One and Only

Chapter 35: The Roles People Play (2)

The well-trained police officers were momentarily stunned by the chaotic scene and forgot to stop her. Before Shi Yi could react, the woman had already wrapped her arms tightly around her. Though her voice trembled with sobs, she kept repeating, "Shi Yi, I'm sorry, I didn't know—I had no idea. I came for an interview, I knew something had happened to the Zhou family, I knew the police were involved... Shi Yi, Shi Yi, I didn’t know he was a cop. I didn’t know this bastard was trying to hurt you. Shi Yi, don’t be afraid. I’ve always protected you since we were kids. I won’t let him do anything to you..."

Shi Yi held her, murmuring, "It's okay, it's okay. Everything's fine."

Du Feng’s colleagues finally grasped most of the situation from this outburst. Yet they were helpless against this woman who had barged in unannounced. What was supposed to be a straightforward official matter had been twisted into something entirely different by her.

Harming the Zhou family?

Since they began investigating the Zhous, every step had been an uphill battle. Just when they had made some progress, internal issues within the Zhou family had complicated things further. And now, in the midst of this mess, a woman who clearly had no idea what was going on had appeared—and, by the looks of it, she was their boss’s woman...

Someone urged Du Feng to get his wound treated, but he merely pulled out a handkerchief and pressed it against the injury. "Get that woman out of here! And after you finish registering them, let them go. Assign a team to monitor them."

Hong Xiaoyu was immediately dragged away by two officers.

Du Feng squeezed his eyes shut for a moment, wiping away the blood obstructing his vision. "Mr. Zhou Shengchen, we’re just following procedure."

Zhou Shengchen finally spoke. "It’s fine. I’ll cooperate as much as I can."

Since Du Feng’s main focus was monitoring Zhou Wenchuan, they were soon allowed to leave. Shi Yi glanced at the officers restraining Hong Xiaoyu, instinctively certain that Du Feng wouldn’t actually cause her trouble, and followed Zhou Shengchen out of the hospital.

Afraid of implicating Hong Xiaoyu, she quickly sent her a text: I’m fine. Don’t get involved in anything related to the Zhou family. Forget about this. I’ll take care of myself.

Then she turned off her phone.

As for Wen Xing’s recording, Zhou Shengchen only asked Shi Yi about it once—on the day of Wen Xing’s burial.

She didn’t tell him the truth.

She had always believed that in this lifetime, she would never keep anything from Zhou Shengchen, that she would share everything with him. But this matter, Shi Yi decided, she would take to the grave. No matter how much Zhou Shengchen believed his mother’s words, he would never doubt Wen Xing, who was already gone. That was enough.

She didn’t want to scrutinize the actions of someone who had passed away.

Even more, she didn’t want Zhou Shengchen to suffer another kind of grief.

The day of the burial was unexpectedly clear and crisp, with bright sunshine.

The Zhou family cemetery was located on the back hill of the temple where they had once offered incense. Generations of ancestors were buried here. Shi Yi stood among the orderly but not overcrowded graves, surrounded by Zhou family members near and far. The only outsider was Mei Hang.

No one had stopped Mei Hang. Everyone who had witnessed Wen Xing’s final moments knew he was the one she had most wanted to see...

Zhou Shengchen wore a black suit and shirt, devoid of any other color from head to toe. Shi Yi, too, was dressed in a black coat and trousers, standing quietly beside him.

On the back hill in late autumn, the wind never ceased, swirling up layer after layer of fallen leaves endlessly.

Everyone gazed at the tombstone, lost in thought.

Wen Xing.

Let me tell you a secret.In the underworld, there is Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, who was female in her mortal life and has always been lenient toward women after death.

If a woman was ugly in appearance or frail in health but virtuous in life, and sincerely worshipped before the Bodhisattva, she would be reborn with beauty and good health in her next life. If a woman never resented being female and carried kindness in her heart, sincerely worshipping before the Bodhisattva, she would surely be reborn into a noble family in her next life—perhaps as a princess or a royal consort.

As long as there is kindness in one’s heart, women are more easily forgiven and treated with compassion.

In this world, life and death are the greatest matters.

I will not hold a grudge against someone already dead. Death severs all ties to this life.

I will never bring up those things again, nor let what you did trouble your brother. He loved you dearly—truly, dearly. I can’t imagine how much pain he would feel if he knew… If you truly wish to make amends to me, then let us protect him together.

The two of them walked back to the old family estate from the cemetery instead of taking a car.

They made their way up the mountain, and after about an hour, they saw the familiar towering stone archway.

The trees here were even taller, their fallen leaves carpeting the entire path.

Without dense foliage to block it, sunlight easily pierced through the high branches, casting overlapping shadows on the ground.

"Your mother mentioned… your grandmother’s ninetieth birthday is in a few days, and the celebration will be held here."

Zhou Shengchen gave a faint hum. "Grandma’s health and spirits aren’t good. None of us have told her about Wen Xing’s passing." Shi Yi nodded, understanding his meaning.

"Tong Jiaren will also be coming," he added, as if remembering something. "Grandma is very fond of her."

Shi Yi nodded again.

Before coming to Zhenjiang, Zhou Shengchen had already told her that Tong Jiaren and Zhou Wenchuan were in the process of getting a divorce.

There hadn’t been much conflict between them—the separation was mutual and amicable. Moreover, Zhou Wenchuan showed no particular attachment to the child he had with Tong Jiaren. Whether due to the ongoing investigations or because of Wang Man, he readily agreed to let the mother raise the child after birth, without insisting on keeping it in the Zhou family.

"You and her back then…" She trailed off, unsure what she even wanted to ask.

Tong Jiaren’s relationship with the Zhou family was complicated.

She seemed to have some connection with everyone—a childhood betrothal to Zhou Shengchen, a marital bond with Zhou Wenchuan, and a blood tie to Zhou Shengren…

"My relationship with her is exactly as simple as I’ve told you before."

Shi Yi smiled. "I know."

She trusted Zhou Shengchen’s character. If there had ever been anything between them, he would have told her.

As for why Tong Jiaren had given up the betrothal willingly, Shi Yi could guess.

After all, ever since Zhou Shengchen entered university at fourteen, his passion had always been scientific research. If a family had two sisters—one drawn to the uncle who controlled the Zhou family’s power, and the other to Zhou Shengchen, who held a nominal position—then the family would naturally choose to align themselves with the uncle who already held real authority.

Zhou Shengchen took off his coat and draped it over his arm, sensing her gaze. "Shi Yi."

"Hmm?"

"I’ve always felt guilty toward you," he suddenly said, struggling for words. "Or perhaps it’s more than guilt. I want to tell you the truth."

"Go ahead, I’m listening.""Since you met me, you've faced many dangers, even life-threatening ones," he exhaled softly. "My relatives have all, to some extent, done things that hurt you. Like those accidents you encountered."

Shi Yi guessed these were what he was referring to.

She remained silent.

Perhaps truly remorseful, Zhou Shengchen didn't delve deeper. Instead, he asked her, "Were you ever afraid?"

She nodded slightly.

The most terrifying had been that gunfight in a foreign country, the smoke of gunpowder filling the air—a scene she'd never faced before. As for the rest, she'd been kept in the dark about the truth. Wuzhen held her fondest memories with Zhou Shengchen, yet that first incident of falling into the water—no one would doubt it was anything but a scheme...

Only the last time, when Zhou Shengchen had taken her away from the Zhou family, had she truly been afraid.

He wasn't by her side then, yet she felt such pain she thought she might die from it.

"If I told you everything, you'd realize that from the very first day you stepped into the Zhou household, this was the most terrifying place in the world. The people here—every one of them has ulterior motives, every one has secrets..."

Zhou Shengchen paused briefly, stopping in his tracks to turn and face her.

He was much taller than her, and from this angle, he was backlit. His features, his silhouette—all of it made her feel utterly at ease. Even with the sun behind him, he didn't cast the slightest shadow of gloom.

Shi Yi waited for him to continue.

But Zhou Shengchen suddenly recalled their first real date.

That day, she had looked at him with disbelief, circled him once with a smile, then exclaimed in admiration, "The way you look today perfectly suits your name."

Zhou Shengchen.

That name seemed utterly perfect in her heart.

He remembered ten years ago on that gambling boat, after his mother's death, Xiao Ren had cried himself to sleep in his arms, only to wake and cry again, constantly muttering about revenge. Later, as Xiao Ren grew up and learned the truth—that his mother, exposed as a mole within the family, had chosen a brutal method of suicide to escape the cruel family punishment—he never mentioned revenge again. Apart from being somewhat introverted, it seemed he'd long forgotten about his mother.

Because Xiao Ren had come to understand one truth:

Members of the Zhou family were rarely killed by outsiders. The only real threats to them were their own kin.

Zhou Shengchen.

That name held no beauty—it only represented danger.

"The affairs of the Zhou family... I've never wanted to spell them out clearly because..."

At the end of the mountain path, fallen leaves suddenly swirled up.

He stopped speaking.

In their line of sight appeared over twenty people, neatly divided into two groups, sweeping the fallen leaves as they descended from the mountaintop—all members of the Zhou family.

Upon seeing Zhou Shengchen and Shi Yi, they quickly stopped and greeted, "Young Master," "Miss Shi Yi."

Zhou Shengchen motioned for them to continue sweeping. Soon, a car came down from around the bend, stopping beside them. Peering out was Xiao Ren, who had gone up the mountain ahead of them.

"I've been here over an hour, and you're still only at this point?" He gave Shi Yi a puzzled once-over from head to toe, then sighed leisurely. "Sister, those high heels must have made the climb exhausting, no?"

The young boy curled his lips into a smirk, said he had business down the mountain, and soon left.The car disappeared from sight, and only then did Zhou Shengchen lower his gaze to look at her. "Tired?"

"A little," Shi Yi admitted honestly.

He bent slightly, hooked his arms under her legs and back, and lifted her into a horizontal carry.

She glanced around and whispered, "We're almost there. Should I walk by myself?"

The people sweeping fallen leaves nearby completely ignored them, not daring to cast even a sidelong glance. Only the rustling sound of sweeping filled the air, and this quietness made her feel somewhat embarrassed...

He, however, remained unfazed and had already started walking up the mountain.

"Zhou Shengchen?" She leaned against him and looked up.

"Hmm?"

"What you said earlier... you didn't finish," she reminded him. "Why have you always refused to tell me the truth?"

"Can't you guess?"

"No."

"If I told you a certain inn was frequently haunted, would you stay there?"

"No... I'm afraid of ghosts."

"So am I," he paused briefly before continuing, "I was afraid that if you knew this place was full of ghosts, you'd choose to leave."

He said he was afraid.

And what he feared was her leaving.

This was the first time he had ever admitted to fearing something.

Apart from Wen Xing's matter, where he had allowed himself to become personally involved, he had always maintained the demeanor of an observer toward everything and everyone else—calm, rational, and steadfast in his values.

Even regarding Wen Xing's death, he had ultimately upheld his own principles.

She believed that what had made him lower the gun that day wasn't others' explanations, but his own conscience. In the end, he was different from the rest of the Zhou family—he would never allow himself to pass judgment or decide anyone's life or death.

The mountain path wound its way upward, and after a slight turn, the leaf-sweepers were no longer in sight.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and lifted her head.

He stopped walking and looked down at her. "What is it?"

"If I kiss you now, can you still hold me?" she asked softly.

He was momentarily surprised, then his voice softened. "No problem."

Zhou Shengchen adjusted his grip slightly, lifting her a little higher in his arms.

When love runs deep, the greatest fear is loss.

Fear of love fading inexplicably, fear of separation in life, and even more, fear of parting in death.

She remembered how afraid she had once been—even after they were formally married, she had feared he might suddenly leave her. Yet, a gentleman's word is as unbreakable as gold. From the moment of that proposal call, he had always kept his promises.

Accepting her, getting to know her, understanding her, cherishing her.

And as for her feelings toward him, they were like a game of Go: once the pieces were placed, there were no regrets, whether in life or death.

By the time they reached the old estate, it was three in the afternoon—the sunniest time of the day.

When they arrived at their courtyard, they were surprised to find Zhou Shengchen's uncle and mother seated in the main hall, along with several other elders of the family. Since Shi Yi and Zhou Shengchen's engagement, this was the first time she had come face-to-face with his uncle.

The current head of the Zhou family had snow-white hair at his temples, yet his eyes were sharp and alert.

Zhou Shengchen's mother, still impeccably dressed, had just returned from the cemetery and was still wearing a black cheongsam, her gaze dim.

"Miss Shi Yi," Zhou Shengchen's uncle nodded slightly toward her. "Hello."

Shi Yi responded politely with a nod of her own. "Hello."

This simple greeting was like a statement—he acknowledged her status and, at the same time, signaled his peaceful relinquishment of authority.All the elders present laughed warmly, showering Shi Yi with kind inquiries and looking at her with affectionate gazes, just like ordinary elders would. After all, everyone knew that Zhou Shengchen would soon be the head of the Zhou family, and this seemingly gentle and harmless young woman would take over all the businesses currently managed by Zhou Shengchen's mother.

For such a family, nothing could be more comforting than a peaceful transition of power.

The past few months had been particularly turbulent for the Zhou family, and this outcome was what everyone had long hoped for.

Zhou Shengchen seemed reluctant to have her entertain the Zhou family members and signaled for her to go upstairs first.

After going upstairs alone, Shi Yi settled into the study where she liked to sit during her visits, flipping through a book she had borrowed from the library during her last stay. The bookmark was still in the same place, and even the book's position on the shelf hadn't changed.

As she turned the pages, two young maids came upstairs, one carrying tea and the other an incense burner.

The burner already contained incense powder, pressed into the shape of plum blossoms using an incense mold. They placed it on the incense table before lighting it.

Faint voices could be heard from downstairs, but they soon faded away—it seemed nothing important was being discussed. Shi Yi overheard Zhou Shengchen's mother say to him, "Xiao Chen, I only have one request: be kind to your younger brother."

She didn't hear Zhou Shengchen's response.

Soon, he came upstairs. Leaning back on the sofa, she listened to his unhurried footsteps until he slowly came into view. Softly, she asked, "Have they all left?"

"They have," he replied. "Would you like to rest for a while?"

"Now?" She thought for a moment. "I'm not very tired."

Mostly because he had chosen agarwood incense, which had a refreshing effect.

"I don't think I've ever seen you take a liking to this before," she mused, somewhat distracted. "What's made you suddenly interested today?"

"It was Mei Hang's suggestion."

"Mei Hang?" The answer surprised her.

He pondered how to explain. "Dogs are highly sensitive animals. There have been cases abroad where people had undiagnosed cancer, and their dogs suddenly bit them, leading to medical examinations that revealed the illness," he said with a smile. "I just thought of this after seeing you being barked at by dogs a few times, so I checked your recent medical records. But you're perfectly healthy."

Shi Yi couldn't help but laugh. "My dear scientist, you're really being cautious. So? What does this have to do with agarwood?"

"Then, by chance, I mentioned it to Mei Hang, and his 'heretical theories' successfully influenced me."

"Heretical theories?"

Zhou Shengchen chuckled. "He said there might be another possibility—that dogs can see things ordinary people can't, like certain spirits. Agarwood contains spiritual energy, capable of connecting with the divine and dispelling impurities, so it might be good for you."

Shi Yi looked at him incredulously.

He smiled. "What?"

Agarwood.

A treasure formed over millennia, the finest of its kind, once reserved for royalty.

She vaguely remembered that back then, in the residence of the Prince of Nan Chen, Zhou Shengchen would send all the agarwood to her quarters. Yet, fearing the fragrance might be too overpowering, he only allowed it to be used in her courtyard, not inside her rooms.

His love for her had always been in the smallest details."Just because the dog barked at me, you two men actually went from discussing modern scientific theories to ancient ghosts and spirits," Shi Yi said, placing her hands on Zhou Shengchen's shoulders. "And you actually believe in these things..."

"Yes," he said, looking into her eyes. "I believe it now."

(End of Chapter)