Chapter 63

Chapter 63

Impossible!

How on earth could Xiao Fang be a dog?

As Xie Ci walked out of the kitchen with coffee in hand, Gu Yufeng emphasized with a stern face, "I want to see a human, not a dog! Bring Xiao Fang here right now!"

Xie Ci was puzzled, "What do you mean? There's only one Xiao Fang here, and that's the dog."

"Xie Ci!"

Gu Yufeng lunged forward, grabbing Xie Ci by the collar, and said word by word, "I want to see a drop-dead gorgeous beauty, not this pig!"

Xie Ci fumbled to keep the two cups steady in his hands, even more baffled under Gu Yufeng's piercing stare.

"What are you talking about? What stunning beauty?"

Gu Yufeng, "Cut the crap!"

Xie Ci sighed lightly, "Let go of me first."

After setting the cups down on the table, Xie Ci called Xiao Fang over, squatted down, and patted its chest, saying to Gu Yufeng, "See? Curvy, just like you wanted."

Then, he turned the dog around and patted its round, large buttocks, "And check out that booty."

As Gu Yufeng glared in confusion and anger, the dog turned its head and flashed him a cheeky grin.

Gu Yufeng was floored, standing there completely dumbfounded.

"You've got to be kidding me..."

"Does it look like I'm joking?"

Xie Ci stood up, leaning against the back of the sofa, looking at Gu Yufeng, "What's going on with you? You've been acting weird all night."

Gu Yufeng stared at the dog for a long time, then looked up at Xie Ci with suspicion, "Other than the dog, have you ever been with someone named Xiao Fang?"

Xie Ci didn't understand but still answered, "No, never."

Gu Yufeng observed Xie Ci's expression, calm and collected, with no hint of deceit. Given Xie Ci's character, there was no need to lie about such a matter.

So, all this drama was over a dog's name, not only wanting to divorce Xie Ci but also getting both of them killed in an explosion.

"Ha!"

Gu Yufeng laughed at himself, unable to stop, "I can't believe I fell for that."

"Yu Feng?"

Xie Ci, seeing him laughing so hard he couldn't straighten up, reached out to support him with concern, "You alright?"

Gu Yufeng pushed him away, turned, and collapsed onto the sofa, leaning against the back, facing away from Xie Ci, suddenly clamming up, shutting down completely.

The laughter stopped abruptly, leaving Xie Ci stunned.

What the hell is this guy up to now?

"Yu Feng?" Xie Ci nudged him.

Gu Yufeng looked utterly defeated, lying still like a lifeless lump of meat.

Xie Ci couldn’t help but chuckle, turned on the air conditioner, grabbed a blanket, and draped it over him, then pulled him and the blanket close.

"You’re really out of it—did you get drunk on fish soup or something?"

Xie Ci wrapped his arms around Gu Yufeng from behind and pulled him close, settling into Xie Ci’s arms.

If it were any other time, he’d have jumped at the chance to milk the situation for all it was worth, but now he couldn’t even bring himself to look at Xie Ci.

"Bringing up Xiao Fang out of nowhere, and then going on about some ‘great beauty.’"

Xie Ci rested his chin on Gu Yufeng’s hair and asked in a low voice, "Did someone badmouth me to you?"

"No."

Gu Yufeng lifted a hand from the blanket to cover his eyes, his voice barely above a whisper, "Just give me a minute to pull myself together."

He was really down.

Xie Ci had a million questions but held back, waiting for Gu Yufeng to speak when he was ready.

The phone in his pocket vibrated. Xie Ci took it out and unlocked it—it was a text from his dad, Xie Qian.

Xie Qian: "Still out in the village? It’s late—come back and get some rest."

Xie Ci glanced at Gu Yufeng, knowing they weren’t heading back anytime soon.

He typed a reply.

"We’re out with friends—we’ll be back later. Go ahead and get some sleep."

Soon, a new message appeared in the chat window.

Xie Qian: "Stay safe, and don’t stay out too late."

After replying, Xie Ci noticed the group chat was blowing up. Jiang Chenyu and his group had posted a bunch of New Year’s greetings and emojis. Many were venting about relatives grilling them about grades, height, and looks. Only Fang Size, the golden child, was sitting pretty.

Wang Hao: "Help, I’m the star of the family group chat—how do I change the subject?"

Qiu Ya: "Just copy and paste the group’s messages into the family chat—it’ll flood the conversation. Works like a charm."

Chuan Chuan: "Lao Xie and Lao Fang are the only ones who don’t have to deal with that."

Jiang Ye: "Where’s Lao Xie? He said he was heading to his grandma’s for New Year’s—he’s probably done with dinner by now."

Chuan Chuan: "Probably watching the New Year’s Eve special."

Lao Fang: "Lao Xie watching something like that? Yeah, right."

Wei Wei: "Probably hanging out with the older folks? My whole family’s watching TV with them."

After chatting for a while, Jiang Chenyu manually tagged Xie Ci and Gu Yufeng.

"Come out and chat."

Xie Ci, idly, typed a message and sent it.

"Got grilled by relatives too."

The screen was quickly flooded with a wave of "hahahaha."

Jiang Ye: "Thought you’d have a good New Year."

Xie Ci glanced at the silent Gu Yufeng in his arms, wondering if this year had been good or not.

The fact that this kid was seriously thinking about their relationship and starting to feel restrained was an unexpected joy for him.

This way, it felt natural for him to keep this kid in check.

With nothing else to do, Xie Ci randomly picked a movie.

On New Year's Eve, it was nice to quietly watch a movie with his renewed ex-husband in his arms.

After about half an hour, Gu Yufeng shifted in his arms. Xie Ci kissed his hair and murmured, "Feeling better?"

"My leg’s asleep; let’s switch sides."

Gu Yufeng felt warm, so he tossed off the blanket and turned to face Xie Ci.

With the AC on, the room wasn’t cold. Xie Ci pushed the blanket aside: "Ready to talk?"

Under Xie Ci’s questioning gaze, Gu Yufeng sat up straighter and reluctantly spilled the story of Xiao Fang.

Xie Ci’s expression grew increasingly incredulous, and he was left speechless for a moment.

"You thought it was an affair just because I said Xiao Fang’s name in my dream? What the hell? You couldn’t just ask?!"

Gu Yufeng knew he deserved the scolding but still retorted, "With so many people around you, should I grill each one? Isn’t that exhausting?"

"So you didn’t even ask and went straight to divorcing me?"

Xie Ci was furious, "Is this how an adult handles things?"

Gu Yufeng was already in a bad mood, and with this scolding, he also got angry: "Why’d you name the dog like that? If it was Wangcai, Fugui, or Goudan, I wouldn’t have misunderstood even if you said it a hundred times!"

When people are at a loss for words, they just laugh.

Xie Ci called the dog playing with a ball over and pointed to its face: "It looked scruffy as a pup, and its face was square, so we named it Xiao Fang. Isn’t that better than Wangcai, Fugui, or Goudan?"

"I thought it was the ‘Fang’ as in ‘fragrance.’" Gu Yufeng was somewhat embarrassed and angry, "Can’t you dream of something better? Why a dog? Aren’t there enough hot guys and girls for you to dream about?"

"I don’t have those kinds of dreams." Xie Ci was also annoyed.

Gu Yufeng: "Who are you kidding? Haven’t you ever let loose when stressed, messed around? Were all those people around you just for show?"

"Who said indulging means messing around? Can’t I just throw myself into work?"

Xie Ci retorted with a stern face, "What’s the point of messing around? You’re just wasting time and money, and you might even catch something. At least work gets you somewhere."

Gu Yufeng was at a loss for words, moved his gaze away in frustration, and muttered, "Do you have to be so logical? I don’t even know what to yell at you about during a fight."

Xie Ci: "..."

The room fell silent, with only the sound of fighting from the movie.

After a moment of silence, Gu Yufeng's tone became serious: "The way you said its name gave me a weird feeling. I thought you’d be taken away by it."

Xie Ci's thoughts were a bit chaotic, but he patiently responded, "I don't know what tone I used in my dream, but in my past life, Xiao Fang was hit by a car while still a stray. It was a regretful thing for me, so there might have been some emotions involved..."

Mid-sentence, Xie Ci trailed off. He pressed his temple and leaned back against the sofa: "I'm furious."

From the night their relationship fell apart until now, he had considered countless scenarios, but never imagined the issue would stem from Xiao Fang.

A relationship founded on deceit is inherently fragile; even the smallest disturbance can shatter it all.

Both of them collapsed onto the sofa, utterly shaken.

"So I received divorce papers because I dreamed of a dog?"

Xie Ci's anger intensified as he dwelled on it, "Gu Yufeng, you owe me for emotional damages."

Gu Yufeng: "My partner was tenderly calling out another's name, and I haven't demanded emotional compensation from you yet."

"How dare you ask me for compensation?"

Xie Ci turned to confront him, "Had you simply inquired about Xiao Fang, we could have settled this that same night."

Gu Yufeng: "I told you, I couldn't muster the courage to ask!"

Their relationship had never been conventional. They had established too many tacit rules between them, never articulated but always followed, preserving equilibrium in their marriage.

But eventually, these rules turned into a prison, entrapping them so completely they were immobilized upon realization.

Xie Ci could comprehend Gu Yufeng's behavior, but the misunderstanding stemming from a dog left him conflicted.

Witnessing Xie Ci's anger, Gu Yufeng surprisingly calmed down, straddling his lap and brushing a kiss at the corner of his mouth: "Don't be upset, it's my mistake. I can't provide emotional compensation, but perhaps physical recompense instead?"

Xie Ci gazed at the face inches from his and tentatively inquired, "Apart from Xiao Fang, were there any other issues that made you want to divorce me? Let's clear everything up tonight."

"There weren't," Gu Yufeng answered bluntly.

Xie Ci: "..."

It would have been better if there were.

Gu Yufeng kissed along Xie Ci's jawline to his Adam's apple, gently biting.

Xie Ci's hand on his waist tightened, pulling him closer, capturing his chin for a deep kiss.

The house was empty except for them and a dog, allowing them to be unrestrained, unlike in the school dormitory where they had to consider others' feelings.

Gu Yufeng, panting, pushed Xie Ci away: "Since Xiao Fang isn't someone you're interested in, there's no third party between us, meaning we can return to our previous dynamic."

Xie Ci: "I don't want to go back to how things were."

Gu Yufeng paused: "Why?"

Xie Ci's fingers brushed through the hair at the back of his neck, pulling open his collar, placing delicate kisses from behind his ear to the side of his neck.

Gu Yufeng, tickled by the sensation, suddenly felt a sharp pain on his shoulder and neck, letting out a muffled groan, his hand on the backrest clenching tightly.

"Let go!"

Xie Ci licked over the deep teeth marks on the skin, his tone soft and low: "Understand? I'm not the person you like; the Xie Ci you want has never existed."

Gu Yufeng narrowed his eyes at him: "So?"

Xie Ci looked up, meeting his scrutinizing gaze: "Do you understand what I mean by 'starting over'?"