CH 16

What did you just call me?

When Gu Chaocheng sent Gu Chenbai’s change of clothes over, Tu Yan had just agreed to get out of bed. He was sitting by the bed as he waited for Gu Chenbai to help him get his pair of cotton slippers.

After the divorce, Tu Yan lived a messy life and didn’t clean up his house; the shoe cabinet was still filled with sandals for the summer.

Gu Chenbai disapproved of it, so he asked him to sit and not move before turning around to find him a pair of cotton slippers from the storeroom. He then placed them by Tu Yan’s feet and even handed him a pair of medium cotton socks. 

In the past, Tu Yan would definitely lie down carelessly and put his legs on Gu Chenbai’s abdominal muscles while letting Gu Chenbai put them on for him. How could he dare to do that now? He silently took the socks and put them on without saying a word. After putting them on, he raised his eyelids and looked at Gu Chenbai resentfully. Gu Chenbai pretended not to see it and said, “Come and wash your face, we’ll have dinner later.”

Gu Chaocheng followed the address sent by Gu Chenbai, then found Tu Yan’s house. He rang the doorbell twice but no one answered. 

As he was about to make a call, the door suddenly opened. Tu Yan was standing inside, his eyes and nose were bright red like a rabbit. When he saw that the visitor was Gu Chaocheng, his eyelids drooped. He didn’t even say hello and the tension from the old days had also disappeared. He turned around in a sickly manner and sat at the dining table in a daze. 

Gu Chenbai came out from the kitchen, “You’re here, let’s have dinner together.”

Gu Chaocheng waved his hand, “No need, I have a dinner party tonight.”

He put the bag on the porch and changed his slippers before going in. He looked around Tu Yan’s house, then said to Tu Yan in an unhappy tone, “If it weren’t for your pregnancy, I wouldn’t agree to let Chenbai come here to be a free nanny for you. Such a grown person and yet you still need someone with an inconvenient walking ability to run around and take care of you, how do you have the nerve?”

Tu Yan became annoyed from listening to Gu Chaocheng’s voice. He rolled his eyes, turned around and continued lying down. 

Gu Chenbai felt that he truly looked cute, and he couldn’t help but smile. 

Gu Chaocheng said exasperatingly with dissatisfaction, “Chenbai, can you not be such a fool? If he likes you a little, he wouldn’t go as far as to hurt you. Didn’t he feel refreshed when he got a divorce? But now he’s pretending to be pitiful? He’s even pregnant; god knows whose child it is.”

Seeing that Tu Yan looked like he wanted to cry again, Gu Chenbai hurriedly shut Gu Chaocheng up, “Alright, since you have a dinner party, you should go quickly.”

Gu Chaocheng was filled with anger with nowhere to vent it out. Looking at Tu Yan’s dejected appearance that looked as though he had been punching a cotton, he became more irritable.  

Gu Chenbai gave Tu Yan half a bowl of rice and placed a heated-up bowl of chicken soup in front of him. Tu Yan picked up the spoon and sipped it little by little. 

Behind them, Gu Chaocheng held his arms as he looked at him coldy, wondering exactly which part of Tu Yan did Gu Chenbai like. Besides having a pretty good face, this omega almost had no strong points; gluttonous and lazy, pampered and domineering, and his dog mouth couldn’t say anything good…it’s annoying just thinking about it. 

“Chenbai, what do you think about Xiao Chu whom I introduced you to last time?”

Gu Chenbai was putting vegetables into the hot pot and didn’t entirely pay attention to what Gu Chaocheng was saying. But Tu Yan heard it clearly. He froze, the small porcelain spoon made a clanging sound as it fell in the bowl. 

Gu Chenbai thought he had been burnt. He immediately placed down his chopsticks and asked, “What’s wrong?”

Tu Yan shook his head. 

“I’m asking you a question, Chenbai, how was your chat with that Xiao Chu?”

Gu Chenbai frowned, “Who’s Xiao Chu?”

“The one from Cheng He international, didn’t we have a meal together? He not only had a good impression of you at the time, I also saw that the two of you had common topics.”

Tu Yan suddenly gripped the spoon tightly. He lowered his head, but Gu Chenbai could still see his trembling eyelashes. Gu Chenbai’s heart softened into a complete mess, so he answered, “We don’t keep in contact.” 

“What about Ruan Nanqing? When I went to HT yesterday, I bumped into her dad——”

“Alright, ge, “ Gu Chenbai glanced meaningfully at Gu Chaocheng, begging him not to talk any more nonsense, “Don’t you have a dinner party?”

Gu Chaocheng still wanted to speak, but Gu Chenbai’s expression had turned cold, so Gu Chaocheng could only hold back his words. He cleared his throat, then pushed open the door by himself and left. 

“Don’t pay attention to him,” Gu Chenbai scooped up a spoonful of hot soup for Tu Yan, “Drink some soup, be good.”

Tu Yan said duly, “I can’t drink it.”

“Why?” Gu Chenbai asked knowingly.

Tu Yan looked at him with red eyes, “You know why.”

“I don’t know.”

Tu Yan stood up angrily and pushed Gu Chenbai hard. Gu Chenbai had been standing while leaning against the table and wasn’t using his crutches. As he was suddenly pushed by Tu Yan, his center of gravity became unstable, and he staggered back two steps. Before falling down, he subconsciously held onto the wine cabinet. 

Tu Yan instantly panicked and he forgot to breathe for a moment. 

He rushed forward to support Gu Chenbai and put Gu Chenbai’s arm over his shoulder, then helped him to sit down on the stool. He seemed like a little child who did something wrong, his eyes were filled with fear as a whimper escaped his throat. Gu Chenbai was about to comfort him, but he squatted down first and held Gu Chenbai’s ankle with both hands, raising his head and asking him, “Did you get hurt here? Is it painful?” 

Gu Chenbai shook his head, but Tu Yan didn’t believe it. At a loss, he held Gu Chenbai’s weak and frail right ankle, not even daring to use strength as he rubbed it. 

Gu Chenbai pulled him up and couldn’t help but laugh, “There’s no feeling there, Tu Bao.”

Tu Yan didn’t pay attention to Gu Chenbai’s address. He went to touch Gu Chenbai’s back, asking nervously, “Did your back get hit?”

Gu Chenbai shook his head again. 

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it.”

Gu Chenbai held Tu Yan’s hand and pulled him into his arms, “I know, I’m fine.”

With hindsight, Tu Yan asked, “What did you just call me?”

“Call you what?” Gu Chenbai didn’t respond to the rhetorical question. 

“You- you clearly just…you called me…” Tu Yan was too embarrassed to say it out, yet afraid Gu Chenbai was reneging on a debt. He was so anxious that his speech slurred. 

Gu Chenbai’s eyes carried a smile, but he was deliberately up to mischief, “I called you Tu Yan, what’s wrong? What did you hear?”

Tu Yan suddenly felt discouraged. 

The hot pot was boiling. Gu Chenbai got up to adjust the pot to low heat.  

“Eat first, okay?”

“…Mn.”

Tu Yan held his bowl obediently. He ate vegetables when Gu Chenbai gave him vegetables and ate meat when he gave him meat, like a little kid trying hard to make up for what he did wrong, even complementing “it’s delicious” after eating. 

Gu Chenbai smiled and reached forward to touch Tu Yan’s stomach, “Let me feel if you’re full.”

Gu Chenbai touched Tu Yan’s skin over the fabric. He didn’t know if it was because of the pregnancy, but his body became extremely sensitive. He could feel Gu Chenbai’s warm fingertips and the calluses on his palm as it slid over the fabric, causing his whole body to feel numb. 

Gu Chenbai curled his knuckles and gently tapped Tu Yan’s stomach, asking sweetly and softly, “Are you full too?”

Tu Yan froze and only reacted after a long time. He was saying hello to the little life in his belly. 

As he was about to touch Gu Chenbai’s hand, Gu Chenbai withdrew it back. 

Gu Chenbai sat up slowly, looking at Tu Yan as he said, “Before, I’ve thought about how great it would be if you gave birth to a little bunny for me.”