"Alas." The merchant suddenly came over and saw the weak child in his arms. He swallowed his anger again.

  Yes, he wants to ask her if you want to start over with Wei Zhe or if this incident just happened to give you a good reason to return to his side openly and honestly. And what about me? In your heart, I will never be able to have an equal status with Wei Zhe, right?

  Shang Yi didn't notice. Towards Gu Xiyan, he became more and more unreasonable.

  Gu Xiyan didn't notice his emotional change. The two hands grasping Shang Qi's clothes loosened. She turned around and wrapped her arms around his waist.

  Shang Yi tightened his hold on her, yet didn't let her sense a hint of discomfort.

  "Hey, aren't you sleepy?" The two of them maintained the same posture for a long time before Gu Xiyan suddenly realized that it was already very late.

  "Hmm, I'm not sleepy. You sleep a bit more." Shim Cheol-yeon brushed the hair on Gu Seo-yoon's forehead to both sides and pressed his thin lips onto her forehead, giving it a big kiss.

  Gu Xiyan suddenly became flustered. This is... a hospital after all.

  Regarding Gu Xiyan's coquettish behavior, Shang Qi found it both amusing and helpless. The original depression had also dissipated. "We're an old couple now, still shy?"

  "Alas, there's no other bed available." Gu Xiyan had realized this problem as soon as she woke up. Now that she said so, it seemed like she was trying to divert attention. Knowing she was shy yet still spoke out, it was really too much.

  "It's alright, go to sleep first." Shang Qi said as he helped Gu Xi Yan sit down on the bed. Afterwards, he went to help her spread out the quilt.

  "Let's squeeze in." Looking at the man's serious and determined profile, Gu Xiyan couldn't help but speak up. This man didn't appear when she was most desperate, yet he gave her unparalleled comfort and care afterwards. He definitely doesn't know that as long as she leans into his embrace, she'll feel a sense of security that makes her fearless even if the sky were to fall.

  Strictly speaking, Gu Xiyan's bed was very large, and the two of them could sleep on either side with plenty of room to spare. However, Gu Xiyan's unintentional mention of a single word "squeeze" suddenly made Shang Qi's heart bloom with a brilliant flower.

  Crowded.

  So, the two of them really squeezed onto one bed. Gu Xiyan could only sleep on her back or side. Sleeping on her stomach was uncomfortable and didn't help with breathing. Sleeping on her side made it possible to roll over and put pressure on the wound on her back. With Shang Yueqi joining in, Gu Xiyan wasn't afraid of rolling over even when sleeping on her side.

  Resting in a hospital is not a romantic thing. Think about the smell of disinfectant lingering around. Every breath can smell the unique scent of the hospital. How can such a situation be romantic? But when two people lie down together, no need to say more. The ambiguous atmosphere was brewed out.

  Shang Yi Qi was lying down, one hand had gone around from behind Gu Xi Yan's neck, the other hand was stuck to Gu Xi Yan's buttocks. Gu Xi Yan had her left leg pressed onto Shang Yi Qi's two straight legs, her body tilted at an angle of about 60 degrees leaning into his embrace.

  It turns out that male creatures can be in heat at any time and place. So Gu Xiyan can now sense that Shang Qi has some unnatural behavior. "Qi, it's time to sleep." She scolded.

  "Uh-huh. Got it. Sleep then." Shang Xi didn't tell her that it was because the rise and fall of her chest kept brushing against his body, causing him to react.

  She let out a soft cry. Gu Xiyan measured her words and said: "Qi, if you... why don't we sleep separately tonight."

  "Sleep." Gu Xiyan's proposal was directly rejected. Shang Ke pulled the quilt up a bit and then slapped Gu Xiyan's buttocks under the quilt. Sleep separately, don't think about it.

  "Open." She still wasn't good for him, was she? Gu Xiyan pouted in frustration. Unfortunately, the room was too dark and no one could see her pitiful expression.

  "Don't talk, sleep." The merchant was very arrogant.

  It's warm in the quilt. Gu Xiyan felt comfortable. Considering that Shi Qi was still taking care of her by her bedside so late, she thought it was also a sleepless night for him. Her heart softened a little. "Qi, goodnight."

  Her voice was very low, warm and soft. It was an extremely ordinary goodnight blessing, but the man's heart felt as if it had been wrapped in sweet and rich chocolate syrup. That sweet and sticky feeling didn't make him feel disgusted at all.

  Goodnight. Sorry. Business starts in heart silently.

  Two weeks later, Gu Xiyan's injuries had mostly recovered.

  This morning, she went to the hospital for a re-examination. The doctor directly announced that she can resume her daily life as usual. She no longer has to be careful when sleeping at night for fear of pressing on the wound. Nor does she have to worry about the wound coming into contact with water anymore.

  Most of the scars on her back had faded away, leaving only a few long and hideous scars that made her back no longer smooth. The original smooth and shiny beautiful back was stained with blemishes.

  After returning home, Gu Xiyan went into the bathroom.

  In these days of wound recovery, she had been enduring not to look in the mirror. She didn't want to see those mottled scars on her body in the mirror. That would remind her of how she was treated.

  But for now, whether it's out of a desire to be beautiful or... she wants to take a good look at her own back. Occasionally, when emotions are running high, she'll even let him kiss her bare back. Every time this happens, his kisses and nibbles are always full of emotion and detail, often making her heart itch with desire, unable to help herself.

  For the first time, she resisted looking at her own body. Gu Xiyan casually put her jacket on the washbasin. Her pale fingertips tightly grasped the hem of her undershirt. The bathroom was very cold, but she didn't notice it at all. After taking a few deep breaths, she lifted up her clothes as if there was no turning back.

  She turned around and faced the large mirror in the bathroom, even though she knew her back couldn't be as good as new. Gu Xiyan was still startled by the several ugly scars that were reflected in the mirror, proudly showing off their presence. The hand holding up her shirt fell weakly down. Gu Xiyan covered her lips with both hands, feeling an urge to cry.

  He will mind, won't he? Even she herself can't stand it.

  Gu Xiyan left the bathroom with a normal expression.

  Downstairs, Shang Qi was in the kitchen washing his hands and making a soup for lunch. Shang Qi saw that Gu Xiyan had no appetite at all. He couldn't help but furrow his brow. "Xiyan, my cooking is still not good enough." He thought to himself, it's still edible though.

  "Sorry... it's delicious... but..." I don't want to eat. Gu Xiyan lowered her head, covering her face.

  Xiao Yatou didn't eat at home. On the second day of Gu Xiyan's hospitalization, Shang Keyi handed Xiao Yatou over to her grandmother for care. The empty villa was left with only Shang Keyi and Gu Xiyan. Shang Keyi put down his rice bowl, swept Gu Xiyan into his arms, and sat down on Gu Xiyan's chair. "Xiyan, what's wrong? You're not happy, huh?"

  Gu Xiyuan just shook her head. The reason for her unhappiness was something that even she found laughable.

  Shang Yi scooped up a spoonful of tofu and meat strips and handed it to Gu Xiyan's pink lips. "Taste it, I experimented many times before getting it right."

  Gu Xiyan felt a little guilty and simply opened her mouth to swallow the food.

  "Castanea chicken soup. Is half a bowl okay?" Shang Yi Qi poured about half a bowl of soup into Gu Xiyan's bowl with one hand. "Just right to nourish your body. Only this family."

  Gu Xiyan couldn't withstand Shang Qi's fiery gaze and agreed once again.

  She drank nearly twenty minutes, finishing the soup. Only then did she belatedly realize that Shang Xi had ulterior motives. The bowl was just put down, and other dishes were served immediately.

  Gu Xiyan wanted to leave Shang Yi Qi's confinement, but Shang Yi Qi seemed extremely pleased with this posture instead. "Xi, don't waste food."

  Gu Xiyan pouted. She wanted to retort, "Then why don't you eat?" But thinking that this man was always good at counterattacking, she estimated that saying anything would be useless. So she didn't say anything and only expressed her attitude through actions.

  "Full." Xiang Yi smiled brightly at Gu Xiyan's refusal to eat. "Really won't eat anymore."

  Gu Xiyan saw that there was something strange in his smile, but couldn't quite put her finger on what it was. She nodded blankly, and the man's mouth curved even higher at the corners.

  "Then I'll take your place... Eat you instead...... Is that okay?" The last two words "Is that okay" are really spoken with a flirtatious tone.

  A chill suddenly flashed in Gu Xiyan's eyes, and two streams of clear water uncontrollably escaped from her eye sockets. She hastily wanted to wipe them away, but Shang Qi had already hurriedly pressed down on her hand before she could do so.

  "Stop... you..." Gu Xiyan wanted him to let her go.

  "Why are you crying?" Shang Xi didn't understand, just a moment ago everything was fine, how did it suddenly change? His tone had a hint of shallow anger, his heart also felt stifled.

  I'm afraid you'll hold a grudge against me because of my sadness. The reason had reached her throat. Gu Xiyan shook her head and closed her eyes dejectedly, letting the tears fade away freely. This reason, could she say it? She didn't want to see the disgust in his eyes, even if it was just a possibility that such a situation might arise.

  Perhaps those scars will make him cherish her more. A glimmer of hope flashed across Gu Xiyuan's heart.

  Can it be hoped that this thing is like a meteor in the sky, burning beautifully when it passes, but falling forever afterwards? Like this, do you still want to try? Gu Xiyan asked herself.

  "Let go of me, I'm tired." When Gu Xiyan opened her eyes, she had a sweet smile on her face, which perfectly brought out a few points of weak beauty. But this smile was not genuine.

  "Tired. What does it mean." Shang Xiao Qing's voice dropped. His overflowing tenderness was met with a sentence 'I'm tired'. Then how can you not be tired? Or, who can make you not feel tired?

  When Gu Xiyan sensed the chill in Shang Yi's words, her heart skipped a beat. She looked up at the man, and her beautiful eyes lingered on his sharp facial features.

  This man... says familiarity. She is familiar with him. Familiar with his body. Familiar with his frequency. Familiar with the warmth and reliability of his chest. Familiar with his occasional viciousness. Familiar with his unique gentleness.

  She didn't know much about him either. There were too many things she wasn't familiar with, such as his changing expression at this moment.

  "Alright, let's sleep in separate rooms from now on." It wasn't as hard to say those words as she thought. The more she indulged in someone's warmth and tyranny, the more painful it would be when she lost them. She had known this for over seven years, hadn't she?

  Even if she thought she didn't love this man, however, she was a spoiled child. When someone gave her a little sweetness, she would remember it. If one day the sweetness was gone, then yesterday's kindness would become an excellent tool to hurt her.

  Since she had already thought that the two of them might continue like this forever, and it was also possible for them to part ways peacefully. So, this time's hurt served as a wake-up call for her, telling her it was time to slowly reduce her dependence on this man.

  In this world, there are some men who are too good to be true. So good that you would think being just friends or bedmates is the only possibility. If you want to become their lover, it's either overestimating yourself or underestimating them.

  It's time for me to put myself in the right position. Your care, I like it very much and I'm grateful too. But that... doesn't belong to me. Otherwise, when you fall in love with a woman one day, she will be jealous.

  Author's Notes