15 Temptation

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Chapter 15

“What? Say that again?” Xuan Congnan exclaimed in shock.

Gu Shi indeed repeated his words with emphasis: “Marry me.”

His gaze was resolute, without a hint of jest. Xuan Congnan even felt that the eyes fixed on his face carried a sense of premeditation.

Looking more closely, the strange feeling that had welled up in his heart vanished. It must have been an illusion.

“...I meant to help you a little,” Xuan Congnan nervously said, “For example, in the future, when I come back to have lunch with you, you won’t have to pay me anymore, and you won’t need to transfer me two thousand yuan.”

“Oh,” Gu Shi lowered his eyes and said softly, “That’s not necessary.”

Xuan Congnan was about to give up on helping him and said decisively, “Then I probably don’t have anything to...”

“Marry me,” Gu Shi interrupted.

Meeting Xuan Congnan’s utterly puzzled gaze, he seemed to realize his abruptness and quickly added, “Not really. It’s a contract marriage. You help me deal with my family, and after a year, I’ll give you ten million yuan as compensation.”

“Ten million?!” Xuan Congnan nearly jumped up, shouting.

Gu Shi nodded: “Yes!”

Then he emphasized with an utterly convincing tone: “That’s right.”

The chicken soup before him was no longer just soup; Xuan Congnan glanced at it and felt it had transformed into ten million yuan in cash.

It was an irresistible temptation to agree to Gu Shi’s proposal.

Suddenly, a woman’s voice sounded from the living room. Xuan Congnan looked up in surprise.

It was Gu Shi’s phone.

He pushed the phone, which was playing a voice message, in front of Xuan Congnan’s eyes: “My mom is urging me to get married. Really, listen.”

“Son, you’re not getting any younger. Why aren’t you married yet? When I was your age, you were already a few years old. If you don’t find someone soon, when you come home for the New Year, I’ll arrange a blind date for you, or maybe you just don’t come back.”

“Hey, I’m telling you, Aunt Dou’s son seems pretty good. You should meet him when you have time. I know you’re busy with work, but you have to think about settling down. Don’t keep making your father and me worry.”

“A few days ago your brother was caught having a crush—really unacceptable. He even wanted to kiss someone—Mom! I didn’t!—Hey, don’t talk yet. I’m telling you, your dad and I seriously reprimanded him. I’m telling you because your brother’s only sixteen, and he almost already has a girlfriend. Why don’t you?”

“Do you want your mother to lie awake every night worrying about your single status? You have to get married this year!”

...Gu Shi stopped the voice message and said, “If I don’t get married, she won’t let me come home.”

Xuan Congnan: “...”

Gu Shi said, “Help me.”

Helping someone once is worth more than building a five-tier pagoda. Xuan Congnan lightly poked the bottom of the chicken soup bowl and quietly asked, “...Ten million?”

Gu Shi was certain: “Ten million.”

Xuan Congnan asked, “Is there a contract?”

Gu Shi replied, “Yes.”

Xuan Congnan: “One-year term?”

Gu Shi: “Yes.”

The chicken soup was cooling. Xuan Congnan took a spoonful and pondered quietly before suddenly asking, “Do we have to make love?”

Gu Shi’s pupils trembled, and he remained speechless for a long while.

Xuan Congnan frowned, regretfully: “If that’s required, then I...”

“No need,” Gu Shi said. He cleared his throat and lowered his voice again: “It’s a contract marriage, not real.”

“Okay,” Xuan Congnan immediately agreed.

Gu Shi held his breath: “You agreed?”

“Mhm,” Xuan Congnan said. “I’m willing to help you.”

A few days ago, Gu Shi had taken home a painting of a fiery sunset before moving. Xuan Congnan remembered Gu Shi spending 52,000 yuan to buy it, saying he would later give it to the one he loved.

Now it seemed that Gu Shi and this loved one could not be together yet; otherwise, he would have just brought that person home directly, right?

Why bother with a fake marriage?

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Two copies of the contract were made. Xuan Congnan suggested Gu Shi wait until tomorrow to sign, saying he couldn’t get away, but Gu Shi disagreed, drafting and printing the contract overnight as if fearing a change of heart the next day.

Xuan Congnan and Gu Shi signed as Party B and Party A respectively.

Thus, that night, Xuan Congnan suddenly gained a partner—albeit a fake one. When he looked at Gu Shi again, he felt a bit awkward.

“Well, I’m going back to sleep?” Xuan Congnan pointed to his bedroom.

Gu Shi carefully put away the two contracts and said, “Okay. Good night, Congnan.”

Xuan Congnan smiled slightly: “Good night, Gu Shi.”

As soon as Xuan Congnan stepped into the bedroom, Gu Shi pulled out his phone and sent a message to the contact saved as “Ms. Meng.”

Gu Shi: [Thanks, Mom.]

Ms. Meng: [It’s done?!]

Gu Shi: [Not yet.]

Above several voice messages from Meng Xiaozhu was Gu Shi’s text.

Gu Shi: [Mom, urging me to get married.]

Ms. Meng: [Who are you urging?]

Gu Shi: [Me.]

Ms. Meng, puzzled but no longer curious, replied: [Wait and see.]

At the Gu household, on the sofa, a fifteen or sixteen-year-old boy clutched a pillow and rolled about, wailing: “Hey, if you’re gonna urge me to get married, why say I’m having a crush? I didn’t kiss anyone! I’m not dating!”

Meng Xiaozhu comforted him: “It’s a white lie; sometimes you have to say it.”

Gu Yishang was handling documents in the study. Hearing the noise downstairs, he came out and peered from the second floor, alert: “Gu Jian is having a crush?”

“Ahhh, I’m not!” Gu Jian rolled even more violently, suddenly falling off the sofa into a crouch, groaning, “Ah... my delicate, tender buttocks.”

“Stop rolling around, be careful,” Meng Xiaozhu hurried over to help him up. “I don’t care. Anyway, your brother told me to urge you. Go settle it with him.”

Gu Jian looked up at Meng Xiaozhu and chuckled: “This was your idea, Mom.”

Meng Xiaozhu chuckled back: “Yes, it was.”

The next day, five million yuan was deposited into Xuan Congnan’s bank account.

A genuine five million.

Gu Shi said, “Half paid in advance; the rest after one year.”

Ten, hundred, thousand, ten thousand... one hundred thousand, one million... counting the zeros back and forth five times, Xuan Congnan felt like he was floating on clouds, hardly believing the money had come so easily.

He responded dully: “Okay.”

Gu Shi said: “During the contract marriage, if my mom asks me to bring you home, can you come with me to meet my parents?”

Party B’s obligations were clearly stated in the contract, including accompanying Party A home to meet his parents and put on an act if needed.

Xuan Congnan said: “Of course.”

He calmly put away his phone to avoid staring at the balance and asked, “Don’t you have work recently?”

“Yeah,” Gu Shi said. “The agent booked two commercials for the first half of the year; shooting these days.”

Xuan Congnan asked, “In this city?”

Gu Shi said, “Next city over.”

“Hmm, commuting back and forth sounds exhausting. You could stay over there for a couple of days,” Xuan Congnan suggested, “Finish the work, then come back.”

Shooting one commercial in the morning, rushing back in the afternoon, then heading back the next day for another shoot and returning again—it sounded tiring just to think about it.

Gu Shi shook his head: “Not troublesome. I want to come back.”

Xuan Congnan said: “Up to you.”

Gu Shi: “Mm.”

Xuan Congnan asked: “When do you leave?”

Gu Shi glanced at his phone like the schedule was unfamiliar to him and hurriedly checked: “The day after tomorrow.”

“Plenty of time.” Xuan Congnan quietly calculated, then told Gu Shi, “I have a gift for you.”

Gu Shi twirled his fingers: “A gift?”

Xuan Congnan nodded: “Yes.”

Two plain white branded T-shirts were no longer pure white; deep-sea blue paint had altered their original color.

With no classes, Xuan Congnan hid away in the studio painting on the clothes.

The next night, he stepped out of the studio and called the person cooking dinner in the kitchen.

“Gu Shi.”

Gu Shi turned: “Coming.”

Xuan Congnan held up the shirts: “Come try them on.”

The night sky was like a dark blue curtain. The front of the shirt featured scattered stars, the back a dim streetlamp.

Near the bottom center of the shirt was a beautiful flower bed. A tall man wearing a mask and hat sat by the flower bed, gazing slightly upward at the moon.

Xuan Congnan deliberately asked, “Does it look familiar?”

Gu Shi stared at the painting: “Yes.”

Two months ago, when Gu Shi had said he was waiting for the moon, Xuan Congnan now wanted to say it again: “You said you were waiting for the moon. Now I’ve painted the moon for you.”

Seeing Gu Shi take off his apron in the living room and, without hesitation, remove the shirt right in front of him, Xuan Congnan was stunned. He quickly lowered his eyelashes, wanting to scold him for not changing in the bedroom, but then remembered they were “married,” so it was not so strange.

Gu Shi said, “It fits well.”

Xuan Congnan looked up, satisfaction growing in his eyes: “Indeed.”

Since the day they met, they had always been courteous, thanking each other for everything. Receiving a gift he had painted for several days, Xuan Congnan thought Gu Shi would say thank you, but heard nothing.

After waiting a while, Xuan Congnan asked, “Why don’t you say thank you?”

Rushing out before dinner was ready, the porridge had a slight burnt taste. Gu Shi wanted to rush back and fix it but remembered his new clothes and quickly changed back to the old ones, putting on an apron before returning to the kitchen.

“No,” Gu Shi said without turning his head. “We’re family.”

Xuan Congnan was taken aback.

Gu Shi said, “Family doesn’t say thank you.”

“...That actually makes sense.” Xuan Congnan sat on the sofa counting his balance, happy, then suppressed a smile and said, “You’re right.”

Two days ago, a fan account revealed Gu Shi’s itinerary. When he arrived in the neighboring city and got off the bus, everyone present noticed Gu Shi looked different from usual.

Besides cooperating with Party A’s requirements, his usual style was rather plain, mostly black and white with no embellishments. But today, his clothes were “flashy,” covered with eye-catching paintings front and back.

Fans wanting the same style immediately long-pressed the camera, searching for the brand.

No identical style.

No replicas!

A fan shouted in disbelief, “Gu Shi!”

In the past, hearing his name, Gu Shi would glance over and wave politely, but today he responded, “Yes.”

“Ahhh, Gu Shi!” The fans excitedly shouted, “Your clothes are so unique!”

“Thank you,” Gu Shi said. “A friend painted them.”

“I was wondering why I couldn’t find the same style! Your friend is amazing at painting. Is that you on it? It’s you, right?”

Some fans noticed that besides the shirt, Gu Shi’s outfit matched the figure sitting by the flower bed in the painting.

Gu Shi said, “It’s me.”

“Ahhh, it’s really beautiful! Will there be a release of the same style? Please release it! I want to buy it! Let me buy it!”

“No same style will be released,” Gu Shi’s eyes above the mask suddenly turned cold and indifferent, no longer flamboyant. He said coldly, “It’s just for me.”