That night, as I was driving home, my mood was extremely heavy.
Xiang Qiufeng's story reminded me that whether in business or in the workplace, interests always come first.
I found myself wondering if one day, I might also be abandoned by Zhang Zhiyuan.
Lost in these troubling thoughts, I suddenly received a call from my wife.
"Husband, there's training at school again today. I might be late getting home and won't be able to cook dinner. Maybe you should eat out."
She had just undergone a miscarriage surgery, yet she said she had to train—it immediately aroused my suspicions.
Without my wife, the home no longer felt like a complete home. To be honest, I didn't want to return to that cold, empty place.
So I said to her, "Honey, where's your training? How about I come accompany you?"
"No need, honey. After the trouble you caused last time at the school, I'm already having a hard time there. If you stir up more trouble, I'm afraid I won't be able to stay."
I thought about it and agreed; what she said made sense. So I went straight home.
But just as I was getting out of the car, a beautiful young woman suddenly appeared from somewhere. She looked me over a few times and asked, "Excuse me, are you Mr. Zhao Jian?"
I was startled and began to scrutinize her carefully.
She wasn't exactly very pretty—her looks were delicate and restrained, not immediately eye-catching, but she gave off a very pleasant impression.
I didn't know this woman and had no idea why she was looking for me.
I nodded and replied, "Yes, I'm Zhao Jian. May I ask what you need?"
The woman said, "Pleased to meet you. My name is Ding Yahong. I've long heard of your name."
That left me even more puzzled. I wondered, "Since when did I have someone ardently pursuing me?"
Out of curiosity, I asked, "Miss Ding, what business do you have with me?"
Ding Yahong nodded and said, "Of course I have business—I'm here about your wife, Lu Wan."
I was even more confused and didn't know what she wanted regarding my wife.
But Ding Yahong's next words made my heart sink.
"Do you know your wife, Lu Wan, has been unfaithful?"
There had been rumors about my wife outside, but they were only rumors.
Without solid evidence, no one dared to bring it up to our faces.
So I couldn't figure out her real intention.
Seeing my shocked expression, Ding Yahong suddenly said, "Mr. Zhao, please trust me—I mean no harm."
Come on—accusing my wife of cheating and that's "no harm"?
I looked at Ding Yahong and asked, "How do you know about my wife's infidelity?"
The moment I said that, I regretted it, as if I had already admitted it myself.
Honestly, I loved my wife very much. Even knowing she had wronged me, if she was willing to repent, I would forgive her.
After all, it's very hard nowadays to start a family. If I lost Lu Wan, where else could I find a woman as good as her?
Ding Yahong looked at me and said, "Actually, like you, I am also a victim."
Hearing this made me even more incredulous.
Ding Yahong said, "I am Lu Feng's wife."
Dammit — the adulterer's wife actually came looking for me. This was completely unexpected.
I couldn't help but stare carefully at this woman in front of me.
She looked about two or three years older than my wife.
Since Lu Feng was classmates with my wife, naturally she was also older than him.
Honestly, I thought Ding Yahong carried herself very well and gave off a natural charm.
But what I really wanted to know was: what was her true purpose in coming to see me today? Was she here to settle scores over my wife?
I had to admit, I too was a victim in this entire affair.
Ding Yahong said, "I suppose your wife isn't home at the moment."
Her words hit a sore spot. I glared at her and asked, "How do you know that?"
Ding Yahong said, "Because Lu Feng isn't home either—they went to meet secretly."
Thinking of that, my heart nearly broke, and I was speechless.
I had assumed my wife's abortion meant she would return home to be a good wife and mother. But I never expected that in just one day, she would meet secretly with her lover.
It felt as if someone slapped me hard across the face—burning pain.
"Where exactly are they now?" I asked Ding Yahong.
She smiled bitterly, "What, do you want to catch them in the act?"
I said nothing, which was effectively an admission.
Ding Yahong laughed and said, "Even if you catch them, so what? Your wife's heart is no longer with you. At most, you get divorced—but the one who gets hurt is yourself."
I had to admit, Ding Yahong really was good at hitting my weak points.
I asked, "So what do you think I should do now?"
Ding Yahong's beautiful eyes sparkled as if she were batting her eyelashes at me. "If you want to know the answer, how about taking me to dinner?"
Suddenly I had a feeling she was trying to seduce me.
Honestly, if Lu Feng could play around with my wife, why couldn't I do the same with his wife?
Though a bit twisted psychologically, at least it would provide some satisfaction of revenge.
Naturally, I didn't refuse Ding Yahong's request. I said, "Good, I haven't eaten yet either. Let's go together."
The rest was simple. Ding Yahong got into my car, and we went to a very romantic Chinese restaurant.
They say the eyes are the windows to the soul. During the meal, Ding Yahong kept gazing at me affectionately.
Though she was dressed very properly, I suddenly felt she was a rather coquettish woman.
A woman like that, if you just tease her a bit, she might go to bed with you.
I thought to myself, maybe she had the same revenge motive.
We actually didn't say much during dinner—perhaps we both shared an unspoken understanding.
Even I wasn't sure if I wanted to sleep with this woman.
At about seven o'clock that evening, my phone rang. I saw it was my wife calling.
It seemed my wife's rendezvous with her lover was over. Maybe she came home and found me wasn't there, so she called me.
From one perspective, my wife still cared about me.
I thought to myself: having just had an abortion, it was impossible she had been intimate with her lover. So what exactly was she after by meeting him now?
When I answered, my wife's first words were, "Zhao Jian, where have you gone?"
Hearing that made me feel a little guilty. I hurriedly replied, "I'm eating out."
My wife sounded somewhat reproachful, "It's so late and you're still not home."
In the past, I obeyed my wife because I knew she cared for me.
"All right. I'll come home right after dinner." After thinking, I agreed.
After hanging up, I saw Ding Yahong's face across from me change—clearly, she was displeased with my answer.
"So, you're going home now?" she asked.
I smiled, "Sorry, my wife watches me very closely. I have no choice."
Ding Yahong smiled awkwardly, "Seems like you really love your wife."
I didn't reply and couldn't deny it, because I knew she was right.
After dinner, we briefly chatted and then parted ways.
On the way home, I kept thinking about this.
Since Ding Yahong was able to find me, she must be a formidable woman.
If she's so formidable, why can't she even keep an eye on her own husband?
From the current situation, there must be a deep connection between my wife and the school heartthrob Lu Feng. Otherwise, Ding Yahong wouldn't come looking for me.
Moreover, it seemed from Ding Yahong's attitude that she had already gathered all the information about me.
I strongly sensed that as long as my wife has a relationship with Lu Feng, she would definitely come find me again.
Actually, I was curious about what kind of passionate love story my wife and Lu Feng had back then that they still couldn't forget it now.
I thought to myself: if one day my wife really decided to leave me, I would let them be.
That thought pained me deeply, but I understood that a forced melon never tastes sweet.
When I got home, my wife saw my face looked bad and asked, "Zhao Jian, why do you look so grim?"
I thought to myself: how could I look good when she had cuckolded me?
Though I thought that, I couldn't say it out loud. I just said, "Work stress has been overwhelming lately. I'm having a hard time."
Seeing me like that, my wife said, "Zhao Jian, I don't think you're cut out to be a sales manager. Why don't you just go back to being a driver like before? Living simply isn't bad either."
Her words actually moved me somewhat—it showed she wasn't very calculating.
Having come to this point, there was no turning back. Whether Zhang Zhiyuan needed a driver or not, even if I went back to being a driver, how would the people at Xingchang Company see me?
Sometimes, once a person has stepped forward, they can no longer turn back.
To avoid worrying my wife, I stroked her beautiful face and said, "My little darling, don't worry. Your husband still has some abilities."
Truly, in front of my wife, I really wanted to prove myself.
Because what I want is a lifelong love from my wife.
But then, something unexpected happened.
My wife suddenly burst into tears.
They say a woman's heart is like a deep needle; no one can understand it, not even me.
I wanted to ask her why she was crying for no reason, but thinking better of it, I held back.
Right now, the only thing I could do was hold my wife—this was the only way to give her a sense of security.
At least I wanted her to know this is her only home.