CHAPTER 238: CHAPTER 224 I AM YOUR GIFT

Mu Shuoqian’s smile grew wider at the corners of his mouth, on a face that was mostly covered with coldness, the smile persisted because of her and never faded.

Actually, there was no need for any birthday gifts or surprises, her simply remembering his birthday was the best gift for him.

She never dared to expect that one year, she would be the one to spend his birthday with him.

Gu Qili only stopped pushing him to the dining table, wanting to whisper in his ear, but even on tiptoes, she couldn’t reach him, so she had to press her face against his back and rubbed it twice before letting go, "Birthday meal."

Mu Shuoqian slowly opened his eyes to find the room’s lights turned off at some point, on the white dining table there was a candlestick, the orange candlelight flickering, two delicate porcelain plates held freshly made steaks, still sizzling.

He thought she had gone to sleep, but as soon as he entered the room, he understood, she had been preparing the whole time, just waiting for the exact moment.

Gu Qili emerged from behind him and pushed him to sit at a seat on the side, placing a beautiful wine glass in front of him, then she turned around to open a small glass bottle on the table, which contained a pale red liquid.

She mysteriously swayed the bottle in front of him, "Guess what wine this is."

Mu Shuoqian watched her pour the wine with interest, his expression calm, seemingly unchallenged by any wine.

The bottle contained too little wine, just enough for two glasses, and Gu Qili poured him half a glass, "Have a taste."

Her mysterious demeanor piqued his interest, he picked up the glass and gently swirled it, leaned in to sniff it, his handsome eyebrows furrowing slightly, followed by tilting his chin up and taking a sip, the wine resonated in his mouth, his eyebrows furrowing even tighter.

Gu Qili sat in front of him, her hands propped under her chin, looking at him with a beaming smile.

"Can you taste what it is?"

It was Mu Shuoqian’s first experience with this type of wine, indescribable, unlike any wine he had tasted before, it had a faint homey flavor.

"I only know it’s Pinot Noir, as for the vintage and such, I really can’t guess." This was probably the first time Mu Shuoqian was stumped by a glass of wine.

"It’s normal if you can’t guess." Gu Qili smiled triumphantly, her eyes curved like moons under the candlelight, "Because I brewed it myself, the most homemade wine you can imagine, its quality can’t compare to those you usually drink."

Mu Shuoqian was slightly surprised, "You made this?"

"Yes, I asked Mr. V to teach me, my skills are still too green, is it not very good? But, I wanted to give you the first bottle of wine I made." Gu Qili said, lowering her eyelids slightly, seemingly embarrassed to look at him.

"It’s delicious." His straightforward response dispelled all her worries, "Better than any wine I’ve tasted."

Gu Qili knew he was just humoring her, but her heart still warmed.

This wine used Mr. V’s exclusive recipe, naturally maturing in at least twenty days, but this bottle was rushed, coming out just in time, so she didn’t care much about the taste, as long as he could have it on his birthday.

Even though she knew he was just trying to make her happy, she still felt utterly content and satisfied that her efforts hadn’t gone to waste.

"Mu Shuoqian, the first bottle from the winery will also be given to you, and I will write your name on the label."

She had long planned this, it would be a bottle of grape wine in the world uniquely his.

"I’m looking forward to it." Mu Shuoqian raised his glass to him, "Thank you."

Gu Qili couldn’t drink alcohol, it’d be too much of a killjoy to end up in the hospital on such an important day.

She used water instead of wine to gently clink glasses with him, his gaze swept over the glass, "The glass is also beautiful."

Gu Qili, holding the glass, smiled even more joyfully, nothing was more important than his liking.

The two of them dined and chatted by candlelight, and although she did most of the talking, from his face she saw a smile that never faded, even while chewing his food, he smiled.

She knew, he was truly, truly happy.

Mu Shuoqian ate up all the steak on his plate and drank all the wine she made.

Gu Qili took the plates to the kitchen and began washing the dishes with gloves on, sneaking a peek at him, finding him standing not far behind her, quietly watching her.

Even though it was just a normal gaze, her face turned red instantly. She had to lower her head even more, afraid of being seen by him.

"You go to the bedroom later," Gu Qili suddenly spoke. Because the sound of the faucet was too loud, he didn’t hear her clearly and tilted his head with a puzzled expression.

Gu Qili had no choice but to turn off the faucet and, without looking at him, lowered her head almost into the sink, "I said, don’t go back to the bedroom yet."

"Hmm, I won’t, I’ll stay here with you."

"Actually... actually, it’s okay to go back," Gu Qili was somewhat incoherent.

Mu Shuoqian looked at her with some confusion.

Realizing he was looking at her, Gu Qili seemed somewhat irately embarrassed and, without caring that she was still wearing gloves, pushed him outside and slammed the glass door shut.

Separated by a door, but his presence still felt incredibly strong. It took Gu Qili a while to calm her racing heart down before she turned around to continue washing the dishes.

What would have taken a few minutes to finish, she inexplicably took twenty minutes to wash the dishes, while Mu Shuoqian patiently stood outside waiting. He didn’t understand why washing dishes made her look so embarrassed.

Gu Qili wiped the clean dishes with a dishcloth and placed them on the rack, took a deep breath, and then opened the door. As soon as she opened it, she saw Mu Shuoqian standing there like a door god, his gaze intense upon her.

Gu Qili paused for a moment, her cheeks blushing lightly as if she had made up her mind about something. She tiptoed again and covered his eyes, her voice not as crisp and loud as before, even carrying a timid tremor: "There’s still a surprise."

Mu Shuoqian, stimulated by wave after wave of surprises, felt a bit dizzy. He hadn’t expected this impish girl to prepare so many surprises for him.

Impish girl?

These words popped into his mind, and Mu Shuoqian himself was stunned. He usually called her by her full name, and when he thought of her, he’d try to say her nickname, Qiqi, just like his license plate 5277.

Because in front of him, she always seemed clever like a sprite, yet endearingly soft, sometimes mischievous, sometimes loveable, sometimes even slightly cunning, but more often than not, she was like a child making him unable to resist pampering her.

Impish girl, his impish girl.

Gu Qili, pushing him from behind towards the bedroom, didn’t notice that the expression on his face had softened completely.

The bedroom door was not locked, and he who walked in front opened it with a body bump. Gu Qili saw with her head lowered that one foot was inside the room and one was outside; she instinctively wanted to step back, but instead, she bit her lip and stepped further in.

Nervous, really nervous.

Gu Qili let go of her hands,

In fact, her hands didn’t cover his eyes tightly and, being small, couldn’t really cover them at all, but he obediently kept his eyes tightly shut until she said he could open them.

Seeing what was before him, Mu Shuoqian suddenly understood something, a thick surprise flooding his eyes, even more tumultuous than before.

He suddenly remembered her words: "Don’t worry, it won’t be for long, really not long."

It had only been a month since she said that phrase, but it felt incredibly long to him.

"This gift... is the best I’ve ever received." He turned around, picked up the girl who was still playing an ostrich, who did not resist and snugly nestled into his arms.

Mu Shuoqian leaned over her, his arms propped on the sides of her face, looking down at her intently. He suddenly thought of four words: "More enchanting than flowers."

"No regrets?" His voice carried an uncontrollable hoarseness.

Gu Qili lifted her shining eyes shyly into his deep black eyes, lightly hummed in affirmation, and then boldly cupped his face. She clearly saw his throat bob, and a fiery look ignited in his eyes.

This sound, like a potent aphrodisiac, made Mu Shuoqian feel like his body was nearly ablaze—"Ding dong"—

At that moment, the doorbell suddenly rang loudly outside.

No one responded to the ringing, followed immediately by loud knocking on the door, along with several languid shouts: "Mu Shuoqian, open up, some brothers have come to celebrate your birthday."

Mu Shuoqian’s face instantly turned as black as the bottom of a pot.