Chapter 67

Chapter 67

A few days passed in the blink of an eye, and Ning Qiuyan returned to the simple routine of shuffling between his dorm and the classroom.

Looking back, from the fire and the kidnapping to ‘Camellia Night,’ the few days he had spent living with Guan Heng had actually been very short. Everything had happened so unexpectedly and so fast-some moments were terrifying to the extreme, while others were magnificent and splendid. If he dwelled on them, those days gradually felt like a drawn-out dream.

Guan Heng’s appearance in Sujing was like a fleeting night-blooming cereus, the most beautiful part of that dream.

The small puncture wounds on Ning Qiuyan’s neck had healed, the purplish-red finger marks had faded, and the last physical traces of Guan Heng had completely vanished.

Only on his earlobe remained the piercing Guan Heng had made with his own hands.

The Ruby Earring adorned his fair earlobe and cartilage, making it very eye-catching. By a rough count, Ning Qiuyan had already been asked for a purchase link by three female classmates.

Every day, he followed Guan Heng’s instructions to disinfect and clean the piercing. Whenever he saw the tiny hole pierced by the silver needle, he would remember the scene of him leaning against Guan Heng’s knees.

Aside from cleaning it, Ning Qiuyan wore the earring at all times.

It wasn’t just because Guan Heng had requested it, but also because only this earring could prove that everything had truly happened.

The ruby was the Mark of a Blood Contract Partner, the proof that he belonged to Guan Heng.

They had only shared a video call on the first night after parting. Even though Ning Qiuyan had taken the initiative to make a promise, they didn’t contact each other every day. However, as long as Ning Qiuyan sent a message to Guan Heng, Guan Heng would definitely reply-sometimes in the morning, sometimes before Ning Qiuyan went to sleep.

It felt like returning to the days when he went to Du Island to donate blood on a fixed schedule. Ning Qiuyan’s life became stable and peaceful again, yet it was filled with anticipation.

He calculated the school’s holiday schedule and the dates Uncle Ping would travel between Du Island and Wutong for supplies, marking the date of their next meeting on the calendar with a red pen.

“Is a long-distance relationship hard to endure?” Rong Qi would sometimes ask him.

“A little.” Because it was too difficult to explain, Ning Qiuyan had tacitly accepted this label in front of Rong Qi. “I just really miss him.”

The more Ning Qiuyan accepted it, the more he began to quietly enjoy his own definition of this relationship. In front of ordinary people, they could be the simplest, most easily explained, and most accepted kind of connection-the kind known as a couple.

Regardless, Guan Heng wouldn’t know.

On the fifth day after Guan Heng left Sujing, Qu Shu called, saying she wanted to take Ning Qiuyan somewhere.

Starting from the alley outside the school, it took them about a twenty-minute drive to reach the destination.

The area belonged to the old city district. As the car passed through the bustling streets, the terrain gradually rose, and a quiet path wound upward. The road was a narrow two-lane street flanked by relatively low-rise residential buildings. However, the area looked very clean; the houses and the street greenery were well-maintained, and there were no shops in sight.

Finally, they stopped in front of a small two-story building. While waiting for the automatic iron gates to open, Ning Qiuyan saw the house number through the car window. It read: No. 47 Jinghua Road.

As the vehicle entered the walls, a small garden with a lawn came into view. Most of the vegetation consisted of evergreens, neatly planted in flower beds.

The first floor of the house was a garage, while the living space was on the second floor. The entire house was decorated in dark tones, primarily wood and dark gray slate. It was clearly a meticulously renovated space with a cool, modern style.

The temperature dropped again in the deep winter, and the air outside was so cold that one’s breath turned into white mist.

Ning Qiuyan looked up at the exterior wall of the second floor. There were four high windows arranged there, each less than fifty centimeters in length and width. Aside from those, the rest was a solid wall, obviously custom-made for privacy. It was hard to tell for a moment whether this was the front or the back of the building.

“Let’s go up first,” Qu Shu said to him.

“Okay.” Ning Qiuyan withdrew his gaze.

Until now, Ning Qiuyan didn’t know what this place was or why they had come.

When he asked Qu Shu, she only said, “You’ll know when we get there.”

Once they reached the second floor, the view suddenly opened up.

The opposite wall was a full floor-to-ceiling window, about seven or eight meters long. Due to the unique terrain and location, the view from this angle was completely unobstructed, offering a clear sight of the city landscape and the towering Sujing Tower.

Standing in this house, the most beautiful scenery of the city was laid out before his eyes.

Ning Qiuyan couldn’t help but be stunned.

“How does it feel?” Qu Shu inquired. Seeing his dazed expression when he turned around, she smiled and said, “Mister insisted that I ask for your first impression.”

Ning Qiuyan nodded and said it was beautiful, then asked, “Why?”
“The Master had people prepare this place after the fire at your school,” Qu Shu said. “It’s hard to buy property in this area, and the timeline was too tight, so we could only rent. Originally, the plan was to get the house ready as quickly as possible so you’d have a place you liked to stay in, rather than being stuck in a hotel or having to search for a place on your own. The Master had already arranged for people to purchase furniture and supplies, but then the plans changed when your school provided new dormitories, so the place was left empty for the time being.”

The apartment was indeed empty. Aside from the original fireplace, there wasn’t so much as a single table or chair in the rooms.

Ning Qiuyan had no idea that Guan Heng had made such plans.

Looking back, after they had run into Rong Qi in front of the hotel elevator that day, Guan Heng had asked him, “Do you still want to live in the dorms?”

As it turned out, Guan Heng wasn’t just concerned about his safety; he had asked because of this house that had already been prepared. Upon learning that Ning Qiuyan chose to continue living on campus, Guan Heng hadn’t mentioned it again. It was a gesture of giving him enough freedom and respect, for Guan Heng had also said, “Your life should be lived brilliantly.”

But since the plans had changed, why had Qu Shu brought him here now?

Noticing his confusion, Qu Shu asked, “Aren’t you afraid of the cold?”

Ning Qiuyan nodded sheepishly.

In truth, the winter temperatures in Wutong were much lower than in Sujing, but in terms of how it actually felt, Sujing was far colder.

“If the temperature drops again, it’s certainly better to have a place with proper heating to stay in,” Qu Shu said. “The air conditioning in the dorms doesn’t do much, and small space heaters aren’t very effective either.”

Ning Qiuyan had only mentioned this to Guan Heng. It was obvious how Qu Shu knew.

A warm current rose in his heart. Guan Heng’s thoughtfulness always manifested in the smallest details, even when the man himself wasn’t present.

Qu Shu also told him that the house was a long-term rental with a ten-year lease. “We’ve already thoroughly cleaned and renovated it from top to bottom; it’s very clean. The Master said that since there’s no rush to move in now, rather than having someone else decorate it, he’d prefer you to do it yourself.”

She walked over to the fireplace, picked up a stack of home decor magazines, and handed them to Ning Qiuyan. “These are all in the style the Master likes. He said your aesthetics are similar, so perhaps you’ll like them too. Take your time browsing through them. If you see something you like, fold the page or mark it with a pen, and I’ll come by in a few days to pick them up.”

Suddenly having several books thrust into his arms, Ning Qiuyan quickly held them tight. “There’s no need… I can’t live in such a big house all by myself.”

Qu Shu gave a gentle smile. “Xiao Ning, this is your home in Sujing now. A home can never be too big.”

Qu Shu went downstairs first, leaving Ning Qiuyan to slowly familiarize himself with the layout and environment of the house.

Ning Qiuyan was never good at accepting material gifts for no reason, but just as Lu Qianque had told him, material wealth and money held no real significance to Vampires. Guan Heng’s reason for doing this was simple-Ning Qiuyan belonged to him.

Whether spiritually or materially, Ning Qiuyan was his to command.

Ning Qiuyan had no need for worry or thought; he only needed to trust completely and live his life, for everything would be arranged by Guan Heng.

Undoubtedly, this intimate yet unequal relationship was something Ning Qiuyan found intoxicating.

Ning Qiuyan walked through the house, passing the empty living room, the small balcony, the storage room, and the study.

It was warm inside. He walked and paused intermittently, taking about ten minutes to see it all.

The place was indeed a bit excessively large; he couldn’t even imagine how he would fill it up.

When he reached the bedroom and saw the solid black accent wall, an image suddenly flashed through Ning Qiuyan’s mind: Guan Heng walking out after a shower at the hotel that day, drying his hair, his cold-white body exposed.

Though he had only seen it once, that perfect physique and the flow of his muscle lines were carved into Ning Qiuyan’s memory like a jade sculpture.

Guan Heng’s aura matched this place perfectly; he was naturally suited to be framed by the color black.

Feeling a surge of heat in his body, Ning Qiuyan raised a hand and covered his eyes.

He felt like he was going to break.

Lately, he was always thinking about these sorts of things. Sometimes, even just looking in the mirror while washing up, he would space out staring at his own reddened lips.

When he went back to Du Island for the holidays, something was bound to happen between them.

Ning Qiuyan couldn’t restrain himself from thinking about it.

Leaving the black wall behind, Ning Qiuyan went to look at the bathroom and the walk-in closet, which felt like looking at the minimalist design samples often seen online. The architecture itself was beautiful enough that it didn’t seem to need much decoration. He thought that if Guan Heng didn’t live on Du Island but had lived in the city all along, he would likely choose a residence just like this.
Finally, Ning Qiuyan returned to the living room. Standing before the glass wall that overlooked Sujing Tower, he took a photo and sent it to Guan Heng.

Ning Qiuyan: [Sir, the view here is excellent. The scenery is beautiful.]

It wasn’t dark yet, so Guan Heng didn’t reply.

Exiting the messaging interface, the photo he just took sat right next to the one Guan Heng had sent on the day he left. Both were landscapes of Sujing Tower-one was of the night, the other of the day.

On a whim, Ning Qiuyan chose the night view of the tower taken by Guan Heng as his phone wallpaper.

Carrying his home decor magazines downstairs, he saw Qu Shu talking to the driver in the garden. When she saw Ning Qiuyan, she said to him, “Xiao Ning, Li Tang just called. He said the clothes he made for you last time are ready to be picked up.”

Instead of heading straight back to school, they made another trip to Li Tang’s studio.

The clothes were all custom-made to Ning Qiuyan’s measurements or purchased by a personal shopper. In addition to some daily wear, there was surprisingly even a formal suit. It had been less than ten days since they talked about making the clothes, and Li Tang’s speed was staggering.

“When I’m interested in something, inspiration naturally bursts forth and I work faster. Isn’t it the same for you when you’re composing music?” Li Tang’s makeup was as exquisite as ever, and he was wearing a shade of purple lipstick. He gave Ning Qiuyan a playful, reproving pat. “Also, I only drew the patterns and cut the fabric for this suit myself. Everything else was handled by my staff. No matter how much Mr. Guan rushes me, I don’t have eight hands.”

Ning Qiuyan asked hesitantly, “Mr. Guan rushed you?”

“Of course,” Li Tang said. “Isn’t he worried you’ll be cold now that the weather is changing?”

Ning Qiuyan really didn’t have many clothes. He had lost some in the fire, and he had only bought a random jacket when he went out last time. Usually, he wore that down jacket with pockets large enough to hold a milk bottle.

He just hadn’t expected Guan Heng to notice even this.

Li Tang had someone pack the clothes into bags. Before they left, Li Tang seemed to remember something and called out to him, “Wait, Xiao Ning.”

Ning Qiuyan stood by the rows of clothes racks, clutching his bags and looking a bit lost, like a shopaholic who had just finished a spree.

Qu Shu and the driver were helping him carry several more. These wouldn’t all fit in the dorm, so they planned to drop them off at the house later.

A few minutes later, Li Tang brought out a small black leather case and handed it to Ning Qiuyan with a smile. “I almost forgot this. Although I only cut the patterns for your clothes, I put a lot of thought into this. The contents of this case took a lot of my energy; I really worked day and night to get it done.”

Ning Qiuyan asked, “What is this?”

“Take a look when you get back,” Li Tang winked. “I hope you two enjoy using it.”

You two?

Ning Qiuyan didn’t quite understand, but he still thanked him gratefully.

Li Tang didn’t say more. He waved them off and hurried away, his male heels clicking on the floor.

By the time they headed back, it was already evening. Ning Qiuyan received a reply from Guan Heng regarding the photo: [Do you want to live there?]

Five simple words.

Ning Qiuyan could imagine Guan Heng’s expression as he said this. He replied: [I do.]

Guan Heng: [You won’t have to stay in the dorm alone during holidays anymore.]

Ning Qiuyan immediately understood what Guan Heng meant.

His home wasn’t in Sujing, and he had no family left in his home far away in Wutong. Every holiday was spent alone. Except for long breaks like last year’s Spring Festival, school holidays were mostly very short-like the upcoming Winter Solstice, Christmas, and New Year’s Day. Local roommates would choose to go home, and other students had families checking in on them. The holidays were short, but for Ning Qiuyan, the loneliness was no less intense.

Even though he would still be alone in that house, he now had a place of his own-a better choice.

He messaged Guan Heng: [Yeah. I just got the keys and entered my fingerprints and passcode.]

Guan Heng: [What is the passcode?]

Ning Qiuyan was a little surprised that Guan Heng would ask, but he still replied: [986231.]

Then he explained: [I just picked it randomly. It doesn’t have any special meaning.]

Guan Heng: [Okay.]

They didn’t exchange any more messages.

Ning Qiuyan turned off his screen and sat in the car dazing for a while. Suddenly, he felt his phone vibrate. When he opened it, Guan Heng had sent another message.

Guan Heng: [Ning Qiuyan, I have no intention of returning to a long slumber.]

Ning Qiuyan’s eyes slowly widened. Guan Heng was continuing their conversation from the park.

Immediately after, Guan Heng sent the next messages.

[Nor do I intend to leave you alone in Sujing for four years.]

[It’s just that you still need to prepare.]