Chapter 40: In Front of Su Mo, Gu Shiyan Demands a Kiss from Luo Xing

The last communal card was revealed—Ace.

Luo Xing swallowed hard.

She stiffly shifted her gaze to Gu Shiyan.

Gu Shiyan rested his elbow on his knee, his back slightly hunched, his hand dangling naturally in a relaxed arc.

He seemed entirely at ease, yet the pressure he exerted on Luo Xing was immense.

“I’m straight,” Luo Xing said, her voice faint.

Beside her, Qi Zhi blinked, holding his cards.

One-four-four... There’s no way Luo Xing had a straight; she was bluffing Gu Shiyan.

Luo Xing glanced at Gu Shiyan, who kept his head lowered and his expression indifferent.

The corners of his lips curled, his tongue sliding over his sharp teeth, just barely visible.

“Two hundred.”

Luo Xing’s heartbeat suddenly accelerated, her molars clenched. “AJ?”

She was trying to guess Gu Shiyan’s hole cards.

Gu Shiyan lifted his eyes, the delicate inner folds of his eyelids rising, the shifting lights of the bar flickering across his face.

“You guess.”

Clearly, Luo Xing was no match for Gu Shiyan; she'd only been keeping them company in the previous rounds.

Luo Xing knew she had lost.

Her desire to win dissipated. “Fold…”

She gave up—

Her voice was so low it barely carried, as if she was squeezing out the last vestige of strength, unable to even utter the word “give up.”

Gu Shiyan lowered his gaze. “Fold? So soon?”

He looked straight at Luo Xing, a faint smile at his lips. “Not holding out anymore, darling?”

His tone lifted, perfectly mimicking Luo Xing’s sly voice from the night she abandoned cooking noodles.

Luo Xing bit her lip, her fingers involuntarily curling, her face pale as paper. “Fold!”

Gu Shiyan revealed his cards—Queen, Jack.

Ji Rutang clapped his hands. “Ha! Xing, you clearly haven’t played with Yan before. Bluffing in front of him? That’s like kicking a steel plate.”

Qi Zhi still held his cards, about to show them when Luo Xing snatched them away.

Ji Rutang teased, “Hey, Xing, did you have a King?”

Luo Xing—Damn, I really concede!

Gu Shiyan leaned back, glancing at her. “If she had it, she’d have shown it already.”

Luo Xing was never one to hide her emotions.

She closed her eyes and tossed out her cards.

—Six, Seven.

Ji Rutang’s laughter rang out. “Xing, you’re quite the actor.”

Luo Xing pressed her tongue against her cheek, grabbed the glass on the table, and gulped down a mouthful.

“Cough, cough, cough!” It was the first time she’d drunk such strong liquor.

Her face flushed red from the burning sensation. “Cough… cough, cough, cough!”

Luo Xing’s mouth felt suffocated, more unbearable than eating wasabi.

Eyes closed, she fumbled for her water glass.

Gu Shiyan’s familiar presence pressed down upon her, and unexpectedly, she was fed a candy…

“Cough, cough, cough!!” Luo Xing choked even harder!!

Gu Shiyan had given her a mint!

She spat it out in one breath.

Gu Shiyan glanced at the candy wrapper in his hand, finally realizing what he’d done.

He shifted his gaze but didn’t explain to Luo Xing that it wasn’t intentional.

Ji Rutang pulled Lu Xingjian close, whispering, “Hilarious—say Yan isn’t attentive, but he personally peels the candy and feeds it to her mouth; say he is, but he feeds her a damn mint, haha…”

Lu Xingjian grabbed Ji Rutang’s neck, forcing him to meet Gu Shiyan’s gaze.

His laughter halted instantly.

“Cough, cough, a mint… is still a type of candy.”

Luo Xing had lost.

She was already in a bad mood, then choked on the liquor, and afterwards, Gu Shiyan “poisoned” her.

Her mood sank even lower.

Qi Zhi unwrapped a strawberry hard candy and handed it to her.

Luo Xing looked at the candy resting in her palm, feeling a little moved.

Qi Zhi had peeled it for her himself…

The pink, round candy lay obediently on the wrapper.

Luo Xing placed it in her mouth, and the intense liquor and sharp mint were gradually replaced by the sweet, cloying flavor of strawberries.

The candy rolled across her tongue, her right cheek puffed out, and she smiled at Qi Zhi with curved eyes.

“Qi Zhi, thank you.”

Luo Xing remembered today was his birthday, yet he was anything but happy.

Her heart felt heavy; she picked up another strawberry candy and placed it in his palm. “Qi Zhi, happy birthday!”

Qi Zhi was stunned for a moment, then nodded, showing his first smile of the day.

Luo Xing’s heart ached for him. If this were Qi Zhi’s birthday party, millions of fans would be sending him blessings.

On his birthday, he could hear, perhaps for years or even decades, the heartfelt wishes of fans who truly loved him.

Gu Shiyan’s gaze lingered on the two of them, his tongue sliding across his cheek.

His finger, wrapped around the glass, brushed the irregular dents on its surface.

No one noticed.

The liquor Luo Xing drank was his.

So, in a moment of nervousness, he grabbed the mint instead?

Gu Shiyan lowered his eyes and withdrew his gaze.

His fingertips tapped idly on the glass.

It was simply that Luo Xing was suddenly distant, and he wasn’t used to it.

He had been pampered since childhood, and Luo Xing’s withdrawal stirred his desire to conquer.

It was simply that Luo Xing happened to step back just when he found her most interesting, while he hadn’t yet grown bored.

Two months…

Two months should be enough to lose interest, shouldn’t it?

Gu Shiyan drained his glass.

He stood up, positioning himself in front of Luo Xing, almost blocking all the light before her eyes.

He made it so that Luo Xing could see only him.

His lowered brows and indifferent gaze swept over her.

Luo Xing put away her smile, tilting her head up to look at him. “What do you want?”

“It’s time to honor our deal, darling.”

The others, led by Ji Rutang, let out whistles and teasing noises.

Only Luo Xing understood that Gu Shiyan’s “darling” wasn’t directed at her, but at Qi Zhi.

He was openly, even boastfully, telling Luo Xing—he had won over Qi Zhi.

“What do you want me to do?” Luo Xing’s neck was sore from tilting up; she lowered her head.

A subtle sign of submission.

“Now, kiss me.”

Damn.

Luo Xing looked up. “Are you trying to disgust me?”

She had thought that following Gu Shiyan’s orders for two months would mean running errands and being made to jump through hoops.

Now he wanted her to kiss him?

In front of so many people?

Even in front of Su Mo?

Gu Shiyan reached for Luo Xing’s hand, picking up the water glass beside her as well. “Here, or in the room.”

Luo Xing’s fingertips traced her jeans, her throat trembling as she swallowed.

Gu Shiyan’s dry palm brushed her hand, pulling it into his.

Luo Xing glanced at Su Mo’s figure.

She suddenly understood—perhaps Gu Shiyan had quarreled with Su Mo, and now he was deliberately saying such ambiguous things to her in Su Mo’s presence.

With that thought in mind, she didn’t push Gu Shiyan away.

She’d just treat him as her future boss.

And herself as a humble worker.

Yes, that was much easier.

The two walked out hand in hand.

Ji Rutang laughed from behind, “Don’t rush, Yan, take your time.”

Qi Zhi watched Luo Xing’s retreating figure. From the first moment he saw her, he knew Luo Xing wasn’t from the same world as these people.

Nor was she the same kind of person.

He didn’t know what Gu Shiyan would do to her, nor did he dare ask.

After all, he could barely protect himself.

He looked up and met Lu Yuan’s smiling gaze.

Qi Zhi’s fingers gradually clenched, he took a deep breath, and walked toward her.

…

Walking through the TH guest room corridor.

Gu Shiyan led her upstairs.

—1101