Chapter 56, Part 56: A Dragonfly Skimming the Water

Gu Zhaoqian's words made He Peiru instantly feel extremely guilty.

She quickly denied it, trying to wave her hand in refusal, but her movements were blocked, so she could only say quickly, "I didn't mean that!"

“I know.” Gu Zhaoqian’s smile deepened, but he still insisted on saying, “I was just kidding.”

He openly displayed his wickedness, which directly caused He Peiru to have to swallow the words she wanted to say.

She felt that if she continued to be alone with Gu Zhaoqian, more and more things would happen that were beyond her imagination.

He Peiru had only recently decided to accept things as they were, but it seems she overestimated her ability to adapt.

The situation is no longer as simple as whether she can handle it; she has discovered that she simply cannot figure out his routines and methods, and each time he does something completely unexpected.

He Peiru was moved by his actions, but it was time for her to respond.

Over time, she had done enough mental preparation.

She was still pondering what to do when Gu Zhaoqian's voice rang out, asking, "What are you thinking about?"

He Peiru felt as if she had entered a maze, stumped by the things she was thinking about, and blurted out subconsciously, "Thinking of you."

But she immediately realized that her words were ambiguous and quickly added, "I was thinking about things related to you."

"What's the difference?" he countered. "Aren't they both related to me?"

Hearing him say that, He Peiru felt only despair.

I'm afraid that if I say too much, I'll make a mistake. If I rush to deny it, I'll seem even more suspicious, and I'll be caught in a dilemma once again.

"Just admit it."

Gu Zhaoqian had her figured out too thoroughly, and his words were becoming more and more blunt.

Continuing to ramble on would only make her seem more powerless, so she explained, "I didn't mean to use you and then discard you... I just wanted to thank you anyway."

He Peiru secretly observed the man's changing expression. He was no longer as indifferent as before, and his expression softened a bit: "So how do you plan to thank me?"

Normally, she could take her time to think of a response, but with Gu Zhaoqian so close, her mind seemed completely blank: "I..."

There are no ready-made gifts to give here, and mere words are of little significance.

She quickly threw the question back at her: "How do you want me to thank you?"

"How come you've become so smart now? You even know to ask me questions." Clearly, the man was teasing her on purpose, especially knowing that she couldn't escape in this situation.

She said softly, somewhat helplessly, "I'm completely clueless... so I can only ask you directly."

As if wanting to confirm, Gu Zhaoqian asked again, "You really want to thank me?"

He Peiru looked up and met Gu Zhaoqian's gaze.

His dark pupils shimmered with starlight, as deep as the Milky Way, captivating her gaze.

Then he nodded vigorously.

She then felt the hand that hadn't let go exert a little force, effortlessly pulling her over.

He Peiru was completely unprepared, but not clueless either; she just didn't dare to guess what he was planning to do.

Gu Zhaoqian moved closer to her again, and she could clearly feel his breath. The tingling sensation made her instinctively want to pull away, and her mind went blank once more.

"If I said I wanted to kiss you," his voice was close, polite yet firm, leaving no room for refusal, "would that be alright?"

Perhaps he said that because he was certain she would agree.

He Peiru only intended to agree.

Before she could even speak, a "beep" sound pulled her back to reality.

The sharp sounds of electronic devices echoed in the empty room, and the lights that hadn't been turned off due to the sudden power outage immediately came on, as if light had been restored in an instant.

He Peiru never expected that the power would be restored at this exact moment, and her thoughts seemed to be completely exposed to the light.

A feeling of embarrassment welled up inside me, but I was unwilling to let the whole thing end like this.

It's like if she were to push Gu Zhaoqian away at this moment, everything that has been going on for so long would come to nothing.

This realization also made her very conflicted.

Just then, Gu Zhaoqian raised his other hand and gently covered her eyes, whispering, "Don't try to push me away."

That's good, now she can take the opportunity to answer that question from before—

"Can."

Gu Zhaoqian didn't speak again; her eyes were covered, so she didn't know what was happening.

The initiative has returned to the man's hands.

She held her breath, waiting for Gu Zhaoqian's next move.

Not long after, something soft covered her lips, as if a light touch was enough.

Gu Zhaoqian's movements were too fast; she didn't have time to react at all.

even……

Even the specific feeling it evoked didn't leave a deep impression.

She was certain that she couldn't possibly guess Gu Zhaoqian's thoughts, and had assumed he would ask for even more benefits.

The facts are quite the opposite.

He then released his hand.

Confused and disoriented, He Peiru put the events of just moments ago behind her and stared at him blankly, unsure of what to say.

Gu Zhaoqian's demeanor was noticeably calmer. The man noticed her reaction, and the upward curve of his lips was impossible to ignore. He asked, "Why can't you speak?"

“You…” He Peiru paused, then continued, “I…”

She thought for a long time, but ultimately remained silent.

Gu Zhaoqian didn't press the matter, but instead gave both sides a way out, saying, "Now that there's electricity, you can go back to what you weren't doing."

He Peiru was stunned for a moment before she uttered a single word: "Okay."

"I'm going downstairs." Gu Zhaoqian felt that if he stayed any longer, He Peiru would probably faint. "Contact me anytime if you need anything."

"……knew."

She wished she could turn into a quail, as if that would allow her to escape reality.

Gu Zhaoqian finally let go of her hand and then turned and walked towards the gate.

He had only taken a few steps when He Peiru called out to him, "Wait!"

It was as if he had made up his mind in a short period of time, and his tone sounded particularly firm.

Gu Zhaoqian turned around: "What's wrong?"

He Peiru quickly stepped forward and, before he could react, swiftly kissed him on the cheek.

The kiss lasted only a few seconds before ending as quickly as a dragonfly skimming the water.

Feeling awkward, she said shyly, "Just consider this the real thank you gift."

Having done something so unexpected, she couldn't help but admire her own courage.

Her willingness to take the plunge allowed her to look boldly at the man, a rare occurrence for her.

Gu Zhaoqian raised an eyebrow, and He Peiru noticed a rare look of surprise on his face, but he quickly recovered: "Okay, I'm going back."

At this moment, He Peiru's heart suddenly raced. Her courage from before had completely vanished, and she no longer dared to look him in the eye. She could only turn her head away and reply, "Okay."

She didn't know how Gu Zhaoqian left; only when she heard the door close did she seem to realize what she had done.

What exactly did she just do?

He Peiru tried to calm herself down, but the result was that she could feel her heart pounding more and more clearly.

For her, what happened today was far too exciting, especially since she actually had the courage to do this to Gu Zhaoqian.

Looking back, it can only be described as unbelievable.

She didn't want to keep these feelings bottled up inside, and after thinking it over, she realized that it was best to confide in her friends.

He Peiru walked around the house before realizing that she had forgotten to leave her phone on the coffee table in the living room.

She definitely didn't put it there herself. Could it be that Gu Zhaoqian took it out of the kitchen for her?

She belatedly realized that the mansion had become a place where Gu Zhaoqian's traces were everywhere, even though he had just visited not long ago.

However, she does not intend to deny this matter.

He Peiru picked up her phone, opened the group chat with only three people, and started tapping the screen rapidly.

He Peiru: [Gu Zhaoqian just kissed me.]

He Peiru: [Then I kissed him too.]

Because of the typhoon, everyone was at home with nothing to do, so they all saw her news as soon as it was released.

Feng Shiqi: [?]

Fang Xiaoxin: [?]

He Peiru: [You don't need to ask questions, I didn't lie to you.]

They were clearly shocked.

Fang Xiaoxin: [What's going on with you two, one in front of the other?]

She briefly recounted the whole story.

...

Feng Shiqi: [I'm so surprised...]

Fang Xiaoxin: [Although I had considered that something might happen between you two, I never expected it to turn out this way.]

He Peiru: [I never expected it to turn out this way.]

The fact that things didn't get out of control not long ago is a testament to Gu Zhaoqian's rationality.

After she finished speaking in the group chat, she felt much more relaxed.

The most crucial question then popped up on the screen.

Fang Xiaoxin: [So what is your relationship now?]

He Peiru: [...]

He Peiru: [It's still the same as before...]

As soon as I pressed send, a new message from Gu Zhaoqian popped up.

Gu Zhaoqian: [I accept this gift.]

When he left, he was surprised but did not linger. He Peiru thought that her actions were unnecessary.

Now, she could imagine Gu Zhaoqian's tone just from the words.

Since returning to the Jiang family and having spent a long time with Gu Zhaoqian, He Peiru realized that she seemed to know him better than she had imagined.

Ultimately, after all that had happened, Gu Zhaoqian had always been by her side.

If she doesn't understand, it makes her seem heartless.

Seeing that she hadn't replied for a long time, Gu Zhaoqian didn't seem annoyed and continued to send her messages.

Gu Zhaoqian: [While the electricity is still working normally, can we take this time to see what we need to prepare?]

Gu Zhaoqian: [I'm just worried about what unexpected things might happen later.]

It was clearly a special instruction for her, and she could no longer ignore the message.

He Peiru: [I'll make the most of my time, and you should get some rest too.]

He Peiru: [Also... the food tonight was delicious.]

Gu Zhaoqian: [I'm relieved to hear you say that.]

Gu Zhaoqian: [Sophia won't be able to come for a while. Please contact me anytime if anything comes up.]

He Peiru: [Don't worry, I can take care of myself.]

Gu Zhaoqian: [Okay, but don't forget what I said.]

It seems he's determined not to let her off the hook in this matter.

He Peiru didn't know how to reply, so she left the chat, but the group chat was still in an uproar.

Although there were only two people speaking, they talked as if there were 20 people, discussing Gu Zhaoqian from beginning to end.

After reading through the chat history, she summarized it as follows:

A man who has no flaws whatsoever can be described as omnipotent.

He Peiru didn't miss a single word, but when she saw the numbers on the screen, she was surprised and a blush involuntarily appeared on her face.

He Peiru: [Xin Xin, where did you get this data? Is it real?]

Fang Xiaoxin: [I'm not sure about the source, but it's already spread widely privately!]

Fang Xiaoxin: [I was too embarrassed to ask you before...]

She only ever kissed Gu Zhaoqian.

Even though she knew he had a habit of working out, she had never actually touched his body, and she couldn't be sure if the waist measurement was accurate.

and……

He Peiru couldn't help but feel her mouth go dry when she thought about it.

Once Fang Xiaoxin started talking, she became incredibly talkative, like a floodgate had been opened.

Fang Xiaoxin: [The truth will depend on you, Aru, telling me.]

He Peiru was no longer just embarrassed.

I felt like my phone was a hot potato, and their chat history instantly became unbearable to look at.

She quickly took a shower, and after she came out of the bathroom, Gu Zhaoqian didn't send her any new messages. Looking out through the glass, the storm was still raging outside, and it seemed unlikely to stop anytime soon.

So much happened today.

After completely calming down, her biggest feeling was that she was overwhelmed by exhaustion. Seeing that it was almost time, she fell asleep as soon as she touched the bed.

He Peiru woke up very early the next day.

Through the gap in the curtains, I could see that the sky was still dark, but thankfully it seemed that the rain had stopped for the time being.

She reached for her phone on the bedside table, glanced at it, and saw various news articles and real-time traffic updates, interspersed with messages of concern for her.

After a quick look, it was confirmed that even if Sophia was anxious, the current traffic congestion meant she couldn't come immediately.

She sent Sophia another message separately.

He Peiru: [Sophia, please don't rush back. Safety is the most important thing.]

After receiving a positive reply, she felt relieved and got up to wash up.

Gu Zhaoqian: [Are you up yet?]

Just then, a new message popped up on the screen.

He Peiru: [I'm already up, what's wrong?]

There was no reply from the other party, so she simply put her phone aside and finished what she was doing. After washing up, she turned around to go to the kitchen to see what to do for breakfast.

The doorbell rang just then.