Chapter 32
Lin Xiaoran didn’t really leave Gu Yang behind, but two big guys squeezing under one umbrella was indeed a bit cramped.
The rain kept getting heavier, mixed with flashes of lightning and thunder.
It was quite a challenge for them to finally reach the school gate, with their clothes already slightly damp. Riding bicycles was out of the question, and they couldn’t find a taxi either.
They waited under the guardhouse awning for about ten minutes before a car finally arrived.
Gu Yang insisted Lin Xiaoran go first and said he would wait a while longer.
Once Lin Xiaoran got into the car, he hesitated for a moment and then reached out to pull Gu Yang in as well.
“Hmm?” Gu Yang was a bit surprised.
After wiping his face with a couple of tissues, Lin Xiaoran directly told the driver the destination, “Tianjun Peak,” then turned to Gu Yang and said, “I’m going to stay at home tonight.”
Gu Yang was stunned. He knew that Lin Xiaoran had made this decision mainly because of him, afraid that he would wait here for half the night without finding a taxi. Lin Xiaoran also knew he wouldn’t want to go back to Gu’s house, so he decided to go home together with him.
Lowering his head, Gu Yang couldn’t help but smile slightly. Lin Xiaoran was sometimes quite considerate.
By the time they arrived at Tianjun Peak, it was almost eleven o’clock. Both of them were soaked, and they each went to take a shower as soon as they entered the house.
Lin Xiaoran’s room was currently occupied by Gu Yang, so he went straight to Lin Lan’s room.
After showering, Lin Xiaoran finally had the chance to call Gu Xiuyuan, and just then, Gu Xiuyuan called him.
“Ranran, the rain is so heavy. Is it hard to get a taxi? Shall I send someone to pick you up?”
“Uncle Gu, you don’t need to. It’s indeed hard to get a taxi, so I decided to go back to my own home first and stay there for the night.”
“Oh, you’re at Tianjun Peak?” There was a slight fluctuation in Gu Xiuyuan’s voice. “That’s good. Did you get wet?”
“No, I’m fine.”
“Then…” Gu Xiuyuan hesitated for a moment, as if he had something else to say.
Lin Xiaoran didn’t urge him and quietly waited while drying his hair with a towel.
After a few seconds, Gu Xiuyuan finally finished his dilemma. “Ranran, are you with Gu Yang? Your mom told me that you let Gu Yang stay at your house. Is he there now?”
“Yes,” Lin Xiaoran replied concisely.
On the other end of the phone, Gu Xiuyuan couldn’t help but smile bitterly. If it were anyone else, they would have followed up with asking if he wanted to talk to Gu Yang or if there was anything to convey to Gu Yang. But Lin Xiaoran wouldn’t. He didn’t say a word more than necessary, always making the other person speak first.
This child… really isn’t very considerate of others.
“Ranran, can you do Uncle a favor? Can you arrange for Gu Yang to meet me tomorrow? You can come too. Let’s have a meal together. Uncle… thinks you were right. I misunderstood Gu Yang, and I should apologize to him. Tomorrow, Uncle will apologize to Gu Yang, and you can be a witness, okay? And I’m afraid that if I go to him alone, he won’t come out.”
Well, since he had already made up his mind, he might as well stop beating around the bush.
With this in mind, Gu Xiuyuan finally bit the bullet and said what was on his mind.
Lin Xiaoran’s hand paused for a moment as he dried his hair. His thin lips lifted slightly. “Okay.”
“Okay, I’ll arrange the place and let you know.”
“Mm.”
After hanging up the phone with Gu Xiuyuan, Lin Xiaoran went to knock on Gu Yang’s door.
Gu Yang had just finished showering and changed into dry clothes, sitting at the desk flipping through Lin Xiaoran’s notes. When he heard the sound, he turned back and saw Lin Xiaoran leaning against the door, his hair half-dried and soft, hanging softly over his forehead.
After a shower, his skin looked even fairer than usual, setting off his pink, soft lips. The effects of the barrier were gone, and a faint scent of pine mixed with the refreshing smell of shower gel emanated from him.
Gu Yang suddenly shifted his gaze away and grabbed the nearby water glass, taking a sip of cold boiled water before speaking, “What’s up?”
But he couldn’t help but feel annoyed. Why was his self-control getting worse and worse?
Lin Xiaoran didn’t used to look like this, and he wasn’t unaware of how good-looking Lin Xiaoran was. So why did he always have random thoughts and his heart pounding every time he saw Lin Xiaoran now?
Was it because the more times he marked him, the worse the aftereffects became?
Speaking of which, Lin Xiaoran didn’t really have a sense of being an Omega just now. Why did he forget now? He had just taken a shower late at night and actively came to the Alpha’s room with his scent. Wasn’t he afraid of being…
“Accompany me out tomorrow.”
!
Lin Xiaoran didn’t notice his abnormality and spoke out his intentions naturally. Perhaps because he had just finished showering and was still a bit damp, his voice sounded softer than usual.
“Where to?” Gu Yang, in an attempt to shift his focus, kept his gaze away from Lin Xiaoran and casually grabbed a book to flip through.
“To the bookstore.” Lin Xiaoran saw that Gu Yang seemed quite serious about studying, so he didn’t disturb him much and just waved his hand before leaving.
Left alone in the room, Gu Yang couldn’t help but put down the book and let out a long sigh of relief. He suddenly felt much more relaxed, but at the same time, he also felt a bit… reluctant. He wanted to take another look at that beautiful Omega.
No, no, no!
He quickly shook his head, driving away the dreadful thought from his mind, and silently made a solemn decision in his heart — he would absolutely not mark Lin Xiaoran again!
The aftereffects were truly terrifying!
Lin Xiaoran was unaware of his thoughts. He only felt that if Gu Xiuyuan was willing to apologize to Gu Yang, their father-son relationship might improve a bit, which he was happy to see.
The rain poured all night, but the next morning, the sun came out, bringing clear skies and refreshing air. It was a rare weekend for Lin Xiaoran and Gu Yang to truly relax. They lazily stayed in bed for a while, got up to wash, had breakfast at the snack street behind, and by the time they actually went out, it was almost ten o’clock.
Lin Xiaoran checked his phone and saw that the meeting time set by Gu Xiuyuan was twelve o’clock, so they still had two hours.
He took Gu Yang to a bookstore he frequented, found some targeted practice problems for Gu Yang, and also bought a couple of books for himself. By the time they came out, it was almost time.
Using the excuse of treating Gu Yang to a meal, Lin Xiaoran brought him to the address Gu Xiuyuan had given him — a private restaurant located in a deep alley.
From the outside, it looked completely inconspicuous, but all the cars parked at the entrance were luxury cars, indicating that it was no ordinary restaurant.
“Lin Xiaoran, didn’t your kindergarten teacher teach you that lying isn’t good?” Sure enough, as soon as they arrived at the door, Gu Yang figured it out.
Lin Xiaoran turned to look at him, feeling a bit worried that he might be angry.
But Gu Yang still smiled, speaking in a joking tone as if he had seen through it and was just teasing.
Was it because he couldn’t be angry with him due to the marking?
Well, that’s fine too.
“Uncle Gu wants to see you.” Since he couldn’t hide it, Lin Xiaoran told the truth.
Gu Yang rubbed his nose and smiled helplessly, “You know I can’t refuse anything you say now, so you deliberately brought me here, didn’t you?”
Not really!
But Lin Xiaoran didn’t intend to explain. He just nodded, “Hmm, are you going?”
“Is it not okay if I don’t go?” Gu Yang hesitated for a moment, the words “I won’t go” on the tip of his tongue, but they changed to “Is it not okay if I don’t go?” when they reached his lips.
After speaking, he walked past Lin Xiaoran with a disgruntled expression, entering the restaurant first. However, after a while, he still felt quite frustrated. He walked slower and slower, and when Lin Xiaoran caught up, he leaned close to Lin Xiaoran’s ear, whispering softly, “Next time you’re uncomfortable during your heat, I won’t bite you anymore!”
After saying that, he was about to turn around and leave with a suave demeanor, but suddenly met Lin Xiaoran’s eyes. They were clear and shiny, with thick, slightly trembling eyelashes. He just looked at him like that, lips pressed together without saying a word.
Gu Yang suddenly felt guilty for no reason, unable to help but think if his words just now were too much.
“You…” He blurted out, wanting to say something to make up for it.
But Lin Xiaoran’s clear voice interrupted him, lightly throwing out two words, “Let’s discuss.”
After speaking, he turned around and left Gu Yang with a suave back.
Gu Yang: “…”
Discuss again!
Who wants to discuss with you?
Then he couldn’t help but laugh at himself, feeling a bit childish. He really didn’t want to mark Lin Xiaoran, so why boast about it? Lin Xiaoran couldn’t possibly force him to mark him, right?
The private restaurant looked unremarkable from the outside, but inside, it had a unique charm, reminiscent of the water towns of Jiangnan. Guided by the waiter, the two finally arrived at the private room reserved by Gu Xiuyuan.
Gu Xiuyuan had arrived early. When the waiter led them over, Gu Xiuyuan immediately came forward to greet them. “Come on in, take a seat.”
“Uncle Gu, please sit too.” Although Lin Xiaoran didn’t like to talk much, he still maintained basic politeness and greeted Gu Xiuyuan obediently.
But the father and son duo felt awkward.
Gu Xiuyuan clearly wanted to talk to Gu Yang, but Gu Yang rarely spoke to Gu Xiuyuan at home, and now he was even more unwilling to speak since he was still upset. Upon entering, he completely ignored Gu Xiuyuan and sat down by himself.
Gu Xiuyuan was also a strange person. Although he had told Lin Xiaoran last night that he wanted to apologize, he didn’t bring it up today when they met. Instead, he kept talking to Lin Xiaoran. However, Lin Xiaoran was not one to speak much, and the private restaurant suited his taste perfectly, so he responded with just a “Hmm.” Gradually, the table fell silent.
Lin Xiaoran remained calm, focusing on eating quietly.
Gu Yang watched him calmly, eating casually while occasionally observing Lin Xiaoran. He noticed that Lin Xiaoran particularly liked shrimp and was skilled at peeling them. Using chopsticks and a spoon, he effortlessly removed the entire shrimp meat. When he dipped it in sauce and put it in his mouth, a shallow smile would appear, as if he were not eating shrimp, but rather enjoying a good mood.
Was it really that delicious?
Gu Yang was just thinking about whether he should try one when Gu Xiuyuan finally spoke up, “Yangyang…”
Gu Yang looked over, but Gu Xiuyuan fell silent again, lowering his head slightly, holding a glass of red wine in his hand, seemingly very hesitant.
A knowing smirk appeared at the corner of Gu Yang’s mouth, and he withdrew his gaze, preparing to ignore Gu Xiuyuan and focus on his meal.
“I’m sorry, it was indeed my fault.”
But at that moment, Gu Xiuyuan spoke up again.
Gu Yang couldn’t help but freeze, his chopsticks hesitating in mid-air. A hint of disbelief flashed in his usually calm eyes.
Indeed, he couldn’t believe it.
Despite Gu Xiuyuan’s gentle appearance, Gu Yang had never heard him apologize for anything, not even back then…
This time, he was actually apologizing?
Seeing his son’s reaction, Gu Xiuyuan suddenly felt that it wasn’t so difficult to say these words after all. Perhaps he had been too stubborn in the past.
He chuckled softly, “That night, I was indeed angry. Later, Ranan told me that he didn’t believe you would do such a thing, and I reflected on it. I shouldn’t have doubted your character. I apologize to you. Ranan said that I was wrong and that I should apologize to you, and he even instigated Lin Auntie to talk to me about it. If you don’t forgive me, I’ll probably be nagged by them, mother and son, forever.”