CHAPTER 239: CHAPTER 225: AQIAN, I LOVE YOU

Gu Qili also heard the noise outside the door; she even recognized one of the voices as Leng Shaoqing’s. In the dead of night, their loud shouting was bound to disturb the upstairs neighbors.

Gu Qili pushed the man lying on top of her and gestured toward the door with her mouth, "Go check it out."

Mu Shuoqian’s expression grew darker and darker, and after getting up, he rummaged through the wardrobe. His cool demeanor was mixed with endless irritation,

In the end, Mu Shuoqian pulled out a baseball bat, weighed it in his hand for a moment, and then went out.

It didn’t take long before Gu Qili heard the sounds of a commotion outside, and she covered her ears with a touch of sympathy.

Soon, she also heard the voice of Bai Chengxi: "Beating is intimacy and scolding is affection; Mu, your profound love is truly accepted by us."

Then, suddenly, it seemed like a whole crowd had entered the room, amidst which was Mu Shuoqian’s icy voice: "Get lost."

Naturally, these people had no intention of actually getting lost; instead, they made themselves comfortable and took seats in the living room as if it was their routine.

Gu Qili quickly straightened up her somewhat disheveled clothes and wiped her face in front of the mirror before going out.

"Miss Qili, good evening." Nan Zhan went to pour himself some water and saw her as he came out of the kitchen.

Gu Qili, dressed in a white pajama suit with her hair casually tied in a ponytail at the back of her head, was unadorned with makeup yet even Nan Zhan couldn’t help but take a few extra glances at her.

"Good evening." Gu Qili politely waved a small wave to him and greeted the other people in the living room. Her face grew increasingly red, feeling like someone caught her in some mischief, though the mischief hadn’t actually happened.

Her face was red while Mu Shuoqian’s was black, looking like a pair acting out a dramatic scene on stage.

Luo Shangqing put the cake he had been carrying on the coffee table, and Zhuo Yanbei on the side promptly unboxed it.

"Brother, just to celebrate your birthday, look how much face you’ve got."

The group was well prepared, with a cake, snacks from Xiangshan Club, fine red wine, and even some desserts especially for Gu Qili.

Mu Shuoqian had already had cake in the evening; he wasn’t in the mood for cake now but rather his wife, and yet these live bulbs were brightening his home as if it were in broad daylight.

Gu Qili tugged at Mu Shuoqian’s wrist and whispered, "They mean well by celebrating your birthday for you, don’t keep scowling like that, it’s impolite, and it discounts their good intentions."

Mu Shuoqian scoffed coldly, finding the unpleasant atmosphere in the room increasingly intolerable: "Do you really think they’re here to celebrate my birthday?"

Gu Qili, still somewhat ignorant about this group of people, asked with wide eyes, "Isn’t that so?"

They were so well prepared, it looked like they were sincere,

"They’re deliberately sabotaging it." Mu Shuoqian said these words through gritted teeth, then suddenly whispered something in Gu Qili’s ear, and she obediently nodded.

Nan Zhan was calling for Gu Qili to come over to eat cake. Out of politeness, she ate a small piece, and after finishing, she began searching in the refrigerator.

Seeing her search for a while, Leng Shaoqing couldn’t help but ask: "Miss Qili, what are you looking for?"

"I want some ice cream, I remember we had some." She closed the refrigerator door in frustration, went back to the room to grab a jacket and keys, and then headed for the door, "You guys carry on, I’m going to buy ice cream. There’s a 24-hour convenience store in the community."

"It’s so late, we should go instead."

"It’s okay, it’s not far." Gu Qili waved to them and then opened the door and left.

Mu Shuoqian watched her leave before slowly saying, "Little girl, so wilful."

"Ay, Mu, you really trust Qili to go out alone? She’s so pretty, aren’t you afraid someone might harbor ill intentions?"

"You make a good point, I’ll be back soon." Mu Shuoqian nodded earnestly and chased after her without even bringing his jacket.

"Bring me back a bottle of mustard sauce," Leng Shaoqing popped another shrimp into his mouth.

"Understood."

Once the two protagonists left, everyone immediately felt utterly bored.

Bai Chengxi took a sip of wine, wanting to turn on the TV, while the others were discussing the latest hot topics.

Some time passed like that, and Luo Shangqing, who had been silent without uttering a word, suddenly asked, "Is that supermarket very far?"

"Not far at all, isn’t it within the residential area?" Leng Shaoqing gave him a contemptuous glance as if to say, ’Are you senile?’

Luo Shangqing, as if he hadn’t seen the look, said in a slow, deep voice, "But Shuoqian took the car keys."

"Damn, why are you only mentioning this now?" The others immediately realized something; they seemed to have been tricked, and their gullibility was entirely because they trusted the ’little white rabbit’, Gu Qili, too much. They knew Shuoqian could pull tricks and schemes, but it had never occurred to them that Gu Qili would join him in playing such a game.

"Qili, you’ve learned to be naughty," Leng Shaoqing concluded summarily.

"The protagonists have run off, what are we still doing sitting around like fools? Let’s hurry up and leave."

Gu Qili sat in the car, the city at night still dazzling with lights, the hustle and bustle painting the craziness of the night.

Just like them, running out of the house in the middle of the night, driving at high speed on the highway.

The journey was filled with stunning scenery, and the excitement in Gu Qili’s heart was stirred. Suddenly, she rolled down the window and started singing loudly: happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday to my dear Shuoqian, happy birthday to you.

She turned to him, and in the rushing wind through the window, she said to his face, "Shuoqian, happy birthday."

Mu Shuoqian slowed down the car suddenly, because of her calling him ’Shuoqian’.

He raised his eyebrows high, "What did you call me?"

Mu Shuoqian remained silent, reaching out his hand to ruffle her hair.

The Maybach 62S glided down the highway, flanked by vineyards enclosed with wire fences, expanding into neat rows stretching into the distance under the moonlight.

Gu Qili felt the scenery become more and more familiar until he stopped the car. She covered her mouth in disbelief—it was her father’s wine estate. He’d driven for over two hours just to bring her here.

"Aren’t you going to go take a look?" Mu Shuoqian turned off the engine.

Gu Qili first looked at him, still dazed and shocked, and it was only when he nudged her gently with his chin toward the outside that she slowly opened the car door.

A fresh scent of the fields hit her face, and the sounds of crickets resounded from all around under the bright moon, as if she was in the midst of a dream.

Ever since the Gu Family went bankrupt and the vineyard was bought by someone else, she had never returned here. She had given up her childhood dream in the hope that one day she could reclaim her father’s vineyard and fulfill his dying wish.

Her hand, resting beside her, was enveloped in a warm palm. Mu Shuoqian took her hand and strolled with her to the gateway, where he pulled out a key to open the door.

Gu Qili watched in amazement as he produced the key—how did he have one?

They continued to the villa within the estate, and he unlocked the villa’s front door with familiarity, switching on the lights inside at the same time.

Gu Qili hadn’t visited this place in many years, yet everything was just as she had left it, even the furniture was placed in the same position.

She walked to a piano in the living room and couldn’t help but slide her hand across the black and white keys, listening to the pleasant notes fluttering from beneath her fingers as if transported back to those joyful years.

This piano was a birthday gift from Gu Dezhong when she was six years old, but she hated practicing the piano and stopped sitting there after just a few days. Gu Dezhong never forced her to do anything she disliked; he had a piano cover made and covered it up. After a year, she suddenly wanted to learn again, but due to a lack of dedication, her performance was mediocre.

Gu Qili sat back in front of the piano, looking up at the man beside her, with all her emotions reflecting in her eyes.

She had almost forgotten, today was his birthday, and it was also the deadline for their two-year marriage agreement. He had once promised her, after two years, he would give her back a vineyard, and he, indeed, had kept his promise.