Chapter 7

I took a deep breath.

I don’t know where I found the strength, but I suddenly lunged forward to snatch the beads back.

She had been ready for that.

As we struggled,

the strand snapped.

The beads scattered across the floor with a patter.

I stood frozen for a few seconds.

Then I opened the door without hesitation and ran downstairs to find Shen Yan.

Hearing the commotion,

Shen Yan hurried over and caught me as I stumbled down the stairs.

“What happened?”

Behind me,

Lin Shanshan’s hysterical voice rang out.

“Yan Xi, you’re finished! You’re completely finished! I’m going to be Mrs. Shen! Hahahahaha…”

I opened my mouth to say something.

But my vision only grew darker and darker.

Then I fainted.

14

I never expected to wake up again.

Before I even opened my eyes,

I smelled a strong fragrance of sandalwood.

I tried opening my eyes.

I thought I would be in the underworld, but instead I saw the sky through a window.

“You’re awake.”

An old man’s voice sounded warm and hoarse.

I turned my head.

I froze at once.

“Y-you’re… the King of Hell?”

I’d been lucky enough to see him once before in the underworld.

But back then he had been stern, not as kind as he seemed now.

So I wasn’t sure whether I had recognized him correctly.

He smiled but said nothing.

I lowered my head to look at my wrist. A bitter smile touched my lips.

“So… I still can’t stay?”

“Are you looking for your strand of beads?”

I looked at him, confused.

He opened the small box beside him and slid it toward me.

“Is this what you’re looking for?”

“Why do you have it?”

He smiled and shook his head.

“A few days ago, Shen Yan brought you here. He was holding these Buddhist beads and said they’d broken by accident. I found some string and restrung them for him.”

As he spoke, he took out the strand and fastened it around my wrist himself.

“Don’t break them again this time.”

“You…”

I was too astonished to speak.

Only after a long time did I manage to ask in disbelief, “Is this the summit of Mount Tai?”

“Yes.”

This time, he answered my question.

“Do you know what the beads do? How did you know I’d come here? And where’s Shen Yan? Where is he?”

I asked one question after another.

The old man remained calm from beginning to end.

Instead of answering right away, he said, “Don’t rush. If you’re willing to listen patiently to the whole story, I’ll answer your questions.”

I forced down my impatience and calmed myself.

“Go ahead.”

“People are born, grow old, fall ill, and die. Once their time is up, they enter the cycle of reincarnation. But some people can carry memories from a past life with them, or live out an entire lifetime and then feel as if they’ve just awakened from a long dream—as though they’ve been reborn.”

“I’ve lived too long. With time on my hands, I came here to listen to the wishes people make in the mortal world. One ordinary morning, a young man came here. He said he had lost the woman he loved and that his heart had turned to ashes. He could no longer remain in the mortal world, so he had come here to find peace for his soul.”

“From then on, he stayed by my side through countless seasons, reciting who knows how many Buddhist scriptures before the Buddha.”

“I asked what he was praying for. He said he only wanted to see the woman he loved one more time.”

“His devotion moved me, so I gave him a special hint. I told him that if he had another life, he should come here first and pray for a strand of beads carrying all the hopes he had held in this life. Perhaps there would be a chance for the two of them to meet again.”

“I thought he would never come back in this lifetime. But he did.”

“I was always curious what kind of person the woman he loved was… until…”

“Until he brought you here.”

“So it was you.”

I listened in a daze.

After a long while, I asked, “The person you’re talking about… is Shen Yan?”

“Yes.”

“He lived two lives?”

“That’s right.”

“Then these beads…”

“They’re the same beads he prayed for before the Buddha, kneeling day and night for fifty years.”

No wonder.

No wonder the first thing he did after falling seriously ill

was come here.

In the bitter cold of winter, all for those beads.

So… he had been reborn back then.

“So from the very beginning, he knew I’d come back.”

The old man didn’t nod.

“He didn’t know. But for you, he wouldn’t let any glimmer of hope pass him by.”

“Then why did you agree to let me return?”

I lowered my eyes.

“The dead returning to the human world goes against the laws of yin and yang.”

He smiled gently and made a harmless joke.

“Perhaps it was because the soup you made for Granny Meng was so delicious. Granny Meng felt her job was in danger, so she came to ask me to let you return.”

I laughed along with him.

My heart was deeply moved.

“Now that you’re back, cherish the fate you share.”

He sighed slowly.

“Go. He has waited for you too long.”

My nose stung.

I blinked, stood up, and bowed to him.

“Thank you.”

Then,

I opened the door.

At the sound, Shen Yan turned around.

We had only seen each other a short while ago.

Yet it felt as if we had been separated for many years.

I smiled at him.

Tears spilled from my eyes despite my efforts to stop them.

Through my blurred vision,

I walked toward him.

“Shen Yan, you’ve… really had a hard time all these years.”

Extra Story

Lin Shanshan went mad.

Her parents had abused her since she was little.

As she grew older, vanity took hold of her.

After she snapped the strand of beads,

she saw Shen Yan’s panic with her own eyes. She watched him carry me and climb Mount Tai, step by step,

praying that the King of Hell would take pity on us.

At last, she realized

she might truly have no chance anymore.

But she couldn’t accept it.

Day after day, she immersed herself in her own beautiful dream.

The day I went to visit her,

she had just undergone electroconvulsive treatment.

Her hair, soaked with sweat, clung to her forehead, and she looked utterly miserable.

The moment she saw me,

she became agitated.

“Why? Why are you still alive?”

I said calmly, “Sorry to disappoint you.”

“Disappoint me?”

She laughed coldly twice.

“You’re the one who should be disappointed.”

“You were softhearted and saved me, and in the end I tormented you like this. You must regret it, don’t you? Regret having shown me compassion back then.”

“I do regret saving you.”

“But if I met another girl like you, I’d still choose to help her.”

“Because I believe not everyone wants to cling to a man like a vine. Many people only want the chance to stand on their own and prove themselves.”

“You’re simply not worthy of that chance.”

I said, “You won’t leave a shadow in my heart, either.”

“Because what belongs to me will always be mine.”

Lin Shanshan froze.

As I was leaving,

I heard her pounding frantically on the door.

“She’s lost her mind,” I told the nurse.

“Let her have some peace and quiet.”

With that,

I walked out of the hospital.

The sky was overcast.

At some point, snow had begun to fall.

Shen Yan stood beside the car, waiting for me with an umbrella.

The moment he saw me,

he hurried over.

“Xi Xi, let’s go home.”

(End)

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