“Gu Xichao?”
When Yu Yan returned to the room and saw that Gu Xichao was still there, he secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
At some point, Gu Xichao had undone every button of his shirt while lying on the sofa, exposing a wide expanse of flushed skin. Yu Yan could not tell whether the marks had been left by Gu Xichao’s own nails or whether the drug had already begun to take effect, leaving him unable to control himself.
Yu Yan frowned and was about to step forward and pick him up when he noticed the blood still staining his hands.
He immediately went into the bathroom and thoroughly washed away every trace of blood before returning to Gu Xichao.
He knew how particular Gu Xichao was about cleanliness.
As long as his hands were still dirty, he could never touch him.
“So hot… Don’t touch me…”
Gu Xichao’s eyes were tightly closed. His consciousness had already grown hazy, and he began murmuring incoherently.
“It feels awful…”
“Just hold on a little longer. I’ll take you home right now.”
Yu Yan carefully fastened each button Gu Xichao had undone. Then he removed his own jacket, wrapped it tightly around the man, and lifted him into his arms.
He carried Gu Xichao straight to the parking garage and settled him into the passenger seat.
“Don’t move. I’m putting your seat belt on.”
Yu Yan’s face brushed close to Gu Xichao’s ear. The man was still murmuring indistinctly, seemingly saying:
“What should I do… It feels awful… What am I supposed to do…”
At the sight of Gu Xichao looking so helpless, all the resentment Yu Yan had accumulated over the past two years inexplicably melted away.
Then a deep, gentle whisper slipped from Gu Xichao’s throat.
“Don’t be afraid…”
Even Yu Yan froze for several seconds.
What was this man doing?
Sitting in the passenger seat, Gu Xichao began tugging restlessly at his collar again, muttering over and over:
“Hot…”
“I’ve already turned the air-conditioning down to sixteen degrees, and you’re still hot? Stop taking your clothes off! Stop it! It’s not like I haven’t seen everything before. We’re almost home!”
The car sped through the night.
Throughout the journey home, Yu Yan’s heart burned with urgency and unease. He wished more than anything that he could simply teleport them home.
When they finally arrived at Xilin Manor, Yu Yan had barely stopped the car before rushing around to carry Gu Xichao inside.
He did not even have time to remove the key from the ignition. All he could think about was the man in his arms, whose white shirt had been pulled and twisted until it was wrinkled and disheveled.
Half walking and half running, Yu Yan carried him straight to the bedroom.
Before laying him down, he unconsciously weighed the man in his arms. Only then did the realization belatedly strike him.
“We haven’t seen each other for two years. How did you become so thin?”
The moment Gu Xichao touched the bed, his entire body went limp.
His shirt had ridden up past his waist, leaving his slim waist and toned stomach completely exposed.
A moment later, he rolled over unconsciously. His supple waist curved downward, revealing the line running along his spine and the mole just below the left side of his waist.
That distinctive mole struck Yu Yan’s eyes like a spark, instantly setting the last remnants of his reason ablaze.
One glance was enough to send his heart into a frantic rhythm.
It really was Gu Xichao.
He truly was Gu Xichao!
Two people in this world might possess identical faces, but there was no chance they could share both the exact same face and the exact same mole.
Even if Yu Yan died, he would still recognize the mole on the left side of Gu Xichao’s lower back.
This man truly was Gu Xichao.
Yu Yan could not possibly have mistaken him.
Standing beside the bed, Yu Yan felt his chest burning. Pain and joy tangled together until he could no longer tell them apart.
Before he could recover from the shock, Gu Xichao rolled across the bed several times.
The buttons of his shirt came undone again, revealing a stretch of pale chest. As though that still offered no relief, he reached down and began tugging at his trousers, his unsteady fingers fumbling for the belt while hot breaths escaped his lips.
Yu Yan knew this sensation all too well—the torment of desire burning through one’s entire body.
Someone had drugged Gu Xichao.
If nothing was done, he would have no choice but to endure it through sheer force of will, with every second becoming its own form of torture.
Yu Yan turned and lowered the air-conditioning to sixteen degrees once more. Then he went to the kitchen, poured a glass of ice water, and brought it back.
“Gu Xichao, wake up and drink some ice water. It might make you feel better… What happened to you…?”
When Yu Yan pushed open the door, Gu Xichao was wearing nothing but a white shirt with nearly all its buttons undone and a pair of gray boxer briefs.
The bedside lamp was still on.
The white shirt was soaked through with sweat and clung to his body like a second skin, faintly outlining the narrow curve of his waist beneath the fabric.
Yu Yan swallowed hard and forced himself to look away.
He helped Gu Xichao sit up, gave him several sips of cold water, then dampened a washcloth and placed it across his forehead.
The instant his fingertips touched Gu Xichao’s skin, he clearly felt the man’s body tense. The man who had always maintained such a cold and composed exterior suddenly let out several soft moans.
Yu Yan did not want to take advantage of him while he was barely conscious.
He wanted him.
But not like this.
Gritting his teeth, Yu Yan turned and practically fled the bedroom before calling his private doctor.
“Something happened! I don’t care where you are—come to Xilin Manor immediately! Yes, right now! Hurry!”
“Give him some ice to hold in his mouth first. It should help cool him down. I’ll be there as soon as I can,” the doctor instructed over the phone.
“All right. Please hurry!”
Yu Yan ended the call, took several ice cubes from the freezer, placed them in a bowl, and carried them back toward the bedroom.
Before opening the door, he drew another deep breath and carefully prepared himself before finally stepping inside.
“Gu Xichao? How did you end up on the floor?!”
Gu Xichao had rolled off the bed and was curled up on the carpet. His shirt was completely soaked, making him look as though he had just been pulled from the water.
Yu Yan hurried over and helped him back onto the bed. After settling his head against the pillow, Yu Yan unconsciously softened his voice.
“Open your mouth. Hold an ice cube inside.”
Gu Xichao obediently parted his lips.
Yu Yan slipped an ice cube into his mouth, making his cheeks puff out slightly.
After holding it there for a few seconds, Gu Xichao seemed to mumble something, but Yu Yan could not make out the words. The moment he leaned closer, Gu Xichao unexpectedly spat the ice cube out.
Yu Yan quickly reached out to catch it.
The freezing cube landed neatly in his palm.
“Gu Xichao, what’s wrong? The doctor said you need to keep the ice in your mouth.”
Yu Yan lifted his chin and placed another ice cube between his lips.
But it still did not work.
Before long, Gu Xichao spat it out again.
Yu Yan patiently tried several more times, but Gu Xichao rejected every single one. What little patience Yu Yan had left was nearly exhausted.
His parted red lips, his unfocused and glistening eyes, and the deep flush that had long since spread across his face—all of it was unwittingly tempting Yu Yan.
“Damn it.”
Yu Yan finally reached the end of his restraint.
He placed an ice cube into his own mouth and knelt on one knee beside the bed. With one hand, he lifted Gu Xichao’s chin, forcing him to raise his head.
Gu Xichao’s eyes fluttered half-open, his pupils unfocused. His lips parted slightly, releasing breaths that were hot and damp.
Yu Yan lowered his head and pressed their lips together.
The moment they touched, Gu Xichao’s entire body stiffened, and his fingers instinctively tightened around the bedsheet beneath him.
Yu Yan passed the ice cube between Gu Xichao’s lips and into his mouth.
The sudden cold made Gu Xichao’s brow tighten. His throat moved, and at last, he swallowed the ice.
But Yu Yan did not immediately pull away.
His lips remained pressed against Gu Xichao’s as he felt the ice slowly melt between them. Cold water mingled with their burning breaths and trickled from the corner of their joined lips.
“Do you feel any clearer now?”
Yu Yan’s voice had grown hoarse, and even his breathing had become uneven.
Gu Xichao turned his face away. His damp lashes lowered gently, but he said nothing.
His chest rose and fell violently. The white shirt was so thoroughly soaked that it had become almost transparent, clinging tightly to his collarbones and the skin across his chest.
In truth, the fire inside Gu Xichao had not eased at all.
He had believed that if he simply endured it a little longer, he would be fine.
But after that kiss, the desires buried deep within him had not faded. Instead, they had been awakened even more violently, surging through him wave after wave and striking every cell in his body.
It was like a machine that had lain dormant for far too long, suddenly brought roaring back to life.
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