The Secret of Second Marriage

Looking at Shen Xing's youthful and fair face, I was momentarily dazed.

But I immediately put on a serious expression and said to him, "Shen Xing, we're not a good match."

"Why aren't we suitable? Is it because you're 10 years older than me? Have you always thought of me as a little boy, immature?"

Shen Xing asked me.

I shook my head and said, "You don't understand."

Shen Xing said, "Sister, what you said hurts me deeply."

"I'm sorry, Shen Xing, Mr. Jiang is my fiancé. I made the wrong choice in my first marriage; I chose love. In this second marriage, I only want stability."

Mr. Jiang, he is mature and cultured, and he can accept that I am divorced with a daughter. We have been through thick and thin together... I cannot abandon him just because he is in jail, and choose to be with you.

I am not a woman who only cares about profit, nor will I start something and then abandon Mr. Jiang.

I say.

"I understand, sis."

Shen Xing stood silently beside me, accompanying me through the New Year.

As soon as the clock struck midnight at the prison gate, the scrolling red electronic text on the screen showed that it was already the first day of the Lunar New Year.

In the dead of night, the streets are empty and desolate, with the city lights illuminating only a small patch of sky.

The tree branches were bare, but the dark red shrubs in the green belt were quite resilient, swaying gently in the cold wind.

Holding the now-cold dumplings, I still didn't get to see President Jiang.

Shen Xing took off her white down jacket and draped it over me, saying, "Don't just stand there, sis, Happy New Year's Eve! Let me take you out for a late-night snack."

"No"

I say.

I packed up the lunchbox and turned to leave, but the driver was still waiting for me in the car.

But Shen Xing grabbed my hand and said to me, "Sister, don't rush back. You've looked so haggard lately, it breaks my heart to see you like this."

Tonight, I want to spend time with you, even if it's just as a friend, is that alright?

"Shen Xing, I know that you have a special attachment to older women because you were separated from your mother at a young age. There is a big age difference between us."

Regardless of whether I'm dating President Jiang or not, there's no future for us.

You need to face reality, make a clean break, and sever this forbidden love, okay?

I stopped hiding anything and told him the truth.

Okay, I'll try my best.

Shen Xing's face was pale, and she spoke with difficulty: "But I can't guarantee that I will forget you, Man. You are such a good woman."

Mr. Jiang is in jail. Any other woman would have run away with the money long ago, but you stayed by his side. Suddenly, I feel that falling in love with you is a very natural thing.

Man, you're really great, any man would admire you!

Except for my blind ex-husband Xue Fan.

I don't know why, but I suddenly cursed my ex-husband in my mind. Maybe it's because I felt that I had suffered too much injustice during the 10 years we were together.

Shen Xing is a kind and understanding boy.

He took me to the Zero Point Music Restaurant that his cousin used to run.

Bai Mei did not go back to her hometown for the Chinese New Year.

She was only one year older than Shen Xing. She looked tall and slender with fair skin. She resembled Faye Wong when she was young. She was cool, aloof, and beautiful.

She was wearing a leather jacket and skirt, silk leggings, long hair with burgundy highlights, and earrings. She was playing the guitar and singing on the stage in the lobby of the music restaurant.

I noticed that quite a few rich kids came to this hotel today; they're all here in groups to pursue Bai Mei.

She has many fans.

Shen Xing brought me to the music restaurant; it was already past 2 a.m.

The restaurant was filled with young people who had come to celebrate New Year's Eve, including couples.

There were game consoles at the entrance of the restaurant, and I was bored, so I played a game I used to play when I was a kid.

Shen Xing invited me to go get a late-night snack.

He said, "Man, I made our hometown's specialty spicy chicken, as well as Mapo tofu and twice-cooked pork with potatoes. Come and try them."

As soon as I heard it, I knew it was typical Hunan cuisine.

I suddenly remembered that Shen Xing is from Hunan, and he has a strong palate, which is similar to me; I can't live without spicy food...

I got up from the game console and went to a restaurant with Shen Xing to eat.

The table next to the stage was laden with food, beer, freshly roasted tangerines, melon seeds, and peanuts.

The New Year's Eve atmosphere was great.

I tried a mandarin orange; it was very sweet. This is a seasonal fruit that we only eat during the Lunar New Year.

"Man, these dishes are very spicy, are you brave enough to try them?"

"Of course"

I've always been particularly good at eating spicy food since I was a child, and I'm a little hungry now.

I picked up my chopsticks and took a bite of the spicy chicken. It was fragrant and spicy, truly a classic dish.

The air was filled with the smell of chili peppers.

Shen Xing and I were having a late-night snack and drinking.

After Bai Mei finished singing, she handed the microphone to the other resident singers, came over to greet us, and offered them a toast.

After not seeing her for several months, she seemed more relaxed and less sad than before, as if no one could get into her heart.

Bai Mei said, "My brother made this especially for you, Man. He likes you a lot. Don't you like my brother at all?"

"I'm sorry, but I don't want to talk about these complicated emotional issues tonight."

I drank half a glass of wine, then suddenly asked, "And you? Can't you still forget that man?"

"It'll be soon. I'm almost forgetting, you know? A jerk is always a jerk. I shouldn't have any expectations of him anymore. He said he loved me, said he liked me, and that he would always wait for me."

He has no feelings for his wife, only for me. He married his wife only for profit, but the person he can never forget is me.

So I opened a music restaurant here to commemorate our love.

But I didn't expect that he would come to this restaurant for drinks that day, and not alone, but with a beautiful woman.

Bai Mei took a few deep breaths, a tear fell from the corner of her eye, and suddenly raised her voice, saying, "I thought that was his wife, but when I delivered the wine from the front desk and saw the woman's face clearly, I realized that she was just another new lover of his."

I've seen his wife's wedding photos posted on his WeChat Moments. She's a very plump, dignified, and elegant girl, not the seductive vixen next to him.

When I saw them with their arms around each other, I understood everything... I had just fallen in love with a scumbag!

I used to be extremely envious of his wife, who was able to win his love and obtain the marriage certificate that I longed for so much...

But now I feel sorry for his wife, because he's a scumbag and doesn't deserve any woman's love.

"I knew you'd fallen for a jerk the first time I saw you. Because we've been through similar experiences. Jerks take advantage of women's sympathy, making them give and sacrifice everything for them, and they take it all for granted."

Only a man who truly loves you will unconditionally cherish you, ensure you're never tired, hungry, or thirsty, give you money, a home, and everything he can provide.

I looked at Bai Mei.

Bai Mei looked at me and said, "Sister Man, you are truly my confidante. I made one mistake after another, I was too naive, I actually thought it was love."

But now I've come to my senses, and I'm going to settle the score with him.

I will continue to keep this music restaurant open, but I have hired a professional restaurant manager.

After the New Year, I will sign a contract with Mr. Wei from Blackstone Records and then focus on being a singer and making music. We can add each other on WeChat later.

Sister, I actually really enjoy watching you act.

"it is good"

I feel a sense of kinship with this younger sister who is younger than me.

I added her on WeChat.

Because of Shen Xing, I made a new friend.

After Bai Mei finished telling this story, it seemed as if she had let go of a very heavy burden in her heart, and she became much lighter and brighter.

She sipped a few glasses of wine and then went to work at the cashier.

I noticed that there was a man with a particularly straight face in the music restaurant, whose gaze kept following Bai Mei.

"Who is that person? He was sitting in the middle, with a group of people who came to eat and make a show of it. Everyone else treated him with utmost respect, so he seemed to have some status and position."

I asked.

Shen Xing said, "My sister said that the guy is a rich second-generation from Beijing who is pursuing her. He has been doing this for more than 300 days without fail. Whenever he doesn't have social engagements, he comes here to request songs and eat, supporting my sister's business."

He seems to have a thing for my sister... but my sister used to have someone else in her heart, and now it seems like she's slowly starting to agree to go on dates with him too."

"That's good."

I say.

As the saying goes, out with the old, in with the new.

As Shen Xing spoke, she ate a chili pepper, which made her eyes water from the spiciness.

I poured him a glass of Coke and handed it to him.

He said to me, completely conceding defeat, "Man, you always act like an elite female CEO in front of me, always so elegant and composed."

I really want to see you crying and choking on the spiciness in front of me, looking adorable.

But I still miscalculated. You can handle spicier food than I can. I never thought I'd be the one making a fool of myself in the end…

"So that's what you were planning. No wonder you treated me to such spicy Hunan cuisine."

I say.

I picked up a piece of chicken from the spicy chicken dish and started gnawing on it, then gave Shen Xing a disdainful look.

Shen Xing only ate a few pieces of spicy chicken with me before he felt the chili peppers explode in his stomach, making his tongue hurt and his head buzz. He immediately felt hot and sweaty.

After we finished our late-night snack, Shen Xing gave me a New Year's gift...

He carefully wrapped the box in red gift paper, tied it with a ribbon, and handed it to me, saying, "Happy New Year!"

"Happy New Year!"

I didn't have any gifts to give him, so I sent him a red envelope with a very auspicious number, 888.88, which means "prosperity".

It was already three or four in the morning.

I'm really sleepy late at night.

On a quiet night, we said goodbye at the bar entrance.

I said, "Let's go back."

Shen Xing said, "Sister, you're wrong about something. I didn't fall in love with an older woman because I lacked maternal love."

That's because that person just happened to be you. The only person I've ever loved is you, Jiang Man.

"But your love is like a bubble, like a dream, making me feel very uneasy."

I said, "Besides, I already have a boyfriend, didn't you know?"

"Man, you don't understand men. Men's love is so possessive, so proactive, they don't want to hide anything, and they want to establish a relationship quickly. Man, as long as you don't marry President Jiang, I still have a chance."

Shen Xing said.

After he finished his long confession, I didn't interrupt him.

I've seen many female mistresses, but I've never seen a male mistress like Shen Xing.

I said, "Shen Xing, you're young, and I can see your loneliness. You just crave love so much. It must have been tough for you to get through this alone, right?"

"Man, do you know? In all these years since my mother passed away, no woman has been able to give me the feeling you gave me. It's a love that's etched into my bones, a relationship that's deep, and the warmth of a home that's wonderful."

Shen Xing was already crying his eyes out. In my memory, he rarely cried and had always been a silent boy, but this time, my words touched his tender heart.

He hugged me tightly, tears streaming down his face, and gently held me in his arms, stroking my hair as he choked out, "You know what?... Before my mother passed away, she told me that she hoped I could find a woman I loved very, very much, to cherish the woman I loved most in my life, to treat her very, very well, and never to cheat on her, never to betray her..."

I really like you, Man... I want to be with you, I want to have a home of our own.