That night, on the street across from Wai Cheung Garden, an old Japanese sedan was parked by the roadside. Fang Ming had been waiting inside for three hours.
He had enlisted the help of a private detective friend, who discovered that Wang Rong and Xing Jun often met in secret at Wai Cheung Garden.
Xing Jun was a rising star in the city’s finance sector, just over forty, gentle and elegant, married with a daughter. He would sometimes appear in newspapers and magazines, either in financial news or on celebrity pages.
Over the past year, he’d grown close to Wang Rong, a former actress turned lawyer. Paparazzi had caught them together several times, and their relationship had become fodder for gossip magazines.
Indeed, when Fang Ming first met Wang Rong, she was a young girl just entering the film industry. He himself had once been a gangster, but after making his fortune, he went into legitimate business and even invested in films.
Wang Rong’s big-screen debut was in a film funded by Fang Ming, in which she played the leading lady. In fact, all five of her films before her retirement were produced with his investment.
At twenty-eight, Wang Rong joined a TV station, starring as the female lead in several dramas. Thanks to her striking beauty, she quickly established herself as a leading actress and then transitioned to the big screen, where she met Fang Ming, the film producer.
Fang Ming was certainly captivated by her extraordinary beauty, but what truly fascinated him was her cleverness and straightforward personality.
“Your name really suits you. You’re just like Huang Rong from ‘The Legend of the Condor Heroes’—so beautiful, so smart, it’s as if you’ve walked right out of a story!” This was Fang Ming’s heartfelt praise when they were newly in love.109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx0FghAWS9n
Wang Rong giggled and leaned into his arms, gazing up at the man she loved. “Then why don’t you make a film for me, so I can play Huang Rong myself?”
But that film never materialized, because less than two years later, they were married. The day they announced their marriage, Wang Rong also announced her retirement from acting. She even told reporters that becoming Mrs. Fang had fulfilled her greatest life goal.
Thinking of this, Fang Ming sighed deeply. He remembered their grand wedding; despite their twenty-year age gap, Wang Rong was just twenty—radiant and beautiful—while Fang Ming, at forty, was in his prime, making them the talk of the town as a perfect couple.
At the peak of his career, with a beautiful wife, Fang Ming felt like the protagonist of a fairy tale. He never imagined the fairy tale would slowly unravel into tragedy.
Soon after their marriage, Wang Rong gave birth to a son. But the film industry’s fortunes declined rapidly due to the changing economic climate. Fang Ming shifted to property and stock speculation and made good money for the first decade. However, a major financial crisis soon struck the city, nearly wiping out his assets.
Having made his first fortune as a gangster, Fang Ming became rich by riding the wave of economic growth after going straight. This disaster, though, left him with only a small house after settling his debts.
Now over fifty, with no professional skills or education, he had little hope of making a comeback. Yet he couldn’t bring himself to take on menial work.
So Wang Rong became the family’s breadwinner, turning to insurance sales. Thanks to her eloquence, connections, and appearance, she was quite successful. Her frequent dealings with legal documents sparked her interest in law, and she decided to retrain as a lawyer.
Fang Ming strongly objected. He already disliked his wife’s public-facing job as an insurance agent, but financial reality forced him to accept it.
Wang Rong could have returned to acting, but Fang Ming absolutely forbade it, knowing how vicious gossip magazines could be: “Fang Ming failed in business and can’t support his wife, so Wang Rong is forced to return to work.”109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLhfLnwearc
Though true, he didn’t want everyone to know and talk about it. The entertainment industry was complex, and he worried Wang Rong might meet someone new while filming—especially since she was now even more alluring than in her youth.
So, on a friend’s recommendation, Wang Rong entered insurance. “You don’t want me back in showbiz, you look down on me for being an insurance agent... If I become a lawyer—a professional—at least I won’t embarrass you,” she said pitifully.
But Fang Ming felt the truly pitiful one was himself. Looking at his young wife, now in her thirties—the peak of a woman’s attractiveness—he knew how men thought. If he let this little bird fly, she would never return. Out there was a whole forest, and he, once a great tree, had withered.
This shame was something he could not speak of, forced to submit to reality.
She’s here!
Fang Ming snapped out of his thoughts as he saw a black BMW pull into Wai Cheung Garden—Wang Rong’s car. A stylish city beauty in a black business suit stepped out of the driver’s seat and quickly walked into Tower One.
She was here, and Xing Jun would appear soon.
His detective friend had told him that, during their trysts, the two usually entered and exited Tower One separately.
Though reluctant, Fang Ming had agreed to let Wang Rong study law. She excelled and, after graduation, became a trainee at a top law firm, where she met Xing Jun, one of the firm’s clients.
Despite his unease at her frequent late nights as a lawyer, Fang Ming didn’t dare question her until he saw paparazzi photos in gossip magazines. But Wang Rong always talked her way out of it, feigning innocence and confusion to muddle through.
Fang Ming was in agony and hated himself for his weakness; more than anything, he feared that losing his wife, his son, and his home would leave him with nothing—at an age far past when a man could embrace having nothing with pride.
But this time, he had finally made up his mind.
Wife’s betrayal is misfortune, but for a man to tolerate his wife’s betrayal is humiliation. Losing her would be painful, but at least he could regain his dignity.
Ah! He’s here too.
A dark gray BMW sedan pulled into Wai Cheung Garden. Out stepped a tall, slender, neatly dressed, and refined man.
It was Xing Jun.
Fang Ming watched Xing Jun straighten his suit and stride briskly into Tower One.
There was no more time for self-pity. Now, all Fang Ming wanted was to catch them in the act, leaving her no room for denial, and settle this muddled account once and for all. He quickly gathered his thoughts, got out of the car, and ran toward Wai Cheung Garden across the street.
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End of Chapter Two
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This story is entirely fictional. Any resemblance to real persons is purely coincidental. The author is merely exploring the relationship between women’s fate and faith, and the story is not directed at any real individuals. Please take note.
All rights reserved. Without the author’s written permission, no part of this work may be reproduced, copied, adapted, transferred, translated, or used for commercial purposes in any form.
© Jing Xixian (King Heyin) (Vampire L), All rights reserved.
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