Chapter 36

Gu Yan recalled the absurd things she had said while drunk, her expression full of annoyance.

This man was simply too petty, too vengeful!

She suddenly reached out and grabbed the lapels of his shirt.

Shen Yanhui raised his eyes to look at her.

Gu Yan raised an eyebrow, "You're allowed to take off my clothes, but I'm not allowed to take off yours?"

She pulled hard with her fingers.

Two buttons popped off, revealing his collarbone and a small patch of his chest.

Shen Yanhui's gaze deepened; he didn't move, letting her do as she pleased.

Gu Yan pushed her luck, using both hands to undo his remaining buttons, her movements clumsy with a hint of spite, but very determined.

Anyway, she was on her period, so she was perfectly safe.

When the shirt was completely open, her fingertips paused.

The warm light of the bathroom fell upon his chest, where the muscle definition was clear, the grooves deep, extending all the way down to his firm lower abdomen. A bead of water slid down from his collar and disappeared into the edge of his trousers.

Gu Yan's throat moved, her fingers curled, but she continued downward.

The belt buckle was ice-cold; she lowered her head to study it for a while before finding the mechanism.

With a soft "click," the metal buckle sprang open.

Shen Yanhui never said a word, only looking down at her, his eyes so deep they seemed as if they would suck her in.

When his trousers hit the floor, Gu Yan's face was already burning red, but she forced herself not to look away.

Anyway...

Anyway, it was already like this.

Before the little sense of triumph in her heart could surface, her wrist was gripped by him.

"Finished pulling?" he asked in a low voice.

Gu Yan nodded, and even feigned composure as she lifted her chin, "Finished pulling, fair is fair."

Shen Yanhui let out a low laugh.

That laughter made her heart tighten.

"Fair? I'll teach you what fair means."

"..."

It turned out that being on her period wasn't absolutely safe; Gu Yan regretted it so much her guts turned green.

By the time she was carried out of the bathroom, she was already so sleepy she couldn't keep her eyes open.

A bath towel was wrapped loosely around her; she lay limply against his shoulder, letting him place her on the bed.

When her back touched the soft mattress, she opened her eyes in a daze.

"The band... the performance..."

"Watch it tomorrow." Shen Yanhui pulled the quilt over to cover her.

"No..." she struggled to get up, but her arms were weak, and she fell back halfway, "They've been waiting all night, I can't leave them waiting for nothing."

Shen Yanhui pressed her down, "Go to sleep."

She tugged at the corner of his clothes, looking at him with wet, glistening eyes, "Go, just listen to two songs..."

The two of them stared at each other for a few seconds.

Shen Yanhui finally conceded: "Put on some clothes."

He brought over clean pajamas and put them on her, his movements uncharacteristically meticulous. He then wrapped her tightly in a blanket before carrying her outside.

The stage by the lake was already set up, the lights were soft, and the four band members were waiting quietly.

Seeing Shen Yanhui carry someone over, the four of them hurriedly stood up.

He sat down on the rattan sofa, letting Gu Yan lean into his arms.

"What do you want to hear?" he asked in a low voice.

Gu Yan yawned softly and requested: "Xichong Inn, a song by Chen Chusheng..."

The sound of a guitar began, and a soothing melody spilled out.

"... How beautiful this starry sky is"

"The Milky Way carves out a face..."

Gu Yan curled up in Shen Yanhui's arms, her eyes half-open and half-closed. The lead singer's voice was somewhat similar to the original, like the wind of a summer night brushing past.

Before the song had even finished, her breathing had already evened out.

Shen Yanhui looked down, reaching out to brush the stray hair from her cheek.

The young girl stirred and murmured something.

The voice was too soft, but he still heard it clearly.

She said: "Shen Yanhui... you big jerk..."

The man holding her chuckled, lowering his head to kiss the top of her hair.

——

Gu Yan woke up in Shen Yanhui's arms, her hand habitually reaching into his open pajamas to touch the firm lines of his abdominal muscles.

"Mmm..." she sighed with satisfaction.

It had been a few days since she'd touched them, and they felt just as good as ever.

However, she hadn't been touching for long before her hand was gripped.

"Sleep a little longer." The man's voice carried the hoarseness of just waking up, his eyes still closed.

Gu Yan said "Oh," but she had no sleepiness left.

She gently pulled her hand out to reach for the mobile phone on the bedside table.

The screen lit up, showing a message Lin Wei had sent last night: 【I've already helped you tell your mother that you're sleeping at my place tonight.】

Gu Yan curled the corners of her lips; those who know her, know her best friend.

She typed briskly: 【Weiwei is the best, love you~】

Unexpectedly, Lin Wei replied in seconds: 【I'm the best? Better than your Mr. Shen?】

Gu Yan: 【That's definitely a different kind of good.】

Lin Wei: 【I get it, he's good in bed.】

Gu Yan stared at those three words, recalling the scene she had witnessed. It was so magnificent, it should be... quite good.

Gu Yan shook her head and hurriedly changed the subject: 【Strange, you woke up so early?】

The other side was typing for a good while, and only after a long time did a message come: 【... I'm focusing on my health; early to bed and early to rise makes for a healthy body.】

Something was wrong; she was very wrong.

Just as she was about to properly interrogate her, the phone was snatched away by the man behind her and tossed aside.

Gu Yan obediently stopped moving and nestled into his embrace.

Listening to his steady heartbeat, she drifted off to sleep again without realizing it.

When she woke up again, the space beside her was already empty.

The sound of water came from the bathroom.

Why was someone taking another shower so early in the morning?

She stretched, got out of bed, and washed up.

After eating breakfast, a servant brought over a white porcelain bowl. The medicinal liquid inside was thick, black, and steaming.

Gu Yan's expression immediately collapsed.

She turned her head to look toward the sofa, where Shen Yanhui was using a tablet to handle work; his profile had cold, hard lines under the sunlight.

"Really... can I not drink it?" she asked in a small voice.

"No," he said without even lifting his head.

Gu Yan muttered: "Tyrant."

Shen Yanhui's hand paused, and he lifted his eyes to glance at her.

Gu Yan felt guilty under his gaze, but immediately became righteous again: "What are you looking at! You were so excessive last night... you still have the nerve to look at me!"

"How was it excessive?" He put down the tablet and looked at her with composure.

Gu Yan choked.

She had thin skin; she couldn't say it out loud.

Shen Yanhui didn't tease her further, but stood up and walked over, looking down at her, his fingertips tapping the tabletop: "Drink it yourself, or should I feed it to you?"

It was this choice between two options again.

Gu Yan remembered last night and didn't dare to choose recklessly.

Her little face was all scrunched up as she picked up the bowl with a look of resignation and tilted her head to gulp it down.

The bitterness of the medicine made her brows lock tightly, and tears were almost coming out.

Just as she put down the bowl, a candy was handed to her.

Gu Yan hummed: "Only children eat candy after taking medicine."

Her hand, however, was very honest; she took it, unwrapped it, and put it in her mouth.

The sweetness melted on the tip of her tongue, diluting the bitterness.

She squinted her eyes, like a cat being stroked.

Shen Yanhui watched her like this, lifted her chin, kissed her lightly, and said as he pulled away: "Borrowing some sweetness."

Gu Yan: "..."

Why didn't he borrow some bitterness when she had just finished the medicine?

Just then, Chang Su entered from outside the door and reported in a low voice: "Sir, the eldest young lady is here."

The living room was quiet for a moment.

Shen Yanhui straightened up and gave a nonchalant "Mm."

Gu Yan held the candy and blinked.

The eldest young lady?

Shen Yanhui really had quite a lot of siblings.