Chapter 23: You Can’t Even Be Considered a Rival in Love

Tang Man’s fingernails slid across the hardboard on the table. She raised her head and looked at the gentle-faced man sitting across from her, frowning slightly.

“You’re stalking me?”

Du Henian’s voice softened. He sensed Tang Man’s resistance and the displeasure in her expression. He said, “Man Man, Si Jiahe is not as harmless as you think.”

Although his tone was gentle as usual, there was still a hint of contempt. He had tried his best to suppress it, but jealousy inevitably leaked out a little.

Si Jiahe was like a thorn in his heart. He knew that Tang Man’s past boyfriends were basically monthly disposables, but only Si Jiahe had been with her for more than three years, almost four years.

He knew that if the two of them hadn’t quarreled and given each other the cold shoulder, acting on impulse and breaking up, he wouldn’t have had a chance to be with Tang Man at all.

At that time, Tang Man only got together with him because of his good looks and his deliberate seduction. The origin of this relationship was not due to mutual love, but his unilateral deliberate seduction and long-term planning. For Tang Man, who happened to be in a relationship gap due to the failure of a long-term relationship at that time, Du Henian was just a replaceable existence that happened to appear, dispensable.

In his view, the existence of Si Jiahe in Tang Man’s heart was ultimately different, roughly equivalent to a “white moonlight” existence.

Tang Man knew that Si Jiahe had changed a lot and was not as simple as before. But everything in the world is changing, let alone people. However, even for a heartless person like Tang Man, Du Henian’s words still made her feel a little uncomfortable when she heard them.

At this time, coffee was served. Tang Man lowered her eyes and did not comment on Du Henian’s words. She gently stirred the fragrant ceramic cup with a spoon, touching the cup wall and making a crisp tinkling sound.

She glanced at the man across from her and suddenly felt that this scene was somewhat familiar.

Or maybe it was the same feeling in her heart that made her feel that this scene had been repeated many times.

But Tang Man could never figure out why Du Henian was so hostile to Si Jiahe. After all, Si Jiahe was also a junior who had called Du Henian a senior, and there should have been more affection between the two.

She thought this in her heart and also asked out loud.

After proposing to break up, many questions that were once taboo during the love period could now be asked without any obstacles, because there were no longer many considerations.

However, after hearing her question, Du Henian looked at her for a while and suddenly smiled, saying, “Man Man, sometimes I really think you are a person without a heart.”

Tang Man laughed indifferently, “Oh, then you still like a person without a heart. It’s not worth it and a waste of time.” It wasn’t the first or second time she had been evaluated like this when breaking up.

Because Xie Li was sitting not far away, Tang Man’s courage gradually grew. With a backer, she could be willful and impulsive, so she said this sentence with a smile while looking at Du Henian.

If she had come here alone, she would never dare to provoke a man like Du Henian.

Du Henian’s expression was still relatively calm when he heard her words, and he didn’t seem to be very angry. Of course, if Tang Man hadn’t noticed his fingertips constantly rubbing the cup surface and his slightly trembling eyelashes, she would have been fooled too.

However, after venting for a while, she suddenly felt a little bored.

This was also quite boring.

And it was really not good-looking for such a handsome face to be tainted with jealousy.

After saying this, Tang Man felt amused by her own impulsiveness. She put down the cup and only then looked at Du Henian seriously. She came today to resolve post-breakup matters, not to quarrel.

Realizing this, her voice softened rarely, “Henian, can’t we break up peacefully?”

“I don’t want to make things awkward between us when we meet in the future.”

She sincerely hoped that every relationship could end perfectly, and she didn’t want to hurt Du Henian too deeply. During the few years they were together, she had experienced happiness.

However, unfortunately, as soon as she finished saying this, the phone screen on the table lit up, showing a WeChat message coming in.

The contact name happened to be Si Jiahe.

Du Henian was sitting across from her, and the coffee table was not very big. It was almost at the level where a slight glance could see it. Obviously, Du Henian saw it, and his face instantly turned ugly. He coldly snorted.

Because of Tang Man’s words, his calm face gradually turned pale again, and even with his gentle and restrained temperament, he couldn’t help but jab at Tang Man.

“We break up peacefully, and then let you be with this person safely and soundly?”

If it weren’t for the need to maintain his dignity in front of Tang Man, perhaps the words “bitch” would have spilled out of his mouth. The words Si Jiahe said over the phone last time were like a fishbone stuck in his throat. After a few years, he had indeed made a lot of progress.

Tang Man’s face also became a little unnatural, feeling that this message came at the wrong time.

It was completely adding insult to injury.

The atmosphere gradually became silent, and the phone screen also went dark, like a troublemaking child who quietly ran away after achieving its purpose in order to avoid being caught by its parents.

Du Henian’s eyes gradually reddened under Tang Man’s silent expression. Without the shield of glasses, they revealed a sense of vulnerability.

Tang Man’s hand on the table was held and clasped in the other person’s palm. She didn’t know if it was her illusion, but the man’s wrist seemed to be a little thinner, as if he had lost weight.

Du Henian opened his mouth and pleaded, “Man Man, can we not break up?”

Tang Man said, “I thought our relationship couldn’t last long ago. When I called you to break up that day, I also said that I knew you checked my phone, but you should also know that I hate this kind of behavior the most, but you still did it.”

“If this kind of relationship continues, it will only make both parties more painful.”

Du Henian seemed to lack a sense of security by nature and lacked trust in Tang Man. Perhaps from the very beginning, he didn’t think Tang Man would always be with him, so he was on guard and attentive in this relationship.

Tang Man felt that although she was well taken care of, she still had a sense of confinement like being trapped in an iron barrel. This sense of confinement slowly crept into her heart like boiling a frog in warm water, causing her to only discover Du Henian’s abnormality two years later.

After all, this person’s appearance was too gentle, making people feel harmless. If placed in an idol drama, it would be the standard appearance of a deeply affectionate second male lead.

She looked at Du Henian, whose eyes were red at the corners.