The Secret of Second Marriage

When I heard Juan say that, I blushed for a moment and felt guilty for a moment.

I gently reminded Juan, "Juan, you don't need to keep comparing yourself to me. Actually, Shen Xing and I have always maintained a friendship."

We've been through a lot together. It can't be explained in just a few words.

Juan smiled, picked up a glass, filled it with red wine, placed it in front of me, and said, "Man, we've been friends for so many years, come on, drink this glass of red wine."

I'll drink.

My eyes reddened a little as I thought of the friendship between Juan and me that spanned more than ten years, so I picked up my glass, ready to drink until I was completely drunk.

How many 10-year periods does one have in a lifetime?

I finished the entire glass of red wine, put the glass on the table, and only a few drops of red wine remained in the glass. My face started to turn red.

I've never been a big drinker.

Juan poured me another full glass of red wine and said what had been hidden in her heart for a long time: "Man, do you know? I don't know when it started, but I've been particularly jealous of you and envious of you."

We were friends in college. I was a glamorous rich second-generation heiress who was picked up and dropped off by my family in a luxury car every week. I never went to the cafeteria.

Every day I either order takeout from a five-star hotel or go out to watch movies, travel, and eat all kinds of seafood feasts.

You were the poorest girl in our dorm, wearing a faded, worn-out skirt and pants.

And then there's the part-time job you do all day, leaving you emaciated and pale. Once, you were tutoring, and the boy's father started pestering you relentlessly, even trying to get you to stay overnight at their house.

You were so scared that you hid in the bathroom and called me, asking me to come and rescue you.

Our friendship began that day. Without saying a word, I drove to that villa area, frantically rang the doorbell, went in, and pulled you out.

We became inseparable friends. Later, I learned all my secrets, and I always found a sense of superiority in you.

Do you understand?

There's something I've never told you. Actually, when your ex-husband Xue Fan was welcoming freshmen at university, he saw my brother driving me to school, and he took the initiative to send me a QQ message to confess his feelings.

But I refused.

Later, he started pursuing you again. I always felt that you were definitely not as well-off as I was when I married.

Later events proved that Xue Fan was indeed a scoundrel.

I never imagined you could so clearly move on from that broken marriage, and even manage to live such a successful life, attracting both President Jiang, an elite CEO, and Shen Xing, a top-tier celebrity offspring, to fall for you at the same time…

You're really capable!

"He Juan, are you saying you concealed the fact that my ex-husband pursued you back in college? We used to be best friends."

Why did you do this? You clearly knew Xue Fan was a man from a poor background who had achieved success, yet you didn't tell me anything.

Hehehe, I was so stupid. In college, I was just a completely innocent woman, like a blank sheet of paper.

I was utterly shocked, angry, and then incredulous, because I never dreamed that Juan, who seemed so straightforward and easygoing, could be so cunning.

She knew perfectly well that my ex-husband was not a devoted and affectionate man, yet she watched me step into the fire without ever warning me, concealing this secret from beginning to end.

When He Juan heard me say that to her, she couldn't hold back her anger. She poured herself a glass of red wine and gulped it down. I felt that we were both a little tipsy at this point, and we started arguing without any regard for the consequences.

She said defiantly, "I'm telling you, I deliberately didn't tell you. There's something else you don't know, Jiang Man, you're really too naive."

Do you think Xue Fan genuinely liked you when he was in college? No, you were just an option for him, never his only choice.

The group of rich girls in my class once mocked him when they were drinking and having dinner together. They said that Xue Fan became the student council president by currying favor with the school leaders.

He secretly looked up the family information of all the girls in our class that year, and sent flowers and wrote love letters to every girl from Beijing, Shenzhen, and Shanghai who came to study and whose families were particularly wealthy.

But we weren't buying it at all. We put all the love letters he wrote to us together and found that he had written the exact same strategy guide for everyone.

I have a lot of contempt for Xue Fan. That's why I deliberately didn't say anything when you were with him.

"He Juan, you've gone too far!"

I was completely enraged by her words. I, who always maintain a calm and elegant demeanor, couldn't hold back at this moment.

I stood up abruptly, picked up the glass of red wine on the table, and splashed it at He Juan.

It turns out there was such a hidden story behind what happened back then.

At this moment, my disgust for my ex-husband deepened even further.

Back then, he took the initiative to pursue me, and his love letters were so sincere. But it was all fake, all a trick. The reason I fell for it was because I believed his lies.

Is it my fault for being stupid or naive?

"Jiang Man, do you know what a true friend is? A true friend is someone who wants their best friend to be doing well, but doesn't want their best friend to be doing too well."

If you're doing too well, then what am I? How utterly pathetic and unbearable is my life? We're both in the same boat; I started from a higher point than you, so why should I lose to you?

He Juan was splashed with red wine, looking both disheveled and pitiful.

She got so angry that she started fighting with me.

"Fine, who's afraid of who? You slut, I've wanted to beat you up for ages!"

I hit her with my hand, and she covered her head and fought back. Then she pulled my hair, and I bit her arm. The two of us women started fighting in the private room without caring about our image.

The more I thought about it, the more wronged I felt.

Because of my family's poverty at that time, I spent most of my time studying in the library and doing part-time jobs, and rarely made friends in college.

He Juan is different from me; she's a very outgoing and straightforward person who always has friends around.

She was a rich second-generation heiress, and at the time she joined the school's arts club, where she met a group of art students who could play the piano and dance.

She goes out for dinner every week.

She knew far more gossip about our class than I did. She knew perfectly well that my ex-husband was a complete "phoenix man" (a man from a poor background who achieves success through hardship), but she never told me!

Human nature is truly something else; sometimes, when it becomes ruthless, it's terrifying.

I hit her, and she hit me back.

He Juan screamed at the top of her lungs, "Jiang Man, I never expected you to become more and more successful than me. Although I have money, I am middle-aged and my children have all gone to school. I am still all alone."

Since my ex-husband betrayed our marriage, I've been running a large company, which looks quite glamorous, with annual revenue of several billion yuan. I'm a successful female boss.

But I'm scared. I don't dare to give my heart to a man anymore. I'm afraid of being deceived, afraid that he's only after my money, you know?

But what about you? Why would a boy as outstanding as Shen Xing like you and not me? He doesn't have a single genuine feeling for me.

I'll throw 100 million at him and make him accompany me on a business trip to Sanya, just for the Spring Festival.

I just want to find a younger boyfriend to spend Chinese New Year with me, so I won't always feel so lonely, so my relatives and friends won't laugh at me for being divorced, and so I won't have to watch other families with their lights on, laughing and talking, all lovey-dovey during the New Year.

And me? I have nothing but a cold, empty house.

"If you like Shen Xing, then go after her if you have the ability. Why blame everything on me? He Juan, I never thought you were such a treacherous and cunning woman."

We were such good roommates in college. When you were sick, I stayed by your side, taking care of you day and night. No matter what trouble you encountered, I would come to you anytime with just one phone call.

I never imagined I'd have to watch myself marry a man like Xue Fan. You and your wealthy girlfriends must be laughing at me behind my back, laughing at me for choosing someone you all rejected, right?

My self-esteem was completely shattered.

I finally understand how blind I was to people in my previous relationship.

Xue Fan has never truly loved me.

He was looked down upon by the wealthy heiresses or daughters of officials at school because they disliked him, despised his poor family background, and the fact that he came from a rural area.

He had no other choice but to come to me later. He probably thought I was thrifty, good at making money, and willing to suffer with him and live a hard life.

Later, after he became rich, he kept a young and beautiful mistress outside.

He Juan and I got into a fight in the private room, smashing plates, cutlery, and wine glasses. The wine spilled all over the floor, making the whole room look extremely messy and chaotic.

"Stop fighting!"

When Shen Xing saw my two older sisters fighting, he immediately stepped forward, pulled me behind him, and stood in front of me to block He Juan's slap.

He Juan was originally going to slap me, but she was caught off guard and slapped Shen Xing hard instead.

"Get out of my way! Shen Xing, you really like your sister Man that much, are you taking sides? Don't forget you still have a contract worth 100 million."

If you can't come to Sanya with me, I can hire a lawyer to sue you for breach of contract, and you and your agency will be bankrupt from the financial losses.

Think it through carefully... don't blame me for forcing you!

He Juan's eyes turned red with anger, her voice filled with jealousy and resentment.

She used to think that money could buy everything in the world, but now it seems that the only thing it can't buy is sincerity.

Even if she were rich, she would still have to live a life of suspicion, anxiety, loneliness, and isolation every day.

Perhaps this is the tragedy of being a strong woman in this era.

Shen Xing was furious. She blocked my way, grabbed He Juan's arm and forced her to sit down in the chair. Her tone suddenly turned cold: "Go ahead and sue me if you want. I'll just go to jail. Anyway, I've been an orphan since I was a child. My mother is gone, and my father is a fickle man."

Aside from comics, I have nothing else to hold me in this world. If you really send me to jail because of this, I'll serve my time dutifully in prison, and when I get out, I'll still love comics.

"Why? Why? He's always loved President Jiang. He's never acknowledged you. How could you be so foolish? Shen Xing, are you innocent or just brain-dead?"

He Juan cried sadly.

Shen Xing smiled faintly, her face beaming with happiness, and said, "Don't you think it's a very romantic thing for a man to love only one woman in his life? Isn't the most romantic thing in this world unwavering loyalty? Just like my love for Man, I will always love her."