“But Qinghan, as a friend, I’ll give you one last piece of advice.” Dai Feng looked at her, her gaze serious. “Sometimes, what your eyes see isn’t necessarily the truth. What your heart tells you is right isn’t necessarily right either. Don’t wait until you’ve lost it to regret.”
Su Qinghan didn’t speak.
She just sat there, holding her glass, completely still.
The lights flickered across her face, her expression unreadable.
After a long moment, she finally spoke, her voice soft yet carrying a stubborn, unyielding strength.
“I won’t regret it.”
“Because the person I love, from beginning to end, is only Muyun.”
She lifted her eyes to Dai Feng, a seriousness in her gaze that had never been there before.
“Do you know why?”
Dai Feng was caught off guard. “Why?”
Su Qinghan lowered her eyes, staring at the slowly melting ice in her glass.
The floodgates of memory, at that moment, silently swung open.
Those dusty, yellowed images surged forth like a tide.
“When I was ten years old, in the summer,” she began, her voice low, as if recounting an ancient tale. “I went on a seaside vacation with my family. I was stubborn back then, got into a fight with my parents, and ran off alone.”
“The waves by the sea were strong. I wasn’t paying attention, and a wave swept me out into the ocean.”
“I couldn’t swim. The seawater was salty and bitter, pouring into my nose and mouth, choking me until I couldn’t breathe. I struggled with all my might, but my body kept sinking uncontrollably. There wasn’t a single person around—just the sound of crashing waves. Back then, I thought I was going to die.”
Her voice was calm, eerily calm.
But the fingers gripping her glass trembled slightly.
“Just when I thought I would drown, someone grabbed my hand.”
“It was a little girl. She was probably around my age, maybe a bit younger. She wasn’t tall—thin and small—but she was incredibly strong.”
“She held my arm tightly with one hand while paddling desperately with the other, dragging me back to shore.”
“We both lay on the beach, coughing uncontrollably. I coughed so hard tears came out, and it took me a while to catch my breath.”
“That’s when I finally saw what she looked like. Her wet hair was plastered to her face, her skin was pale, and her eyes were big and bright—like stars in the sea.”
“Her arms and legs were scraped by the rocks, bleeding, but she didn’t seem to care at all. She just looked at me and whispered, ‘Are you okay?’”
Su Qinghan paused here.
She closed her eyes, as if she could still see that afternoon—the scorching sun, the golden sand, the azure sea, and that soaking wet little girl.
“I said I was fine, then asked her name and whose child she was. But she just shook her head, said nothing, and slipped something off her wrist, pressing it into my hand.”
“It was a string of shell bracelets. Made with thin red string, the shells a soft pink, glowing warmly in the sunlight. It wasn’t anything valuable. But back then, it was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen.”
“She pushed the bracelet into my hand and said, ‘I made this myself. I have two strands, so this one’s for you. From now on… be more careful. Don’t come to the seaside alone anymore.’”
“After that, she stood up, brushed the sand off her clothes, and ran away.”
“I wanted to chase after her, but my legs were too weak to stand. I could only watch as she ran farther and farther, until she disappeared behind the rocks at the end of the beach.”
“I sat there on the sand, clutching that shell bracelet, for a long time. Until my family came to find me and took me back.”
Su Qinghan opened her eyes. Her gaze was an unfathomable darkness.
“I searched for a long time afterward. I asked every shop owner on that beach, everyone who might have seen her. But no one knew who she was, where she came from, or where she went. It was as if she had appeared out of nowhere and vanished just as suddenly.”
“I kept that shell bracelet. I put it in a box, and I wouldn’t let anyone touch it.”
“I told myself I had to find her. I had to say thank you to her in person. I had to… keep her by my side, protect her, just like she protected me back then.”
Her voice finally wavered as she spoke these last words.
It was a slight tremor, like a pebble thrown into a still lake, sending out ripples.
“I searched for over ten years, with no news. Until three years ago…”
Su Qinghan paused, lifting her head to look toward the silver figure by the dance floor.
Jiang Muyun was holding a cocktail, laughing with the girl beside her, her profile gentle and her brows soft.
“Until three years ago, when Muyun returned home to attend the opening of an art exhibition. I was there as the family representative and sponsor. In the lounge, I accidentally noticed something hanging on her handbag’s zipper.”
“It was that string of shell bracelets. The exact same shells, the exact same red string—even the tiny chip on the edge of one shell was identical.”
Su Qinghan’s voice, at that moment, finally softened completely.
Like ice melting, revealing a warm spring beneath.
“I walked over and asked her where she got that bracelet. She looked surprised, said it was her favorite thing as a child, that she always wore it. The string eventually broke, so she put it away and only recently found it again, hanging it on her bag for sentimental value.”
“I asked her if she still remembered, that summer when she was ten, saving a drowning little girl by the seaside. She paused, then smiled, saying she did. She said she was on vacation with her family, saw someone fall into the water, and jumped in without thinking. After pulling the person out, she was afraid her parents would scold her, so she ran off quickly.”
“She said she never imagined that little girl was me.”
Su Qinghan let out a long breath when she finished.
Like she had unloaded some heavy burden, or had finally confirmed something crucial.
“So, do you understand now, Dai Feng?”
She turned to her friend, her eyes clearer and more determined than ever before.
“The person I love, from beginning to end, is that girl who saved me by the sea. That kind, brave girl who jumped into the ocean without hesitation to rescue me. That girl who gave me the shell bracelet, the one I searched for over a decade.”
“And that person is Muyun.”
“From beginning to end, it’s her.”
“As for Yan Yu…”
She paused, her voice turning cold again.
“She’s just a substitute. Someone who looks a bit like Muyun and happened to appear when I needed a replacement. I’ve never had real feelings for her. Not before, not now, and… never in the future.”
With that, she tipped her head back and downed the rest of the whiskey in one gulp.
The cold liquid burned her throat and her heart.
But she felt exhilarated.
Like she had finally revealed a secret buried deep inside her for years. Like she had finally confirmed her feelings and solidified her choice.
Jiang Muyun was the one she had been searching for.
The one she had loved for over a decade.
That would never change.
Dai Feng watched her for a long, long time.
In the end, she said nothing, just let out a soft sigh and poured herself another glass.
“Since you’re so sure, I won’t say any more.” She raised her glass to Su Qinghan. “I wish you happiness.”
Su Qinghan looked at her, a faint smile finally tugging at the corner of her lips.
“Thank you.”
She said softly, raising her own glass.
The two glasses gently clinked in the air.
Letting out a crisp sound.
Su Qinghan set down her glass and turned her gaze back to the dance floor.
Jiang Muyun seemed to sense her attention, turned around, and waved at her, her smile sweet and tender.
Su Qinghan smiled back at her.
That smile was genuine, warm, and filled with complete trust and love.
As for that faint, lingering restlessness in her heart…
She shook her head and brushed it aside.
It was probably just exhaustion from the past few days.
Once Muyun was by her side for a while, once everything settled into place, it would naturally get better.