Reluctantly Willing

On the 28th of December, all the servants went back to their own homes and Gu Jun had to return to the old house. He had never returned home with Guo Guo before. This year, Guo Guo had learned to speak and looked no different from other normal children. Once old Mr. Gu learned about this, he requested Gu Jun to bring the grandson along to the family home.

On the one hand, he wanted to see the child. On the other hand, if Gu Jun brought a child back home, the rest of the family members would see it and would greatly help Gu Jun’s chances of being the successor.

Old Mr. Gu would make use of anything at all costs to increase Gu Jun’s chances, including the child.

Because of the absence of Guo Guo and the fact that the nanny went back home, An Xiaoyan was left all alone in the villa with the doorkeeper.

“I will be back on the third day of the New Year.”

“Okay.”

There was only one word in his reply. Gu Jun was hoping that An Xiaoyan could say a few more words, “Do you have anything else to say?”

An Xiaoyan squatted down and arranged Guo Guo’s suit. “When you see Grandpa, you must greet Grandpa with a hello, understand?”

“Yes, I understand! Daddy told me that already! Hello, Grandpa.”

“Guo Guo is such a good boy.”

An Xiaoyan stood up and resumed his usual demeanor. It seemed that since a few days ago, An Xiaoyan had changed somewhat. The slightly melted iceberg felt even colder now.

Gu Jun was sure An Xiaoyan would not add anything else, thus carried Guo Guo in his arms and board the car.

The car slowly drove out of the villa. Guo Guo waved goodbye to An Xiaoyan while Gu Jun also looked back at An Xiaoyan, who was standing at the door. It was New Year’s Day, but An Xiaoyan was left all alone by himself. Gu Jun felt it was necessary for them to return home early this year.

After Gu Jun left, the servants left too. The whole villa felt chilly. The doorkeeper lived in a small house near the main gate of the villa, and would not cross the yard to the villa if nothing unusual happened.

An Xiaoyan opened the refrigerator, and it was full of fresh vegetables and fruits. They should have been prepared by the nanny before she left for the holiday.

In this empty house, the only person who was good to him was the nanny.

Seeing that the time was still early after he awoke from his nap, An Xiaoyan went upstairs and walked one round. He hesitated when he passed by the study. Finally, he verified his fingerprints on the digital lock.

Unexpectedly, the door to the study unlocked. He always thought that Gu Jun would’ve removed his fingerprints from the system after he got angry the last time.

The study was still spotless. An Xiaoyan went to the column of medical books. He brushed his finger over the books and randomly pulled one out, then started to read it earnestly.

Before, there were people around the house, thus he did not dare to enter the study. Now that he was all alone at home, he did not have to worry about people gossiping behind his back.

Attracted by the content of the book, An Xiaoyan sat on the floor and read through the book, page by page. When he looked up again, he realized that it was dark outside.

He massaged his sore neck after bowing his head for a long time. He returned the book to the shelf and went downstairs to cook.

There were so many ingredients in the refrigerator, but he only chose the simplest: he sautéed some vegetables, made scrambled eggs with capsicum and sautéed long beans, then ate a simple meal.

Lying on the bed at night, the whole house looked dark. Strong winds were howling outside and the branches of the sycamore trees outside of the window were swaying from side to side. His heart felt empty.

An Xiaoyan sat up and turned on the bedside lamp, then sat quietly.

What’s the point?

The other person who also had difficulty falling asleep was Gu Jun.

This year he definitely felt more welcomed as he returned home.

As they entered the door of the old house, Guo Guo greeted his grandfather and old Mr. Gu’s heart was filled with joy. It was considered a blessing to be able to have a healthy grandson in his lifetime.

“My lovely grandson!”

Old Mr. Gu carried Guo Guo in his arms and rubbed Guo Guo’s head and face with his face. Guo Guo’s little face was pricked with faint marks, and he reacted, “Grandpa, it hurts.”

Old Mr. Gu realized that his beard had been rubbing against the Guo Guo’s skin. “Oops, it is Grandpa’s fault. Come in quickly.”

Gu Jun followed old Mr. Gu into the house, and Guo Guo was still in old Mr. Gu’s arms.

This was the first time Gu Jun arrived back in the old house so early, mainly because Guo Guo had been clamoring to come early. In previous years, Gu Jun was basically always the last to arrive.

The night of the 28th was a family feast for every small family in the Gu family, and the night on the 30th was a family feast for everyone to gather together.

Gu Jing, because his parents died many years ago, also spent the New Year with old Mr. Gu, that was to say, he and Gu Jun had to eat together twice, and pretended to be in harmony.

After dinner, Guo Guo was taken away by the servant. Due to the senior Mr. Gu’s old age, he retreated to his room early, leaving Gu Jun and Gu Jing sitting in the dining room.

“Some time ago, the news of you and a man spread like wildfire. It must have affected your reputation and you have heard much unpleasant gossip.” After Gu Jing finished speaking, he cut a piece of beef and chewed it slowly.

Gu Jun apparently was not bothered with this kind of hypocritical concern. He said angrily, “No matter how bad it sounds, it has nothing to do with you.”

“It really has nothing to do with me. It is natural for a young man like you to have some fun. Things will get better as time passes.”

Gu Jing was three years older than Gu Jun. This year, Gu Jing turned thirty-two years old but spoke in a senior manner, which made Gu Jun very uncomfortable.

“I’m full. Take your time here.”

Looking at Gu Jun’s backside as he walked upstairs, Gu Jing was really taking his time in his meal and told the housekeeper to bring out another portion of steak, then started to savor it slowly.

This year, there is going to be a good show.

Back in the room, Guo Guo had already fallen asleep on the small bed. Gu Jun held Guo Guo in his arms and adjusted him inwards, then laid down beside him.

The truth was that it was the first time he had ever tried to accompany his son to sleep. His son exuded a fragrant scent of milk and Gu Jun pulled up the quilt for his son.

After lying on the bed for a long time, he was still not sleepy. Gu Jun recalled that when he first met An Xiaoyan four years ago, An Xiaoyan was still a young student with an innocent face. If he had been more lenient at that time, An Xiaoyan would not have become like this now.

Nevertheless, at that time, he was only twenty-five years old. He was in his prime and happened to have a child by accident. Then, he recalled Mu Nan, the girl with dimples on both sides when she smiled.

He and Mu Nan had no deep feelings for each other and she got pregnant by accident. Mu Nan’s parents had emigrated abroad since the death of their daughter, and now they no longer stayed in contact with Gu Jun.

If I had been more mature at that time, I would not have hated An Xiaoyan so much.

Looking at the time, it was 2 a.m. Gu Jun’s mobile phone had the contact number of An Xiaoyan. He yearned to call An Xiaoyan and hear his voice. Eventually, he held back his yearning. After all it was almost New Year’s Day, and he decided to let An Xiaoyan have a good night’s rest.

In the twinkling of an eye, it was the last day of the year, a day where the Gu family’s old house would be bustling with noise and excitement.

Early in the morning, people from every branch of the Gu family made their way to the Gu family’s old house to join in the excitement. The Gu family rose in social class a decade ago and was very powerful by the present day. It was no wonder many people would want to make friends or claim ties of kinship with them. Fortunately, most of the people who were present were cousins and dared not have any bad intentions in mind. They simply wanted to have a meal and leave after their children received their red packets.

A meal that was supposed to be simple was a bit unusual this year.

“Hello, Uncle Gu!”

“Here comes Miss Gao. Come in, please. This year you will get a big red packet.” Gao Shan was Gu Jing’s fiancée and old Mr. Gu was cordial towards her. After all, he had to be cordial in the presence of so many people.

“Hello, Uncle.”

Hearing this familiar voice, Gu Jun turned his head and saw Xiu Yijian.

“Gu Jun, come here quickly. Miss Xiu is here, come and welcome her.”

Gu Jun looked reluctant as he walked over, and his heart was full of doubt. He and Xiu Yijian were not even considered friends now. He wondered why she was invited over for dinner. It might be his father who had orchestrated something behind his back.

“Hey!” Xiu Yijian still had a dignified and solemn look, and no one could find any flaw on her.

“Why are you here?”

“Didn’t your family invite me?” Xiu Yijian answered naturally.

“I didn’t invite you.”

“It doesn’t matter who invited me. It seems that someone wants me to be here. As long as we cooperate with each other, it will only do us good.”

Gu Jun did not plan to cooperate with her. He hummed and went upstairs. When did Gu Jun ever have to put up with anything?

Because of the addition of two more women, this year’s dinner seemed very lively. Gu Jing was cooperating with Gao Shan and chatting up with the elders. In contrast, Gu Jun was hiding upstairs and appeared immature.

“Daddy, why are we here? There are many people downstairs and lots of delicious food.” Guo Guo stared at Gu Jun with his big eyes and his face was full of curiosity.

Gu Jun placed his child on his leg and said, “The people downstairs are all wearing masks. You can’t go down without wearing a mask.”

The child naturally could not understand the implied meaning and continued to ask, “Why didn’t Grandpa give us masks so that we could go down and play?”

“Only bad people wear masks. Good people don’t need masks.”

“Then I am a good man, so is my father, and so is Uncle An.”

“Guo Guo, do you like Uncle An?”

“Yes.”

Gu Jun kissed Guo Guo’s chubby little face. Why did I not find this son so obedient before?

“Mr. Gu, young master, old Mr. Gu has requested that the both of you be present downstairs. The guests are all here.” The servant’s voice came from outside the door.

“Dad, we don’t have masks. Why did Grandpa ask us to go downstairs?”

Gu Jun squatted down and covered Guo Guo’s face. “Daddy will put on an invisible mask for you, so you can go downstairs.”

“Wow, that’s great. I will also put on one for to Daddy too.” Guo Guo held out his small hands and covered Gu Jun’s face like Gu Jun had just done. The father and son went downstairs hand in hand.

The group of people downstairs had their eyes focused on Gu Jun and his child.

As soon as he entered the crowd, Gu Jun was surrounded by relatives and Guo Guo had no place to stand.

“I will help you to take care of the child first. Come and look for us over there when you’re done.” Xiu Yijian took Guo Guo to a place where there were fewer people.

Gu Jun did not want to let others touch his child, but given the current situation, it was inconvenient to keep his child by his side. Fortunately, Xiu Yijian was standing nearby where he could see his child easily. This relieved part of his worries.

“You must be the young master. I haven’t had the chance to see you before and finally see you today. You are indeed a smart boy, and Gu Jun really does have a good son!” It was a distant cousin of Gu Jun who spoke. As for their blood relationship, it had long been unclear. The flattery in this remark was so obvious that no one else commented but laughed awkwardly. Everyone knew that Gu Jun’s son was previously behaving like a retard.

“Thank you for your good words. My child is naturally good.” Seeing that Gu Jun was not angry, the people around him started to sing the praises of the child. Gu Jun did not pay much attention to the praises and his eyes were always unknowingly looking in the direction of Guo Guo. In public, Xiu Yijian would not be so foolish to do anything to Guo Guo. However, he was worried that she would say something that did not sound nice to Guo Guo.