Chapter 61: Proper Status

Gu Chuanzhou had large hands with long, well-defined fingers, slightly calloused pads, and a body temperature that always ran exceptionally warm.

This was something Yu Xi had known for a long time.

Those hands had gently held his, thoughtfully warmed his hands when they were cold, and firmly gripped his waist or arm to keep him from escaping…

Yet no matter how far Yu Xi’s imagination ran, he had never imagined a day when Gu Chuanzhou’s hands would be used on his body in such a manner—far more intense than anything he had ever experienced in his dreams.

One hand firmly pinned his waist, while the other gently enveloped him… smoothing over him, stroking back and forth…

At first, Yu Xi was overcome with fierce resistance and panic. But very quickly, he was submerged in an unprecedented, overpowering sensation, his waist going completely limp.

It was far too strange. How could he touch him like this?

He wanted to call a halt, but for some reason, he couldn’t formulate a single complete sentence. The moment he opened his mouth, sounds spilled forth that made even him blush to his core.

His tongue, thoroughly licked and consumed, subconsciously peeked out, exhaling hot, ragged gasps of breath.

Everything before his eyes grew blurred, covered by a shimmering layer of moisture.

After enduring for a mere five minutes, he couldn’t hold back any longer, clutching Gu Chuanzhou’s yukata as he let out a pitiful sob.

The plan to check out in the afternoon was brought forward to the morning, and the remaining recreational activities they hadn’t gotten to experience were canceled along with it.

Yu Xi put forward the request during breakfast.

Although his friends were somewhat surprised, they agreed without the slightest hesitation.

After packing their respective luggage and heading toward the cars, Yu Xi took the initiative to grab Sheng Yunjuan’s sleeve before facing a choice: “Xiao Juan, I’ll ride with you guys.”

Sheng Yunjuan was overjoyed: “Awesome, awesome!”

This made Sheng Yunjuan immensely happy. Like a triumphant victor, she climbed into the car and pulled a provocative, smug face at the men standing outside.

The outer corner of Zhang Xingkuo’s eye twitched with rage, Lin Shuhuai’s smile turned slightly stiff, and only Gu Chuanzhou appeared remarkably composed, seemingly incapable of feeling any disappointment whatsoever.

While waiting for the driver to stow the luggage in the trunk, Gu Chuanzhou retrieved the small sheep throw pillow from his car and passed it in through the window.

“We have them in our car too, are you trying to show off?” As time went on, Sheng Yunjuan became less and less polite with Gu Chuanzhou, calling him out directly.

“Xixi likes holding this to sleep when he’s in a car,” Gu Chuanzhou said, his eyes fixed on Yu Xi.

Although that was indeed true, Yu Xi didn’t want to give Gu Chuanzhou any face today. He turned his head and gathered the throw pillow from the Sheng family’s car into his arms instead, casting a sideways glance: “I don’t necessarily need yours. This one is quite nice too.”

Sheng Yunjuan was just about to mock him, but she saw that Gu Chuanzhou’s smile only deepened upon being rejected, taking the throw pillow back as if he had received some kind of reward before walking away.

Sheng Yunjuan: “?” Is he sick in the head?

“Has this pervert finally evolved into a masochist?”

Her casual mutter made Yu Xi’s eyelashes flutter.

Only he knew why Gu Chuanzhou was so happy.

Yu Xi had no idea how anyone in this world could actually swallow something like that.

Right in front of his face, Gu Chuanzhou had licked up every bit of the sweet, musky mess he had personally drawn out, his face filled with sheer satisfaction, as if it were some kind of divine nectar.

He had even stared with regret at the damp spot splattered on his yukata, saying, “A bit was wasted after all.”

In the end, he took the initiative to offer to handle the yukata for him, claiming that the cleaning staff at the hot spring villa might otherwise see it.

The reason sounded perfectly valid, but Yu Xi suspected that the yukata would become another collectible in Gu Chuanzhou’s secret room.

He had been in utter disarray at the time, his physical strength completely drained, his head feeling floaty and dizzy, allowing Gu Chuanzhou to get his way just like that.

Xiao Juan’s cursing wasn’t wrong at all.

“Xiao Xi, you barely said anything today. Are you in a bad mood?”

Noticing the tight knot between Yu Xi’s brows, Sheng Yunjuan asked with concern.

At this question, both Sheng Yunshu and Meng Shen inside the car turned their heads to look at Yu Xi.

Yu Xi offered a small smile: “I just feel a bit guilty that everyone is heading back early because of me.”

“What’s there to feel guilty about! Before, you were afraid of troubling us and didn’t dare say anything. Hearing you take the initiative to make a request actually makes us all very happy inside! Right?” Sheng Yunjuan turned toward the other two.

Sheng Yunshu and Meng Shen nodded in sync.

Sheng Yunjuan looked at Yu Xi with bright eyes, as if saying: See?

Yu Xi couldn’t help but smile.

His friends were truly wonderful. Mm, except for Gu Chuanzhou.

As the Spring Festival approached, the property management of Huze Junting had already put up the New Year decorations. Carved red lanterns hung from the tree branches, adding a splash of color to the winter roads, along with paper-cuts, banners, and mystic knots that looked exceptionally festive. Every homeowner was also gifted couplets and New Year floral arrangements.

The festive atmosphere grew thicker by the day, and the date for reuniting with his mother drew closer as well.

Yu Xi’s mood had been very buoyant recently. He used the money he had earned from his part-time job at the cat café to buy his mother a wool scarf. The packaged gift box had been sitting on his nightstand the entire time; every time he saw it, he would look forward to the day he could see his mother.

Auntie Pei had also prepared a room for his mother with everything fully provided, yet Yu Xi still went in every day to clean and tidy things up.

On this day, while wiping down the room, he inadvertently caught sight of Gu Chuanzhou appearing downstairs.

Wearing a smoke-grey overcoat, he exuded a refined, cool aura. On his face hung a pair of gold-rimmed glasses, conferring a high-intellectual temperament different from usual—even though he wasn’t nearsighted.

Before long, Auntie Wan came upstairs to inform him that Gu Chuanzhou had arrived.

During this period, Yu Xi was afraid of the cold and was busy decorating his mother’s room at home; coupled with intentionally avoiding him, he barely stepped out the door.

Even if he didn’t go out, he couldn’t stop people from coming to his doorstep.

Setting Zhang Xingkuo and the others aside, the only one Yu Xi truly didn’t want to see was Gu Chuanzhou.

“Tell him to go back. Just say I’m sleeping,” Yu Xi said.

Auntie Wan complied and turned to head downstairs.

Yu Xi knelt on the balcony cushion, poking his head out to peek down covertly.

He saw Auntie Wan exchange a few words with Gu Chuanzhou. Gu Chuanzhou nodded, then suddenly lifted his head to look up.

The movement startled Yu Xi; like a cat, he rapidly pulled his head back and crouched low. Once he realized Gu Chuanzhou was likely looking toward his bedroom next door rather than here, he cautiously crept back to the window.

Gu Chuanzhou seemed to say something to Auntie Wan, but he still didn’t leave, remaining rooted by the doorway.

Auntie Wan came back upstairs to pass along the message: “Young Master Gu says he just wants to come up and take a quick look, and won’t disturb your sleep.”

“…” Yu Xi remained silent for two seconds. “But Auntie Wan, if I were sleeping, how could you be passing messages to me?”

Auntie Wan froze for a moment before realizing, slapping her own forehead: “Oh my, look at me! Getting older, my brain isn’t working as sharply anymore.”

Yu Xi shook his head: “I don’t blame you. He knows I’m not asleep and was just finding a random excuse. You don’t need to pay him any mind, I’ll call him myself. Sorry to bother you, please go back to your work.”

“It’s no trouble.” Auntie Wan went off to attend to her duties. Yu Xi returned to his room to retrieve his phone and dialed Gu Chuanzhou’s number.

It connected in a single second.

“Xixi.” The soft call drifted out from the phone’s earpiece, carrying a slight raspy grain that sounded even more deep and magnetic.

Feeling his ears itch and grow slightly warm, Yu Xi pulled the phone away from his ear, switched it to speaker, and said in a muffled voice, “Go back.”

“Xixi, you’ve kept me locked out for ten whole days now,” Gu Chuanzhou let out a soft sigh. “I miss you very much.”

“T-That has nothing to do with me,” Yu Xi tried to sound stern, but his voice remained soft. “It’s all your own fault.”

“Mm, it’s my fault, it’s my mistake.” Gu Chuanzhou was always quick to admit his wrongs, though whether he would repeat them next time was a separate matter. “Just let me see you for one glance, okay?”

Yu Xi went silent for a few seconds, but still said, “No.”

He didn’t want to talk to Gu Chuanzhou any further, because with every word spoken, his memory of that night at the hot spring villa grew vivid by another degree, making his cheeks burn hot enough to catch fire. Afraid that he might soften his heart, he decisively hung up the phone.

After a short while, he couldn’t hold back and stealthily shrank behind the curtain to look down again.

The man hadn’t left, still standing in the exact same spot.

Yu Xi thought to himself that wearing such thin clothes, he wasn’t even afraid of freezing; it would be best if he froze to death out there.

Yet despite thinking so, seeing the man still waiting down there after ten minutes passed, his heart softened after all. He asked Auntie Wan to open the door and let Gu Chuanzhou in.

As usual, Gu Chuanzhou brought items with him—baked sweet potatoes and sugar-roasted chestnuts kept inside an insulated bag, so they were still piping hot. The moment he opened it, a sweet, fragrant aroma filled the room. Moreover, the sweet potatoes were stuffed with cheese and corn, while the chestnuts were sweet osmanthus-flavored—all of Yu Xi’s absolute favorite flavors.

Seeing Gu Chuanzhou pull these out from his coat, Yu Xi couldn’t maintain a cold face any longer. His eyes lit up slightly, and he secretly licked his lips.

All these reactions fell into Gu Chuanzhou’s eyes: “It must have been a while since you last ate sweet potatoes and chestnuts from this shop, so I queued up to buy them. Eat them while they’re hot.”

He then sat down and began peeling the chestnuts for Yu Xi.

Since he was eating the man’s food, Yu Xi didn’t drive him away immediately, sitting nearby to eat.

Finding that Gu Chuanzhou peeled them too slowly, he urged him to hurry up.

Gu Chuanzhou was more than happy to be ordered around, the corners of his lips curving upward even further. Once all the chestnuts were peeled, he washed his hands, looking at Yu Xi, whose cheeks were puffed out from stuffing two chestnuts into his mouth at once: “Has your anger cooled down a bit?”

Yu Xi chewed with his cheeks working. Hearing this, he turned his face away with a soft huff without speaking, making his stance clear.

“But that day, Xixi was clearly feeling very comfortable,” Gu Chuanzhou made an astonishing remark. “Was it because my technique wasn’t good?”

Yu Xi nearly choked, hastily picking up warm water to take a big gulp to wash it down. Setting the cup down, he glared at Gu Chuanzhou: “Don’t talk nonsense!”

Unexpectedly, Gu Chuanzhou’s next sentence was even more shocking: “Next time, I’ll work harder.”

Yu Xi’s face flushed bright red, and he stood up to drive the man away.

He reached out to pull him, but his hand was caught instead.

“Xixi, you can’t just toss someone aside after enjoying yourself.”

Yu Xi widened his eyes: “H-How can you frame me like that? Clearly, you were the one who insisted on giving me… that kind of thing.”

“Regardless, the relationship between us is no longer pure, nor can we go back to being mere friends.”

“Don’t say it like we’ve done everything!”

After Yu Xi spoke, he saw Gu Chuanzhou rise from the chair and suddenly draw close. Panic seized him instantly, forcing him to step back.

Step by step, he was gradually backed against the wardrobe by the approaching Gu Chuanzhou, leaving him with nowhere to retreat. The shrinking distance and the scent of minty wood wafting to the tip of his nose caused his body to recall the sensations of that day once more; his lower abdomen began to ache, and his legs grew limply soft involuntarily: “D-Don’t act recklessly. We can’t do this, these are things only lovers can do…”

“Mm, as long as Xixi understands that.” Gu Chuanzhou’s nose tip nearly brushed Yu Xi’s. “So shouldn’t Xixi grant me a proper status?”

Yu Xi’s eyelashes trembled violently, his chest heaving at a rapid pace. Averting his eyes, he said in a faint voice, “You’re acting like a bandit, who demands it like this?”

“Then I beg you.”

“…?”

“I beg Master Xixi to grant me a proper status,” Gu Chuanzhou said in a gentle, soft tone.

Taking advantage of the situation far too quickly, Yu Xi hadn’t even fully reacted, blinking his eyes as he tried to act a bit tougher: “Just because you beg me means I have to give it to you?”

Gu Chuanzhou remained silent for a moment, slowly releasing Yu Xi’s hand as he backed away a short distance, letting out a sigh: “Then I can only consider myself unlucky. It doesn’t matter, however Xixi wishes to use me is fine. It was my own choice, I can’t blame anyone else.”

His dejected, yield-to-surrender appearance left Yu Xi staring blankly. He actually began to ponder whether he was being somewhat heartless, but he quickly snapped out of the trap.

“You’re playing pitiful again!”

Gu Chuanzhou smiled: “How is Xixi getting smarter and smarter?”

He took Yu Xi’s hand to lead him back to the chair, pushing the baked sweet potato that had barely been touched toward him. No longer teasing him, he switched to asking about Yu Xi’s mother instead.

Regarding his mother, Yu Xi naturally answered obediently.

“On the day we go to pick her up at the airport, I’ll drive us together,” Gu Chuanzhou said.

Yu Xi was just about to say there was no need, but recalling his mother’s highly satisfied attitude toward Gu Chuanzhou, he swallowed the words back down, tacitly agreeing.

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