Who didn’t know Chen Jinli?

The youngest leader of the Marine Biology Research Institute in Jiangcheng’s history, Chen Jinli was theoretically just a refined scholar. However, what kind of person could be so close to He Jin? 

In the end, for some reason, Chen Jinli became known as ‘Daylight Lantern’¹ in the mouths of Jiangcheng.

Zhou Yutong’s big, bright eyes made Gou An realize in an instant that the person who had driven her friend to the brink of death had now appeared… She was initially startled when she saw Chen Jinli, thinking that this man also had this side to him, not even sparing a young girl who had just come of age—

Then Zhou Yutong’s words ‘Young Uncle’ sent chills down her spine.

At this moment, Chen Jinli’s usual gentle and refined demeanor was nowhere to be seen. His lips were pressed into a straight line, and he asked coldly, “Have you made enough of a scene?”

Zhou Yutong gave him a rather rebellious smile, “What did I do wrong? I’m just having fun with my friends, is that not allowed?”

Chen Jinli remained silent for a few seconds, facing her directly, “Go back.”

“What right do you have to tell me what to do?” Zhou Yutong asked. “I made myself clear enough last night. I understand and I won’t bother you anymore. Please leave now.”

Her words were so forceful that Chen Jinli was speechless once again. Seemingly unable to forcibly drag her away, he could only leave her with the words, “Don’t drink anymore,” before turning back towards the private room.

When he left, he didn’t forget to take the Long Island Iced Tea that he had confiscated.

The man’s sudden appearance and departure plunged the entire booth into silence.

Zhou Yutong gave a miserable laugh, “Speak up, all of you. The way you’re all acting, like you’re holding a funeral for me, is making me really awkward.”

Tang Xinjiu’s soul returned to a third of its normal state at this moment. “You said, ‘Young Uncle’.”

He Yuan considered this. “This might not work even abroad.”

Gou An chose a less outrageous angle to approach the question, “Is Chen Jinli your actual uncle?”

“Not by blood,” Zhou Yutong scoffed. “He’s the child of my maternal grandparents’ comrade-in-arms. They were both in a car accident back then, and they didn’t have any other relatives. Chen Jinli was only one year old, so my maternal grandparents took him home and raised him as their own son. But at that time, there was a one-child policy , so they didn’t go through the formal adoption process.”

She paused for a moment, then said, “We are not on the same household registration book.”

She added, “But it should happen in the future.”

She seemed to be in a state of willful ignorance.

Zhou Yutong glanced at Gou An, “Why do you look so shocked? Didn’t you also take the second button from your Young Uncle’s shirt?”

Gou An said paused. “… As everyone knows, he is just the neighbor next door.”

And her calling him ‘Young Uncle’ was all done through coercion and inducement.

Zhou Yutong said sweetly, “I understand, you’re not on the same household registration book, right?”

“He’s indeed not in my household registration book, but that’s not entirely the same concept as your ‘not in the same’—”

“Then guess why his first reaction upon seeing me earlier was to threaten me, making me pretend I didn’t seen him at the bar? Why should someone exalted like Uncle He remember me and make me keep his secret?”

Gou An immediately fell silent. Zhou Yutong nudged her with her elbow, “Why did you send him hangover soup just now?”

“…”

“Fine, let me rephrase my question: Why did you openly provoke him? Why did you even dare to openly provoke him?”

A hundred thousand whys.

Gou An dragged the low-alcohol cocktail in front of her over and shoved it into Zhou Yutong’s hand, saying expressionlessly, “You should drink more.”

… …

Around 9:30 p.m., various familiar faces appeared at the bar one after another. 

Surprisingly, Lu Wan reappeared together with He Ran’s group. Gou Xun was not there. Not long after the dance party ended, that guy was put in solitary confinement because of his terrible performance at the party (dancing with a strange girl and then deliberately bumping into He Yuan).

Don’t say she was only allowed to be there because these people were giving Gou Xun face. In this circle of spoiled, second generation rich kids, you couldn’t squeeze in without He Ran’s approval.

“I heard it was because of yesterday’s borrowing game that their old flame rekindled.”

Gou An watched as Lu Wan, dressed in a short, white dress, sat down next to He Ran, who then handed her a glass of juice.

Gou An looked away, completely losing interest.

The bar’s event for the night had already begun, and the staff moved a pool table from the side to the open space. The prize for tonight’s event was a Charlie Bear, which was said to be a limited-edition collectible in collaboration with the oldest railway station in the UK. So even though it was just a plush toy, it could sell for hundreds of thousands of yuan.

This was far more interesting than simply presenting a piece of jewelry that only women were interested in, or a cold collectible that only men were interested in.

As soon as the plush bear dressed in a train station worker’s trench coat was brought up, Zhou Yutong grabbed Gou An’s arm and asked, “This bear… An’an, don’t you know how to play billiards?”

Gou An, a member of society²; she played quite well.

“I want it,” Zhou Yutong said. “I’ve wanted it for a while now. This bear was born on the same day as my birthday. It went up for over 400,000 yuan at an auction, but my dad thought it was too expensive for a plush toy and wouldn’t let me buy it… I’ve wanted it for so long!”

She shook Gou An’s arm.

“Look at this place tonight, all the spoiled rich kids in Jiangcheng are here.” Gou An lazily patted the hand gripping her arm. “Do you think I have that kind of ability?”

“I think so?” Tang Xinjiu said hesitantly, “Didn’t An’an study with someone for a while before?”

“…”

Gou An’s gaze darted around, but she couldn’t resist Zhou Yutong’s persistent pleading, who was saying things like, “I was reported because of you,” and “My dad even scolded me,” and even still, “I’m still heartbroken.”

She slowly stood up, holding onto the armrest of the seat. When she turned around, she saw Lu Wan saying something to that person in the booth next to theirs. He Ran didn’t react much at first and remained seated.

As if by some strange twist of fate, he turned his head and met Gou An’s gaze. He paused, then looked back at the plush toy that was to be awarded as a prize…

A few seconds later, as if he suddenly understood what was going on, he smiled at Gou An from afar.

Just as Gou An had a bad feeling, she saw this second-generation rich kid of Jiangcheng get up and beckon a waiter to fetch his pool cue.

Gou An was taught billiards by He Ran.

Back then, before their relationship deteriorated to the point of collapse, they would occasionally go out together. When he was in a good mood, he would teach her a few tricks. Unexpectedly, Gou An was exceptionally talented and quickly mastered the skill. After a while, He Ran felt no sense of accomplishment and got bored, so he never took the initiative to teach her again.

Unfortunately, this guy had an innate talent for all ball sports, and his billiards skills were always a little better than Gou An’s.

Of course, it was only a little bit.

… …

Gou An cursed He Ran a thousand times in her heart, calling him a bastard. 

At this time, the door to the inner private room opened, and those who were itching to make a move were collectively stunned.

They saw Jiang Yi, the third son of the Jiang family, Xiao Miao hanging on his elbow, and Chen Jinli, who had no expression, walk out.

Zhou Yutong immediately perked up.

“I want that plush bear, Jiang Yi.” Xiao Miao tugged at Jiang Yi and shook his sleeve. “You promised me!”

“You should tell Professor Chen,” Jiang Yi said with a grin, patting her head. “My billiards skills are nothing compared to these people.”

After thinking for a moment, he sighed again, “It’s a pity, that we can’t invite President He, that great Buddha, to play.”

Professor Chen slowly rolled up his sleeves, his gaze cold. “You don’t think much of me? Then should I leave?”

Jiang Yi smiled apologetically, “No, no!”

Gou An turned around and looked at Zhou Yutong sitting behind her. She was staring intently in Chen Jinli’s direction, her gaze unwavering, but she said to Gou An, “If you lose to him, I’ll jump off the ship.”

Gou An: “…”

Gou An sighed and could only actively choose a suitable pole.

While choosing cues, He Ran leaned over, one hand resting on the edge of the pool table, and looked down Gou An, who was engrossed in selecting cues. “You want that bear?”

His voice was low and slightly teasing.

“Just say the word, and I won’t compete for it,” He Ran said. “With your skills, no one here except me can beat you. This bear could only be yours.”

Gou An didn’t even turn her head. “You’d better not use such a rude tone with me.”

He Ran was taken aback by this unexpected attack, then shrugged with a smile, exuding an air of arrogance, “Whatever you say, just don’t cry if you lose.”

Gou An chose a cue stick, and as she passed by, without looking his way, she casually swung the pole at him.

As the person behind her cried out in pain and sprawled out like a shrimp, she looked down expressionlessly and gestured at the edge of the pool table.

… … translated by Maela @ whitemoonlighttranslations.com

The private rooms of the ship’s bar had one-way mirrors for its walls, allowing VIP patrons to see into the main hall and enjoy the atmosphere while ensuring their own privacy.

He Jinxing sat on the sofa, his long legs crossed, and with just a glance, he could see the chaotic brawl happening among the young people outside.

It was also easy to see Gou An in the center of the crowd.

A young girl wearing a black, halter-neck, mini sun dress, topped with a short, black leather jacket, stood by the billiards table holding a cue. As she bent down to stroke the cue, the leather jacket rode up a little because of her outstretched arms, easily revealing her slender waist, which looked incredibly delicate against the black dress.

Her long, black, slightly curly hair cascaded down onto the green pool table.

The hem of the short skirt pulled up, and the already short length was further accentuated by the fact that the wearer’s body was almost folded at a ninety-degree angle over the table, revealing a perfectly shaped patch of fair skin with a voluptuous feel to it.

A large crowd surrounded Gou An, including the younger generation of the He family and some second-generation rich kids from prominent Jiangcheng families whose names he couldn’t recall. The group went from initial clamor and jeers to a brief silence.

Who knew if they were completely focused on the game or on the player.

His gaze swept over the little miss who was half-lying on the pool table. She was focused, letting the cue slide between her two fingers to aim. Her pearly white teeth were biting a corner of her lower lip, and her pale lips were stained with a beautiful blush.

With a ‘snap’, the first shot was taken.

He Jinxing tilted his head back and drank the rest of the wine in his glass. After a long silence, he chuckled softly, his meaning ambiguous.

From the Day the Engagement was Broken translated by Maela @ whitemoonlighttranslations.com

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T/N: Teddy bear in UK train station screams ‘Paddington Bear’ to me but the ‘Charlie Bear’ was written in English. It seems to be an actual brand established in 2005 and every November they release a limited edition collection to celebrate the bear’s ‘birthday’. 

This would make sense as the novel was written in 2023 and Zhou Yutong is 18. I don’t know if it would be worth hundreds of thousands of yuan though. 

This is Mr. Higgins from the 2026 collection, made of 100% mohair. He is a gentleman wearing a textured waistcoat, a matching hat, and a pocket watch. He is 43 cm tall and is, alas, already fully adopted. There was only 200 of him made, and he was listed as 535 USD. 

The chapter’s featured image is Magellan from 2025. He has a hat and matching scarf. There was 500 of him made, and he is listed as 530 USD.

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FOOTNOTE:

1. 白书提灯 or literally ‘White Writing Lantern’ refers to an ancient Japanese general who spent his time carousing with women and wine, ridiculed for squandering his time like ‘using lantern during daylight’. But when his lord needed him, he surprisingly rose to the occasion.
   Not sure why it’s specifically a Japanese general when it’s a Chinese saying haha but that’s what we have. These days, it’s a metaphor for someone who appears ordinary but actually displays extraordinary talent at the crucial moment.  ↩︎
2. ‘Society’ here is a euphemism for the criminal element of society. Think thugs and ruffians 😅 ↩︎