Can't Possibly Fall for My Wife Again After Rebirth, Right? - Chapter 46

Fu Qiao’s words caused Xu Yingran’s already slow-moving brain to crash completely.

What did that mean?

The love letter wasn’t from Fu Qiao?

Xu Yingran’s eyes widened as she looked at the pink envelope in her hand with utter disbelief. “This… this isn’t from you?” she stammered.

Fu Qiao looked back at her, equally puzzled. “Did I ever say it was from me?”

Come to think of it… she really hadn’t said the words.

Xu Yingran recalled the confession from her previous life; it had been just like this. Fu Qiao had simply handed her the letter, and Xu Yingran had been the one to chatter on and on, eventually taking Fu Qiao’s hand and asking if they were officially together starting that day.

Back then, she hadn’t heard Fu Qiao say she was delivering it for someone else, either!

Besides, who on earth asks someone else to deliver a love letter? Talk about causing a massive misunderstanding!

And who was this “Zhou Wan” anyway? That junior from the broadcasting station? What did her business with Fu Qiao have to do with that girl?

Feeling like she was possessed, Xu Yingran frantically tore open the pink, bubble-covered envelope. The moment she saw the signature at the bottom, her vision went black.

Zhou. As in Zhou Wan’s “Zhou.” Wan. As in Zhou Wan’s “Wan.”

Not a single character was wrong; not a single stroke was missing. This was, beyond a shadow of a doubt, a love letter written to her by Zhou Wan.

Xu Yingran felt a persistent buzzing in her ears.

“Why—why would Zhou Wan write me a love letter?” Xu Yingran clutched the paper, looking at Fu Qiao in total confusion. “Is she alright? Why would she write to me? I don’t even know her!”

Fu Qiao looked at her calmly. “Junior Zhou Wan seems to have fallen for you at first sight.”

To hell with “love at first sight”!

Xu Yingran paced around in a panic, scratching her head. “So… you never prepared a love letter for me?”

Fu Qiao watched her silently, her silence a confirmation.

Xu Yingran collapsed. “Then what about last time? Were you delivering someone else’s letter last time, too?”

Fu Qiao looked at her, bewildered. “Last time? What last time? This is the only time.”

Xu Yingran crouched on the ground, clutching her head, unable to process the reality for a long moment.

She had always believed that Fu Qiao had been the one to fall for her first, taking the initiative to confess while she simply “passively” accepted. Even though they had lived together peacefully for ten years, she was suddenly being told that Fu Qiao had never confessed to her back then. It had all been one big misunderstanding on Xu Yingran’s part. She had been the one babbling on and on, agonizing over it before deciding to be with Fu Qiao.

In terms of their relationship, Xu Yingran had always assumed Fu Qiao deeply loved her—which was why she was so controlling, constantly afraid Xu Yingran would be led astray by some other beauty.

But now… now…

Xu Yingran felt like she was going to cry. How could her “wife” just vanish into thin air like that?

Watching Xu Yingran huddle on the ground in tears, Fu Qiao felt lost and helpless. Though it wasn’t intentional, she finally understood Xu Yingran’s true feelings.

Xu Yingran didn’t like her at all.

Fortunately—thank goodness she hadn’t been the one to actually confess.

“I’ve delivered the letter,” Fu Qiao said, looking down at Xu Yingran with a calm, detached expression. “Judging by your reaction, you’ve rejected her. I’ll pass that message along for you.”

“Fu Qiao!”

Xu Yingran lunged forward to grab the corner of Fu Qiao’s jacket, looking up at her. “Then what about us…?”

“Us?” Fu Qiao looked down at her. “What ‘us’? You clearly misunderstood. I didn’t confess to you, so you don’t need to carry any psychological burden. It’s better if we just stay friends.”

With that, she turned and left the clearing, heading toward the broadcasting station.

Xu Yingran remained frozen on the ground, forgetting to even stand up as she watched Fu Qiao walk further and further away.

Upstairs, Yao Jin, who had been enjoying the show, suddenly realized something was wrong. Why was Xu Yingran suddenly crouching on the ground crying her eyes out? And why was Fu Qiao walking away?

Even if a confession failed, shouldn’t the one crying be Fu Qiao? Why was Xu Yingran the one having a breakdown?

Yao Jin let out a sharp hiss, springing from her seat and bolting for the door. Something unexpected had definitely happened. You had to hand it to Xu Yingran—she could turn even being “confessed to” into a world-ending tragedy.

By the time Yao Jin made it downstairs, a crowd had already gathered around Xu Yingran. Most were seniors, and a few girls were even crouching beside her, trying to comfort her.

Yao Jin overheard the whispers from the onlookers.

“What happened? Who is that? Why is she crying so hard? Did she fail an exam?” “That’s Xu Yingran from Class 5. It shouldn’t be about an exam; the monthly finals were ages ago. Why wait until now to cry?” “True. Then why is she so devastated?” “Wait, is that a love letter in her hand?” “Now that you mention it, I think I saw her standing under the trees with someone just now.”

Yao Jin stroked her chin, pondering. “Could it be that Xu Yingran confessed and got dumped?”

Instantly, the eyes of the entire crowd snapped toward her.

Within an hour, a piece of gossip spread through the entire senior year like wildfire: Xu Yingran from Class 5 confessed and got dumped!

Fu Qiao was unaware of the rapidly spreading rumors. She was busy looking at Zhou Wan, whose eyes were red from crying. “Don’t be sad,” she said softly. “Xu Yingran said she likes ‘sexy’ beauties. She won’t take an interest in anyone at our school.”

Zhou Wan wiped her tears and asked, “Does she even look down on you, Senior?”

Fu Qiao gave a bitter smile. She was too embarrassed to admit that Xu Yingran had initially mistaken the situation and thought she was the one confessing. Now, looking at Zhou Wan’s sobbing face, Fu Qiao felt like crying right along with her.

Other students from the broadcasting station came over to comfort Zhou Wan, making Fu Qiao feel a bit like an outsider.

Once Zhou Wan’s mood stabilized, Fu Qiao left. The sun had completely set, leaving only a final streak of crimson across the horizon that made Fu Qiao’s eyes ache.

The cafeteria would be out of food by now, and she had no appetite anyway. She stopped by the convenience store at the gate, bought a rice ball, and ate it distractedly.

With five minutes left before evening self-study, Fu Qiao finally made her way back to the classroom.

The moment she stepped inside, she felt the atmosphere was off. She cast a curious glance at her classmates before taking her seat.

She hadn’t been sitting long when a girl from the front row turned around and beckoned her closer. “I’ve got a secret to tell you.”

Fu Qiao looked at her curiously while pulling her study materials from her desk. “What is it?”

“Did you hear? Xu Yingran confessed and got dumped. She was crying downstairs for over half an hour!”

Fu Qiao froze.

“You don’t believe it either, right?”

Other nearby students joined in the gossip, huddling around Fu Qiao. “She was crying so hard! Everyone in the senior year knows she was rejected. She was practically wailing.” “Yeah, I wonder who she confessed to for her to be that heartbroken.” “I saw it too. Her eyes were swollen like giant walnuts.”

The more Fu Qiao heard, the more confused she became. Who did Xu Yingran confess to? Didn’t she just reject someone else?

She looked back at Xu Yingran’s seat and saw it was empty. Self-study was about to start—where was she? Could she really be crying as hard as everyone said?

“Stop looking,” the girl in front said, tugging at Fu Qiao’s sleeve. “The class advisor heard about it too. She just called Xu Yingran to the office for a ‘talk’.”

Another student added, “Teacher Li might be easygoing usually, but she’s strict about things that distract from studies. Xu Yingran is probably in for it this time.” “Isn’t that a bit much? She’s already been rejected so brutally, and Teacher Li is going to kick her while she’s down?” “Who knows? Maybe she’s just that cold-hearted.”

The group spent their final minutes before class racing to exchange gossip. One of them looked at Fu Qiao’s dazed expression and asked curiously, “Fu Qiao, you’re with Xu Yingran every day. Do you know who she confessed to? She must really love them to cry like that.”

Fu Qiao hadn’t expected to be put on the spot. She hesitated before shaking her head. “I don’t know. I was at the broadcasting station before dinner. I don’t know who she talked to.”

“Well, you certainly missed out on some legendary drama.”

Fu Qiao felt suspicious but said nothing.

At that very moment, Xu Yingran was still crying in the office. Li Yuwen looked at the girl in frustration; if people didn’t know better, they’d think she was the one bullying her.

“Here, wipe your face,” Li Yuwen said, handing her a tissue. “While ‘puppy love’ is wrong, you shouldn’t be crying like this. You’re a big girl now.”

Yao Jin stood to the side, looking at the sobbing Xu Yingran. She took the tissue and pressed it against Xu Yingran’s nose, saying sternly, “Blow!”

Xu Yingran only wailed harder.

Li Yuwen checked the time; it was almost time for class. “It’s getting late. Go to your classroom. Xu Yingran, if you haven’t composed yourself yet, stay here for a while and head back when you’re feeling more stable.”

With a shake of her head, the teacher left the office.

Once they were alone, Yao Jin patted Xu Yingran’s head and whispered, “If you keep crying, you’re never going to see your wife again.”

Xu Yingran looked up with eyes swollen like walnuts, sobbing, “Does Fu Qiao even want to see me anymore?”

“I don’t care if she wants to see you or not; you two still have to walk the same path home,” Yao Jin said firmly. “Besides, she isn’t made of stone. Maybe seeing you like this will make her heart soften.”

“Ugh…” Xu Yingran sobbed. “She is soft-hearted.”

But could “soft-hearted” turn her back into a wife?

When Xu Yingran thought about how her entire relationship—across two lifetimes—had been one giant mistake, and that her “wife” didn’t actually exist… she felt like dying.

She had no wife! Her wife didn’t love her at all!

To think she had spent all those years acting entitled because she thought Fu Qiao loved her… Xu Yingran wanted to cry for three days and three nights.

“Waaaahhh…”

“Stop crying!”

Yao Jin cupped Xu Yingran’s face in both hands, looking her in the eye with absolute seriousness. “Do you still want your wife or not?”

Xu Yingran: “Waaah… I do…”

“Then pull yourself together.” Yao Jin stared her down. “What is this sniveling? If you want your wife back, listen to me.”

Xu Yingran looked at Yao Jin as if she were a goddess descending from the heavens. “What… what should I do?” she asked, her eyes still red.

Yao Jin thought for a moment. “First, we go to evening self-study. And then… we improvise.”

Yao Jin: This family would fall apart in a day without me.