Your boyfriend is great. He's mine now. - Chapter 5

Gu Linyuan acted as if he hadn’t noticed his scrutiny and said lazily, “I’ve heard a thing or two.”

Shen Xubai understood. The Gu family was powerful and wealthy, practically holding Jiangcheng in the palm of their hands. As a member of the Gu family, Gu Linyuan must have had contact with Xiao Yu. In their circle, information was often shared.

So, Xiao Yu cheated more than once.

Just as Lin Jinghe had said, they hadn’t slept together just that one time. And perhaps it wasn’t just Lin Jinghe. Maybe there was a Wang Jinghe, or a Liu Jinghe, too.

Shen Xubai felt exhausted to the extreme, yet also incredibly disgusted. The mere thought that the mouth that had kissed him had also kissed others made him want to vomit.

“Excuse me, I need to go to the restroom.”

Pressing his stomach, which had begun to ache, he didn’t wait for Gu Linyuan’s response and hurried toward the restroom.

Gu Linyuan watched his retreating back until the door closed, and only then did he fix his gaze on Shen Xubai’s cup. The cup was an ordinary glass, completely unremarkable, yet the man held it suspended in mid-air. His dark, brooding eyes locked firmly onto the moist lipstick mark on the rim, as tender and longing as if he were looking at his own lover.

His lips were thin, slightly sharp, yet he pressed them against the fuller, wet print, lingering, licking, and covering it.

It was like an animal marking its territory. Devout and excited.

Shen Xubai didn’t vomit; he just splashed some water on his face in the restroom. After his anger had mostly dissipated, he returned to his seat.

“Sorry to keep you waiting.”

Gu Linyuan was blanching the tripe and, after a few seconds, placed it into Shen Xubai’s bowl.

The faint scent of sandalwood perfume lingered in the air. Shen Xubai frowned slightly. “Thank you, I can do it myself.”

“Senior is still so polite. Aren’t we friends?”

Friends…

Shen Xubai didn’t consider them friends; at most, they were a senior and junior who hadn’t seen each other in a long time. But saying that out loud would be too impolite.

“I remember you went abroad before you finished your freshman year. When did you get back?”

“Two months ago.”

Shen Xubai did the math. “Did you finish your studies?”

Gu Linyuan’s expression was indifferent. He shrugged. “More or less. There wasn’t much worth learning anyway.”

Shen Xubai choked on that and ate in silence.

His bowl never went empty; Gu Linyuan didn’t eat much, spending most of his time blanching food for him. Shen Xubai had a bit of a cleanliness complex; even though the other party was using serving chopsticks, he would have preferred he didn’t. After all, someone he hadn’t seen in ages suddenly being this attentive wasn’t a good sign.

“I can do it myself.”

Upon hearing this, Gu Linyuan raised an eyebrow, put down his chopsticks, and stopped.

Shen Xubai breathed a sigh of relief. He wasn’t a talkative person, so he ate quietly for a while, until he could no longer ignore the gaze fixed upon him. It was too intense, too oppressive.

He looked up and met Gu Linyuan’s eyes; the man’s expression remained as gentle and refined as ever.

“Is Senior wondering where I work?”

“…”

It seems he wants to reminisce.

“Helping out at home,” Gu Linyuan answered his own question, appearing incredibly thoughtful.

“Hengfei?”

Gu Linyuan looked surprised, and then his smile turned pleased. “It seems Senior is very concerned about me. I’m very happy.”

“…”

“I’m so tired, Senior, juggling all those old guys at the company.”

Shen Xubai was just a regular corporate slave; he couldn’t empathize with a rich heir. He took a sip of his beer and said casually, “Is that so? Then take care of your health. Balance work and rest.”

Gu Linyuan smiled again, staring at Shen Xubai’s pale lips. He looked even more pleased than before. “Senior really is concerned about me.”

Although Shen Xubai was gay, he didn’t assume the whole world was gay, and he didn’t think he had that much charm. He simply filed Gu Linyuan under “arrogant narcissist.”

Gu Linyuan tossed out a few more questions during the meal, but Shen Xubai brushed them off with perfunctory answers, successfully cooling the other man’s enthusiasm.

Shen Xubai insisted on paying for the meal, and Gu Linyuan didn’t object.

Once they left the hot pot restaurant, Shen Xubai stopped. “Don’t bother dropping me off. You have work to do; I’ll just head back myself.”

Gu Linyuan pulled out his phone. “Senior, it’s been a long time since we last met. Don’t you want to add me on WeChat?”

“Long time no see” meant they probably wouldn’t see each other much in the future. Shen Xubai’s refusal was interrupted by Gu Linyuan’s phone.

A rich heir, using a phone with a shattered screen?

So, did he really get into an argument with Xiao Yu at the entrance?

As he vaguely pieced the events together, he realized that, one way or another, Gu Linyuan had vented his anger for him.

“Senior?”

Looking at Gu Linyuan’s slightly puzzled face, Shen Xubai couldn’t refuse.

Gu Linyuan put his phone away. “Senior, get in. We’re heading in the same direction.”

“No need.”

This time, Gu Linyuan didn’t say anything; he just stepped into the back seat. Shen Xubai was looking down to hail a taxi when he heard a few sharp honks.

Gu Linyuan sat in the back seat, turning his head to watch him quietly.

“…”

The driver in front honked again like it was a life-or-death situation.

Broad daylight, a luxury car, two men in a standoff the bystanders could easily imagine all sorts of things, and a crowd was already starting to form. Not wanting to be watched like a monkey, Shen Xubai had no choice but to open the door and sit down next to the culprit.

Gu Linyuan looked innocent. “Sorry, Uncle Zhang’s hand slipped today.”

The driver, “Uncle Zhang,” offered an apologetic expression. “Young Master, I am very sorry.”

Shen Xubai couldn’t be bothered to watch them perform.

“Senior, why don’t you post on your WeChat Moments?”

Shen Xubai looked over to see him scrolling through his profile and felt a bit speechless. “There’s nothing worth posting.”

Gu Linyuan nodded in approval. “Senior has a very good habit.”

“…”

Shen Xubai felt dizzy talking to him, so he closed his eyes, signaling a refusal to communicate. Until the sound of a camera shutter went off.

He opened his eyes in surprise, disbelieving. “What are you doing?”

“Ah, I forgot to turn off the mute.”

Gu Linyuan’s apology lacked any sincerity, and his tone seemed to carry a trace of annoyance.

Shen Xubai couldn’t help but form a ridiculous conjecture, but because it was so absurd, he couldn’t bring himself to ask. After weighing it for a moment, he closed his eyes in silence.

Even with his eyes shut tight, Shen Xubai could feel a gaze locked onto him, as sharp as thorns on his back.

Fortunately, Starry Residential complex arrived quickly. Shen Xubai breathed a silent sigh of relief and scrambled out of the car. “Thanks for the ride. Goodbye.”

“Senior, wait a second.”

Gu Linyuan got out, stepped out with his long legs, and walked shoulder-to-shoulder with him. “I’ll go with you.”

Shen Xubai’s brows flashed with impatience. “Gu Linyuan, I’m not a child.”

“I know. You’re my Senior.” And my brother.

Shen Xubai didn’t like beating around the bush. “If I’m not mistaken, you seem to have a bit of interest in me. But I can tell you seriously: I have no intention of starting a new relationship, so don’t waste your time on me.”