"Classmate." Gu Chen stood outside the door, panting and sweating profusely. His tense expression eased when he saw Xiang Yu, and he smiled. "I'm here."
Gu Chen asked Li Yifan for Xiang Yu's exact address beforehand, then sped off on his electric scooter, his hair a mess from the wind. When he got downstairs, the elevator got stuck on a high floor and wouldn't come down for a long time. He sent a message but didn't get a reply. Gu Chen was extremely anxious, so he simply climbed the stairs to the thirteenth floor.
His hair, disheveled by the wind, was sticking together from sweat, making each strand distinct. Many stray hairs were also stuck to Gu Chen's forehead. Because it was too hot, Gu Chen unzipped his down jacket.
Xiang Yu stared at Gu Chen's disheveled and comical appearance, her eyes wide and her lips tightly pressed together, her expression a mixture of wanting to cry and wanting to laugh.
My facial expressions are out of control.
"Let me in first?" Gu Chen said softly. Seeing Sun Xiaoli come out of the room, he greeted her with a smile, "Hello, Auntie."
The sound wasn't loud. He figured Grandma Hou should be asleep by now, and he also guessed that the family at the table wouldn't let the old lady know about this, afraid that the noise would wake her up.
Sun Xiaoli's expression wasn't exactly pleasant, but she didn't give Gu Chen a hard time either, simply saying, "Come in."
There was one more person in the study than three minutes ago.
The three people in the study had their mindsets subtly changed because of Gu Chen's arrival.
"I'm so sorry, Uncle and Aunt," Gu Chen said apologetically, "I'm bothering you so late."
Xiang Jun asked, "Do your parents know you're here?"
Gu Chen replied, "I know."
Sun Xiaoli asked, "Do your parents know about this?"
Sun Xiaoli didn't say anything to Gu Chen directly, after all, he wasn't her own child, and she should be more reserved in her words.
"I understand," Gu Chen said. "I told my parents when I got home this afternoon."
"They can accept this?" Sun Xiaoli asked in surprise.
“Hmm…” Gu Chen pondered for a moment and said, “I guess so. Maybe it was out of curiosity, or maybe it was a whim, or maybe it was driven by my true feelings. They all asked me and told me how difficult the future would be, but they respected my choice. This is the path I chose.”
Gu Chen stated, "Uncle and Aunt, no matter what happens in the future, I have chosen this path now, and I will continue on it." After saying that, he looked at Xiang Yu beside him and said, "I don't know if Xiang Yu will change her mind in the future, but my mind remains the same."
Xiang Yu looked into Gu Chen's eyes after hearing his words and said, "I won't."
Parents are most afraid of children like Gu Chen, who are stubborn and persistent. Once they've made up their minds, they'll stick to their opinions from the start and no matter how much you try to persuade them, they'll insist on their own ideas.
Xiang Jun and Sun Xiaoli had no choice but to wait and see if Gu Chen's parents were on their side. If they could, there was still a chance for things to turn around.
But given the current situation, with both children volunteering, it's really hard for them to say anything.
Sun Xiaoli had considered arranging for Xiang Yu to transfer to another school and study abroad, thus separating the two of them, but the idea was nipped in the bud.
She wasn't that kind of mother.
No matter how tough or ruthless she is at work, she can't use that on her own children.
After chatting in the study for most of the day, the couple decided to back down for the time being.
However, we remain reserved about this matter and will make a final decision based on the actual circumstances of the two individuals.
Although both of them are adults, they are still students after all, and their studies should be the priority. They cannot allow any situation to interfere with each other's studies. If such a situation occurs, they must be dealt with firmly to break off the relationship completely.
Xiang Yu knew this was the biggest concession Sun Xiaoli and Xiang Jun could make, so he bowed again and said, "Dad, Mom, thank you."
Gu Chen also said, "Thank you, Uncle and Aunt."
Sun Xiaoli and Xiang Jun were helpless and didn't know what to say, so they could only hum in agreement.
It was almost midnight when they finished talking. The couple knew that Gu Chen had come by bicycle, and they were worried about letting him go home at this time, so they decided to let Gu Chen stay overnight in the room where Li Yifan was sleeping.
At this moment, in Gu Chen's home, Jiang Linyan was sitting on the edge of the bed reading a book, occasionally glancing at her phone.
Seeing that she was flipping through the book two or three times a minute, Gu Wenshi smiled and said, "Why don't you send a message to ask? You can't concentrate on your book like this."
Jiang Linyan was still angry with Gu Chen. Upon hearing this, she turned her phone upside down and picked up her book to continue reading.
'Ding-dong—'
Jiang Linyan's phone rang, and she immediately opened it to check. She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw the message.
Gu Wenshi observed her subtle expressions, then raised the corners of his mouth and asked, "How is it?"
“Your son is safe and sound, and the other parents even let him stay overnight,” Jiang Linyan said. “It’s really good that he didn’t get beaten up by the other parents.”
Chapter 82 Gu Chen's cry was like a lamb entering a tiger's den, delivered right to its doorstep.
Chapter 82 Gu Chen: This is like lambs to the slaughter, delivered right to our doorstep.
Xiang Yu slept very lightly; the slightest sound outside the door would wake him.
Xiang Yu opened his eyes, rubbing his head, which was throbbing from two consecutive nights of insufficient sleep, and listened to the sounds outside.
It's likely that Sun Xiaoli has work to attend to and needs to rush over there.
Xiang Yu got up, intending to go out for a drink of water.
But he stopped when his hand touched the doorknob.
There were voices outside.
"Auntie." Gu Chen rubbed his temples and pushed open the bedroom door, only to meet Sun Xiaoli's gaze as she dressed and closed the door. "So early."
Sun Xiaoli nodded and said, "I'm going to work."
Seeing that Gu Chen's face was too red and he kept rubbing his temples, she asked with concern, "Are you feeling unwell?"
"Yeah." Gu Chen didn't try to be clever and answered truthfully, "My head felt a little hot when I woke up."
Sun Xiaoli frowned. "You have a fever? I'll take you to the hospital now."
"Auntie, I'm fine." Gu Chen felt that he should be alright. He came out just to drink some hot water and then take a nap. "You go to work, I'll just drink some hot water and take a nap."
Gu Chen's voice was a little hoarse. He coughed twice and continued, "It's quite cold outside now, Auntie, please keep warm."
Grandma Hou is right, this child is quite caring.
“It’s okay if you don’t go to the hospital, come over here.” Sun Xiaoli walked to the living room, took out a first-aid kit from the drawer under the TV cabinet, and took out a mercury thermometer and a strip of fever medicine.
Gu Chen followed them into the living room and took the thermometer and pills that were handed to him.
"If your temperature is over 38°C, take a pill. If it's not, drink more hot water and get some sleep." Sun Xiaoli paused, then continued, "If your fever hasn't gone down by the time you wake up, have your uncle take you to the hospital. Don't try to tough it out."
"Okay, thank you, Auntie," Gu Chen said in a hoarse voice.
Sun Xiaoli went to the kitchen to pour him a glass of water and put it on the table. Gu Chen sat at the dining table waiting for the thermometer to give him the result.
With a creak, another bedroom door opened, and Xiang Yu walked to the dining table under the gaze of the two.
"Hey deskmate, you're up so early!" Gu Chen smiled and looked at Xiang Yu, her face flushed.
Sun Xiaoli glanced at Gu Chen, then looked at her son, "Why are you awake?"
"I'm a little thirsty." Xiang Yu sat down next to Gu Chen.
When Gu Chen heard her boyfriend say he was thirsty, she pushed the glass of water in front of her towards Xiang Yu.
"Drink up, the water temperature is just right." Gu Chen smiled at Xiang Yu, unaware that seeing that smile made the other person feel even worse.
Xiang Yu watched as her mother poured another glass of water and placed it in front of her, saying, "You go to work, I'll take care of him."
Sun Xiaoli hummed in agreement, but didn't rush to leave. Instead, she took out a bag of meal replacement bread and two cartons of milk from the refrigerator, poured one of the cartons into a cup, heated it in the microwave, and brought it to Xiang Yu, out of concern for her as a mother.
"Drink it before you sleep," Sun Xiaoli added. "I'm leaving."
Gu Chen looked at the steaming glass of milk on the table, then at Xiang Yu who was staring at the glass of milk in a daze, and called out to Sun Xiaoli, who was walking towards the entrance, "Auntie."
"Hmm?" Sun Xiaoli turned around.
"Can I drink this milk?" Gu Chen scratched his head and smiled sheepishly. "Xiang Yu had an upset stomach after drinking milk last time."
"..." After Gu Chen said that, Sun Xiaoli seemed to remember something. Her expression froze for a moment, but quickly disappeared. She looked at Xiang Yu with a flickering gaze, and nodded after a moment.
"good."
After closing the entryway door, Gu Chen felt relieved that the other person had remembered his tactful reminder and turned to comfort his deskmate.
"Auntie must have been busy and forgot, don't be sad," Gu Chen gently comforted him.
Xiang Yu nodded and held out his hand. "Is the thermometer ready? Let me see it."
Gu Chen handed him the thermometer.
In the past, when Xiangyu had a fever and was sick, Grandma Hou would take his temperature with this relatively accurate mercury thermometer.
Xiang Yu, imitating Grandma Hou, held up the thermometer to the light to read the temperature.
"°." Xiang Yu frowned.
Upon hearing this, Gu Chen obediently drank the medicine.
"I'm fine, don't worry." Gu Chen smoothed out Xiang Yu's furrowed brows and yawned. "I'll be fine after a nap. You should drink some water and go to sleep, deskmate."
Xiang Yu quietly watched Gu Chen blush and grin foolishly at her, then said, "Let's go together."
Gu Chen: "???"
When Xiang Yu took her pillow to the single bed, which was only two centimeters larger than the dormitory bed, Gu Chen realized that her boyfriend could be so proactive.
"Boyfriend." Gu Chen swallowed hard, "Isn't that a bit inappropriate?"
Xiang Yu glanced at him, ignored him, turned off the bedside lamp, and crawled into bed.
"Go to sleep." Xiang Yu reached out and pulled the blanket up to make sure it covered half of Gu Chen's head, then hugged him in the blanket, letting Gu Chen rest against his chest.
Xiang Yu knew this guy was a restless sleeper and liked to kick off the covers.
Because of the fever, Gu Chen was already feeling a bit dizzy, and now, smelling her boyfriend's scent, her mind was buzzing even more.
Gu Chen's hand involuntarily slid under the hem of Xiang Yu's pajamas.
Xiang Yu tightened her grip on Gu Chen's back and pinched him.
"Aww!" Gu Chen let out a short howl, then rubbed his head against Xiang Yu's chest and said aggrievedly, "Baby, didn't you come here on your own initiative?"
"I only came because you kept kicking off the covers." Xiang Yu gritted her teeth, pulled out Gu Chen's hand that was tracing her waistline, and made it obediently rest at her side. "Don't push your luck."
"You didn't push your luck."
Xiang Yu was sleeping on her back, slightly higher than Gu Chen, so Gu Chen could easily kiss her chin by tilting his head back.
Gu Chen actually did it.