Chapter Twenty-seven

Fang Cheng himself didn't know exactly why he was upset. He just felt a resentment in his chest that he couldn't swallow. Especially after seeing Su Xiaobai standing with that young, handsome boy in Gulin earlier, he felt like those two were a perfect match, and the sight of them together only made him feel like a thorn in his side, a nail in his eye.

But he still couldn't bring himself to confront it. What man could tolerate his wife openly flirting with another man? Perhaps he was more upset with himself for no longer being able to see Su Xiaobai's true nature.

He had always thought he could read people. He could tell when someone had ulterior motives, when their intentions were pure or not. After working in his line of work for the past two years, Fang Cheng had become quite adept at reading between the lines.

Su Xiaobai, at least, seemed like an honest woman. Her pride and indifference were never disguised with any ill intentions. Growing up in such an affluent and proud family, Su Xiaobai's inherent pride was evident. A woman like her, even if she were to lose her heart, would never do something to destroy her family or damage her own image.

So, when he married Su Xiaobai, aside from her family's background, his respect for her calm and modest personality was another reason he had admired her.

When had their relationship, once so respectful and distant, quietly transformed?

Perhaps it started that day when Su Xiaobai got out of the red sports car to deliver documents to him. Fang Cheng wasn't oblivious to her little thoughts. A woman's revenge was often a simple act of mischief, and though he had his suspicions that day, Fang Cheng believed Su Xiaobai was just momentarily angry, so he didn't press the matter.

But yesterday, when he met Su Xiaobai at the hotel, her unreasonable behavior and sharp intelligence surprised him. The Su Xiaobai he knew would never show such overt "competition" in front of others, nor would she openly show disdain for someone.

And today, seeing her soft, delicate, and shy side, almost completely overturned Fang Cheng's previous impression of her.

Fang Cheng even began to question whether he had ever truly seen this woman's "true face." She was too good at pretending. If Fang Cheng had never seen through her, then over the past two years, she had perfected her "acting" in front of him to the point where it was an art. She was a woman who knew how to manipulate people's hearts.

For example, as they were driving, Fang Cheng occasionally glanced at the woman beside him. She looked unhappy, and he had expected her to throw a fit after getting into the car, but her reaction was quite the opposite. She didn't make a scene; instead, she acted like a sulking child, turning her head away. Her lips, usually indifferent, were now slightly pouted, giving her a look of discontent. She was fiddling with her nails in her lap, clearly not as calm on the inside as she appeared.

What Su Xiaobai didn't know was that her sulking expression actually made her somewhat endearing. If she weren't in front of familiar people, she probably wouldn't have shown her true feelings. As for Fang Cheng, she didn't care to hide anything. After all, he had already caught her a few times. Instead of letting him keep guessing, it was better for her to confront it head-on. If he really wanted to bring up what happened today, she wouldn't mind confronting him directly. The worst outcome would be divorce, which, frankly, was exactly what she wanted. No matter how Su Xiaobai would be blamed one day, she had already made up her mind to go down the divorce path.

The car arrived at the hotel where they were both staying, and Fang Cheng got out first. Before he could open the door for her, Su Xiaobai was quick to get out of the car and walked ahead.

Of course, she couldn't escape; Fang Cheng was right there, blocking her path.

Su Xiaobai furrowed her brow, and the undisguised look of disdain in her eyes made Fang Cheng feel a pang in his heart. When had Su Xiaobai ever looked at him like that?

"Excuse me, can you move aside? I'm tired. I want to go back to my room and rest. We can talk about this another day." Su Xiaobai was indeed tired, and her tone was impatient. She didn't want to waste time arguing with him.

"Su Xiaobai, I think we should resolve the current situation first. Perhaps both of us have made some mistakes. I know that I've neglected you because of work, and your situation has changed. We need to have a serious conversation."

Look at this! This person is simply talking nonsense. But the way he does it is quite skillful—twisting his words, saying that both of them have issues, and that his situation has changed. This is just an excuse for his actions, and he's directing the blame toward her. What could she possibly have done wrong? He's just throwing dirt on her.

Su Xiaobai's eyes practically burned with rage, but she held it back. She shot him a cold glance, said nothing, and directly bypassed Fang Cheng, walking quickly toward the hotel entrance and entering the elevator.

Fang Cheng followed behind. As they exited the elevator, he grabbed her hand forcefully. "Su Xiaobai."

"Get lost!" Su Xiaobai turned around, probably because she was extremely tired, and her dissatisfaction with Fang Cheng had reached its peak. She gave a fierce shake of her wrist and hissed lowly, but she didn't expect it to provoke Fang Cheng. Instead of letting go, he tightened his grip on her wrist so suddenly that it almost felt like her arm might snap.

"Fang Cheng, you're a bastard! You go out and find other women, and then you blame everything on me! You're not human, you're a beast, a scum, a jerk…"

Before Su Xiaobai could continue her tirade, Fang Cheng didn't care where she had learned those words. If it were in the past, Su Xiaobai would never have used such filthy language.

Fine, looking at her pouting lips and incessantly ranting, Fang Cheng didn't just feel irritated—he also had the overwhelming urge to bite them. Not a kiss, but an actual bite on her lips, as though she were a piece of juicy fruit that made him want a second bite after the first. Of course, he didn't get the chance for a second bite. Su Xiaobai froze for a moment, then immediately reacted and pushed him away.

Covering her lips, Su Xiaobai looked at him with eyes full of disbelief. Her lips burned, and she didn't know if they were bleeding. After blinking a few times, tears welled up in her eyes.

The thing about Su Xiaobai was, she hated crying more than anything. But today, she just couldn't control her emotions. It felt like, deep down, Su Xiaobai's subconscious was affecting her. How else could she feel this tightness in her chest all of a sudden?

Moreover, her exhaustion and anger had reached their peak. Her suppressed personality had taken over, and it had been so long since it dominated her thoughts. Her body was struggling to keep up, and her mind was beginning to feel foggy. So, not caring whether they were still in the hallway outside the room, she cried out angrily at Fang Cheng.

The cry held a mix of helplessness and irritation. In any case, when Qiao Nan came out of the room, she saw the two of them struggling.

The woman was crying like her heart was being torn apart, and the man was silently scowling, not saying a word.

Looking at them, Qiao Nan didn't even realize that, for a moment, his brow furrowed.