Chapter 0308

The surveillance footage showed the time as 6:00 pm. Miranda was sitting on the couch alone in the vast living room.

Hansel knew at first glance that she was waiting for him to come home.

She wasn’t watching television, nor was she playing on her phone. She sat there quietly, like a rose slowly withering away.

No matter what time he returned home, there would always be a light left on in the living room for him. It turned out that the feeling of home that he craved was built on Miranda’s daily compromises, her tireless waiting, and complete self–sacrifice of her needs.

“When I was young, my dad was busy with work while my mother only cared about socializing. They left me in the care of a nanny at home. Even though I had both parents and was well–off financially, I never experienced the warmth of a family…

“Mimi, I really envy you sometimes… You have a simple and uncomplicated relationship with your family. Your parents love each other and brought you up in a loving manner. They put their all into taking care of you.

“My parents still think money can solve everything to this day. They believe if they spend enough, they can raise a perfect son. If I’m not good enough, it must be that they have not spent enough on me.

“Mimi, it is my good fortune to have met you. You showed me what love and warmth could feel like.

“Ever since we got together, I can’t help but imagine our future lives in my mind. After I come back home from work, I can see you busying yourself in the kitchen while our children are playing in the living room. Us, as a family of three, four, or five, having dinner together…

“After dinner, the kids will be playing in the garden. You will be sitting on the swing while I push you gently from behind. We will smile as we watch our kids running, laughing, and playing…

“Mimi, believe me. We will live a blissful life like this until our hair turns white and death do us part…”

Inexplicably, Hansel’s ears echoed with the words and promises he had once spoken to Miranda when they first got together.

He said he longed for the warmth of family, for a loving wife and beautiful children.

Over time, he had forgotten his promises. However, Miranda remembered every word and tried to build the future he had promised with her actions.

But now, he had ruined everything! He had ruined it all!

Hansel raised his hand and slapped himself hard across the face.

The slap echoed loudly in contrast to the silent night. However, it was too late.

He had lost her. He also lost the life he had once longed for, and he had lost the woman who loved him more than anyone else in the world.

The footage gradually shifted to 1:00 am.

In the video, Hansel finally came home, but he appeared to be drunk. He walked right past her, who was asleep on the couch, and went upstairs directly.

Right after he had left, Miranda slowly opened her eyes and stared at the crystal chandelier above her. One second, two seconds…

She waited for three whole minutes before finally sitting up and staring blankly in the direction he had left. It turned out that she hadn’t been asleep at all!

What was Miranda thinking at that moment?

Hansel had no idea, and he didn’t dare to guess either. Probably, that was how her disappointment accumulated bit by bit.

Miranda didn’t break up with him on impulse. Instead, her love for him gradually eroded away day by day due to the accumulation of disappointment she felt. The inevitable outcome was a result of his actions. In Hansel’s subconscious, he was certain that Miranda would never leave him. That was why he dared to be so reckless in treating her. The feelings of love he had once squandered were now irretrievably lost.

Hansel stared at the screen in silence for a long, long time…

It wasn’t until he heard the howling wind outside the window that he recollected his drifting thoughts. Hansel remembered why he had come to the study and checked the surveillance footage in the first place.