Lu Shaoting felt that Gu Xia was definitely not that innocent; she was simply skilled at using those overly innocent eyes to bewitch men.
After all, Lu Shaoting—at thirty-six or thirty-seven—was certainly not the kind of young man fresh out of college who would lose his head just because a young woman was flirting with him.
Once he had regained his composure, Lu Shaoting stepped on the gas and drove straight out of the hotel, putting Gu Xia out of his mind.
Gu Xia stayed at the hotel for three days, with all her meals and drinks charged to Lu Shaoting’s account.
Ever since arriving in the capital, Gu Xia hadn’t had much money on her.
She had drugged Lu Shaoting back then because, after being reborn, she recalled what had happened to her parents and older sister in her previous life—and how Lu Shaoting had condoned the despicable actions of the Lu family’s eldest branch against her own Gu family.
Driven by her urge for revenge, she hadn’t given it much thought at the time.
It was Lu Shaoting’s words that brought her back to reality.
Right now, she was only thinking about her parents and older sister—but what about her own future?
If she did go through with the abortion, Gu Xia had no intention of returning to her parents and older sister.
If they ever found out that their livelihoods were sustained by her selling her body,
Her parents and older sister would certainly not approve.
She thought about seeing if she could find a job somewhere else—one that would allow her to earn money and support herself.
She’d save up a little money, too.
In a year or two, or maybe three, time would fade everything away.
By then, she thought, she’d return to her parents and older sister.
Even if she told them the truth, they wouldn’t be so angry.
Right now, Gu Xia was acting just like a little kid.
She was afraid her parents and older sister would get angry if they found out, so she didn’t dare go back to them.
Gu Xia had grown up under the protection of her parents and older sister.
The thing her family told her most often was, “Xiaxia, be a good girl. Mom, Dad, and your older sister will protect you for the rest of your life.”
Growing up in such a loving family environment, Gu Xia’s greatest fear was naturally that her family would be disappointed in her and get angry as a result.
Gu Xia waited in the hotel for three days.
She waited from day into night, until she began to think Lu Shaoting had deceived her.
Just as she was about to call Lu Shaoting to ask why he hadn’t shown up by the agreed-upon time,
Just as Gu Xia was about to go to the hotel front desk to make the call,
she heard someone ask, “Comrade Gu Xia, which room are you staying in?”
Only then did Gu Xia turn around and look over. The young man who had asked the question was about twenty-four or twenty-five years old, tall and slender.
Gu Xia looked at him and said, “I am Gu Xia.”
The young man looked at Gu Xia politely, his tone serious, and said:
“Our commander sent me to pick you up. Do you have anything else to pack? I’ll help carry it.”
Gu Xia shook her head slightly and said, “I don’t have much.”
She didn’t need to ask to know that this young man had definitely come to pick her up.
As for where they were going, Lu Shaoting had told her that he’d rented a place just for her.
Gu Xia knew that Lu Shaoting simply didn’t want her to go back to the Lu family home.
But she wasn’t sure what Lu Shaoting’s true motive was.
Was he just trying to calm her down so she wouldn’t cause a scene at the Lu family home, and what would he do next?
Was he really going to follow through on her request and help her parents and older sister find jobs, or was he just stringing her along for now?
Gu Xia felt anxious and uneasy.
Still, she reminded the young gay man, saying:
“But could you please cover the cost of the room and meals? Your boss agreed to it.”
Gu Xia didn’t have any money, and besides, it was Lu Shaoting who had brought her to this hotel—he should be the one to pay.
The man didn’t say anything; he simply turned around and paid the bill.
Inwardly, however, he muttered to himself, “The boss didn’t tell me to cover this, did he? I’ll have to get reimbursed by the boss later, right?”
After the man settled the bill, he led Gu Xia out of the hotel.
The driver arrived around 6:00 p.m. In the fall and winter, it was already dark at that hour.
After the driver drove for over an hour and dropped Gu Xia off at the apartment Lu Shaoting had rented for her, it was nearly 8:00 p.m.
On the way there, Gu Xia learned the name of the man who had picked her up: Li Weidong, Lu Shaoting’s driver.
After settling Gu Xia in, Li Weidong handed her the keys to the apartment. After some hesitation, he decided to give her the remaining money he had in his pocket.
“Comrade Gu Xia, please take this money.”
Gu Xia assumed Lu Shaoting had instructed him to give it to her.
Since she didn’t have much money on her anyway, she accepted it right away.
“Thank you for your trouble,” she said.
It wasn’t appropriate for a man and a woman alone to talk too much, especially since it was already dark outside.
After Li Weidong drove away, Gu Xia finally went inside and turned on the light.
She took a look around the small rental apartment.
It was a small, private apartment—not very big, but quite nice.
She had no reason to complain.
After all, during her year and a bit in the Northwest, she’d adapted to everything she’d once found difficult.
As Li Weidong was leaving, Gu Xia did ask him one more question.
She learned from Li Weidong that Lu Shaoting hadn’t told him about their relationship.
He’d simply said that Gu Xia was the daughter of a friend of Lu Shaoting’s who had nowhere to stay after returning to the city, which was why she’d specifically sought him out.
In front of Li Weidong, Gu Xia asked directly.
“When will Uncle Lu come to see me?”
Li Weidong was straightforward and replied, “I’m not sure—the commander didn’t give any instructions.”
Li Weidong didn’t say anything more, and Gu Xia didn’t ask any further questions.
Although she didn’t know much about the military, she understood that there were certain things senior officers did that they wouldn’t share with their subordinates.
The apartment was fully furnished, though she wasn’t sure if the items had been left behind by the previous tenant or if Lu Shaoting had arranged for them to be purchased.
Even though she now had a place to stay, not being able to see Lu Shaoting left Gu Xia feeling constantly uneasy.
She was also well aware that she had just become pregnant and that it was still possible to have an abortion.
If she waited until her belly was showing and Lu Shaoting then decided to wash his hands of the matter, what would she do?
Haunted by this uncertainty, Gu Xia lay in bed, tossing and turning, unable to sleep.
It wasn’t until just before dawn that she finally drifted off, unable to stay awake any longer.
Lu Shaoting, too, was suffering from insomnia.
He hadn’t contacted Gu Xia, but with his innate sense of responsibility,
he knew that her existence was a problem he had to resolve.
The pregnancy test results from Gu Xia lay on his blood-red desk, and he was torn with indecision.
He knew full well that he and Gu Xia were worlds apart, but he was indeed hesitant about keeping the child…
When he was seventeen or eighteen, he enlisted in the military and went to the battlefield without telling his family.
He was right in the midst of puberty at the time, which took a toll on his health.
As a result, in the years that followed, he lacked the typical teenage urges.
Lu Shaoting assumed there was something wrong with his body.
Later, when he threw himself into his work, he always exercised restraint when it came to personal desires.
During this time, a superior had introduced him to a potential partner.
He met with them, and he never hid his physical condition.
He would come right out and say, “I might not be able to have children…”
For a normal man, this would be a reason to keep it hidden.
But Lu Shaoting was different from others; he spoke about it very naturally.
He even hoped that after learning about his physical condition, the women he was set up with would choose to end the relationship.
To put it bluntly, he simply wasn’t interested in those women he’d been set up with; he’d just made up an excuse on the spot—that was the main reason.
But he had underestimated a man’s own desires.
Before he’d tasted that kind of pleasure, he hadn’t understood it at all.
But once he’d personally experienced a thoroughly satisfying lovemaking session, his body felt as though it had savored the finest delicacy.
He remembered that bone-chilling sensation fiercely and deeply.
“Gu Xia, you really know how to get me into trouble.”
He stubbed out the cigarette butt, and as the smoke swirled around him,
it was impossible to tell whether the expression on Lu Shaoting’s face was disgust or… desire—an emotion that had never before appeared on his face.