Chapter 6

Chapter 6

"Huh?" Song Yuan blinked. "Weren't we supposed to part ways immediately after leaving?"

Gu Jingchi didn't dignify that with a response. "Do you want to walk home alone?"

Song Yuan shook his head.

Gu Jingchi turned away, expressionless. "Then why ask?"

Song Yuan's eyes widened slightly, his surprise unconcealed.

— So Gu Jingchi was actually a good person!

Once they were in the car, Gu Jingchi asked him, "Where do you live?"

Song Yuan gave an address.

Gu Jingchi looked up, his gaze fixing on Song Yuan.

The sudden eye contact left Song Yuan a little bewildered. He tilted his head. "What's wrong?"

Gu Jingchi lowered his eyes, saying nothing.

The address Song Yuan gave didn't match the one in the Song family's records.

Though mildly curious, Gu Jingchi couldn't be bothered to delve deeper. After all, he had no intention of developing any relationship with Song Yuan beyond their contractual engagement, so these matters were outside his scope of concern.

The black sedan pulled up at the entrance of the residential complex. Gu Jingchi silently surveyed the unusually quiet surroundings, but said nothing.

"Okay, I'm heading back now." Song Yuan unbuckled his seatbelt and waved at Gu Jingchi.

Gu Jingchi nodded.

Song Yuan's hand rested on the door handle, lingering for a long moment before he finally mustered the courage. "Um, if you've really decided to stay in the country, you'll probably be working at Bojing, right?"

Bojing was the headquarters of the Gu family's business empire, established earliest and located in Jiangcheng.

Gu Jingchi nodded.

Song Yuan asked, "Then can I visit you at Bojing?"

Gu Jingchi seemed a little confused. "Why would you come to Bojing?"

For a moment, Song Yuan suspected Gu Jingchi was feigning ignorance. He stammered, "T-to see you, of course."

Gu Jingchi indirectly declined. "I'm very busy."

Song Yuan felt Gu Jingchi's attitude had softened considerably compared to before; at least it wasn't a direct refusal. "Not even a little time? Like, maybe we could have lunch together? You could squeeze out some time, right?"

Gu Jingchi gently lowered his eyelids. Perhaps it was Song Yuan's overly earnest gaze that made him hesitate to outright refuse.

"I'll try."

Song Yuan seemed delighted. "Really?"

Gu Jingchi nodded indifferently, as if he didn't care much. He wanted to say something more, but Song Yuan didn't give him the chance, lightly floating out a "See you, fiancé," before running off.

The white figure grew smaller and smaller until it vanished at the end of the corridor. The street was eerily quiet at this moment, even the cold wind seemed unwilling to linger.

Gu Jingchi didn't rush to leave. He leaned back in his seat, lowered the window, and casually rested his hand on the window frame, silently staring at the building Song Yuan had entered.

His attention was always focused, and he was decisive in everything he did, rarely procrastinating like this.

But as he started the car, the image of Song Yuan's overly bright eyes in the darkness uncontrollably resurfaced in his mind, lingering stubbornly.

Gu Jingchi: "..."

After confirming that a light had come on in one of the apartments, Gu Jingchi expressionlessly retracted his gaze, stepped on the gas, and decided to leave those thoughts to the cold wind.

*

The first thing Song Yuan did upon returning home was to untie his necktie and toss it carelessly into the laundry basket.

Next time—

No matter what Song Shenyu said, he wouldn't attend another banquet. It was sheer social torture; just one trip felt like being flayed alive.

Song Yuan buried his entire face in the comforter, groaning softly as he stretched. Halfway through, he suddenly stopped, lifting his head in confusion.

He had only eaten a few small cakes earlier, and now he was hungry again.

Reluctantly, he left his bed and went to the kitchen, opening the sparsely stocked refrigerator.

Song Yuan: "..."

Had the original owner really lived solely on takeout?

After rummaging through cupboards, Song Yuan finally ended up with a steaming bowl of instant noodles and a cup of extremely diluted oatmeal—plain and bland, like eating vegetarian temple food. But Song Yuan ate happily; it was the most satisfying meal he'd had since transmigrating into this book.

After this, the Song family should stop bothering him. After all, in this marriage of convenience, they had already obtained what they wanted, and with Gu Jingchi having drawn such clear boundaries tonight, they had no reason to be so oblivious.

Full and content, Song Yuan showered and then burrowed back into the fluffy duvet, settling into a comfortable position to check his phone.

As soon as the screen lit up, a barrage of WeChat notifications chimed, vying for attention.

What happened?!

Song Yuan suddenly felt nervous.

If he remembered correctly, the original owner didn't have any friends worth contacting via WeChat—could it be that the original owner had incurred more debts for him to clean up?

Song Yuan thought for a moment, then opened his phone.

Entering the WeChat interface, he found messages from contacts in his list, along with over a dozen pending friend requests, all very friendly.

Song Yuan opened the chat with the most messages.

"Ming: [Image][Image] More to come!!!"

"Ming: [Video]"

"Ming: You wouldn't believe how awful Song Shenyu and his family looked after you left!"

"Song Shenyu's family"—he liked that distinction; at least this person excluded him from the Song family group.

But new questions arose.

Who was this person?

Did they know each other before?

The identity of the person gradually became clear as he scrolled through the messages.

"Ming: I'm Jiang Ming ^-^"

"Ming: I was there tonight too. If the waiter hadn't changed direction, I would have been the one spilled on."

"Ming: Anyway, I should apologize to you."

Song Yuan suddenly understood. Thinking back, there indeed seemed to have been such a person.

"Song Yuan: Oh, I see!"

"Song Yuan: Cat-head-with-lightbulb.JPG"

"Song Yuan: Yeah, no worries~"

Song Yuan was moved to tears. He hadn't expected anyone to reach out to him, nor had he expected to shed his "dog-hated" status so quickly.

Most who actively sought him out were driven by curiosity and gossip, but Song Yuan didn't mind. You only knew if friends were a good fit by spending time with them.

Like this classmate Jiang Ming, who seemed like a straightforward and expressive person. It would be much easier to get along with someone like that.

"Ming: Oh, by the way, I'm your classmate."

"Ming: You're rarely at school, so it's normal that you don't know me."

"Ming: Let's hang out after the holidays! (rubbing hands) (excited)"

At the mention of school, Song Yuan felt a pang of embarrassment.

"Song Yuan: Sorry ><, I might not be back soon. I still have to prepare for exams."

Song Yuan wasn't good at explaining. He didn't know how to tell his new friend that because the original owner skipped too many classes, Song Yuan was now on forced academic leave.

To re-enroll, he had to pass the qualification test for the art major.

"Ming: You mean the reinstatement exam?"

"Song Yuan: Yeah... (guilty look)"

"Ming: That's a small matter. I was top of the class last year, so you can ask me if you have any questions."

"Ming: [File][File][File] These are the materials for the theory courses. The practical courses are up to you though ><."

"Song Yuan: Ahhh, thank you so much!"

This new friend was truly a godsend. Song Yuan's spirits soared, and he wanted to share this good news with Gu Jingchi.

"Song Yuan: I have a friend now!!"

"Song Yuan: Happy ^3^"

"Song Yuan: Spinning-in-circles.JPG"

Gu Jingchi hadn't replied yet, so Song Yuan switched to another app.

He opened a red app and quickly scrolled through it. The app had a clean interface and very active users, mostly young people sharing their lives.

But Song Yuan wasn't there to surf the internet; he was looking for a part-time job.

The apartment the original owner rented was too expensive, and with Song Yuan's current savings, it wouldn't last until graduation. Besides housing expenses, the fashion design courses would likely cost money too.

Now, he was neither a member of the Song family nor the Gu family; all his income had to come from himself.

But making money was so hard. His academic schedule was too packed, otherwise, he would have already looked for an internship.

Maybe he should just stay up all night, lie on Gu Jingchi's floor, and make Gu Jingchi terminate the agreement and give him compensation.

But this idea was quickly dismissed by Song Yuan.

He felt it was more likely he'd be carried away as a lunatic.

Suddenly, a strange notification popped up in his message bar.

"I'mOctopus: Boss~ Remember to pay the final balance~"

Song Yuan suddenly became alert.

It looked like a scam.

As a qualified artist, Song Yuan was familiar with the details of commissions. But this final payment was too large, making him feel something was off.

What kind of commission did the original owner order that would warrant such a high price?

Song Yuan racked his brain and came up with an excuse.

"San Shuiyuan: Hello, I've been too busy lately and can't remember who you are. Could you tell me what I ordered before? ><"

"San Shuiyuan: [SorrySorry.jpg]"

Song Yuan's palms were sweating. He didn't know if what he said was offensive, but it was better to be safe than sorry; he had to stay vigilant.

He was already short on money and couldn't afford to make things worse.

"I'mOctopus: Of course~"

"I'mOctopus: [Image][Image][Image]"

Song Yuan saw the images the other party sent, but he didn't open them. His gaze lingered on the screen, motionless for a long time, as if he himself had turned into a photograph.

It wasn't until his phone vibrated again that he snapped out of his trance.

Song Yuan rubbed his eyes, looking at the few photos the other party sent, his mind in turmoil.

How could the original owner order something like this?!

What the original owner commissioned was not a painting, but a cat-themed human figurine modeled after Gu Jingchi. Although it was only the upper body, everything that should be there was, especially the muscles, which were clearly defined, exquisite, and beautiful.

The key was that it was incredibly realistic.

Song Yuan felt embarrassed just looking at it.

He couldn't imagine where he would put this thing if it actually got delivered.

"San Shuiyuan:"

"I'mOctopus: What kind of reaction is that?! [Confused]"

"I'mOctopus: Didn't you say yourself that you were obsessed with your fiancé's body, and wanted to cling, hug, and kiss him? [Smile]"

Song Yuan shattered into a million pieces on the spot.