Chapter Twenty-Five: Teasing the Cat
The scenery of C City was beautiful, with layer upon layer of mountains draped in a gentle breeze.
As usual, Mr. Yan had to go to the Pearl Winery to take a look. While most domestic wineries cannot match the first-class wineries of France, they are gradually maturing, and the quality of the wines is becoming increasingly outstanding.
Stepping through the vast vineyard, the air was fresh. Walking along the paths lined with large and small grapes, they were tempting like black pearls. Gu Qinglan deliberately slowed down, plucking a grape from the vine, which was a bit sour.
Today's dinner was more substantial, eaten at the outdoor dining table in the vineyard, enjoying local specialty dishes and fine wines. After the meal, various desserts and snacks were laid out, like a picnic under the grape trellises, which made Gu Qinglan recall the illustrations in his childhood Chinese textbooks, feeling a sense of blissful nostalgia. And today, he absolutely would not touch any wine.
The process of winemaking may look simple, but it is deeply complex. Even the slightest mistake can affect the taste of an entire batch of wine, so it is a strictly rigorous engineering process.
Gu Qinglan followed along all day, but he still couldn't understand the difference between the golden yellow and golden color of the wines. To his eyes, the color and luster seemed completely the same, but in Mr. Yan's view, they became a myriad of complex differences. He could even easily determine the value and age of a wine without tasting it.
After staying at the winery for two days, most of the matters had been taken care of, and the flight ticket for tomorrow had already been booked.
The bustling street was filled with smiling passersby.
Steamed stuffed buns, shrimp dumplings, barbecue, cumin-flavored lobster, fried oysters, egg pancakes, hot and dry noodles, candied hawthorns, cross-the-bridge rice noodles, Peking roast duck... and countless other snacks, a lively food street brimming with the scent of humanity.
Gu Qinglan got a Goubuli Baozi, his cheeks puffed out as he stuck one in for Mr. Yan.
After hearing about this food street from the winery manager, Gu Qinglan had begged Mr. Yan to take him there.
In every region, there are such food streets, and the items sold are more or less the same. In Mr. Yan's view, there really wasn't much difference.
Gu Qinglan swallowed the bun: "It's different, it just feels different, the feeling of eating it is different."
Mr. Yan saw his satisfied smile curling at the corners of his mouth, his expression relaxed, his eyes shining, and perhaps it really was different.
That night, when they returned to the apartment, the two slept in their respective rooms. The next day, they took the flight back, and before they had a chance to adjust, Mr. Yan was already busy with the accumulated matters from the past few days.
Heng Xing had indeed renewed the contract with AL, which was completely within expectations.
The contract would take effect from next month, and the company was already preparing to inventory the best-selling wines from the domestic and overseas wineries, plus the annual celebration-related matters, keeping everyone quite busy. Mr. Yan was often busy until late at night.
Gu Qinglan seemed a bit idle at times, sometimes simply falling asleep by the desk. He had completely relaxed around Mr. Yan, no longer constrained or uncomfortable, then being carried by Mr. Yan to the nearby bed.
By the time Mr. Yan finished his work and returned to the Yan mansion, it was already 1 or 2 o'clock at night.
"Well... Mr. Yan, I'll go back now." Gu Qinglan forced himself to stay awake, feeling a bit embarrassed after sleeping the whole way.
"I can't let you go back alone, I'm worried." Mr. Yan's voice was slightly hoarse and lazy: "Stay here tonight."
Gu Qinglan said casually: "It's fine, no one dares to bother me."
Mr. Yan said calmly: "Have you forgotten your identity?"
"...A bodyguard?" Now even he himself was a little lacking in self-confidence.
"Twenty-four hours."
Gu Qinglan immediately understood, nodding heavily with a sense of responsibility: "Tonight, I will definitely protect Mr. Yan's safety."
The result...
"Mr. Yan..."
"Hmm?"
"Don't bodyguards usually stand guard outside the door?"
"Have you heard of a personal bodyguard?"
"Personal... bodyguard... but this is too close!" Gu Qinglan looked at the black eyes in front of him with surprise, stepping back a bit to get out of Mr. Yan's aura. The scent of purple lavender intoxicated him, but fortunately he had been quite cautious these past few days and had sprayed a fragrance blocker, otherwise he would have leaked it long ago.
The completely unaware Gu Qinglan had no idea that he had long been firmly controlled in Mr. Yan's palm.
Mr. Yan said seriously: "Didn't you say you would protect my safety?"
"But this is too close..." Gu Qinglan was on the verge of tears, an Omega being so close to an Alpha, it would be strange if he could remain at ease.
Mr. Yan really enjoyed watching him flustered. It was like teasing a cat: "You're not an Omega, why are you so nervous?"
Gu Qinglan puffed out his chest: "I'm not nervous at all... but even as a Beta, one should maintain propriety, right?"
It seems he's not that stupid after all, Mr. Yan smiled slightly, his thumb unbuckling the belt buckle, the crisp metallic sound reverberating in the quiet room.
Gu Qinglan retreated two steps in horror: "Mr. Yan... what are you doing?"
Mr. Yan stood up and pulled out the belt, the leather material sliding crisply over his waist, making a hissing sound as it rubbed against the fabric.
"Mr. Yan..." Gu Qinglan bit his lip.
Mr. Yan raised an eyebrow: "What are you nervous about? I'm going to take a shower."
"..." Gu Qinglan's face flushed red, dumbfounded.
"Want to join?" Mr. Yan still wanted to tease him.
"No no no, I'll wait outside the door for Mr. Yan."
As the bathroom door closed, the Gu Qinglan outside was in a state of rage and panic, while the Mr. Yan inside had a slight smile on his face.
***
Stretching was one of the most comfortable things in the world, with the morning sun shining brightly. Gu Qinglan tilted his head and stared out the window for a while.
Now he was already familiar with this room, and Auntie Mei had dried and hung his clothes in the corner of the wall. He got up to brush his teeth and wash his face, rubbing the corners of his eyes, looking at himself in the mirror, not knowing why his mood was comfortable yet tense.
He encountered Mr. Yan when he went out, and Gu Qinglan smiled: "Good morning, Mr. Yan."
Mr. Yan was wearing a long-sleeved mulberry silk shirt, the strands of hair at his temples neatly combed back, blending into the deeper and richer black hair. The morning light fell faintly on his brows and eyes, and when he saw Gu Qinglan, the tightly drawn line of his jaw relaxed slightly: "Good morning."
The two walked down the stairs together, and in his leisure, Mr. Yan fastened the cuff buttons.
Sensing Mr. Yan's purple lavender pheromones, Gu Qinglan suddenly stiffened, feeling his skin prickle, a wave of heat spreading from his spine and fermenting. It was the Alpha's pheromones that had triggered a bodily reaction.
Uh oh! Gu Qinglan touched his neck, forgetting to put on the scent blocker, and he hadn't taken any suppressants either.
Gu Qinglan avoided him like the plague, rushing up the stairs in a flurry. Mr. Yan stood at the bottom of the stairs, watching the little tiger flee as if escaping a plague, a smile flickering in his eyes as he gently stroked the banister.
Auntie Mei looked amusedly at the two of them, the corners of her mouth curling in a corrupt smile, her heart blooming with joy.
Comments
Post a Comment