Lu Guifan immediately put his phone back in his pocket, intending to turn around, but Jiang Ruotang was holding him too tightly.

“Ruotang, what’s wrong?” Lu Guifan gently covered Jiang Ruotang’s hand.

He tried to look back, but turning his head, he could only see Jiang Ruotang’s hair and ears.

Sometimes Lu Guifan didn’t understand why Jiang Ruotang liked to lean against his back so much.

But at least he guessed that Bai Yingchuan must have said something to upset Jiang Ruotang.

“I’m sorry…” Jiang Ruotang’s voice was thick with nasal congestion.

“Hmm?” Lu Guifan was a little bewildered.

The person in the world who least needed to apologize to him was Jiang Ruotang.

Because he was truly too good to him, so good that Lu Guifan found it unreal.

“I shouldn’t have cursed you to be alone forever.”

Hearing this, Lu Guifan chuckled softly, his voice resonating through his chest, deep yet pleasant.

“Are you sad just because of that? Don’t I have you to share buy-one-get-one-half-off bubble tea with? I don’t feel lonely.”

On the contrary, before meeting you, perhaps… I was lonely.

Only after hearing Lu Guifan’s words did Jiang Ruotang feel he had lost his composure.

He quietly released his grip, carefully observing Lu Guifan’s expression, and seeing that the other party didn’t show any annoyed look, he finally relaxed.

“Let’s go back,” Jiang Ruotang said softly.

At this hour, going back to school for evening self-study would be pointless.

---

Sitting in the car, Jiang Ruotang was unusually quiet.

He kept looking out the window, thinking about Bai Yingchuan’s dream of Lu Guifan, from studying abroad to starting a business back home, then becoming a giant in the tech world. Lu Guifan in that world must have endured a lot of hardship.

The car stopped at a crossroads. Xiao Gao probably felt the car was too quiet and needed to say something.

“Mr. and Mrs. Jiang both went to visit Lin Lu. That kid is really pitiful… saddled with such parents… It’s said his maternal grandfather and uncles don’t even want to deal with Wu Ning’s affairs, unwilling to even hire a lawyer. Bai Yue is almost crazy. Ever since she turned herself in, all her hopes were placed on Bai Yingchuan. Now that Bai Yingchuan’s face is injured, directly affecting his future development, Bai Yue will definitely pursue Wu Ning to the very end.”

Jiang Ruotang sighed. This was probably karma.

The struggles he experienced in his previous life, Lin Lu was now experiencing.

But compared to Lin Lu, Jiang Ruotang felt very lucky.

Because even when he had nothing, Zhao Yunshu and Zhao Changfeng still treated him like family, and at the end of his life, he had Lu Guifan’s company.

“Lin Chengdong and his wife… destroyed themselves and also destroyed Lin Lu’s life. If it weren’t for their negative influence through words and deeds, Lin Lu wouldn’t be so hypocritical and self-serving. Without the negative influence of the Lin Chengdong couple, it might actually be a good thing for his entire life.”

Lu Guifan’s voice was still so calm. Xiao Gao, who had originally felt some sympathy for Lin Lu, suddenly felt relieved.

“That’s true. His parents are clearly bad role models. Lin Lu should also re-evaluate his life. It’s still not too late to start over.”

The green light was about to turn on. Xiao Gao then said, “Where are we going? Do we still need to drop Guifan off?”

Hearing this, Jiang Ruotang’s heart fluttered slightly. Of course, he didn’t want to drop Lu Guifan off; he still wanted to hug him to sleep!

But would Lu Guifan mind his overstepping behavior in the hospital corridor?

“Not going back,” Lu Guifan said, turning his head to glance at Jiang Ruotang. “After all, someone became a crybaby and seems to need company very much.”

Jiang Ruotang’s face immediately turned red. Not only was he relieved, but he also felt secretly delighted, and he mumbled a bit smugly, “You’re the crybaby, your whole family’s crybabies…”

---

That night, at home, he had no enthusiasm for doing practice problems. He also didn’t play on his phone, as it was flooded with news about Bai Yingchuan and the Lin family, but all of this felt like events from his past life.

Jiang Ruotang lay in bed, still feeling a bit unreal.

Was Lin Chengdong really in jail?

Was their Jiang family safe?

And, was Lu Guifan really by his side all this time?

Just then, the bedroom door opened. Lu Guifan, wearing loose pajamas and slippers, strolled casually to the bedside. Seeing Jiang Ruotang, he smiled and pressed his hand on Jiang Ruotang’s face.

“What are you doing, wrapped up like a cocoon, waiting for some emperor to favor you?”

Yes, this gentle-voiced, joking Lu Guifan also felt unreal.

Jiang Ruotang reached out his hand, about to pinch Lu Guifan’s waist, when Lu Guifan suddenly grabbed him, pulled him close, and lowered his head. His damp hair swayed in front of Jiang Ruotang’s eyes, and the smile on his lips faded.

His fingers suddenly tightened. Jiang Ruotang’s finger bones were pinched painfully, letting out a soul-piercing groan of agony.

“Ugh—”

Lu Guifan grunted softly, “Hurts? Then it’s not a dream.”

With that, he got up and went back to the desk, taking out a hairdryer to dry his hair.

Watching his back, Jiang Ruotang shook his wrist, wondering how this guy knew everything he was thinking.

He was infuriating!

After drying his hair, Lu Guifan returned to the bed. As he pulled back the covers and lay down, a faint fresh scent of after-shower wafted over. Jiang Ruotang subtly took a deep breath, his heart aching with a hundred scratches.

“My pajamas are a bit unraveling. Looks like I need to buy new ones,” Lu Guifan said casually.

“Ah? Then there won’t be little fuzz balls?”

Lu Guifan chuckled muffledly, “If you like little fuzz balls so much, I’ll save them for you to wear.”

“Hmph, you’re making fun of me, don’t think I can’t tell.”

The bedroom was quiet, devoid of lights, only the faint glow of the night from outside the window.

Jiang Ruotang turned over, and after his eyes adjusted to the darkness, he could clearly see Lu Guifan’s prominent nose bridge and the rise and fall of his Adam’s apple, like an endless, hidden tide.

“Hey, Lu Guifan… are you the kind of person who would never fall in love or get married just to pursue scientific research?”

“Hm?” Lu Guifan’s brow furrowed slightly. “How is scientific research more interesting than falling in love?”

“What?” Jiang Ruotang rubbed his ears, rolled over onto his pillow, accidentally bumping Lu Guifan. “What do you know about the good things about love?”

“If you have a lover, holding them in your arms is very warm. You’ll feel a sense of reliance and protectiveness. You can openly demand that they only look at you, only love you. They can have many important things to do, but only I am the only person they can love, and they have to be responsible for me.”

Jiang Ruotang, burying his head in his pillow, laughed for a long time. “Responsible? How are they responsible for you? You’re supposed to be responsible for them!”

“Alright, I’ll be responsible for them.”

“Then… under what circumstances would you always be alone?”

“The end of the world, when everyone on Earth is dead.” Lu Guifan’s tone carried a hint of “Are you an idiot?”

“I mean not falling in love, not that you wouldn’t have friends and family around.”

Lu Guifan was silent for a while before saying, “Perhaps for me, loving someone is like a lifelong research project. Figuring out their preferences, growing and changing with them, protecting them and being protected by them, making them happy, making them always look only at me—these are all parts of the research. If this research never yields results, I’ll just have to keep going, waiting for a response. I can’t start a new project. You ask me in what situation I’d always be alone? That would probably be if they fell in love with someone else, or if they disappeared.”

Jiang Ruotang didn’t speak. He turned over and lay quietly in bed.

Lu Guifan, why don’t you like me? I care about your preferences too, because looking at you makes me constantly strive forward, wanting to protect you and be protected by you. Being by your side makes me happy, and I only look at you.

Your research will definitely achieve lifelong success.

Thinking this, Jiang Ruotang fell asleep.