Chapter 99

Gu Yan buried her face in Shen Yanhui's neck, too shy to look at him, only feeling him tearing open the packaging, and then...

"Mmm..."

She let out a muffled groan, her fingernails digging into his shoulders and back, tears instantly welling up.

This is too much.

His forehead pressed against hers, his breathing heavy, restrained to the point where the veins on his temples were bulging.

She looked at him through tear-blurred eyes, accusing him with a sob: "What are you doing..."

He lowered his head and kissed away the tear at the corner of her eye.

"Back to the bedroom." His voice was incredibly hoarse, "Isn't that what you said?"

Gu Yan was choked for words.

That's not what she meant by "back"...

She bit his shoulder resentfully. It wasn't too hard; it felt more like a spoiled, aggrieved act of affection.

He let out a low laugh, his chest vibrating, causing her to tremble along with him.

Then, he walked steadily toward the master bedroom.

She couldn't handle it at all.

Every step, every time his feet hit the floor, felt like she was being crushed from head to toe. It was too much, so much that even though she bit his shoulder hard, she couldn't suppress the whimpers in her throat.

"Shen Yanhui..." she sobbed, "You jerk!"

He didn't stop walking.

She hated him so much that she really bit down hard, tasting the metallic tang of blood on her tongue. He, however, seemed not to feel the pain and instead quickened his pace.

She arched her back in his arms, her tears soaking his entire neck.

From the walk-in closet to the bedroom, it felt as long as an entire century.

He laid her down on the bed.

The young girl sank into the soft mattress, her long hair spread out, the corners of her eyes flushed red, her gaze shimmering with moisture. Even though she wanted to glare at him, she looked so alluring it was as if she were seducing him.

He leaned over and pressed down on her, and she trembled again.

"... Jerk," she cursed again, her voice hoarse and breathless.

He kissed her wet eyelashes, the tip of her nose, and the corners of her lips.

"The more you curse, the more I want to bully you," his voice was so low it sounded like it was being ground out from his chest.

Then, he stopped holding back.

She couldn't say another word.

The night was still long.

When he picked her up, her fingers were still tightly clutching the bedsheets, her knuckles white. He held her from behind, his kisses landing on the nape of her neck.

Gu Yan cried until she couldn't catch her breath.

Her arms were too weak to hang around his neck, so he held her by the waist.

On the verge of losing consciousness, she was still thinking:

What on earth triggered Shen Yanhui tonight?

——

Morning light leaked through the gap in the curtains, falling onto the dark bedsheets.

Gu Yan moved, feeling as if her whole body had been taken apart and put back together again.

She opened her eyes to see the man's peaceful sleeping face; memories of last night flooded back, and the more she thought about it, the angrier she got.

She lowered her head and bit his chest.

It wasn't too hard, but she didn't hold back either.

Shen Yanhui's brows twitched slightly; he didn't open his eyes, but his hand accurately pinched her cheek, moving her head away from his chest.

"Still have the energy to bite people." His voice was hoarse and heavy with sleep, and he pulled her back into his arms with a tightening of his arm, "Looks like last night wasn't enough."

Gu Yan struggled a bit, but couldn't break free, so she muttered into his chest: "Shen Yanhui, are you sick?"

"Mmm."

"What are you, a dog?"

"Mmm."

"Even a house on fire doesn't burn as intensely as you."

"Mmm."

He accepted everything she said.

Gu Yan ran out of words, stayed quiet in his arms for a few seconds, her anger mostly dissipated, and she muttered softly: "... What kind of madness were you having yesterday?"

Shen Yanhui opened his eyes.

He looked down at her, not speaking immediately, just raising his hand to brush the stray hair from her forehead, his thumb rubbing against her cheek.

Then he lowered his head and kissed the shell of her ear.

"Hearing that your sister-in-law is pregnant made me think..." he paused, then continued, "If we had a daughter, just like you."

He didn't finish the sentence.

But Gu Yan understood.

Her face burned instantly; she bit her lip and buried her face in his neck, remaining silent for a long time.

Shen Yanhui chuckled, the vibration of his chest passing through to her.

"Weren't you quite bold when you were biting me?" he asked.

Gu Yan didn't speak, continuing to burrow deeper into his arms.

It only takes a single moment to ignite a fire.

Shen Yanhui turned over and pressed her into the mattress; the lingering laziness in his eyes upon waking had long since burned into a different kind of fire.

"You asked for this." His voice was raspy beyond recognition.

Gu Yan wanted to retort, but he lowered his head and kissed her into silence.

Later, she remembered nothing at all.

She only remembered him calling her name over and over, remembered the sheets crumpled into a ball, remembered herself clutching his back, her fingernails sinking in, then letting go.

The sunlight moved from one side of the curtains to the other.

When things quieted down, Gu Yan lay on her side, her face buried in the pillow, not wanting to move a single finger.

A rustling sound came from behind her.

Shen Yanhui got out of bed, and she heard the sound of him throwing the used condom into the trash can.

Once, twice, three times...

She couldn't count them anymore.

When he hauled her back again, Gu Yan couldn't even manage a whimper; she could only bury her face in the crook of his neck, her damp eyelashes brushing against his skin.

In her final moments of consciousness, she heard the trash can sound again.

Many times over.

——

When Gu Yan walked into the dining room while yawning, Su Jin was already looking at the menu.

Gu Chen sat opposite, flipping through his phone; he raised his eyes to glance at her, saying nothing.

"Sister-in-law, Brother." Gu Yan pulled out a chair and sat down, covering her mouth to yawn again, tears welling up in the corners of her eyes.

Su Jin looked up, her gaze landing on Gu Yan's face, and she paused.

"Didn't sleep well last night? Why do you keep yawning?"

Gu Yan's movements stiffened: "Mm."

Su Jin didn't press the matter, instead asking: "Where is Mr. Shen?"

"He was called away by Chang Su." Gu Yan picked up her napkin and spread it out, her tone nonchalant, "Something about a cross-border conference call, an urgent matter."

Su Jin nodded, her tone gentle: "He works quite hard."

Gu Yan was drinking water and paused at these words.

Hard?

She thought of the entire box of condoms used up, thought of herself being flipped over and over and roasted again and again, thought of how her throat was so hoarse by the end that she couldn't even make a sound while cursing.

"It's alright, I suppose." She set down her water glass, curved her eyes, and smiled innocently, "I think he has quite a lot of energy."

Su Jin was stunned.

Gu Chen's hand, which was flipping through the menu, paused for a beat.

"... Eat." Gu Chen spoke, his voice devoid of emotion.

Su Jin lowered her head, suppressing a laugh.

Gu Yan blushed, realizing what she had said only after the fact.

The appetizer arrived, and Su Jin cut into her veal roll, her tone casual: "We are returning to the country tonight; when do you plan to go back?"

"After I finish watching the race," Gu Yan said. "Qualifying on Saturday, the main race on Sunday; I've booked my flight for Monday."

The F1 Grand Prix generally spans three days. Friday has two practice sessions for drivers to familiarize themselves with the track and for teams to test and tune; Saturday has one practice session and the qualifying session to determine the starting order for the main race; Sunday is the main race to determine the final champion.

She had specifically done her homework before coming.

Su Jin nodded: "That's good, it's rare to come all this way."

After the main course was finished and the dessert barely touched, Gu Chen glanced at the time and set down his napkin.

"Let's go." He stood up and naturally put an arm around Su Jin's waist.

Su Jin also stood up and said gently to Gu Yan: "Get some rest early, don't bother seeing us off."

Gu Yan nodded obediently.

As Gu Chen walked past her with his arm around Su Jin, his footsteps suddenly stopped.

Gu Yan looked up.

He looked down at her, reached out, and patted her head: "Come home once you've had your fill of fun out here."