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墨書 Inktalez
Liu felt particularly low today. The meeting had ended three and a half hours ago, and the building staff had long since gone home. The autumn sky always seemed to be shrouded in a gray haze. It felt as if she could hear the footsteps of night approaching, with the bare trees wrapped in a layer of white plastic sheeting rustling in the wind. The streets were eerily quiet, with only a few hurried pedestrians rushing home to escape the biting autumn chill. One by one, the streetlights flickered on as night fell, casting a dim glow against the gray-white horizon, while a thin layer of Mist Veil enveloped them, making their light appear even more hazy.
Several times, lost in thought about the day's events, Liu nearly collided with another car, causing her to break out in a cold sweat. She could no longer afford to be careless; shaking her head to clear her mind, she focused intently on the road ahead.
Once home, she wearily shed her outerwear and rolled up her sleeves to start cooking. Her husband was working overtime at school with a group of children just beginning to practice their basics. Looking around their nearly one-hundred-square-meter apartment, it felt rather spacious for just the two of them. For years after their marriage, they had eagerly anticipated having a lovely baby, but whether it was due to her body’s shortcomings or other reasons, despite their best efforts and careful planning, each hope had turned into disappointment.
Her husband's temper had grown increasingly strange; he would fly off the handle at the slightest provocation and sometimes even resort to physical outbursts. Liu prepared everything meticulously before heading to the living room to turn on the TV. A letter on the tea table caught her attention. Picking it up, she noticed that neither the recipient's name nor the sender's name or address was written on the envelope. She wondered who had left it there. As she held it, she felt something hard inside; it seemed that the envelope hadn’t been sealed with glue or anything similar.
Liu tore open the envelope and pulled out a disc. Frowning in contemplation for a few seconds, she decided she wanted to see what was on it. She ejected the disc tray from the player and pressed for automatic input. Adjusting the TV channel to video mode, she hit play.
After a flurry of static, a clear image appeared on screen: a car… wait, looking at that license plate… how could it be? That car belonged to Zhang, the Chief Editor. Inside were two people—a man and a woman… The car drove into Liuhua Grand Hotel… The man got out first and gallantly opened the door for the woman beside him. The woman slowly emerged from the vehicle; that outfit looked so familiar… The woman’s back was turned to Liu watching from the TV screen, but for some reason, she desperately wanted to see her face… The man was indeed Zhang, the Chief Editor.
The woman seemed somewhat shy and tried to hide something intentionally; however, Zhang extended his arm toward her, and she still slipped her hand into his embrace as they casually walked into the hotel like a couple in love. As Zhang checked into a room, the woman turned her head slightly…
Liu stared in shock at the screen—it was where she and Zhang had secretly met at Liuhua Grand Hotel… Watching this scene unfold made her face flush hot as if someone had slapped her. In a flurry of panic, she hurriedly removed the disc from its tray and looked around helplessly, unsure how to deal with this disc that someone had deliberately left there.
The sound of her husband unlocking the door echoed from the entrance, sending Liu into further disarray. She quickly stuffed the disc against herself; it slipped into her bra. It felt uncomfortable having something so bulky pressed against her chest, but as long as her husband didn’t find out, that was all that mattered. She nervously swallowed hard and forced a smile to mask her earlier panic.
"You're back? Are you hungry?"
"Yeah, I'm exhausted!" Her husband Xu Ziming said as he changed his shoes and plopped down onto the sofa with a sigh of relief. He glanced at his wife with an expressionless face and asked, "What time did you finish work tonight? I thought you were working late."
"I... well... there was a meeting; something came up at work," Liu replied as dinner was served on the table. "A boss had to lead an impromptu meeting; I couldn't let them down! I had to stay until it was over."
"Would you like a drink?" came the eager question.
"Sure, I'll have a glass! You're acting strange tonight. Didn't you used to dislike me drinking?" Xu Ziming walked into the kitchen, turned on the faucet, and while washing his hands, glanced back at his wife.
"Um... well, I thought you’ve had a tough day, so I made a nice dish for you to enjoy with your drink," Liu replied, suppressing the sudden wave of panic that surged within her. She was afraid of her husband drinking; once he started, he would get drunk and become violent. She couldn't pinpoint when this had begun, but after each painful episode, she tried hard to forget...
"Mm, not bad. Today's dish has a unique flavor." After taking a sip of wine, Xu Ziming's cold gaze swept over his wife sitting across from him. A hint of bitter amusement curled at the corners of his mouth.
"As long as it suits your taste! I've been buying takeout lately and got lazy. So when I saw there were ingredients in the fridge today, I decided to cook!" She took a bite of food and felt a flicker of warmth in her heart as she watched her husband eat heartily.
"Pour me another glass..." Xu Ziming, already struggling with alcohol, had turned red after just one drink but insisted on having more. His shout startled Liu so much that her chopsticks slipped from her fingers, clattering to the floor.
"Maybe you shouldn't drink anymore. Your body can't handle it. You might..."
"What will happen? You said... you were the one who asked me to drink first. Did you do something to betray me that you're being so nice?" Xu Ziming's eyes were bloodshot and glaring as he pressed his wife with an aggressive tone.
"You... what are you talking about! I'm just going to the bathroom..." Liu suddenly felt a wave of anxiety wash over her as she looked at her husband's flushed face; her heart raced inexplicably. She wanted to leave and move what was in her bra to the bathroom. Every time she saw him like this, it led to chaos and struggle, and she was scared...
"Go ahead! Just come back and pour me some more wine..." Xu Ziming surprisingly agreed to her request to go to the bathroom. Liu felt like a frightened kitten as she stepped toward the bathroom. Behind her, she could hear her husband mumbling incoherently; she dared not look back at him as she hurriedly made her way to the bathroom door.
Inside the bathroom was an Italian-imported multi-functional showerhead, a mirror surface sink, a countertop dressing table, and a squat toilet... There seemed to be no good place to hide that round disc. Liu's gaze fell on the trash bin next to the squat toilet; it was filthy—Xu Ziming would likely not think to look there.
"Hey! Hurry up!" Xu Ziming's voice echoed from the dining room, startling Liu so much that she didn’t think twice. She quickly pulled out the disc from her bra and stuffed it into the trash bin before pretending to urinate by squatting over the toilet. After tugging at her pants for a moment, she hurriedly turned on the faucet to wash her hands.
"Here, here..." Before the response was finished, she looked up and saw her husband standing in the doorway.
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