luck that day as Chu Tianyi would normally be out at this time. Perhaps he did not go to work because of the rainy weather.
The surroundings were familiar, yet nothing was the same. He Yi stood in the house which used to be hers, yet she was a total stranger. Her heart was throbbing with pain, yet she maintained the indifferent look on her face so that no one could tell the changes in her emotions.
Five years in prison wore down her once sensitive mind, she was no longer the proud and domineering Young Lady He nor the beloved daughter of He Hanlin, the hotshot in the corporate world. She became an abjected ex-convict instead. Her father who used to protect and support her was gone and she had to venture out into the world by herself ever since.
There were not many changes to the setting of the furniture in her house. Everything seemed familiar as if time stopped on the day she left five years ago.
Of course, it was only an illusion. Her world turned upside down from the day she left and everything would never be the same.
Butler Yu took He Yi to Chu Tianyi who was reading the newspaper on a couch in the living room and spoke to the man courteously, "Master, Miss He is here."
Chu Tianyi put down the papers and looked up slowly to give He Yi a cold glare.
Although she prepared herself mentally beforehand, He Yi still tensed up and clenched her fists together when Chu Tianyi looked at her. She was undoubtedly ready for war.
She had been thinking of how to stab or knock over that jerk in her many sleepless nights within the five years. She regretted more than once for not running him over previously, she was willing to give up her whole life just to do that to him.
Unfortunately, there was no cure for regret and she could not reincarnate nor time travel, the stories were all fiction! Passed time could never return and she could no longer relive it.
Chu Tianyi's attractive face was as cold as the rain outside. He stared at He Yi as sinister flashed past his dim eyes. He pursed her lips and spoke, "You're finally out! Why are you clenching your fists? Are you looking for a fight?"