Volume One, Chapter 15: Su Nuan’s Sweet Whim Made Gu Hanxiao’s Legs Go Weak
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“—Gu Hanxiao?!”
“Yes.”
Unlike Su Nuan’s exaggerated, horrified expression, Gu Hanxiao remained as impassive as ever. His narrow eyes quietly took in her outfit.
Su Nuan was wearing a dress today. Gu Hanxiao recognized the pale-yellow outer garment she had on top—the very one that had drawn the attention of a few hooligans on the train because it was too short.
After Su Nuan had altered it, the cropped top now had an additional printed sash around the waist. Paired with the ink-black skirt beneath it, the outfit not only cleverly concealed its original shortcoming but also made her waist appear slender and her legs long. Combined with Su Nuan’s bright and captivating features, it gave Gu Hanxiao the fleeting impression that a heroine had stepped straight out of a film playing on the cinema screen.
“Uh, Captain Gu, I’m sorry. I mistook you for Aunt Zhang... Captain Gu? Captain?”
Su Nuan called out several times before Gu Hanxiao came back to himself. He cleared his throat and said, “My second aunt had to work overtime at the newspaper office and can’t make it. She asked me to apologize to you.”
At those words, Su Nuan’s buoyant mood plummeted.
Because of her looks, girls her own age would slander her behind her back, accusing her of trying to seduce men, while older women would scold her to her face for not behaving properly. As a result, Su Nuan had hardly had any friends growing up. Although Aunt Zhang was her elder, she was also the first person ever to invite Su Nuan out for fun.
That was why being stood up left Su Nuan especially dejected. She even wondered whether Aunt Zhang’s previous kindness had merely been an act of helplessness, performed for the sake of preserving the Gu family’s dignity.
But even if that were true, what did it matter? There was no rule in this world saying that anyone had to like anyone else.
With that thought, Su Nuan lifted her head and smiled. “It’s all right. Work comes first. And thank you, Captain Gu, for coming all this way to tell me. In that case... I’ll go back inside.”
It’s all right?
Yet Gu Hanxiao had clearly seen the disappointment she could not conceal. Her large, limpid eyes fluttered innocently, making her look very much like the stray kitten outside his office that wanted food but was afraid of being scolded.
Gu Hanxiao felt something melt inside his chest.
“You...” He squeezed the cinema tickets in his pocket and hesitated before saying, “If you still want to watch it, there’s time. I can take you there.”
“—?!”
Surprised and delighted, Su Nuan instinctively caught hold of his arm. “Really? Captain Gu, are you really willing to go to the movies with me?!”
“...”
What Gu Hanxiao meant was that he could take Su Nuan to the cinema.
“Captain Gu, wait for me. I’ll be right back!”
Clearly misunderstanding him, Su Nuan pushed open the door and waved at him over her shoulder, leaving him no chance to refuse. She was so hurried that she seemed afraid the opportunity might slip away.
“Don’t worry. I’ll do everything I can to stay in Pengcheng!”
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“...”
That conversation between Su Nuan and her mother echoed through Gu Hanxiao’s mind. He could almost be certain that Su Nuan’s every move was proof that she still had designs on him and was trying to take advantage of the opportunity to seduce him. At that thought, the small amount of goodwill he had developed toward Su Nuan because of Su Xunan’s unequal treatment of them collapsed in an instant.
Inside the room, Song Niannian, who had witnessed the entire scene, looked at Su Nuan with undisguised jealousy. Her face was swollen into the shape of a pig’s head.
“Well, well. You haven’t even been at the Gu residence for a few days, yet you’ve already gotten Big Brother Gu to take you out alone. Little Sister Su Nuan, you’re certainly talented at making friends.”
Su Nuan ignored the sarcasm in her voice and merely smiled. “Yes. Much more talented than you.”
“You!”
Song Niannian was so furious that her features twisted wildly. The movement tugged at her wounds, making her bare her teeth in pain.
Su Nuan gave a derisive laugh, locked up her luggage, and left.
“Captain Gu, let’s go.”
“...All right.”
Watching the two of them leave, Song Niannian’s jealousy burned fiercely. If she had not been afraid that Gu Hanxiao would be disgusted by her swollen face, she would already have rushed out to curse Su Nuan for having no shame.
“Slut! Bitch! You’ve only been here a few days and you’re already seducing men. Hah! Just you wait, Su Nuan. Sooner or later, I’ll ruin your reputation!”
...
The cinema was not very far from the Gu residence, so Gu Hanxiao found two classic twenty-eight-inch bicycles.
Su Nuan scratched her head when she saw them. “Captain Gu, um... I don’t know how to ride a bicycle.”
“...”
Gu Hanxiao’s voice turned cold. “Su Nuan, there’s no one else around.”
The implication was obvious: she should stop pretending.
But Su Nuan was no mind reader. “There’s no time to learn now! The movie starts in an hour. I know you’re worried that if a single man and woman ride the same bicycle, people will spread gossip... Don’t worry. Whenever someone misunderstands, I’ll just say I’m your younger sister.”
Aunt Zhang had bought tickets for *The New Song of the Great Wall*. Su Nuan had liked the male lead, Bai Yufeng, in her previous life, so she did not want to miss it at all. She stamped her foot anxiously.
“Captain Gu, Big Brother Gu, I’m begging you. Please take me there.”
Her small face flushed with urgency. Her bright, limpid eyes were filled with longing and grievance, making her look like a little kitten that could not get what it wanted.
“Hmm? Please? Pretty please? I promise I’ll learn to ride a bicycle as soon as we get back. I definitely won’t trouble you a second time. Please...”
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“...”
As she spoke, Su Nuan unconsciously began to wheedle. Her coquettish voice was like a soft little hammer, tapping against Gu Hanxiao’s heart again and again until it began to itch. His legs weakened, and his broad palm unconsciously patted the rear seat.
“Get on.”
“Thank you, Captain Gu!”
Su Nuan grinned with delight. When she saw Gu Hanxiao swing his long legs over the bicycle, she hurriedly hopped onto the rear seat as though afraid he might leave her behind.
The black bicycle traveled along the gravel path. Bright sunlight spilled across Gu Hanxiao’s broad back, while the shifting shadows outlined the firm, powerful contours of his body.
Their extreme closeness inevitably reminded Su Nuan of the day Gu Hanxiao had carried her on his back. The taciturn, cold-faced man had a back that was warm and solid, like a sheltered harbor capable of shutting out all her fear and unease.
It was a feeling Su Nuan had never experienced in all her life—not even with Su Xunan and Li Man.
She did not know exactly what it meant. She only knew that as long as Gu Hanxiao was there, even the pitch-black depths of night would be absolutely safe.
“Oh!”
A sudden jolt broke through Su Nuan’s thoughts. In her panic, she wrapped her arms around Gu Hanxiao’s waist, and the full curves of her chest pressed firmly against his back.
When she felt the man tremble, Su Nuan released him at once, her ears burning. “I-I’m sorry...”
“...It’s fine.”
Gu Hanxiao’s voice was slightly hoarse, and his breathing was somewhat labored. A journey that should have taken fifteen minutes was completed in eight.
As a result, Su Nuan was jolted so badly that her vision spun. When she climbed off the bicycle, she nearly fell. Fortunately, Gu Hanxiao’s arm caught her in time; otherwise, she would most likely have been greeting Mother Earth at close range.
After releasing her, Gu Hanxiao suddenly took off his coat.
“?”
Su Nuan was utterly perplexed.
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