The previous night, Gu Yunche and Mu Guiying had parted on bad terms. His words had cut deeply into her heart, so she refused to believe he bought her food for any reason other than apologizing.
Gu Yunche wore a white shirt with gray stripes, dark gray trousers, and polished leather shoes. His deep peach blossom eyes carried the steadiness and sharpness of a mature man.
Yet the way he looked at her was strangely unnatural.
He raised a hand to touch the bridge of his nose.
“Eat while it’s hot. I’ll wait outside.”
Mu Guiying’s delicate face instantly stiffened with embarrassment as she stared at him without blinking.
Being watched so directly made Gu Yunche uncomfortable. He coughed lightly.
“I only bought it because I thought you liked it. It doesn’t mean anything else.”
Ah, so Gu Yunche was actually a tsundere?
Mu Guiying watched the usually cold and distant man stride away quickly, as though someone were chasing him from behind. It was obvious he felt guilty.
She took a bite of the fried pastry. The rich fragrance of oil mixed with the sweetness of brown sugar instantly made her forget about Gu Yunche’s stubborn pride as she focused wholeheartedly on enjoying the rare delicacy.
After breakfast, Gu Yunche carried his suitcase and took Mu Guiying to the train station.
Putting everything else aside, his suitcase alone was eye-catching.
Everyone else carried bundled luggage rolls, making him look completely out of place. Combined with his clean and refined appearance and his cold yet elegant aura, he single-handedly elevated the shabby green train carriage by several levels.
The moment they boarded and searched for seats, everyone in the carriage turned to look at them.
Both of them were attractive, like movie stars stepping straight out of a film.
One young man who had just boarded intentionally squeezed toward Mu Guiying after noticing how pretty she was.
The crowd shoved her so hard she lost her balance.
She stumbled directly against Gu Yunche’s back.
His body stiffened instantly. Grabbing her wrist, he quickly pushed her away.
Unfortunately, her back struck against someone’s raised thermos.
Mu Guiying cried out softly in pain, tears immediately springing to her eyes.
Seeing this, Gu Yunche reached out again and pulled her back to his side.
An older woman nearby who had been watching the scene laughed teasingly.
“Oh my, are you two newlyweds? Young man, why are you acting so shy? Hurry and let your wife sit inside.”
There were many standing passengers crowding the aisle, making the carriage extremely cramped.
Only after helping Mu Guiying squeeze into the inner seat did Gu Yunche finally sit down himself. He rested his left arm against the table, preventing others from pressing in further.
Mu Guiying had experienced crowded high-speed trains before, but never anything like this.
Once the train started moving, although the carriage remained noisy, it became slightly less crowded.
The auntie sitting opposite them smiled and asked Gu Yunche whether he was accompanying his wife to visit relatives.
Gu Yunche’s expression darkened instantly.
Seeing the frustrated look on his face made Mu Guiying want to laugh.
Clearing her throat, she explained, “Auntie, we’re not husband and wife. He’s my brother.”
Upon hearing they were siblings, the auntie became even more talkative.
“No wonder you’re both so good-looking. Your brother and you must have lots of admirers.”
Her smiling eyes turned craftily as she tried to investigate Gu Yunche’s background further.
“So where does this young man work? Let me tell you—”
“Auntie, my brother already has someone he likes.”
The moment Mu Guiying saw the auntie’s excited expression, she was instantly reminded of her own experiences returning home for Lunar New Year, endlessly pressured by relatives to get married and have children.
Thankfully, she had never gone so far as to rent a fake boyfriend for the holidays.
Perhaps because she sympathized so deeply, she willingly stepped in to help Gu Yunche out.
However, Gu Yunche’s cool and emotionless voice suddenly sounded beside her.
“Mu Guiying, when did I ever have—”
Mu Guiying quickly covered his mouth and smiled brightly at the auntie.
“Auntie, my brother is shy. His girlfriend lives in the provincial capital. We’re actually going to see her.”
The auntie’s face instantly filled with disappointment.
She had not even gotten the chance to introduce the handsome young man to her aunt’s daughter’s cousin in the provincial capital before learning he was already taken.
Lowering her voice slightly, Mu Guiying leaned toward Gu Yunche and whispered,
“If you don’t want Auntie forcing you into endless conversations and blind dates, then stay quiet.”
Gu Yunche paused before glancing at the auntie, whose expression had indeed become awkward.
Looking back at Mu Guiying somewhat uncomfortably, he remarked,
“You seem to understand these things pretty well.”
After speaking, Gu Yunche fell silent again.
He began thinking that Mu Guiying must have been forced into blind dates at a very young age.
That fool from the Liu family had probably been the final destination arranged for her by Liu E.
Yet before she was married off to him, her beauty had made her highly desirable.
Perhaps it was precisely because of an aunt like Liu E that Mu Guiying had grown into someone worldly and calculating, willing to do anything for a better future—even joining Liu E in drugging him.
Thinking this, Gu Yunche suddenly lost all interest in talking further.
He closed his eyes to rest and said nothing more.
Meanwhile, Mu Guiying watched his expression change again and again.
Pressing her fingers to her forehead, she thought helplessly:
What ridiculous things is this guy imagining now?
The old green train slowly rattled toward the provincial capital.
The air inside the carriage was murky, and the constant swaying made Mu Guiying dizzy and nauseated. Sweat soaked her body as she weakly leaned forward and fell asleep.
She felt terrible, especially her stomach.
It was motion sickness.
When Gu Yunche opened his eyes, he saw Mu Guiying asleep against the table. Her brows were tightly knitted, sweat covering her nose and forehead, making her pale skin appear even fairer.
He lowered his eyes, avoiding looking at her further.
The auntie across from them kindly reminded him,
“Your sister looks really uncomfortable. She’s probably motion sick. Has she ridden a train before?”
Gu Yunche shook his head.
He stood up and retrieved a jar of preserved hawthorn berries and a spoon from the luggage rack. Tapping the bottom of the jar, he twisted the lid open with force.
Then he gently woke Mu Guiying.
“Xiao Mu, eat something. You’ll feel a little better.”
Mu Guiying was the daughter of his mother’s close friend.
Naturally, he should take good care of her.
Especially after wrongly suspecting her good intentions yesterday.
Mu Guiying accepted the jar and ate a hawthorn berry with the spoon.
Sure enough, she felt slightly better.
Everyone in the carriage unconsciously swallowed at the sight of the canned fruit.
Gu Yunche was usually serious and rarely smiled.
But Mu Guiying puffed her cheeks like a greedy squirrel while eating the hawthorn berries. The smug and mischievous expression she wore while noticing everyone staring longingly at her somehow amused him.
Looking down at the jar, Mu Guiying asked, “Brother Gu, how many jars did you buy?”
“Not enough?”
Gu Yunche asked with a faint smile.
“It’s enough. I just won’t share this one with you. My saliva touched it already, and I’m afraid you’ll dislike it. If you want some, open another jar yourself.”
She had only asked because she felt guilty eating it alone.
Gu Yunche fell silent.
Two hours later, they arrived at the provincial capital.
As Gu Yunche and Mu Guiying walked out of the station platform, they saw a young woman in a red plaid dress enthusiastically waving at Gu Yunche.
“Brother Yunche!”
The girl revealed a row of beautiful white teeth as she tightly clutched her bag straps and ran toward him like an energetic little rabbit.
“Brother Yunche, it’s me, Bai Lin! Did you not recognize me?”
Bai Lin spun gracefully in front of him. Her red plaid dress flared outward like a blooming trumpet flower, while her black low-heeled shoes clicked cheerfully against the ground.
Gu Yunche stared for several seconds before nodding slightly.
“You’ve grown up. The last time I saw you, you weren’t this tall.”
Looking at the female lead from the original novel, Mu Guiying suddenly understood why Bai Lin was the heroine.
It was because she possessed the protagonist’s aura—
And because she was genuinely confident.
Mu Guiying glanced at Gu Yunche.
The cold and distant man who rarely showed emotion was actually smiling.
When Bai Lin noticed Mu Guiying standing beside him, her smile faded slightly as she carefully sized her up.
“Brother Yunche, who is this young lady?”
Gu Yunche turned to look at Mu Guiying, his expression unreadable…