of Chapter 48 - Awkward
The villa was very spacious, with its own swimming pool in the yard, and the beach was just a short walk further on. Xiao Liu left after helping them unload their luggage.
Hearing the commotion at the door, Lu Yu also came out. He was wearing an apron around his waist. His skin was a little darker than before, with layers of tan lines, but not as exaggerated as Shen Shaoyan.
"You're here?" Lu Yu's tone hadn't changed much, as if a year hadn't passed between them.
Ji Linxue returned a smile, "Are the dishes ready? Is there anything I can help with?"
Lu Yu didn’t hold back. "I don't know how to prepare this kind of fish, can you help me take a look?"
The two spoke as they entered the kitchen, huddled together exchanging cooking tips. Soon, sounds of laughter and chatter came from inside, mixed with the sound of knives hitting the cutting board.
Gu Hengzhi glanced at Shen Shaoyan, "Don't you have a chef? Isn’t it tiring doing this yourselves?"
"Lu Yu recently got into cooking and insists on doing it himself. And his cooking is genuinely good. You'll know when you taste it," Shen Shaoyan said, crossing his arms, "More importantly than this topic, I'm now more concerned about you two's progress. How is it? Did you confess?"
"Mm," Gu Hengzhi said plainly, "What's with that expression?"
Shen Shaoyan dropped his disgusted expression and nudged him with his arm, "Then why haven't you succeeded yet?"
He could tell that these two weren't together yet. Looking at Ji Linxue's evasive look, he was clearly shy.
"No rush," not sure what he remembered, Gu Hengzhi suddenly curved his lips, "This is good too."
Shen Shaoyan rubbed the goosebumps on his arms, "Your smile gives me the creeps. Be careful not to scare him away."
Gu Hengzhi knew immediately that he must have thought of something weird. He shot him a cold look, "Put away your dirty thoughts."
Shen Shaoyan grumbled twice, indicating that he was very pure.
"Do you want me to help you?"
Gu Hengzhi gave him a sideways glance, "No need. Don't come up with bad ideas."
"Hey, I'm a love expert! I'm practically a semi-expert in dating. I've held at least five hundred, if not a thousand, hands. It's one thing if you don't appreciate it, but you're even looking down on me..."
He chattered non-stop. After finishing, he looked to the side, and Gu Hengzhi's figure was nowhere to be seen.
With Ji Linxue helping, dinner was ready quickly. Lu Yu called them to the dining room. The table was full of dishes, all kinds of seafood.
Fortunately, most of the seafood had been prepared in advance, saving them a lot of trouble.
Shen Shaoyan was very good at creating a lively atmosphere. As soon as the dishes were served, he showered both Lu Yu and Ji Linxue with flowery compliments, making Ji Linxue a little embarrassed.
Finally, Lu Yu couldn't help but interrupt him, "Hurry and eat, the food will get cold if you keep talking."
Only then did everyone pick up their chopsticks. Gu Hengzhi initially thought Shen Shaoyan was exaggerating. After tasting a bite, he realized the flavor was indeed good. The fish was not fishy or greasy. Coated in sauce, it was fresh and refreshing, almost melting in his mouth. It was completely incomparable to what he had eaten before. He didn't expect Lu Yu's hands, skilled at holding scalpels, to be just as capable at cooking.
Everyone had a good appetite and quickly finished the large table of dishes. After dinner, a servant came to clean up. The few of them went upstairs and started assigning rooms.
The villa looked large, but unexpectedly there were only two habitable rooms. Ji Linxue looked at Gu Hengzhi, whose expression was as usual, then glanced at Shen Shaoyan, whose acting hadn't improved much, "Why are there only two rooms?"
Shen Shaoyan said innocently, "The layout here is like this, there are fewer bedrooms. Don't worry, the beds inside are very big, easily enough for two people. You won't fall off even if you roll over."
Ji Linxue immediately wanted to leave, "Are there any other villas? I'll stay somewhere else."
Shen Shaoyan quickly pulled his suitcase, "Don't go, we can just squeeze in, and it's not like you two haven't slept together before."
Ji Linxue narrowed his eyes. He clearly saw two other rooms next to them. Shen Shaoyan's lie was too clumsy, the flaws were obvious at a glance.
He just didn't know if this had anything to do with Gu Hengzhi.
His gaze circled between the two of them. Before he could even speak, he saw Gu Hengzhi cast a warning glance at Shen Shaoyan, his tone cold and sharp, “Hand over the keys.”
Shen Shaoyan was startled, his expression instantly becoming somewhat wronged.
"What key? I don't understand."
Gu Hengzhi's expression turned slightly cold, the imposing aura on him so sharp that it made one dare not look directly, "Shen Shaoyan, don't make me say it a second time."
Shen Shaoyan reluctantly took out the key and opened the locked room door.
Ji Linxue suppressed the surprise in his heart. He initially thought Shen Shaoyan was acting on Gu Hengzhi's instructions. Thinking about it now, Gu Hengzhi wouldn't stoop to such things at all. The current him was no longer the person from the original plot.
He would respect his wishes, care for him considerately, and even shamelessly cling to him.
Could they two really be together?
Thinking of this, his eyes instantly dimmed.
Shen Shaoyan glared at Gu Hengzhi indignantly, as if saying, 'I was clearly trying to help you, and you're so ungrateful!' Then he turned to look at Ji Linxue, his tone cautious, "Xiao Xue, don't be angry."
“It’s fine.” Ji Linxue knew he meant well, but good intentions often backfired. “Just don’t do that again.”
Saying this, he pulled his suitcase and randomly chose one of the rooms to enter. The door closed, cutting off the cold atmosphere outside.
Behind the wall, Shen Shaoyan was still sulking, puffing out his cheeks like a pufferfish.
"Still not convinced?" Gu Hengzhi glanced at the closed door, his tone displeased, "Didn't you see that he didn't like it?"
"But I just wanted to help you two get together! You're making such slow progress! By the time you're together, my kids will be in kindergarten!" Shen Shaoyan also got angry. He thought his method was fine. They were clearly interested in each other, so what was wrong with sleeping together?
"That's between him and me," Gu Hengzhi pinched his throbbing temples, "Don't do this kind of thing next time."
Shen Shaoyan's eyes instantly turned red, "Now you think I'm being nosy? If I didn't consider you brothers, I wouldn't bother with this!"
Leaving these words behind, he wiped his eyes and rushed into the room, slamming the door shut with a bang.
An inexplicable silence fell in the air. Lu Yu looked at the motionless man beside him, "He's just stubborn like that. He'll be fine by tomorrow morning."
"I know," Gu Hengzhi looked at the closed door, "His intentions are good, but his methods are unacceptable. Linxue is not an object to be manipulated. What he did was too disrespectful to his feelings."
The Shen family was wealthy and prominent, and they were very fond of their only son. Shen Shaoyan had developed a fearless personality since childhood, doing whatever he pleased without worrying about the consequences.
It wasn't until he met Gu Hengzhi and Lu Yu that he restrained himself somewhat. They were also the only ones who could control him.
"Actually, he meant well," Lu Yu sighed, "But he really needs to change that. It's too disrespectful."
The sky outside quickly darkened. The villa was quiet. Fortunately, the original plan for tonight was just for Gu Hengzhi and Ji Linxue to rest, without any other arrangements.
Early the next morning, Ji Linxue planned to get up and make breakfast, but unexpectedly, as soon as he went downstairs, he found someone was up even earlier than him.
Lu Yu came out of the kitchen carrying a plate of toast and hot milk. He smiled at him, "There aren't enough ingredients here, so I could only make a simple breakfast."
Saying this, he handed him a cup of hot milk, "Shen Shaoyan doesn't get up this early. Let's eat first."
Ji Linxue looked around, "Where's Hengzhi?"
He had passed by the other person's room just now; the door was open, but he wasn't inside.
"He went for a morning run," Lu Yu glanced at the clock on the wall, "He should be back soon."
The second his words fell, a tall figure appeared at the doorway. Gu Hengzhi was wiping the sweat from his forehead with a towel, striding in as he spoke, "You're up? Did you sleep well last night?"
He said this to Ji Linxue, who was chewing on toast. Hearing this, he nodded, "Mm."
After swallowing what was in his mouth, he spoke, "Want some breakfast? Xiao Yu made it."
"You guys eat first, I still need to take a shower," Gu Hengzhi walked to the bar counter, unscrewed a bottle of mineral water and took a sip. His Adam's apple bobbed up and down, revealing a sexy curve. Ji Linxue stared intently without realizing it until he met a pair of smiling eyes, and suddenly snapped back to attention.
He quickly turned his face away, but noticed a figure on the stairs.
"What are you doing standing there?"
Unbeknownst to them, Shen Shaoyan had also gotten up and was standing on the stairs watching them.
As soon as Ji Linxue spoke, everyone's gaze turned upwards. Lu Yu said in surprise, "Why are you up so early today? Want breakfast?"
Shen Shaoyan glared, clearly still angry about yesterday. Ignoring Lu Yu's question, he walked directly to Ji Linxue and sat down, "Wow! Xiao Xue, did you bake this? It smells so good!"
Ji Linxue looked at the toast in his hand, "...I didn't make it. Lu Yu made it."
Shen Shaoyan's hand, halfway extended, stopped in mid-air, his face sheepish.
But he quickly recovered and shamelessly took some anyway. He spread jam on the toast, took a bite and grimaced. “Ugh, this is awful.”
Lu Yu knew that he was holding a grudge against both him and Gu Hengzhi because he hadn't spoken up for him yesterday.
Such childish temper was both frustrating and funny. He couldn't help but shrug, giving Ji Linxue, who was looking at him questioningly, a reassuring look, then spoke, "If it's bad, don't eat it."
Shen Shaoyan threw the toast back onto the plate, "Who wants it!"
A cool voice came from behind him, "Don't waste food."
It was Gu Hengzhi.
Shen Shaoyan looked at this one, then that one, "You guys are deliberately bullying me!"
He hadn't slept well all night, thinking these two would surely come to apologize today. But they didn't say a word and even teamed up to bully him!
Shen Shaoyan was angered into running off again, not forgetting to take his toast and milk with him as he left.
Watching his figure bounding up the stairs, Ji Linxue gave Gu Hengzhi a look. What was going on?
Gu Hengzhi briefly explained what happened yesterday. Ji Linxue said helplessly, "I didn't even take yesterday's matter to heart."
Gu Hengzhi shook his head, his expression serious, "He's only obedient in front of me and Lu Yu."
Ji Linxue understood the unspoken meaning. He could actually feel it himself. Shen Shaoyan wasn't that respectful towards him; it was only because of his connection with Gu Hengzhi that the two had a chance to interact.
But for Ji Linxue, it was normal for a young master who had been pampered by his family since childhood to be a little arrogant. He had never cared about it.
But Gu Hengzhi cared.
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