Did you hear that? It was a single sentence, but both of them knew exactly what it meant.
Lu Jin’an had seized Gu Nianyi’s wrist, his warm fingertips pressing against her racing pulse.
His deep gaze locked onto her, and her blood quickened involuntarily.
Her pulse raced faster, her tension laid bare before him, impossible to hide.
Gu Nianyi brushed his hand away and met his eyes directly. “Yes, sorry. I overheard your conversation.”
She kept her voice low, audible only to the two of them.
Her blunt honesty caught Lu Jin’an off guard, leaving him at a loss for words.
He had expected her to deny it, like in some TV drama—protest her innocence, refuse to admit it.
Gu Nianyi glanced around the office and gave Lin Qianyu a silent wave, then curved her lips into a small smile. Calmly, she said, “I’ll head out first. Your friend’s still waiting for you.”
In the few seconds it took Lu Jin’an to snap out of his daze, she had already stepped out of sight.
The end of the corridor held only the dim glow of fluorescent lights.
Lu Jin’an returned to the office, snatched the keys from his desk, his expression urgent. “I’ll treat you to dinner another time. Go home and shake off the jet lag.”
Lin Qianyu: “…”
Fine. He took back what he’d said earlier. This wasn’t indifference—unless he was blind.
Lu Jin’an strode out a few paces, his face calm on the surface, and asked the nurse if she’d seen a woman pass by.
The nurse pointed toward the elevators.
He couldn’t say why he was so anxious to find her, what he even planned to explain. That he hadn’t meant it that way? But those words had come from his own mouth.
Once Lu Jin’an was gone, the two nurses dove back into their gossip.
It was a long night shift, and this kind of chatter was just the spice they needed.
“Was that Dr. Lu’s wife who was just here?”
“Yeah, Dr. Zhou called her Sister-in-Law. And Dr. Lu looked so flustered.”
“Finally, Dr. Lu’s getting a taste of heartbreak.”
“But gentle meets aloof—they’re still a perfect match.”
Once the nurses finished chatting, they regretted not snapping a photo.
Night had fallen. Gu Nianyi slid into her car, took a moment to steady her breathing and calm her mood, then started the engine. Driving safely came first.
Letting things take their natural course? That was a joke. What “natural course”? It was a false premise from the start. They were husband and wife, after all—the scales would always tip toward marriage.
His care for her lately must have been out of duty to the elders. She’d read too much into it, misunderstood his intentions. He’d tossed their marriage certificate aside without a second thought.
The best word for their relationship was “respectful strangers.”
With that realization, her mind cleared instantly. Gu Nianyi even pulled over to buy a bag of roasted chestnuts from her usual spot—they were in season.
Another sloppy summer had slipped by.
Cypress View Pavilion was just a couple of traffic lights away from the hospital. Gu Nianyi hugged her bag of chestnuts and hurried home with light steps.
The housekeeper hadn’t finished clearing the dishes or tidying the kitchen when she heard the door. “Back so soon?”
She checked her phone—only half an hour had passed.
Gu Nianyi scooped up Nian Gao and nuzzled her in her arms, her tone flat. “He had a friend over.”
The housekeeper looked puzzled. They’d left together just fine—why did she seem off now?
Less than ten minutes later, Lu Jin’an appeared in the entryway, scanning the downstairs. “Where’s Mrs. Lu?”
The housekeeper pointed upstairs. “Up there.”
They’d come home one after the other, but it felt like they’d had a spat.
The master bedroom door upstairs stood open. Gu Nianyi’s light voice drifted from in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows.
It sounded as cheerful as ever.
She wasn’t packing. She was crouched on the floor playing with Nian Gao, a video playing nearby and her bag of chestnuts beside her.
From the sound of it, it was an old cartoon, nearly as ancient as the year Lu Jin’an was born.
Moonlight poured in brightly, a breeze lifting the curtains. The woman and the cat seemed like figures from an old scroll painting.
Nian Gao stretched out a paw toward the chestnuts, but Gu Nianyi gently swatted it away, scolding the kitten with a stern face. “No, little kitty. You can only have one. Too many will make your tummy hurt.”
The kitten looked so pitiful, rubbing against her face to beg for mercy.
But it was no use.
The gauzy curtains billowed in the wind, casting a shadow over her. Gu Nianyi turned her head. “You’re back.”
Her lips curved in a smile that matched the sway of the curtains—her usual brand of gentle thoughtfulness.
Lu Jin’an pulled the curtain aside and shut the window, blocking out the noise from outside. “Let’s talk.”
“About what?” Gu Nianyi looked puzzled as she tucked away the chestnuts to keep a certain little kitty from sneaking any.
Lu Jin’an crouched down to meet her eyes.
He explained slowly and deliberately, “The surgery time got changed last minute. My friend just got back from abroad. I didn’t have a chance to tell you.”
Clear communication could prevent misunderstandings—that was all.
“Got it,” Gu Nianyi replied, accepting it readily.
They hadn’t even met before getting their marriage certificate. They’d only been bound together because of the elders.
Her greatest strength was her ability to process things on her own—and she adapted quickly.
Plus, after registering, they’d each gone about their busy lives without ever discussing how to make it work.
They were still figuring out each other’s characters.
Gu Nianyi tilted her head to look at Lu Jin’an, propping her chin on her hand. “Dr. Lu, let’s just keep things as they are. No interfering with each other, everyone stays happy. No need to force anything natural. Whenever I need to show up for something, I’ll play my part perfectly.”
Lu Jin’an stared into her eyes, trying to gauge if she’d truly taken his hospital words to heart.
Her dark, round eyes held nothing but straightforward calm—no trace of anything amiss.
The man emphasized again, “We did get married because of Grandpa—that’s true. But it’s not that I don’t want to come home.”
“Being with you is comfortable.”
Comfortable? What kind of description was that?
His gaze was like ink-dark seas, an endless universe with no bottom in sight, yet flecked with starlight at the depths—focused on the person in his eyes.
Her.
Suddenly, a rustling sound cut through: “Scritch, scritch.” Gu Nianyi turned to see Nian Gao dragging the chestnut bag halfway across the floor with her teeth.
“Greedy little cat.”
Lu Jin’an reached out and snatched the bag. Nian Gao leaped at him in fury, but her short legs couldn’t reach.
Fuming, Nian Gao bolted from the room.
In the cat’s mind, he’d racked up another strike against him.
“Come with me.” Gu Nianyi followed Lu Jin’an to the study.
He pulled a card from the safe, took her wrist, and placed it in her palm. “This is my primary card. Buy whatever you want with it—no need to ask me. The PIN is our registration date.”
The slim black-and-gold card—it was her first time seeing one. Was this the legendary black card?
“What’s the limit? What if I max it out?”
Lu Jin’an arched a brow. “Give it a try. If you max it, just call me.”
With that confident look on his face, Gu Nianyi didn’t even need to think. Knowing her, she’d never come close.
Lu Jin’an tapped at his phone with his distinctively bony fingers. “I’ve transferred this month’s household allowance to you. From now on, it’ll hit your account on the first of every month. Spend it however you like.”
Gu Nianyi pulled out her phone and checked her bank balance. Who had a seven-figure monthly allowance?
She ventured, “Dr. Lu, you didn’t take any red envelopes from patients, did you?”
Lu Jin’an raised a curved finger, then lowered it, chuckling at her. “No. I get dividends—you do too. The safe’s code is your birthday.”
Gu Nianyi took a subtle step back, blurting out, “The one on my ID?”
Lu Jin’an: “? Of course. Is there another?”
A flicker of confusion crossed her eyes, gone in an instant. “No. I’ll go check on Nian Gao.”
She was overthinking. How could he know anything else?
Nian Gao huddled in her cat bed in the corner, her worried mom worn out. Gu Nianyi stroked her fur. “Want me to teach Dr. Lu a lesson for you? You can’t just grab things—you have to ask Princess Nian Gao first.”
Lu Jin’an approached, leaning down slightly, his voice lazy. “And how exactly do you plan to teach me a lesson?”
Gu Nianyi lowered her gaze, thinking for ages. “Take Nian Gao out to play.” Her ears, hidden by her long hair, flushed a faint pink.
“Your chestnuts.” Lu Jin’an handed over the bag—all the shells peeled, the golden-orange nuts nestled inside.
He didn’t leave. He crouched beside her, helping soothe the kitten.
Faced with food, Nian Gao had no principles. She ate from Gu Nianyi’s hand and forgot the earlier drama.
When Lu Jin’an offered a second one, Gu Nianyi grabbed his forearm to stop him. “Only one. Cats can’t digest too many chestnuts.”
Lu Jin’an obeyed her, telling the kitten, “It’s your mom who won’t let me give you more.”
He was just feeding the cat, but it felt oddly like caring for a child.
The housekeeper glanced upstairs. They were chatting and laughing. When had Lu Jin’an ever had the patience to feed a cat? First time ever.
She must have worried for nothing. Their relationship was clearly warming up.
Come the weekend, Gu Nianyi stayed home—no plans to go out unless Ming Yue invited her.
Early in the morning, the property management called. “Mrs. Lu, there’s a lady here claiming to be your mother. She wants to visit.”
Gu Nianyi rubbed her sleepy eyes. Li Huiling’s face appeared on the video call, and her drowsiness vanished.
“Yes, thank you.”
The housekeeper had the day off. The big house held only her and the cat.
Li Huiling sat at the dining table, surveying the room. “Is Jin’an not home?”
Gu Nianyi answered honestly, “No, he has surgery today. It hasn’t wrapped up yet.”
His surgeries could last anywhere from two hours to as long as ten.
Li Huiling glanced at the pajamas Gu Nianyi was wearing and shook her head. How old are you, still dressing in such childish cartoon sleepwear? You’d watched that cartoon from childhood right up to adulthood.
“Have you eaten? Staying up late all the time isn’t good for you—skipping breakfast will hurt your stomach. Let me make you something.”
Gu Nianyi knew exactly why she had come, and this show of kindness came with an ulterior motive.
If it had been like Ming Yue’s parents, that might have been tolerable, but there was genuine feeling involved here.
It had always been that way since childhood. During a heavy snowfall, when Gu Nianyi had a fever, Li Huiling would carry her on her back to the clinic.
Gu Nianyi would never forget that night with snowflakes drifting down. Dizzy and feverish, she had looked behind them at the deep and shallow footprints in the snow.