---
(Third Person POV)
The sky was overcast as a sleek black sports car tore down the highway on the outskirts of Shanghai, the engine humming like a beast barely restrained.
Inside, Lin Feng rested his wrist on the steering wheel, eyes distant, not really seeing the road.
Forty-eight years old. Billionaire. Founder of an intercontinental-class empire. On paper, he had it all.
But…
He glanced at the rearview mirror, catching sight of his own reflection.
White hair.
Wrinkled eyes.
Tired soul.
"…Damn," he muttered under his breath, scratching the stubble on his chin. "When did I start looking like this?"
He smirked bitterly and shook his head. "You've got ten villas, twenty-seven sports cars, and not one person to call family anymore."
The engine roared as he pressed the accelerator absentmindedly, the city lights behind him shrinking further.
His chest tightened slightly—not from fear, but from memory.
> "Feng'er, I kept your dinner warm."
"Come back early next time, okay?"
"You work too hard, son…"
His mother's voice echoed in his ears, warm and tired.
He scoffed. "Yeah… I came back late every single day, didn't I?"
He stared straight ahead, his eyes glassy. "Bought them the best caretakers. Sent them on pilgrimages. Gave them every luxury. But… I never gave them me."
His voice cracked at the end, and he bit his lip hard to silence it.
"I promised them a vacation together. Just one. We could've gone to Hainan, or even Japan… But I had meetings. Always goddamn meetings."
His grip on the wheel tightened until his knuckles turned white as his eyes we're wet with tears.
"They're gone now, Ma… Ba… And I'm still here, although rich but eating alone."
The silence in the car felt oppressive. He turned on the radio and just as quickly turned it off.
> "Love?" he snorted. "Don't even get me started on my love life ."
A hollow laugh escaped him. "All I ever did was simp for that girl… Lin Xi."
His lips curled in disdain at the name.
"She used me. Gifts, rides, dinners... all while she said she just liked me as a friend, only a friend , we were just best friends, only friends "
His head tilted back against the seat, eyes staring at the grey sky through the windshield.
"You were pathetic, Lin Feng. A goddamn clown. Simping for a girl who treated you like a dog."
He let out a dry chuckle. "And she married a rich second-gen guy, huh? Domestic abuse, they said. Tsk. Karma, maybe. Or maybe just bullshit rumors. Who cares?"
He took a shaky breath, wiping the corner of his eye with a thumb.
"Still hurts though… not her, but who I was. Stupid and naive. "
The wind rushed louder in his ears. He glanced at the dashboard—178 km/h.
"Huh? Shit—!"
The rear wheels skidded.
The tires screeched violently against the asphalt.
His heart leapt as the car swerved to the left.
"Holy shit—!"
He jerked the wheel but it was too late. A hard CRASH sounded as the car slammed into the guardrail. The world spun. Metal crunched like paper. Airbags deployed, too late.
"If only…"
That was the last thought in Lin Feng's mind as a flash of white light swallowed him whole.
If only I had a second chance…
Then silence.
---
[End of Prologue]
---