This made Shen Mianyin unconsciously glance at him—was he trying to scare the other person to death?
Gu Luo’an’s mind went blank for several seconds before he asked, “Third Uncle?”
Gu Huaizhi simply nodded. “Hmm.”
“Where’s Shen Mianyin?” Gu Luo’an’s voice suddenly turned cold, his face darkening in an intimidating manner. “Why are you the one answering her phone?”
Gu Huaizhi glanced at Shen Mianyin before responding, “She’s driving and can’t take the call right now.”
Gu Luo’an was silent for a few seconds before asking, “What’s your relationship now? Have things gotten to the point where Shen Mianyin is driving you around?”
Gu Huaizhi slightly curled his lips. “What do you think?”
“Let Shen Mianyin take the call,” Gu Luo’an insisted.
Gu Huaizhi sneered and hung up the phone directly, then blocked the number as well.
I already told you Shen Mianyin is driving and can’t take the call.
“It was still Gu Luo’an’s number,” Gu Huaizhi said. “He changed it, so I just went ahead and blocked this one for you too.”
“Why is he so annoying?” Shen Mianyin grumbled.
Shen Mianyin parked the car and got out, just in time to see Gu Huaizhi getting out of his own car, holding onto the door as his body swayed slightly.
Shen Mianyin ran over in quick steps, catching Gu Huaizhi and supporting him. “Gu Huaizhi, are you okay?”
Before at the restaurant entrance, he seemed fine—didn’t look like he’d been drinking much.
“It was fine at first, but the journey back was a bit long, and drinking made it worse,” Gu Huaizhi explained. “Now I feel a bit unwell.”
As he closed the car door, Gu Huaizhi swayed again, making Shen Mianyin hesitate to let go. She had to hold onto his arm with both hands to keep him steady.
Gu Huaizhi shifted half his weight onto Shen Mianyin, and with just one hand, she couldn’t hold him up. She had to use her body to support him.
In this position, they ended up walking side by side, closely pressed together with no space between them.
The scent of alcohol on Gu Huaizhi was faint, almost nonexistent, overshadowed entirely by the smell of his cedar fragrance.
Even though he was walking slightly unsteady, it didn’t give Shen Mianyin the impression that he was acting out of character due to drunkenness.
Shen Mianyin couldn’t help but mutter to herself, this person, it’s like he never loses his composure.
She helped Gu Huaizhi into the elevator, and he took a USB drive out of his pocket, handing it to Shen Mianyin.
“What is this?” Shen Mianyin asked.
“It’s the surveillance footage from the restaurant just now, when you were being harassed by that drunk person,” Gu Huaizhi explained. “Sorry, I wasn’t there with you when it happened.”
By the time he found out, it was too late, so he had to have Zhou Jingqi retrieve the footage first to keep it out of Su Yiqing’s hands.
Shen Mianyin stared in shock at the USB drive in Gu Huaizhi’s hand, realizing that the powerful person the manager had mentioned was Gu Huaizhi himself.
It was Gu Huaizhi who had arranged for the footage to be retrieved.
No wonder Gu Luo’an’s people were a step too late, and Gu Luo’an wasn’t worried about the footage leaking.
It seemed that Gu Luo’an believed even if Gu Huaizhi got the surveillance footage, it wouldn’t be of much use—uncertain of Gu Huaizhi’s motive, but trusting his integrity not to release the video publicly.
Gu Luo’an probably never would have guessed that Gu Huaizhi was going to such lengths for the video, even going so far as to use his influence outside to retrieve it.
Shen Mianyin’s throat felt dry and slightly tight, and she stared blankly at the tips of Gu Huaizhi’s fingers.
His fingertips were neatly trimmed and clean, with long, white fingers that stood out even more against the black of the USB drive.
“Is it… for me?” Shen Mianyin’s voice was thick with emotion as she asked, her eyes moist.
Gu Huaizhi’s face seemed calm on the surface, but Shen Mianyin was drawn to his dark eyes, unable to look away.
“Hmm,” Gu Huaizhi answered softly, his gaze intense as he met her eyes.
Shen Mianyin suddenly felt flustered and quickly looked away. “Thank you. If I had tried to get it, the restaurant definitely wouldn’t have given it to me. And… it would have ended up in Gu Luo’an’s hands too.”
She said this, reaching out to take the USB drive and accidentally brushing her fingertips against Gu Huaizhi’s.
A small jolt of electricity seemed to pass from her fingertips to his.
Shen Mianyin’s fingers trembled slightly, hastily tucking the USB drive into the pocket of her coat.
I wonder if Gu Huaizhi felt the same way.
When they reached the floor where Gu Huaizhi lived, the elevator doors opened, and Shen Mianyin reluctantly let go of him. “You can—”
Before she could finish her sentence, Gu Huaizhi staggered slightly and asked, “Can you help me inside?”
Shen Mianyin nodded, her face inexplicably flushing red.
This was her first time at Gu Huaizhi’s place, and as she helped him inside, she took off her shoes first.
Seeing her barefoot, Gu Huaizhi said, “I bought a pair of women’s slippers—brand new.”
He opened the shoe cabinet and took out a pair of white quilted slippers, the same style as the ones he had just changed into.
One large, one small, it looked like a couple’s pair.
Noticing Shen Mianyin’s curious look, Gu Huaizhi explained, “I left a pair of slippers at your place, so it’s only fair to have a pair here for you as well.”
Shen Mianyin: “….”
“If it wasn’t for today, I wouldn’t know when I’d get to come to your place,” Shen Mianyin said as she slipped on the new slippers. “You bought them early, didn’t know if you’d actually need them.”
“They’re definitely needed,” Gu Huaizhi replied with a small smile. “Today’s the day I needed them.”
Shen Mianyin helped him to the sofa in the living room and asked, “Do you have any honey at your place?”
“Yes,” Gu Huaizhi replied.
“Would you mind if I make you a cup of honey water?” Shen Mianyin asked.
“Sure,” Gu Huaizhi nodded.
Shen Mianyin headed to the kitchen, but she was a bit too nervous and forgot to ask where the honey was. So she opened one cabinet after another, looking for it.
Suddenly, Shen Mianyin felt a warm presence behind her, leaning closer.
Following that, Shen Mianyin saw Gu Huaizhi reach around her from behind, extending his arm to open the cabinet above her head and retrieve a jar of honey from the top shelf. “It’s up here, a bit too high.”
If it weren’t for Gu Huaizhi, she wouldn’t have been able to reach it.
Shen Mianyin said instinctively, “You can’t even stand steady, how did you come over here?”
Gu Huaizhi hesitated for a moment, then quickly steadied himself by holding onto the kitchen counter. “Walking slowly is manageable.”
“Just wait a moment, it’ll be ready soon,” Shen Mianyin scooped some honey into the cup and then mixed in some warm water, stirring until the honey was dissolved.
When she handed the cup to Gu Huaizhi, Shen Mianyin’s WeChat call ringtone suddenly rang out.
She picked it up; it was a call from Gu Luo’an.
She had forgotten to block Gu Luo’an’s WeChat as well.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to see your phone,” Gu Huaizhi said from beside her. “Maybe you should just listen to what he has to say. Otherwise, he’ll keep changing numbers, and you won’t be able to avoid it.”
Shen Mianyin thought about it and agreed, so she answered the call, “Gu Luo’an, what’s your problem?”
“Where are you right now?” Gu Luo’an demanded.
Shen Mianyin rolled her eyes. “It’s none of your business. What exactly do you want? If you don’t say, I’m hanging up.”
“Shen Mianyin!” Gu Luo’an called out anxiously, then suddenly paused and softened his tone. “You must be upset, right?”
“What nonsense?” Shen Mianyin said, puzzled.
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