Gu Yan had assumed the Leng family's door would already be closed at this hour.
Unexpectedly, it was still open. Lucky.
Even luckier—
The moment he stepped inside, he spotted Leng Qingqiu sitting on the living room sofa.
His eyes lit up. He jogged over, slipped neatly into the space beside her, hooked her arm like it was second nature, and leaned in close.
"Qingqiu, my dear Qingqiu~~"
"I missed you so much. You have no idea how exhausted I've been today!"
Honestly—he'd sacrificed a lot for her.
Putting on a smile in front of other people all day was exhausting.
But hey, wasn't this what a mature man with a sense of responsibility was supposed to do?
Gu Yan felt pretty great about himself.
He was mentally and physically drained, but the second he got close to Leng Qingqiu—caught her familiar scent—his mood instantly lifted.
Pure happiness.
Leng Ling'er, watching her brother-in-law suddenly cling to her sister, grimaced in disgust.
"You smelly Gu fish! You still remember how to come home?"
"You left me waiting at the school gate for hours today!"
"And now you say you were out with a friend? Tell me—man or woman?!"
She glared at him like a prosecutor.
If Gu Yan didn't explain himself properly today, she swore she'd whisper nonsense into her sister's ear all night.
Gu Yan coughed awkwardly. He really had forgotten to pick her up.
"Ahem… sorry, sorry. I was way too busy today."
"Next time, brother-in-law will treat you to McDonald's and milk tea, okay?"
Leng Ling'er froze.
"…Really?"
"Long live brother-in-law!! You're the best!"
With that, she happily retreated to the side and resumed watching TV.
Gu Yan watched her instant mood flip and twitched at the corner of his mouth.
Only then did he realize—
He'd been back for a while now.
And Qingqiu… hadn't said a single word.
Something felt off.
He lowered his head and looked at her carefully.
"Qingqiu? What's wrong? Are you… unhappy that I'm here?"
Leng Qingqiu looked normal—yet not.
It was that strange in-between state that made Gu Yan's instincts scream that something had definitely happened.
Her mind was still replaying the TV drama from earlier.
Busy.
Tired.
A friend's mother in the hospital.
All lies.
Every single one.
Her expression went cold. She shook off Gu Yan's hand and said flatly,
"Go away."
Gu Yan: "???"
Hiss.
Three giant question marks practically appeared over his head.
Angry?
He immediately understood—this had to be because he hadn't shown up all day.
Honestly… fair. Who disappears for a whole day right after confirming a relationship?
No matter what the exact reason was—
"Qingqiu! I'm sorry!"
Gu Yan decisively activated his passive skill: Immediate Apology.
Leng Qingqiu had wanted an explanation.
But hearing his apology first made her chest tighten with sadness and grievance.
So it was true.
She'd secretly asked Mei Xue to clear obstacles for him… and in the end—
Was it all just her own wishful thinking?
She'd finally let herself like someone.
And now…
Once again, reality told her that outsiders were outsiders.
They would always betray her.
She took a deep breath, suppressing the ache in her heart.
"You don't need to say anything else," she said calmly.
"Since you've already done it, there's nothing left to say between us."
"No. I want to say it."
Gu Yan shook his head and pressed a hand on her shoulder.
Leng Qingqiu's heart sank.
Are you going to humiliate me now?
"I don't want to listen!" she snapped.
"You have to."
"I don't want to!"
"You must."
"Why should I?!"
"Because I like you!" Gu Yan blurted out.
"And because I like you, I have to apologize!!"
"You—! You still have the nerve to say that now?!"
"Yes! That's exactly why I'm saying it!"
Their voices rose higher and higher.
Leng Ling'er quietly swallowed and backed away.
This… this was a couple's fight, right?
She was just a high school student—was it really okay for her to witness this?
She covered her eyes with both hands, peeking through her fingers.
Then she heard Gu Yan take a deep breath and speak seriously.
"Qingqiu, I'm sorry. I have a female friend named Wang Yulan."
"She's had a really hard life. Her father passed away early, and half a year ago her mother was in a car accident and became bedridden."
"She's been working multiple jobs every day, borrowing money everywhere just to keep her mother alive."
"Her mother is currently in Jianghai Hospital—one of my family's hospitals."
"I only found out about this yesterday. I didn't want to hide anything from you."
"I paid off her debts. The medical bills were in the millions—she couldn't afford them."
"But her mother was a good teacher. I couldn't just stand by and watch her die because of money."
"For me, it was something I could easily do."
"I didn't tell you earlier because I was afraid you'd misunderstand…"
"But I still wanted you to know why I came back so late."
The room fell silent.
Leng Ling'er stared at Gu Yan in shock.
For some reason… he suddenly looked radiant.
She was moved to tears.
I thought you were a scumbag… turns out you're a saint!
Leng Qingqiu was stunned as well.
This… wasn't what she'd imagined at all.
"I… this… you…"
She lowered her head, voice weak.
"I'm sorry… I didn't know…"
"It's okay."
Gu Yan interrupted her gently.
He looked at her with pure affection—and before she could react, he suddenly declared loudly,
"Qingqiu like this—I like her even more!"
"Qingqiu! I love you so much!"
"I inhale—inhale—inhale!!!"
He buried his face straight into her arms and shamelessly inhaled.
"Ah! What are you doing?! Ling'er is still here!"
The misunderstanding dissolved instantly, but Leng Qingqiu's heart was pounding wildly.
Calm down. Calm down.
What if he hears my heartbeat?
"She's just a kid," Gu Yan replied casually.
"She doesn't understand."
Leng Ling'er: "???"