Chapter 42: At Least End It with Dignity

Chapter 42: At Least End Things with Dignity

That evening, when Zhao Yu dragged his weary body home, dinner was still in the fridge, the note still untouched, and Gu Hansheng still hadn't returned.

He threw away the leftover dinner, tore off the sticky note, and looked at the words on it with feelings he couldn't put into words.

Gu Hansheng insisted on a sticky note, so he left one, doing his best to write it neatly, but whether Gu Hansheng read it was entirely up to his mood.

Gu Hansheng could ignore the note, but Zhao Yu couldn't skip leaving it. Gu Hansheng could skip dinner, but Zhao Yu couldn't skip cooking it.

That was the essence of their relationship—he had to be perpetually on standby, existing only to cater to that man's every whim.

He was exhausted, drained by the kitchen politics and the wear and tear piling up on his body. After washing the dishes, he sank into the couch and was out almost the moment he closed his eyes.

Half-asleep, he caught a faint, cool scent, and his body was suddenly lifted, then set down on soft bedding.

He half-opened his eyes, his voice heavy with fatigue: "Not tonight…"

"Sleep." Gu Hansheng didn't turn on the lights, just closed the door behind him and went out for a smoke.

Chen Xitong's test results came back excellent. The doctor said he might wake up before long—that cheerful, bright-eyed boy was about to come back.

He'd cheated death in that car accident, sleeping quietly, oblivious to everything around him. When he finally woke, he'd surely feel lost, looking for someone to lean on. Whatever he needed, Gu Hansheng could give him.

At the hospital, Gu Hansheng also ran into Chen Li.

That woman always knew how to kill a mood. After checking on Chen Xitong, she insisted on thanking Gu Hansheng for his help with the company—looked like she was doing pretty well lately.

But Gu Hansheng wasn't in the mood to wish her well. The better her company did, the less leverage he had over Zhao Yu. If Chen Li's project could ever truly stand on its own without Tuotu, Zhao Yu wouldn't be tied to him anymore and could leave anytime.

That thought gnawed at him.

Should he throw a wrench in Chen Li's plans?

Gu Hansheng seriously mulled over whether he could pull it off. With how well he knew the project, he could absolutely do it. What he wanted to control, he always kept under his thumb.

A moment later, the door swung open. Zhao Yu poked his head out, yawning, and said, "When did you get home, Mr. Gu?"

"Just got back." Smoke curled between them like a veil. "No need to make breakfast tomorrow. I've got something to do."

What plans?

Zhao Yu opened his mouth, then closed it, just humming in acknowledgment before turning back inside to sleep.

Over the next few days, Gu Hansheng came home late every night, and the dinners Zhao Yu left out went untouched every single time.

He wanted to ask Gu Hansheng what to do about Che Shijie—after all, the job had come through Gu Hansheng's connections. He'd been walking on eggshells in the kitchen, trying not to clash with the head chef and cause trouble for Gu Hansheng.

But Gu Hansheng was always busy, and he never found the right opening.

Zhou Lan finally made time to grab lunch with Zhao Yu. They met on Zhao Yu's day off and found a spot for afternoon tea.

The moment Zhou Lan sat down, he ordered an extra-strong iced Americano and chugged it, letting out a long breath like he'd just come back to life.

Zhao Yu joked, "Assistant Zhou, what has Chen Li done to you? You look like a slave on a slave ship."

"Don't even start." Zhou Lan waved his hand, looking helpless.

Work wasn't the real problem. What annoyed him most was not being able to shake Fang Yuming—the guy was like a piece of sticky candy that wouldn't come off no matter what. If he hadn't taken a different company car today, he wouldn't have been able to sneak out to see Zhao Yu at all.

He genuinely couldn't understand how someone could spend all day doing nothing productive. Didn't the guy have school? A job? Other people to deal with? It was insane!

"Assistant Zhou, you seeing anyone?"

"What?"

Zhao Yu teased, pointing at his neck, where a bruise-purple hickey sat—clearly from some serious making out.

A suspicious flush crept up Zhou Lan's face. He immediately buttoned his open collar, holding back a thousand curses he wanted to hurl at Fang Yuming the next time he saw him. Being too polite was a real character flaw!

Zhou Lan changed the subject. "So how's work been lately?"

"Not bad, just some office politics that are a pain, and my mentor's too stubborn for his own good," Zhao Yu said. "I wanted to ask Mr. Gu for advice, but he's been busy too, so it's just stuck. I'll take it one day at a time."

"Ask Mr. Gu for advice?" Zhou Lan's heart skipped a beat. "You two are that close already?"

"It's nothing. I was just thinking of asking him, that's all."

"You're not... catching feelings for him, are you?"

"No. Absolutely not."

Zhao Yu denied it so fast that Zhou Lan eyed him suspiciously. "I hadn't even finished asking. Isn't that a little 'the lady doth protest too much'?"

"Don't you know me by now? I take things one day at a time. I don't have the energy for that kind of stuff."

"Good." Zhou Lan breathed a sigh of relief, then said, "I've got good news. The doctor says Xitong has a real chance of waking up—he's already shown clear physical responses recently, and they're using stimulation therapy to try to wake him up faster."

He smiled at Zhao Yu. "Once Xitong wakes up, you'll be free. Let me congratulate you in advance on getting out of this mess."

Zhao Yu froze, his face going stiff, then pressed his lips into a helpless little fake smile. "Oh... that's great."

"Mr. Gu is truly devoted to Xitong. From the moment he learned Xitong was in a coma at the hospital, he hired three caregivers to rotate around the clock, both caring for him and keeping watch. The moment there's any change in Xitong's condition, he rushes over immediately. Even Ms. Chen doesn't have to worry about a thing. I hope that once Xitong wakes, he'll continue to treat him with that same sincerity. Maybe one day Xitong will be moved by him—that would be a happy ending for everyone."

Seeing Zhao Yu's poor expression, he added, "Don't worry. I've sounded out Ms. Chen. Even if Xitong wakes up, she'll definitely pay you the final installment, and she's willing to keep covering the medical expenses for your aunt. So you'll have nothing to worry about."

The future Zhou Lan described was beautiful—everything seemed to be heading toward a good outcome—but Zhao Yu's heart only sank deeper, as if a stone were pressing down on his chest, dragging him toward an abyss.

"Xiao Yu... Xiao Yu... Zhao Yu!" Zhou Lan waved a hand in front of his face to snap him out of it. "What are you spacing out about? Since Mr. Gu's been going to the hospital every day lately, why don't you get out and clear your head? Go home or stay at my place for a few days. Staying at Gu Hansheng's place has made you so quiet."

Zhao Yu snapped back to reality: "Oh, no, that's fine. I'm afraid he'll come home and not find me—he might get upset."

"You..."

Before Zhou Lan could say more, a figure squeezed in, forcibly pressing against Zhou Lan's side and wrapping an arm around his, speaking in a syrupy voice: "Doesn't big brother have me at home?"

Zhou Lan's face darkened as he turned to look at Fang Yuming. "How did you know I was here?"

Fang Yuming smiled, leaning his head against Zhou Lan's shoulder, refusing to be pushed away no matter how hard Zhou Lan tried.

Zhao Yu looked at him—a face so androgynously beautiful it was almost unreal. Recalling that Zhou Lan had once dated a senior female student, and despite Fang Yuming being 185 cm tall, he still didn't dare assume he was male. He said, "Assistant Zhou, is this your girlfriend? Hello, I'm Zhao Yu."

Girlfriend?!

"No—"

Zhou Lan tried to deny it, but Fang Yuming grabbed Zhao Yu's hand first and said with a smile, "Hello, I'm big brother's girlfriend. My name is Fang Yuming."

He pitched his voice high, sounding quite androgynous, then wrapped an arm around Zhou Lan's waist and said, "Big brother promised to go shopping with me. Why did you stand me up?"

"When did I ever say that?!" Zhou Lan couldn't break free, wishing the ground would swallow him whole while being hugged like this by a grown man in public.

Zhao Yu said considerately, "Assistant Zhou, go accompany him shopping. It's not cool to stand someone up. We can catch up another time."

Zhou Lan was speechless, especially afraid that Fang Yuming might do something outrageous in front of Zhao Yu, since this lunatic would do anything. He had no choice but to say, "I'll get going then. Xiao Yu, get home safe."

Zhao Yu waved goodbye and watched them get into the car and drive away, his fake smile wiped away in an instant.

Gu Hansheng's early mornings and late nights, those calls he'd step away to take—it all added up now. Chen Xitong was about to wake up, and Gu Hansheng must be thrilled.

He slumped back in his chair, staring blankly at the clouds outside, until his tea went cold, the dessert melted, and the sky slowly dimmed. Only then did he get up and leave.

The summer evening was unbearably hot and stuffy. Cicadas in the trees screeched their lungs out, and as the sun slanted westward, his shadow stretched longer and longer until its edges blurred away.

Maybe way back when he was pretending to be Chen Xitong and staying by Gu Hansheng's side, he'd already fallen for him. Now, no matter how much he warned himself not to love him, it was futile.

All that seeming care and possessiveness Gu Hansheng showed him—it was all just his own illusion. He'd stupidly spun himself a web of feelings and gotten tangled up with no way out. And now, this dream was about to end with Chen Xitong's awakening.

Zhao Yu looked up at the sky, feeling a sting in his eyes.

If everything was about to vanish in an instant, at least he could end it with dignity.

...

The second Zhou Lan's car came to a stop, he couldn't hold in his anger: "What exactly are you trying to do? I have my own life and friends I need to socialize with! Are you stalking me?!"

Fang Yuming sat in the passenger seat, idly twirling the ends of his hair, and said nonchalantly, "If I didn't keep an eye on you, you'd be flirting with every Tom, Dick, and Harry, wouldn't you? And you even called him 'Xiao Yu'—you've never called me that."

"He's just my friend! Don't think so dirty!"

"Friend?" Fang Yuming narrowed his eyes, seeing through everything: "He's into that Gu Hansheng guy, isn't he? And you deliberately said those provoking things—wasn't it out of jealousy? Do you like Zhao Yu?"

Zhou Lan hadn't expected him to figure it all out just from eavesdropping on those conversations. He said darkly, "Even if I do like Xiao Yu, I wouldn't use such despicable tactics to provoke him. Everything I said was the truth. Gu Hansheng is not a good person. I was just helping him see things clearly early on, so he wouldn't fall too deep and end up hurt!"

He rambled on, but all Fang Yuming heard was that phrase "I do like Xiao Yu." His light-colored pupils darkened, and he lunged forward to forcibly kiss Zhou Lan.

"You... mmph... let me go..."

This pervert had an innocent-looking face but incredible strength, leaving Zhou Lan, a desk-bound worker with "atrophied limbs," completely unable to resist.

"Author's Note"

I'm here!