The anger in Gu Yulan’s heart had not yet dissipated, and his tone was exceptionally fierce. Coupled with a strange, rising heat that left his mouth feeling parched, he irritably pulled out a cigarette, lit it, and took a drag. He noticed the youth staring intently at the cigarette between his lips. He held it out and raised an eyebrow slightly.
“You want a puff?”
Xie Yizhou looked at the smoldering object held before him. Its scent was choking and unpleasant; he did not understand why Gu Yulan liked it so much. However, before he could open his mouth to refuse, he felt a flick against his forehead. He covered his head and looked at Gu Yulan with accusatory eyes.
The culprit, far from offering an apology, provocatively blew a cloud of smoke directly into his face.
“I am just teasing you. You are still a little kid who is not even fully grown yet. Do not even think about it!”
The smoke made Xie Yizhou’s eyes turn red from coughing. Gu Yulan saw the youth’s reddened eyes and the downward tilt of his lips, looking as if he were about to be bullied into tears. His body stiffened, and he suddenly felt a pang of panic. He had not even said anything that bad.
He coughed awkwardly. “I was just joking with you. Let us get out of here first. Do not you find the smell in this restroom heavy after staying here so long?”
Xie Yizhou kept his eyes downcast. He turned the lock and pushed the door open. Upon exiting, he saw a line of people standing outside the restroom. The group saw the youth with red eyes, looking as though he had been crying, and then turned to look at Gu Yulan behind him, who appeared as if nothing had happened.
Gu Yulan scanned the crowd. He took a light drag from the cigarette butt, slowly exhaled, and rested his hand on the youth’s shoulder in a very lazy posture. Xie Yizhou felt the weight on his shoulder and shifted subtly. Gu Yulan’s hand nearly slipped, so he leaned down toward the porcelain-white tip of the youth’s ear and whispered, “Cooperate with me.”
His warm, damp breath brushed against the ear, sending a small spark of electricity through Xie Yizhou that made his entire body stiffen. He lowered his gaze, his long lashes casting a shadow that concealed his thoughts.
Gu Yulan looked up and asked coldly, “I am asking for the last time. Who did this to his face?”
Did they think he was a pushover just because he had not lost his temper yet? He must have been too gentle before, leading these people to push their luck step by step. The crowd shivered under his sharp gaze. The entire private room fell into a deathly silence; not a single person dared to respond.
“Since that is the case, do not blame me for being unkind.”
Gu Yulan tilted his head and smirked, feeling an itchy ache in his knuckles.
“Go outside and wait for me,” he whispered into the youth’s ear.
Xie Yizhou looked up at him. “Hmm?”
Gu Yulan did not explain further. “Be good.”
He placed both hands on the youth’s shoulders and pushed him out the door. Xie Yizhou stood at the entrance, and before he could react, a gust of wind passed by his ear. His hearing aid was taken away. Immediately after, the door to the private room slammed shut.
Xie Yizhou stared at the closed door in a moment of silence. He silently found an excuse for Gu Yulan; he must have a reason for doing this. He stood alone in the hallway, looking down at the ornate carpet and tracing the patterns with his eyes. At this moment, his world was completely silent. He could hear nothing, including the rhythmic screams coming from inside the room.
At the same time, Zhou Yichen, who had just received the news, arrived in a hurry. He looked panicked, his eyes searching everywhere as if looking for someone. Finally, his efforts paid off, and he found the person he was looking for in the hallway.
His heart leaped with joy, and he walked over immediately. The thin, slender youth stood there quietly with a straight back. His damp black hair fell messily over his forehead, obscuring his slightly reddened eyes. His long lashes trembled, and his lips were pursed weakly, making him look like an abandoned kitten.
However, as Zhou Yichen drew closer, his expression shifted violently. The corners of the youth’s reddened eyes still held a trace of moisture, his nose was slightly pink, and his soft lips possessed a vivid redness as if they had been ravaged. Dark finger marks were clearly visible on his chin and neck.
Zhou Yichen was not unfamiliar with such marks. He knew exactly what they implied. It suggested that the youth had just been pinned against a wall, his chin held firm as he was kissed until he was breathless, unable to resist while letting out pitiful whimpers.
This train of thought made Zhou Yichen’s face turn grim. He felt as though something of his had been defiled. His features distorted for a moment before he took a deep breath, forcing a smile onto his face to regain his gentle and elegant demeanor. He must not scare the youth.
Xie Yizhou sensed a gaze on him. His heart tightened, and he looked up, meeting a pair of smiling eyes. He did not let down his guard; he was simply puzzled. What was Zhou Yichen doing here?
Xie Yizhou thought to himself, “Is Su Jianyang here too?” Even 0377 was surprised; this scene did not exist in the original plot.
Zhou Yichen spoke with a hint of worry in his gentle tone, “What happened to you? Do you need help?”
Xie Yizhou said nothing, merely watching him quietly. Sensing the youth’s wariness, Zhou Yichen’s tone became even softer. “Do not worry, I am a good person and mean you no harm. We met once before. How did you get hurt like this? Did Gu Yulan bully you? I heard before that he plays hard, doing everything from smoking and drinking to hitting night clubs. It worries me to see you like this.”
“Did Gu Yulan bully me?” Xie Yizhou stared at the man.
Zhou Yichen was handsome and refined, with a seemingly permanent gentle smile and affectionate eyes. This well-dressed appearance certainly made him look much kinder than Gu Yulan.
“How could he leave you here alone?” He leaned down slightly to match the youth’s height, advising him patiently, “It is too dangerous here. I can take you away from this place.”
Suddenly, his voice stopped. He noticed that the youth was not wearing his hearing aid. A faint frown creased Zhou Yichen’s brow as he saw the youth’s indifferent expression. It meant that his entire performance had been in vain; the other person had no idea what he was saying. Realizing this, Zhou Yichen’s face turned visibly dark.
Suddenly, the door was pulled open.
“Hey, what do you think you are doing?”
Zhou Yichen snapped his head around and met a pair of fierce eyes. At the same time, a hand landed on Xie Yizhou’s shoulder, and his body was gently pulled backward. A wave of warmth pressed against his back, and the familiar scent of mint mixed with faint tobacco smoke enveloped him instantly.
Gu Yulan still had an unlit cigarette between his teeth. He narrowed his sharp eyes, looking coldly at the man who had suddenly appeared. “Trying to poach someone right in front of me? What a joke.”
“What did he say to you?” Gu Yulan whispered. He saw no reaction from the youth and then remembered that he had taken the hearing aid away.
Suddenly, a slender hand crossed his vision. The knuckles were well-defined, and the delicate skin looked like white jade under the lights. In that moment of daze, the cigarette was plucked from his mouth.
Xie Yizhou looked down at the glowing red tip between his fingers. Without opening his mouth wide, he shallowly bit down on the tooth marks left on the cigarette butt. As his tongue brushed past, it tasted the cool hint of mint.
Under the gaze of both men, he imitated the way Gu Yulan smoked and took a light puff. He lifted his head to look at the man in front of him, and the exhaled white smoke momentarily blurred his vision.
Zhou Yichen stood frozen. The youth’s obedient and docile face looked almost surreal through the smoke. Suddenly, the realization hit him. The other person had not failed to understand his words. He had simply, resolutely, chosen Gu Yulan.
Zhou Yichen felt like a clown who had just performed a silent pantomime.