Chapter 20

Chapter 20

If time could turn back, Rong Yuan would go back to the previous moment and stitch his own mouth shut. How could anyone ask such a shameless question?

He pretended nothing had happened, grabbed a bag of snacks, opened it, and munched like a rabbit, making a "crunch crunch" sound.

Gu Shenhan watched him trying to be a little ostrich, practically burying his head in the snack bag, and was really afraid he might choke himself.

The snacks Yan Yu had bought this time were super-sized; the height of one bag, no exaggeration, was about as long as an adult's arm. Rong Yuan was almost hiding himself completely.

The more Gu Shenhan looked, the more he wanted to mess with him: "Do you know what effect the food you're eating has?"

Rong Yuan turned the snack bag around to face himself and took a closer look: "Chinese yam chips, isn't this just a snack? It makes you happy and fills your stomach?"

Gu Shenhan said, "Chinese yam can tonify kidneys and boost yang."

Rong Yuan was speechless. So even snacks were off-limits now?!

He silently handed the snack bag to Gu Shenhan.

Gu Shenhan said, "Do you think I need that kind of supplement?"

Rong Yuan was speechless. Being a person is really hard.

Seeing that he was about to push Rong Yuan to his limit, Gu Shenhan set the snack bag aside, patted his thigh, and said, "Come, sit here."

Rong Yuan shook his head: "No, that's only when we're truly husband and wife."

How could he sit on his husband's lap before everything was settled? That would be too improper. Even though he had been held when he was injured, that was unavoidable. In daily life, one should still keep proper manners.

"Little Antique, have you hardly been touched by anyone in all this time?"

"Mm, my grandparents and dad—I mean, mom and dad—have touched me."

Actually, there were also younger siblings. But he couldn't say that.

He sometimes said things that weren't quite suitable in this world, and Gu Shenhan seemed to have gotten used to it by now. But that didn't mean he could say everything. For example, his younger siblings. The Rong Yuan here had a cousin, but no sister.

Yet Gu Shenhan still noticed some oddities.

He didn't notice the word "dad," but rather felt puzzled by "grandparents."

Old Mrs. Rong did take good care of Rong Yuan—if it weren't for that, Rong Yuan might not have ended up marrying him.

But Old Mr. Rong was different, wasn't he? That old man didn't care for his grandson Rong Yuan. If he wasn't mistaken, Old Mr. Rong only thought about the younger branch (second son's family) when it came to good things.

Gu Shenhan pretended not to understand: "So, if we officially become husband and wife later, I'll be the person who touches you the most?"

Rong Yuan didn't say anything, but clearly acquiesced.

A flicker of secret satisfaction crossed Gu Shenhan's mind, and then he stood up: "Sit here. I'll teach you a game. Later your husband has to go to a meeting, so you can play this to pass the time."

"But I brought my tablet. I can study."

"Playing is also learning. Learning isn't just about academics. Getting familiar with certain things will help you integrate into the current environment." Gu Shenhan set up Happy Match on the device for Rong Yuan and showed him how to play, holding his hand. "Don't push yourself. Play if you like, or set it aside."

"So, Han Ge, how long till you're done?"

"Ask again."

"Oh, husband, how long till you're done?"

"About forty minutes. If you need anything, you can find Yan Yu, and—if you call me wrong next time, I'll make you pay..." Gu Shenhan whispered two words into Rong Yuan's ear. "Got that?"

Rong Yuan nodded. Sitting in the chair, he thought, what Happy Match? His mind was full of just two words: kiss me.

He tapped a few times and failed the level, realizing he had tapped wildly a few times.

Soon, Yan Yu knocked: "Xiao'an Gege, can I come in?"

Rong Yuan got up to open the door, his face bright red.

Yan Yu said, "I wanted to take you... huh? huh? huh? What did you do? Why is your face so red?"

Rong Yuan said, "N-nothing. Did you want me for something?"

Yan Yu said, "Want to come see my design studio? It's where I design clothes. There are lots of cosplay costumes. If you like any, I can give you one. Oh, do you not understand what cosplay is?"

"Mm."

"It's okay. Han Ge just said you had some memory issues after falling into the water. Don't worry; if there's anything you've forgotten or don't understand, you can always ask me. I'll tell you everything I know without holding back."

"Then what you just said, and earlier you mentioned something called a 'model'—I don't understand."

"I'll explain it to you bit by bit."

Yan Yu took Rong Yuan to his design studio. Inside were many mannequins and finished garments.

What Rong Yuan couldn't stand were all sorts of oddly shaped clothes—some even exposed an entire leg, and others had the whole back exposed with just a few strings as covering. What could that possibly cover?

The people outside wore little, but not this little. With so little fabric, even if someone gave it to him, he wouldn't dare wear it.

Yan Yu said, "Xiao'an Gege, do you like this outfit?"

Rong Yuan was so startled he waved his hands frantically: "No, no, don't misunderstand. I'm just looking at it. Are these all made for sale?"

Yan Yu said, "Yeah. I'm not great at studying, but I guess I have a knack for this."

Talent...

Rong Yuan didn't understand. Who would buy clothes like this? They didn't cover the body well, weren't warm, and some new clothes even had patches on them. It didn't seem like the buyers were from poor families. Although the clothes covered few areas, they used quite a bit of fabric and looked very labor-intensive.

"Do these have a special purpose?"

"Yes, it's for what we just mentioned—cosplay. Xiao'an Gege, do you watch any anime? Do you have any favorite characters?"

"An-ime? Peppa Pig?"

"Oh no, that's a cartoon. It's a kind of anime, but not exactly what I'm talking about. The kind of anime I mean is like this."

Yan Yu pulled out a bunch of famous anime pictures: "See that outfit? That's the one made for this character."

Rong Yuan said, "Then I think I understand. These are for mannequins to wear, so it doesn't matter how much skin is exposed, because mannequins don't know to feel embarrassed."

Yan Yu: Σ( ° △°|||)︴

No wonder Gu Shenhan said he'd beat him to death if he secretly took Rong Yuan out—this really wasn't someone you could just take anywhere...

Yan Yu chose his words carefully: "Well, that's not exactly it. The characters in anime are fictional, but many of us real people love those characters, so we imitate them by dressing like the characters—that's cosplay, or costume play. We can also put on matching makeup. It's a hobby, just like how Xiao'an Gege likes calligraphy and painting."

“I see.” Rong Yuan nodded. “So is this business doing well?”

“Not bad. I can support myself no problem. Brother Xiao’an, do you want to try one on?”

“No, no, no, sorry, I might, uh, I have an injury, so it’s not very convenient.”

“That’s true,” Yan Yu said. “I wasn’t thinking. Maybe next time.”

Rong Yuan thought to himself that even in his next life he wouldn’t dare to wear those.

Just then he suddenly spotted a very strange-looking object and asked Yan Yu, “What’s that?”

Yan Yu said, “A sewing machine.”

Yan Yu demonstrated it for Rong Yuan, who watched in amazement.

So that’s why the stitches on the clothes and bedding sold here were so neat! There was such a magical device!

Rong Yuan found it fascinating. “Can I try?”

Yan Yu directly gave up his seat and told Rong Yuan to be careful not to prick his fingers.

After sitting down, Rong Yuan stepped on the electronic pedal, sewed a piece of scrap fabric, and treated it like some rare toy. He looked at the stitched fabric repeatedly and said, “How amazing! No wonder clothes here are so expensive—is it because it uses a lot of electricity?”

He had heard Aunt Lu and the others chatting about how electricity bills had gone up again and were getting more and more expensive.

“Well… not really.” Yan Yu said. “Brother Xiao’an, if you think it’s expensive, it’s probably because Brother Han bought you expensive ones. For example, the shirt you’re wearing right now costs at least six or seven thousand yuan. But if you buy an ordinary shirt, a few dozen yuan is enough. Because machine-made clothing is fast and production costs are low.”

“Also, the fabric you’re wearing is rarely seen on the market, plus there’s handwork involved and exclusive design, so it’s expensive. Look at this cosplay piece of mine—this embroidery here is purely handmade. This piece, about the size of a child’s palm, cost me 1,200 yuan to have embroidered. To sell it, I have to charge at least 3,000.”

“Just this small piece—1,200?!”

“That’s right, and that’s after a discount. A lot of people know Suzhou embroidery, but the results vary greatly. A skilled master needs good aesthetic sense and craftsmanship. Things that look similar at first glance actually have very different textures when embroidered. Good masters aren’t easy to find—I had to queue for a long time just for this one.”

Rong Yuan looked closely and felt it didn’t seem that difficult, so he said, “How about next time you need something embroidered, let me take a look?”

It was just a multi-faceted skull; he should be able to do it.

Yan Yu gasped. “For real, Brother Xiao’an?!”

He had heard that Rong Yuan could ride horses and was really good at it! And he could write calligraphy with a brush, also very well!

So could he believe that he might actually know embroidery?!

Rong Yuan said, “I can’t guarantee I can do extremely difficult ones, but at this level of difficulty, it should be no problem.”

Yan Yu almost wanted to cry. He helped Rong Yuan to the sofa and made him sit down. “Brother Xiao’an, you’re my real brother! If you can embroider my patterns for me, I’ll kneel down and massage your legs every day!”

Rong Yuan was amused and exasperated. “There’s no need for that.”

Yan Yu said, “You don’t understand. Some people think what I’m doing is wasting the master’s craftsmanship. But I’m not! These are things that many people love too!”

Rong Yuan didn’t quite understand that point, but he felt it was right to help a friend. He could feel Yan Yu’s warmth toward him—a genuine desire to be friends.

So he told Yan Yu, “Then whenever you have a pattern to embroider, just come to me. I happen to have some free time.”

Even though he had to study every day, if hand embroidery was so rare here, of course he should keep up his skill and not let it rust.

Yan Yu nodded vigorously and quickly pulled up his online store to show Rong Yuan. “Brother Xiao’an, look, these are all the clothes I sell in my shop. Some are sold out because I couldn’t get an appointment for the embroidery, and my customers want high quality. If you really can embroider, I’ll kowtow to you even in my dreams!”

Here he goes again…

Rong Yuan looked carefully at the pictures. “Then when you help me find needles, thread, and an embroidery hoop, I can do it for you.”

Looking at the skull, he noticed that the embroidery threads here seemed finer and more delicate than what he had used before, with richer colors. Maybe he could even embroider things he couldn’t in his other world.

So the two went to look at cats and chat about embroidery. Yan Yu also showed Rong Yuan his design drawings.

Meanwhile, Gu Shenhan said he was going to a meeting, but it wasn’t really a formal one. In Yan Que’s office, it was just the three brothers. Liang Zheng shared his news: “Gu Chengzhi’s deal with the Yang family is definitely off. Yang Shixin’s aunt backed out of the project she was going to cooperate with him on. I feel like he won’t let this slide. You need to be mentally prepared.”

Yan Que said, “No reaction from your grandmother? She should know about Rong Yuan getting hurt, right?”

Gu Shenhan said, “She knows. But if she reacts now, people will quickly associate the incident at the horse farm with Gu Chengzhi. The old man and old lady won’t air the family’s dirty laundry, so even if she reacts, it’ll be after some time.”

Liang Zheng said, “Gu Chengzhi must be furious. Your grandparents don’t let go of power, and the eldest branch wants to find another way out. Yang Shixin’s aunt is into smart home tech, and Gu Chengzhi really wanted to get involved, but you just killed it.”

Gu Shenhan said, “I killed it and took it over. I want this to 'succeed' for him.”

Liang Zheng and Yan Que looked at him simultaneously. “What do you mean?”

Gu Shenhan said, “An An lost so much blood. If he only loses some material things, that’s too easy for him.”

Yan Que asked, “Are you really invested?”

Gu Shenhan said, “What else?”

Liang Zheng laughed. “I wonder who was so stubborn before. How long has it been? I was wondering why you insisted on Yan Yu coming over—turns out it was to introduce a friend to your own wife.”

“Yan Yu has a good personality and knows his limits. In An An’s current state, only our own people can be trusted.” Regardless of anything else, at least he couldn’t hurt his little antique’s pride, or else he’d be sinning again.

“I think they get along well,” Yan Que said. “They can come often.”

Gu Shenhan agreed. But compared to letting others take care of him, he still felt it was safer to keep Rong Yuan with himself or at home. So after having lunch with the others, he didn’t stay long and took Rong Yuan away.

He took Rong Yuan on two rounds of the Ferris wheel, bought balloons and cotton candy, and went home.

Rong Yuan was in a good mood all day. As soon as they got home, he chattered to Gu Shenhan about everything he had learned from Yan Yu. He also said he could use a sewing machine now and could make many things himself.

He also said he knew embroidery, though his skill was average, but maybe good enough to be useful.

After hearing him, Gu Shenhan said, “If you like these things, I’ll take you to see an embroidery exhibition or a hanfu exhibition sometime.”

Rong Yuan asked, “Is that a place that displays embroidery and hanfu?”

“Yes.”

“Thank you, Brother Han!”

“Hm?” Gu Shenhan said, “I recall I said something earlier today—mmph…”

“Don’t say it!” Rong Yuan covered Gu Shenhan’s mouth and said shyly, “Husband.”

“You’re such a cheater.” Gu Shenhan grabbed Rong Yuan’s hand. “Come with me, I have something for you.”

“What is it?”

Gu Shenhan didn’t say, and led Rong Yuan up to the study on the third floor.

Rong Yuan had almost never been to the third floor since he arrived. When Butler Zhang first showed him around the villa, Butler Zhang made it clear that Gu Shenhan disliked anyone disturbing his space.

The whole third floor was just for Gu Shenhan, and even the smart home system here was different from the other floors.

Rong Yuan was a bit surprised: "Han, what are you giving me?"

Gu Shenhan took a long box from the study drawer and handed it to Rong Yuan.

Opening it, Rong Yuan saw it was the lock of hair he cut off, now neatly placed on a piece of blue silk.

He touched it, his heart aching with a bittersweet feeling: "You got it back again?"

Gu Shenhan said, "What else? How could I let someone else keep something so precious?"

Rong Yuan felt like crying: "But I feel that if I keep it, I won't learn my lesson. I'll always forget that I'm a modern person."

"Well," Gu Shenhan gently tapped his nose, "To jump into a new life, it's not about cutting off your past. It's about remembering who you were, and then..."

"And then what?"

"And then you need to deeply love him. Love your past, so you can step into the future with more ease."

Rong Yuan looked blankly at the man across from him: "Deeply love him?"

Gu Shenhan smiled: "Mhm."

Rong Yuan tilted his head, as if thinking.

Then, something occurred to him. He pressed his fingertip to his lips.

He said, "Honey, thank you."

With that, he quickly touched his fingertip to Gu Shenhan's lips like a dragonfly skimming the water, grabbed the hair, and slipped away.

Gu Shenhan pursed his lips.

Outside, the sunset sky was filled with clouds. Someone in the study couldn't help but laugh and tease: "That's supposed to be a kiss? So stingy."