Outside, the argument continued on and off.

The couple's voices were sometimes loud, sometimes low.

Ling Yao no longer cared if there were outsiders present, and Zhou Sa's usual good temper seemed to have worn off. With the sound of a water glass hitting the ground, Zhou Sa slammed the door and the commotion came to an abrupt halt.

Ling Shu was pushed into the bathroom by Yue Dingtang to take a shower.

The latter then pushed the door open and left.

Ling Yao sat in the living room, her eyes red, and broken glass scattered on the floor beside her feet.

"I'm sorry you had to witness that," she said hoarsely.

Yue Dingtang replied, "I have a good relationship with Ling Shu, so you don't have to be formal with me. He's quite worried about the two of you." 

"I know, I don't want to argue in front of you all, but I just couldn't hold it in... From Monday until now, Zhou Sa has refused to tell me who the woman he's keeping outside is. It turns out that my position in his heart is so low."

Ling Yao sobbed softly.

Yue Dingtang handed her a handkerchief.

"Could this be a misunderstanding?"

Ling Yao shook her head. "He admitted it himself, the other woman is a widow."

Yue Dingtang patiently said, "Just because she's a widow doesn't mean there's something going on. From what I've learned from Ling Shu, your relationship with  brother-in-law started in difficult times, so it's not an ordinary one. You should give him more trust. He's such an honest person, there may be some misunderstanding."

Ling Yao didn't notice the change in his address and naturally continued, "He had such a big temper just now, how can he still be considered honest?" 

"A dog will jump the wall when desperate, and even an honest person can get angry when pushed to their limit. Of course, I'm not saying that brother-in-law is a dog, there's no comparison between the two," Yue Dingtang analyzed with a serious expression. "Regardless, Ling Shu is your brother, so naturally he will stand by your side. But if things really do take a turn for the worst and you haven't thought about how to handle it, even if we help you uncover the truth, it may not be the truth you want."

Ling Yao was lost in thought and didn't respond.

Seeing her like this, Yue Dingtang knew that Ling Yao still had deep feelings for Zhou Sa, and she hadn't thought about what she would do if he really did have a mistress. Perhaps she just wanted to make a scene and get her husband's attention and guilt. 

As a man himself, he knew all too well that guilt was like a luxury item for men. 

The more you squandered it, the less you had left. 

Eventually, their old love would disappear completely. Ling Yao's aimless behavior only made Zhou Sa feel more and more like she was unreasonable, even becoming disgusted with her.

To outsiders, Ling Yao's union with Zhou Sa was like a story of a fallen rich girl marrying a poor boy. Everyone pitied the rich girl and secretly envied the poor boy's luck, but they couldn't help but wonder if there had ever been true love between them.

Yue Chunxiao, the third sister of Yue Dingtang, had once said in private conversation that with Ling Yao's temperament, Zhou Sa would find it hard to tolerate her for a lifetime. 

Who knows, if he were to become successful one day, he might kick his destitute wife to the curb. 

At present, Zhou Sa's career has not yet developed, but for ordinary citizens, being a chief clerk in the municipal government is already considered a small privilege. Otherwise, it would be impossible to use connections to get Ling Shu into the police station.

If he wants to keep a mistress, Ling Yao definitely has no way to stop him.

Unless they get a divorce.

But is Ling Yao willing?

Ling Yao has no children, and at this age, with only a high school education, if she gets divorced, she will have to rely on her younger brother for the rest of her life.

Ling Shu would definitely be willing to support his sister, but with such a high sense of pride, would Ling Yao be able to accept this reality?

Yue Dingtang left the living room for Ling Yao and returned to Ling Shu's room.

The bathroom was quiet.

Because Ling Shu was already sound asleep on the bed. 

The alcohol had taken effect at Feilengcui, and he was now completely unconscious, sprawled across the bed and snoring loudly. Yue Dingtang tried calling out to him several times, but to no avail. His sleeping position was a mess, and he had taken up most of the bed, leaving little room for anyone else.

Yue Dingtang wasn't feeling sleepy, so he grabbed a book from the shelf and began flipping through it. His eyes landed on a particular section - the English version of "Romeo and Juliet". The cover was old and worn, and inside were some English words with translations written underneath.

The handwriting was childish and messy, clearly the work of Ling Shu from many years ago. 

The first few pages showed that Ling Shu had taken the time to look up words in the dictionary and write out their Chinese meanings diligently. As he flipped through the pages, he could tell that the person who had written this diary was getting impatient. 

Every now and then, there were doodles of steamed buns, dumplings, a little dog, or a bird. They even added some humorous comments in English, drawing mustaches on women's faces and adding lipstick to men's lips. 

It was so ridiculous that it could make any English teacher furious.

On some pages, there were suspicious marks that made Yue Dingtang suspect that the other person had drooled in their sleep. 

Without realizing it, he found himself smiling as he flipped through the pages slowly. Yue Dingtang knew exactly when these marks were made. It was when Ling Shu caught him reading the English version of "Romeo and Juliet." 

Although Ling Shu mocked him, Yue Dingtang was sure that Ling Shu secretly wanted to improve himself and would work hard to catch up.

Every page was a precious memory of their youth. 

It told a story of Ling Shu, who was once stubborn even in the face of death. 

Ling Shu didn't like reading the original text, but he didn't want to lose face in front of others, so he suffered. There was also a young man who had a world of infinite possibilities in his heart and was willing to travel the world with passion.

Although everyone later faced harsh realities and shattered dreams, and old classmates went their separate ways, all the beauty remained in that spring with dappled sunlight.

The world thereafter was cruel and cold, with bloodshed and scars, but the hearts of warriors never gave up. 

Fortunately, these two had not missed each other.

The object of his gaze was sound asleep, oblivious to his attention, with lips slightly parted and emitting barely audible snores. Yue Dingtang reached out his hand and silently unbuttoned each of his clothes, one by one.

Under the thin pajamas, his body was lean but full of strength.

This kind of strength may not be visible on a daily basis, but only in life and death situations can it fully erupt.

But Yue Dingtang was not looking at these.

His gaze lingered on the other's shoulders and downwards.

There were old and new, shallow and deep scars, some from knives, some from guns, and many wounds that even Yue Dingtang couldn't describe.

These were the secrets that Ling Shu had never shown to anyone.

Ever since Yue Dingtang found out about his past, he had been wanting to find an opportunity to see the scars on his body.

But now he found that he couldn't even count them.

Perhaps some of the scars had become very shallow and almost invisible, but that didn't mean they didn't exist, or that they hadn't caused damage to Ling Shu's body. 

"Where is the bullet wound?" Yue Dingtang asked softly.

Ling Shu didn't even notice.

He murmured a few times, feeling a bit cold. After Yue Dingtang helped him put on his clothes again, he fell back into a deep sleep.

He woke up feeling refreshed, but encountered a small problem.

He found himself pressing Yue Dingtang underneath him.

To be precise, one of his legs and arms were draped over the other's body, and Yue Dingtang's pajama collar was pulled open, revealing his chest.

Ling Shu was a bit confused, propping his head up and trying to remember what happened last night.

Just then, there was a knock on the door. Without thinking, he said, "Come in."

Ling Yao, his older sister, walked in and saw the scene before her. 

She was first stunned, then lost in thought.

"What did you do to Dingtang?" 

Ling Shu: ...What could I do to him? I was drunk!