Once the wedding banquet was over, everyone went their separate ways.
Gu Xia didn’t need to worry about the mess left behind at the restaurant.
She followed Lu Shaoting home when he left.
Lu Shaoting could walk on his own with the help of his cane, but when they reached the stairs, Gu Xia still stepped forward to help him up.
He’d had a bit too much to drink and was unsteady on his feet; half his weight was practically leaning on Gu Xia.
Only after she’d helped him into the room and laid him on the bed did Gu Xia let out a sigh of relief.
The wedding banquet was merely for show—to let outsiders know that Lu Shaoting was married. Throughout the Lu household, aside from a few “Double Happiness” characters posted here and there, there were no other decorations.
After Gu Xia took off Lu Shaoting’s shoes, she was about to stand up.
But Lu Shaoting suddenly grabbed her hand.
Leaning against the headboard, his drunken gaze held a hint of clarity as he looked at Gu Xia.
In a cold, detached tone, he asked, “You have no complaints at all about today’s wedding banquet?”
Gu Xia’s face still bore her usual demure and dutiful expression.
She spoke softly, “I told you long ago—I’ll do whatever you say. As long as you promise to keep your end of the bargain, I’ll do anything you ask…”
“Anything?” Lu Shaoting asked in a low voice. Then, his expression turned serious, and he said coldly, “Right now, I want you to please me. Are you willing to do that?”
A hint of confusion flashed in Gu Xia’s eyes.
What did he mean by “pleasing him”?
Did he mean saying nice things to cheer him up?
Gu Xia nodded slightly. “I’m willing.”
“Do you know what ‘pleasing’ means, Gu Xia?”
Seeing the clear confusion in Gu Xia’s eyes, Lu Shaoting’s lips curled into a mocking smile as he said:
“You don’t even understand what ‘pleasing’ means, yet you agreed so readily.”
Gu Xia’s face flushed so red it seemed it might bleed. Her head was spinning, and her mind went blank—she had absolutely no idea what Lu Shaoting actually wanted.
Didn’t he say this was a fake marriage?
Then what was he trying to do now?
Finally seeing the expression Gu Xia couldn’t hold back, Lu Shaoting felt a tinge of satisfaction from his revenge and asked deliberately:
“Didn’t you say you were willing? Get on.”
After hesitating for a moment, Gu Xia, as dazed as a puppet being manipulated, climbed onto the bed of her own accord.
Her hands trembled as she tried to unbuckle the belt of his military pants.
Her beautiful eyes were brimming with tears; she clearly looked so wronged she was on the verge of crying, yet she was still forcing herself to do something she didn’t want to do.
Her body was resisting his touch.
Lu Shaoting could feel it.
But Gu Xia was still pushing herself to go through with it.
Suddenly, Lu Shaoting was overcome by a fit of furious irritation. He snapped at her in a low voice and pushed her away.
“Get away from me.”
“Gu Xia, you’ll really do anything for your family. You’re even willing to use your innocent body to seduce a man just to achieve your goals.”
“Fine, you’re something else.”
Gu Xia was on the verge of losing her composure.
But she held back, muttering a quiet defense.
“I really had no choice. It’s come to this, and it’s already happened. Lu Shaoting, if you want it, I’ll give it to you. But please stop saying these humiliating things to me.”
“I’m going to the bathroom to freshen up first—I reek of alcohol.”
She appeared calm on the surface, but in reality, she’d lost her composure, and her mind was in complete disarray.
After turning and heading to the bathroom, she turned on the faucet and listened to the sound of the running water…
Lu Shaoting’s behavior just now had indeed shocked Gu Xia. She’d always thought he despised her—after all, back in the Northwest, she’d drugged and forced herself on him.
But she never expected that this time, Lu Shaoting would actually take the initiative to ask her to please him?
Gu Xia, who had never understood such matters before, recoiled in fear once she realized what he was implying.
She hurriedly washed up, trying to calm herself down as quickly as possible.
Inside, Gu Xia told herself, “Haven’t we done this before? I remember clearly—back then, I was the one who made the first move.”
Now that she was already pregnant, what was there left for her to be so prudish about?
Besides, hadn’t she originally intended to seduce Lu Shaoting, to make him fall for her, so she could quickly resolve the issue of her parents and older sister getting jobs in the city?
So why was she acting so resistant now?
Gu Xia knew deep down that when she’d seen Lu Shaoting back in the Northwest, she’d viewed him as a lifeline she could grasp after being reborn from the dead. She hadn’t cared about propriety, morality, or shame at all—she’d just seduced him first and worried about the rest later.
Besides, Lu Shaoting hadn’t been in his right mind back then.
Now, the Lu Shaoting standing right in front of her was perfectly lucid, which actually left her at a loss as to how to proceed.
Still, Gu Xia had steeled herself mentally.
If Lu Shaoting insisted, she wouldn’t stubbornly refuse him. Besides, she was already carrying his child—sleeping with him one more time wouldn’t matter.
In the bathroom, Gu Xia managed to convince herself.
Just as she was about to step out, she heard footsteps coming up the stairs.
Gu Xia emerged from the bathroom and saw that it was Lu Shaoting’s second older sister, Lu Xiaoyan, who was holding something in her hand.
Upon seeing Gu Xia, she said with a smile, “This is the cash from the wedding banquet today. Mom took the family’s share. This is from Shaoting’s comrades-in-arms; I brought it up here especially for you two.”
“Where’s Shaoting?”
Gu Xia replied softly, “He had a bit too much to drink and is resting.”
Lu Xiaoyan didn’t mention going inside but said to Gu Xia, “ “Here, take this money. It’s not much. Just let Shaoting know about it.”
Gu Xia didn’t refuse; she simply took the money and brought it inside. Perhaps because of what had just happened in the room—which made her feel a bit embarrassed and awkward—she didn’t want Lu Xiaoyan to come in, as if she were the scene of a crime where someone had witnessed something unsavory…
Lu Xiaoyan handed the money to Gu Xia and went downstairs.
She didn’t say much else.
Gu Xia hesitated for a moment, then opened the bedroom door and walked in.
She saw Lu Shaoting lying on the bed, resting with his eyes closed. He hadn’t taken off his clothes, but he was covered by a blanket.
Since she couldn’t see that thing, Gu Xia didn’t feel quite as nervous or afraid anymore.
She didn’t disturb Lu Shaoting’s rest, thinking she’d just leave the money on the nightstand and then find a quiet spot to rest.
The wedding banquet had been a simple formality, but she still felt utterly exhausted.
Hearing Gu Xia’s footsteps, Lu Shaoting suddenly opened his eyes.
His voice remained cold and detached: “Just keep the money; there’s no need to give it to me. Since I didn’t marry you, I won’t accept these wedding gifts.”
Hearing that, Gu Xia didn’t know what to say.
She cautiously asked, “There’s quite a bit here—several hundred. If you give it all to me, can I just spend it however I want?”
Lu Shaoting thought to himself that she was just an eighteen- or nineteen-year-old girl; Gu Xia didn’t even seem older than his niece, Lu Tingting.
His niece, Lu Tingting, was quite the spendthrift when it came to eating, drinking, and having fun; sometimes she’d even ask him, her uncle, for some pocket money.
Lu Shaoting usually gave it to her—after all, he was her elder.
Speaking of elders, Lu Shaoting suddenly realized that if it weren’t for Gu Xia’s schemes against him, he and Gu Xia would still be maintaining a relationship between an elder and a younger person.
It really did go beyond the bounds of propriety.
At first, Lu Shaoting had been resistant.
But now, he couldn’t shake the feeling that something wasn’t quite right.
Could it be that because he’d slept with Gu Xia, he’d inexplicably developed a desire to be close to her—and that whenever she drew near, his body would react with an uncontrollable surge of excitement…
This was a physical urge he had never experienced in over thirty years.
After Gu Xia finished asking her questions, she noticed Lu Shaoting had been staring at her for quite some time. Unable to fathom his thoughts, she was just about to put the money down when…
At that moment, Lu Shaoting said, “It’s up to you.”