I was so hyped up, practically ran to Gu Xiaofei's door and rang that bell. My head was spinning with all sorts of feelings. Honestly, my wife's been the only woman for me, ever. Never even looked at anyone else. I wanted to be completely devoted to her, but I just... couldn't anymore. This whole damn situation, this messed-up world, it pushed me to this.
When Gu Xiaofei opened the door, I suddenly got this rush of nerves. Maybe she knew I was coming, 'cause she was dressed to kill. Seriously, I knew right then I was in trouble. She gave me this sly little smile and said, "Well, aren't you gonna come in?"
I stepped inside and immediately went for it, pushed her right onto the sofa. I wanted to show her I was a real man, you know? It was the first time I'd been with anyone but my wife, and man, was it a thrill. I figured it was a done deal, but then she pushed me away. I was totally thrown. What the hell was going on?
"Zhao Jian," she said, all serious, "I admit I like you, but I'm not that easy."
Easy? I thought. You've been sleeping with the boss for five years! Spare me the innocent act. But I was lost. What was her game? I was even a little scared she'd scream rape, so I had to force myself to back off.
That's when she finally got to the point. "Zhao Jian, I know you've always loved your wife, but there's something I need to tell you."
Her tone was so heavy, it felt like a punch to the gut. What could it be? And how would Xiaofei even know anything about my wife? I was completely lost.
Then she hit me with it. "Do you know why Mr. Zhang told you to try and get with me?"
Hearing that, my face must've dropped. I had no idea she knew about that. Damn, this was way more complicated than I thought.
And then she said something that just blew my mind. "It's because Mr. Zhang has his eyes on your wife."
I froze. Just stood there, dumbfounded. This was some soap opera level stuff, totally unexpected. I shook my head. "That's impossible. He doesn't even know her."
Xiaofei just snorted, like I was the biggest idiot in the world. But if she was saying this, there had to be something to it. She probably knew details.
"What else do you know?" I blurted out, desperate.
She just smirked. "My info doesn't come free, honey. You want to know more, it's gonna cost you."
I had no idea what she meant by "cost," but it was clear she wasn't going to just spill the beans. I stared into her pretty eyes. "What kind of price are we talking about?"
She thought for a second. "I haven't decided yet. How about you just have a drink with me?"
She grabbed a bottle of red wine and poured us each a glass. Normally, drinking wine with a beautiful woman in this kind of setting would be pretty romantic. But when I took a sip, it just tasted bitter.
Xiaofei continued, "I think I overheard Mr. Zhang saying that the only reason you got into his company, became his driver, was because of your wife."
I flashed back to my interview with Mr. Zhang, three summers ago. I'd just graduated from a nobody college and was getting nowhere with job hunting. "Mutual selection," they call it. Bullshit. Graduates have zero options.
Around that time, I bumped into Lu Wan, who was also looking for work. She was a top university grad, but with no connections, she was struggling too. We kind of went through that tough time together, and that's when I saw my chance.
Later, I somehow landed the driver job with Zhang Zhiyuan. He seemed to trust me. Then, Lu Wan's family pulled some strings and got her a job as an English teacher at a primary school. Everything seemed totally separate from my wife.
And the big thing was, Lu Wan was a virgin when we first slept together. That made me believe she was this pure, innocent girl. If she'd been messing around with Zhang back then, how could that have been? So, I just didn't believe what Xiaofei was saying.
Seeing my reaction, Xiaofei knew what I was thinking. So she dropped an even bigger bomb. "Zhao Jian, just think about it. You'd barely just gotten your license back then, your driving skills weren't great. Why would Mr. Zhang hire you as his driver?"
That made my blood run cold. I had to admit, it did sound kind of weird. But I quickly pushed that thought away. I knew my wife, I knew everything about her.
Truth be told, her family wasn't well-off. It was a real stretch for them to send her to a good university. But she worked her butt off with part-time jobs and made it through. Getting the teaching job was all her own hard work too; she got her teaching certificate ages ago.
If she really was involved with Zhang, I couldn't for the life of me figure out what she'd get out of it. I thought about it and thought about it, but it just didn't add up. She had nothing to gain from him. So, I still didn't believe Xiaofei.
My face was probably all red and blotchy from the wine and the anger. "Gu Xiaofei," I said, my voice tight, "if you're accusing my wife of cheating, you better have some damn proof. Otherwise, I won't stand for you talking about her like that."
And with that, I stormed out.
The drive home was a mess. My head was buzzing. Even though I didn't believe Xiaofei, her words had gotten under my skin. Why would she say those things? Was she trying to break us up so she could have me? That had to be it. She was one sneaky woman.
Now it all made sense. That's why she asked if I wanted to sleep with her. It wasn't about that at all. She just wanted to plant seeds of doubt about my wife, chip away at our relationship. If we fell apart, she'd be the one to benefit. That had to be it.
I just scoffed to myself, trying to stay calm. Don't worry, my sweet wife. I'll protect you. I won't let anyone hurt you.
Since I'd taken time off work, I got home a bit early. I thought maybe I'd make a really nice dinner, treat my wife. So I drove straight to the market.
Spent the whole afternoon cooking, made a real feast. I figured she'd be happy. But the time came and went, and she still wasn't home. I started to get a little worried.
I called her. It rang for ages before she finally picked up. But she sounded completely out of breath, like she'd been doing something really strenuous. It was after work, everyone's busy, but all she should be doing is heading home. What was she doing that made her breathe like that?
She's not overweight, and she's not the sporty type, so I had no idea what was going on. "Honey, why are you breathing so hard? Are you running?"
Maybe my question reminded her, because her heavy breathing calmed down a little. "Yeah," she said, "I'm jogging on the track."
Jogging on the track after work? That was so not like her. And then Xiaofei's words came flooding back. I started to seriously doubt my wife's strange behavior.
"If you're really jogging on the track," I said, my voice tight with panic, "then send me a picture. Right now."
I knew it was a sign of distrust, but I had to. I couldn't stand the thought of being made a fool of.
"It's getting dark... it's not really convenient," she said, her breathing even fainter now, almost gone.
I don't know why, but I was so familiar with that kind of breathlessness. I knew in my gut that she only sounded like that under one specific circumstance.
A wave of fear washed over me. What if Xiaofei was right? And then I remembered all those times we'd been intimate, and how cold she seemed, how little enthusiasm she showed. It was definitely not normal.
Suddenly, a pain I couldn't even describe ripped through my chest. I couldn't accept that my wife would betray me.