Chapter 286 - 232: Walls Have Ears

Chapter 286: Chapter 232: Walls Have Ears

January 1, 2024. Sunny.

"BEEP—"

In the afternoon, with a soft beep from the smart lock, Su Tang opened the door using her fingerprint.

Yesterday, on New Year’s Eve, she and her three dorm-mates, along with several close classmates, had rented a party villa and gone wild all night long.

Since they had stayed over at the villa after the party, it wasn’t until she sobered up this morning that she noticed she’d accidentally spilled a drink on her clothes. Now, they reeked of stale alcohol.

Coincidentally, the party villa wasn’t far from Baiyue Mansion, so Su Tang decided to stop by. She planned to take a quick shower, change into clean clothes, and then go home for a family dinner, lest her mom catch a whiff of the alcohol and start nagging her again.

"Oh?"

’Momo’s boyfriend hasn’t left yet?’

The moment Su Tang stepped inside, she spotted the men’s leather shoes in the entryway. Her previously casual demeanor instantly turned cautious.

Su Tang knew that Xu Mo was spending New Year’s Eve with her boyfriend.

She had assumed that since it was already the afternoon, Xu Mo’s boyfriend would have either left on his own or taken Xu Mo out with him. She hadn’t expected anyone to be home, but it seemed he was still here.

For a moment, Su Tang felt a little stuck.

She hesitated in the entryway for a moment before deciding to check out the situation first.

So, Su Tang tiptoed to the edge of the entryway and cautiously peeked toward the living room and dining room. The whole maneuver screamed "stealth mode."

Living room, empty. Dining room, empty. Kitchen, empty. Guest bathroom, empty...

’Have they not woken up yet?’

Su Tang muttered to herself, breathing a small sigh of relief at the same time.

’If they’re still not awake by now...’

The thought immediately sparked another one. As a connoisseur of... more ’physical’ arts, her mind instantly flooded with all sorts of R-rated scenarios.

The thought that Xu Mo, her "little sister," had tasted the forbidden fruit before she, the "big sister," had, stirred up some complicated feelings.

Since Xu Mo and her boyfriend were both home, Su Tang decided she would just change her clothes and leave immediately.

In and out, quietly.

Better to avoid any awkward encounters later.

With that in mind, Su Tang tiptoed out of the entryway, intending to dash straight to her room. But as she passed through the living room, a pile of exquisite gift boxes caught her eye.

’A gift for every year...’

’Momo’s boyfriend is pretty thoughtful.’

Her gaze swept over the gifts, finally landing on the small mountain they formed.

Unlike Xu Mo, Su Tang, who had been raised in luxury, could easily discern the value of these gifts.

At first, Su Tang was just looking out of curiosity.

But as she looked, an expression of astonishment couldn’t help but creep onto her exquisitely beautiful face.

The latest Leica digital camera—the shiny silver body alone was officially priced at over 70,000 yuan. Paired with that professional lens, the total easily exceeded 100,000.

A complete set of Orlane’s Gold Leaf Royal Jelly skincare line. Orlane was a truly top-tier luxury brand, a level even above La Mer. A single 50ml jar of the Gold Leaf Royal Jelly cream was worth nearly 5,000 yuan.

And this Orlane gift set didn’t just have the entire Gold Leaf Royal Jelly collection—it had four of every single product. The total value was likely on par with the Leica camera.

An LV scarf, a B&O desktop speaker, a Hermes crossbody bag...

In today’s internet age, the "a gift for every year" trend wasn’t anything new. Su Tang had seen it countless times online, and even friends of hers had experienced it.

But Su Tang had never seen it done this extravagantly. It seemed like any single one of these items would be enough for an ordinary person to pull off this "ritual" for their girlfriend ten times over.

The value of just the items Su Tang could see, all added up, was probably over a million yuan.

’This boyfriend Momo is dating...’

’Just who is he?!’

Su Tang’s gaze subconsciously drifted to the master bedroom door. She had the strange urge to push it open and see just what kind of magnate was inside.

At the same time, the figure of Gu Heng inexplicably appeared in her mind.

It seemed that among everyone she knew, only Gu Heng had this kind of financial muscle.

Su Tang was like an eagle, proud and always striving to be the best in everything since she was a child.

Seeing that Xu Mo had found such an outstanding and generous boyfriend, that competitive streak of hers flared up again.

’Maybe...’

’I should try asking Gu Heng out for a meal in a couple of days.’

’If I’m not more proactive, Yiyi might really snatch him up.’

A sense of urgency welled up inside Su Tang. In her eyes, only by landing a man as perfect in every way as Gu Heng could she maintain her "big sister" authority over Xu Mo.

The timing wasn’t right, so Su Tang didn’t linger in the living room. She hurried into her guest suite, changed into clean clothes as quickly as possible, and prepared to leave quietly.

However, as she passed the master suite, a faint sound from within made her stop in her tracks. It was as if a magical force was luring her closer to the door.

"Honey~"

Each of those heart-tugging, melodious cries of "Honey" was filled with overwhelming emotion, each one a purely instinctual utterance.

Listening to Xu Mo’s voice from inside the room, Su Tang’s heart began to pound violently. Her mouth went dry, and her head felt dizzy.

’Useless legs...’

’Just go!’

Her rational mind screamed at her to leave, but her legs felt as if they were filled with lead, refusing to take a single step. She could feel her body temperature rising.

Xu Mo had always been a petite girl with an innocent beauty, and her voice was a standard, sweet girlish tone. As a result, her cries now sounded exceptionally clear and pleasant.

As time went on, Su Tang grew more and more shocked.

’I can’t...’

’I can’t listen anymore.’

Su Tang felt that if she listened any longer, she was going to collapse right there on the floor.

If Xu Mo or her boyfriend were to open the door right now, the scene would be absolutely mortifying.

The thought of that scenario gave Su Tang a new surge of strength.

This time, not daring to go anywhere near the master bedroom door, she hastily left the apartment.

...

「About twenty minutes after Su Tang left.」

The sounds from the master suite finally began to subside.

With her pure, beautiful face flushed with an afterglow, Xu Mo’s petite body was curled up in Gu Heng’s arms. Her clear, limpid eyes, shimmering like water, were overflowing with passionate love.

"Honey..."

"Ah~"

"You can’t do that~"

Take Luo Xiwen and Jiang Ruan, for example. They would only have a similar reaction under extremely special circumstances, and usually only once.

This wasn’t to say their experience was any less intense than Xu Mo’s, but rather that this particular reaction was highly dependent on the individual’s physical constitution.

"Looks like my Momo won’t have to do anything else tonight. Just washing the bedsheets will keep you busy for a while."

"No..."

"Don’t say that."

Xu Mo was already embarrassed by her frequent reactions, and now hearing Gu Heng tease her, she immediately hid her beautiful face in the crook of his neck again, muttering, "I’ll try my best to stop that from happening in the future."

"Why would you stop it?"

"Ah!"

"Don’t... don’t say it!"

Gu Heng’s words made Xu Mo bury her head again in embarrassment.

Recalling the ’new position’ they’d tried last night, just the thought of it made her whole body flush. It was just too embarrassing.

Watching Xu Mo’s shy demeanor, the love in Gu Heng’s eyes deepened.

"Momo, it’s New Year’s Day."

Gu Heng stopped teasing her and asked, "What do you want to eat?"

"I’m fine with anything."

"You can decide, Honey."

Xu Mo snuggled against Gu Heng, silently regenerating her stamina bar, which he had just completely depleted again.

"You like spicy food."

"So let’s go get some Sichuan food."

Gu Heng thought for a moment, considering Xu Mo’s tastes, and made a suggestion.

"Yay!"

"I love Sichuan food!"

As expected, Xu Mo’s eyes instantly lit up.

"Okay, I’ll have someone make a reservation. Let’s go shower now."

Gu Heng supported Xu Mo’s slender waist as he sat up in bed.

"Okay~"

Xu Mo was very obedient.

"Um..."

"Momo, after dinner..."

"I might not be able to stay with you. I have something to take care of tonight."

Gu Heng hadn’t told Xu Mo beforehand that he couldn’t spend New Year’s Day with her. He had already promised Jiang Ruan he would go back and make dumplings with her tonight. So, even though he knew Xu Mo was at her most clingy right now, he had to bring up leaving.

Putting himself in her shoes, Jiang Ruan must have been lonely and disappointed, spending New Year’s Eve all by herself. And unlike Luo Xiwen, who could go home to her family, Jiang Ruan’s family lived in a different city, far from Beichun.

’To be a player, you have to treat everyone equally.’

’Spread the love. It’s the basic code of conduct for a player.’

"Oh, okay..."

"That’s okay."

"If you have things to do, Honey, you should go."

"Just having you with me for New Year’s, Honey, has made me very, very, very happy."

On the surface, Xu Mo seemed obedient, mature, and understanding, but Gu Heng still keenly detected the flicker of disappointment in her eyes.

"Momo, you don’t have to be so ’understanding’ in front of me."

Gu Heng looked into her eyes, his gaze soft and his voice full of tenderness. "You can show me all of your emotions."

"Okay~"

Xu Mo felt her entire heart being wrapped in warmth. The corners of her eyes grew moist, but the smile on her face was exceptionally brilliant, like sunlight piercing through dark clouds to illuminate a land that had long been shrouded in shadow.

Gu Heng pinched Xu Mo’s cheek, then carried her off the bed and set her down at the master bathroom door. Watching her walk with a rather awkward gait, he felt a pang of regret for having been a bit too unrestrained last night.

He watched until she had safely made her way into the shower, then turned and headed to the guest bathroom to take a shower himself...