Chapter 56

Ji Su tried to pull his leg back, but the large hand gripping him was as unyielding as an iron vice.

He raised his dewy eyes, trying to coax some shred of conscience from the other man: 'Can we pick a different reward?'

Gu Zhao refused, cold and merciless: 'No.'

Ji Su looked at the sailor uniform on the bed, his heart crying out with no tears left to shed.

He could not imagine at all what he would look like wearing this decidedly improper sailor uniform…

Gu Zhao reached for the top: 'If you're shy, I'll help you put it on.'

'No!' Ji Su snatched the top away at once. 'I can do it myself…'

Gu Zhao laughed softly: 'Fine, put it on yourself then.'

Ji Su clutched the garment, his face slowly flushing red: 'Turn around first.'

Gu Zhao lifted a brow: 'Put it on and not let me see?'

'Turn around first!' Ji Su reached out to push him. 'I'll show you once I'm dressed.'

'Alright.' Gu Zhao turned, his back to the bed. 'Take your time, no rush.'

Ji Su pressed his lips together, and with the resolve of a man bracing himself, undid the buttons of his pajamas in one go.

Gu Zhao stood at the foot of the bed, the rustle of fabric in his ears, every second drawn out as if into eternity.

But he waited patiently, until a kitten-like voice came from behind him: 'I'm dressed…'

Gu Zhao turned back, his gaze falling on the figure on the bed, and the color of his eyes darkened at once.

The blush of shame had spread from Ji Su's face down to his neck; the sailor uniform's collar opened wide, baring a sweep of pale, fine-grained skin, and the lace bow at his chest—meant only as decoration—happened to miss the two cherry-pink points, which stood taut and hid behind the white gauze, half-revealed.

Gu Zhao's gaze slid down from the slim, narrow waist to settle on those legs.

Ji Su knelt on the bed, and the short skirt could not begin to cover the full, lifted curve of his bottom; his legs pressed together in shyness, the pale roots of his thighs squeezed into a handful of jade-white flesh, the leather garter pressing a faint crease into the skin.

Below that, the sheer white stockings clung tight around a pair of slender, straight legs—pure and wanton all at once.

Under that gaze, heavy as something with weight, even Ji Su's chest was touched with a pale pink.

He reached for the blanket, meaning to wrap himself up.

In the same instant, Gu Zhao moved—a leopard at the ready, lightning-swift upon its prey.

One hand closed around that impossibly narrow waist, pinning him firmly in place, and in a low, rough voice he praised: 'So pretty. Baby looks so pretty in a skirt.'

Ji Su's lashes fluttered hard: 'You've already looked—is that enough…'

'Looked and that's enough?' Gu Zhao laughed low, turning him over. 'Haven't had you yet.'

The hem of the short skirt rode up another inch, barely needing to be lifted to…

It was high summer, and the heat had begun to rise from early morning.

The temperature in the bedroom climbed without pause, the air growing damp and heavy, as if one could wring water from a handful of it.

A bead of sweat broke free from Gu Zhao's brow and fell with a soft splash onto Ji Su's flushed collarbone, so hot it made him shiver all over…

An indeterminate stretch of time later, Ji Su was carried into the bathroom.

The sailor uniform was still on him, though what little fabric there had been was now wrinkled beyond recognition, and the short skirt was marked with more than a few stains.

Ji Su's legs were too weak to hold him; he could only sit on the washstand.

Gu Zhao hooked a finger under the ruined lace bow at his chest, his tone faintly regretful: 'Torn to pieces.'

Ji Su had cried hard earlier, his throat now raw, and he said, trembling: 'It's all your fault…'

'Fine, my fault.' A smile of quiet satisfaction lingered at the corner of Gu Zhao's mouth. 'I'll buy you a new skirt tomorrow to make up for it, alright?'

Ji Su shook his head on instinct: 'No, I don't want a new skirt.'

'No?' Gu Zhao's dark eyes narrowed slightly; his large hand lifted the fallen hem of the skirt. 'Then I'll just have to make full use of this one.'

Ji Su sensed danger on instinct, but before he could flee, a large hand caught him by the waist, lifted him up, and pressed him against the mirror.

Another stretch of time passed, and Gu Zhao washed him clean, wrapped him in a broad bath towel, and carried him back to the bedroom.

On the bathroom floor lay the soaked sailor uniform, its original shape now beyond recognition.

Ji Su lay face-down on the cool silk sheets, too spent to lift even a fingertip.

Gu Zhao bent to press a kiss to the pretty wing of his shoulder blade, and coaxed him in a low voice: 'Sleep a little more. I'll go make you something to eat.'

*

When Ji Su woke again, it was already two in the afternoon.

Gu Zhao lay beside him, a refined pair of gold-rimmed glasses on his nose, a book in one hand and the other resting on Ji Su's shoulder, stroking it at idle intervals.

Ji Su's throat still burned, and remembering how his crying and begging that morning had done him no good at all, he snatched the hand on his shoulder in a fit of temper and bit it.

'Hiss…' Gu Zhao lowered his head and laughed. 'Two mouths, top and bottom—both so good at biting.'

'You—' Ji Su flushed with embarrassment again, turned his face to the other side, and refused to acknowledge him.

Gu Zhao set the book down, bent to kiss the marked-up shoulder: 'Hungry?'

Ji Su answered, listless: 'Starving.'

He'd been forced through two bouts of strenuous exercise on an empty stomach since dawn; his belly had long since caved in.

Gu Zhao rose and picked up the clothes set aside at the head of the bed: 'Want me to help you dress?'

Ji Su pushed his hand away: 'No, I'll do it myself.'

Gu Zhao didn't press the point, and turned his back of his own accord: 'Get dressed. I won't look.'

Once he was dressed, Gu Zhao gathered him up in his arms again and set him down on a chair at the dining table in the living room.

After a proper meal, Ji Su leaned back in his chair and sighed: 'This kind of life—it's too decadent.'

Gu Zhao looked at him: 'How is it decadent?'

'My savings are all gone, and starting next semester I have to pay my own tuition.' Ji Su sat up straight. 'No—this won't do. Starting tomorrow I'm going to work hard and earn money.'

Gu Zhao said nothing, drew his phone from his pocket, and tapped the screen a few times.

Ji Su's phone on the table chimed with the sound of falling coins, followed by a gentle, mechanical female voice: 'Alipay has received two hundred thousand yuan.'

Ji Su blinked, then caught on: 'Why did you transfer so much to me?'

'Don't worry about money.' Gu Zhao pocketed the phone, his tone unhurried. 'The one thing I never lack is money.'

Ji Su: '…'

Is it really okay to flaunt wealth like that?

Ji Su picked up his phone, opened Alipay, and asked in a joking tone: 'Are you really going to keep me?'

'Not exactly.' Gu Zhao smiled. 'What's mine is yours, so it's you keeping yourself.'

Ji Su's fingertip paused, and for a moment he didn't know what to say.

'Work out how much we still owe the Ji Family, and I'll transfer it all over at once.' Gu Zhao tapped the table with his knuckle. 'So there's no lingering business later.'

Ji Su pressed his lips together: "But…"

"If you want to keep things separate, earn some money later and pay me back then." Gu Zhao said unhurriedly. "We have a whole lifetime, after all."

Ji Su stopped struggling with it: "Okay."

He also wanted to pay off what he owed Ji Zhenghai as soon as possible, to cut ties with the Ji Family cleanly.

As for what he owed Gu Zhao, they had a lifetime to settle it slowly.

Ji Su reported a figure, then sent over Ji Zhenghai's bank account number.

Gu Zhao transferred the money into that account, then pocketed his phone: "Sent."

Ji Su let out a quiet breath: "This time, it's really all over."

Gu Zhao extended his hand: "Give me your phone."

Ji Su unlocked the screen and handed it over: "What's wrong?"

Gu Zhao took the phone, opened WeChat first, blocked a few people, then opened the contacts and kept blocking.

Ji Su was a little puzzled: "What are you looking at?"

"Blocking people who don't matter." Gu Zhao handed the phone back. "So no one comes to bother you."

Ji Su held the phone, was silent for a moment, then said softly: "Thank you, Gu Zhao."

"No need to thank me." Gu Zhao looked at him. "Family doesn't say thank you."

Ji Su curved his lips into a smile: "Okay."

After finishing lunch, Ji Su went back to his room, opened his computer, and started drawing.

Even though Gu Zhao was genuinely wealthy and genuinely willing to spend on him, he couldn't really be a freeloader.

No matter how little he earned, how could a life between two people be carried by only one of them?

Ji Su drew with full concentration all afternoon; when he finally looked up at the window, he realized it had already gone dark.

He rose from his chair and shuffled slowly toward the door.

Gu Zhao was standing on the Balcony on a phone call, his profile handsome, his tone cold and severe: "No matter what, I don't want to see him doing well."

Ji Su blinked, not making a sound to disturb him.

But Gu Zhao was always unusually attuned to his presence; turning his face and seeing him, he broke into a smile and said to the other end of the line: "That's it for now, big brother."

Gu Zhao hung up and walked toward him: "Done with work?"

"Mm." Ji Su responded, then asked casually, "Were you on the phone with big brother?"

"Yes." Gu Zhao didn't intend to say more and changed the subject. "What do you want for dinner?"

Ji Su replied: "I ate too much at noon, I'm not hungry yet."

"Then I'll cook some noodles." Gu Zhao leaned in and kissed him. "If you don't eat anything, you'll be hungry at night."

Gu Zhao cooked fragrant noodles with greens and shredded pork; even though Ji Su wasn't very hungry, he still ate most of the bowl.

After clearing the table, the two sat shoulder to shoulder on the couch watching a movie.

Ji Su had been sitting properly, but before long Gu Zhao pulled him into his arms, and he sat on his lap continuing to watch.

They were watching a romantic love film; halfway through, the male and female leads had tumbled into bed together like dry wood meeting a flame.

The movie was a bit explicit; Ji Su watched with a racing heart and flushed cheeks, shifting his bottom uncomfortably.

Gu Zhao's Adam's apple moved slightly; he lowered his head to find Ji Su's lips and kissed him gently and thoroughly.

Ji Su was completely unable to withstand such a kiss; his eyes grew dewy, his gaze hazy, and he could only lean against the other's chest and pant softly.

The film's plot had already moved on to the next stage; Gu Zhao reached out and closed the laptop, then lifted Ji Su up and carried him toward the bedroom.

Ji Su wrapped his arms around Gu Zhao's neck and said quietly: "I still have to draw tonight…"

Gu Zhao's steps paused briefly; he changed direction and headed toward the Secondary Bedroom.

Ji Su sat in the chair, about to open his drawing software, when the phone on the desk rang.

Ji Su glanced at the caller ID and pressed answer: "Hello, Xiao Qiao."

"Aaaaaaaaaah!" The moment the call connected, Qiao Jin's shrieking came through.

Ji Su set the phone on the desk and turned on speaker: "Calm down, Xiao Qiao."

"Susu baby, I can't calm down aaaaaah!" Qiao Jin kept shrieking. "I kissed Zhou Yang aaaaah!"

"Really?" Ji Su's eyes widened slightly. "So he likes you too?"

Qiao Jin took several deep breaths and calmed down a little: "Actually, he drank tonight and has already fallen asleep; I don't know what will happen when he wakes up tomorrow."

Ji Su frowned slightly: "When he sobers up, he won't remember nothing, will he?"

"That won't do!" Qiao Jin hollered. "If he dares to play the blackout card on me, I'll grab his collar and kiss him again!"

Ji Su nodded: "Right, that's how it should be."

Qiao Jin briefly recounted what had happened over the past two days; after finishing her own story, she asked with concern: "Susu, is Gu the campus heartthrob still as wolfish and tiger-like as ever?"

Ji Su sighed faintly: "Don't even mention it…"

"What happened?" Qiao Jin pressed. "He wouldn't have gotten tired of it this fast, would he?"

Ji Su replied: "No, this morning he still…"

He got halfway through and felt too embarrassed to continue.

Qiao Jin was shocked: "Holy shit! That intense first thing in the morning?"

He thought for a moment and offered Ji Su advice: "If you really can't take it, fix Gu Zhao something cooling and fire-quenching to eat."

Ji Su thought briefly and decided it was workable: "Okay, I'll look it up online in a bit—what foods are good for clearing the heart and reducing inner heat."

"Yes yes!" Qiao Jin reminded him. "But still, watch the dosage—don't accidentally give Gu the campus heartthrob a case of 'sheep tail' ahahaha!"

Just as he was saying the first half of that sentence, a knock came at the door.

Before Ji Su could react, Gu Zhao pushed the door open, catching the words "sheep tail" perfectly in his ears.

He stood in the doorway, his brow creasing almost imperceptibly.

Ji Su came back to his senses and, quick as a flash, clicked to turn off the speaker; he moved so fast he nearly tumbled off the chair.

Gu Zhao crossed the room in a few long strides, lifted him from the chair, and set him on the bed.

Qiao Jin on the other end had no idea what had happened: "Hello? Hello? Susu, are you still there?"

Gu Zhao turned and picked up the phone: "Whatever it is, we'll talk tomorrow."

Qiao Jin was silent for a few seconds, then responded briskly: "Got it! I'm rolling away right now!"

Gu Zhao hung up and looked down at the person sitting on the bed.

Ji Su nervously licked his lips: "Um… Xiao Qiao was just joking…"

Gu Zhao smiled, the expression somehow dangerous: "Whether I'm 'sheep-tailed' or not, shouldn't you know best?"