Chapter 80

Chapter 80

The comforting scent wrapped around him, and Cheng Gu fell into a relaxed sleep.

The moment he opened his eyes again, the pale-faced man gazed absently at the ceiling.

His thoughts were a mess—past memories and present ones all jumbled up, mixed with the dreams he'd had after fainting.

He struggled to sit up, rubbing his throbbing temples, blinking in confusion. It took him a minute to piece everything together.

His mind was filled with everything he and Yan Sui had been through. Cheng Gu sighed, starting to get why Yan Sui hadn't told him even after recovering his memories.

"Awake?" A knock sounded, and the hospital room door was pushed open from outside. He Jing entered first, followed by several colleagues from the company.

People kept saying get-well stuff, and Cheng Gu mumbled replies for about three minutes.

The room went quiet again. Cheng Gu looked at He Jing, who hadn't left, and cleared his throat.

"So, was Qin Xian caught?"

"Caught, obviously," He Jing said with a smile. "Don't worry, he's not going anywhere."

"Have they already sent him down?" Cheng Gu asked.

He Jing nodded, peeling a banana and handing it to Cheng Gu.

The latter thanked him and took it. As he ate, something occurred to him: "Who brought me to the hospital?"

"The people from the head office who went with you." He Jing propped his chin on his hand, like he wanted to say something but stopped himself. Finally, he shook his head and said, "You were out for half a month."

That long, huh?

Cheng Gu's face stayed neutral, but inside he was reeling.

He'd been out that long—so where was Yan Sui?

The head office guys brought him back, so where did Yan Sui go?

Cheng Gu instinctively looked at his wrist. The red rope was still there. He twisted it around, rubbed it, but nothing happened.

"Cheng Gu, we heard you woke up, so we rushed over." Another knock came at the door, and the three people from the head office walked in one by one to say hi.

Seeing them, Cheng Gu perked right up. He wanted to ask about Yan Sui but remembered He Jing was still in the room.

"You guys talk. The head office is handling the Qin Xian matter—if you have any questions, you can ask them." He Jing, smart guy, took the hint and left.

The second the door shut, before Cheng Gu could even ask, the woman spoke up.

"Don't worry, Yan Sui's fine. It's just that, per the rules, he's supposed to enter reincarnation now."

Cheng Gu went stiff, his face darkening.

The short man coughed twice, a little awkwardly: "We came here to talk this over with you."

The tall guy picked up: "You've got your memories back by now, right? About you and Yan Sui—the underworld's already loosened up. As long as you go back, we can work everything out. Yan Sui won't have to reincarnate, but you've got to go back."

"Nah." Cheng Gu lay back down, staring out the window, his voice flat. "I'm not going back. It doesn't matter if Yan Sui enters reincarnation—worst case, I'll do the same as him and wait for him on the other side."

"You can't meet while you're alive." The woman, worried he didn't get the situation, probed: "You're really not going back?"

Cheng Gu said nothing, staring hard at the sky outside.

The woman sighed: "The underworld figured you'd do this. They said you've rendered meritorious service this time, so you get to make one request."

Cheng Gu stayed quiet, like he'd dozed off.

The tall guy scratched his head, then remembered something: "They also said that actually, from the start, they never meant to punish you two—it's just that..."

Cheng Gu held up a hand to stop him.

He knew what was coming. Probably something about how he'd been too stubborn, wouldn't say the right thing or give anyone an out, and that's what led to all this.

He and Yan Sui would enter reincarnation together, but they could never meet alive.

Yan Sui would always die before him, always enter reincarnation first. They'd never get the chance to see each other.

That was the real punishment.

"We've got a pretty good idea of your situation too." The short man kept scratching his head. "The underworld said if they really didn't want you two together, you never would've met in the first place."

"I'll think it over." Cheng Gu spoke in a low voice.

The three nodded.

The woman said, "Then we'll leave you two alone."

Cheng Gu froze, then sat up and shoved the covers off. He realized Yan Sui had shown up at some point and was now sitting in a chair nearby.

After half a month apart, the man still had that familiar smile, looking at him with soft eyes, like he had a thousand things to say.

"Long time no see, Cheng Gu."

"It's been no time at all." Cheng Gu got out of bed barefoot and quickly threw himself into his arms.

"I went to report the whole matter." Yan Sui held him, stroking his head, and said in a low voice, "The underworld has lifted our punishment. They need us to handle the aftermath."

Qin Xian had been caught, and the chain reaction had been too great—they needed to sort things out properly.

Cheng Gu rubbed his cheek against him: "They didn't give us any real benefits, and they still want me to keep working? No way."

Yan Sui chuckled: "There is one benefit."

"What?"

"They said that when we get married, they'll definitely give us a big red envelope."

This was a complete concession—not only no obstruction, but even approval of their marriage.

Cheng Gu's lips slowly curved upward.

"That's more like it."

"Cheng Gu." Yan Sui cupped his face, slowly lowering his head, gently brushing his lips against his cheek. "When are we getting married?"

"Are you that eager for the red envelope?" Cheng Gu laughed, tightening his arms around his waist.

"No." Yan Sui paused. "It's that I'm eager to be with you with a proper title."

Cheng Gu took his hand and pressed a gentle kiss to his lips.

"Tomorrow."

It seemed he hadn't expected it to be so soon; Yan Sui was stunned.

"Tomorrow?"

"Yes." Cheng Gu cupped his face, ruffling his hair playfully, and seeing him dazed, couldn't help but smile. "We'll get married tomorrow."

They smiled at each other.

Cheng Gu nestled in Yan Sui's arms, watching the sky outside the window, contentment shining in his eyes.

He'd pictured this moment for way too long.

Even though it took this long to happen, it didn't matter—they still had plenty of time.

His fingers were a little cold; Cheng Gu reflexively raised his hand, a flash of confusion in his eyes.

The ring glittered brightly in the sunlight.

The next moment, another hand grasped his, their fingers lacing together, and the two rings shone even brighter.

"Cheng Gu, I love you." Yan Sui hugged him tightly from behind, resting his chin on his shoulder.

Cheng Gu stared at the ring, unable to tear his gaze away.

"I love you, Yan Sui." Only when the arm around his waist tightened did Cheng Gu snap back to reality, turning to kiss Yan Sui's lips.

"You can't regret being with me." Cheng Gu's breath was uneven as he smiled softly. "But you don't have a chance to regret it anymore."