Criticizing Love - Chapter 21

Chapter 21

The young girl’s hand, carrying the chill of the autumn night, pressed against Lin Xi’s waist without warning.

Even worse, the sports uniform was light and breathable, offering zero resistance; it left the door wide open for the other person’s temperature to settle upon that small patch of skin.

The wind was blowing against their direction of travel, yet it seemed to swirl back past Lin Xi’s hair, carrying the desolation of autumn and Gu Nianyin’s scent, lingering right before her.

Her heart was pounding.

It was more intense than after excessive exercise.

Lin Xi’s forearms tensed as she gripped the handlebars tightly.

Gu Nianyin was holding her from behind; she was being needed by this person.

This thought surfaced inexplicably, popping its head out from Lin Xi’s desolate world.

The streetlights once again cast their shadows into Lin Xi’s vision. She looked at the silhouette belonging to Gu Nianyin, and a blurry thought flashed by. She categorized it as a “moment of clarity” now that her plan was on track. She reached back with one hand, grabbing Gu Nianyin’s wrist.

“Then hold on tight. Don’t fall off.”

Her voice was lazy, tinged with a bit of tsundere pride.

Sitting behind her, Gu Nianyin watched Lin Xi’s shadow fall across her own shoulder and let out a faint smile. “Okay.”

Since childhood, Gu Nianyin’s body temperature had always been lower than others. The changing of seasons wasn’t obvious on her; she belonged only to winter.

The cool breeze blowing against her exposed calves didn’t make her feel the slightest bit cold. Instead, the warmth was exceptionally vivid—coming from the palm of Lin Xi’s hand gripping her wrist, and from the skin of Lin Xi’s arm pressing against her through the fabric.

As a long gust of wind blew past the few pedestrians on the road, Gu Nianyin gently closed her eyes.

She voluntarily shut down her other senses, leaving only one hand—clinging, greedy, and absorbing Lin Xi’s warmth.

Lin Xi had traveled the road from the night market to Lin Deyuan’s house countless times.

This time, however, she disguised it well. Every so often, she would ask if the upcoming familiar turn was indeed the way to Gu Nianyin’s home.

She allowed Gu Nianyin to hold her waist. Once she adapted to that strange, awkward sensation, she rode the bike to the familiar high iron gates of the villa district.

Lin Xi stopped with practiced ease and said to the girl behind her, “You’re home.”

Gu Nianyin, however, did not get off. Her hand remained on Lin Xi’s waist, her fingers lightly curling and kneading the corner of her shirt. “Aren’t you going to see me up?”

Lin Xi paused. Gu Nianyin said it as naturally as she had when asking for help moving books back to class.

Lin Xi thought she should see her up. According to what Zhong Sheng said, a normal person pursuing someone would definitely walk their person of interest to the door and watch them go inside.

But she wasn’t normal.

She used to live in that house. She had just been there earlier today.

The disgust she felt for Lin Deyuan was still fresh, stuck in her stomach. She had zero desire to see that house again right now.

Whirrr—

“Hey, aren’t you two…”

The sound of the gate opening coincided with the voice of the security guard coming from the booth. Through the partially opened window glass, Lin Xi saw the old man she used to see all the time.

The light under the booth was bright, making expressions clear. Lin Xi knew from the old man’s eyes that he recognized her and knew she and Gu Nianyin were “one family.”

Crap.

Lin Xi’s heart tightened. Without waiting for the old man to come out, she pulled her foot back up from the ground and said to Gu Nianyin, “Sit tight. I’ll take you up.”

Without waiting for a response, Lin Xi pedaled through the half-opened gate.

The hazy moonlight shone on her for a moment; the girl’s rapidly moving silhouette looked like a thief fleeing in panic.

Lin Deyuan’s villa was the best-positioned one in this district; the path up was straightforward.

Lin Xi rode fast, brushing past the interlocking greenery. Soon, the small building she had seen just this afternoon came into view.

Decelerate. Brake.

Just as Lin Xi was about to stop, she suddenly snapped to her senses. She realized she shouldn’t know exactly which house was Gu Nianyin’s.

Dammit.

Lin Xi cursed internally, then immediately sped up, shooting right past Lin Deyuan’s villa.

Her hair blew backward in the wind as she asked Gu Nianyin in a tone that sounded no different than usual: “Hey, you still haven’t told me which one is yours. How far am I supposed to ride?”

Gu Nianyin’s gaze remained steady, fixed on Lin Xi’s back.

Facing the building they had just zoomed past, she didn’t turn her head. She spoke unhurriedly: “It’s the one you just suddenly accelerated past.”

Her choice of words was too precise. “Suddenly” and “just now” both highlighted the abnormality of Lin Xi’s behavior.

Whether it was her guilty conscience or not, Lin Xi’s heart gave a heavy thump at Gu Nianyin’s description.

Shadows cannot paint a person’s expression; one could only see the same persistent calmness.

Lin Xi felt panicked, but her strong heart allowed her to recover quickly. She feigned composure, arguing stubbornly, “How are you supposed to get up a slope without accelerating?”

As she said this, she stopped the bike and turned to Gu Nianyin. “Still want me to take you to the door?”

“No need.”

The bike lightened as Gu Nianyin stepped off gracefully.

She didn’t rush to leave. Instead, she stepped in front of Lin Xi and said, “Sorry for the trouble tonight. Thank you.”

Her voice was soft yet serious, her every move reflecting a refined upbringing.

She looked polite and distant, but in reality…

It was just annoying formality!

Lin Xi realized her opinion of Gu Nianyin was improving and immediately struck it down in her mind.

She glanced at the backpack in the bike basket, her gaze brushing past Gu Nianyin’s profile, and replied in her usual lazy way: “Thanks for bringing my bag, too.”

Gu Nianyin’s lips curled slightly. “Then I’m going in.”

“Mhm,” Lin Xi nodded.

She deliberately turned the bike around slowly, wanting to desynchronize her departure with the sight of Gu Nianyin’s back as she went home.

The night was quiet. As the wind blew, a man’s voice came through the intercom at the gate: “Is that Niannian?”

It was Lin Deyuan’s voice.

He sounded very cautious, seemingly shaken by the events of the afternoon.

“Yes, Uncle,” Gu Nianyin replied flatly, pushing open the unlocked door.

Dried leaves on the ground were pushed by the wind, making a long, faint sound.

Just as Lin Xi finished turning her bike, she saw a beam of light push out from the villa nearby. The warm yellow hue chased away the cold tones of the night. Lin Deyuan, dressed in his typical “refined” facade—neat and sophisticated—stepped out.

He wore a smile, greeting the approaching Gu Nianyin warmly: “Niannian is back? Why were you out so long?”

“A classmate had a problem she didn’t understand. I stopped to explain it to her,” Gu Nianyin said without looking up, walking straight toward the house.

“Our Niannian really cares about her classmates.” Regardless of whether he was getting a cold shoulder, Lin Deyuan followed behind her, blocking the night wind. “Actually, if this happens again, Niannian can just bring your classmate home. I’ll have Aunt Sun prepare fruit for you—all your favorites.”

Hearing this, Gu Nianyin lowered her eyes slightly.

Lin Xi watched from a distance. She didn’t know what Gu Nianyin would say, but seeing Lin Deyuan’s smiling eyes, she let out a cold sneer. “Heh.”

She thought that whether Gu Nianyin was willing or not, Lin Deyuan likely wouldn’t get his wish.

In the past, he had tried every possible way to kick her out, but now he was dropping sycophantic hints to Gu Nianyin.

Lin Xi knew that if Gu Nianyin brought her into the house right now, Lin Deyuan’s expression would be hideous beyond measure.

But that level of revenge was nowhere near enough.

Crash—!

“What the hell are you eating?!”

Lin Deyuan’s violent voice and the sound of a fruit plate being smashed onto the floor echoed simultaneously in Lin Xi’s memory. Every shard flying on the floor seemed to cut into her own skin.

The light at the front door vanished as the figures stepped inside and the door closed. In the shadows, a cold smile seeped into the girl’s eyes.

She would make sure Lin Deyuan experienced equal, if not heavier, pain.

Just wait.

Tree shadows danced on the glass by the entrance. The moment the light flickered on, it swept over a blurry figure.

Gu Nianyin looked up for a fleeting second, then looked down again.

She sat elegantly on the shoe bench, unhurriedly untying her laces.

Lin Deyuan was behaving with excessive fawning, personally bringing out Gu Nianyin’s slippers. “You must be tired from being out. When the weather gets colder, if things like this happen, just ask her to the house. Uncle’s home is Niannian’s home.”

The same words she had heard in the courtyard just moments ago.

She politely changed into the slippers Lin Deyuan handed her. Her gaze slowly rose, the warm light from the entrance reflecting in her pupils. She looked at Lin Deyuan steadily, without blinking: “Does Uncle really want that?”

Outside, the wind seemed to pick up suddenly. A sharp whistle pierced through the door crack and crept up Lin Deyuan’s back.

Inexplicably, a chill ran down his spine. Being stared at by this child made his skin crawl.

This wasn’t the first time.

Lin Deyuan didn’t know why, but every time he tried to show kindness to Gu Nianyin, her calm gaze always filled him with a sense of dread.

As she spoke, Gu Nianyin finished changing her shoes.

She didn’t wait for Lin Deyuan’s answer. She gave him a slight nod and a smile, then stood up and went upstairs.

Water sounded softly in the bathroom. The white porcelain bathtub held a pool of rising, clean water; the steam was thick.

Lin Xi had been slightly wrong about one thing: the villa hadn’t been decorated by Lin Deyuan, but redesigned by She Ning. She had merged the study—which originally sat adjacent to the bedroom—and converted it into a private bathroom for Gu Nianyin.

The moon hung against the glass. A soft towel fell onto the tiled floor.

The girl’s well-proportioned, slender legs glowed with a moist, porcelain-white hue under the mix of moonlight and lamplight. With one bare step, she submerged into the nearly full water.

Bathing was meant to soothe fatigue. Gu Nianyin had pinned her dry, black hair high atop her head.

However, a few rebellious strands refused to obey, drooping down to float on the water, becoming thoroughly soaked. Gu Nianyin didn’t care; she wound them around her finger twice before letting them fall back into the water.

The temperature in the tub was clearly a bit too high; the skin over her joints and bones began to flush with color.

The clear pink hue looked like a peach that had been peeled of its fuzzy skin and dropped into water.

Gu Nianyin tilted her head, looking at the moon peeking through the window. She made no effort to hide, showing the moon her beauty.

She rested her arms on the edge of the tub and leaned her neck back. She was a fruit on the verge of ripening—greenness hadn’t yet faded, yet a girl’s slenderness and a woman’s fullness coexisted without contradiction.

Soaking quietly, Gu Nianyin moved the tip of her tongue over her teeth; there was still a lingering trace of spice.

Scientifically speaking, spiciness isn’t a taste, but a sensation of pain.

That was why it couldn’t be covered by the flavor of ice cream; it remained on the tip of the tongue.

“Keep it safe. Don’t let your only memory of this place be spicy beef that makes you cough.”

The girl’s proud voice echoed in Gu Nianyin’s ears. The butterfly specimen she had handed over felt like a reparation.

As if being choked on her first visit to a night market was such an unpleasant thing.

But how could it be unpleasant?

How could she ever forget the feeling Lin Xi brought her?

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