Chapter 34: Homeward Journey
The black sedan sped steadily on the highway back to S City.
The car was indeed unusually quiet.
Chu Yu focused intently on the steering wheel, his gaze fixed forward. His profile was cold and hard, his jawline taut, his lips pressed into a flat, almost unbending line. He exuded a low, unapproachable aura, like a moving iceberg.
Chu Yan, on the other hand, leaned back in the passenger seat, eyes closed, his long eyelashes casting a small shadow under his eyes. He looked like he was resting his eyes, his posture relaxed. But the unconscious rhythmic tapping of his fingers on his knees betrayed that he was not truly asleep.
There was a tacit, subtle awkwardness between the two of them, an invisible and intangible awkwardness that filled almost every inch of the car.
That brief but powerful moment of chaos in the hotel bathroom last night, the panting, the humid steam, the uncontrolled desire and the desperately maintained composure… all those images and sensory memories haven't faded with the passage of time. Instead, they've solidified into a transparent barrier between the two of them. The air still seems to linger with the aftertaste of that moment.
They all chose not to mention it at all, and tacitly turned the page, as if the thrilling episode had never happened.
But the more you try to avoid it, the more distinct its presence becomes. Every unintentional glance and every tiny displacement of the body caused by the vehicle turning are silent reminders of the unspoken abnormality.
The buzzing sound of a cell phone suddenly rang out, sharply breaking the silence in the car.
Chu Yan's eyelashes trembled, and he slowly opened his eyes. Those eyes held a calm clarity. He pulled his phone from his pocket, and the screen lit up. The name on the caller ID was Shan.
He paused for a moment, then glanced quickly at Chu Yu in the driver's seat. Chu Yu seemed completely unaware, still staring intently at the road ahead, not even breathing at all.
Chu Yan pressed the answer button and put the phone to his ear.
"Hello?" he asked, his voice a little raspy and lazy.
"Ayan?" Gu Xu's voice came through the receiver. The background was quiet, obviously in an office or other private space. "Have you returned to S City?" There was a hint of cautious expectation in his tone.
"Yes, we're on the way." Chu Yan replied, looking at the green belt rapidly receding outside the window.
"Are you free tonight? Let's have dinner together? I know there's a new Japanese restaurant that should be delicious."
Chu Yan turned his head and his eyes fell on Chu Yu's cold profile. He was about to speak and said okay to the person on the other end of the phone, ready to ask Chu Yu to drop him off at a certain intersection later.
However, before he could finish his words, another cold and calm voice interrupted the call without warning.
"You wouldn't mind having one more person at dinner?"
It was Chu Yu. He remained in his driving position, his gaze not shifting even a millimeter, still locked on the road ahead. His voice was low and calm; he wasn't asking for permission, but rather informing.
Chu Yan's fingers gripping the phone tightened imperceptibly. He glanced at Chu Yu, a flicker of surprise and amusement in his eyes. What did his cousin mean? Did he simply dislike Gu Xu and want to make things difficult for him? Or was it some kind of possessive urge at work, one that Chu Yu himself wasn't even aware of?
Gu Xu, on the other end of the line, clearly heard Chu Yu's voice. A few seconds of silence fell on the receiver, a silence filled with a sense of surprise and displeasure.
Chu Yan could almost imagine Gu Xu's expression suddenly cooling down and his eyes narrowing slightly.
He silently curled the corners of his lips into the phone's receiver, a smile that held a hint of anticipation. Then, he spoke in a relaxed tone, as if the previous episode had been perfectly natural: "Mr. Gu, did you hear everything? My cousin Chu Yu is here too, and he doesn't have any plans tonight. Do you mind joining us?"
He threw the question back lightly.
On the other end of the line, Gu Xu's breathing seemed to barely register. Then, his voice returned, maintaining that impeccable gentleness and politeness, without a trace of anger at being suddenly outmaneuvered. "Of course I don't mind. It's an honor to dine with Mr. Chu. I'll arrange the location and send it to your phone later."
"Okay, see you tonight." Chu Yan ended the call neatly.
After the call was hung up, the car returned to silence, but it was filled with a more indescribable complexity than before. Chu Yan put the phone back in his pocket and looked at Chu Yu leisurely.
The latter still looked as cold as an iceberg, as if the earth-shattering words just now did not come from his mouth, but were just Chu Yan's auditory hallucination.
The smile in Chu Yan's eyes deepened, and he simply closed his eyes again and began to rest.
All right. Shura Field is Shura Field, after all, he is the one watching the show.
The dinner was set at an extremely secret top-notch Japanese restaurant with excellent privacy.
When Chu Yan and Chu Yu walked in side by side, Gu Xu was already kneeling on the tatami, waiting. On the small table in front of him was tea and exquisite appetizers.
Almost instantly, Gu Xu's impeccable, gentle smile graced his face. He stood up calmly, approached Chu Yu, and extended his hand, his demeanor perfectly executed. "Mr. Chu, I'm honored to have you here. It's a shame we didn't have the chance to talk in depth during our brief meeting at the last tech summit."
Chu Yu paused, his gaze fixed indifferently on Gu Xu's face. He extended his hand for a polite handshake, then parted ways. He showed no desire for pleasantries, and his voice lacked any warmth; it was simply, "Mr. Gu, you're welcome."
The smile on Gu Xu's face did not change at all. He turned to Chu Yan very naturally, as if he didn't feel Chu Yu's deliberate neglect.
However, when he looked at Chu Yan, the warmth in his eyes became much more genuine. Beneath the mask, he revealed his undisguised concern and a more personal familiarity: "A Yan, must you be tired on the road? Sit down and have some hot tea and take a rest." As he spoke, he naturally stretched out his hand, wanting to take the thin coat that Chu Yan had just taken off. His movements were so skillful as if he had done it countless times.
Chu Yan handed him the coat readily and smiled: "Not bad. Sorry to trouble you, Mr. Gu." He glanced around the box and sat down very naturally in the empty seat between Chu Yu and Gu Xu - a delicate position, as if it had become an invisible buffer zone between the two men with powerful auras.
The atmosphere of this dinner was maintained in a highly "delicate" balance from beginning to end.
Chu Yu spoke very little, spending most of his time leisurely savoring the exquisite dishes presented one by one, his movements elegant yet distant. Occasionally, he would glance up at Gu Xu across from him, but his gaze was devoid of warmth. Instead, it was more like a condescending assessment of some business endeavor.
Gu Qi played the role of host throughout, chatting and laughing, controlling the rhythm of the conversation. He repeatedly tried to steer the topic towards Chu Yan, pulling him into the center of the conversation, his eyes and tone clearly showing his bias.
However, Chu Yan was clearly well versed in the art of "keeping himself safe." He played the role of a foodie, unconcerned. He calmly processed the lobster, sea urchin, and charcoal-grilled wagyu beef before him, seemingly completely absorbed in the feasting of his taste buds, oblivious to the silent swordplay between the two men at the table.
He is like the calmest spot in the eye of a storm. No matter how turbulent the undercurrents around him are, he remains unmoved and concentrates on eating his meal.
The dinner ended in this seemingly harmonious, yet actually highly tense atmosphere, with the final dessert and sake being removed silently.
Gu Xu stood up and personally escorted Chu Yan and Chu Yu to the door of the private room. "Mr. Chu, Ah Yan, take care. I'm sorry for the poor hospitality today. See you next time."
Chu Yu just nodded slightly as a response, then took a long step and walked out first with a strong attitude, without any intention of stopping to greet.
Chu Yan took a half step back and smiled at Gu Xu: "Thank you for the treat, it tastes very good."
He turned around to leave, but seemed to remember something, paused, and looked back.
Gu Xu was still standing at the door of the box. The soft light from the ceiling lamp in the corridor fell on him, casting a faint halo around him, but inexplicably revealing a sense of loneliness that was difficult to conceal under the carefully maintained decency.
The smile on his face had faded a little after Chu Yu turned around, and there was a hint of imperceptible fatigue deep in his eyes.
The moment Chu Yan looked over, he seemed to see Gu Xu pouting at him imperceptibly, almost like a naughty child?
A faint smile flashed across Chu Yan's eyes. He turned around and followed Chu Yu's footsteps, leaving side by side.
Looking at the backs of the two people leaving, especially Chu Yu's naturally domineering attitude, as if Chu Yan naturally belonged to his territory, the smile on Gu Xu's face slowly faded.
He stood there, feeling as if something was blocking his chest, making him feel suffocated and uneasy. His eyes darkened, and a dim light flashed across them.
The black sedan merged back into the city's traffic and drove towards Chu Yu's high-rise apartment in the center of S City.
Chu Yan watched the night scene rapidly receding outside the window when he suddenly remembered something. Ever since Chu Yu had taken him on a business trip to City A, and since returning, he'd been busy dealing with the follow-up work on the cloud-based intelligent control project. It seemed like he hadn't been back to his apartment in a while.
Gu Ye, that kid, should still be living there peacefully. He's been so engrossed in his studies lately, forgetting to eat or sleep. I wonder if he's encountered any unsolvable problems? Is there enough food in the refrigerator? Although there's a part-time cleaner who cleans regularly, he probably won't say much.
A thought emerged clearly.
"Brother Yu," Chu Yan said, breaking the silence in the car, "Please drop me off at the intersection ahead. I'm going back to where I used to live to get some things."
Chu Yu did not ask any questions, but just turned on the turn signal at the intersection, slowed down, and parked the car steadily on the roadside under Chu Yan's apartment building.
"Thanks, Brother Yu." Chu Yan unbuckled his seat belt, pushed the door and got out of the car with quick and decisive movements.
He opened the familiar door with his key, and a warm breath greeted him. It wasn't the coldness of an empty room, but rather the telltale sign of someone living there for a long time. The air was filled with a faint, Gu Ye-like scent—like cotton wool that had been dried in the sun, mixed with the refreshing aroma of laundry detergent, and a hint of the clean, youthful air.
There was only a warm yellow floor lamp on in the living room, and the light was soft, covering a small area.
Gu Ye is not at home.
Chu Yan bent down to change his shoes and noticed that the sneakers and sneakers that Gu Ye often wore were neatly placed next to the shoe cabinet. He walked into the living room and saw that everything was very neat and tidy, even more orderly than when he was there. It was obvious that Gu Ye was seriously maintaining this "home".
His gaze finally fell on the dining table, where a thick math notebook with curled pages lay open, and next to it lay a click-action gel pen, its cap still on.
Gu Ye's handwriting on the notebook still had a bit of an unruly edge, but it was noticeably neater, clearly a lot of effort. Numerous areas were circled densely in red pen, and next to them were several large, eye-catching, and somewhat irritating question marks.
Chu Yan walked over, his fingertips brushing against the paper. He picked up the pen, sat down at the dining table, and smoothly unscrewed the nib. He began writing on the blank space in his notebook. The tip of the pen scraped across the paper, making a subtle rustling sound that was particularly clear in the quiet space.
His handwriting was clear, powerful, and neatly arranged, forming a sharp contrast with Gu Ye's somewhat aggressive handwriting, but they were strangely integrated on the same page.
He was writing with rapt concentration, his brow etched with quiet understanding. One question after another. Just as he put the final period on his pen, about to finish the essential analysis of the final, crucial question, he heard the sound of a key turning in the door.
Gu Ye walked in sideways, carrying a black guitar bag, humming a tuneless yet energetic rock melody. He habitually lowered his head to change his shoes, then raised his head -
My eyes suddenly caught the figure at the dining table who should never be there!
He...he's back? When did he come back?
Gu Ye stood frozen in the entranceway, his eyes reflecting the image of Chu Yan, sitting in his chair under the warm yellow light, writing in his math notebook with his pen. Time seemed to be stretched and frozen in this moment.
He stood there stupidly, even forgetting to put down the heavy guitar bag on his shoulder. His heart felt like something was clenching it tightly, then began to beat wildly. His eyes, which always held a hint of rebellion, now shone startlingly bright. The corners of his mouth lifted uncontrollably, widening until two sharp little fangs were revealed, and an almost silly smile spread across his face.
Chu Yan put down his pen and looked up at the boy at the door, who looked as if he had been pricked. He couldn't help but smile. The smile was gentle and genuine, with a hint of relaxation and warmth that he himself didn't even realize.
He looked at Gu Ye, and a clear thought suddenly emerged in his mind: This guy... if he really had a tail behind him now, it would probably have turned into a propeller, right?
Of course, immersed in the unexpected surprise, Gu Xiaogou had no idea how Chu Yan was imagining him. He suddenly came to his senses, almost frantically threw his guitar bag to the ground, and then rushed over like a cannonball, circling Chu Yan non-stop, staring at him with sparkling eyes, and talking incoherently:
"You...why are you back? No, when did you come back? Why didn't you tell me?! Have you eaten? Um...did you finish the business in City A? Are you leaving?"
The questions came one after another, like jumping beans, full of fresh breath.
Chu Yan was a little tired after a long day of driving, but seeing Gu Ye, who was so energetic and practically wagging his tail, that tiredness seemed nothing. He smiled and answered each question, "Just got back. I'm done. I'm not leaving for now."
The two of them sat in the living room, chatting for a while. Gu Ye was the main speaker, excitedly discussing his homework and a new piece he'd learned. Although his words were a little disorganized, his desire to share was incredibly strong. Chu Yan mostly listened, occasionally interjecting with a question.
As if remembering something, Chu Yan interrupted Gu Ye's cheerful narration and said, "By the way, there's a math lecture next Wednesday night. Let's go together then?"
Gu Ye was speaking in high spirits, and when he heard this, he nodded without hesitation, his eyes still shining: "Okay, let's go together!" Let alone the math lecture, even if Chu Yan said now that he wanted to go for a walk on Mars, he would probably nod and say "Okay" without hesitation.
For him, the content is not important at all, what is important is "going together".
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