36

Tonight, the moon shone the brightest and seemed bigger than usual. The moonlight smoothly cascaded like some sort of halo over the people below.

Even from far away, people could see the enlarged version of the beautiful moon from their's house windows.

Vehicles heavily congested the road, albeit the clock had long passed midnight, and the traffic was busy with the cars going back and forth.

The surrounding is noisy and rowdy.

There is the sound of blaring honks, tires screeching across the asphalts, and the roaring of engines booming across the long and endless road.

Everything mixed created a dizzying buzzing sound in the eardrums and drowned the voice of the news anchor from the radio.

Arthur looked at the constant-changing scenery from inside his car.

His expression was gloomy, and the aura of depression heavily shrouded the black, expensive modern car.

He leaned on the backrest, arms sometimes folded and sometimes rested nervously on his lap with his two slender long legs propped upon one another.

The driver occasionally looked behind him through the reflection of the rearview mirror. Each time, his boss's gloomy face greeted his sight. He looked like he wanted to murder someone.

The breathtaking night scenery of a busy metropolitan city would marvel anyone, but not him. Arthur had grown tired of this city, and every day, he would think about nothing but wanting to escape from this suffocating urban forest, searching for his disobedient wife and bringing him home. He would definitely tie the man to his bed and chain him down lest his wife tried to run away again if he was careless.

Arthur snapped from his trance-like state after his phone rang continuously. He looked over the screen, and the name of the bodyguard, whose job is to stalk Xie, appeared.

He answered the call immediately.

-Sir, a suspicious person, had been following Madam everywhere like a stalker, and she seemed to appear out of thin air.-

Hearing this makes Arthur want to roll his eyes. A stalker had the gut to call others a stalker. Really funny.

-You knew her identity?- Arthur's eyes darkened slightly. It's rare for someone to stalk his wife without any ulterior motive. Most of them bring more trouble than profit to either Xie or him.

-She is the one who troubles Madam on the first day of his journey. I think her name is Leyla Klein.-

-Leyla Klein? She again?- Arthur's face displayed obvious displeasure as soon as he heard the name of the stalker. He knew her. Not personally, but she is the new intern in his company who has just started working in Marketing Department.

Leyla Klein's appearance is only mediocre(in his eyes), her qualification and past achievements are subpar; not worth mentioning, and she has only one working experience unrelated to her current work.

Leyla Klein had a questionable and shady background. No matter how hard his subordinate investigated, they couldn't find anything about her except she was an orphan who grew up in an orphanage.

His impression of her was she was an ambitious and greedy person. She cannot hide these two emotions from appearing on her face, and despite looking like a well-behaved woman with a good temperament, he feels that everything about her is fake. She also is very good at pretending as a virtuous person.

She also tried harder to appear before his eyes, endlessly brushing her presence in front of him, flaunting her face and body, and had resorted to many beauty tricks that should work on ordinary men but not him.

Because, right now, he thought about his wife only. His wife's face conquered his brain all day long, and he had no time to spare his memory on something else. He didn't know that his action had diminished Leyla's influence on him, thus rendering her effort useless.

And Arthur let her go because she hasn't yet stepped over the boundary. He didn't want to fire her without reason and harm his company's reputation.

It is only a hunch. But if Arthur dismisses Leyla without preparation, the one in trouble might be him, not her.

Arthur clicked his tongue indignantly.

He was happy when this woman no longer appeared before his eyes. But to think she stopped harassing him because she found a new target and aimed for his wife, whoever could bear this?! I will kick her out of the company as soon as possible!

He didn't know how someone as annoying as her could pass the interview and get accepted into his prestigious company.

Who was the idiot who approved her application and let her into his company?

(Author: Who else? You're the idiot. You're the one who let this wolf disguised as a sheep into the house.)

(Arthur: Oh. I'm guilty of this crime😓)

-She keeps looking at Madam with hostility as if she wants to harm him. I'm afraid she has an ill-intention toward Madam.-

Arthur's ears perked up. He straightened his waist and sat uprightly.

His hand couldn't help but clench his phone in anxiousness.

-How did she know my wife? No, how did she find him? No one was supposed to know about Xie's whereabouts.-

-Regarding this, I also have no answer, Sir. And I don't think Madam knows her either.-

Arthur's frown deepened. Somehow, this woman named Leyla Klein brought unpleasant feelings to him. Did she intend to harm his wife? He never believes in coincidence. If once, maybe. Twice?

-Should we detain her, Sir?-

Arthur wanted to say yes, but he knew this was impossible. That woman hasn't done anything outrageous to his wife yet.

"..." But leaving her alone without supervision makes him feel uneasy. Knowing that she probably wants to harm his wife but does nothing to prevent it, wouldn't he regret it later when something indeed happens?

Even if Leyla Klein looked ordinary, Arthur couldn't help but feel that she was hiding something in her sleeves and possessed dangerous power that would harm his wife and everyone else.

If Leyla Klein knew her name had been crossed as a dangerous person by her target, she would undoubtedly cough a mouthful of blood and scream angrily, "How can this supposedly reliable capture target turn unreliable in a blink of an eye?! Where is justice in this world?!"

-Not yet. Our kingdom is not without law. She still hasn't done anything that warrants a detainment. Keep an eye on her and makes sure she never approaches my wife again.-

-I understand, Sir.-

-Is there anything else to report?-

The line went silent for several minutes. Somehow, Arthur had a foreboding premonition.

-...Uh...- The bodyguard seems unwilling to say it.

-What? Say it.-

-Another man had approached Madam today.- The bodyguard hesitated to continue his report, but he bit the bullet and said it anyway. -He seemed had professed his love toward Madam?-

-What?!!- Arthur almost smashed his face on the car's window because of this unexpected news. Even the driver spooked out at his harsh tone and unintentionally slammed his leg on the brake, causing the car to swerve dangerously before abruptly stopping.

Luckily, the car had long left the main highway and entered a deserted road with fewer vehicles. If not, he cannot imagine the consequence they might face because of his reckless action from before. But this blame shouldn't be put on him, Right? His employer is the one who suddenly shouted in the middle of the night and spooked him out. He should blame himself.

The driver seemed to realize something and freaked out. He scrambled in his seat, hastily unbuckled the seatbelt, and turned around to check his employer's condition.

"Sir, are you alright?!"

The driver's face changed very quickly from panic to horror.

He's doomed! Forget about wage deduction. He might get fired by his boss instead!

"Sir...?"

Arthur, unfortunately, had fallen into an embarrassing position(Author: I will leave this to readers' imagination😏).

The man's face was red. It was unknown whether he was angry or embarrassed after getting caught in this situation.

His hair was disheveled, clothes crumpled here and there, and some bruises on his handsome face, especially on one of his eyes which couldn't be opened and felt very painful. The corner of his lips was bleeding, and his mouth tasted like iron.

Arthur let out a disgruntled sound. He tried to move, but the painful sensation that came from his ankle prevented him from doing anything strenuous. His body was sore, and he guessed he had sprained his ankle.

Arthur glared at his driver, who flinched in response, shrinking his neck like a turtle hiding inside its shell. If a glare can kill, the driver had long met their Creator.

"You, I will get you back for this!"

"I'm sorry, Sir!"

****

Mini Theater.

Ring~

Ring~~

Ring~~~

In the dark, Xie squinted his eyes and fetched his phone on top of a drawer beside his bed.

He yawned twice, rubbing his sore eyes before swiping the green button.

His hoarse voice, laden with a hint of sleepiness inside them, groggily asked the caller's identity.

"It's me, Madam." The housekeeper calmly introduced himself.

"What's wrong? Why did you call me? It's in the middle of the night, don't you know?" Xie grumbled.

"Pardon my intrusion, Madam. I only need five minutes. I want to inform you that Master had an accident."

"...Who?" Maybe due to sleepiness, Xie's mind is loading very slowly.

"It's your husband, Madam."

Xie took a long time to sober up. He was flustered when the news finally dawned inside his mind.

"What? Why...no, I mean, is he okay? How about his injury? Where is he right now? The hospital? Should-should I return?" Xie sprang up from his comfy bed and rushed toward his wardrobe.

The housekeeper heard something being opened and closed, his Madam's rushing footsteps back and fro from somewhere, and the sound of clothes fumbling.

"Calm down, Madam. Please be assured that Master is fine. He's injured but not to the point of staying overnight in the hospital. He is currently resting in his room."

Xie stopped everything he did. The tense shoulders shagged down, and his anxious expression gradually faded out.

"Is it true? Is Arthur really okay? That's good. Thank goodness that he is alright."

Hearing the relief from within Madam's voice makes the housekeeper curl his lips in amusement.

He glanced behind him toward the man on the bed who tried his hardest to control his delight and maintain his indifferent face yet shamelessly keep eavesdropping on his conversation with Madam. The housekeeper even put the call on speaker under his Master's urging.

It looks like someone will be able to sleep soundly tonight.

"Madam."

"Yes?"

"Are you worried about Master?"

Xie was caught off guard by the housekeeper's question.

"...Who says that I'm worried about him?! I'm not!" He immediately refuted.

"From your voice before-"

"I'm not! You're mistaken! Who cares if he is injured?! It served him right. Hmph. I'm going to hang up the phone. Don't try to call me again because no one will answer them!"

Xie hastily cut off the call and slammed his phone on the bed. He lay down, pulled the blanket up to his chest, and tried his hardest to sleep. Even in this dimly-lit room, no one can ignore his reddened ears.

Though, he is doomed to be sleepless tonight because of his worry about Arthur's condition.

Xie wants to call Arthur but is reluctant to do so since he does not want to ignite any spark that will make their relationship better. What should he do?

Should he call the housekeeper again? Or should he not?

"I should probe further about his condition before hanging up. Is he really alright?" Xie mumbled.

Meanwhile, inside the mansion, someone is about to float up to the sky.

The man on the bed happily finished his supper. His smile never leaves his face, not even when the time he needs to take his medicine.

Arthur is in a good mood despite suffering some minor injuries. Even if he suffered a severe one, he wouldn't mind.

Because he knew these bruises were worth it.

Because of his injury, he knew his wife still cared about him.

The housekeeper beside the bed: "..."