My Ex-Boyfriend is Obsessed with Getting Back Together - Chapter 7

Gu Linchuan went back and waited for two days. No phone calls, no texts, not even a single friend request.

For several days in a row, Gu Linchuan wore a cold expression, radiating an aura of pure displeasure. The young women coming up to deliver documents were terrified of him. Usually, they would steal shy, longing glances at him, but now they just dropped the files and scrambled out as fast as they could.

When Song Yanyi came up to find him, she happened to run into a girl shivering at the office door, letting out a long sigh of relief and patting her chest as she hurried toward the elevator.

Finding it curious, Song Yanyi leaned against the doorframe and knocked. “How did you manage to scare that poor girl off?”

Gu Linchuan barely lifted his eyelids. Seeing who it was, he replied lazily, “They’ve always been quite afraid of me.”

“They’re even more terrified today,” Song Yanyi remarked, looking him up and down with an affirming nod. “You look like the King of Hell.”

Gu Linchuan didn’t argue. If he didn’t get a message soon, he might become even scarier than that.

“I came here today because I want you to accompany me to a banquet. If things go smoothly, we’ll be able to finalize the partnership soon,” Song Yanyi said, pulling up some files to show him.

Gu Linchuan flipped through them. The plan was meticulous. He only needed to show up as a “lucky charm” to nudge the fence-sitters over to Song Yanyi’s side.

Gu Linchuan nodded in agreement, but he was curious. “I thought you said we were ‘boiling the frog in lukewarm water’? Why the sudden rush?”

Song Yanyi glanced at him, half-joking and half-serious. “I can’t exactly delay President Gu’s pursuit of his wife, can I? The sooner we settle this, the sooner Xiao Pei can get his official status back.”

Back when Gu Chen had gone home for a family dinner, he happened to run into Song Yanyi and Gu Linchuan. Having been by Gu Linchuan’s side for years, Song Yanyi understood his heart perfectly.

So, when Gu Chen greeted him, she took the initiative to ask about Pei Ran.

As expected, she felt the man beside her stiffen for a moment before he resumed his usual act of cold indifference.

Graceful and charming, Song Yanyi tucked her arm through Gu Linchuan’s and said to Gu Chen, “It’s been a long time. Linchuan and I will find a time soon. You should bring Xiao Ran along so we can all get together.”

Gu Chen naturally agreed, promising to be there on time.

The moment they turned the corner, they pulled apart. Gu Linchuan said calmly, “You’re taking liberties again.”

Song Yanyi sternly criticized his hypocrisy. “Stop acting like you don’t care while you’re secretly gloating inside!”

“Whatever happens to him has nothing to do with me,” Gu Linchuan insisted, his mouth stubborn, refusing to admit the truth.

Song Yanyi gave an elegant, dignified roll of her eyes, not bothering to argue.

“There’s no time like the present. How about today?” Song Yanyi decided on the spot, grabbing her phone to message Gu Chen.

Gu Linchuan interrupted her, cutting the small talk. “Is Old Man Song about to pass away?”

“Who told you that?” Song Yanyi paused, questioning him.

Gu Linchuan knew from her reaction that he had guessed correctly. Seeing her expression change, he warned, “If I can see it, others won’t be easily fooled either. Be careful with everything.”

Finally, Gu Linchuan added with a dark face, “And for the record, I am not pursuing him.”

With Christmas approaching, the streets of Nancheng were already bathed in a festive atmosphere. Christmas trees were adorned with lights and gifts, and the long-awaited Santas were out on parade.

Pei Ran was still busy in his studio. His workbench, covered in fabric swatches and manuscripts, held a beautifully decorated apple. It was a gift from a staff member’s girlfriend, handed out to everyone as an early Christmas Eve treat.

When Gu Chen’s call came, Pei Ran was just about to wash the apple and eat it.

Hearing the news, Pei Ran’s hand slipped while cutting. The sharp tip of the blade instantly pierced his finger, and beads of blood began to well up.

Reacting quickly, he made sure the blood didn’t stain the fabric. He sighed, resignedly cleaned the wound, and wrapped it simply with gauze.

Before heading out, he thought long and hard before going to the mall to buy a pair of couple’s watches.

The watches featured a cosmic orbit theme, mirroring the gravitational bond between the stars and the moon in the universe to represent the deep connection between a couple. The watch face featured a dual time zone display, so even if they were far apart, they could see each other’s time.

He even hand-wrote a card, wishing them a love as strong as gold and a long life together.

With his finger cut, writing was exceptionally painful.

He and Gu Chen arrived almost at the same time. Pei Ran had spent a bit of time parking, so by the time he entered the private room, the other three were already seated.

Gu Chen looked as if he had seen a savior. He hurried over to greet him, pulling out a chair and making Pei Ran sit right next to him.

Pei Ran hadn’t seen Song Yanyi in a long time either. He handed the gift to her personally and offered a sincere compliment. “Yanyi, you look beautiful today.”

Song Yanyi was delighted by the praise. She covered her mouth and laughed. “We just asked you out for a catch-up, why did you bring a gift?”

The moment the gift was unwrapped, Song Yanyi went silent. Her eyes flickered toward Gu Linchuan, not daring to look directly, carefully observing his reaction.

Gu Linchuan’s face was grim, but then again, it was never particularly pleasant, so Pei Ran didn’t notice anything was off with the atmosphere.

I guess I won’t get a chance to wear this, Song Yanyi silently mourned for the gift.

She carefully picked up the watch but didn’t put it on. “I love it, thank you, Xiao Ran.”

Pei Ran felt a sense of relief and said with a smile, “I’m glad you both like it.”

Gu Linchuan didn’t touch the watch. Instead, he gripped the greeting card, the veins on his hand bulging. He let out a cold snort. “I never said I liked it.”

Pei Ran paused as he was about to sit down, looking at Gu Linchuan with confusion, not understanding why he was suddenly throwing a tantrum.

Gu Linchuan didn’t even spare him a glance. He tossed the card aside dismissively, and it fluttered to the floor.

Gu Chen tucked his head in like an ostrich, even his breathing becoming cautious.

Song Yanyi gave an awkward smile, cursing Gu Linchuan in her head while frantically searching for a topic to break the suffocating tension.

Before she could find one, Gu Linchuan spoke first. He stared intently at Pei Ran’s hand and asked, “What happened to your hand?”

“Huh?” Pei Ran instinctively hid his hand behind his back. “It’s nothing, I just accidentally cut it.”

Pei Ran hadn’t spent much time treating the wound. It wasn’t deep, but it was long, and the blood seeping through the gauze in spots made it look quite intimidating.

Song Yanyi noticed it too. Her mind raced, accurately interpreting Gu Linchuan’s hidden meaning. She quickly asked, “Did you go to the hospital to have it looked at?”

Not wanting to waste anyone’s time, Pei Ran waved his hand and said, “It’s already been treated, don’t worry.”

“That won’t do. It’s better to go to the hospital just to be safe. We can always grab dinner another time,” Song Yanyi said with concern. “Is it okay for you to drive? Let Linchuan take you.”

Pei Ran glanced at Gu Linchuan. Seeing him still frowning with that bitter, resentful expression, he didn’t dare to agree. “No need, I’ll drive myself.”

Gu Chen whispered, “I’ll take Ran-ge.”

Song Yanyi smiled slightly. “Didn’t Xiao Chen just have a drink? You can’t drive under the influence.”

“I didn’t drink though…” Gu Chen said, bewildered.

He was immediately cut off by Song Yanyi. “It’s settled then. The hand injury is more important.”

Gu Linchuan stood up. With a long stride, he was already at the door, showing no intention of waiting for Pei Ran.

Pei Ran had no choice but to brace himself and jog a few steps to catch up.

Behind them, Song Yanyi, a hidden hero, mysteriously patted Gu Chen’s shoulder and sighed. “When your brother gets married, I really deserve a seat at the head table.”

Gu Chen buried his head in his tea, completely confused. If my brother gets married, aren’t you the bride? He was full of doubts, but he didn’t ask a single question, just sat there obediently.

Gu Linchuan hadn’t driven, so the two of them got into Pei Ran’s Mercedes. Pei Ran was relieved he had driven his own car; otherwise, they would have had to call a driver, losing the chance to be alone.

Throughout the drive, both were silent. Several times Pei Ran wanted to speak, but seeing Gu Linchuan’s lowered brow out of the corner of his eye, his courage failed him.

“It’s the end of the year, is Mr. Pei’s studio that busy?” At a red light, Gu Linchuan rested one hand on the steering wheel in a lazy posture and asked.

“Not really,” Pei Ran thought for a moment and said seriously. “The studio just moved back to the country, so there are a lot of trivial things to handle, but I wouldn’t call it busy.”

As soon as he finished speaking, the air around Gu Linchuan grew even colder. Pei Ran was utterly confused, sitting on pins and needles, having no idea what he had said wrong.

Could it be that after the breakup, Gu Linchuan hated him so much that even with memory loss, he couldn’t stand to see Pei Ran doing well?

So, Pei Ran added another sentence: “Actually, I’m not busy at all.”

“Oh, then you really are quite annoying,” Gu Linchuan spat out coldly.

Pei Ran couldn’t understand how such icy words could come out of a mouth that should be warm. The chill made his heart ache. He felt a surge of bitterness too, so he turned away and stopped trying to explain.

They soon arrived at the hospital. Gu Linchuan said with a cold face that he would wait downstairs and told Pei Ran to go in by himself.

Pei Ran certainly didn’t expect Gu Linchuan to accompany him, so he opened the car door and entered the hospital alone.

As soon as Pei Ran registered, a nurse found him and led him to a specific consultation room.

Pei Ran thanked the nurse, inwardly impressed by the hospital’s efficiency and service.

The attending doctor looked very young, around thirty, with a buzz cut that gave him a sharp, no-nonsense look.

When Pei Ran entered, the doctor looked up, compared him to the registration info on the computer, and asked, “Pei Ran?”

Pei Ran nodded. “That’s me.”

“Let me see the wound.” The doctor held out his hand.

Pei Ran handed over his hand. After checking and confirming the injury, the doctor began to disinfect and bandage it.

“It’s not deep, no stitches needed. But be careful. Don’t put too much pressure on it before it scabs over, keep it dry, and try to avoid spicy food. Alright, you’re good to go.”

Pei Ran nodded and agreed. Just as he was about to leave, the doctor called out to him.

“Wait a moment, give me your hand, I need to take a photo.”

Pei Ran didn’t understand why, but he complied. Once the photo was taken, he hurried out. He didn’t want to keep Gu Linchuan waiting too long.

The doctor sent the photo to Gu Linchuan with the caption: Mission accomplished.

Gu Linchuan’s reply came quickly: You just gave him a simple bandage and that’s it?

The doctor felt wronged and complained: What else? Besides, his hand injury isn’t that deep. Was it really necessary to call me in such a rush?

Gu Linchuan hadn’t actually seen the wound himself. Hearing that it wasn’t deep, he felt relieved and replied: What do you know? A designer’s hands are very important.

After sending the message, there was a knock on the car window. He looked over to see Pei Ran leaning down, smiling at him gently, his lips moving as if saying something.

He unlocked the car, and Pei Ran slipped inside, bringing a gust of cold air with him. Rubbing his hands, Pei Ran said to himself, “It’s so cold. This must be the coldest year yet.”

Hearing this, Gu Linchuan sneered while driving, “Mr. Pei hasn’t been back to Nancheng for years, you should be embarrassed to say such a thing.”

Pei Ran was getting used to his thorns and had developed a bit of resistance to these harsh words. He shook his phone. “I check the Nancheng weather forecast too! Look, today’s headline: ‘Nancheng hit by cold wave, could see record-low temperatures!'”

“I thought you didn’t know how to use a smartphone,” Gu Linchuan said with an ambiguous, sarcastic tone that left Pei Ran baffled.

“I’ve already adapted to how phones are used here.” Pei Ran showed him the messages and files he had sent to a partner, trying to prove himself.

Gu Linchuan glanced at it and asked, “Do you need me to praise you?”

Pei Ran pulled his phone back, his eyes full of hope. “Can you?”

Gu Linchuan gave him a very polite, gentle smile, then his expression vanished instantly as he spat out two cold words: “I can’t.”

Pei Ran muttered “stingy” under his breath and simply replied, “Oh.”

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