Chapter 84

Chapter 84

The thick layer of snow stopped the car from sliding any farther down. Guan Heng got out and pushed it once, then climbed back in and worked the controls. At last, before night fell, he successfully rescued the off-road vehicle.

They spent the night in a tent.

This trip had not been a spur-of-the-moment decision on Guan Heng’s part. Food, drinking water, and bedding had all been prepared. The trunk was packed full of things Ning Qiuyan might need, even a stove and a small pot.

Granny Bai had made semi-prepared dishes and sorted them into separate food containers, so Ning Qiuyan only needed to do some simple cooking.

They had stopped at the border between the Forest and the snowfield, where the trees did an excellent job of blocking the biting wind.

Ning Qiuyan spread a picnic mat over the snow, lit the little stove, and used a mountain mushroom soup base to make himself a steaming bowl of udon.

Guan Heng was gone for about an hour.

When he returned, the sky was not completely dark yet, but the moon was bright, the stars were sparse, and the sharp outline above the mountain range was still visible.

After dinner, Ning Qiuyan’s stomach was warm, and his whole body turned languid.

They leaned against each other, not talking all the time. Most of the time, they simply admired the scenery in silence. Ning Qiuyan rarely had a chance like this, and even Guan Heng, who had lived on Du Island for so long, had only made this trip happen because of the holiday, and because of Ning Qiuyan.

“Too bad I didn’t bring my phone,” Ning Qiuyan said. “There are so many views I want to take pictures of and add to that audio album I made.”

Guan Heng had brought his. He took out his phone and handed it to Ning Qiuyan, entering the passcode to unlock it without any intention of hiding it.

The wallpaper that appeared on the screen was the photo Ning Qiuyan had taken of Sujing Tower.

Guan Heng still had not changed it.

Ning Qiuyan felt he was really rather slow. He had clearly noticed all these little details long ago, yet he had never thought about what they meant on a deeper level. He had even had to ask Guan Heng again, forcing Guan Heng to personally explain what the “reward” was.

He was not only Guan Heng’s Blood Contract Partner. They were in a relationship.

That was why, back in Sujing, Guan Heng had touched him. That was why he had specially planned their city trip, just like this tour around Du Island.

Guan Heng was not good at activities that conformed to human social customs, but he had not skipped a single thing that should be done, such as going on a date with a human on the first day of the new year.

“This photo isn’t very good,” Ning Qiuyan said to Guan Heng. “When I was making the album, I looked up some tutorials online and learned a little bit about photography. Next time, I’ll try to take a better one and send it to you.”

Guan Heng said, “All right,” and gestured for him to open the camera.

The light at this time of day was at its fullest and softest. Any casual frame looked beautiful. In the lens, the snowfield and mountains carried dark flecks of noise, making them appear hazy and full of cool, detached poetry.

Ning Qiuyan took several photos in a row and said he would have Guan Heng send them to him once they got back.

After thinking for a moment, he asked Guan Heng, “Can we take a photo together?”

Guan Heng did not like being photographed. The group photo taken every Spring Festival was already the limit of what he would tolerate. He was not someone infatuated with himself, either, and cared even less about his appearance. Ning Qiuyan had never seen him keep any memento of himself.

Even making this request felt childish.

Sure enough, Guan Heng raised an eyebrow slightly. “Haven’t we taken one before?”

“That one was taken by someone else.” Ning Qiuyan’s face flushed a little, and he said softly, “I want to keep a special one. For myself.”

Right now, the only photo Ning Qiuyan had of Guan Heng was the side view he had secretly recorded when they went to Wencui Park last time, under the excuse of recording the sound of rain. That torment of missing someone so badly it became a disaster, while not even having a single photo of Guan Heng, was something Ning Qiuyan truly did not want to experience again.

Guan Heng agreed.

Ning Qiuyan immediately brightened. He hurriedly turned the phone camera around, and the two of them appeared on the screen at the same time.

Afraid Guan Heng would change his mind, Ning Qiuyan took the photo very quickly. In the end, all that remained was an image of him in the foreground with his face bright red, while Guan Heng sat behind him, looking lazily toward the camera.

After taking it, Ning Qiuyan said, his palm burning hot, “Can you send me this one too?”

Guan Heng maintained a habitual posture, one hand resting on his bent knee while the other stroked the back of Ning Qiuyan’s neck, kneading it now and then. “Mm.”

Ning Qiuyan sat for a while, then stood and went nearby to take a few more photos. By then, the sky had turned completely dark.

Late that night, Ning Qiuyan heard several wolf howls from inside his sleeping bag.

Half asleep and half awake, he opened his eyes and saw Guan Heng beside him. Then, dazedly, he drifted back to sleep.

Early the next morning, Ning Qiuyan was bitten by Guan Heng for the second time.

This time, his reaction was different from all the times before.

His body seemed to have undergone certain changes. While it was adapting to Guan Heng’s toxin, it also grew excited because of it.

The two of them were pressed so close together that Guan Heng could not possibly fail to notice, but Guan Heng still did not touch him. He merely waited for the toxin’s effects to pass, and when Ning Qiuyan regained his clarity, he gripped his waist and turned him over.

“Open your mouth.”

Guan Heng commanded him.

Held in Guan Heng’s arms, Ning Qiuyan obediently opened his mouth at his order.

Guan Heng’s long fingers entered his mouth, dipped into the saliva on the tip of his tongue, then smeared it over his lips. The pressure was heavy, making his lips instantly redden and swell. Then that hand cupped his jaw.

“Lift your head,” Guan Heng said in a low voice. “Look at yourself.”

Once Ning Qiuyan saw the scene before him clearly, his face instantly turned as red as a persimmon.

They were facing the phone camera.

The fingers entered his mouth again. Ning Qiuyan’s parted lips could not close at all, and he could not escape Guan Heng’s restraint. He could only look helplessly at himself on the screen, and at Guan Heng, whose figure enveloped him from behind.

The image froze.

Fair was fair. Guan Heng also needed to take a photo for “himself.”
The off-road vehicle circled Du Island, stopping and starting along the way. Whenever they ran into a place they couldn’t pass, Guan Heng simply turned the car around.

They didn’t have to be headed anywhere in particular. Wherever they went, they were free.

There was no doubt that a trip like this was intensely romantic, almost dreamlike, yet it was also so real. Sometimes Guan Heng would open the sunroof, and Ning Qiuyan would stick half his body out, shouting at the top of his lungs as the car moved forward.

They parked at the foot of the snowy mountain and decided to continue on foot, spending five or six hours climbing together to the highest point on Du Island.

The sky was still clear.

Several consecutive days of fine weather seemed to herald the arrival of spring.

Standing atop the snowy peak, they could see the familiar sweep of the Forest and the Lighthouse by the sea. Turning in a circle, they could even make out the direction of the manor in the distance and glimpse the faint, pale-blue lake through the haze. They were already very close to home. Their journey was about to end.

On the way down the mountain, Ning Qiuyan unexpectedly caught sight of a scrap of black fabric caught on the low branches of a tree.

The ragged strips fluttered in the wind, as if they had been torn off after snagging on something. Its appearance was jarringly out of place.

“Sir, look.” He took the fabric down and walked over to show Guan Heng. “It looks like clothing.”

Guan Heng glanced at it and said, “Mm. The stowaways left it behind.”

Ning Qiuyan had heard from Dr. Ling what those people were after. His brows drew together, and he quickly threw the fabric away.

Seeing this, Guan Heng told him, “Du Island is only so large. They were lingering near the manor, and when they were being hunted down, their only option was to flee upward.”

Ning Qiuyan knew those people had all been caught, but he didn’t know how they had been dealt with. He asked, “Are they still on the island?”

“They are,” Guan Heng said. “I’ve already informed Wagner. People from the Blood Supervision Council will come and take them away.”

At the mention of Wagner, Ning Qiuyan suddenly remembered that he had run into him at the brand’s company.

He told Guan Heng about it, then said, “When I saw Miss Sheng the night before last, I wanted to tell you I’d met Mr. Jones, but then I started talking with Li Tang and the others, and I forgot.”

Guan Heng walked through the snow, his long hair loose around him, as though he were a spirit born from this mountain.

He casually snapped off a branch and tossed it to Ning Qiuyan to make the descent easier, saying offhandedly, “Don’t worry about it.”

“Why would Mr. Jones be there? It’s too much of a coincidence.” Ning Qiuyan was somewhat suspicious. He asked Guan Heng, “Don’t you think it’s strange that someone like me, a student with no qualifications and no fame, would actually win the brand’s favor and get to compose the theme song for their exclusive line?”

At first, Ning Qiuyan really had been dazzled by such a good opportunity.

But after running into Wagner Jones, he had begun to suspect this, because Lu Qianque had mentioned that Mr. Jones intended to ask Guan Heng to return and manage the Blood Supervision Council. Guan Heng had withdrawn from the world and refused to emerge. As the only human who could draw Guan Heng off the island, Ning Qiuyan was the easiest opening to achieve that goal.

After listening to Ning Qiuyan’s analysis, Guan Heng asked in return, “If that really is the case, what do you plan to do?”

What did he plan to do?

Ning Qiuyan thought for a moment. “I can break the contract.”

The penalty for breach of contract was not a small sum, but the money Ning Qiuyan had on hand, plus what Guan Heng had given him before, should be enough to pay it.

“If he approached me only because he wants to use you, I won’t let him get what he wants,” Ning Qiuyan said. “An opportunity obtained like that doesn’t mean anything anyway. It would mean what people liked wasn’t my work at all.”

Seeing his grave expression, Guan Heng raised a hand and rubbed the top of his head.

“That is completely unnecessary.”

Guan Heng said, “Even if you only got this opportunity because of him, there’s no need to belittle yourself or doubt yourself. If your work hadn’t been excellent enough to be chosen as the advertising music first, Wagner would never have had the chance to facilitate a second collaboration for the theme song.”

Ning Qiuyan hadn’t expected Guan Heng to say that. For a moment, he felt a little lost.

Guan Heng looked at him and continued, “Making reasonable use of resources is also one way to move closer to success. Besides, you don’t need to give him any response at all. Just use him directly.”

Ning Qiuyan asked, “But won’t that affect you?”

Guan Heng said, “I don’t yet need you to protect me.”

Ning Qiuyan grew a little anxious. “It’s not protection. I just don’t want you to be troubled by these things.”

Just as he had told Ning Qiuyan in that hotel room after the fire, Guan Heng once again made his stance clear. “Ning Qiuyan, I’ve told you before. In this world, no one is more important than you yourself. Even if it’s because of me, it still isn’t worth giving up any chance to pursue your dreams.”

“Use me.”

“Use every resource you can obtain by staying at my side to do the things you want to do.”

“Don’t be afraid. Don’t worry about anything. Leave everything else to me.”

These words shook Ning Qiuyan even more deeply than the first time he had heard them.

Back then, he had still been ignorant and had not fully understood Guan Heng’s position on this matter. Now, he knew very clearly that not a single word Guan Heng said was empty. He had received a rich reward, he had gained Guan Heng, and he would stand on Guan Heng’s shoulders, with the entirety of Du Island at his back.

Ning Qiuyan wondered what about him could possibly make Guan Heng go this far.

What benefit could Guan Heng gain from it?

In his daze, he must have asked the question aloud.

Guan Heng’s cool fingers touched the side of his face, then stroked the Ruby Earring, tender and lingering.

His thin lips parted slightly, and he gave his answer.

“I have you.”