Gu Huai pushed the door open. The room was dark, so he used his phone to light the way as he felt his way inside. After a moment, he saw Bo Jianyan lying on the bed. A dim nightlight glowed beside him, revealing his furrowed brows and pale lips.
He looked very uncomfortable.
Just then, Gu Huai received a message from Song Chengchi: “Bo the Dog has been working non-stop these past few days and his body couldn’t take it. He collapsed two days ago. He is a bit weak right now and needs to recover.”
“I am counting on you to take care of him tonight! If there is an emergency, press the button next to the bed to call the family doctor directly.”
Gu Huai replied with a simple “Fine.”
Looking at the quiet, sleeping face on the bed, he reached out and gently stroked it. So Brother Bo ignored me because he was sick, Gu Huai thought while caressing him.
Suddenly, his hand was grabbed, snapping him back to reality.
Bo Jianyan was a light sleeper. He had been awake since the moment Gu Huai entered, wondering who was bold enough to disturb him. Having caught Gu Huai red-handed, Bo Jianyan watched as the boy’s earlobes turned red again.
“Brother Bo,” Gu Huai whispered.
Bo Jianyan opened his eyes. His gaze was tired, but filled with a hint of delight. “Why are you here?”
Gu Huai reached out with his other hand to touch his forehead. It was slightly hot; he realized the man was likely still running a fever. Gu Huai said softly, “You didn’t reply to my message, so I was worried. I asked Song Chengchi, and he gave me the address to find you.”
Hearing the concern in his voice, a smile touched Bo Jianyan’s eyes. He slid his hand down from Gu Huai’s arm to clasp his hand. “Is baby that worried about me?”
The pink hue that had just faded from Gu Huai’s ears bloomed once more. “Yes.”
Bo Jianyan found his reaction adorable. He admired the expression for a moment before finally letting go of his hand, deciding to stop teasing him for the second. He moved over to one side of the bed, leaving more than half of it empty, and signaled for Gu Huai to get in.
Gu Huai didn’t hesitate to get into bed. Just as he lay down, Bo Jianyan flipped over and pinned him down. Thinking that Bo Jianyan was still sick, Gu Huai didn’t dare to struggle, allowing the man’s gaze to roam over his face.
Gu Huai felt a bit helpless. “Brother Bo, don’t play around. You are still sick.”
Bo Jianyan gave a light chuckle. “Does that mean once I am better, I can play around as much as I want?”
Gu Huai felt like he had fallen into another linguistic trap. Before he could reply, Bo Jianyan buried his face straight into Gu Huai’s shoulder. Feeling the warm breath against his neck, Gu Huai stiffened for a moment. After a pause, he ran his fingers through the hair on the back of Bo Jianyan’s head, stroking it gently. “Go to sleep, Brother Bo.”
“Mm,” Bo Jianyan grunted, his head still buried. There was always a faint scent of camellia on Gu Huai, and Bo Jianyan took a light sniff. It smells so good. I love it.
After a long while, seeing that Bo Jianyan hadn’t moved, Gu Huai assumed he was asleep. He whispered softly, “Get well soon, Brother Bo. Once you are better, you can do whatever you want.”
Bo Jianyan’s voice came out muffled and full of lingering affection, “Sweetheart, you can’t take that back.”
Only then did Gu Huai realize the man hadn’t been sleeping at all. Hearing those words, he paused again and gave a soft “Mm.” “Alright.”
Having had his fun, Bo Jianyan sat up. “How are you so obedient? You agree to everything I say.”
“Then… give me a kiss?”
Gu Huai: “…”
“Brother Bo, don’t push your luck.”
Hearing this, Bo Jianyan’s tone dropped slightly into a dejected note. “Is that a no?”
“I thought baby felt sorry for me. It turns out I was just being sentimental.” He lowered his head, looking very disappointed.
Seeing him like that, Gu Huai’s heart softened again. In truth, Bo Jianyan’s request wasn’t over the top. Besides, he had really wanted to see Bo Jianyan and spend time with him. And since they were technically a couple now, a kiss shouldn’t be a big deal, right?
Gu Huai silently brainwashed himself: Yes, just one kiss. He’s sick.
Gu Huai gently brushed the hair away from Bo Jianyan’s forehead and sat up against the pillow. “Brother Bo.”
Bo Jianyan looked up at the sound, and a light kiss landed on his forehead. It was very soft; he felt a moment of tenderness before it vanished. The joy in his eyes was about to overflow. “I like it. Is there more?”
Gu Huai forcibly pushed him back down to the bed, his eyes carrying a hint of a warning. “You are still sick. Go to rest, now.”
Bo Jianyan gave a muffled laugh; the boy was still so easily flustered. Perhaps because of the illness, after teasing Gu Huai, his eyelids felt heavy. He found a comfortable position in Gu Huai’s arms and lazily prepared to sleep.
Comfortable. I can even smell my wife’s scent. This illness was definitely worth it.
Bo Jianyan’s fever broke in the middle of the night. When he woke up in the morning, he felt unprecedentedly refreshed. Looking at the peaceful sleeping face beside him, he climbed out of bed carefully, trying not to wake Gu Huai.
Gu Huai murmured dizzily, “Brother Bo… sleep a bit longer.”
Bo Jianyan made a decision and decisively climbed back into bed. He pushed everything else to the back of his mind—after all, he was a patient.
However, reality soon slapped him in the face. Before he could use his illness to squeeze any more benefits out of Gu Huai, he was startled by a loud shout from Song Chengchi.
“This is bad, Bo the Dog!!!” “Get up quickly, something happened again.”
Hearing the word “again,” Bo Jianyan’s lip couldn’t help but twitch. “Go outside first.”
Once he was sure he hadn’t woken Gu Huai, Bo Jianyan breathed a sigh of relief, only for Song Chengchi’s voice to spike again.
“Bo the Dog, Dog, Dog, Dog… come here quickly!!”
As soon as Bo Jianyan walked out, he saw Song Chengchi holding a folder. After flipping through a few pages, Bo Jianyan couldn’t help but let out a few curses. “Is that idiot Gu Chong brainless?”
Thinking about his past rivalry over land with Gu Chong made him feel like his own company’s value was dropping. To get Gu Yi into power, Gu Chong had truly exhausted his efforts. The result was a total mess; the management couldn’t wait to jump ship or have someone else take over.
The entire Gu Group was in chaos. The high-level management was constantly changing, and the employees below were dissatisfied with the new management system, protesting by stopping work and resigning.
Song Chengchi tsked. “Giving out orders at his age, he’s just begging to lose his entire life savings.”
“Attendance has become stricter, the bonus system is flawed, the workload has doubled without new equipment, and most importantly, there’s no pay raise.”
He was truly treating people like cattle.
Song Chengchi sighed. “I heard the employees there are collectively protesting and insisting on only doing their original workload.”
The old man Gu Chong had flown into a rage at the staff meeting, screaming at them to either work or pack up and get out. As it turned out, those people were tough; they threw down their badges and immediately sent their resumes elsewhere. At his age, Gu Chong had lost both his dignity and his troops.
Bo Jianyan glanced at the documents. “When does the construction start at the branch office site?”
Song Chengchi counted on his fingers. “Thursday, I think. By the way, are the old men from the company going back to your house to give you a hard time?”