Rain.
That was the sound that haunted her memories — the endless tapping against windows, soft yet merciless, as if the heavens had wept for her foolishness.
After the divorce, Li Meiyun thought she was free.
Free from her loveless marriage, from Gu Yichen's cold silence, from the heavy mansion that always smelled of distance and duty.
She packed her bags that night, leaving behind her home, her two children, and a husband who had simply stood at the door, silent, watching her go.
She remembered his face — expressionless, but his hand had trembled slightly as he took off his wedding ring.
"Take care of yourself," he'd said quietly. "And… tell the children I'll see them soon."
But she hadn't told them anything.
She hadn't even looked back.
---
A New Beginning — or So She Thought
Zeyan was waiting for her that night at the Rain Blossom Hotel, the same place where their affair had begun.
He smiled when she arrived, pulling her into his arms. "You did it," he whispered. "Now you're mine."
His voice had been honey and venom, and Meiyun had closed her eyes, foolishly thinking she'd found love.
For a while, it seemed perfect.
Zeyan showered her with gifts, praise, and affection. He made her feel alive again — youthful, desired, adored.
And when the media discovered their relationship, she told herself she didn't care what the world said. She had chosen her happiness.
But beneath the perfume and champagne, the first cracks began to show.
He grew impatient when she talked about her children.
He dismissed her guilt with an easy laugh. "They'll be fine, Meiyun. Gu Yichen has money. He can raise them."
Every time she mentioned going to see them, his smile tightened.
"Why cling to the past?" he'd say. "They'll only remind you of him."
And like a fool, she'd believed him again.
---
Her world shrank to the size of Zeyan's apartment.
He said it was safer that way — that the Gu family would never forgive her, that her name had already been blacklisted in society.
He controlled what she wore, who she met, what she spent. At first, she thought it was protectiveness. Later, she realized it was ownership.
She began to notice whispers, hidden phone calls, sudden absences.
And then came Li Wen.
---
The Sister's Shadow
Li Wen had always been the beautiful one — clever, ambitious, and secretly envious of Meiyun's perfect life.
When Meiyun married into the Gu family, Li Wen smiled and said, "You're lucky, Sister."
But her eyes had always said, "It should have been me."
After the scandal broke, Li Wen appeared again — pretending sympathy.
"Everyone's talking about you," she had sighed, pouring tea as if they were still close. "But don't worry. I'll stand by you."
She visited often, too often, always when Zeyan wasn't home.
And she always asked the same questions — about Yichen, about the Gu family, about inheritance.
One afternoon, Meiyun overheard them — Li Wen and Zeyan — whispering in the next room.
She pressed her ear to the door, her heart pounding.
"…She's getting suspicious," Zeyan murmured.
Li Wen laughed softly. "Then speed it up. Once she signs over her shares, she's useless."
Meiyun froze. The world tilted beneath her feet.
Her heart stuttered, breath hitching. Shares? She'd transferred part of her Gu family assets to Zeyan when he'd begged for help with a 'business deal.'
And Li Wen… her sister… was in on it.
She stumbled backward, covering her mouth to muffle her sob.
For the first time, the golden illusion shattered — leaving behind only the cruel truth.
They never loved her.
They had used her — her guilt, her desperation, her blindness.
---
The Betrayal
That night, when Zeyan returned, she confronted him.
"Where were you?"
"At the office."
"With Li Wen?"
He laughed. "You're jealous now? You threw away your husband, your children, your name for me — and you still don't trust me?"
She slapped him.
The sound echoed through the apartment — sharp, final.
His expression turned dark, eyes narrowing to slits.
"Don't forget," he hissed, "without me, you're nothing. You think you can crawl back to Yichen? After what you did?"
Tears spilled down her face, but she didn't look away. "I may have been blind, but I'm not your puppet anymore."
She turned to leave — but his hand shot out, gripping her wrist like iron.
"You're not going anywhere, Meiyun."
That was when Li Wen appeared in the doorway, her smile chilling. "Oh, Sister," she said softly. "You always were too sentimental."
Meiyun's blood ran cold. "You… both of you…"
Li Wen raised the knife first — small, silver, delicate, like a kitchen toy.
Zeyan caught it from her hand, his expression eerily calm.
"Don't make this harder," he murmured. "You should've just stayed quiet."
---
The Night She Died
The room smelled of wine and roses.
Her blood dripped onto the white carpet, each drop blooming crimson like a flower.
Meiyun stumbled backward, clutching her stomach. Pain tore through her body, hot and wet. "Zeyan… please…"
He didn't even look at her.
Li Wen stood behind him, her laughter soft and cruel. "Don't worry, Sister. I'll take care of your children. I'll be their new mother soon enough."
"Don't… touch them…" Meiyun gasped.
But they were already gone — their footsteps fading down the hall.
She crawled across the floor, her fingers smeared with red, dragging herself toward the window. Outside, the city lights blurred like stars underwater.
And in that final moment, she saw Gu Yichen's face in her mind — his tired eyes, his quiet kindness, the man she had wronged beyond forgiveness.
She remembered her children's laughter, the warmth she'd thrown away.
"I'm sorry…" she whispered, her vision fading. "If I could go back… I'd never let you go…"
Her hand fell limp. The rain outside grew heavier.
And then — silence.
---
Rebirth
When her eyes opened again, it was to the same morning sunlight she once took for granted.
The same home she'd abandoned.
The same husband she'd betrayed.
The gods had given her what she asked for — a second chance.
A cruel mercy, or a sacred test.
Either way, she would not waste it.
---
Li Meiyun inhaled deeply, the echo of pain still burning behind her ribs.
She straightened her back and looked toward the hallway, where the faint sound of a small voice drifted in.
"Mommy?"
Her heart stopped. That voice — soft, careful, frightened — belonged to her son, Tian.
Her eyes filled with tears. "Tian…" she whispered.
The door creaked open, and a little boy peeked in — six years old, wide eyes filled with fear and confusion.
He looked exactly as she remembered — her son, her light, her greatest regret.
"Are you angry, Mommy?" he asked quietly, voice trembling.
For the first time in years, Meiyun smiled — gentle, shaky, real. She crouched and opened her arms. "No, sweetheart. Come here."
He hesitated, uncertain, then slowly ran into her embrace. His tiny hands clutched her dress.
Her heart broke all over again.
In her past life, this child had learned to fear her shadow.
In this one, she would teach him love.
Meiyun kissed his hair and whispered, her voice steady through tears,
"Mommy's home now. And Mommy won't ever leave you again."
Outside, the morning sun spilled into the room — soft and golden, washing over the woman who had once died for her sins.
---