After Gu Xuanze left, both people in the room sighed in relief. They could feel the reassuring pheromones from Gu Xuanze, and Lu Youze’s body felt much more at ease compared to just a moment ago.

Lu Youze rolled his eyes at Gu Xuanhao before resigning himself to speak first, “Gu Xuanhao, what do you actually want?”

Beating around the bush was not this guy’s style. His face practically screamed, “I have something to talk to you about.”

“Lu Youze.” Gu Xuanhao sat up, looking down at Lu Youze, “Didn’t I just ask you? What do you think of my brother?”

Could it be that Gu Xuanze sent him to test the waters? This thought crossed Lu Youze’s mind along with the image of Gu Xuanze’s emotionless face, but he immediately dismissed it. Gu Xuanze didn’t seem like the kind of person to do something like that.

“Gu Zong? Gu Zong is excellent, you have a good brother.” Lu Youze knew Gu Xuanhao didn’t want to hear this, but he still decided to brush it off. So much had happened in the last few hours that he needed some time to process, and some things he couldn’t yet confirm.

“Lu Youze, don’t give me that.” Gu Xuanhao wasn’t the type to beat around the bush. He stood up, looking at Lu Youze with a sharp gaze, exuding a bit of aggressiveness and leaving no chance for Lu Youze to evade, “My brother confessed to you in the early hours, right? Let me make this clear now. You should give my brother a straight answer—whether you like him or not is just one sentence.”

Since Gu Xuanhao was being this direct, Lu Youze couldn’t treat Gu Xuanze’s confession as a joke. Since it was a serious confession, Lu Youze couldn’t pretend to be ignorant or avoid it. Although Lu Youze was usually diplomatic and careful not to offend others, he was very straightforward when it came to feelings. He would never use emotions as a bargaining chip, even if that might help him achieve his goals faster.

Acting was his specialty, but pretending to like someone was a tiring task. If he kept up the act, he might end up like Yu Li, a “pervert,” especially after all the help Gu Xuanze had given him. He couldn’t burn that bridge.

Lu Youze didn’t want to become the next “Lu Youze,” nor did he want to become the next Yu Li.

Of course, Lu Youze had his concerns. Gu Xuanze was the CEO of Gu Group, and while he trusted Gu Xuanze wouldn’t use TV drama resources to blackmail him, he knew talking was an art. He had to think about how to refuse in a way that would be less hurtful to Gu Xuanze and avoid future awkwardness between them.

There was one more thing that Lu Youze didn’t want to admit: when he heard Gu Xuanze say he liked him, his heart did race.

Seeing that Lu Youze remained silent, Gu Xuanhao’s face darkened, and his patience was completely worn out. He raised his hand and slapped it on Lu Youze’s head, speaking with a somewhat harsh tone, “If you like him, say so; if you don’t, then just say it. Do you need to think about it this long?”

The slap on his head stung a little, and looking at Gu Xuanhao’s fierce expression, Lu Youze couldn’t help but feel a bit envious. Gu Xuanhao was really well-protected by his brother. In his world, it was either black or white—there was never a third option. Such a simple life was the happiest.

“Ah Hao.” Lu Youze took a deep breath. At least it was fortunate that he wasn’t rejecting Gu Xuanze in front of him. “Please apologize to Gu Zong. I really appreciate his affection, but unfortunately, I’m not worthy.”

“Are you kidding me?” Although Gu Xuanhao understood that love couldn’t be forced, he was still upset that his excellent brother had been rejected. “Lu Youze, what’s wrong with my brother? Why don’t you like him?”

After asking, Gu Xuanhao let go of his fist and lay down beside Lu Youze, feeling down.

“Lu Youze, your taste is really bad.” Gu Xuanhao spoke in a muffled tone, “You’re right, you’re not worthy. If only you could like my brother, he could guarantee you’d be the happiest man in the world.”

Lu Youze didn’t doubt Gu Xuanhao’s words. From their interactions over the past few days and from Gu Xuanze’s tender gestures during his heat, he could tell that Gu Xuanze would be a good lover. It was just that liking someone wasn’t something his rational mind could decide.

Lu Youze chose to stay silent, as anything he said at this point would seem inappropriate. The only thing he could do was smell the hyacinth fragrance in the room, and for some reason, it made him feel a little uneasy.

Perhaps this was the nature of an AO, Lu Youze thought calmly, unwilling to entertain another possibility.

Since Lu Youze didn’t speak, Gu Xuanhao didn’t get angry. He continued speaking as if talking to himself, “Lu Youze, you don’t have to feel sorry for my brother. His liking you is his business. He can quietly learn to cook from a master chef for you, even though he knows he might never get the chance to cook for you; he can also invest in the drama ‘The Days of Walking the Jianghu Together’ against the opposition of others, just because you need a good script to make a comeback.”

Although Lu Youze had sensed these things after realizing Gu Xuanze liked him, hearing them spoken aloud by Gu Xuanhao still left him surprised.

“Are you surprised?” Gu Xuanhao, being his good brother, wasn’t polite when talking to him, especially since he was a little angry about Gu Xuanze’s situation. “Do you really think Gu Group has nothing better to do than prepare a script to find a washed-up actor with all the online hate?”

What Gu Xuanhao said was indeed harsh, but it was also true. Lu Youze wasn’t angry, though he did feel a bit regretful. He had thought that Gu Xuanze had liked him for his acting skills.

Gu Xuanhao seemed to think he’d gone too far, glancing at Lu Youze awkwardly. “Anyway, my brother isn’t a philanthropist. He invested in this drama because he believes in your acting skills. He knows that as long as you get a chance, you can grab it tightly. He believes in you more than anyone else and thinks you can stand at the top of the pyramid again. If it weren’t for yesterday’s special situation, he wouldn’t have confessed to you or let you know that he likes you.”

Love is tolerance, love is letting go, love is selfless devotion.

Lu Youze had always thought such love didn’t exist.

Love is jealousy, possession, selfishly trying to get what you want. He had seen and acted out many such loves.

He suddenly felt a bit guilty, even though he knew Gu Xuanze didn’t like him as the person he was, but rather because he occupied this body.

“Ah Hao.” Lu Youze suddenly spoke, “What do you mean by ‘special situation’?”

Gu Xuanhao gave him a look as if he were an idiot. “Lu Youze, are you stupid? It’s definitely not because of your heat! Forget it, forget it. You wouldn’t understand even if I explained. Just know this: don’t hold a grudge against him because of this. Don’t avoid him. This would hurt him more than not liking him.”

After saying all this, Gu Xuanhao paused and looked at Lu Youze with a pleading look. “Lu Youze, I won’t force you to like my brother. I know that you can’t force love. I just hope that, for my sake or because my brother likes you so much, you can treat him like a friend.”

“Are you sure that’s what he wants?” Lu Youze countered, thinking that maybe not showing kindness to him was the most cruel thing.

“You don’t need to worry about that,” Gu Xuanhao said, standing up to leave. “My brother’s pheromones smell like hyacinth flowers, but why does this room smell so bad? I’m going downstairs now. You can sleep as long as you want.”

With that, Gu Xuanhao slammed the door as he left.