Chapter 61 - 61 His Gentleness

    The room was quiet for a moment. The door was opened, and Gu Yikun stood at the entrance wearing a bathrobe. His hair was still dripping with water, and his sharp eyes like an eagle''s indicated he had just come out of the bathroom.

    His appearance now had a more casual and unruly look compared to usual, like a bloodthirsty leopard, no prey could escape his control.

    An Junxi dared not look at him. She asked, "Would you like some tea?"

    Gu Yikun casually raked his fingers through his hair. Leaning against the door frame with a sullen face, he asked, "Have you thought it through?"

    It took An Junxi a while to realize he was referring to the resignation matter. He had told her to come to him only when she had made up her mind.

    She shook her head, "I''m not resigning."

    The expression on Gu Yikun''s face improved slightly. He stepped aside, indicating for her to come in.

    An Junxi walked inside, looking around the room. Gu Yikun''s room was decorated in gray and white tones, which felt somewhat oppressive.

    Outside was the living room, and the bed was inside. An Junxi secretly breathed a sigh of relief; not seeing the bed made her feel less awkward.

    Gu Yikun closed the door and sat down on the sofa.

    An Junxi sat opposite him. She placed the flower tea on the coffee table and poured him a cup, saying, "Mr. Gu, drinking flower tea helps with sleep."

    Gu Yikun observed her speaking as usual, without any anger or grievance on her face, as if the unpleasantness just now had never happened.

    He had gone swimming to vent his frustration, so how could she act like nothing had happened?

    Feeling extremely uncomfortable, he reached out to take the tea cup to drink a few sips. An Junxi hurriedly grabbed his hand.

    Gu Yikun looked at her in surprise.

    An Junxi''s hand felt like it was scalded, and she withdrew it quickly, saying, "It was just boiled, be careful not to burn yourself." Her face flushed, and she lowered her head, avoiding his gaze. Her fingers anxiously tucked the hair behind her ear again and unnecessarily adjusted her already neat dress, trying hard to conceal her inner panic.

    Gu Yikun''s expression was a bit strange. He said "Hmm" and tested the temperature of the tea cup with the back of his fingers before taking a sip.

    The flower tea entered his mouth with a bit of mild sweetness; it wasn''t bad.

    Gu Yikun lowered his eyes, watching the petals swaying in the cup. A trace of joy flashed in his deep eyes.

    An Junxi intertwined her fingers, observing that Gu Yikun''s mood seemed ok. She slowly said, "Today, I went to the Arts Performance Academy to take graduation photos for the girls. It was only today that I found out that Liu Zhiwen, who asked me to take photos, is Yin Feibai''s cousin. She didn''t want to accompany her cousin to the charity banquet, so she asked for my help. I originally intended to come back directly, but..."

    Gu Yikun waited quietly for her to continue.

    An Junxi took a deep breath and said, "Yin Feibai asked me to pretend to be his girlfriend in front of the girls, as a shield. I agreed, anyway, it was just putting my arm around his shoulder, I could accept it. The five thousand remuneration was his offer..." Saying this, An Junxi''s eyes started to warm up. What was originally a simple matter made her feel like she became a five-thousand-dollar escort when it came from Gu Yikun''s mouth.

    Gu Yikun saw An Junxi''s reaction. He had already noticed the bruises on her arm and felt all his anger dissipate; he had indeed gone a bit too far tonight.

    Seeing An Junxi''s aggrieved look made him feel extremely tormented. He spoke, "I understand." His voice unconsciously became gentle, making the quiet room feel very comforting.

    An Junxi said, "In any case, I was just purely accompanying him to the banquet. When you called me, he took me to the store to style me, of course, we had to shower and wash our hair..."

    Gu Yikun stopped her from continuing, "I understand." He regretted saying the wrong thing for the first time. Remembering how An Junxi held back her tears at the hotel, he admitted she was right to call him a bastard.

    Gu Yikun put down the tea cup. He stood up and took something, then sat down beside An Junxi.

    He had been sitting opposite her, but now he suddenly sat next to her, causing An Junxi to subconsciously move away from him. Gu Yikun grabbed her arm, and upon seeing the bruise, he unconsciously lightened his grip, "Don''t move, I''ll apply some ointment for you."

    He had indeed made mistakes tonight, but he couldn''t bring himself to apologize verbally, so he could only express his regret through actions.

    He wasn''t used to lowering himself, so this was the best he could do.

    An Junxi didn''t know how to feel. For President Gu to act this way, it was indeed an exception in his eyes.

    She no longer avoided him, but her body remained somewhat stiff.

    Gu Yikun asked, "Does it hurt?"

    An Junxi shook her head, "It''s okay."

    Seeing her this way made Gu Yikun feel even more sympathy. He poured some ointment onto his own palm, rubbed his hands together to warm it up, and then gently massaged her bruised arm.

    Her arm was slender and her skin fair. With just a bit of pressure, her skin turned red. Gu Yikun didn''t dare to exert too much force, but he knew it needed to be effective, so he couldn''t be too gentle. He said, "Bear with it."

    An Junxi nodded, "It''s fine."

    Gu Yikun''s palms carried a searing warmth. At first, An Junxi was a bit nervous, but she gradually got used to his touch. She relaxed and, turning her head, saw Gu Yikun''s focused expression. He was carefully and attentively massaging her bruise, as if treating someone very important.

    Suddenly, An Junxi felt it was all worth it.

    She knew her feelings towards Gu Yikun had changed. She doubted she could go back to the way things were before.

    If she had to leave the Gu Family in the future and never see this proud, handsome, well-mannered Mr. Gu again, what would she do?

    Just thinking about it made her feel very sad.

    The sadness filled An Junxi''s eyes.

    Gu Yikun noticed her discomfort and asked, "Is something wrong?"

    His gentleness made An Junxi sink even deeper. She didn''t know when she started having feelings for Gu Yikun, but she knew she absolutely couldn''t let him find out.

    If they were two people who could never be together, she could only protect herself like this.

    An Junxi came back to her senses and moved away, saying, "It feels much better now, thank you, Mr. Gu."

    Her distance made Gu Yikun momentarily dazed. He tried to ignore the sense of loss inside and handed her the ointment, "Remember to apply this tomorrow."

    An Junxi took it and thanked him politely.

    An Junxi''s politeness made Gu Yikun feel strange.

    She stood up, saying, "I''ll go back to my room now." She took a few steps and then turned back, "Don''t stay up too late, goodnight." She walked out, closing the door behind her.

    Gu Yikun sat dazed on the sofa for a while before finally smiling.

    This woman still knew to come and explain to him and say goodnight. Maybe she wasn''t so heartless after all.

    The frustrations he had felt all day seemed to balance out.

    Gu Yikun finished the flower tea, and all his gloominess vanished.

    Early the next morning, Jin Xiu got up for his morning jog. Seeing his father running ahead, he jogged up and greeted him, "Good morning, Father."

    Gu Yikun responded and slowed down, asking while running, "When are your school exams?"

    Jin Xiu was very excited that his father asked about his school affairs. Could it be that his father''s mood had improved after making up with Sister Jun Xi last night?