Deadly Trap

Chapter 96. The Secret
Hearing Su Li's composed response, Gu Mufeng, who had been suppressing his anger for her, chuckled softly. He deliberately added with a cold expression:

"Grandpa, we've come to celebrate the New Year. If you don't welcome us, we won't delay you."

As he spoke, Gu Mufeng actually invited the butler over, and it seemed they were about to pack their bags and fly overnight to some unknown island.

Gu Zhipei paused, then immediately softened his smile and backed down:
"Sigh, I'm getting old. Parents tend to ask a lot of questions, and then the younger generation looks down on them. Mu Fei, you're overthinking it."

Quietly, Su Li tugged at Gu Mufei's sleeve: "Try to be less sharp-tongued. I haven't finished looking at Gu Garden yet!"
While changing clothes and leaving the room, Gu Zhipei deliberately called the butler to the corridor and said, "Change Fangran's bedroom to Miss Su's."

The butler hesitated: "Which set would you like to use?"

Gu Zhipei smiled slightly, as if he had come up with a brilliant idea: "Let's go with the sandalwood one. This woman will love it."

“But that place is very far from the young master… uh, no, from Mr. Gu.” The butler asked, puzzled.

“That’s exactly what I want – the distance.” Gu Zhipei said meaningfully. He then glared at the stern butler: “What Mr. Gu? Are you going to call me Mr. Gu too? Get out of here!”

After dinner, Su Li was taken to the bedroom alone by the housekeeper, but Gu Zhipei stopped Gu Mufeng early on, saying that his grandmother was seriously ill and wanted to see him.

Passing through several desolate courtyard gates, amidst the intertwined crabapple blossoms and verdant bamboo, Su Li arrived at the courtyard and discovered the extravagant luxury of the classical embroidered building. The rightmost room, a two-section, three-room structure, contained five sets of rosewood canopy beds, intricately carved with openwork. Su Li clicked her tongue in amazement: "It's like a small wooden cabin, fully equipped."

On the small table in the middle of the canopy bed were daily necessities: tea set, rouge, comb, perfume. The round mirror reflected Su Li's young face, as if the original owner had only been gone a short time ago.

Su Li pondered: Could it be that this is Gu Mufeng's mother's old boudoir?

She casually toyed with the jewels piled up like toys in the crystal tray; the rubies and sapphires looked unreal, like candies. Su Li's heart sank. Was Gu Zhipei's arrangement a deliberate test or a way to make things difficult for her?

As I was strolling around, Gu Mufeng sent me a text message, teasingly asking, "How was it tonight, with separate rooms?"

Su Li replied playfully, "What, are you afraid I'll 'weep across countless mountains and rivers'? I'm perfectly fine. Will you miss me tonight?"

Unaware of what he was doing, Gu Mufeng replied quickly and simply: "No."

Su Li laughed and scolded, "You heartless bastard!"

In the dead of night, Su Li tossed and turned in the darkness, unable to sleep. Gu Garden was nestled deep in the mountains; she truly hadn't imagined the night could be so utterly dark and silent. Gradually, she began to feel afraid.

Half-asleep, the multiple layers of canopy bed and gauze curtains seemed insufficient to deepen the space. Though she couldn't see clearly, a white shadow seemed to stand in the corner of the room, like a white egret, gazing at her for a long time…

Su Li pretended to be asleep. Perhaps influenced by the old house from the Southern Song Dynasty, the story of "The Corpse Transformation" from Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio suddenly popped into her mind. She pulled the brocade quilt closer to her nose.

Immediately afterwards, a hand landed on her shoulder.

Su Li screamed, but her mouth was immediately covered by a familiar hand:

"it's me!"

Su Li's eyes widened. In the darkness, Gu Mufeng's handsome face was directly above her, his frizzy hair hanging low, his phoenix eyes staring straight into her heart.

He hadn't taken off his clothes, as he hadn't touched the bed since they parted ways, only his body still smelled of familiar aftershave.

He calmed Su Li's racing heart with one hand. Kneeling on the edge of the bed, Gu Mufeng smiled helplessly: "Why aren't you asleep?"

So, he was planning to sneak into bed with me?

Hooking her hand on his shirt collar, Su Li feigned annoyance and playfully bit his chin, saying with a smile, "The dignified Mr. Gu, launching a night raid?"

But then, there was a rapid knocking at the door. Su Li had barely managed to respond in a panic when the door to the embroidery room was pushed open.

Su Li quickly pressed Gu Mufeng onto the bed with a thud, not knowing where he had bumped into something. Composing herself, she sat up halfway, grabbing the bed curtains for cover. The housekeeper and two maids, already clutching nets, rushed in.
"Miss Su, are you alright? There are foxes in Gu Garden at night."

Feigning drowsiness, Su Li calmly said:
"A fox? I didn't see one. I only dreamt of a woman in white... just a nightmare."

The servants exchanged glances, but eventually left. Su Li chuckled and lifted the brocade quilt: "Gu... oh no, Mr. Fox, isn't it time to reveal your true form?"

Gu Mufei rubbed his temples, raising an eyebrow: "That's really heartless. Who said separate rooms are comfortable? Regretting it now?"

Unexpectedly, Su Li pouted. She half-knelt up and gently blew on his forehead, almost complaining and coquettishly saying, "What if I regret it? Young Master, stay with me tonight, don't leave."

Gu Mufeng grasped her wrist: "I didn't plan to leave. But..."

In the darkness, his phoenix-shaped, cold eyes flickered and shone. Surprisingly, when Su Li teased him, he yielded without resistance.

“If I had known your family was so wealthy, Young Master Gu,” Su Li said deliberately, teasingly, “I should have been more ruthless back then.”

"You've hit the bullseye."

Almost sweet, Gu Mufeng savored the bittersweet taste of falling in love at first sight. Su Li would never understand his anxieties and uncertainties back then. "Why don't you keep pretending to be dignified during the day?" He took off his clothes. Turning his back to her, he quietly covered the gun and holster under the darkness and his shirt.

Su Li raised an eyebrow: "Does the young master have a problem with this?"

Gu Mufeng lay down and gently embraced her, speaking frankly and softly, "I've been thinking about you all day long, no matter what you look like."

As he said this, his hair lay loosely on the bridge of his nose.

Seeing Gu Mufeng completely relaxed, on the canopy bed—which was actually his mother's bed, a bed he didn't know was there—Su Li felt a surge of warmth for some reason. She gently hugged him back, and couldn't help but feel a tiny voice whispering in her heart:
If she accidentally gets pregnant... would Gu Mufeng then not go to that one-on-one meeting?

Will he run away with her to go overseas?
Thinking it over, Su Li's hands were already moving with practiced ease, teasing him at will.

"You're still injured, you can't."

Contrary to his immediate physical reaction, Gu Mufeng closed his eyes slightly, gently grasped her presumptuous hand, and placed it dignifiedly against his heart.

Su Li feigned grievance: "Even if it takes a hundred days to recover from a broken bone, you can still refrain from touching me?"

Gu Mufeng chuckled softly, "Stop torturing me. Take it one day at a time. The doctor wants you to rest, but there are always other ways."

Gently, he dispelled Su Li's delusions and held her tightly: "Go to sleep."

For some reason, Su Li slept very lightly all night. The bed curtains were dark, much dimmer than the penthouse apartment, but Su Li woke up immediately with the rising sun.

Under the brocade quilt and silk curtains, nothing could be warmer than embracing and nestling together. Quietly, she gazed at the sleeping face before her.

She could never get enough of looking at that face.

But her movement startled Gu Mufeng. He was always a light sleeper, always on high alert. With her phoenix eyes still blurry, Su Li said apologetically, "Go back to sleep. It's New Year's Eve today, the boss can take the day off."

Gu Mufeng gazed at her silently for a moment, then suddenly asked, "Last night, what did you say the 'woman in white' in your dream looked like? Did you dream about her again afterward?"

Confused, Su Li blinked:
"I haven't dreamt of her since you came. She was dressed in white, her face obscured, like a shadow. She was standing in that corner. Perhaps..."

Gu Mufeng propped himself up, lost in thought. He looked out from the canopy bed, and Su Li followed suit, only to see a desk in a corner with a carved window above it.

The morning light gently swayed, and the banyan tree outside the window shone with a vibrant green.

After a moment, Gu Mufei stood up and said, "Now that you're awake, come with me somewhere."

The Gu Garden was quiet and peaceful in the early morning. Everyone was probably preparing to stay up late tonight, and no one was up early. This time, instead of leaving the orderly garden, they took a secluded mountain path. The frost from last night still covered the tips of the grass, brushing past with each step.

He held her hand tightly, and Su Li followed Gu Mufeng to the end of the mountain lake.

A waterfall cascades down. Where the mountains suddenly open up, one can see the vast sea and a corner of the Minzhou metropolis. Broken ginkgo leaves drift with the current. Like the Tempietto Church of St. Peter in Jinshan, a pristine white Roman-style mausoleum stands in the middle of the water.

Su Li understood instantly.

Standing shoulder to shoulder with Gu Mufeng, Su Li solemnly offered her prayers. Though dressed casually, her sincerity moved all. She silently prayed:

"Aunt Gu, please protect Mu Fei one more time..."

It's best to say important things three times.

The waterfall roared as it rushed down. Su Li watched the beautiful Tempietto as two birds flew by side. She murmured to herself again:
"Mom, I hope that you, and I hope that I can be happy in the end."

Seeing that Su Li hadn't moved for a long time, Gu Mufeng asked softly, "Why have you been bowing for so long?"

Su Li smiled, hiding her tears: "It's a secret."

>>>>>
Next Chapter: The Three Kingdoms (Finally! March 1st!)

　[Author's Note | Chapter 96]

　　Before New Year's Eve, tonight belongs to the young master, his concubine, Mr. Fox, and "Truly Heartless." Are you, our dear readers, satisfied with this intimate conversation between the young couple?

　　Happiness is really that simple, simpler than a canopy bed or a piece of jewelry as precious as fruit candy.

　　The banyan tree in front of the window was Gu Fangran's favorite tree when she was young, and it is also the image in Gu Mufeng's nightmares every night.

　　Can Gu Fangran, who has been gone for nineteen years, hear Su Li's wish? Does Su Yan, who has just passed away, wish for her daughter's happiness?
　　The next chapter finally arrives on March 1st.

　　Leave your thoughts in the comments section!

　　The young author wants to meet you at the "summit"!
　　(End of this chapter)