Chapter 1: She Left Ten Years Ago
The night air was thick with the scent of rain-soaked asphalt. Wei Jie stood at the edge of the old street—the one lined with lanterns that hadn't been lit in years. The neighborhood looked smaller than he remembered, quieter, older, like it had been paused and forgotten.
He wasn't supposed to be here.
In fact, according to the doctors, he wasn't supposed to be awake at all.
Ten years. That's how long he'd been gone.
And the only thing he could think about was her.
Xuanqi.
The last time he saw her, she had tears in her eyes and a suitcase by her feet. She was seventeen, heartbroken, and leaving the only home she'd ever known.
"I'll come back for you," she had whispered, clutching his fingers like they were the only stable thing in her world.
"Promise me you'll wait."
He promised.
And then he fell—into a coma that stole an entire decade from him.
Now, she was gone. Not just from this neighborhood. Not just from his life. From everything that once connected them.
"She left ten years ago," the old neighbor repeated, arms crossed as he stood in his pajamas on the porch.
Wei Jie blinked. "She—Xuanqi. Lin Xuanqi. Do you know where she went?"
The old man looked at him for a long moment, recognition slowly dawning in his eyes. "You're… you're that boy. The one in the accident."
Wei Jie's throat tightened. "Yes."
The man sighed, shaking his head. "After your accident, her mother took her away. I heard rumors. Big city. Business. But no one thought she'd…"
He paused, lips pursed.
Wei Jie stepped closer. "What?"
"No one thought she'd become the woman she is today."
The next morning, he stood in front of a glass skyscraper so tall it seemed to scrape the sky.
LNX CORPORATION.
The logo gleamed in gold, with the bold tagline beneath:
"Rebuilding the Future. One Empire at a Time."
His hands were sweaty. His clothes still the same hoodie and jeans from the day of the accident—though someone at the hospital had tried their best to clean them. He didn't belong here. Not in this world of black suits, leather briefcases, and polished marble floors.
But this was where she was now.
He walked through the front doors, head down, heart racing.
The receptionist didn't even look up. "Appointment?"
"I… I'm here to see Lin Xuanqi."
Her fingers froze on the keyboard.
Then she looked up.
And blinked.
"Name?"
"Wei Jie."
There was silence. A flicker of something unreadable crossed her face.
"Wait here," she said stiffly, reaching for the phone.
Upstairs, Xuanqi was in a meeting. Sharp navy pantsuit. Hair pulled into a sleek bun. Her voice was low, clipped, every sentence like a well-aimed blade.
"We don't merge with predators. We buy them," she said coolly, tapping her pen against the contract.
Her assistant appeared at the door, looking pale.
"Miss Lin… there's someone downstairs."
"I don't do walk-ins," she said flatly, without turning.
"He said his name is Wei Jie."
The pen slipped from her fingers.
For three full seconds, the room was silent.
Then, slowly, she rose from her chair.
"Clear my schedule."
When the elevator doors opened, she expected a ghost.
She didn't expect him to look exactly the same—only taller. Still the same eyes, the same crooked smile. Still wearing that old hoodie like he hadn't changed, like time had skipped over him.
He took one step forward. "Xuanqi."
She didn't speak.
Her heels clicked as she walked past him, cold, unreadable.
"I waited," he said.
She turned.
"You were unconscious, Wei Jie," she said softly. "You weren't waiting. You were… gone."
He flinched. "I'm back now."
She studied him. "And you think that matters?"
"I remember everything. Graduation night. The stars. You promised—"
"I promised a boy," she cut in, voice sharp. "I'm not that girl anymore."
"You built an empire."
"And you lost a decade."
They stared at each other.
"You should go."
"I won't."
"Then you'd better learn how to walk in power suits," she said coolly. "Because this world—my world—doesn't slow down for ghosts."