Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Gu Zhixian seemed to believe me, at least to some extent.

At the very least, when I pointed out that I’d be living on the streets if I didn’t stay at his place for the night, he stared at me with a mix of shock and suspicion for a long while before finally agreeing.

After all, there were things he had never breathed a word of to anyone else, things he had only ever written in his diary.

There was no way I could have snuck a look at his diary.

His home was empty and cluttered; he clearly hadn’t been in the mood to tidy up.

I tossed the scattered dirty laundry into the washing machine, hung them up once they were done, neatly returned the books to the shelves, and washed the mountain of piled-up dishes. Once everything was organized, I opened the windows and sprayed some air freshener.

I cleaned the puppy’s food bowl, blanket, and little toys, then tucked them away neatly into a small box. That way, if Gu Zhixian missed him in the future, he could take them out and look at them.

Gu Zhixian watched my every move in silence, following me wherever I went.

Seeing his expression cloud over with sadness, I pulled a fluffy stuffed puppy out from behind my back like a magic trick. “Doesn’t this look just like Zhuangzhuang? Even the fur color is identical. If you press the switch under its belly, it even scuttles across the floor. It’s super cute!”

I gave him a demonstration, and Gu Zhixian finally let out a small laugh.

I tucked the stuffed dog into his arms and said softly, “Let this little guy stay with you instead of Zhuangzhuang for now. In the future, we’ll raise a puppy that looks exactly like him, and we’ll make sure he grows up healthy and plump. He’ll be just like Zhuangzhuang-he’ll love corn and potato chips, and he’ll love digging holes in the bed. He’ll ruin several sets of sheets that way, and we’ll all say he’s Zhuangzhuang’s reincarnation.”

Gu Zhixian gazed at me. Under the warm yellow glow of the lights, there was a hint of softness in his eyes.

While mopping the floor, my herniated disc started acting up. I turned around and waved him over. “Don’t just stand there watching, okay? Can’t you show your wife some sympathy?”

He stiffly took the mop from me and lowered his head, mopping the floor in silence. Only his bright red earlobes betrayed his flustered state.

“I’m going to take a shower!” I announced happily.

Gu Zhixian’s movements came to a sudden halt.

I walked out later, smelling fresh and clean, wearing some of his old clothes. “You should go wash up too. We need to get to sleep early tonight; there’s work to do tomorrow.”

He gave a muffled grunt of agreement and headed toward the bathroom, not daring to spare me a single glance.

Curling up in a quilt on the sofa outside, I laughed at myself for being all talk and no action. After all, he was someone else’s husband.

Only two days left.

Then, I have to go back.