Chapter 70 As they say, one…
Zheng Xiaotian slunk back to the restaurant, his steps heavier than usual. Before he even reached his table, he looked up and the scene before him made his heart tighten: the two people were sitting opposite each other, but neither of them looked at the other.
Xia Zhiyao stood with her back straight and her expression was unusually quiet. Zhou Yue was half-turned, his shoulders taut, his gaze dark and stubborn, fixed on her like a storm about to erupt.
There wasn't a word exchanged between them. Zheng Xiaotian stopped, took a deep breath, and cursed inwardly: "Damn, this atmosphere is too weird."
He simply stopped pretending to be a peacemaker, plopped down, and the chair wobbled slightly under his weight. He casually stretched his long legs forward, leaned back lazily in his chair, and adopted a nonchalant posture, but his sharp eyes swept over the two of them.
He raised his chin, chuckled, and spoke with a defiant, reckless tone, like throwing a grenade on the table: "What's going on between you two? How long are you planning to keep this up?"
No one responded, and the two looked away from each other.
Zheng Xiaotian chuckled to himself, but there was no ease in his smile; instead, it carried a suppressed anger: "People say, 'A day as husband and wife is worth a hundred days of kindness,' but you two..."
He paused, then gave a cold snort: "Why can't you take care of things at home in bed? Why do you have to make a scene here for others to see?"
Xia Zhiyao kept her head down, studying the wine glass, refusing to look up. Zhou Yue's gaze was fixed on her, his eyes so gloomy it seemed he wanted to crush her.
Zheng Xiaotian slammed his wine glass down on the table, cursing under his breath: "Damn it, the atmosphere is so tense. If I don't say something soon, the whole table might be overturned."
"I'm truly fed up with you guys." He reached out and pressed the bottle, then turned to look at Xia Zhiyao, his eyes unusually serious, his voice filled with barely suppressed anger: "Zhiyao, stop pretending. How old are you? Such a good person is right in front of you, why don't you know how to cherish him? 'Friends with benefits' my foot! Who believes that?"
As soon as she finished speaking, Xia Zhiyao's eyes suddenly shot up, landing sharply on Zhou Yue, almost questioning him: You even told him this?
Zheng Xiaotian didn't give them a chance to react. He turned his gaze to Zhou Yue, a cold smile playing on his lips, and said, enunciating each word clearly, "And you? Let's be frank and tell you the truth. Are you willing to do that?"
Zhou Yue's eyes flickered with a hint of guilt. His lips moved, but before he could utter a word, a clear, cold voice suddenly interrupted.
"I'm leaving now, it's too late today." Xia Zhiyao stood up, her voice low but carrying a hint of suppressed weariness. She picked up her bag with a swift movement, turned and left without glancing at anyone else.
Zhou Yue didn't speak. He simply raised his glass, and the remaining wine rolled down his throat. It didn't feel like wine, but more like the pent-up frustration that had been weighing on his heart for two years, being forced down, leaving him with a bitter taste in his mouth.
Zheng Xiaotian watched him quietly, the mockery that had been hanging in the corners of his eyes gradually fading away. He leaned back in his chair, his shoulders relaxed, and he let out a long breath, as if he were exhaling all the pent-up emotions he had been holding in his heart.
After a long pause, he finally spoke, his voice low and direct: "That Lin Zhiyi from earlier... is my ex-girlfriend."
Zheng Xiaotian sighed deeply, as if venting all the frustration and helplessness in his heart. His eyes still followed the direction Xia Zhiyao had left, and he didn't look away for a long time.
“To be honest,” he said, his tone unusually subdued, tinged with a bitter self-deprecation, “I really didn’t know she was back in the country, and I certainly didn’t expect to run into you guys here today.”
He paused halfway through his sentence, then raised his hand and rubbed his temples hard, as if trying to suppress the inexplicable knot of frustration: "Xia Zhiyao hasn't been doing well lately either. You've seen it yourself; she's lost a lot of weight and was even working overtime at the company on the weekend. I happened to run into her when I went back to get something."
He paused, a bitter smile tugging at the corners of his lips, a smile like a crack cut by a sharp blade, revealing utter desolation: "I begged and pleaded with her to come here for a meal, and persuaded her to go back and get some sleep, but who knew, here... she would see the two of you."
Zhou Yue stared down at the glass; the glass was empty, but he seemed to be trying to find the answer within it.
Zheng Xiaotian's voice rang out again, tinged with impatience: "Are you really planning to wait until she gets used to leaving before you pursue her?"
Zhou Yue suddenly stood up, the chair scraping against the floor tiles with a screeching sound, attracting the attention of those around him. But he seemed not to hear it at all, reaching out to grab his coat from the back of the chair, his eyes filled with a mixture of embarrassment and determination.
Zheng Xiaotian leaned back in his chair, looked up and sighed deeply, his voice so low it was almost inaudible: "Tsk... what is all this about?"
Zhou Yue suddenly pushed open the restaurant door and rushed into the street, his chest heaving violently, his breath still carrying the lingering smell of alcohol.
He looked around, but the street corner was deserted, with only the headlights of passing cars. There was no sign of her.
"Damn it." He cursed under his breath, his fingertips eagerly reaching into his pocket to pull out his phone.
The screen lit up, and his fingertips almost instinctively swiped to open that familiar address, the place he had silently recited countless times on countless lonely nights.
He habitually clicked on it again and again, but never dared to actually press the "navigation" button to reach the destination. It was the deepest thought he carried in his heart, and the wound he was most afraid to reopen.
As Zhou Yue stepped off the bus, his shoes still on the stone bricks, the throbbing in his heart was about to drive him forward when he suddenly caught sight of a figure out of the corner of his eye.
The car stopped at the entrance of the residential area. Zhou Yue slammed the car door shut and strode into the familiar building. Just as he turned the corner, his steps suddenly stopped.
Under the dim streetlights, Xia Zhiyao was standing at the building entrance when someone called out to her.
A tall man in a suit quickly caught up with her. He rushed to Xia Zhiyao's side and reached out to grab her arm.
Zhou Yue looked over in the dim light of the streetlamp and saw that the man was wearing a pair of metal-framed glasses, his profile clearly visible under the light.
His heart tightened suddenly. He vaguely remembered that this face was the same person Xia Zhiyao had shown him in the photo years ago. That name, that existence, he thought had been buried by time, but it was suddenly torn open at this moment.
The man was approaching urgently, his voice deep yet forceful, as if he wanted to trap her in a predetermined answer.
Xia Zhiyao stood in the cold wind, exuding an aloofness that kept strangers at bay. Whenever the man approached, she would subconsciously take a half step back, always maintaining that deliberately kept distance.
"That's enough." She pursed her lips, her voice low and firm. "I don't want to hear these words a second time."
She used all her strength to push him away, her lips tightly pressed together, her refusal resolute and without the slightest hesitation.
In the distance, Zhou Yue watched this scene, his heart filled with the smell of alcohol, anger, and unspeakable pain, as if it had been brutally ripped open, with blood gushing out.
The man tried to reach out and stop her again, but she abruptly shook him off. The movement was swift and decisive, the force carrying a sense of absolute resolve, as if she wanted to sever the last remaining connection under the dim streetlights.
Standing in the shadows, Zhou Yue could see clearly that it was the man who kept getting closer, stubbornly to the point of entanglement, while Xia Zhiyao coldly rejected him, deliberately retreating, always guarding that invisible line of defense.
Even so, the scene before him was like a sharp nail, piercing his heart. The sight of a man chasing and a woman rejecting him was enough to stir up the thoughts he least wanted to touch.
During the two years he was absent, was she also repeatedly pursued, persuaded, and harassed by other people?
And she, time and time again, turned cold and left?
Zhou Yue's knuckles dug into his palms, blood seeping through his fingers. A fierce, resolute fire ignited in his eyes. He wanted to rush out, shove the man away, and pull her back into his arms, whether she wanted to or not.
Zhou Yue could no longer hold back and rushed out with an almost tearing impulse. However, just as he rushed close, Xia Zhiyao suddenly turned around, strode straight ahead, and disappeared into the dimly lit entrance of the corridor.
The bespectacled man stood there, staring blankly in the direction she had disappeared. He seemed unwilling but powerless. After a long silence, he raised his hand to adjust his glasses and a bitter smile appeared on his lips.
At this moment, Zhou Yue walked over step by step, the night wind carrying the smell of alcohol and a sharp aura on his body, his steps heavy yet carrying an undeniable determination.
The man noticed the movement and slowly turned his head. His gaze met Zhou Yue's. Under the light, a complex look flashed in his eyes. He seemed to want to say something, but when he met Zhou Yue's dark and oppressive gaze, he swallowed his words.
Zhou Yue didn't say anything, but simply reached out and pressed the doorbell.
When he turned back, the man had already turned and left, his shadow stretched long by the streetlights, gradually disappearing into the night. The man didn't try to stop him, nor did he turn back; only a silent loneliness remained, slowly dissipated by the wind.
Zhou Yue stood at the door, his hand still on the doorbell, his chest burning with a mixture of anger and pain, making his breath hot.
Xia Zhiyao had just entered the house, hadn't even taken off her shoes, and was about to wash her hands when the screen of the video doorbell lit up. She paused slightly, but still reached out and pressed the call button.
"Who is it?" she asked, and Zhou Yue's figure suddenly appeared in the flashing screen.
He stood at the doorway, his bangs disheveled by the night wind, his coat billowing open and losing its usual straight lines, making him look disheveled and depressed.
But those eyes were dark and intense, staring intently at the camera. "It's me, Zhou Yue."
His voice was low and hoarse, tinged with the acridity of alcohol. His few words were so heavy they seemed to crack the air: "Open the door."
Xia Zhiyao's fingertips hovered over the unlock button, trembling slightly, but she didn't press it down. She stared at the screen, her heart clenching. Those dark eyes were like flames, burning her relentlessly, leaving her nowhere to escape.
"Zhou Yue." She finally spoke, her voice soft and hoarse, as if the night had lowered its volume. "You should leave." The moment the words left her lips, she could feel the stinging pain in her throat.
Zhou Yue on the other end of the screen froze for half a second, his brows furrowed, but his eyes grew even more intense. He pursed his lips slightly and said, "If you don't open the door, I'll just wait here."
Xia Zhiyao's fingertip hovered, frozen on the unlock button. She closed her eyes briefly, and finally, slowly pressed it down.
With a soft "beep," the door lock unlocked, and the two met eyes the moment the door was pulled open.
The corridor lights were dim and flickering, but when they reflected in his eyes, they were like a fire that had suddenly been ignited.
Zhou Yue stood at the door, his breath still tinged with the effects of alcohol. His gaze was so intense it was almost uncontrollable, yet it was fixed firmly on her alone. It was a gaze so resolute it bordered on obsessive, as if if she took another step back, he would pull her back at all costs.
Xia Zhiyao frowned, her tone cold and distant: "Why are you here?"
Zhou Yue didn't answer. He just took a step forward, braced his arm against the door frame, trapping her between the door and his arms.
His tall figure loomed over her, casting a shadow that was so intense it was almost suffocating. Xia Zhiyao instinctively tried to back away, but his burning gaze held her firmly in place, making even her breathing slightly erratic.
Xia Zhiyao looked up to meet his gaze. His eyes were filled with a storm of stubbornness and pain, so intense that she instinctively wanted to retreat, but there was no way out behind her.
"Zhou Yue, let go." Her voice was cold, but it trembled slightly.
Zhou Yue looked up at her, his eyes swirling with unspeakable emotions. His voice was low and almost hoarse, carrying an uncontrollable mix of domineering and vulnerability: "Just now... who was that person?"
Xia Zhiyao's expression instantly turned cold, her brows and eyes sharp as knives. Her voice was colder than the wind: "What's it to you?"
Zhou Yue stared at her, his gaze dark and deep. Suddenly, the corners of his lips curled up slightly, a smile so faint it was almost invisible, yet it revealed a heart-stopping stubbornness.
He lowered his voice, with an almost obsessive certainty, and said, word by word, "Xia Zhiyao, you know very well that anything that concerns you is related to me."
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