He Only Shows His True Colors in Front of Me : Chapter 16

By mid-September, the autumn chill had deepened. Many people had switched to trench coats to shield themselves against the sudden gusts of wind that could blow through at any time. After signing the contract with Calista, Gu Yuanqiao began dropping by every few days, even bringing afternoon tea for the entire staff on the 30th floor. At first, everyone was a bit hesitant, but seeing that their boss didn’t object, they began to dig in without reservation.

Once, Sheng Yannian really couldn’t help but ask Gu Yuanqiao if it was a hassle to run up and down every day. There was an old saying that one doesn’t visit a temple without a reason; he began to suspect that Gu Yuanqiao had ulterior motives and was trying to buy off the hearts of his subordinates. However, Gu Yuanqiao just sipped his coffee elegantly and replied calmly, “Just burning off some calories after a meal.” He didn’t ask how Gu Yuanqiao got up there; after all, if the elevators were unusable, one could always take the stairs. Sometimes, when Sheng Yannian stepped out of his office at noon, he would see a few people glancing toward the stairwell from time to time, and it was obvious who they were waiting for. “A bunch of ungrateful wretches,” Sheng Yannian thought silently. They couldn’t hold onto their own principles after just a few days of free afternoon tea. It wasn’t like Gu Yuanqiao was paying their salaries! Of course, he wouldn’t actually say that out loud; he didn’t want to seem petty.

In the blink of an eye, it was the end of the month, the busiest time for every department. Sheng Yannian was no exception. At Sheng’an, he had a few capable lieutenants, so he didn’t have to handle every little thing himself like he did a few years ago. But his other venture, Kiwi, was still in its early stages, and the security equipment provided by Calista was still being perfected. With no other choice, Sheng Yannian had to run back and forth between the north and south sides. There were a few times when Gu Yuanqiao came down to look for him and found the office empty. Unlike Sheng Yannian, Gu Yuanqiao was relatively free in late September. Not only had Wen Han returned from a business trip to help shoulder some of the heavy burdens, but earlier in the month, he had also scouted out the major forces in S City. Furthermore, the land he had bought from Sheng’an wouldn’t be ready for development until after the new year, and the main family house had been unnaturally quiet. So, during this time, he spent his free time playing the stock market and investing to earn some pocket money. Recently, he had taken an interest in an entertainment agency that looked quite promising in terms of market value and future development. It was considered a leader in the industry, primarily signing artists, though some of its subsidiaries handled other businesses like variety shows, live streaming, and gossip journalism. It seemed they were planning to expand into film or music in the future. A few days ago, he had spoken with their chairman, a very straightforward and sincere man in his 40s. It seemed his son knew Sheng Yannian, so he would have to find an opportunity to ask about that.

On a Friday afternoon, Gu Yuanqiao arrived at the 30th floor once again with his “bribery” afternoon tea. This time, he didn’t arrive to an empty office. “Finished up over there?” Gu Yuanqiao said as he entered the office, carrying Sheng Yannian’s portion of the tea. Over these few days of dropping off food, he had noticed that Sheng Yannian actually quite liked sweets, especially strawberry-flavored ones. “Not exactly, just a little bit left. I’ll wrap it up tomorrow or the day after,” Sheng Yannian said, finishing signing a document. He noticed that Gu Yuanqiao, who usually sat directly opposite him, was sitting on the sofa this time, with the food placed on the coffee table. Sheng Yannian got up and walked over to sit opposite Gu Yuanqiao, only to notice that the man was still wearing his usual nonchalant smile, though there was a hint of something unreadable in his eyes when he saw him. It was very deliberate. “What’s wrong with you?” Sheng Yannian asked, frowning. “Hmm? Nothing, why do you ask?” Gu Yuanqiao seemed oblivious. “…Do you need me to bring you a mirror so you can see how pale you look right now?” Sheng Yannian said, looking him over carefully. He noticed some dust on Gu Yuanqiao’s trouser cuffs and some unnatural wrinkles on his shirt.

“…” Gu Yuanqiao was taken aback, then gave a bitter smile and stopped trying to hold up a front, leaning back into the sofa. “Is it that obvious?” “What exactly happened?” Sheng Yannian pressed, wondering if he had finally made enough enemies that someone had decided to teach him a lesson. “Nothing, just twisted my ankle,” Gu Yuanqiao said casually. “There’s what you like on the table, strawberry mousse and mango pomelo sago, go eat.” Gu Yuanqiao clearly didn’t intend to continue the topic. “…” Sheng Yannian was so angry he laughed. He had realized that Gu Yuanqiao just didn’t value his own body; every time an accident happened to him, he seemed not to care. A twisted ankle could be minor or major, but either way, it had to hurt, right? Would it kill him to say he was in pain? Even now, he still had to maintain that damn pride of his.

“What are you doing?” Gu Yuanqiao was very sensitive to emotions; he could tell the air pressure around the person opposite him was very low without Sheng Yannian saying a word. He thought for a moment and offered a guess, “You don’t like the mango pomelo sago?” In any case, he should like the strawberry mousse. “…” Sheng Yannian smiled at this, but Gu Yuanqiao didn’t relax his guard. This kid wasn’t going to take advantage of the fact that he couldn’t run away to play some trick on him, right? Sheng Yannian ignored Gu Yuanqiao’s inner mutterings, moved the dessert to the corner of the table, and then sat on the edge of the table, not far from Gu Yuanqiao. “You…” Gu Yuanqiao didn’t understand what was going on.

“Which side did you twist?” Sheng Yannian’s voice was very low. “…The right.” Gu Yuanqiao seemed to know what Sheng Yannian was about to do, and he hesitated. He probably should have stood up and walked away, but Sheng Yannian was watching him, and he couldn’t help but shrink back a little. “Give me your right foot.” Gu Yuanqiao swallowed; he didn’t want to do that. It was just a twisted ankle, nothing serious, wasn’t this a bit much? And they weren’t even on terms where they should be showing concern for each other, right? Sheng Yannian felt a flare of irritation seeing Gu Yuanqiao’s evasive eyes; and what’s more, Gu Yuanqiao was quietly shifting backward, his whole body written with resistance, just missing the words “I don’t want to.” “Ha…” Sheng Yannian laughed out loud this time. “Gu Yuanqiao, don’t make me say it a second time.” Gu Yuanqiao’s body, which had been sliding backward, froze. The sentence made him involuntarily think of the night they first slept together. A sense of shame emerged; they clearly hadn’t planned to do that, but in this scene and tone, it really felt improper. Sheng Yannian didn’t understand why Gu Yuanqiao’s neck was turning red, guessing perhaps he felt his pride had been wounded. So he didn’t say anything more, just waited quietly for Gu Yuanqiao to give him his foot.

Gu Yuanqiao stared at Sheng Yannian, knowing the other party wouldn’t back down and was prepared to wait him out. He closed his eyes, let out a slow breath, and resignedly lifted his right foot onto Sheng Yannian’s lap. Once the leg was up, Sheng Yannian stopped looking at Gu Yuanqiao and focused entirely on his right foot. His suit pants, which were usually well-fitted, slid up a bit because the leg was lifted, revealing a black sock. Looking at it like this, one couldn’t see much, so Sheng Yannian used one hand to support the heel of the leather shoe, preparing to take it off. As soon as he moved, the foot in his hand shrank back again. “Don’t move,” Sheng Yannian warned, glaring at the restless Gu Yuanqiao. “…” Gu Yuanqiao bit his teeth hard to keep from making a strange sound. Was it because they hadn’t done it in too long? Why was he like this? Gu Yuanqiao watched as Sheng Yannian slowly took off his leather shoe; this was more embarrassing than having his clothes unbuttoned. He had never taken off his shoes in a public place. Then came the socks; Sheng Yannian hooked his finger into the edge of his sock, and a temperature that wasn’t his own skin pressed suddenly against the side of his foot. Then the sock slid down, revealing pale skin. The moment his foot completely touched the air, his whole body couldn’t help but shudder. He didn’t know if he should be glad his feet didn’t smell, but at least he had been wearing shoes for half the day. Luckily, after Sheng Yannian finished taking it off, he placed his foot back on his thigh.

Gu Yuanqiao’s foot was also very pale, with blood vessels clearly visible on the instep. His toes were round, and his toenails were trimmed very cleanly. This made the red, swollen area on his ankle look very discordant. But luckily, the swelling wasn’t big; if treated properly, it should be mostly better in three or four days. Sheng Yannian reached out and touched it lightly, causing the other person to let out a muffled groan. His tone was unfriendly, but not fierce. “Does it hurt a lot?” “…It’s alright,” Gu Yuanqiao replied nonchalantly, as if it wasn’t him who had made the sound just now. “Hmph.” “It’s fine, the swelling isn’t big, I’ll put a plaster on when I get back, and it’ll disappear in a few days.” Sheng Yannian’s way of treating him like a fragile object made him very uncomfortable; he just wanted the other person to hurry up and let go of his foot. “Cut that out,” Sheng Yannian rolled his eyes in annoyance. “How did you fall? Did someone push you?” “…” Gu Yuanqiao was silent for a rare moment, then spoke very reluctantly, “No…” “?” Sheng Yannian was confused for a moment, then looked at Gu Yuanqiao with some disbelief. Gu Yuanqiao turned his head away, refusing to meet Sheng Yannian’s gaze, and admitted in a self-abandoned manner, “I was on the phone when I came down, didn’t pay attention, and missed a step.” “….Pfft…” Sheng Yannian couldn’t help it, turned his head, and laughed. But out of humanitarianism, he didn’t laugh too loudly; his slightly twitching shoulders showed he was trying very hard to hold it in.

When he had laughed enough, he met Gu Yuanqiao’s annoyed gaze again, resuming his usual sarcasm. “Mr. Gu, let me confirm, you are 29 years old this year, not 9, and definitely not 2, right?” “Mind your own business, I cushioned the fall,” Gu Yuanqiao defended himself in a low voice. “You’re actually proud of that? Do you want me to praise your great reflexes?” As soon as he finished speaking, Sheng Yannian caught a keyword. “Cushioned?” “Get…” The word “lost” was only half-pronounced, but hearing Sheng Yannian’s questioning, he realized it was bad. Sure enough, before he could change the subject, the man’s demand came again. “Show me your hands.” “…” Seeing no way out, Gu Yuanqiao had to hold out both hands. The palms were scraped with several marks, thin skin peeling off, with dust and soil particles sticking to the small beads of blood oozing out. “…” Sheng Yannian took a deep breath, completely helpless. Was this guy a life-skills idiot? Any person with a normal brain would know to perform emergency treatment, right?

Gu Yuanqiao felt guilty under his gaze, feeling like a child who had done something wrong. Even though Sheng Yannian was younger than him. Sheng Yannian put Gu Yuanqiao’s foot on the sofa and stood up to walk out, not forgetting to warn the restless man, “I’m going to get an ice pack, you better stay put.” “…” Gu Yuanqiao, who had just been about to reach for his sock, was forced to lie back on the sofa. Sheng Yannian returned quickly, carrying a thermal container and a towel. The container opened to reveal ice packs inside.

Sheng Yannian first wrapped the ice pack with the towel and then placed it on Gu Yuanqiao’s swollen ankle. “Hmm…” The cold made Gu Yuanqiao frown. Sheng Yannian didn’t stop his movements; he undid his tie and used it to tie the ice pack to Gu Yuanqiao’s foot. Looking at Sheng Yannian’s serious expression, Gu Yuanqiao’s heart couldn’t help but skip a beat. He really wasn’t used to this; he really didn’t understand why Sheng Yannian would treat him like this. It couldn’t just be because they’d slept together, could it? Or was there something else he wanted? Gu Yuanqiao stared at Sheng Yannian as he finished the emergency treatment and swiped on his phone a few times, always feeling it was like what he thought. The other person must want something; although he hadn’t asked Sheng Yannian to help him like this, he had helped anyway. If it wasn’t something too unreasonable, he might be able to give it… “What are you thinking about?” Sheng Yannian had just finished ordering hydrogen peroxide and Yunnan Baiyao, and when he turned around, he saw Gu Yuanqiao staring at him. His eyes were full of probing and calculation.

“What do you want?” Gu Yuanqiao didn’t waste words and asked directly. “Huh?” Sheng Yannian was confused. “I said, what do you want?” Gu Yuanqiao stared at him earnestly, without his usual smiling demeanor, and the unnatural emotion from just before was gone. The fake surface had peeled away, revealing undisguised coldness and calculation. The posture and aura of a person in power emerged, too strong for anyone to challenge.

Sheng Yannian didn’t know whether he should first lament that Gu Yuanqiao was no longer being fake, or feel a chill in his heart? The heating in the room was quite strong, but Sheng Yannian still felt very cold, from the inside out. He didn’t answer Gu Yuanqiao immediately, but walked over step by step. Gu Yuanqiao didn’t shrink back like before, and he wasn’t afraid. Sheng Yannian leaned over, putting his hands on either side of Gu Yuanqiao, the two very close, their breathing silently intertwined. It was incredibly intimate. “What does President Gu think I want?” Sheng Yannian smiled gently, his eyes very calm. But somehow, it made one think of the calm before a storm. “…I don’t know.” A flash of hesitation crossed Gu Yuanqiao’s mind. Could he have guessed wrong? Sheng Yannian wasn’t the type to beat around the bush; if he really wanted something, he would have just asked directly. “Would President Gu like to guess?” Sheng Yannian said slowly. “…” Gu Yuanqiao tried to analyze the situation, but failed to find an answer. Then, noticing the distance between them, a thought made his expression stiffen. “You wouldn’t… be wanting to do it here, would you?” Sheng Yannian rarely spent time pulling this kind of stuff with him; the few times they had, it was almost always about sex. So this was a reasonable guess.

“…” Sheng Yannian paused, almost losing his composure. He really wanted to pry open Gu Yuanqiao’s brain and see what he filled it with all day. “What if I said yes?” Sheng Yannian asked intentionally, a bit of anger in his tone. “It’s… not impossible?” Gu Yuanqiao didn’t overthink Sheng Yannian’s words; he just thought he had guessed correctly. There were people around him who liked this kind of play, he just hadn’t expected Sheng Yannian to be one of them. But as long as he knew the other person had an ulterior motive, that was enough. “Ha…” Sheng Yannian was completely defeated. He had discovered that you couldn’t beat around the bush when talking to Gu Yuanqiao, or the other party could circle around even better than he could.

Sheng Yannian stood up, ignoring the confusion in Gu Yuanqiao’s eyes. He felt once again the difference in their worldviews. “Gu Yuanqiao, is it that in your heart, everyone’s behavior is driven by some ulterior motive?” Sheng Yannian sat back down on the coffee table to look Gu Yuanqiao in the eye. Gu Yuanqiao didn’t speak, but his eyes already conveyed the “and what else?” meaning. “…Then let me ask you, in your heart, is my brother like that too?” Sheng Yannian brought up his brother, knowing his brother held a different place in Gu Yuanqiao’s heart. “No…” Gu Yuanqiao was silent for a while, his voice very soft, as if afraid of disturbing something. “Yanqing is different…” Sheng Yannian clearly saw in Gu Yuanqiao’s lowered eyes a gentleness and melancholy he had never even seen, like someone looking at the moon in the water.

“…Then why do you think I am?” For the first time, Sheng Yannian felt a bit bothered, his throat tight. Gu Yuanqiao didn’t answer, nor did he look at Sheng Yannian. At that moment, he realized for sure that he had really misunderstood the other person. But why? He couldn’t help clenching his fist again. “Stop clenching, doesn’t it hurt?” Sheng Yannian reminded him. He felt like he was teaching a child who had just stepped into society, telling him why people could have ‘truth, goodness, and beauty.’ Gu Yuanqiao let go of his hand when he heard this. “Then let me change the question, why do you order food for them every time you come here?” Teacher Sheng asked. “Because I need to maintain my persona.” Luckily, little Gu was cooperative and answered the question easily. “Okay, even if you need to maintain it, do you have to order it every time? No one would think anything of it if you did it occasionally, right?” “…Because it’s strange to order the first time and not the second.” Gu Yuanqiao hesitated. “Okay, let’s say you still have to maintain your persona.” Sheng Yannian asked another question. “Then why do you remember the preferences of most of the people? It would be fine to just order anything if it were just for the sake of appearances, right?” “….” Gu Yuanqiao closed his mouth and didn’t answer.

Sheng Yannian took the dessert that had been set aside and took it out. “Knowing I like strawberry flavor, all these days, everything you gave me were desserts involving strawberries?” “…Yes.” Gu Yuanqiao bit his lip. He felt this was practically a torture session. Sheng Yannian was dissecting him; this was more uncomfortable than being naked and intertwined with him. “Why?” This time it was Sheng Yannian’s turn to ask in a low voice. “What?” Gu Yuanqiao didn’t understand what Sheng Yannian meant. He looked up and saw the other party holding the strawberry mousse with a blank expression, his eyes filled with distrust and inquiry. He only took one look before quickly lowering his gaze. He felt a bit oxygen-deprived, his brain running sluggishly. Even knowing this was the other party’s pretense, his heart still tightened, making him uncomfortable.

“According to President Gu’s theory, shouldn’t I also have some ulterior motive toward you? So what is it? What does President Gu want? If the request isn’t unreasonable, I can satisfy it. That office play you mentioned earlier is also possible, you know. President Gu, what do you think?” Sheng Yannian unpacked the mousse, took a spoonful with a fork, and fed it into Gu Yuanqiao’s pale mouth. The mousse melted in his mouth, and the sweet strawberry flavor filled his palate, helping him recover a little focus. “How about it, President Gu, have you decided what you want?” Sheng Yannian pulled out the fork and fed a spoonful to himself, asking with a smile. “I…” Gu Yuanqiao swallowed the mousse, but he opened his mouth for a long time and couldn’t think of anything. It seemed… he didn’t want anything? If he wanted to have sex with Sheng Yannian, he could just ask; after all, they had another verbal agreement. Sheng’an and Kiwi? There was nothing he wanted there either. Then why did he remember their taste preferences at the time? Why do such time-consuming and meaningless things? It seemed… he just thought of it, so he did it? Gu Yuanqiao’s brow furrowed more and more the more he thought about it, and without noticing, another spoonful of mousse was fed into his mouth.

“Is it just that you thought of it, and so you did it?” Sheng Yannian said exactly what Gu Yuanqiao was thinking. “….” No response, which was an admission. “But actually, you have requests you could make.” Sheng Yannian took another sip of mango pomelo sago. “?” Gu Yuanqiao was curious about what kind of request he could make. Seeing Gu Yuanqiao’s look, Sheng Yannian chuckled and hinted helplessly, “The elevator.” “….” Gu Yuanqiao suddenly realized. “You could ask me for elevator access to freely enter all floors of Sheng’an, or to take the president’s private elevator just like me. But you didn’t. Instead, you ran back and forth between the 30th and 35th floors from time to time, conducting so-called ‘post-meal digestive’ activities, and brought warmth to my subordinates. And then today, you fell face-first in the dirt. Tell me, what was your motive?” “….” Gu Yuanqiao felt he had been described as a fool. “Like a complete idiot.” Sheng Yannian stated bluntly.

Gu Yuanqiao stared dimly at Sheng Yannian, watching the other person gnash his teeth at him while eating, and felt much better. He rarely ate sweet things, it was too cloying. But the mousse from just now was delicious. “What are you smiling at while staring at me?” Sheng Yannian was in a good mood; he felt he had seen a new side of Gu Yuanqiao. And it was a rare opportunity for him to ‘mentor’ someone. “Nothing, I just discovered that you’re actually quite cute.” Gu Yuanqiao laughed softly. Gu Yuanqiao’s undisguised mood flowed out from his heart; this small space of ten square meters was more free and peaceful than any place he had ever been.

Gu Yuanqiao still had his eyes lowered, not like when he mentioned his brother. There were tiny stars in his eyes; it was no longer a shadowy moon, but the line between water and sky at dawn. This kind of smile was because of him… This thought made Sheng Yannian, who had no preparation, miss a heartbeat. He quickly turned his head, not looking at the person who was still laughing softly. He took big gulps of the iced mango pomelo sago, trying to calm himself down. The charm of the dead fox was truly great; just one smile and he was like this. If he smiled like this often… Sheng Yannian wasn’t paying attention and bit the soft flesh of his cheek, hurting enough to make him want to stomp his foot. Damn it, that wasn’t his business either.

Gu Yuanqiao laughed until he realized Sheng Yannian had turned away at some point, his earlobes exceptionally red. He couldn’t help but check the AC: 23 degrees Celsius, it was fine, right? He was about to ask when the office door was knocked. “President Sheng, the things you bought have arrived.” It was Shi Xiayao’s voice outside. Sheng Yannian was about to get up to get them, then thought of something and turned to look at Gu Yuanqiao. The man had a warning expression, in a non-intimidating version. Sheng Yannian smiled fittingly and then said like a devil, “Come in.” “….” Gu Yuanqiao didn’t know what had provoked Sheng Yannian again, but he really wanted to take a hammer and beat the other person to death. How could anyone see him in this unpresentable state?! Mainly, if the person suddenly asked why he was hurt, how was he supposed to answer?! Seeing Gu Yuanqiao’s ostrich-like appearance, wanting to find something to cover his face, Sheng Yannian’s benevolence finally kicked in, and he stood beside him, shielding him from view. Gu Yuanqiao, seeing Sheng Yannian’s ostrich-like “covering one’s ears to steal a bell” posturing, wanted to kill him even more.

But luckily, Shi Xiayao was professional. After handing the medicine to Sheng Yannian, she retreated conscientiously, her eyes not darting around. After she left, Gu Yuanqiao let out a sigh of relief, glaring at Sheng Yannian, who had sat down on the coffee table in front of him. “Hold out your hand.” Sheng Yannian chose to ignore the glare. Gu Yuanqiao complied; he wasn’t going to make things difficult for himself. Sheng Yannian looked at the two reddened palms and felt the pain himself. He took out the hydrogen peroxide and poured it onto the wounds little by little. “Hiss…” Hydrogen peroxide was much better than alcohol, but it still stung a little. The moment the water touched the wound, a lot of white foam appeared. Sheng Yannian frowned, put the medicine aside, and blew gently on Gu Yuanqiao’s hand. Gu Yuanqiao shrank his hand back slightly; the air blown by Sheng Yannian made his skin feel cool and a bit itchy. The itchiness slid down his palm into the bottom of his heart.

He pursed his lips and watched Sheng Yannian. After waiting for the white foam to disappear, he poured the hydrogen peroxide again and then blew gently just like before, as if that could reduce his pain. This was likely the first time Sheng Yannian had handled someone else’s wound; his movements in pouring the water were not crisp, his aim was off, and when he washed it with clean water, he even got his pants wet. Sheng Yannian handled it very slowly, but after each action, there was that soothing gentle air. Gu Yuanqiao only felt that his heart was very hot, so hot that even the burning sensation of the wound could be ignored. Sheng Yannian’s expression was serious. For the first time, he realized that Sheng Yannian’s eyes were actually so good-looking. Gu Yuanqiao felt he was a bit abnormal, or perhaps affected by this strange and intimate atmosphere; he didn’t feel like himself. Was it because he was injured?

He was a bit at a loss. He had accepted too many emotions today that he hadn’t had before, and his brain was a bit overloaded. Should he tell Sheng Yannian that he actually wasn’t in that much pain? He could actually handle it faster; it was just a minor wound, no need to be this serious. Or should he teasingly joke with Sheng Yannian, asking if he was feeling heartbroken for him? Or maybe just take back the initiative, after all, he could handle this wound himself, no need for others… In short, any reaction would do, just not being silent like this, letting Sheng Yannian “mess around” with his hands.

Overbearing and unreasonable, completely disregarding boundaries, he hated this kind of person the most—acting on their own, being disrespectful to him, and constantly working against him… Gu Yuanqiao listed all of Sheng Yannian’s “crimes” in his heart, wanting to find the most convincing one to persuade himself as in the past, and then start taking action. But while his head was thinking, his hand involuntarily grabbed Sheng Yannian’s wrist. By the time he realized it, it was too late. “Hmm?” Sheng Yannian, who was just about to spray the Yunnan Baiyao, paused. “What’s wrong? Does it hurt?” Sheng Yannian’s gentle tone reached Gu Yuanqiao’s ears, along with the look in his eyes—it looked no different than usual, but with faint concern. No impatience. Gu Yuanqiao’s throat tightened, the sound he made having an imperceptible tremor. “A little…” He lied.

“Is that so? Then I’ll be gentler.” Sheng Yannian saw that the corners of Gu Yuanqiao’s eyes were a bit red and thought, it must be really painful. If it hurt so much, why keep being stubborn and not say anything earlier? He really didn’t know what he was thinking. After saying this, Sheng Yannian’s movements did indeed become lighter. “If you don’t want it to hurt like this in the future, pay attention to where you’re walking, and handle injuries immediately. If you don’t know how, ask someone for help; your mouth is for speaking, not decoration.” After spraying the medicine, Gu Yuanqiao couldn’t help but nag. Finding the opportunity to “scold,” he let out a stream of words. “Hmm…” Gu Yuanqiao replied with a smile. “…?” Sheng Yannian, who didn’t get a retort, was stunned. He looked at Gu Yuanqiao and found the other person was actually still smiling? Did he fall and break his brain too? “What’s wrong?” “Nothing, it’s fine.” Sheng Yannian recovered; the obedient Gu Yuanqiao made him very uncomfortable. They were better suited for bickering. He went to the thermal container and took out a new pack of ice; it was about time to change it.

Gu Yuanqiao felt Sheng Yannian’s movements and spoke up, “Thank you, this is the first time someone has helped me treat a wound like this.” “That’s good, it means you haven’t been injured much before.” Sheng Yannian tied the tie back on. Gu Yuanqiao smiled without further explanation. “Alright, remember to use a cold compress when you go back today, and a hot compress after two days. If it still doesn’t work, go to the hospital.” Sheng Yannian stood up and sat back on the coffee table without any proper posture to continue eating his strawberry mousse. “Hmm,” Gu Yuanqiao laughed softly. “That…” “Hmm?” “Can I find you if I get injured in the future?” Sheng Yannian was startled by Gu Yuanqiao’s soft and sweet appearance, but seeing the eyes looking up at him, he couldn’t help his heart skip a beat, and his face grew hot. Talk properly, would you? You’re old enough, why are you acting spoiled? “Heh, you actually want to be injured again.” Sheng Yannian retorted, but didn’t refuse. “Also, sorry,” Gu Yuanqiao said carefully, “I apologize for what I said at the beginning.” Being doubted didn’t feel good, especially when one was being honest.

“….” Sheng Yannian looked at Gu Yuanqiao with a bit of horror. If he had only suspected the other person had knocked his brain earlier, now he suspected the other person was possessed by a ghost. Why so anomalous? “It’s fine, I, the bigger person, forgive you.” After saying this, he didn’t see the other person refute, nor did he see an unhappy face. “….” Sheng Yannian put down the mousse, stood up, and reached out to rub the other person’s head. The neatly styled hair was instantly messed up by him. People said a man’s head shouldn’t be touched—surely he would be angry now, right? “What are you doing?” But in the end, all he got was a helpless low laugh, as if it were tolerance and spoiling. Sheng Yannian was completely confused. What was this? Why not angry? Why not curse at him, why act like whatever he did was fine? This—this would only make him want to take an inch and ask for a mile…

Sheng Yannian leaned over and put his hands on either side of Gu Yuanqiao, and the distance closed again. Only this time, Sheng Yannian’s breathing wasn’t natural, but heavy. “What do you want?” The exact same words, just with the people swapped. “Are you really not going to do it?” Gu Yuanqiao said softly, though there was no hot desire in his eyes that Sheng Yannian had seen before; but there were a few more threads of emotion he couldn’t understand. If it wasn’t to resolve a physiological problem, why would he want to do it? “No…” But Gu Yuanqiao like this was still very seductive. Sheng Yannian’s voice turned heavy again. He felt he had been infected by Gu Yuanqiao; how come he hadn’t known his own private desire was so strong before? “I’m not so low as to take advantage of a patient.” “Haha…” Gu Yuanqiao laughed. He really didn’t want to do it, but he also saw Sheng Yannian’s desire. It seemed work stress was quite high recently.

In order to escape this situation, which could misfire at any time, Sheng Yannian prepared to get up. But before he could fully rise, his shirt corner was tugged by someone. Mindful that the person had an injury on their hand, he compliantly supported himself back down. “What are you doing?” Did Gu Yuanqiao really think he had that much self-control? “If you’re not going to do it, kiss me then.” Gu Yuanqiao smiled gently, as if this had been his goal from the start. “Are you acting spoiled?” The veins on Sheng Yannian’s neck bulged. Seeing Sheng Yannian actively craving him for the first time, Gu Yuanqiao’s mischievous side came out. He tilted his head to one side and rubbed his head against Sheng Yannian’s arm. “If you say so, then it is~” “Gu Yuanqiao!” Sheng Yannian felt he was about to lose control. “Hmm?” The person actually found it interesting.

Once the seductive tone came out, it was like a spark hitting spilled high-proof alcohol, igniting a flame. Sheng Yannian didn’t hold back anymore, pressing Gu Yuanqiao down and starting to kiss him. “Ugh…” The tip of his tongue smoothly entered the not-fully-closed mouth, tangling with the at-a-loss other tongue. He pushed against the other party’s palate and heard a soft hum. So he worked even harder to scour Gu Yuanqiao’s mouth, wanting to strip the other party of all their oxygen. One hand held Gu Yuanqiao’s face, while the other held Gu Yuanqiao’s waist tightly, sealing off all avenues of retreat. He saw the other party’s face gradually turning red, the red marks at the corners of his eyes becoming more prominent, and ripples in his occasionally opening eyes. He took it all in, so he wanted to bully the person beneath him even more, his desire rising higher than the previous two times. The hand holding his waist also slid back and forth along the side of his waist improperly, and the body trembling with his movements gave him great satisfaction. He took advantage of the gap of exchanging breath to suck on Gu Yuanqiao’s lips until they were swollen before letting go. He just wanted to enter Gu Yuanqiao’s mouth again when he was dodged. “Hmm?” Sheng Yannian was puzzled. “No… don’t kiss… don’t kiss…” Gu Yuanqiao’s voice was still trembling, and desire was ignited in his eyes too. “Why? Didn’t you say you wanted to kiss just now?” Sheng Yannian tilted his head to lick Gu Yuanqiao’s earlobe. “Any more… if you kiss again, I’m going to have a reaction…” Sheng Yannian kissed intensely, with undisguised lust. Gu Yuanqiao was already someone who easily succumbed to desire; if this continued, they would really do it here. “…Damn it.” Sheng Yannian cursed in a low voice. Gu Yuanqiao’s words didn’t bring him any calm, but instead made him hotter. But he also knew this wasn’t appropriate. If they really did it here, what if someone who didn’t follow the rules walked in halfway? Then they would be truly done for. Besides, Gu Yuanqiao was such a prideful person. Sheng Yannian lay on his side, sitting next to Gu Yuanqiao. His hand was still holding the other party’s waist, his face buried in the other’s neck. He felt his teeth were very itchy and wanted to bite something, but in the end, it was just grinding.

“When you’re better, I’m absolutely going to fuck you to death…” Sheng Yannian said fiercely. “Shut up… stop provoking me…” Gu Yuanqiao said in annoyance; the thing that had almost gone down was about to lose control because of Sheng Yannian’s sentence. “Damn…” Sheng Yannian knew Gu Yuanqiao’s words, and couldn’t help but tighten his hold on the waist in his arms. In the end, he closed his mouth.

The two stayed quietly on the sofa, each stalling. Gu Yuanqiao cooled down faster, after all, there was ice on his foot. Sheng Yannian desperately recalled the happy childhood time, the moments of playing with his brother, and the smiling faces. Gradually, the desire faded away. Gu Yuanqiao heard the steady breathing by his ear and knew the other person was better, so he pushed with his shoulder. “Get up, you’re heavy as hell.” Sheng Yannian lay for a while longer before getting up, then went to take the mousse on the table that was about to melt, determined to finish off the rest.

“So, did you really help me today just because you wanted to help?” Gu Yuanqiao watched the mousse being continuously wiped out, the sweet taste coming to his mind again. “Yeah, otherwise what would I be after from you?” Sheng Yannian didn’t know why Gu Yuanqiao came back to this topic, but he also knew the other party no longer had the original malice. Since the good student was willing to ask, he was naturally willing to answer. “Although I don’t have as much money as you, I’m not short of money either, right? In terms of reputation in S City, as of now, I’m better than you. So wanting something from you… since we’re already fuck buddies, do I need to deliberately suck up to you to sleep with you?” “….” That was also true. “Hmm… but,” Sheng Yannian threw the remaining trash into the bin and then smiled at Gu Yuanqiao, “if you still feel bad and must find a reason, just consider it a return gift for treating us to afternoon tea so many times. Spent so much money, and all I needed to do was help you treat a simple wound; I definitely made a profit.”

It wasn’t false politeness, nor was it hypocritical deception, no penny-pinching calculation, and no snide remarks as when they were at odds. Sheng Yannian never stinted on his kindness and warmth. Gu Yuanqiao raised his hand and gently touched the location of his heart; the vibration made his fingers feel numb. This feeling was very strange, but he didn’t hate it. His whole body also seemed to become warm and melting. Gu Yuanqiao watched Sheng Yannian, who was still cleaning up, and couldn’t help but think:

The first winter after his return to the country, perhaps it wouldn’t be that cold after all.