Long Fantasy Romance Novel〈The Reissued Youth〉2

This novel also has a screenplay version.
The film adaptation rights licensing fee is NT$2,000,000 (two million New Taiwan dollars). Please contact 54088rabbit@gmail.com.

1. The Office Late at Night

In September, Hsinchu’s night had already fallen into deep darkness.

Inside the Science Park, one glass curtain-wall building after another remained brightly lit. The straight roads appeared especially quiet under the glow of street lamps. Only the occasional speeding cars cut through the silent night.

The research and development building of Jingwei Technology Company was still illuminated by large areas of lights. On the wall, the hour hand of the clock slowly moved past eleven o’clock.

Inside the spacious R&D department office, white fluorescent lights shone over rows of computer screens. The sounds of keyboards being struck rose and fell one after another, yet the entire space felt unusually empty. The once lively office now had only two people left. Chief Design Engineer Cai Shinan was still sitting in front of his desk, his eyes fixed on the computer screen as he continuously modified the design drawings. At the other end, the programmer Xiao Chen also kept his head lowered, concentrating on checking the final sections of code.

For the R&D department, working hours followed a clock-in system, but leaving work followed a responsibility system. As long as a project was unfinished, no one was truly off duty. And Cai Shinan had always been the department supervisor with the strongest sense of responsibility in the company.

For many years, he had always placed work above everything else. Whenever a project fell behind schedule, he would work overtime late into the night without a single complaint. After staying up late again and again, hastily finishing meal after meal, and with the cold he had caught some time ago still not fully recovered, he always believed it was only a minor problem and refused to take leave to rest. However, no matter how strong a body was, there would eventually come a day when it could no longer endure.

The design drawings on the screen gradually became blurry. Cai Shinan raised his hand and gently rubbed his brow, trying to make himself more awake.

“Why is it suddenly……”
He only felt the world spinning before his eyes. A low buzzing sound echoed in his ears. His chest felt as if it were being pressed down by a heavy stone, and his breathing became rapid. He desperately tried to reach out and hold onto the desk, but his fingertips had no strength left. The next second, everything before his eyes went dark.

His entire body suddenly fell forward.

“Bang!”

His forehead struck the work desk heavily. The mouse and documents on the desk were shaken slightly out of place. The office once again returned to a deathly silence.

At the other end, Xiao Chen was gathering the documents on his desk and placing the final file into his briefcase. He stretched lazily and said with a smile to himself:

“Director, I’ve finally wrapped things up on my side. I’m heading off work first.”

After saying that, however, he waited and waited but did not hear Cai Shinan reply as he usually did:

“Be careful on your way home.”

Xiao Chen raised his head in confusion, only to see Cai Shinan lying motionless on the desk.

“Director?”

At first, he thought the director had simply fallen asleep from exhaustion. Smiling, he walked over.

“Director, wake up. Go home and sleep.”

Xiao Chen gently patted Cai Shinan’s shoulder.

There was no response.

He pushed him a few more times with greater force.

“Director? Director!”

Cai Shinan remained completely motionless.

The smile on Xiao Chen’s face instantly disappeared, and his expression became tense. He hurriedly bent down and tremblingly placed his fingers beneath Cai Shinan’s nose.

He was still breathing.

But his breathing was weak and rapid.

“The director has fainted!”

Xiao Chen’s heart suddenly sank, and cold sweat instantly broke out on his forehead. Without having time to think, he immediately rushed back to his desk, grabbed the phone, and with both hands trembling slightly from nervousness, hurriedly dialed the emergency number.

“Hello, is this 119?”

His voice was hurried and trembling.

“This is the R&D Department of Jingwei Technology Company in Hsinchu Science Park. Our director suddenly lost consciousness. He is still breathing. Please send an ambulance immediately!”

The person on the other end of the phone began asking for the detailed address. While answering, Xiao Chen repeatedly turned his head anxiously to look back at Cai Shinan, who was still collapsed over the desk.

In the silent late-night office, only the urgent conversation from the telephone remained, along with the unsettling wait that followed.

2. The Turning Point of Destiny

The night grew deeper.

The sky above Hsinchu City was covered by thick layers of clouds. From afar, the occasional sound of vehicles speeding past could be heard. Outside the Emergency Department of Hsinchu Hospital under the Ministry of Health and Welfare, glaring white lights illuminated the entire driveway. A tense and cold atmosphere filled the air.

The ambulance stopped in front of the emergency entrance, and the doors suddenly opened.

“Quick! The patient is unconscious!”

The urgent voice of the emergency medical personnel broke through the silence of the night.

Lying on the stretcher, Cai Shinan’s face was pale, his eyes tightly closed, and his breathing weak. The director who had always been calm and capable in the company now looked like a deflated balloon, reduced to nothing more than a weak body.

“Director! Director, can you hear me?”

Xiao Chen ran alongside the stretcher all the way. Beads of sweat appeared on his forehead. He tightly held Cai Shinan’s hand, his voice trembling slightly from anxiety.

However, Cai Shinan showed no response.

Only the sounds from the cardiopulmonary monitoring equipment continued to ring regularly in the emergency corridor.

“Beep——beep——”

The medical staff quickly pushed Cai Shinan into the emergency room.

Several nurses immediately surrounded him, intubated him, and placed an oxygen mask over his face.

“Blood pressure is low.”

“Pulse is unstable.”

“Prepare for blood tests.”

The emergency doctor had a serious expression. While checking the data from the cardiopulmonary monitor, he quickly issued instructions.

Xiao Chen stood beside the hospital bed, watching the busy figures of the medical staff. His hands were tightly clasped together, and he kept praying silently in his heart.

He had never seen the director so weak before.

On ordinary days, Cai Shinan always appeared calm and determined. At the company, he handled matters decisively. Even when facing enormous pressure, he rarely revealed his personal emotions.

But now……

He was simply lying there quietly, an ordinary elderly man suddenly struck down by an acute illness.

In the emergency hall, Xiao Chen paced back and forth, repeatedly gripping the phone in his hand.

Finally, he pressed the number of General Manager Guo Yuntian.

After several rings, the call connected.

“Hello, Xiao Chen. Why are you calling so late? What happened?”

Guo Yuntian’s voice came from the other end of the phone. Although it carried a trace of sleepiness, he immediately became alert.

Xiao Chen took a deep breath, trying hard to keep his voice steady.

“General Manager……Director, Director had an accident.”

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone.

“What happened to Director Cai?”

“Director suddenly collapsed. We are now at the Emergency Department of Hsinchu Hospital under the Ministry of Health and Welfare. The doctors are currently trying to save him.”

Guo Yuntian’s voice instantly became tense.

“How could this happen?”

He paused for a moment, as if remembering something, then hurriedly asked:

“Isn’t Director Cai’s hometown in Little Liuqiu? Do you have his family’s contact number?”

Xiao Chen lowered his head, an apologetic expression appearing on his face.

“No, General Manager. I don’t have the director’s home phone number.”

Guo Yuntian remained silent in thought for a moment, then immediately said decisively:

“Alright, I’ll ask my secretary to find out. You stay at the hospital and accompany Director Cai first. Notify me immediately if anything happens. I’ll hurry over there right now.”

Xiao Chen quickly replied:

“Okay, General Manager. I’ll stay here.”

After hanging up the phone, Xiao Chen looked toward the tightly closed door of the emergency room.

That door separated the boundary between life and death.

Not long afterward, inside the emergency room, the doctor lowered his head to examine Cai Shinan’s condition.

“When did the patient begin to lose consciousness?”

Xiao Chen stood at the doorway and hurriedly answered:

“Just now, less than an hour ago.”

The doctor nodded.

“Based on our preliminary assessment, it appears to be an acute cerebral vascular embolism.”

Xiao Chen’s face instantly turned pale.

“Cerebral vascular embolism?”

His voice involuntarily rose.

“Doctor, is it serious? Will our director……?”

He did not dare to say the rest of the sentence.

The doctor looked at him, and his tone softened slightly.

“Fortunately, he was brought to the hospital relatively quickly. We will begin treatment immediately.”

He turned to the nurse and said:

“Prepare intravenous injection and administer a thrombolytic agent.”

“Okay.”

The nurse immediately turned around to prepare the medication.

The doctor added:

“After the patient regains consciousness, he will still need to remain hospitalized for several days of observation to confirm his subsequent condition.”

Xiao Chen stood where he was and silently nodded.

However, his eyes never left Cai Shinan lying on the hospital bed.

No one knew how much time had passed.

Cai Shinan’s consciousness gradually sank into a world of darkness.

No sound.

No time.

No body.

It seemed as if the entire world had disappeared.

Within the endless darkness, a faint light suddenly appeared.

That light grew brighter and brighter.

The darkness began to crack apart.

An ancient and solemn figure slowly walked out from within the light and shadows.

He had white hair and a white beard, and he wore a pure white Taoist robe. On his chest was embroidered a large black-and-white Taiji Bagua symbol.

In his hand, he held a horsetail whisk.

His figure floated in the empty space, surrounded by faint golden rays of light, as if he had come from another world.

Cai Shinan looked at the old man before him, his heart filled with confusion.

“Who……are you?”

The old man did not answer immediately.

He merely gazed quietly at Cai Shinan. His eyes carried compassion, but also a trace of regret.

After a moment, he slowly spoke:

“Cai Shinan.”

His voice was like the sound of an ancient bell traveling through thousands of years, echoing through the void.

“You were originally the reincarnated spiritual fragment of Lord Wenqu Xingjun.”

Cai Shinan froze.

The old man continued:

“You were originally meant to use the brush in your hand to convey the beauty of Heaven and Earth, and to transform people’s hearts through art.”

“But in the human world, you gradually lost yourself. Your eyes were obscured by fame and fortune, and you forgot the true mission for which you came into this world.”

Cai Shinan lowered his head.

Those memories from the past that he had deliberately forgotten surged into his heart like a tide.

The old man gently waved the horsetail whisk in his hand.

“King Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva originally intended to take you back to the Netherworld to answer for your sins.”

Cai Shinan’s expression changed.

“Answer for my sins?”

The old man looked at him, but his tone contained no accusation.

“But I think of how difficult your cultivation in the human world has been. Although you lost your way during the first half of your life, you have never truly committed acts that harmed Heaven and reason. Therefore, I pleaded with Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva on your behalf and fought for one opportunity for you to be reborn.”

Cai Shinan raised his head, his eyes filled with shock.

The old man looked at him and spoke word by word:

“After returning to the human world, you must remember your mission. Do not become attached to worldly fame and fortune again……”

“Your brush is not meant for you to gain fame. It is meant to awaken the hearts of people.”

As his words fell, the entire field of light began to shine violently.

Cai Shinan felt his soul being pulled back by an invisible force…….

3. Regaining the Weight of Life

Sunlight passed through the glass window of the hospital room and scattered onto the white bedsheets.

Outside the window, the sky above Hsinchu was clear blue. In the distance, the tall buildings of the Hsinchu Science Park shimmered under the sunlight with a cold metallic brilliance.

Yet inside the hospital room, there was a silence resembling that of someone who had survived a catastrophe.

The intravenous fluid bottle beside the hospital bed slowly dripped.

“Drip……drip……”

The regular sound seemed to remind Cai Shinan—

His life had once hovered at the edge of death.

Cai Shinan was half lying on the hospital bed. Although his face still carried traces of exhaustion, his spirit had recovered considerably.

He looked at his mother, Qiu Xiuduan, sitting beside the bed, and his younger sister, Cai Shifen, standing nearby with tired eyes.

A feeling of indescribable guilt surged inside his heart.

Only after this collapse did he truly realize……

He was not merely a supervisor in the company.

He was also the pillar of this family.

If something had truly happened to him, how would those left behind endure?

“Mom……”

Cai Shinan softly spoke.

Qiu Xiuduan immediately raised her head.

She looked at her son’s face, which had gradually regained its color after waking up. Her eyes became slightly red.

“I made you worry.”

Cai Shinan held his mother’s rough hand, his voice filled with apology.

Qiu Xiuduan hurriedly shook her head.

“Ah Nan, what foolish thing are you saying?”

She reached out and gently patted the back of her son’s hand. Her voice carried the trembling unique to a mother.

“As long as you are safe and well, Mom is willing to worry.”

She paused for a moment, looking at her son’s exhausted face.

“But you have to take care of your health.”

Xiuduan said:

“This family……what would we do without you?”

A simple sentence, yet it caused Cai Shinan’s heart to tremble.

He knew that what his mother said was not merely about practical support in daily life.

It was also the only emotional anchor she had relied on throughout her entire life.

Cai Shinan lowered his head, like a child who had done something wrong.

“I know, Mom.”

He forced a smile.

“I’ll pay attention to my health from now on. I won’t make you worry anymore.”

Standing beside them, Cai Shifen looked at her brother and could not help sighing.

“Brother, you say that every time.”

She frowned. Her tone carried reproach, yet her eyes were filled with concern.

“Work is important, that’s true. But you also have to take care of your body. Do you think you’re still young?”

Looking at his sister’s serious expression, Cai Shinan could not help but smile bitterly.

“Alright, alright, I understand. I won’t push myself this hard again in the future.”

At this moment, the door of the hospital room opened once again.

Attending physician Lin Qinghua walked in with a nurse to make his rounds. Wearing a white coat, Lin Qinghua held the medical records in his hand, his expression professional yet gentle.

As soon as Qiu Xiuduan saw the doctor, she immediately stood up and quickly walked forward.

“Doctor.”

She grabbed the doctor’s arm, her eyes filled with anxiety.

“Is my son in serious danger?”

Lin Qinghua smiled slightly and comforted her.

“Mrs. Cai, please rest assured. Fortunately, it was discovered early and he was sent to the hospital in time. His condition has now stabilized.”

Only then did Qiu Xiuduan finally breathe a sigh of relief. She clasped her hands together in front of her chest and silently murmured:

“Thank you, Bodhisattva, for your protection……”

Lin Qinghua walked to the bedside and lowered his head to examine Cai Shinan’s medical examination records.

“Mr. Cai.”

Qinghua raised his head and asked:

“Are you feeling more comfortable today?”

“Is there anywhere that still feels uncomfortable?”

Cai Shinan moved his hands and feet slightly.

“Much better. Thank you, Doctor.”

Lin Qinghua nodded.

“Right now, it looks like your recovery is going quite well.”

“If there are no other problems in the following days, after staying in the hospital for two more days of observation, you can arrange for discharge.”

Cai Shinan showed a relieved expression.

However, Lin Qinghua immediately put away his smile, and his tone became serious.

“But after you leave the hospital, you really need to rest properly.”

“You cannot continue working recklessly like you did before.”

He looked at Cai Shinan.

“Do you know? Many engineers in Hsinchu Science Park work desperately to make money when they are young, but in the end, their health collapses first. They earn so much money, yet they eventually have no life left to enjoy it.”

Lin Qinghua shook his head and sighed.

“The person is in heaven, while the money is in the bank.”

“Isn’t that a great injustice?”

After hearing this, Cai Shinan gave an embarrassed smile.

“Ha ha……Doctor, I understand. I’ll pay attention in the future.”

While Lin Qinghua was lowering his head to organize the medical records, his eyes stopped on Cai Shinan’s information.

Graduated from the Department of Computer Science and Information Engineering at National Tsing Hua University.

“This name……”

A vague and distant memory suddenly surfaced.

Lin Qinghua secretly thought:

“Could it be……that he is the first love boyfriend my elder sister had in the past?”

He raised his head.

“Mr. Cai, may I ask you something? Did you graduate from the Computer Science and Information Engineering Department at Tsing Hua University?”

Cai Shinan was stunned for a moment.

“Yes. Why?”

Lin Qinghua smiled.

“Do you still remember Lin Daihua?”

Cai Shinan froze instantly.

That name was like a distant wind that suddenly blew back into the deepest corner of his memory.

“Lin Daihua?”

He murmured the name.

A few seconds later, his eyes widened.

“I remember now! You are Daihua’s younger brother!”

He looked at Lin Qinghua and revealed a surprised smile.

“No wonder……I felt just now that I had seen you somewhere before.”

Lin Qinghua also smiled.

“The world is really small. I’ll continue making my rounds first.”

He patted the medical records.

“Get some good rest. We’ll talk later.”

After saying that, Lin Qinghua left the hospital room with the nurse.

The hospital room became quiet again.

Qiu Xiuduan picked up the water cup beside the bed and handed it to her son.

“Ah Nan.”

“You must be thirsty, right?”

“Drink some water.”

Cai Shinan took the water cup.

Qiu Xiuduan looked out the window, and her eyes slowly became distant.

“Sigh……”

“When your mother was young, she became a widow.”

Her voice lowered.

“Your father went out to sea to make a living and disappeared for so many years……Our family has come this far by supporting each other like this.”

She turned her head to look at her son, her eyes filled with tenderness and concern.

“If something really happened to you……”

“How do you expect your mother to continue living in the future?”

Cai Shinan’s hand holding the water cup paused slightly.

He looked at his mother’s head full of white hair, and a wave of sorrow surged in his heart.

He slowly lifted the cup and took a sip of water.

“No, Mom. I’ll be careful from now on. Don’t worry.”

Qiu Xiuduan nodded.

“Mm. That’s good.”

“Don’t make Mom keep worrying about you.”

Cai Shinan looked at her.

“The doctor just said that after two more days of observation, I can leave the hospital. I’m really fine now.”

Qiu Xiuduan showed a relieved smile.

“Okay. Then Mom will pack up first and take a ride back later.”

She bent down and began organizing the small suitcase placed beside the bed.

Cai Shinan leaned against the bed, lifted the water cup again, and took another sip.

Then, he looked out the window.

The brilliant sunlight illuminated the entire city.

But at this moment, his state of mind had already changed.

In the past, he believed that life was only about work, achievements, and fame.

However, after brushing shoulders with the god of death, he suddenly understood——

What was truly precious in life was not how much one possessed, but how much longer one could continue accompanying one’s loved ones.

The sunlight outside the window shone upon his face.

Yet he did not know that……

The mission entrusted to him by the white-haired old man in that dream was only about to begin.

4. The Youth That Was Missed, Appearing Once Again

In the afternoon of Taichung City, sunlight passed through the gaps between the high-rise buildings and scattered onto the bustling streets.

The flow of vehicles moved like a river. The sounds of car horns, conversations among pedestrians, and music playing from stores intertwined into the unique noise of the city.

However, after leaving the downtown area, the car gradually entered a quieter suburban district.

Green trees lined both sides of the road. The environment had less of the city’s urgency and more of a calm and peaceful atmosphere.

A magnificent white villa stood halfway up the hillside.

The spacious courtyard was filled with flowers and trees. The neatly trimmed lawn reflected a vivid green glow under the sunlight.

This was the Lin family’s residence, and also the place where Lin Daihua had escaped from certain memories for many years.

Inside the living room, soft lighting fell upon the elegant wooden furniture.

On the tea table were hot tea and delicate pastries.

The Lin family parents sat in the center of the sofa, their expressions seemingly somewhat solemn.

Lin Qinghua and his wife sat on the other side. A young boy quietly sat beside them, playing with a toy car.

Meanwhile, Lin Daihua sat on the sofa, her brows slightly furrowed.

She looked at the familiar family members before her, yet deep inside, she faintly sensed that—

the reason they had specifically called her home today was probably not simply for a meal.

Lin’s mother lifted the teacup and gently blew on the hot steam.

After remaining silent for a moment, she finally spoke:

“Daihua……”

She looked at her daughter, her tone carrying a hint of hesitation.

“We asked you to come back this time because we want to talk to you about something.”

Lin Daihua raised her head.

“What is it?”

Lin’s mother put down the teacup.

“We want to arrange a blind date for you.”

As soon as those words were spoken, the living room briefly fell silent.

Even the little boy who was playing with his toy seemed to sense the adults’ atmosphere and raised his head to look.

Lin Daihua was stunned for a moment.

She did not answer immediately.

After a while, she revealed a disbelieving smile.

“Mom……”

“I’m almost forty years old.”

She looked at her mother.

“Didn’t you always say before that you respected my decision?”

“Why have you suddenly changed your mind now and want me to go on a blind date?”

Lin’s mother sighed.

She looked at her daughter, her eyes filled with both tenderness and helplessness.

“We are not trying to force you. It’s just……”

She paused for a moment.

“We worry that when you grow old in the future, you won’t even have someone beside you to accompany you.”

Those words gently pierced a soft place deep inside Lin Daihua’s heart.

But she quickly concealed her emotions.

She leaned against the sofa, and her tone became somewhat cold.

“Mom.”

“When I wanted to get married back then, you didn’t say that.”

When Lin’s father heard this sentence, he lowered his head and remained silent.

Lin Daihua looked toward her father.

The events from many years ago surfaced once again.

“At that time, I truly wanted to marry him.”

“But you thought his family background was not good enough, and that his future was not stable enough.”

She gave a bitter smile.

“And now?”

“Now you want me to go on a blind date?”

“What exactly is this supposed to mean?”

The living room became quiet.

Lin’s mother’s expression turned somewhat awkward. She glanced at her husband.

Lin’s father sighed softly.

“Daihua……”

“Actually, over these years, Dad has regretted it too.”

Lin Daihua froze for a moment.

She had not expected her father to say this.

Lin’s father looked out the window.

“If we had not opposed it so strongly back then, perhaps you would now……”

He did not finish the sentence.

But everyone understood what he meant.

Lin’s mother continued:

“Your father has always wondered all these years whether he made the wrong decision back then.”

“It’s just that everything has already passed.”

She held her daughter’s hand.

“Recently, a friend happened to introduce someone.”

“The other person has very good character, and his family circumstances are also quite good.”

“And……his child is already grown up.”

When Lin Daihua heard the last sentence, her eyebrows lifted.

She could not help laughing, but there was a trace of bitterness in her smile.

“Mom……”

“Could it be that you want me to become someone else’s stepmother?”

Lin’s mother hurriedly explained:

“That’s not what we mean.”

“We just hope that you can get to know another person.”

Lin Qinghua, who was sitting nearby, had been quietly listening all along.

Only at this moment did he suddenly remember the person he had met at the hospital a few days earlier.

He looked at his elder sister.

“Sis. Actually……not long ago, when I was on duty at the hospital, I met an old friend.”

Lin Daihua turned her head and asked:

“Who?”

Lin Qinghua took a deep breath.

“Cai Shinan.”

Instantly, Lin Daihua’s expression froze.

It was as if a memory sealed away for many years had suddenly been opened by a single sentence.

“You……met Cai Shinan?”

Her voice unconsciously became softer.

Lin Qinghua nodded.

“Yes. He was sent to the hospital for emergency treatment because of acute cerebral vascular embolism. Coincidentally, I was responsible for treating him.”

The coldness on Lin Daihua’s face instantly disappeared.

In its place was an uncontrollable concern.

“Shinan……”

She softly repeated this long-forgotten name.

“How is he?”

Looking at his sister’s reaction, Lin Qinghua already understood in his heart.

That relationship……

had never truly ended.

It had only been hidden away by time.

“He’s fine for now. His recovery condition is quite good.”

“But I reminded him that he cannot overwork himself anymore in the future.”

Lin Daihua lowered her head.

Her fingers gently rubbed the edge of the teacup.

She did not know why she cared so much.

Clearly, so many years had already passed.

Clearly, their lives had already moved in different directions.

Yet when she heard his name, that familiar feeling of heart-pounding emotion still existed.

Lin’s mother noticed the change in her daughter’s expression.

She cautiously asked:

“Daihua……”

“What’s wrong? Are you……thinking of going to find him?”

Lin Daihua raised her head.

She did not avoid it, nor did she deny it.

She simply smiled faintly.

“Why not?”

“If Shinan is still single now……”

She paused for a moment.

Her eyes looked toward the distance.

“Perhaps, we can talk again.”

As these words fell, Lin’s parents looked at each other.

Neither of them spoke.

The blind date plan they had originally arranged for her seemed to have suddenly lost its direction.

But……

Looking at the light that had reappeared in their daughter’s eyes, they felt that perhaps this was the person their daughter truly wanted in life.

Outside the window, a gentle breeze passed through the courtyard.

The fate that had been missed many years ago seemed to be slowly drawing close again under the arrangement of destiny.

5. The Reunion After Twenty Years of Waiting

In the afternoon at Hsinchu Hospital under the Ministry of Health and Welfare, sunlight streamed into the room through the hospital room window.

The sky outside was clear and bright. From afar, the occasional sound of vehicles passing by could be heard.

Inside the hospital room, a faint smell of disinfectant filled the air. The medicine in the intravenous drip bottle slowly descended, making a soft and regular sound.

“Drip……drip……”

Cai Shinan sat leaning against the hospital bed, with the IV needle still inserted into the back of his hand.

After two days of treatment, his complexion had recovered considerably. He was no longer as pale as when he was first brought to the hospital.

However, this sudden illness still made him feel the fragility of life.

He lowered his head and looked out the window.

In the past, he had believed that life only required constantly moving forward.

Career, achievements, reputation……

Those things that he had once been proud of now suddenly seemed not so important anymore.

At this moment, the door of the hospital room was gently pushed open.

A faint fragrance of flowers mixed with the scent of fresh fruit drifted in.

Cai Shinan turned his head.

The next second, his entire person froze.

Standing at the doorway was a familiar figure he had not seen for many years.

She wore a simple and elegant white top, and in her hand she carried a basket of fresh fruit.

The years had left mature traces on her face, but they had not taken away the gentleness in her eyes.

At that instant, Cai Shinan felt as if he had returned to more than twenty years ago—

to that campus, to that brilliant era of youth filled with sunlight.

“Shinan.”

Lin Daihua smiled gently.

“Are you feeling better now?”

She paused for a moment.

“I’m Daihua.”

These words caused Cai Shinan’s heart to tremble violently.

Although he had already known that the “elder sister” mentioned by Lin Qinghua was her, when she truly appeared before his eyes, that long-lost shock was still beyond words.

He hurriedly tried to sit up.

“You……”

Because his movement was too sudden, his body swayed slightly.

Lin Daihua immediately put down the fruit basket and quickly walked over to support him.

“Slow down.”

“Didn’t the doctor tell you that you haven’t fully recovered yet?”

Her tone carried a hint of reproach, but her eyes were filled with concern.

Cai Shinan looked at the hand supporting him, and for a moment he became somewhat lost in thought.

He slowly sat steadily, then revealed an incredulous smile.

“Weren’t you always staying in Silicon Valley?”

Lin Daihua sat down beside the bed.

She placed the fruit basket on the table and softly said:

“I came back to Taiwan for vacation.”

“My younger brother told me that you were hospitalized.”

Cai Shinan nodded.

“Oh……”

A brief single word.

Yet it contained countless emotions that had never been spoken.

The two of them remained silent for a while.

Inside the hospital room, only the sound of leaves moving in the breeze outside the window remained.

Lin Daihua looked at the man before her.

This was the person who had once accompanied her through the years of youth, yet the person she had missed because of family opposition.

Now, neither of them was young anymore.

But strangely……

When she saw him again, that familiar feeling in her heart had not disappeared.

She softly asked:

“Shinan.”

“Are you……still unmarried?”

Cai Shinan was stunned for a moment, then gave a bitter smile.

He looked toward the window.

“Yes.”

“I’ve always been busy with work.”

“Every day, all I thought about was the company, projects, and performance.”

He lowered his head and smiled.

“So……I never had time to seriously think about this question.”

Lin Daihua looked at him.

“Me too.”

She paused briefly.

“I used to always feel that work was more important.”

“But after all these years, I gradually realized……”

She lowered her eyes.

“Life cannot consist of only work.”

Cai Shinan quietly listened.

Lin Daihua raised her head.

Her eyes became firm.

“I want to get married now.”

Cai Shinan was stunned for a moment, then revealed a faint bitter smile.

“Then……remember to send me an invitation.”

Lin Daihua froze.

The next second, she could not help laughing.

“What are you talking about?”

She looked at him.

“Shinan. If I want to get married, it is to marry you.”

The hospital room instantly became silent.

Cai Shinan looked as if he had not heard clearly.

“What?”

Lin Daihua looked at him.

Her smile carried the relief of having waited for many years.

“Otherwise, what did you think?”

“Did you think I wanted to marry someone else?”

Cai Shinan lowered his head and gave a bitter laugh.

“I……I just thought that after so many years, perhaps you had already built your own family.”

Lin Daihua looked at him.

“And what about you?”

“Have you not also been alone all this time?”

Cai Shinan fell silent.

After a moment, he softly asked:

“What about your father? He……”

Lin Daihua knew what he wanted to ask.

Back then, it was precisely because her father had firmly opposed them that they ended up walking toward different lives.

She smiled faintly.

“What else can my father say?”

“I’m already at this age.”

“The rest of my life belongs to me.”

Cai Shinan nodded.

“That’s true.”

Lin Daihua suddenly held his hand.

Her eyes were gentle yet firm.

“Shinan.”

“Let’s get married.”

Cai Shinan stared at her.

“Let me take care of you.”

These words made Shinan’s eyes slightly warm.

For so many years, he had always believed that what he had lost was not only love.

It was also the person who had once been willing to accompany him throughout his life.

But after destiny had taken such a long, winding journey, it had unexpectedly sent her back to his side again.

He did not say much.

He only slowly nodded.

A relieved smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

Lin Daihua opened the fruit basket.

She took out a pear.

“I’ll peel a pear for you.”

She picked up the fruit knife on the table.

The sunlight fell upon her profile as she lowered her head and peeled the fruit.

That familiar and gentle scene caused Cai Shinan to stare at her in a daze.

He suddenly remembered many years ago.

She had also been like this, quietly staying by his side without asking for anything in return.

She only hoped that he would be well.

Cai Shinan looked at her profile, his heart filled with countless emotions.

It turned out that some fates had not disappeared.

They had only temporarily gone separate ways during the journey of life.

Not long afterward, Lin Daihua cut the peeled pear into small pieces, placed them on a plate, and handed it to him.

“Eat.”

Cai Shinan accepted the fruit.

“Thank you.”

Lin Daihua sat back beside the bed.

Her tone suddenly became serious.

“After I return to Taichung and convince my parents, I will resign from my job in Silicon Valley.”

Cai Shinan froze.

“You’re coming back?”

Lin Daihua nodded.

“Yes.”

“I’m coming back to start a business with you.”

She looked at him.

“We’ll start over.”

Cai Shinan felt a wave of emotion in his heart.

After remaining silent for a moment, he also shared his plan.

“Then I’ll sell the two houses in Taipei and convert them into cash.”

Lin Daihua nodded and smiled.

“I’ll also liquidate the company stocks and transfer the funds back to Taiwan.”

Her eyes shone with a dream she had not felt for many years.

“We’ll establish a business software design company in the Central Taiwan Science Park.”

Cai Shinan nodded.

“Okay.”

“We’ll work hard together.”

Their eyes met.

It was as if they had returned once again to that era of youth.

Only this time……

they would no longer allow destiny to separate them.

At dusk, before Lin Daihua left the hospital room, she turned back and looked at Cai Shinan.

“Wait for me.”

Cai Shinan smiled.

“I’ll wait for you.”

He paused for a moment.

“I’ll return to my hometown in Little Liuqiu and wait for you.”

Lin Daihua nodded.

The two looked at each other and smiled.

At that moment, they both believed that—

some love, even after passing through half a lifetime, would still bloom again at the most suitable moment.