It was only from this moment on that Jiang Lai realized that Chi Yingyu would be the prison of her entire life.
The twisted love from her sister-in-law was so taboo, so disgusting, and it could never be blessed by anyone in this world.
But none of this was anyone’s fault.
Chi Yingyu only wanted to vent the hidden crush she had carried for more than ten years.
“Yingyu… what are you saying?”
Jiang Cai watched as Chi Yingyu slowly walked toward her, instinctively taking a step back.
Jiang Lai didn’t really fear her sister-in-law; instead, she felt sorry for the person in front of her, wanting to hold her tightly.
But when Jiang Lai’s gaze fell on what was in Chi Yingyu’s hand, fear surged through her.
Who in their right mind would walk toward someone holding a completely private, censored object, step by step?
“You must be joking!”
Hearing her brother-in-law say she was joking, Chi Yingyu’s eyelashes fluttered.
Her lowered eyes concealed the complex emotions beneath, but the grip on the toy in her hand tightened.
“You know I would never joke with you.”
That seed called love in Chi Yingyu’s heart had died before it even sprouted, leaving a hollow, painful emptiness.
In the past, Chi Yingyu only dared to act behind Jiang Lai’s back; she never dared to risk saying aloud the feelings she hid inside, because their relationship simply couldn’t withstand such turmoil.
If she spoke out her dark, taboo affection, the two of them would face unpredictable consequences.
But that was before. Not now…
“Brother-in-law, no, Jiang Lai, right now, I really have so many things I want to ask you. Lately, there have been so many things I don’t want to know.”
Chi Yingyu felt like she was losing her mind, but at this moment, if she didn’t speak out, the feelings inside her would suffocate her.
“I used to know almost everything about you—what happened at work, what interesting things you saw on the street—I could know everything right away. But now… I don’t know any of it.”
What really broke Chi Yingyu’s composure was that yesterday, when she tried to unlock Jiang Lai’s phone with the old password, she realized Jiang Lai had secretly changed it without telling her.
Jiang Lai’s phone password had been the same for over ten years, based on her sister’s birthday. At least Chi Yingyu could know it.
Sometimes, curious about how her brother-in-law interacted with others, she would unlock his phone to take a look.
But now?
“Jiang Cai… what’s your phone password now? Why isn’t it your sister’s birthday anymore?”
Her brother-in-law changing the password, no longer using her sister’s birthday, made her really happy—because it meant Jiang Lai was slowly moving on from the past, at least letting go of someone else.
At least, it gave Chi Yingyu a chance.
But that was only Chi Yingyu’s naïve past thought. Now that the old idea was becoming reality, she didn’t even get a chance.
“Could it be that there’s someone else in your heart now?”
Just a few hours ago, she had clearly seen Jiang Lai and Xu Ruobing acting intimately.
Even though the video was scripted, seeing that scene in real life made her eyes feel like they were bleeding, her chest burning with a jealousy she couldn’t suppress.
Chi Yingyu was petty; once she got something, she couldn’t accept losing it again.
When she returned home today and saw her apartment empty and desolate, without a single person inside…
Her room was small; two people living there was cramped, even the corridors were too narrow for two to pass side by side. Alone, it was just right.
But today, coming back, the room felt huge. Living alone made her feel lonely and uncomfortable.
In the past, whenever she came home, she could hear her brother-in-law’s welcome, smell the delicious meals she prepared.
Although those days were short-lived, she cherished every moment and kept them close to her heart.
She could never accept anyone replacing her by Jiang Lai’s side.
She had accompanied him for more than ten years; they had seen each other’s most vulnerable moments, healing each other’s wounds through hard times.
Everything they had been through couldn’t be so easily surpassed by anyone else.
“Yingyu… what do you mean by ‘someone else in my heart’…”
Jiang Lai’s question barely left his lips before he roughly understood who Chi Yingyu meant.
A bitter smile appeared on his face for a fleeting moment.
That brief smile felt like a massive weight pressing on his chest, adding more pressure.
In this state, he tried to explain his relationship with Xu Ruobing.
But no matter how he explained, Jiang Lai couldn’t clear up everything between them because from the start, a huge lie had been born.
Not long ago, Jiang Lai and Xu Ruobing had a half-step one-night stand.
If he revealed that, his image would collapse completely.
Jiang Lai felt ridiculous.
To prove that he had no ambiguous relationship with Xu Ruobing and that he didn’t fall for her mentally, he had to admit the one-night stand.
But if he admitted it, he was effectively acknowledging a physical intimacy with Xu Ruobing.
Whether telling the truth or lying, this matter was already a death sentence for Jiang Lai’s image.
No matter what he chose… Jiang Lai could feel his image crumbling to pieces.
He felt sorry for both Chi Yingyu and her sister.
Just as Jiang Lai was lost in his thoughts, he suddenly sensed danger.
He opened his eyes wide and met Chi Yingyu’s cold, almost angry face.
He knew his explanation hadn’t convinced her.
Instead, Chi Yingyu sneered darkly twice.
“Even now, you won’t tell me the truth? I just want to hear one honest word from you, Jiang Lai.
No matter how you and Xu Ruobing met, I don’t care.
I only hope that brother-in-law, you won’t hide anything from me anymore.”