Chapter 4 — May You Be Forever Alone

Ta Nam Dien, you are suspected of intentional infliction of injury resulting in death. We are hereby summoning you in accordance with the law.

The handcuffs emitted a sharp click, snapping tightly around Ta Nam Dien’s wrists. As she was forcibly dragged outside, she kicked wildly against the door of the police car.

Let me go! I did not kill her.

Shen Qingyan’s life was simply short, and her death was well-deserved. She swallowed it down of her own accord.

Her hysterical screams sounded particularly grating in the quiet luxury neighborhood in the early hours of the morning. Neighbors one after another put on their coats and stepped outside. Ta Nam Dien’s usual elegance and fragility had completely vanished, leaving behind only a wretched and pathetic mess. Inside the living room, mortuary staff pushed a stretcher inside, preparing to place my corpse into a body bag. Fu Wensheng lunged forward like a madman. He tried to lift me up from where I lay on the floor and run toward the ambulance waiting outside.

Do not touch her. She is afraid of pain. I am taking her to the hospital.

Four or five sturdy police officers immediately stepped forward, pinning him heavily to the marble floor of the foyer. Fu Wensheng’s face pressed hard against the shards of freshly shattered glass. The sharp edges pierced his skin, and fresh blood poured out, staining the ground. He struggled frantically against the floor. The police officer in charge of the case walked over, pulling a document folder from his briefcase.

Director Fu, this is the declaration waiving the right to handle the remains that Ms. Shen Qingyan left at the law firm before her death.

The officer opened the document and placed it right in front of Fu Wensheng. Plain white paper and black ink.

After I, Shen Qingyan, pass away, my remains shall be transported directly to the crematorium for processing.

Under no circumstances shall I be buried in the Fu family ancestral tomb, under no circumstances shall a memorial hall be established, and under no circumstances shall my spouse, Fu Wensheng, be notified.

Fu Wensheng stared at those absolute phrases, and the light in his eyes vanished completely. He discarded all his usual aloof dignity as a chief executive officer. He crawled on his knees to clutch the hem of the police officer’s trousers, emptying all his bank cards and car keys from his pockets and shoving them into the officer’s hands.

I beg you.

Fu Wensheng pleaded with utter humility, his tears mixing with blood as they streamed down his face.

Just let her stay in the house for one more day. Only one day.

I have not yet prepared her light and gentle meals.

No one paid him any heed. The black body bag from the mortuary was unzipped. The heavy zipper was pulled shut from one end to the other. Fu Wensheng collapsed into the pool of blood. He lay flat on the ground, repeatedly vomiting sour bile. When dawn broke, Ta Nam Dien’s parents received the news, rushing to the villa carrying expensive gift boxes. They stood outside the door, weeping and begging Fu Wensheng to forgive Ta Nam Dien.

Director Fu, Nam Dien was only momentarily foolish.

Fu Wensheng slowly dragged himself up from the floor. He picked up a golf club from the foyer and charged outside, smashing all the gifts brought by Ta Nam Dien’s parents into an unrecognizable pile of debris. His eyes were flooded with a frenzied intent to kill. With a hoarse voice, right in front of Ta Nam Dien’s parents, Fu Wensheng issued an absolute command to his assistant.

Within one hour, withdraw all investments and guarantees intended for the Ta family enterprise.

Sever their entire capital chain.

I want to drive Ta Nam Dien’s entire family into a dead end where they must beg on the streets.

Ta Nam Dien’s parents collapsed onto the ground, their faces ashen like dead ashes. In my spiritual state, I floated quietly in midair, looking down at the empty foyer stained with blood and the chaotic, ruined villa. My form gradually radiated a faint white light. The stubborn obsession of seven years was finally severed entirely at this very moment. I felt lighter and more at peace than ever before. Just three days later, high-definition surveillance footage from the hotpot restaurant was leaked online by an insider. The video had no audio, but the visuals were crystal clear. Ta Nam Dien had pretended to be frail as she leaned against her chair, but the moment Fu Wensheng lowered his head to look at his phone, she maliciously picked up a bowl of scalding red chili oil and poured the entire thing directly into my dipping sauce bowl. That close-up shot of her vicious act seized the number one spot on the trending search charts. Ta Nam Dien, locked inside the detention center, began to endure unimaginably bitter days. She was isolated and beaten collectively by all her cellmates. Every day at mealtime, her plastic food tray was deliberately packed with rotting, pungent red chili paste by the others. As long as she dared to vomit it out, she would suffer an even more brutal beating. Meanwhile, due to the horrifying murder case, the stock price of Fu Wensheng’s company plummeted into a freefall, suffering limit-down sessions for five consecutive days. Inside the top-floor executive office, more than ten angry shareholders forcefully slammed termination agreements onto Fu Wensheng’s desk.

Fu Wensheng, your personal moral scandal has severely damaged the survival of this corporation.

Sign this immediately and get out.

Fu Wensheng completely ignored the curses hurled at him. He did not glance at the agreements even once. Instead, he simply clutched tightly to an old, faded coat that I had loved to wear when I was alive, curling himself into the darkest corner of the office. He buried his face deep into the fabric of the coat, inhaling desperately and deeply.