C50

A few days later, Xu Xiao, who was on a business trip, finally returned. With complicated feelings, Zhang Manting prepared a romantic candlelight dinner.

The light went out, and the warm candlelight swayed affectionately. Zhang Manting raised her red wine glass towards Xu Xiao at the opposite side of the square table, "Dearest, come, cheers!"

"Cheers." Xu Xiao's eyes were filled with affection and laughter.

"Darling, will you love me all your life and never leave me?" Even though she knew that not separating for the rest of her life was just her wishful thinking, Zhang Manting could not suppress her strong feelings of despair.

Her tone was so careful, the hope and vulnerability of her face could not be hidden. Anyone who saw it would not be able to bear it. However, Xu Xiao sighed and said casually, "Manting, who can clearly explain the future? You know, love is a kind of feeling, that kind of feeling is very wonderful, but also very erratic, when, this kind of feeling is gone, the couple also is time to say goodbye. So I can't promise you anything now. Wasn't there a saying like that? "He doesn't care about the longevity of the world, he only cares about the past!"

Zhang Manting did not speak further. She lowered her head in silence, the color of her face disappearing. Her eyes were filled with depression and sadness. Anger and despair that could not be vented ran through every cell of her body like hot lava: what feeling, what end, these were all bullshit! Why do you all say that? Moreover, after saying such words, within a few days, all of you will leave me without any hesitation …

"Manting, what are you staring at? Hurry up and eat!" As if he did not see the sparks in the depths of Zhang Manting's eyes, Xu Xiao spoke in a sparse and ordinary tone.

"I'm full." Zhang Manting stood up. No way, she couldn't stay here any longer! Otherwise, she would not be able to take it sooner or later. She would question and roar!

That night, Xu Xiao, who was used to hugging Zhang Manting to sleep, slept in his study. On the morning of the second day, he woke up around six. After washing up, he went out the door without eating breakfast.

That's not right. Xu Xiao has been on a business trip for several days, and it was quite tiring. The boss gave him three days leave. As usual, he had to sleep late this morning, and it was strange that he should leave so early. Zhang Manting was no longer able to sleep. She lay down on the bed and began to let her thoughts run wild.

When it was close to noon, Xu Xiao came back. Seeing Zhang Manting who was busy in the kitchen, he lightly greeted her, "I'm back. You can have lunch by yourself at noon."

With that cold and detached expression, it was as if she was treating a stranger. Zhang Manting's hand that was holding the spatula froze in midair. Soon after, a wry smile appeared on Zhang Manting's face. "Yeah, they're going to part soon. They're going to be the most familiar strangers to each other soon …"

Xu Xiao hurried back to his bedroom. He took off his sports attire, changed into a pair of long pants, put on his sunglasses, and deliberately lowered his hat. That strange outfit, that slightly sneaky movements, no matter how you looked at it, it looked like those thieves who had found their target and were about to attack!

Xu Xiao, why did your actions become so strange? Is it because you're going to break up with me that's why — Thinking of this, Zhang Manting couldn't sit still any longer. She turned off the ignition and walked to the kitchen door, her big eyes never leaving Xu Xiao in the bedroom. As if he hadn't noticed her gaze, he picked up his briefcase and left the room.

What was Xu Xiao going to do? Was his perverse behavior a precursor to a breakup? Why did he suddenly break up with her, just like his previous boyfriends? Zhang Manting's mind was full of question marks, and her feet were not listening. By the time she reacted, she had already tiptoed out of the district's gate with Xu Xiao.

Xu Xiao, who had tightly wrapped himself, strode forward. Zhang Manting, who was still wearing her slippers, sneakily followed behind him. Xu Xiao was a cautious person by nature, but today, he was thinking about something and didn't notice that the closest person on the bed was actually following him.

After passing through a few streets, Xu Xiao arrived at a busy downtown area. The crowd was bustling and clamoring. However, at this point, he no longer had the grandeur of striding forward with large strides. His steps became light and small, and his eyes stared straight ahead. Zhang Manting followed in confusion. To be honest, she really didn't understand what Xu Xiao was doing!

After passing through the downtown area, they walked for another ten minutes before arriving at the relatively sparsely populated South Street. It was only at this moment that Zhang Manting suddenly realized what her boyfriend was doing — he was actually following a man! His movements and expression were as careful and furtive as his own! The man he was following was very young, about twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, tall and good-looking. The man wore a shirt, shorts, and carried a briefcase. His expression was calm and didn't look out of the ordinary. Zhang Manting was puzzled by this. According to her knowledge, Xu Xiao didn't have any relationship with this strange man. Why did Xu Xiao keep staring at this man?

That's right! Zhang Manting's eyes suddenly lit up. The company that her boyfriend worked at could be called a mysterious investigation center. They would often receive cases that required fieldwork. Could it be that her boyfriend was secretly carrying out some secret mission? Is this his job?

Zhang Manting's gaze became hesitant, and her mind was filled with all sorts of thoughts. Just like that, half a minute passed, and when she snapped out of her daze, Xu Xiao, who had been standing a few meters in front of her, had suddenly disappeared! The man his boyfriend was following was still walking at a leisurely pace.

Strange, could it be that Xu Xiao found out that he was following him and secretly slipped away? Zhang Manting frowned, unwilling to accept this. Sigh, there was no other way, I could only go home.

When he opened the door of the apartment, he could smell a cold air blowing over him. The living room, the bedroom, the kitchen and the washroom all gave off a lonely feeling — Xu Xiao still hadn't returned home, so where was he?

An unknown sense of fear and unease rose up in Zhang Manting's heart. As time passed, the fear and anxiety became more and more intense, like ink that had lost all its moisture!

The clock pointed to one in the middle of the night, but Xu Xiao still hadn't returned home. Zhang shrank desperately into a corner. Stunned, she pressed her boyfriend's number on her cell phone again. The mechanical and cold female voice prompted her: Sorry, the user you dialed has been turned off …

Xu Xiao, did you also leave? Just like the three of them! I haven't figured out why you're following that man. Xu Xiao, come back. I can't bear to part with you. Why, why did you do this to me? What did I do wrong? God, do you want every single one of my relationships to come to an end?

Large tears gushed out of her eyes. Zhang Manting finally could not suppress the desolation and endless grief in her heart. Her tired body slanted and she collapsed onto the cold floor.