Chapter 60
Lin Zheng couldn’t deny that he had always felt a subtle fondness for Gu Lin. But, at the end of the day, fondness and love were two different things.
You can have a fondness for many people at once, but you can only truly love one.
Your heart can only hold the person you truly love.
Spending every day with Gu Lin, Lin Zheng always thought his feelings were still at the “fondness” stage. Perhaps it was because his interactions with Gu Lin hadn’t changed much from before, or maybe it was because Gu Lin’s attitude toward him had always been the same.
But after hearing Yu Huanyuan’s words, Lin Zheng realized that during all that seemingly calm, uneventful time, his feelings for Gu Lin had already changed. Unbeknownst to him, his feelings had deepened, growing from a simple fondness into love.
He had fallen in love.
Seeing Lin Zheng’s silence, Yu Huanyuan thought he had said too much and felt a bit embarrassed. “I’m sorry, did I talk too much? When I talk about her, I can’t help myself. My dad says the same thing about me. Okay, let’s talk about something else.”
Lin Zheng, however, said, “It’s fine, let’s keep talking about this. I’d like to hear more about her.”
Yu Huanyuan was surprised for a moment, then smiled. “Are you sure?”
Lin Zheng smiled. “Mmm.”
When they parted ways, Yu Huanyuan asked about where he was living, saying he wanted to visit him sometime.
Lin Zheng had few friends, and he was happy that Yu Huanyuan was willing to visit him.
So he gave him his current address.
Yu Huanyuan repeated the address to himself, then asked, confused, “Why are you living there?”
The area Lin Zheng was living in was a well-known golden neighborhood, an exclusive part of the city where most young professionals lived.
It wasn’t that Yu Huanyuan thought Lin Zheng wasn’t a good fit for the area. It was just that it was difficult for even a well-off person to afford to live there, let alone Lin Zheng, who, as far as he knew, had almost no savings. He seemed to have completely cut ties with the Zhao family. And even if he hadn’t, there was no way the Zhao family would have been so generous as to help him live there.
Before Yu Huanyuan said anything, Lin Zheng only knew that his neighborhood had convenient transportation and was close to his work. He had no idea that it was a wealthy neighborhood in A City, or that you had to apply to buy a house there.
But that wasn’t what Lin Zheng was most concerned about. Lin Zheng’s most pressing question was, “Huanyuan, how much does it cost to rent there for a year?”
Yu Huanyuan’s family was in real estate development. Although that area wasn’t their territory, he still knew a thing or two about it.
He didn’t know the average yearly rent, but he did know the lowest price that had ever been offered.
He told Lin Zheng a number.
Lin Zheng was shocked.
Lin Zheng remembered the price he had rented the house from Gu Lin for and realized that Gu Lin was a great philanthropist.
Yu Huanyuan seemed to remember something. He asked, “Zheng’er, I heard you’re working for Gu Lin now?”
Lin Zheng didn’t know how Yu Huanyuan knew, but he still nodded.
Yu Huanyuan narrowed his eyes and smiled. “You’re probably living at Gu Lin’s place now, aren’t you?”
Lin Zheng hesitated for a second, then thought, What’s there to hesitate about? So he openly admitted it. “Yeah, but I’m not living for free; I’m paying rent.”
He had to emphasize this point.
Even though the rent he was paying was just a drop in the ocean for Gu Lin.
Looking at Yu Huanyuan’s mischievous smile, Lin Zheng coughed, embarrassed. “Okay, stop laughing. I told you I’m paying rent.”
Yu Huanyuan said sincerely, “To be honest, I always thought you two wouldn’t last more than a month. Your personalities are like day and night, and you were the one who pursued him. Sorry, I don’t mean that in a bad way. It’s just that a forced relationship is never that stable. But now, you two have really changed my mind. I’ve changed my mind about your personality, and I’ve changed my mind about the fact that you two have been together for so long.”
Lin Zheng knew that Yu Huanyuan only saw the surface—that he and Gu Lin were together. He had no idea what had happened between them during that seemingly calm time.
From the time he first stayed with Gu Lin, to the time he escaped, to the time Gu Lin found him, to the time he revealed his identity and was surprisingly and movingly accepted by Gu Lin, and everything that followed.
Both he and Gu Lin had changed.
He had gone from being at odds with Gu Lin to now being dependent on him and feeling other emotions for him.
And Gu Lin had also gone from always looking at him with a scrutinizing gaze to now looking at him with tenderness.
It’s not easy to fall in love with someone, and it’s even harder to fall in love with someone who truly feels the same way about you.
Thankfully, they liked each other.
Thinking this, a smile appeared on Lin Zheng’s face.
Just the thought of the person he liked liking him back made Lin Zheng feel warm inside, as if he were holding a bowl of hot porridge—warm and happy.
So this was what it felt like to fall in love with someone and be loved in return.
In that moment, Lin Zheng really wanted to see Gu Lin.
He wanted to rush into Gu Lin’s broad chest, feel his body heat and his powerful heartbeat, hold him tight, and greedily inhale his clean, pleasant scent.
Never had Lin Zheng wanted to see Gu Lin so much.
After saying goodbye to Yu Huanyuan, Lin Zheng hailed a taxi. Although Gu Lin had said he could come pick him up when he was done, it was always Gu Lin who came to him and held him close. So this time, he wanted to go to Gu Lin and rush into his arms.
Thinking of this, Lin Zheng was a bit excited, even gripping the umbrella he was holding in the back seat of the taxi.
Yu Huanyuan was right. Feelings are insignificant when you don’t notice them, but once you do, they become a spark that can start a wildfire, filling your entire chest and body until you feel like you’re about to overflow.
The time it would take to get home felt like it was moving in slow motion. Lin Zheng counted the seconds, his mind filled with Gu Lin, feeling anxious that even a single extra second would be too long.
When he counted to seven hundred and sixty-eight seconds, the familiar door in front of him opened from the inside.
Lin Zheng grinned, taking a deep breath.
I’m about to see him!
When the face that had been in his mind finally appeared, Lin Zheng, standing on his tiptoes, jumped and hung onto the person who had just opened the door. He wrapped his arms around the person’s neck. “Gu Lin!”
Lin Zheng’s smile widened.
He closed his eyes, inhaling the person’s familiar scent.
He felt even happier.
Hmm? Why does something suddenly feel off?
Lin Zheng opened his eyes and felt his body leaning forward… No, Gu Lin’s body was falling backward!
A few seconds later, Gu Lin’s face was pale. He was only wearing a thin sweater, with his right hand on the ground and his left still trying to protect Lin Zheng.
Lin Zheng looked at Gu Lin’s pale face and was a bit shocked. He quickly asked, “Gu Lin, what’s wrong?”
Was my hug that powerful? Did I really shock Gu Lin that much?!!
Gu Lin’s voice sounded a bit hoarse. He smiled at Lin Zheng and said, “It’s nothing, I just caught a cold.”
“What’s wrong?” Lin Zheng asked worriedly.
He had just left a few hours ago, and Gu Lin had been fine.
Wait a minute… Was Gu Lin coughing this afternoon? At the time, he was eating, so Lin Zheng just thought he was choking and didn’t pay attention. He didn’t think he actually had a cold!
Gu Lin had always been in great health. Lin Zheng couldn’t believe that Gu Lin would suddenly catch a cold in a season that wasn’t particularly cold or hot.
Wait a minute… it wasn’t a sudden cold.
His cold had just gotten better, and now Gu Lin had the symptoms of a cold.
This… I must have given it to him?
A strong sense of guilt suddenly filled Lin Zheng’s heart. He grabbed Gu Lin’s arm, on the verge of tears. “Gu Lin, did I give it to you? It must have been me, right?”
After all, he had been living with Gu Lin during his cold, and Gu Lin had been the one taking care of him when he was too sick to get out of bed.
Looking at the worried and remorseful expression on the person’s face, Gu Lin comforted him by patting his back, forcing a smile. “It’s not your fault. It’s because I’ve been eating whatever I want recently.”
Lin Zheng was good at reading people’s expressions, so he knew Gu Lin was just trying to comfort him. This only made him feel more guilty. But guilt wouldn’t solve the problem. What he needed to do now was face the problem and solve it.
He raised a hand and patted his chest. He said seriously to Gu Lin, “This time, you can rely on me. I’ll take good care of you.”
Gu Lin was visibly stunned for a moment. Then, his eyes became a little softer, and he softly said, “Mmm.”
Although Lin Zheng wanted to tell Gu Lin that he also liked him and that he had the same feelings for him, this was clearly not the right time. Gu Lin was sick and in a vulnerable state.
The main reason was… Gu Lin couldn’t even hold him now.
Lin Zheng covered his mouth, holding back his tears.
He had imagined his confession scene to be a scene where Gu Lin would pick him up and spin him around.
Lin Zheng held back his tears.
But it was okay. All he had to do was help Gu Lin get better.
When Gu Lin got better, he would tell him how he felt.
Just thinking about it made Lin Zheng smile like a fool.
The Chinese medicine in front of him was about to overflow. Lin Zheng quickly turned off the stove, used a cloth to hold the pot, and poured the medicine into a bowl.
The dark brown medicine looked unappetizing, and the bitter smell filled the air. But there was no other way; this was the fastest way to get better, even faster than Western medicine.
When he was sick, it took him over a week to get better with Western medicine. It was so slow.
When Lin Zheng brought the medicine into the room, the person sitting up in bed reading a book frowned a little.
Lin Zheng pretended not to see it.
Even if you frown, you still have to drink the medicine.
Lin Zheng sat down on the bed and handed the medicine to Gu Lin. “This will help you get better. I spent a long time making it.”
Gu Lin looked a bit unhappy. “It’s bitter.”
Lin Zheng coaxed him like he was a child. “Good medicine tastes bitter. It might be bitter when you drink it, but once you finish it, you’ll get better.”
Gu Lin put his book down but still didn’t take the bowl. Instead, he looked at Lin Zheng and smiled. “Maybe it won’t be so bitter if Assistant Lin feeds it to me himself.”
Lin Zheng heard this and thought, He should have just said he wanted me to feed him.
Lin Zheng didn’t really mind. It was just feeding medicine; it was simple. Gu Lin was sick, and he was just feeding him medicine.
But just as he picked up the spoon, he heard his boss say, “Ah, I think I’ve changed my mind again.”
Lin Zheng looked at Gu Lin with a look that said, What more do you want?
Gu Lin smiled and used his finger to tap his right cheek. “If Assistant Lin can give me a kiss here, maybe the medicine will become sweet.”
Author’s Note: A kiss is also very simple~
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