Chapter 250: Chapter 243: Learning a Bit of Massage
The inertia from the sudden stop instantly broke Gu Muxue’s balance. She fell forward onto Xue Rui’s back with a gasp.
’This girl is pretty stacked,’ Xue Rui thought. ’Even in a dress, her curves are obvious. Still, she’s not quite on the same level as the little lass...’
"Jerk! You did that on purpose." Gu Muxue smacked Xue Rui’s helmet hard.
Yang Xing’s eyes widened slightly. He had just turned the corner and saw Gu Muxue hitting Xue Rui’s head. How was Xue Rui supposed to ride properly if this kept up?
’Kids these days are so mischievous.’
"Muxue, you’re going to affect Xue Rui’s driving. Why don’t you ride in my car instead?" Yang Xing advised.
Xue Rui loudly chimed in, "Exactly! How am I supposed to ride with you doing that?"
"Of all the roads in the world, safety is always number one..."
Gu Muxue gritted her teeth in frustration. She felt so wronged!
It was clearly Xue Rui who had started messing with her, yet here he was, spouting all this righteous nonsense.
Yang Xing hadn’t seen Xue Rui slam on the brakes.
While Xue Rui was stopped, she stealthily reached out, planning to pull the key from the ignition. However, Xue Rui spotted her little move in the rearview mirror and grabbed her wrist.
"Let go, or I’ll tickle you," Gu Muxue threatened.
"It’s not that I won’t let you ride. I’ll find a place with less traffic for you," Xue Rui said.
He had noticed long ago that the girl was very interested in this little pink electric scooter.
Given Gu Muxue’s personality, she would definitely want to take it for a few laps.
When Gu Muxue heard she could ride it herself, she immediately quieted down and sat waiting patiently on the back.
’Well, I have no choice now,’ Xue Rui thought. ’I guess I’ll have to let her get her fill of it.’
Finding a stretch of road with few people, the girl got on herself and started riding in circles by the roadside.
"I’ll give you a ride once I get the hang of it," Gu Muxue said.
Once Gu Muxue had ridden a little farther away, Xue Rui offered a cigarette to Yang Xing. "Uncle Yang, you can’t possibly still be following her when she goes to university, can you?"
He felt the Gu Family was spoiling her rotten, giving her a full-time driver and having someone watch her wherever she went.
"Of course I’ll follow. Madam Zhao has already bought two apartments near Changjiang University—one for me and one for Muxue," Yang Xing said nonchalantly.
"Huh?" Xue Rui looked at him in disbelief. ’Is all that really necessary?’
"Madam Zhao said that Chang’an’s housing prices are still low and will rise later, so she considers it an investment," Yang Xing said.
Xue Rui was slightly surprised. Gu Muxue’s mother was absolutely right. From this point on, housing prices in Chang’an would double in the next few years...
As expected, capital had a keen sense of smell.
"What does Muxue think about it?" Xue Rui asked.
Yang Xing hesitated for a moment, then figured it wouldn’t hurt to tell Xue Rui. He began, "I don’t know. Anyway, Director Gu and Madam Zhao have been fighting again recently..."
Gu Qingshan believed that one couldn’t become resilient without experiencing hardship. Being chauffeured everywhere, having a separate apartment just for school—with a family background like that, it would be difficult for her to make genuine friends.
But Zhao Lizhen felt that friends at this stage were temporary. After graduation, everyone goes their separate ways. People from different social classes were never meant to mix, so why should she make her daughter suffer unnecessarily?
"What do you think?" Xue Rui asked.
"I just drive my car. What’s the point of getting involved in their business?" Yang Xing shook his head.
The two chatted by the roadside for a while before Gu Muxue pulled the scooter over, honked the horn just as Xue Rui had done earlier, and said, "Get on."
Xue Rui hesitated for a second before getting on behind Gu Muxue. "I’ll treat you to a meal. We’ll switch when we get to the busy part of town."
"Okay." Gu Muxue didn’t try to act tough. She’d almost thrown Xue Rui off the last time she insisted on showing off.
Xue Rui looked at Gu Muxue’s slender waist and gently wrapped his arms around it.
Gu Muxue’s body shuddered, and the scooter wobbled along with her.
She felt like she had fallen right into Xue Rui’s trap. Did he deliberately buy such a cute little electric scooter just for this moment?
And now she couldn’t even free a hand to hit him.
But, on second thought...
...she didn’t seem to mind it all that much.
"You’re riding too fast. I’m scared," Xue Rui said.
Gu Muxue pouted. Xue Rui, scared? ’How is that possible?’
A gentle breeze brushed against her face. The country road was lined with golden wheat fields, and the weather today was exceptionally cool. She was in a great mood.
"I’m in a good mood today, so I’ll treat you," Gu Muxue said.
She didn’t want Xue Rui to pay her back; in fact, she wished he owed her more.
She didn’t like relationships where no one owed anyone anything. She liked it when Xue Rui owed her.
"I don’t care what we eat. I wanted to ask you, for university, do you want to live in the dorms or live off-campus?" Xue Rui asked.
A flicker of panic crossed Gu Muxue’s eyes. What did Xue Rui mean by that question?
’Live in the dorms or live off-campus?’
She had never lived in a dorm before. She actually really wanted to experience it...
But she had asked some university students and heard that young couples sometimes rent an apartment together off-campus. Was that what Xue Rui was implying?
’Living together? Isn’t it a little too soon?’
’Xue Rui hasn’t even confessed his feelings yet!’
...
Her cheeks grew hot at the thought, and she didn’t know how to answer him.
"I don’t know," Gu Muxue said.
Her parents seemed to have had a little argument about this very thing last night.
Xue Rui nodded slightly. Gu Muxue seemed assertive, but in reality, she had always been kept in a box, simply choosing from the multiple-choice questions her parents gave her.
And what about the little lass? Because she didn’t have parents, her life was almost completely free. No one followed her when she went out, there was no so-called "curfew," and he could easily whisk her away to another city without anyone worrying too much.
"Adults don’t do multiple choice. You can have it all," Xue Rui said.
"Huh? What do you mean?" Gu Muxue murmured.
"You can live in the dorms during your first year to quickly blend in with your classmates. Then, when the time is right, you can move out," Xue Rui explained.
Gu Muxue smiled. She thought Xue Rui’s idea was great. Seeing a speed bump up ahead, she subconsciously wanted to get back at Xue Rui, so she decelerated sharply right before it.
Xue Rui had anticipated this. He feigned shock, hugged the girl’s waist tightly, and pressed himself against her back.
Gu Muxue bit her lip. She’d lost out again...
But then again, how was she losing out? As long as things didn’t go too far, she was actually willing...
But before the two of them could even reach the city, a light drizzle began to fall from the sky.
Xue Rui checked his phone. The forecast had changed from cloudy to light rain.
"It’s fine, it’s just a light rain," Xue Rui said.
However, not even a few minutes later, the weather forecast changed again to heavy rain...
"Muxue, Xue Rui, get in the car, quick!" Yang Xing shouted, honking his horn.
Xue Rui was speechless. ’What kind of fucking forecast is this? You might as well call it a real-time weather report.’
He had planned to take the girl for a stroll through the food street to try some new things. That was out of the question now that their clothes were soaking wet.
Xue Rui found a nearby place to shelter from the rain, locked up the scooter, and got into Yang Xing’s car.
"Let’s go to my place," Gu Muxue said, trying to act calm. Her parents should be home by now.
The main reason was she didn’t know what had happened between Old Gu and Xue Rui, and she also wanted Xue Rui to help talk to her parents about her living situation at university so they wouldn’t fight anymore.
Xue Rui swallowed. ’Are things getting this exciting?’ he thought.
’A rainy day, damp clothes... even if they’re not soaked...’
’Why does this feel so much like one of those stories?’
Yang Xing nodded slightly. He could just drive Xue Rui home later.
"Well then, I suppose I’ll reluctantly agree," Xue Rui said, the corners of his mouth rising uncontrollably.
Gu Muxue pinched Xue Rui. Why did his expression look so punchable?
Sometimes she just couldn’t control her hands.
She patted her own cheeks. She didn’t know what was wrong with her. It seemed like Xue Rui was the only person she disliked.
’And yet, I like him so much.’
The car pulled up smoothly in front of the Gu Family’s home. Yang Xing opened the door for Gu Muxue and opened an umbrella. He said to Xue Rui, "It’s just a few steps. You can walk."
Xue Rui instantly felt it was unfair. ’Why don’t you walk over in the rain, then?’
He shamelessly squeezed between the two of them. "It’s cold."
Yang Xing’s brow twitched in annoyance—the kid had just stepped on his leather shoes. He let go of the umbrella. "Fine, I’ll walk over, happy now?"
"Uncle Gu, Aunt Zhao," Xue Rui called out, greeting the two people in the room.
The two were sitting apart, one on the sofa and the other at the dining table. He had to turn his head back and forth just to greet them.
Gu Qingshan looked up, shot him a cold glance, and went back to reading his book.
"Xiaorui, what are you doing here?" Zhao Lizhen said with a smile. Seeing how damp they both were, she quickly ushered Xue Rui inside. "How did you get so soaked?"
Yang Xing looked embarrassed. ’It’s all that brat Xue Rui’s fault,’ he thought. ’But an adult can’t shirk responsibility...’
"Aunt Zhao, it’s all my fault. I took Muxue for a ride on the electric scooter, and it suddenly started raining," Xue Rui said.
"Don’t say another word. Both of you, go upstairs and wash up," Zhao Lizhen said, pushing Xue Rui toward the stairs.
Gu Qingshan suddenly couldn’t sit still any longer.
Even though they wouldn’t be showering in the same room, he felt it was necessary to keep an eye on things and, while he was at it, ask Xue Rui a few questions.
"Xiaorui, I’ll show you the way." Gu Qingshan put down his book and followed Xue Rui upstairs.
Xue Rui swallowed. Gu Qingshan placed a hand on his shoulder, his fingers digging forcefully into the flesh around his collarbone.
A piercing pain shot through him. He heard Gu Qingshan ask in a low voice, "What were you doing there the other day?"
Xue Rui knew he couldn’t play dumb with Gu Qingshan. He answered, "I only went in because I saw you go in. I was just curious about what goes on in there."
"Hmm?" ’This kid can really take the pain,’ Gu Qingshan thought.
Still, Xue Rui wasn’t a member at that establishment, so it was possible he had gone in on a whim after seeing them.
Xue Rui said earnestly, "Actually, I wanted to learn some massage techniques so I can give my family massages in the future."
Gu Qingshan glanced at Xue Rui in surprise. That was the first time he’d ever heard that excuse.
"How much did you learn? Tell me about it," Gu Qingshan asked casually, observing Xue Rui’s reaction.
Xue Rui began, "For example, the Yongquan acupoint belongs to the Kidney Meridian of Foot-Shaoyin. It nourishes yin and purges fire..."
Listening to Xue Rui speak so knowledgeably, Gu Qingshan thought, ’This kid’s not bad. Even if he just memorized all this beforehand to deal with me, at least he put in the effort.’
It was just that his demeanor, so much like Xie Jianfeng’s, rubbed him the wrong way no matter how he looked at it.
"Uncle Gu, how far are you planning on following me?"
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