Chapter 56: Like… a Dog Abandoned by Its Owner

Jian Yao hesitated for two seconds before clicking on Wu Yue’s WeChat.

Wu Yue: Brother Lu has been hospitalized for a stomach bleed. Can you come see him?

The accompanying photo showed a man lying in a hospital bed, hooked up to an IV drip, his face pale as paper, in an empty ward.

It was impossible to say that she didn’t care at all about their childhood friendship.

Even if they couldn’t be lovers, she wasn’t malicious enough to want to see him suffer and struggle.

However, she had already experienced the pain of a lack of boundaries and wouldn’t inflict it on Gu Zhiyan.

Lu Chengze was clearly still not giving up, and since they were impossible now, she would never give him a glimmer of hope.

She tapped her fingers, typed a line, and sent it.

Then she decisively exited, quickly glancing at the messages Xu Si had sent, which were just as explosive as she had imagined.

It was the kind of thing that, if discovered, would be enough to be a case file, a social death level of embarrassment.

Jian Yao caught a glimpse of Gu Zhiyan pushing over a bowl of prepared pork bone soup, coughed lightly, and replied to her, “Go shopping with me tomorrow, and I’ll tell you then.”

After dinner, Jian Yao helped Gu Zhiyan put the dishes in the dishwasher, and Gu Zhiyan looked up at her, “Do you want some fruit?”

“I don’t know what you like, so I bought some grapes, strawberries, and blueberries.”

Jian Yao washed her hands at the sink, “Sure, you already cooked, so don’t fight me over washing fruit.”

Gu Zhiyan smiled, raised an eyebrow, and stepped back to make room for her, “Dare not, dare not, please.”

Jian Yao was amused by him and stepped forward to open the refrigerator.

The refrigerator was large, double-door, with vegetables, fruits, and drinks neatly organized by area.

It was very friendly to Jian Yao, who had obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Only one box of multivitamin soy milk was placed separately on a row, looking particularly out of place with the entire layout of the refrigerator.

Jian Yao made a sound of “huh” and picked up the milk.

“This seems to be the brand that partnered with our school cafeteria in high school.”

It was a very niche local brand, known for its reputation, with its sales group being major universities, almost a standard breakfast item on campus.

Gu Zhiyan saw her pick up the milk, a flash of surprise in his eyes.

But when he heard her words, the light in his eyes quickly dimmed, a forced smile stretched across his lips, and a low voice, tinged with a hint of melancholy, said,

“You still remember this milk.”

Jian Yao nodded, “Of course I remember, I loved drinking it in high school.”

Gu Zhiyan gave a soft “hmm.”

He remembered this milk, but he didn’t remember this particular bottle.

Jian Yao held the milk and muttered, “I remember this was discontinued in college, how did you get it?”

She looked at the refrigerator, confirming that there was only this one bottle in the entire refrigerator, a little puzzled.

And only bought one bottle?

Gu Zhiyan tugged at the corner of his lips, “It wasn’t discontinued, the company was acquired, it just doesn’t sell to the public anymore.”

Jian Yao held the milk box in her hand, turning to look at Gu Zhiyan.

It wasn’t her imagination, she felt like Gu Zhiyan was about to shatter.

She looked down at the milk in her hand, carefully placed it back where it was, and apologized to Gu Zhiyan.

“It’s important to you, right? I’m sorry, I just picked it up because I was a little surprised, I hope you don’t mind.”

Something that Gu Zhiyan would keep in his personal collection must have been given to him by someone important to him, right?

Thinking about it, Jian Yao felt like a drop of lemon juice had been dripped onto her heart, sour and swollen.

So Gu Zhiyan also had someone he cherished in his heart, someone he kept hidden?

Seeing Gu Zhiyan with his head lowered, his whole body filled with dejection, Jian Yao felt a sense of guilt.

She shouldn’t have touched his things without thinking, just because Gu Zhiyan had a good temper.

How was she going to appease him now?

She really was the most clueless, and the most afraid of comforting people in her entire life.

It took all her effort to squeeze out a sentence, “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have touched your things. To show my sincerity, I’ll buy you milk from now on?”

Jian Yao secretly glanced at Gu Zhiyan’s expression.

Even if that box of milk was really special, ignorance was bliss, right?

Besides, she only touched it, she didn’t drink it!

He wouldn’t be so petty, would he?

Jian Yao was lost in her own thoughts, but Gu Zhiyan suddenly chuckled, the mist in his eyes dissipating, leaving behind twinkling fragments of light.

“Actually, I was just checking if this milk was expired, if it was still drinkable.”

He leaned against the refrigerator, lazily lifting his eyelids to look at her, his eyes filled with amusement.

“But since you said that, let’s pinky swear.”

His slender finger, with its distinct knuckles, slightly bent, and waved in front of Jian Yao, inviting her to pinky swear.

Jian Yao squinted at him with suspicion, “Then why did you act like that just now…?”

Gu Zhiyan stretched out his tone, “Oh,” he asked back, “Like what?”

Jian Yao thought back to Gu Zhiyan’s earlier demeanor.

His whole body was enveloped in a low pressure, like… a dog abandoned by its owner…

Jian Yao fell silent for a moment, choosing to pinky swear over telling the truth.

Saying that Gu Zhiyan looked like a dog… she couldn’t bring herself to say it.

Jian Yao resignedly extended her own little finger, hooking it onto Gu Zhiyan’s knuckle.

The scorching heat of his body made her hand tremble slightly, she averted her gaze and stubbornly muttered childish.

Gu Zhiyan didn’t feel childish at all.

He looked as devout as if he were participating in some important ceremony, his clear voice serious, “We pinky swore, you have to take care of my milk for the rest of my life.”

The words “for the rest of my life” lightly bumped against Jian Yao’s heart.

The person who had just been calling him childish, as if under a spell, pursed her lips slightly, “Hmm, for the rest of your life.”

In the hospital corridor.

Wu Yue, in a complete mess, huddled in the corner, his eyes glued to his chat window with Jian Yao.

When he saw “typing…” appear on the screen, he instinctively felt a sense of “as expected.”

Jian Yao, she still couldn’t forget about Brother Lu.

Before, she never replied to his messages, but as soon as she heard Brother Lu was sick, she was immediately worried!

So, the previous call to the police was just a temporary measure, there was still hope.

As long as he could coax Jian Yao back, he could definitely cure Brother Lu’s “madness,” and the problems with the company would be solved.

Everyone would be happy!

However, the next second.

After seeing the message Jian Yao sent back, the smile on his face froze completely.

Jian Yao: “Isn’t he already in the hospital? If he’s uncomfortable, call a doctor.”

No concern, no greetings, every word exuded indifference and apathy, even mockery.

Mockery of Lu Chengze for abandoning her for Liu Yiyi.

She wasn’t a doctor, so she didn’t need to come see him.

Lu Chengze wasn’t a doctor either, but he went to Shanghai to see Liu Yiyi, even missing their engagement party.

Wu Yue held his phone, never before had he realized so clearly that Jian Yao and Brother Lu were truly over.

After a moment of contemplation, he silently deleted the few chat messages he had with Jian Yao.

Just in case Brother Lu saw them later and went crazy again.