The steam from the bathroom hadn’t dissipated yet.
Gu Yebai was wrapped in a towel like a dumpling, starting from the ankles and going up layer by layer, tight as a second skin.
Gao Hongyi’s technique was so practiced it was absurd, as if she’d done it countless times.
The Sakura Country really had an artisan-like obsessive dedication to the art of tying things up.
Apparently, different styles of binding could make someone’s soul leave their body—the thought flickered through Gu Yebai’s mind.
If she hadn’t specifically studied it, then she was a natural-born binding genius.
She started from the ankles.
One loop, two loops, the fabric dug into the skin, slightly warm.
Up to the calves, even pressure.
When she reached the inner thighs, she deliberately tightened it, and her fingertips “casually” brushed against the root of the thigh, the fabric rubbing against the skin, creating tiny sparks of static.
Then she used another towel to wrap his waist and abdomen.
Each time her fingers circled, they lightly grazed his ribs, the sensation like a feather.
Gu Yebai lay on his back on the bed, looking up at her.
Gao Hongyi stood barefoot on the edge of the bed, her long hair dripping wet, hanging down like a blood-red waterfall that enclosed the two of them in a sealed little world.
She leaned down, her pupils glowing red.
“I’m very satisfied.”
Her voice was as soft as a sigh, but carried a trembling note of fulfillment.
“Bai Shu… now completely belongs to me.”
Gu Yebai quickly closed his eyes.
Because he had seen something he shouldn’t have.
….
Gao Hongyi wasn’t wearing any clothes.
She was only wrapped in a thin towel, the edges loose, about to slip off at any moment.
The light came from behind, outlining her figure in half-light and shadow.
“Can you… put some clothes on first?”
“Shy?”
Gao Hongyi leaned down, her entire weight pressing onto his chest.
Her wet hair stuck to his collarbone, cool and ticklish.
“How cute, Bai Shu.”
“But today… it seems like it’s enough.”
Her fingertips lightly traced the red marks left on him by the towel, as if she were admiring her own work.
“You’re completely mine now… right?”
“Hongyi…”
She pressed her index finger to his lips.
“From now on, don’t make me worry anymore, okay?”
“I understand.”
Gao Hongyi smiled in satisfaction.
“Alright, Bai Shu can go out now.”
Gu Yebai twisted his body, trying to break free.
Unfortunately, the towel was wrapped too professionally.
He couldn’t undo it at all.
Every time his fingers touched it, they slipped.
“Hongyi… help me…”
Gao Hongyi shrugged, leaned over, and gave a gentle tug.
The towel came undone, like a net being torn apart.
Gu Yebai practically scrambled off the bed, grabbed his clothes, threw them on haphazardly, and stumbled out of the bedroom.
….
The living room light was on.
Gao Hongzhi sat there, brows furrowed, turning his phone in his hand as if he had something on his mind.
Ya Xinyao was busy in the kitchen, with two maids standing beside her handing out plates and arranging chopsticks.
The aroma of food already filled the air.
Steamed sea bass was steaming hot, exactly the same dish Gao Hongyi had made last time.
Braised spare ribs glistened with oil and luster.
Garlic broccoli was bright green.
The chicken soup had scallions and goji berries floating on the surface.
“Oh, the young couple is out,” Ya Xinyao turned around, smiling warmly.
“Dinner will be ready in just a moment.”
The dining table was set quickly.
Gu Yebai pulled out a chair and sat down.
Gao Hongyi naturally squeezed in next to him, her leg against his, her arm draped over his shoulder.
“Call him ‘Dad.’”
Her voice was soft.
“Dad, let’s eat.”
Gao Hongzhi put down his phone, his gaze complex as he shot a look at Gu Yebai.
This was another family dinner since Linchuan.
But the atmosphere… was completely different.
“Mom, I’ll pour some soup for Bai Shu.”
Gao Hongyi said sweetly, reaching for the ladle.
The ladle scooped up the chicken soup, steam curling upward.
She blew on it and brought it to Gu Yebai’s lips.
“Ah——”
Gu Yebai opened his mouth instinctively.
It was piping hot and delicious.
Gao Hongzhi cleared his throat.
“Hongyi, you two… just took a bath together?”
“Yes, Dad. Is there a problem?”
Gao Hongyi tilted her head, her eyelashes fluttering.
Gao Hongzhi frowned.
“Isn’t that a bit… premature? No matter what, you’re still…”
Before he could finish, Ya Xinyao gently patted the back of his hand, smiling warmly.
“Old Gao, you’re being old-fashioned again. Kids these days mature early. Besides, they’re not strangers. What’s wrong with getting closer a little earlier?”
Gao Hongzhi opened his mouth slightly.
Gao Hongyi lowered her head, biting her lip to stifle a laugh, her shoulders shaking.
She leaned her head on Gu Yebai’s shoulder, like a little cat.
“Dad, when Bai Shu and I took a bath, we were very well-behaved. We didn’t do anything inappropriate at all. We just helped him wash his hair, scrubbed his back… oh, and I gave him a massage too. Isn’t that right, Bai Shu?”
Gu Yebai almost choked on his soup.
Nothing inappropriate?
Gao Hongyi’s standard for “inappropriate” must be ridiculously high, right?
Ya Xinyao, however, nodded in agreement.
“Xiao Yi is right. At your age, more physical contact can actually help your relationship grow. When your dad and I were young… ahem, we weren’t any different.”
Gao Hongzhi’s face visibly darkened.
“Wife, what are you saying?”
“Don’t be so frivolous, okay?”
“I’m just telling the truth.”
Ya Xinyao picked up a piece of fish and put it in Gu Yebai’s bowl, her tone like she was coaxing a child.
“Xiao Gu, don’t mind your dad. He’s stuck in old ways, thinking everything has to wait until marriage… Actually, it’s the perfect time to start preparing for a baby now. You’re at the right age. The child would definitely be smart and beautiful. I’ve checked—your ages are just right.”
“Pfft——”
Gu Yebai spat out a mouthful of soup.
Gao Hongyi immediately grabbed a napkin to wipe him off, her movements gentle as water.
But behind the napkin, her fingertips pressed against his chin, as if holding prey in place.
“Bai Shu, drink slowly. Mom’s right. We can get married early.”
Her voice was low, only for him to hear.
“Once you’re married, you’ll be completely mine. No one can take you away.”
Gu Yebai felt like he was sitting on pins and needles.
It felt like he had become another dish on the table.
Gao Hongzhi’s voice was low.
“Xiao Yi, don’t joke around. How can Xiao Gu love you like this? And at your age, getting married and preparing for a baby—what kind of nonsense is that?”
He turned to Ya Xinyao.
“And you. The kids are naive. Are you going to be naive too, stirring things up? Xiao Gu has finally become a member of our family. Do you really want to make him live so suffocatingly?”
Gao Hongzhi stood up.
“We all know what this kid has been through. Why do you have to dump all this emotional pressure on him all at once?”
“I’ve said it before—we should treat them equally. Xiao Gu and Hongyi, both are equally precious to me!”
“If they truly love each other, then I’ll bless them! In fact, that would be the best outcome I could hope for. But look at Hongyi now—is that right? Sending a selfie every half hour, not allowing him to leave the house without permission—are you treating my son like a prisoner?”
All these years, Gao Hongzhi had always been a gentle, refined man.
No one in the family had ever seen him lose his temper.
But today, his eyes were red with anger.
“Can’t you stop bullying my son?”
Ya Xinyao’s voice suddenly softened, but carried an undeniable force.
“Old Gao, have you ever thought about how much Xiao Gu suffered in Linchuan? He carried his parents’ illnesses alone, wrote novels for that little bit of money, scrimped and saved… He was so lonely. He needed love so badly. And now you’re stopping him from accepting this love?”
“I can’t stand to see this poor, hardworking child be wronged! I’ll say it again—this kid is my son!”
“What do you mean ‘wronged’? Getting married is wronged? If my daughter accidentally loses him, isn’t that also wronged?”
“Would you be happy if our child got snatched away by some wild woman outside?”
Ya Xinyao continued to take Gao Hongyi’s side.
“Besides, you never know which comes first—tomorrow or an accident. Love should be passionate and intense, to the point of dying for it.”
“What if something happens one day… and at the last moment, you never got to feel love? Wouldn’t that life be tragic?”
Gao Hongzhi’s voice trembled.
“Ya Xinyao! Don’t be unreasonable!”
“Who’s being unreasonable? You are, Gao Hongzhi!”
What had started as a warm family dinner instantly turned into a battlefield.
But Gao Hongyi suddenly hugged Gu Yebai’s waist tightly, burying her face in the hollow of his neck, looking very innocent.
“Mom, Dad, stop fighting. I…”
“I’m just too afraid to lose… the person I love.”
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