TLDMDTBS Chapter 62

Chapter 62 Publication

That night, Ji Ruan’s lips became swollen.

If it wasn’t for Gu Xiuyi’s final restraint, his lips would have been chapped.

As a result, Ji Ruan had to take a detour when he got up the next day.

He didn’t want to be caught by Gu Xiuyi, who would then pull him in for another kiss. After that, at school, he would be cornered by Han Xiaolin and a group of roommates, questioning him about sneaking out to eat spicy snail noodles without inviting them.

Ji Ruan quietly opened the door, peeked out, and confirmed that there was no sign of Gu Xiuyi in the corridor. He put on his mask and tiptoed away quickly.

Little did he know that just as he turned the corner, he bumped into a wall of flesh. Looking up, he saw Gu Xiuyi himself, causing Ji Ruan to instinctively cover his heart and step back repeatedly.

Gu Xiuyi hurriedly steadied Ji Ruan and leaned closer to his chest, asking, “Are you feeling unwell?”

Ji Ruan replied, “… No, I’m fine.”

Gu Xiuyi’s expression turned grim as he pulled off Ji Ruan’s mask, his hand pressed firmly against Ji Ruan’s chest. “Tell me the truth, is your heart uncomfortable?”

Ji Ruan didn’t understand why this person was being so nervous so early in the morning. His heart was beating a bit fast, but that was due to being startled. Isn’t it normal for one’s heartbeat to accelerate in such situations?

“I really don’t feel anything…” He pushed Gu Xiuyi’s hand away and said seriously, “I don’t have a heart condition.”

Gu Xiuyi frowned, still serious, and after a brief silence, said, “Let’s go downstairs first.”

He wrapped an arm around Ji Ruan’s shoulders as they went down the stairs, handing him the mask. “If you’re not uncomfortable, then why are you sneaking around so suspiciously?”

Ji Ruan replied, “I’m not sneaking around…”

“Wearing a mask, peeking around, hiding and tiptoeing — at first glance, I thought you were some little thief. Isn’t that suspicious?”

“…”

Ji Ruan sat down at the dining table. “I was just trying to avoid you.”

Gu Xiuyi paused while pouring water. “Avoid me for what?”

“Because I’m afraid you’ll kiss me again!”

After blurting it out, he shyly turned his head away.

Gu Xiuyi slowly smiled and sat beside him. “I thought I’m currently your official boyfriend and legal partner. Isn’t kissing a form of affection we can show each other?”

“That’s true,” Ji Ruan hesitated, “… but the way you kiss is too much.”

“What’s wrong with it?”

“It’s too strong!” Ji Ruan pointed at his lips. “Look, they’re swollen! You made me like this! What material are your lips made of? They’re more effective than a straw!”

Gu Xiuyi couldn’t help but laugh, cupping Ji Ruan’s face. “Really? Let me take a look.”

Ji Ruan extended his neck. “Look right here, it’s burning, like I ate spicy crayfish.”

Gu Xiuyi stared at Ji Ruan’s moving lips, which were indeed slightly swollen, red, and shiny.

So he lowered his head and gave it a light kiss.

“See? Not swollen, very beautiful.”

It was clearly a lie, and Ji Ruan rolled his eyes dramatically.

Aunt Zhao brought breakfast over and immediately spotted the shameless scene: “Oh dear, what are you two up to? Why are you all lovey-dovey so early in the morning?”

Ji Ruan shot a fierce glare at Gu Xiuyi, buried his head in his food, but was stopped by Gu Xiuyi. “Wait a minute.”

“Huh?”

Gu Xiuyi moved the plate in front of himself and said to Aunt Zhao, “Could you please get him a cup of warm water? He isn’t having breakfast this morning.”

“Huh?” Aunt Zhao was puzzled but seeing Gu Xiuyi’s serious demeanor, she didn’t ask further. After pouring the water, she brought it over. “What’s going on?”

Ji Ruan was also confused. “Why am I not eating? I’m already hungry.”

“Be good,” Gu Xiuyi fed him water. “Let’s go to the hospital to check your heart, it’s better to stay fasting for now, alright?”

“…” Ji Ruan laughed bitterly. “No, I’m really fine. This morning, I was just startled by you—”

“Ji Ruan.” Gu Xiuyi set down the cup, resting a hand on his shoulder with a heavy tone. “You had some palpitations last night, don’t you remember?”

He was scared out of his wits when he saw Ji Ruan curled up under the covers, sweating, and clutching his nightgown over his chest, almost ready to take him to the hospital immediately.

But soon, Ji Ruan calmed himself down again, his brows relaxing, and apart from the sweat on his forehead, there were no signs of discomfort.

Gu Xiuyi hesitated for a moment but ultimately didn’t wake him. He came back after an hour to check on him. After struggling through the night, he decided it was essential to take Ji Ruan to the hospital for a check-up.

Ji Ruan was stunned.

He truly didn’t remember.

Although he had been having nightmares and palpitations frequently lately, he had slept soundly last night. Not to mention nightmares, he didn’t even recall dreaming at all.

“Really?” Ji Ruan said with suspicion. “You’re not lying to me, are you?”

Gu Xiuyi replied, “Do you really think I would lie to you about this?”

His eyes were sharp, with an underlying concern.

It also made sense. Gu Xiuyi had always cared a lot about his health; he even wished that Ji Ruan would live a long, long life more than Ji Ruan did.

“Okay then…” Ji Ruan deflated, “let’s go check it out.”

Gu Xiuyi gently squeezed the back of his neck for comfort. “Don’t worry, it should be nothing serious, just a check-up for reassurance.”

“Mm…” Ji Ruan fell silent for a moment and suddenly looked up.

It was as if he had discovered something significant, tilting his head to examine Gu Xiuyi with narrowed, cat-like eyes. “How do you know about my palpitations? We don’t even live in the same room.”

Gu Xiuyi’s back stiffened.

Meeting Ji Ruan’s eyes, he slowly said, “I got up to use the bathroom last night and happened to see it.”

“Ah…” Ji Ruan, entirely untrusting, nodded. “Your own room has a bathroom, but you took the effort to come to my room at night?”

Gu Xiuyi: “…”

Gu Xiuyi rose to clean up. “You should think about it, if I hadn’t noticed, you would have been suffering alone at night, how pitiful that would have been.”

Ji Ruan followed him to the elevator. “Don’t change the subject. You were actually sneaking in to kiss me, right?”

Gu Xiuyi fell silent.

Ji Ruan clicked his tongue and shook his head. “Now it makes sense why my lips are so swollen; turns out someone—uh!”

Suddenly, a loud “pop!” echoed in the air.

He was ambushed by Gu Xiuyi again!

That man, Gu Xiuyi, who could only talk but always made his move with his lips!

·

Things at the hospital were already arranged neatly. After Ji Ruan arrived, he quickly completed all the checks.

Gu Xiuyi dashed about, bringing him the reports while Ji Ruan sat in the waiting room munching on biscuits.

“Crack—”

The door slowly opened, and Li Sui’an poked his head through the crack like a spy on a mission.

“Doctor Li?” Ji Ruan put down the biscuit, wiped his hands, and said, “Come in, Gu Xiuyi isn’t here.”

Only then did Li Sui’an relax, closing the door and sitting next to Ji Ruan. He pointed and asked, “Came to check your heart?”

Ji Ruan nodded.

Li Sui’an was shocked. “Has he scared you into having heart problems?!”

？？？

“What are you talking about, Doctor Li?” Ji Ruan exclaimed, shocked.

“…” Li Sui’an adjusted his collar and regained his composure, hesitatingly saying, “Do you know about Bai Yue?”

So that was it.

Ji Ruan smiled. “Yes.”

Li Sui’an’s eyes widened even more. “That’s the reason for your condition?!—No, Ji Ruan, listen to me, none of that is true!”

Ji Ruan raised an eyebrow, realizing that Gu Xiuyi hadn’t yet had a chance to explain last night’s events, and his righteous friend had come to clarify.

Ji Ruan took a sip of water, deep in thought. “Then, Doctor Li, would you explain it to me?”

Li Sui’an wiped away the sweat, looking frustrated. “Actually, I don’t even know how those rumors spread; I’ve always been Old Gu’s best friend! … Alright, Song Ling can kind of count, but that Bai Yue has nothing to do with it.”

“From my recollection, he was actually closer to Old Gu’s useless younger brother.”

“If you must say, it was on the day he turned eighteen and got the shares, we had a little too much to drink, and coincidentally Bai Yue left that day. Rumors spread for several days.”

Ji Ruan lowered his lashes, looking somewhat downcast. “Is that so…”

Li Sui’an, fearing he might say something wrong and get beaten by Gu Xiuyi, hurriedly reassured him, “Ji Ruan, don’t be upset! We cleared this up back then! With me as a witness, those rumors fall apart by themselves!”

This was indeed something Gu Xiuyi hadn’t told him.

Ji Ruan raised his head. “There was actually this incident?”

“Yes!” Li Sui’an sighed again. “Actually, I found it strange too. Back then, their little matter was not heavily rumored, and after we explained, sensible people stopped bringing it up.”

“Of course, some people just love to fill in their own narratives. The more you explain, the more they believe, loving to gossip. There’s nothing you can do about that. But they were just a minority, and it was all baseless. Old Gu usually wouldn’t bother with them afterward.”

Ji Ruan sat up a bit straighter, listening attentively.

Li Sui’an furrowed his brow, recalling carefully: “Besides, Bai Yue left for many years; during that time, hardly anyone mentioned it. It just so happens that recently—”

“It just so happens that after you married, the rumors became louder again. Some people started spreading those old stories again. Initially, even Lao Du came to ask me about it; do you think that’s normal?”

He looked at Ji Ruan, his eyes filled with layers of meaning. “With what I said, you should understand what I mean, right?”

Ji Ruan honestly hadn’t thought that far. He had only viewed Bai Yue as a character in a story, never delving into why he existed.

Now, according to Li Sui’an’s explanation, it seemed that the emotional entanglements between him and Gu Xiuyi involved more human factors than he had imagined.

“I understand now, Doctor Li,” Ji Ruan smiled. “Thank you for telling me all this.”

“It’s nothing,” Li Sui’an waved his hand. “It’s what friends should do. I just don’t want to see you two misunderstand over minor issues. Old Gu definitely has ways to handle them, just trust him; he won’t let you be wronged.”

Ji Ruan nodded. “Actually, there wasn’t any misunderstanding; he already explained it to me yesterday. Plus, we’ve also…”

He suddenly felt shy, awkwardly taking a bite of a biscuit to divert attention.

Li Sui’an had already started to sip water, just reaching for a paper cup by the water dispenser: “Already what?”

Suddenly, he froze.

With rich romantic experiences, Doctor Li quickly guessed the latter half of Ji Ruan’s sentence based on years of experience.

His expression shifted from confusion to shock, then from shock to pity. “… You two already?!”

Ji Ruan pressed his lips together, flushed red, and nodded.

“Heavens!” Li Sui’an exclaimed in distress. “Old Gu is so impatient? Is he a beast?! Ji Ruan, are you feeling okay now?!”

He didn’t even bother to sip water, sitting back down urgently, speaking earnestly. “As a doctor, I really need to give you some advice: when developing a same-sex relationship, you must exercise restraint! Absolutely do not let that old beast do whatever he wants—”

“Li Sui’an.”

His words came to an abrupt halt.

Li Sui’an stiffly turned his head and met Gu Xiuyi’s calm face.

“Do you have an issue with me kissing my own partner?”

The light in Li Sui’an’s eyes gradually dulled, and his lips moved involuntarily: “… kiss… kiss?!”

“What else?” Gu Xiuyi smiled. “What can I do, I just happen to be a beast who likes kissing?”

Li Sui’an: “…………”

Gu Xiuyi stepped over the embarrassed Li Sui’an and placed the examination report on the table, then slowly packed Ji Ruan’s thermos and biscuits into his bag.

Ji Ruan was already covering his face in embarrassment.

Knowing he had made a big misunderstanding, Li Sui’an closed his eyes tightly, urgently conducting psychological construction on himself.

After a moment, he nonchalantly opened his eyes and picked up Ji Ruan’s report to look at it.

Having packed his bag, Gu Xiuyi wrapped an arm around Ji Ruan and stood up, kissing his cheek. “The doctor said it’s nothing serious.”

Li Sui’an nodded as well, staring at the report. “Indeed, it’s a young and lively heart.”

With both of them saying so, Ji Ruan also sighed with relief, smiling as he held Gu Xiuyi’s hand. “I told you long ago that I don’t have a heart condition.”

·

His heart didn’t bring Ji Ruan troubles.

But Gu Xiuyi was indeed troubling him.

Ji Ruan discovered that when Gu Xiuyi was in love, he particularly liked physical contact. After returning from the hospital, he was all over Ji Ruan with kisses and hugs every day, even disrupting him during work.

That afternoon, Ji Ruan was working on a design drawing at home. He had nearly completed the piece Bai Yue had assigned him and would soon be able to start embroidering.

Although Bai Yue’s requirements sounded tedious and complicated, Gu Xiuyi was reluctant to let him continue working, constantly glaring at the draft on the table as if it were an enemy.

But actually, completing such a piece wasn’t complicated for Ji Ruan at all.

What Gu Xiuyi didn’t know was that Ji Ruan’s biggest obstacle in his work was actually himself.

What was originally a peaceful afternoon became a bit restless because Gu Xiuyi insisted on hugging him while they worked together.

Ji Ruan tried to concentrate on drawing, but within just a few minutes, he couldn’t help but get frustrated.

He finally had to push Gu Xiuyi away. “Gu Xiuyi, can you stop nibbling on my ear? You’re nearly making my external device rub off!”

“Okay.”

“… Don’t touch my waist.”

“Sure.”

“… Touching my belly is also not allowed!”

Ji Ruan was so angry he wanted to throw his pen. How could he work like this?!

“Alright, alright, I won’t disturb you,” Gu Xiuyi immediately complied. “You just draw, I’ll just hug you. It won’t affect your focus.”

Ji Ruan shot him a warning glare, giving him one last chance.

Gu Xiuyi hugged Ji Ruan from behind as they both sat on the bed, quietly gazing at Ji Ruan’s delicate profile. His smile slowly took on a hidden tenderness.

“It looks like there are no organic lesions; theoretically, there shouldn’t be any palpitations,” the doctor had said while looking at the report in the hospital.

“It’s recommended to continue observing at home; if this situation continues to happen, it might be a psychological issue. Heavy mental stress and worries can also lead to palpitations.”

“Make sure to rest and keep your body and mind happy. If things don’t improve, perhaps see a psychologist.”

As a result, recently, Gu Xiuyi had been insistent on sleeping with Ji Ruan at night. Ji Ruan couldn’t tell during the day, but once asleep, he displayed signs of unusual anxiety.

Probably he himself wouldn’t even notice, but while sleeping, he would curl up in a posture that exuded a severe lack of security, occasionally murmuring that he was scared.

Although Ji Ruan claimed not to remember upon waking, Gu Xiuyi could clearly sense it. Whenever Ji Ruan had a nightmare, he appeared more fatigued the next day, more so than usual.

This was definitely not a good sign.

And Gu Xiuyi could only vaguely discern that Ji Ruan’s unease was related to him because occasionally, while asleep, Ji Ruan would frown and unconsciously call his name.

Perhaps all he could do was do his utmost to give Ji Ruan more of a sense of security.

The person in his arms moved slightly, bringing Gu Xiuyi back to reality.

“What’s wrong, baby?” He kissed Ji Ruan.

Ji Ruan giggled and leaned back. “Your breath is tickling my neck.”

He used his hands to brace against Gu Xiuyi’s chest, his eyes soft and clear. “Do you like kissing that much?”

So Gu Xiuyi kissed him on the forehead again, unreservedly expressing his affection:

“Because I truly like you very much.”