Chapter 149
Ignoring the sudden change in He Songjun’s expression, Gu Feiquan voiced the suspicion that had already taken shape in his mind. “For example, someone told you that as long as you gave birth to me, you could marry into the Gu family?”
“No!” He Songjun denied it vehemently. “It wasn’t like that!”
Her eyes were red-rimmed. Gu Feiquan softened at once and asked in a gentle voice, “Then what was it like?”
He Songjun drew in a few shaky breaths and swallowed hard. “I... when I found out I was pregnant with you, it had already been several months. The doctor said my health wasn’t very good, and if I aborted you, it would be difficult to get pregnant again later. And also, and also..."
“Mom, don’t rush. Take your time,” Gu Feiquan said softly, rubbing her back.
“And also, you were especially lively then, do you know that? You were boxing away inside my belly every day. I could feel that you really wanted to be born, wanted to come out and see what this world was like.” He Songjun lifted her head and looked into his eyes. “So I gave birth to you.”
Gu Feiquan looked back at her. In his dark eyes, the faintest ripple stirred for an instant and vanished without a trace.
He Songjun’s fingers, hanging at her sides, trembled almost imperceptibly twice. She held her breath and met the gaze of her son, who was a head taller than she was, refusing to back down.
They stood off against each other for a long while.
Then Gu Feiquan suddenly laughed. He took He Songjun’s hand in his, his dry palm wrapping around his mother’s lightly perspiring one. “Mom, why are you so nervous?”
“I’m not nervous. It’s just a bit hot because I’m wearing so much.”
“I’ll have someone bring you a few lighter clothes.” Gu Feiquan bent down and hugged He Songjun, rubbing his chin against the woman’s thin shoulder. In a murmur, he called, “Mom.”
“What is it?” He Songjun felt a little uneasy.
“Nothing. I just wanted to call you.”
“You child.” He Songjun laughed weakly.
“Mom.” Gu Feiquan called again, sounding like a big child full of dependence.
“What now?”
“Thank you.”
“What are you thanking me for all of a sudden?”
“I was naughty in your belly and made you suffer.”
This time He Songjun really did laugh. She patted the broad shoulder of the young man in front of her. “All right, all right. You’re almost thirty and still acting like a child. Do you know what you’re called? A mama’s boy. Let me tell you, girls these days don’t like mama’s boys.”
That was exactly how ordinary middle-aged women with children were, especially when the child was still single: no matter what the topic was, they could drag it over to romance.
Gu Feiquan heard that and immediately made to slip away.
He Songjun said, “Last time you told me about that girl surnamed Yin—how’s that going? Why’s there still no news after all this time? Did she not take a liking to you? If there’s any problem, tell your mom. Don’t run off!”
She watched the tall young man hurry away and shouted after him, “Every time I tell you to find someone, you run. Are you planning to stay a bachelor for the rest of your life?”
Gu Feiquan was already gone without a trace.
He Songjun entered Gu Huai’s hospital room, filled the electric kettle with water, switched it on, and sat in the chair beside it waiting for it to boil.
She rubbed her hands together; even in the warm hospital room, they were still cold. She breathed into them.
She had discovered Gu Feiquan’s existence in the winter thirty years ago, after she and Gu Huai had already broken up, when she was living alone in a small place she had bought with the money Gu Huai had given her. That winter was bitterly cold; the world outside was all ice and snow, and He Songjun had stumbled home alone from the hospital, carrying this bombshell in her heart.
She hadn’t dared tell her parents at home. The He family parents had lived their whole lives with their backs to the sky and their faces to the earth; if they found out she was pregnant before marriage and her boyfriend had already broken up with her, they might have dropped dead of anger on the spot.
He Songjun was terrified. How had she gotten pregnant? She was so young; if she gave birth to this child, she’d never be able to hold her head up again. Even setting that aside, her salary was only barely passable and she had a bit of savings, but she knew very well how much it cost to raise a child. She wasn’t stupid; she couldn’t gamble away both her future and the child’s.
She thought about it for several days and decided to go to the hospital to abort the baby.
Two days before she planned to go, Shen Huaiyu found her.
He Songjun knew Shen Huaiyu and knew that she was the one engaged to Gu Huai. But back then, she couldn’t hate Shen Huaiyu. Anyone who saw Shen Huaiyu found it hard to dislike her; she had a gentle beauty and an uncompetitive nature. Even without Shen Huaiyu, she and Gu Huai probably would have broken up anyway. After graduation, Gu Huai had been busy with his career, while He Songjun took care of the household. She had no time to complain endlessly about how Gu Huai was too busy to keep her company, and Gu Huai was at a crucial stage in his career and exhausted from dealing with everything, his attitude growing worse. The young couple quarreled often; Shen Huaiyu was only the catalyst for their breakup.
Shen Huaiyu knocked on He Songjun’s door. He Songjun was extremely surprised and invited her in.
“You’re pregnant?” Shen Huaiyu had Buddhist prayer beads around her wrist, which made He Songjun feel especially uncomfortable. She answered stiffly, “Yes.”
“Gu Huai’s?”
“Yes.”
“Do you plan to keep the child?” Shen Huaiyu’s tone was soft.
He Songjun thought she had come as the “official wife” to lecture the “mistress,” and immediately said coldly, “No. I’m planning to get rid of it.”
She might have been a little petty, but she still had dignity. Someone had already bullied her to her face.
Who would have thought Shen Huaiyu would say something she never expected: “Keep it.”
He Songjun sneered. “Keep it for what? I can’t afford to raise it. Are you going to raise it?”
Shen Huaiyu nodded. “I will.”
He Songjun was dumbfounded. “What do you mean?”
Using her right thumb, Shen Huaiyu slowly and repeatedly rubbed at the string of agarwood prayer beads on her wrist. In a calm voice, she said, “Gu Huai and I will never have children.”
He Songjun looked at her suspiciously. “You can’t have children?”
Shen Huaiyu paused. “Just take it that way.”
He Songjun gave a self-mocking laugh. “Even though you can’t have children, he’s still willing to marry you.”
“You still love him?”
He Songjun froze, then lowered her lashes.
How could love from school days all the way here be something one could simply stop with a word?
“I’m sorry,” Shen Huaiyu said.
The woman sitting across from her looked too sincere; there was a pitiful sorrow in her painted brows and eyes. He Songjun was dazzled by her beauty and waved a generous hand. “Don’t say that.”
Shen Huaiyu looked up at her. “I hope you keep this child. I will provide whatever material conditions he or she needs.”
He Songjun was completely baffled. “Then my child will be born without a father.”
“There will be one in the future. I’ll divorce Gu Huai and give you back everything that belongs to you.”
“No.” The more He Songjun heard, the more confused she became. “Aren’t you two still preparing for the wedding? Why are you already thinking about divorce?” Were there really such husbands and wives in this world?
“I...” A flicker of pain flashed through Shen Huaiyu’s eyes, and she hesitated.
He Songjun pressed, “Do you even love Gu Huai?”
Shen Huaiyu shook her head.
He Songjun muttered, “Then why are you even getting married?”
She thought: How absurd the world was. She loved Gu Huai, but Gu Huai was going to marry someone else, and the person he was marrying didn’t even love him.
Shen Huaiyu persuaded her. Back then, He Songjun still hadn’t made up her mind; she only hesitated for a while. Who would have thought that Shen Huaiyu, someone who was about to get married, would come running to her every day, buying her and the baby in her belly all sorts of supplements, cooking for her, taking care of the house, attentive in every way.
Back then, Yanning City still didn’t have centralized heating. They used coal briquettes. He Songjun was rather lazy; she’d rather go home, fill a hot-water bottle, curl up under the blankets and shiver until she warmed herself than go through the trouble of burning coal in the freezing air.
Shen Huaiyu was very different. She was exceptionally diligent and very good at taking care of people, especially women. After she learned that He Songjun was too lazy to light the coal stove, she took the job on herself and reminded her that lying in bed all the time wasn’t good, even if she wasn’t pregnant.
At the time, He Songjun thought Shen Huaiyu was truly the best person in the world; someone so good marrying Gu Huai was almost a pity.
“If you were a man, I’d definitely fall in love with you,” He Songjun said jokingly from the kitchen doorway, hugging the hot-water bottle Shen Huaiyu had filled for her. Because it was hot, Shen Huaiyu had wrapped it in a layer of fleece; it was warm and snug.
Shen Huaiyu was cooking in the kitchen. Even with oil smoke filling the room, her cool and refined features remained untouched by the mundane world. At that, she only smiled, the corners of her mouth flashing with a hint of bitterness.
He Songjun hesitated like that, and hesitated like that, until her belly grew bigger and the baby started moving. Feeling the tenacious vitality of the life inside her, she could no longer bring herself to be ruthless.
She quit her job and stayed home to preserve the pregnancy. Shen Huaiyu helped her take walks and do some appropriate exercise. He Songjun lived alone, and Shen Huaiyu couldn’t rest easy, so she simply moved in, keeping her company day and night. She would tell stories to the baby in her belly; the baby listened, and so did He Songjun, treating them as bedtime stories. Listening and listening, they would fall asleep.
Gu Huai was busy with work then, and because he and Shen Huaiyu weren’t a normal couple, he never even knew about any of this.
He Songjun gave birth naturally and had Gu Feiquan. During her postpartum confinement, Shen Huaiyu held the baby for her. He Songjun, pregnant and then cared for so well by Shen Huaiyu, had become plump and rosy; lying in bed, she didn’t look weak at all.
“Give the child a name,” He Songjun said.
“Me?” Shen Huaiyu was slightly surprised.
“Yes. Look, you’ve been with me the whole time I was pregnant. You were better than his real father. You name him. Give him a nice name.”
After thinking for a moment, Shen Huaiyu said, “Let’s call him Feiquan.”
“Luo Feiquan?” He Songjun teased her.
Shen Huaiyu, who after graduation had come to Yanning and changed both her surname and given name to Luo Yu, shook her head with a light laugh. “Nonsense.”
Gu Feiquan—no, at that time he was called He Feiquan—thus got his name.
After Shen Huaiyu married Gu Huai, she came less often, but compared with before, she still came every now and then, bringing the baby a few small toys, teasing little He Feiquan, and chatting with He Songjun.
He Songjun thought that life like this was actually pretty good. The baby was obedient, they had enough to eat and wear, and aside from a few gossiping neighbors, she mostly ignored them; after a long time, she became too lazy to care. Occasionally, when she took the child out, those people even praised He Feiquan for being good-looking and well-behaved. Shen Huaiyu would sometimes take the initiative to bring up divorce and say she was working on it, asking He Songjun to wait a little longer. He Songjun said it wasn’t urgent.
She trusted her so much, and in the end what she got was the news that Shen Huaiyu was pregnant.
...
The water in the kettle bubbled and steamed white. He Songjun heard the click as it automatically shut off and released her clenched hands, then calmly picked up the electric kettle and poured the water into a thermos.
She walked a little farther into the inner room and sat down in front of Gu Huai’s bed, staring at him without moving.
So many years had passed that she could no longer tell what she truly felt for Gu Huai. Was it love? She had loved him before. If she hadn’t, she wouldn’t have been fooled by Shen Huaiyu, wouldn’t have stupidly thought that a child could save the relationship. Did she still love him now? She didn’t know.
The handsome young man from back then was now old and frail. Especially after Shen Huaiyu passed away, he aged even faster; his skin had gone slack, deep lines had formed at the corners of his mouth, and when he opened his eyes, they were clouded and dull, nothing like the young man who had once sweated on the basketball court. She could scarcely find any trace of his younger self anymore.
He Songjun found it a little hard to accept. She had spent thirty years of her life on a man like this.
If only she hadn’t given birth to Gu Feiquan back then. If only she had given up on Gu Huai after they broke up. If only she had never believed a single word that woman said...
He Songjun gave a bitter smile. There were no ifs in this world. A moment later, the bitterness in her eyes faded, and her gaze turned stern. What they owed her, she would take back, every bit of it.
Shen Huaiyu was dead, but her daughter was still alive.
Gu Huai, you’d better not disappoint me. For Feiquan, I can do anything.
***
“Dad.”
Just as Gu Huai woke up, he heard that one word. His eyes brightened for only a second before dimming again, and he forced out a smile. “Feiquan.”
Gu Feiquan pretended not to notice the change in his expression and lifted the fruit knife in his hand. “Want an apple?”
Gu Huai happened to be a little thirsty. “Yes.”
So Gu Feiquan sat by the bed and peeled an apple for him, asking, “Did Mom say anything to you?”
Gu Huai said, “Nothing. Why?”
“Nothing.” Gu Feiquan figured that even if he said it, it would be pointless. Gu Huai wasn’t the kind of man who listened to other people’s opinions. He did peel the apple very well this time; the long strip of peel didn’t break once. He cut the peeled apple into small pieces, put them on a plate, then got up to check the bedroom door.
Gu Huai noticed the lock clicking into place and propped himself up with his elbows.
“You’ve got something to say to me?”
“Mm.” Gu Feiquan stood in front of him.
“Sit.”
“Not yet. I want to ask you something first.”
“Go ahead.”
“When you were pursuing Shen Huaiyu, had you already broken up with my mother?”
Gu Huai answered slowly. “Yes.”
“What were you thinking just now?” Gu Feiquan narrowed his eyes.
“Hmm?” Gu Huai looked up at him.
“You were worried I’d tell Gu Yanqiu what you said, so you weighed every word carefully, afraid you’d reveal something?”
“...”
Gu Feiquan pulled out a chair and sat down backward in it, resting his elbows on the backrest and looking him in the eye. “I have another question.”
Gu Huai said, “Can I refuse to answer?”
“Sure. But you can’t refuse my asking.”
“...”
Ignoring Gu Huai’s helpless look, Gu Feiquan asked bluntly, “When did you find out I existed?”
Gu Huai of course would not answer. The moment he spoke, all he’d do was expose himself.
Gu Feiquan asked more specifically, “You really didn’t know I existed until before the wedding?”
“...”
“Although I’m guessing that even if you had known, you’d still have gotten married. After all, you loved Shen Huaiyu that much. But I still lean toward you not knowing; otherwise, your attitude would probably have been different?” Gu Feiquan couldn’t say exactly how it would have been different. In any case, he just inexplicably believed so.
“I have one last question.” Gu Feiquan smiled. “Your expression makes it look like you’re asking why I still haven’t finished. Sorry, I talk a little too much.”
Gu Huai closed his eyes, resisting passively, completely unable to deal with him.
Gu Feiquan asked, “Did my mom give birth to me because someone deceived her back then? Was that person Shen Huaiyu?”
The corner of Gu Huai’s slack mouth tightened, then quickly returned to normal so fast that it was almost impossible to notice. But Gu Feiquan was trying to pry the truth from him; he might as well have brought out a microscope. How could he have missed that?
“Your reaction tells me the truth seems to be exactly that?” Gu Feiquan raised an eyebrow. “No wonder you worked so hard to hide the truth, and my mother also tacitly chose never to mention it again.”
He Songjun was indeed a failed woman and a failed mother. She was stubborn, she was mad, but she had always held on to a mother’s bottom line. She never wanted Gu Feiquan to know that his birth had never been welcomed by anyone; all of it had come from a lie.
It was only right there at the door, in that instant, when He Songjun had hurriedly defended and covered up the truth, that Gu Feiquan understood why she had also chosen to help Gu Huai conceal it. That was why Gu Feiquan thanked her.
“I suddenly remembered another question.” Gu Feiquan hesitated, then after a while said, “Since Shen Huaiyu loved her ex-girlfriend so much, why did she have a child with you? How was Gu Yanqiu born?”
As expected, there was no answer.
“Fine.” Gu Feiquan let out a mocking snort through his nose, stood, and stretched lazily. In a casual tone, he said, “If you won’t give me the answer, I’ll ask my dear little sister these questions instead. Guess how she’ll react? She’s so smart; she should be able to figure it out pretty easily, right?”
“Don’t go!” Gu Huai suddenly opened his eyes.
“You’re talking now?” Gu Feiquan sat back down unhurriedly. “Please continue.”
Gu Huai studied the old man sitting on the bed. Yes, he really was an old man now. Gu Feiquan had seen Gu Huai before. Earlier, He Songjun had forced him to look from far away; later, he had glimpsed him by chance in newspapers, magazines, and on television—a successful businessman, a social elite, upright and imposing. Not even just in those earlier years; even two years ago, when Gu Feiquan was still working at his former company, he had gone to a meeting with his superior and seen Gu Huai there. Back then, he looked to be no more than in his forties, in a suit and tie, tall and straight-backed, a man who stood out fiercely in any crowd.
How had he become like this now?
Gu Feiquan felt a pang of pity, but he didn’t show it on his face, only waited calmly for Gu Huai to speak.
“Everything you said is right.” Gu Huai was silent for a long time; when he finally opened his mouth, his voice was hoarse.
“So Shen Huaiyu tricked my mother?”
Gu Huai gave a slight nod. He looked even older all of a sudden. Slowly, he raised a hand. Gu Feiquan leaned in and asked, “What do you want?”
“Do you have a cigarette?”
“You already have lung cancer and you still want a cigarette?” Gu Feiquan covered his pocket tightly and said irritably, “No.”
Gu Huai smiled.
“You’re still smiling. You still haven’t answered my question. Is Gu Yanqiu your biological daughter?”
“Yes.” Gu Huai’s face took on a nostalgic look. “Her mother carried her for ten months and suffered a great deal.”
Pregnancy was very hard on women. Some had even more severe reactions; it was truly suffering. Thinking back on it now, Gu Huai still couldn’t help feeling distressed. But that period had also been the closest time between him and Shen Huaiyu, and after that...
“Was Shen Huaiyu willing to get pregnant? Or...” Gu Feiquan narrowed his eyes and spit out two words. “An accident?”
“No.” Gu Huai answered without the slightest hesitation. “I forced her.”
Gu Feiquan abruptly stood up. The chair toppled over and bumped against the bedside with a sharp clatter. Furious, he shouted, “Are you even human?”
Gu Huai said calmly, “One night I drank too much. The alcohol got to me, and I saw her in the living room. By then we had already been married two years. She still wouldn’t let me touch her and wanted a divorce, so... that’s how it was. I won’t make excuses for myself.”
Gu Feiquan grabbed his collar and hauled him up off the bed with one hand; with the other, he clenched his fist and raised it high—
Gu Huai closed his eyes and waited quietly for the blow to fall.
His face was smashed to the side, and he fell back onto the bed.
Gu Feiquan looked down at him from above and said through gritted teeth, “This is for Gu Yanqiu’s mother.”
A faint smile slowly appeared at the corner of Gu Huai’s mouth. He smiled peacefully and said, “All right.”
Gu Feiquan swung again and struck the side of his face; with a dull thud, the bedboard trembled. He landed a few more hard punches, then said nothing more and strode out.
Gu Huai roared from behind him, “Don’t tell her!”
Gu Feiquan slammed the door shut, cutting off Gu Huai’s violent coughing behind it.
Annoying. Annoying. Annoying.
Goddamn annoying.
Frustrating.
Gu Feiquan suddenly lashed out with a kick at the trash can by the roadside. Under the astonished looks of passersby, he glared at each of them in turn and shouted, “What the hell are you looking at? Never seen someone go crazy before?”
The pedestrians quickly moved away from him.
Gu Feiquan righted the overturned trash can. After a few steps, he shouted like a madman again at the street corner. Someone looked over, lowered their head to punch a few digits into their phone, then looked up to see that “madman” calmly staring at them.
“Buddy, want to grab a drink? My treat.”
The would-be caller to the police was so scared that he bolted.
Gu Feiquan ran a hand through his hair and felt that he was a little deranged now. A deranged man wanted to drink. He opened his phone and searched through his contacts; he had plenty of good brothers he could call anytime, but he was afraid that after drinking he might blurt out something he shouldn’t and cause unnecessary trouble. He didn’t dare contact a single one of them. In the end, he took a taxi back to the Gu residence, carried a whole armful of liquor up from downstairs, locked himself in his room, laughed and cried all night, and drank until he was too far gone to know anything.
***
“President Gu, Gu Feiquan didn’t come to work today.” Lin Zhi set a coffee down on the desk and mentioned it.
“Why?” Gu Yanqiu signed her name on the last page of the file in her hands and put it aside.
“Don’t know. But people at the company say it’s because of you. Didn’t you rise through the ranks too fast? So he, uh, decided to pull this.” Lin Zhi paused, then said, “But I don’t think that’s right. When you and he were at odds before and he was getting the better of you, you didn’t skip work, and you even skipped two days in a row.”
“Two days?” Gu Yanqiu frowned slightly.
Lin Zhi replied, “Yeah. He didn’t come yesterday either.”
Gu Yanqiu bit her lower lip and repeated him, “He didn’t come yesterday either?”
Lin Zhi nodded, confirming it again. “Right, and he didn’t even ask for leave. Isn’t that a little too arrogant, President Gu? Can we take this chance to fire him? That way he won’t cause you trouble later.”
Gu Yanqiu glanced at him faintly. A chill seemed to rush over Lin Zhi at once; he hurriedly fell silent and said respectfully, “I’ll go out now.”
Gu Yanqiu reminded him, “From now on, if it isn’t your place to speak, don’t talk nonsense.”
“Yes.”
“Go out.”
Lin Zhi backed out to the door and drew the office door shut.
Gu Yanqiu interlaced her fingers and rested them under her chin, thinking for a while before calling Gu Feiquan. Unexpectedly, the other end picked up very quickly. “Yanqiu.”
The young man’s deep, slightly magnetic voice asked, “What’s wrong?”
Gu Yanqiu rubbed her fingertips against the desk and asked, “Why didn’t you come to work?”
Gu Feiquan laughed brightly. “Didn’t you tell me to act? I figured I’d just skip work for two days. How’s my performance?"
“...” She had thought something had happened, and never expected that to be the reason. Gu Yanqiu didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “That’s enough. Hurry up and come back to work. The company can’t do without you.”
“Am I really that important?”
“Yes. If you skip work without asking for leave again, I’ll fire you.”
“President Gu, what a grand display of authority.” Gu Feiquan laughed. “Then I’ll go to the company this afternoon.”
“Be quick about it.”
“Got it, got it.”
“See you this afternoon.”
“See you this afternoon.”
Gu Yanqiu hung up.
On the other end, Gu Feiquan was sprawled on the floor. The phone slipped from his palm onto the carpet with a dull thud. Around him were empty beer bottles everywhere; he was gasping for breath like a stranded fish, as if that one phone call had drained all his strength.
He lay motionless for another ten-odd minutes, then stretched out a long leg and kicked aside the cans by his feet. Slowly, he dragged himself up from the heap of misery until he looked like a person again. Bracing one arm against the bed, he sat there, lifted his head, and downed the can of beer he hadn’t finished before sleeping.
Half an hour later, the sound of running water came from the shower.
Gu Feiquan shaved, changed into a fresh shirt, pulled on a pair of suit trousers, and matched them with the tie Gu Yanqiu had bought him last time. By the time he stepped out the door, he was once again the impeccably dressed eldest young master of the Gu family.
Just after work started in the afternoon, Lin Zhi ran over again to report the latest on Gu Feiquan, furious: he was back at work, dressed to the nines and looking every bit the respectable businessman.
Gu Yanqiu said mildly that she knew, and sent him away.
Lin Zhi again marveled inwardly that Gu Yanqiu truly deserved to be a boss; she never showed her emotions.
Gu Yanqiu let him misunderstand and didn’t expose him.
Over the past two days, Ran Qingqing had delivered a lot of Lin family materials to Gu Yanqiu. Besides managing Tianrui, which was at a critical juncture, she also had to learn about an entirely new company; she wished she had forty-eight hours in a day.
Fortunately, Lin Yuewei was very familiar with her own company, so Gu Yanqiu no longer had to read those obscure, practically useless company introductions that she nonetheless had to study. Lin Yuewei explained things in a way that was clear and easy to digest, and Gu Yanqiu absorbed the information while enjoying Lin Yuewei’s massage. But the projects handed over on the other side had to be reviewed personally and remembered; there was no time during the day, and sometimes she had to attend business dinners at night, so she could only stay up late to look through them.
If she didn’t sleep, Lin Yuewei wouldn’t sleep either. She made milk for her, kneaded her shoulders, and rubbed her legs. The milk was fine; the shoulder-and-leg rubbing was not. Gu Yanqiu couldn’t handle it, her mind kept wandering. After being kneaded for a while, she would pull Lin Yuewei into her arms; after holding her for a while, they would start kissing; after kissing for a while, they ended up pressed against the desk, nearly knocking over the milk.
Lin Yuewei came over with a script in hand. “Then I’ll just read the script on the sofa, okay? That’s far enough away from you, isn’t it? You beast.”
The beast Gu Yanqiu reluctantly agreed.
Lin Yuewei had only just gotten through two pages and marked a few notes in the script when she heard a soft voice beside her say, “Weiwei.”
Lin Yuewei looked up. “What is it?”
Without lifting her head, Gu Yanqiu said, “Come kiss me.”
Lin Yuewei swung her crossed legs down from the sofa and trotted over, giving her a kiss on the cheek before turning to leave. Gu Yanqiu caught her hand and said, “Kiss me again.”
Lin Yuewei kissed her right cheek again.
Gu Yanqiu lifted her chin, offering her lips.
In the end, Lin Yuewei pressed a hard kiss to her mouth.
Gu Yanqiu let go. “All right, go back and read your script.”
Not long after.
“Weiwei.” This time the call was softer and sweeter than before.
“What now?” Lin Yuewei still hadn’t even taken off her slippers.
Gu Yanqiu yawned. “I’m a little sleepy.”
“Then go to sleep. Read it tomorrow.”
“I can’t. I have to finish it; tomorrow has tomorrow’s work.”
“I’ll make you a coffee.”
“Coffee won’t work.” Gu Yanqiu said, “Come kiss me.”
Lin Yuewei: “...”
This kiss lasted a very long time. Lin Yuewei’s breathing turned ragged. She pushed against Gu Yanqiu’s shoulder. “Are you going to look at the files or not?”
“Yes.” Gu Yanqiu rubbed her cheek against Lin Yuewei’s neck, clingy to the core, and murmured, “I’ll look in a minute. Let me hold you for a while.”
Seeing that the corners of her eyes were already red from exhaustion, Lin Yuewei couldn’t help feeling sorry for her. “Let’s go to sleep. We can look at it tomorrow; there’s still time.”
“No.” Gu Yanqiu inhaled deeply, taking in her scent, and in an instant seemed to recover her full energy. “All right, you go back. I can continue.”
Lin Yuewei went to make her a cup of coffee.
Gu Yanqiu sat in the chair, tilting her face up to look at her, and said in a sweet yet seductive voice, “Thank you, wife.” The tail end of the phrase was drawn out with exquisite precision, making even her heart tremble.
Lin Yuewei nearly turned into a wolf.
She struggled to steady her breathing. “Hurry up and finish. The earlier you’re done, the earlier you can sleep.”
“You want to sleep first?”
“I’m not sleeping. I’m waiting for you.” Lin Yuewei said, “Didn’t I just tell you?”
Gu Yanqiu explained, “What I said was this ‘ma’—the one that means numbness in the mouth, not the horse character. I was telling you to go sleep first.”
Lin Yuewei rubbed her head and laughed. “No need. I already slept for a while when you were eating out tonight, so I’m not sleepy at all now...” She opened her mouth and let out a long yawn.
Gu Yanqiu gave her a sidelong look, lips pursed.
Lin Yuewei took the face slap in stride and said naturally, “Anyway, I’m not sleepy. If you keep dragging your feet, we won’t be sleeping tonight at all. Do you really have the heart to keep me from sleeping?”
As soon as those words landed, Gu Yanqiu immediately buried her head in her work, not forgetting to chant her slogan: “I love work, and work loves me!”
Lin Yuewei added from the side, “And I love you too.”
Gu Yanqiu couldn’t help but curl the corners of her mouth.
After that, things finally quieted down for a while.
About an hour later, Gu Yanqiu summoned her again. “Weiwei.”
“What is it?” Lin Yuewei stood by for orders.
Gu Yanqiu put down her pen and rubbed her wrist, acting spoiled. “My hand hurts.”
Lin Yuewei rushed over to massage her wrist, asking as she did whether this or that hurt, worriedly saying, “Could it be tendinitis?”
“Maybe.” Gu Yanqiu looked at her right hand and sighed. “This hand of mine has to work during the day and work at night too, day in and day out. It’s really worked hard.”
Lin Yuewei heard the implication and pressed down hard. Gu Yanqiu cried out, “Murder—” Under Lin Yuewei’s sharp gaze, she swallowed the rest and changed it to a soft, pitiful “ah.” “Aren’t I just getting what I deserve?”
Lin Yuewei satisfiedly stroked her face.
They still used their hands that night, but this time it was Lin Yuewei taking the initiative with her hand, not the hand taking the initiative with her; it counted as a creative way of lightening Gu Yanqiu’s burden.
In the blink of an eye, the weekend arrived; it was the day Gu Yanqiu and Yin Lingxi had agreed to visit Yin’s mother’s grave. Gu Yanqiu booked two morning tickets to fly to S City, and they set out from home together.
The trip wasn’t very long. By the time they landed, it was just lunch hour. Yin Lingxi had personally gone to the airport to pick them up, standing in a very conspicuous spot at the exit. She was conspicuous no matter where she stood; in her hands was a small wooden sign with Gu Yanqiu’s name written on it.
Lin Yuewei had sharp eyes and spotted her from far away. Sourly, she said, “President Gu, you’ve really got presence.”
Gu Yanqiu hated that tone of hers the most and replied in a low voice, “Next time you get off a plane, I’ll reserve every place at the airport where words can be written, and put your name on all of it. I’ll cover the ground in flowers, lay them out into the shape of love, and stand in the middle of the crowd holding your light board with both hands, shouting, ‘Lin Yuewei, Mommy loves you!’ How’s that? Is that enough presence?”
Lin Yuewei’s irritation vanished after the first few lines. She thought President Gu was amazing; she was getting more and more humorous. By the last line, she couldn’t help laughing out loud. “You’re sick.”
Gu Yanqiu took up the line without missing a beat. “Whether I’m sick or not, don’t you know? Haven’t you already tasted it?”
That sudden filth nearly wrenched Lin Yuewei’s waist. She pointed at Gu Yanqiu and went “you you you” for ages, but couldn’t get a single coherent sentence out.
Gu Yanqiu wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her close. “Enough with the yous. Let’s go out.”