CH 18

On the way back to school, Lin Yuxing repeatedly flipped through the photos of the night view on his phone.

When he reached the last group photo, Lin Yuxing hurriedly skipped it. He didn’t dare to look closely. Firstly, he felt that he looked silly in the picture, and secondly, Gu Zhongyi was right beside him. Every time he glanced at it, his heart felt a strange sensation, a tingling feeling.

He stole a glance at Gu Zhongyi, who was focused on driving.

Gu Zhongyi noticed and asked, “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” Lin Yuxing replied.

Lin Yuxing put away his phone and suddenly said, “Senior, actually… you’re not like what everyone says.”

“What do they say about me?” Gu Zhongyi asked.

Lin Yuxing honestly told him, “They say you are cold and indifferent, a cold-faced king.”

Gu Zhongyi tightened his grip on the steering wheel. “They’re not wrong.”

His life had changed only in the past two years. But Gu Zhongyi didn’t want to change too much outwardly. It wasn’t because he was egoistical, but because with his background and appearance, being a bit distant meant fewer troubles.

However, Lin Yuxing immediately defended him, “But I don’t think that way.”

At a red light, Gu Zhongyi looked at Lin Yuxing. His voice was calm as he said, “Since I met you, I realized that you’re really good. Not just to your friends, but also to someone like me. Although you said we help each other and it’s mutual, you probably don’t know that you’ve done so much for me.”

Gu Zhongyi quietly listened to him.

Lin Yuxing bit his lip and continued, “And just now, you could have ignored me, but you still took me to see such a beautiful night view and taught me how to take photos. It’s my first time experiencing these things, and I’m really happy. You’re not like others who mock me for not having seen even much…”

Gu Zhongyi was completely different from the rumors.

Lin Yuxing had a thought and asked, “Is it because there are too many people pursuing you, so you intentionally pretend to be difficult to approach?”

Gu Zhongyi didn’t hide it and said frankly, “Keeping a distance from people, maintaining an appropriate distance. That’s the principle I’ve been taught by my family since I was young.”

Gu Zhongyi and Lin Yuxing shared an unconscious dislike of the word “family.”

Lin Yuxing fell silent; he didn’t intend to uncover someone else’s wounds.

Gu Zhongyi saw the red light turn off and slowly stepped on the accelerator. “But in the past two years, I don’t want to listen to my family anymore.” He brought the atmosphere back to a light tone. “You can call it my rebellious phase.”

In the 28 years before his rebirth, Gu Zhongyi lived in pain and loneliness.

He didn’t have real friends or caring relatives. He was like a soul in a dried-up well, guarding the sky and envying the carefree stars above.

Now, that star was by his side, blinking its beautiful eyes and wrinkling its brow in confusion. “Rebellious phase?”

Gu Zhongyi’s association with the star dated back to the summer when he was nine years old.

He made a bold decision and he wanted to find his birth mother.

It all started with him overhearing a phone call.

As it turned out, to prevent Gu Zhongyi’s birth mother from coming back to find him, the Gu family had been secretly monitoring her.

The “love” between the Gu family and Gu Zhongyi’s birth mother was inherently unequal, and the egoistic Gu family selfishly drew the line with money.

But due to his oversight, the clever Gu Zhongyi found the address where his birth mother lived and a recent photo of her.

Touching the photo of the unfamiliar woman, a blazing flame ignited in Gu Zhongyi’s heart. “Mom?” he silently called, feeling both unfamiliar and instinctual.

So, for the first time in his life, he lied and took a long-distance bus to another province alone.

Young Gu Zhongyi sat on the bumpy bus, keeping his eyes open in fear. It wasn’t until he was exhausted that he dared to close them for a little while.

He was filled with joy, looking forward to having a mother of his own.

Not a mother like Xu Wanling, who maintained a distant relationship with him, but a mother like Yang Qing’s, someone who could occasionally kiss him on the forehead.

In an instant, all the exhaustion and unease became worthwhile.

The long  journey was tough. After experiencing several bouts of nausea and dizziness from motion sickness, Gu Zhongyi finally found a shabby noodle shop in a small town.

Gu Zhongyi patted the dust off his backpack and carefully tidied his clothes. At that time, he was not tall and didn’t notice the family photo placed on the cashier’s counter.

He sat there for a while, his heart pounding with nervousness. However, the noodle shop was empty, devoid of any customers.

Just as he was about to doze off from waiting, in a hazy state of consciousness, he heard a soft call like a feather.

A faint scent of jasmine wafted towards him. It was the pheromone of his biological mother, Su You, just as pleasant-smelling as Gu Zhongyi had dreamed.

Gu Zhongyi stared blankly at her, unable to move his gaze away.

“Little child, are you here to eat noodles?” Su You returned from a quick trip to buy soy sauce, and the shop suddenly had a new young customer.

She felt an inexplicable familiarity with Gu Zhongyi. “Take a look at the menu first, and let Auntie know when you’ve decided.” She couldn’t help but touch Gu Zhongyi’s face, unaware and unable to fathom that it was her own son.

Gu Zhongyi’s nose tingled, and he wanted to tell her: “Mom, I’m Gu Zhongyi. I’ve come to find you.”

But the words didn’t leave his mouth as Su You’s little companion by her side, a toddler, cutely exclaimed, “Mommy, carry me!”

Following the voice, Gu Zhongyi saw a three-year-old girl with two pigtails. She shyly gazed at Gu Zhongyi and, after Su You lifted her up, she hid in her mother’s embrace.

Su You couldn’t spare any attention for Gu Zhongyi anymore. She walked to the side and gently stroked her daughter’s back. “Daddy will be back soon. Later, Daddy will put you to bed for a nap, okay?” Like most mothers in the world, she had infinite patience for her child.

The girl called Nuonuo agreed in her soft and tender voice. Ignoring the summer heat, she leaned against her mother’s neck and never let go.

Sweat dripped from Gu Zhongyi’s forehead, sliding into his own eyes.

Su You smiled and kissed Nuonuo’s forehead.

Gu Zhongyi watched the scene before him, and the ripples in his eyes stopped.

In his chest, a tense, burning, and eager heart slowly cooled down.

Su You had a new family, a new child. The way she smiled was a sight Gu Zhongyi had never seen in the Gu family. It was something that neither Gu Zhuang nor Xu Wanling possessed. It was the smile of a mother loving her child from the depths of her heart.

All of that didn’t belong to Gu Zhongyi.

Gu Zhongyi lowered his head, staring at his dirty shoes that had trudged through the mud to bring him there, and whispered softly, “I’m going home.”

He ran out.

Su You didn’t chase after him.

She wouldn’t chase after him.

Gu Zhongyi turned back, and the small noodle shop at the end of his sight turned into a grain of sand.

He cried with a sense of grievance.

After his father found out  where he went, he was furious. If it weren’t for Yang Qing’s father stopping him, Gu Zhongyi’s legs would have truly been broken.

Gu Zhuang’s furious expression was imprinted in Gu Zhongyi’s heart, filling him with infinite fear. He lay in bed for several days before he could get up and move around.

Not long after, Gu Zhuang asked Qiu Jie to pack Gu Zhongyi’s belongings.

Gu Zhongyi didn’t dare to ask why, cowering in fear.

Xu Wanling looked at the limping Gu Zhongyi and couldn’t bear it, so she called Gu Zhuang, “You’ve already beaten him and scolded him enough. Why do you have to send him to an orphanage? It will be a disgrace if this gets out.”

“That’s why I specifically chose an orphanage outside the province where nobody would find out.”

Xu Wanling was speechless and reminded him, “Gu Zhuang, he’s only 9 years old.”

Gu Zhuang’s face darkened, “I gave him the best life and education, but he still longs for an outsider. Since that’s the case, let him experience the same poor life as that woman and see what he will do without me.”

“Gu Zhuang…”

“Enough, don’t say anything more!”

Gu Zhuang didn’t want to waste words with Xu Wanling anymore. He turned his back, not wanting to make his words harsher, “I’ve made arrangements. He won’t die there, at most, he’ll suffer a bit.”

That was undoubtedly a heartless act.

Gu Zhuang never treated Gu Zhongyi as his own beloved son. He selfishly cut off Gu Zhongyi’s childhood.

But what Gu Zhuang didn’t know was that in this punishment, Gu Zhongyi briefly found his own childhood.

Because at the welfare institute, 9-year-old Gu Zhongyi met a 9-year-old little star.

He was a child who was much thinner and smaller than his peers. Even in the summer, he wore a high-collar shirt. Little Star seemed silent and dull on the surface, but he loved to talk and had eyes that shone like stars.

Unfortunately, he was an outcast.

The children there often called him a freak or a monster, and no one wanted to play with him.

So, the lonely Little Star set his sights on the newly arrived limping Gu Zhongyi.

He would use his beautiful eyes to silently watch Gu Zhongyi cry in the dead of night and softly say, “Don’t cry. I know no one wants to play with you because of your limping leg. How about… how about I play with you tomorrow?”

Gu Zhongyi turned away. He wasn’t crying because of his leg as the little star thought , and he had no intention of playing with the children there.

Little Star reached out and patted Gu Zhongyi’s back, surprisingly comforting, “Look at Dongdong in the next dormitory, he doesn’t even have legs, but he still lives happily, right? Be strong… it’s difficult to get by here without being strong.

Gu Zhongyi’s tears had already wet the pillow, fearing that Gu Zhuang really didn’t want him anymore.

Little Star saw his silence and persisted, “Don’t cry, how about being friends with me? From now on, I’ll protect you.”

Gu Zhongyi remained silent, inwardly complaining, “Protect me? You’re as thin as a little chicken.”

Little Star sincerely tried to comfort him and fell asleep beside him.

After a long time, as dawn was breaking, Gu Zhongyi finally turned around and saw clearly the delicate face of Little Star. It was imprinted in Gu Zhongyi’s heart, gradually overlapping with the 19-year-old Lin Yuxing before his eyes.

For some reason, their acquaintance always started with a misunderstanding.

When they were kids, Lin Yuxing thought Gu Zhongyi was a limp boy who was bullied and took great care of him.

As they grew up, Lin Yuxing thought Gu Zhongyi gave him a bouquet of roses as a confession, which made it impossible for him to contain his secret crush, turning it into a contractual relationship.

Now, 19-year-old Lin Yuxing sat in the passenger seat next to him, bewildered, and asked, “You’re already in your second year of college, and now you’re rebellious?”

Lin Yuxing thought for a moment and decided it was better than being someone like him without a rebellious phase.

“Yes, that’s why I moved out,” Gu Zhongyi replied matter-of-factly.

Their relationship had unknowingly grown closer.

Lin Yuxing only then realized that Gu Zhongyi didn’t live in the dormitory and regretfully said, “If I had known, I wouldn’t have looked at the night scenery. It will already be late when you drop me off at school.”

Lin Yuxing didn’t have a driver’s license and didn’t know much, but he knew it wasn’t safe to drive at night.

He discreetly checked the time and realized there were no more buses.

“My apartment is very close to the school, so you don’t have to worry,” Gu Zhongyi assured him.

When they reached the school gate, Gu Zhongyi didn’t let Lin Yuxing get out of the car. He drove directly to the dormitory entrance and as Lin Yuxing bid him farewell, he grabbed Lin Yuxing’s wrist as if trying to hold him back, “Yuxing!”

“Ah?”

“I… I’m happy that you talked to me about all this today,” he paused for a moment, “I’m really glad.”

“It’s nothing,” Lin Yuxing inexplicably found himself being pulled in.

Gu Zhongyi felt Lin Yuxing’s compromise and took a step forward , “Besides Yang Qing, you’re the first person to say these things to me.”

The atmosphere in the car became intense, intoxicating.

Lin Yuxing slightly parted his lips, and a sweet taste inexplicably appeared between them.

Gu Zhongyi and he locked eyes, his voice gentle, irresistible, “Setting aside the contract, can we be friends?”

Years had passed.

They had both changed a lot, but Lin Yuxing’s eyes remained the same. Clear and bright, as if they had fallen into a pool of stars.

Lin Yuxing was stunned by Gu Zhongyi’s words, and remained unmoved.

Not only did his boss give him money, take him out to eat and have fun, but now he also wanted to be friends with him?

Lin Yuxing couldn’t understand why he had such good fortune.

He should have rejected him, but unexpectedly, he lowered his gaze, his entire face blushing as he stammered, “I-I thought… We were already friends. So, senior, please let go.”

His voice grew softer as he spoke.

Lin Yuxing felt that he was being melted by Gu Zhongyi’s scorching gaze, his heart on the verge of bursting out.

But on that night, at that very moment, at the perfect distance, he gave Gu Zhongyi the best answer.