The next day, Su Yiran couldn’t take Gu Yuanting to the hospital to see Dr. Sun, because in the middle of the night, Gu Yuanting had another mild fever.

The low-grade fever lingered on and off for two or three days without improvement. Su Yiran took him to the community hospital, where the doctor said it wasn’t serious — just take some medicine, drink more water, and get plenty of rest.

For the past two days, Gu Yuanting had been unusually quiet. He would often gaze at Su Yiran silently, and when he saw him fussing around for his sake, he would look pleased and pull him close for a gentle kiss.

“Come soak your feet in hot water again — I’ve added some mugwort leaves this time.” Su Yiran came over carrying a basin of hot water. Seeing this, Gu Yuanting quickly got up and walked over in a few strides to take the basin from him.

He set it down on the floor and frowned with concern. “How can you be doing this for me?”

“What’s wrong with that?” Su Yiran gave him a helpless look and urged, “Come on, soak your feet. Mugwort helps dispel cold. Afterward you’ll sweat a bit, maybe you’ll recover faster.”

Only then did Gu Yuanting realize the mugwort he’d smelled earlier had been prepared especially for him.

His heart felt warm, but also a little sorrowful. If only life could go on like this with Yiran forever…

Obediently, he sat by the bed and looked up. “You soak with me too.”

“Alright,” Su Yiran agreed readily. The wooden basin was large enough to fit both their feet.

They sat side by side, lowering their feet into the steaming water. It was hot — Su Yiran tested the surface first, then gradually eased his feet in until his pale skin turned slightly pink.

Gu Yuanting, however, plunged his feet straight in without hesitation. He bent down, lifted Yiran’s feet, and set them on top of his own. “This way it won’t feel too hot.”

“Mhm.” Su Yiran’s feet rested on his insteps, toes unconsciously swishing the water back and forth until Gu Yuanting held his legs still.

His voice came out hoarse. “Yiran…”

Su Yiran froze, glanced down, and saw the bulge between Gu Yuanting’s legs. His face flushed and he quickly withdrew his feet. Now that the water had cooled slightly, he admonished, “Don’t let your mind wander. You’re still sick — just soak your feet.”

Gu Yuanting nodded and didn’t push further. Relieved, Su Yiran continued soaking with him. The warmth seeped up from his soles until his whole body felt relaxed. He sighed contentedly. “Ting-ge, feels nice, doesn’t it?”

With a light sheen of sweat now on his forehead, Gu Yuanting nodded. “It does.”

“Looks like mugwort works really well. From now on, let’s soak two or three times a week. Good for health too.”

From now on…

The phrase echoed in Gu Yuanting’s mind, filling him with quiet grief.

“The water’s cooling,” Su Yiran said, reaching for a towel. “We’ll soak again tomorrow.”

“Mm.” Gu Yuanting’s arm stretched out first, taking the towel. He bent down, lifted Yiran’s legs, and gently dried his feet before slipping his slippers on.

Su Yiran tried to stop him but gave in. Gu Yuanting dried his own feet and put on his slippers, then took the basin from Su Yiran before he could lift it and went to empty it himself.

Su Yiran had grown used to his ways, but worried about him falling ill again. He poured a cup of hot water, waited for him to drink it, and then took his temperature. The fever seemed to have gone down a little, but given its recent persistence, he couldn’t relax just yet.

“Go to bed.” Su Yiran spread the blanket and called him over.

Instead, Gu Yuanting picked him up, laying him down first. He took hold of Yiran’s foot, gazed at its pale arch, and kissed it softly.

“Hey…” Su Yiran was startled, curling his toes shyly. He sat up a little. “You’re still sick…”

“This will make me sweat too,” Gu Yuanting murmured, pressing him back down. With a mixture of sorrow and despair, he kissed and caressed Yiran’s enticing feet as though in reverence — and then kissed every part of him…

My best, my dearest Yiran…

When I’m gone… will he treat you well? Will he take care of you? Protect you? Love you as deeply as I do?

…

Yiran fell asleep.

Gu Yuanting gazed at his peaceful face, leaned down for another kiss, then stared in a daze before quietly getting out of bed and heading to the study.

He made several phone calls, giving instructions.

He didn’t trust the original owner.

If the original owner returned and failed to treat Yiran well, he wouldn’t rest in peace. He had to make arrangements for Yiran — safeguards against the original owner.

And then there was Gu Mingfeng. Ever since the “corpse” vanished from the hospital that day, there had been no trace of him. With the original owner’s abilities, this lingering danger might not be dealt with. Time was running out; he had to tighten the net.

Three days passed in a blink.

In fact, his fever had subsided two days earlier and hadn’t returned. Su Yiran had wanted to take him straight to the hospital for a follow-up, but Gu Yuanting refused, holding him with reddened eyes and pleading for a little more time.

Faced with his pitiful look, Su Yiran couldn’t say no.

He had already called Dr. Sun to describe Gu Yuanting’s condition, including the fruit knife incident that night. Upon hearing this, Dr. Sun’s tone grew grave. He warned that Gu Yuanting might already have suicidal tendencies, which could mean his depression had progressed to a severe stage. He urged Su Yiran to watch him closely.

Su Yiran’s heart ached with worry, so he indulged Gu Yuanting in everything, afraid of provoking him into doing something foolish. He wanted to piece together the truth and break that last thin barrier between them, but the more he thought, the more tangled and chaotic his thoughts became.

That day, a guest came to see Gu Yuanting — a middle-aged man in a suit, whom he introduced as Mr. Chen, a business partner, here to discuss some matters.

Given Gu Yuanting’s fragile state, Su Yiran didn’t feel comfortable letting him handle work alone. He followed them into the study to keep an eye on him. But Gu Yuanting said, “Yiran, we need to talk business.”

Mr. Chen smiled politely and nodded in greeting.

This was a business partner, so their discussion might involve company secrets. Understanding the situation, Su Yiran reluctantly said, “Alright, I’ll leave you to it.”

Before stepping out, he turned back, worried. Gu Yuanting spoke first: “We’ll be done soon. Don’t worry.”

Su Yiran left, closing the door behind him and heading downstairs.

As soon as he was gone, Gu Yuanting got up and locked the door. He looked at “Mr. Chen” and nodded slightly. “Lawyer Chen.”

The lawyer stood, taking a stack of documents from his briefcase and handing them over. “Mr. Gu, everything you requested has been prepared.”

Gu Yuanting took them, sat down, and read each page carefully before signing his name one by one.

The lawyer glanced at his calm face, thinking of the contents of those papers, and couldn’t help but feel a shiver of unease. He also wondered — since these documents were all for Mr. Su’s sake, why keep them from him?

And still, there was something about these arrangements…

Once Gu Yuanting finished signing, he gave the lawyer a few more instructions.

The lawyer nodded, noting them down, but the doubt in his heart only grew stronger.

Why did it all feel… like Mr. Gu was handling his final affairs?