Becoming the Caged Canary of a Forced Love - Chapter 31

Today, Pei Jichuan rarely granted himself a day off. Gu Nian had been thoroughly exhausted the night before and slept until high noon, missing breakfast entirely.

With a head of messy, bird-nest hair, Gu Nian rubbed his eyes as he walked toward the bathroom. He hadn’t fallen asleep until the middle of the night again; Pei Jichuan’s stamina was frighteningly high—the man could maintain high-intensity work even on only three hours of sleep.

Gu Nian smoothed his chaotic hair and rubbed his ears. He didn’t know what kind of fetish it was, but Pei Jichuan loved pinching his ears; it was itchy beyond belief. Gu Nian looked in the mirror; his entire ear was flushed red. He vaguely recalled the heat of Pei Jichuan’s breath against the back of his ear.

He narrowed his eyes for a closer look. There was a small mole behind his ear, and the surrounding skin was a deep crimson. He was somewhat surprised, as his original body had an identical mole, only the position was slightly shifted.

Gu Nian let out a yawn and splashed himself with cold water to wake up his senses.

Pei Jichuan was already dressed; his movements were always brisk and efficient. Gu Nian walked into the walk-in closet in his pajamas, still not fully awake. His eyes felt dry and sore, and he leaned against the wall, blinking with effort, nearly falling back to sleep.

Pei Jichuan pulled Gu Nian into his arms, stripped off his pajamas, and helped him into his street clothes. During the process of dressing him, he managed to touch almost every inch of his skin.

Lately, Gu Nian had been exercising consistently; his muscle lines were tighter, and his flexibility had improved. Pei Jichuan found him absolutely irresistible. On the seventh “accidental” brush against a certain sensitive area, Gu Nian reached his limit and swatted his hand away.

Gu Nian finished dressing himself in record time and began to walk out, but he was caught by the hand by Pei Jichuan, who hurried to catch up. After two failed attempts to break free, he simply let him have his way.

After lunch, Pei Jichuan tucked Gu Nian into the car. Gu Nian spent the entire ride curiously pressed against the window, peering out. Pei Jichuan was acting very mysterious today, bringing him out without saying a word.

Their first stop was a café: Anstel Coffee.

Gu Nian raised an eyebrow at the familiar sign. Today’s car was very low-profile, with only a driver inside. The bodyguards were still present, but they followed from a significant distance.

They took a seat in a corner flooded with sunlight. The small cakes Pei Jichuan had ordered were already laid out on the table. Gu Nian held his spoon, debating where to start. President Pei had personified “more money than sense”—nearly every item on the menu had been ordered. If it weren’t for the fact that Gu Nian didn’t like chocolate, the table likely wouldn’t have been able to hold it all.

Pei Jichuan took a sip of his coffee, his gaze fixed firmly on Gu Nian. Gu Nian chewed on a piece of cake, considering his next bite; his cheeks were round and bulging, instantly reminding Pei Jichuan of a hamster.

Lately, Gu Nian had grown lazy with his disguise, and his true nature was beginning to surface. However, Pei Jichuan didn’t find it the least bit suspicious and continued to spoil him regardless.

As a cream-covered spoon brushed against Gu Nian’s cheek, leaving a mark, Pei Jichuan instinctively reached out with a tissue to wipe it away just as the sound of a camera shutter clicked nearby.

He turned to see two girls looking at them with excitement, one of them holding a camera. He frowned but didn’t speak to stop them, as a sharp-eyed assistant had already stepped forward to escort the girls out. After a series of explanations, the assistant sent a message to the President:

[President Pei, the photos have been deleted.]

Pei Jichuan took only one glance before withdrawing his gaze.

“Is this a date?” Gu Nian looked up with sparkling eyes, his speech a bit muffled by the cake in his mouth.

Pei Jichuan raised an eyebrow and smiled, accepting the definition. “That’s right, a date. So, is the Little Young Master interested in having dinner with me?”

Pei Jichuan took Gu Nian’s hand and pressed a kiss to the back of it.

“Fine, I accept,” Gu Nian replied with a haughty tilt of his head.

The harsh sunlight gradually shifted colors as twilight faded, and nightfall cloaked the earth. The sign for Beloved lit up a famous restaurant for couples where the cuisine and the atmosphere were both top-tier. To ensure the freshness of the ingredients, the number of guests accepted each day was limited, making it incredibly difficult to book.

But today, a wealthy patron had spent a fortune to buy out the entire top floor.

Gu Nian and Pei Jichuan sat by the floor-to-ceiling windows, which offered the best view of the entire river. The waitstaff on the entire floor served only the two of them. Once the dishes were served, the servers tactfully withdrew, leaving them to their private world.

Dim lights shone only on their table, while nearby, designer scented candles added to the ambiance. The warm fragrance made Gu Nian feel a bit lightheaded.

Pei Jichuan gently swirled his wine glass, the crystalline liquid swaying within. The silver cutlery gleamed coldly against the fresh flowers on the table; every detail whispered of wealth. Gu Nian took a sip of red wine, the rich aroma exploding on his tongue. He licked the corner of his mouth, revealing a sliver of vivid red tongue.

“Why do I feel like you’ve been acting so mysterious today?” Gu Nian tilted his head and asked curiously.

Pei Jichuan smiled but didn’t answer. Gu Nian didn’t press further, casually cutting into his steak. As the clock struck nine, his attention was drawn to the spectacle outside.

Dull explosions rang out as multi-colored fireworks erupted in the sky. The brilliant bursts were exceptionally vivid against the black night, shining directly into Gu Nian’s eyes. He instinctively stood up and moved closer to the window.

The fireworks left long trails of light, exploding mid-air into a shower of stars that illuminated the entire sky for nearly two minutes. Before the sky could darken, new fireworks had already taken their place. Couples dining on the first floor flocked outside to watch.

“Wow, those fireworks must be so expensive,” a girl said, her eyes filled with wonder.

Her boyfriend pulled her closer as he answered. “Those should be the fireworks developed in Country C. They have a radiation radius of nearly a thousand meters. I heard a single set costs over… 3 million.”

“3 million?! Heavens, that much? How much money are they burning in one night? Aiya, the leisure activities of the rich are truly something else.” The girl was stunned, pressing her head against the boy’s chest as they continued to watch.

Gu Nian blinked his eyes, which were a bit sore from the light. Behind him, Pei Jichuan had moved silently. He had been planning for this day for a long time.

Gu Nian turned around as fireworks continued to erupt behind him. However, Pei Jichuan’s eyes were even more dazzling than the display in the sky; Gu Nian was drawn in by the sheer depth of affection in his gaze.

Pei Jichuan dropped to one knee. He took Gu Nian’s left hand and pressed his lips to the ring on his fourth finger.

“Will you marry me?”

Amidst the starlight, Pei Jichuan finally asked the question that had been in his heart. Since reaching adulthood, he had rarely felt nervous, but now, the quiet atmosphere gripped his heart, making it race uncontrollably.

He loved him. He wanted him. We must be together forever—not just in body, but in soul. Even a hundred years from now, we should naturally be buried together.

Gu Nian was experiencing such a scene for the first time; his brain seemed to have gone on strike.

“I will,” Gu Nian whispered, following his heart.

But deep within his mind, a voice began to scream frantically:

‘No! Don’t agree to it! I hate him! I hate him!’

Pei Jichuan stood up and pulled Gu Nian into a fierce embrace. They held each other tightly. Pei Jichuan did not see the sudden change in Gu Nian’s expression; he simply continued to talk to himself.

“Once I’ve settled the company work, we’ll go to Country F in the spring to get married. You said before that you loved the flower fields in Country F most…”

Gu Nian didn’t hear a word Pei Jichuan said. His expression was grim; the bizarre intrusion in his mind left him with no room to think of anything else. He could only bury his face in Pei Jichuan’s chest to hide his abnormality.