C21 Do I Have Any Other Choice??
Despite being married, Huo Niannian and her husband adhered to a contract requiring them to sleep separately. With a sense of duty, she made her way to the small sofa, adjusted the pillow, covered herself with the blanket, and curled up, ready to drift off.
She was never fussy about her sleeping arrangements. The modest sofa was comfortable enough, certainly more so than the cramped single bed of her childhood home. She expected to fall asleep swiftly.
Yet, the persistent sound of running water pierced through Huo Niannian's nerves. Staring at the bathroom door, she came to the unsettling realization that she was wide awake.
The absurdity of her situation was overwhelming.
She had tied the knot with a man she had known for merely three days!
And now, separated by a mere wall, he was taking a shower.
The mere thought sent waves of heat across Huo Niannian's face.
Memories of their earlier bathroom encounter played in her mind like a movie... Gu Tingshen's penetrating gaze, his breath's warmth, the residual heat from his arm on her shoulder.
Admittedly, he was quite handsome and not at all unpleasant...
Distracted by these reflections, Huo Niannian pulled the blanket closer, burying her face in it and firmly closing her eyes.
Sleep...
She resolved to banish the chaos of thoughts from her mind!
Her every move was motivated by the urgent quest to find her biological parents!
When Gu Tingshen stepped out of the bathroom in his bathrobe, he found Huo Niannian enveloped in the blanket like a small rabbit, sound asleep.
She had slipped into slumber without realizing it.
Gu Tingshen stood by her, his heart softening at the sight of her delicate, trembling eyelashes and her body curled up.
Upon waking the following morning, Huo Niannian was surprised to find herself in bed.
She sat up quickly, her eyes landing on Gu Tingshen, who was also just waking up.
"Why are you on the bed?" she blurted, then quickly corrected herself, "I mean, why am I in bed?"
Gu Tingshen, getting dressed, looked at her with a playful smile. "I hadn't expected you to be so forward."
Huo Niannian's head spun as she tried to recall the events of the previous night.
She remembered being cold in the early hours and, after a visit to the bathroom, collapsing back into bed, where she succumbed to sleep immediately.
In a daze, she dimly remembered someone holding her.
Oh my god...
The recollection made Huo Niannian wish she could just sink through the floor.
Sneaking a peek at Gu Tingshen, she saw he had already gotten out of bed and was nonchalantly getting dressed.
And it was during that brief glance that Huo Niannian glimpsed his impressively chiseled eight-pack abs...
"Have you had your fill of looking?"
Gu Tingshen's sudden remark deepened Huo Niannian's embarrassment, causing her to quickly look away.
"I wasn't looking at you."
"Get up and get ready. Grandpa doesn't take kindly to laziness."
Her thoughts a jumble, Huo Niannian lowered her head, slipped into her slippers, and with a blush spreading across her face, hurried into the bathroom to wash up.
Afterward, Huo Niannian and Gu Tingshen went downstairs together, and the family had a tranquil breakfast. Then Gu Tingshen drove Huo Niannian back to her place.
As soon as she got home, she collapsed onto the sofa in the living room and exhaled a long sigh of relief.
Although she still hadn't fully adjusted to her new home, it was far more comfortable than dealing with a whole family and perfectly playing the role of a dutiful daughter-in-law.
