Chapter 3

Chapter 3

After parting ways with Wu Liang at the entrance of the bar, I still ended up going to He Xiaolu’s place.

The young girl’s eyes were swollen from crying. Biting her lip and looking thoroughly humiliated, she used a pregnancy test right then and there.

She was indeed not pregnant.

I breathed a sigh of relief.

I liked to play around, but I had no intention of letting an illegitimate child mess up my marriage.

He Xiaolu wept as she pounded on my chest. “I take long-term contraceptives every single day. It’s not like you haven’t seen me do it. How could I possibly be pregnant?”

It was true; He Xiaolu was very compliant in this regard. I had told her we couldn’t have a child, so she took her pills every day without me ever having to remind her.

I pulled her into my arms, whispering soft words of comfort.

He Xiaolu curled her lip and said casually, “Then where did that pregnancy test come from?”

Her eyes darted around as she gasped. “Chen Wei, your wife isn’t trying to make you a ‘happy father’ to someone else’s kid, is she?”

My face instantly went cold, and I gripped her throat tightly.

He Xiaolu’s body trembled. Raising her face with reddened eyes, she said shakily, “Go ahead and hit me if you want. The marks from this morning haven’t even faded yet…”

I spent a long time coaxing her. She remained relentless until I promised to buy her the new designer bag she had been wanting; only then did her tears turn into a smile.

The next day, He Xiaolu dragged me to the boutique.

Holding the 200,000-yuan designer bag in her hands, a sweet smile blossomed on the girl’s face.

Spending a fortune to buy a beauty’s smile made me happy as well.

The bag came with a complimentary wallet, which He Xiaolu dismissed as being too old-fashioned.

After thinking it over, I took the wallet home. Xie Run liked simple, low-key things; this would suit her quite well.

The house was empty.

That pregnancy test was still lying on the shoe cabinet.

He Xiaolu’s words had given me a new perspective. This whole thing might have been a subtle warning from my wife.

She was worried I would father an illegitimate child.

I couldn’t help but smile. It seemed that once this period passed, I would need to have a proper talk with her to clear the air.

We had ten years of history together and a lovely daughter.

As long as she came to her senses, we would always be the happy family that outsiders envied.

The bedroom closet door was open, and a bag had fallen onto the floor.

I picked up the bag to put it back, only then realizing that the closet was much emptier. A significant amount of clothing was clearly missing.

On the top shelf of the closet, several old items were neatly arranged.

A scarf I had hand-knitted for Xie Run when we were dating, a hand-drawn portrait, and a crystal ball we bought at a scenic spot during our honeymoon.

Xie Run had always treated these like treasures, storing them away carefully.

She really was easily satisfied.

People who are too easily satisfied can be a bit boring, but they also make one feel grounded and secure.

Fiddling with the wallet in my hand, I dialed her number.

The call was answered quickly. I said with displeasure, “Why aren’t you home yet? Where’s Yueyue?”

“Yueyue is at my mother’s place. I’m cleaning up the new house. Neither of us is coming home tonight.”

“What new house?”

Xie Run’s voice was calm. “Chen Wei, I told you half a month ago. I bought a house near my mom’s neighborhood. It’s closer to Yueyue’s new school, and it’s convenient for my mom to walk her to school without needing to drive.”

After hanging up, I finally remembered that Xie Run had mentioned something to me after our daughter was discharged from the hospital.

She had said she found a better kindergarten and that it was closer to her parents’ home, so she wanted to move there.

But we had never seriously discussed it afterward.

I felt a faint sense of unease. Why would Xie Run-someone who used to take pictures of flowers by the road just to show me-handle something as big as buying a house without saying a word?

Just as I was about to call her back to ask, Wu Liang called. His tone was anxious.

“Old Chen, is Sister-in-law at home? I need to find her for something urgent!”