The abandoned daughter of the Lu family turns around and marries a celibate tycoon.

When Gu Yanshen finished processing the last document and closed his laptop, it was already past 1 a.m. in China.

To shorten his trip, he squeezed his five-day workload into one day. He hadn't even had time to adjust to the time difference, and his brows showed a hint of weariness, but more than anything, a restless eagerness to return home.

He opened WeChat. The pinned chat window was quiet, the last message still the one he sent before boarding the plane: "Wait for me to come back." Lu Xiran didn't ask any questions or bother him further; she simply replied with a polite "Okay."

She was always like this in front of him: sensible, tactful, and maintaining just the right distance.

But this very "just right" feeling, at this moment, felt like a fine thorn, pricking a soft spot in his heart, stirring up a strange bitterness and... disappointment.

He often recalled her unguarded smile in front of Xie Si'an—so unrestrained, carefree, and radiant.

Whether it was the confusion of jet lag or the habit of holding her to sleep even though it had only been two days, Gu Yanshen closed his eyes, his mind filled with her image.

Her blushing earlobes when she was shy, her gently biting lower lip when she was focused. The way she unconsciously snuggled into his arms as she slept, the self-control she had been so proud of for thirty years, crumbled in a foreign land because of simple longing.

He was like a young boy experiencing his first love, restless because he wanted to see someone. This unfamiliar and out-of-control feeling made him feel uneasy, so he simply turned on his computer to continue processing emails and asked Lin Chen to book a flight for that night.

As soon as the plane landed, he rushed back almost immediately.

Warm yellow light flowed out, accompanied by subtle sounds from the kitchen.

"Why didn't you rest?" Gu Yanshen put his suitcase aside and looked at the figure in the kitchen standing on one leg, carefully putting noodles into the pot. His voice was a little hoarse from the long flight, but his heart felt full.

Lu Xiran turned around upon hearing the sound and whispered, "I...I asked Lin Chen. He said you haven't been eating properly these past two days. How can that be?" As she spoke, she turned off the stove and tried to hop over on one foot.

Gu Yanshen didn't give her a chance. He took a few steps forward and picked her up firmly in his arms.

The familiar figure and weight fell into my arms, and my heart, which had been hanging in suspense for two days, finally felt at ease.

Lu Xiran wrapped her arms around his neck, pressed her slightly flushed cheeks against his shirt collar, and said softly, "The noodles are ready, go get them for yourself."

That long-lost, soft, gentle tone of voice was like a feather lightly brushing against Gu Yanshen's already taut nerves. He looked down at the trembling eyelashes and lips so close to his, and the longing he had suppressed for two days, along with something deeper, instantly burst forth.

Gu Yanshen placed Lu Xiran on the island platform.

—He kissed her.

Unlike before, when it was tentative or teasing, it was eager and in-depth. It carried the thirst of a weary traveler, as if a desert traveler had finally found a spring of sweet water, unwilling to let go of even the smallest bit.

He held her breath until the person in his arms trembled slightly and had some difficulty breathing, then he reluctantly pulled away a little, their foreheads touching, their breathing heavy.

"So many times," he said, his thumb tracing her kissed, rosy lips, his voice low and husky, "you still can't learn to breathe properly."

Lu Xiran's entire face turned bright red, even her neck turned pink. She didn't dare to look at him, and instead buried her face deeper into the crook of his neck.

Gu Yanshen picked her up again and carefully placed her on the chair, then served himself noodles.

As I turned around, I noticed a faint blush spreading across her lips.

"You..." He paused, a hint of understanding and a deeper tenderness flashing in his eyes, "and you even put on makeup?"

Lu Xiran lowered her head even further.

Their fingers unconsciously twisted together.

The woman's subtle intention to dress up for the man she wanted to please was laid bare under his discerning gaze.

"Whether you wear makeup or not," Gu Yanshen sat down, his voice deep and clear, "you look good either way."

The smile on his lips deepened unconsciously. Looking at the shy profile of the person beside him, he ate the noodles she had cooked, feeling all the fatigue of the past few days and the chill of a foreign land completely dispelled.

I had only one thought in my mind: It's so good to be home.

He finally has his own home.

A sense of belonging—a place where the lights are on for him, where he'll cook him a bowl of noodles, where he'll miss someone to the point of losing control.

After washing up, it was nearly ten o'clock. Gu Yanshen returned to the bedroom and naturally pulled Lu Xiran, who was leaning against the headboard reading a book, into his arms.

The faint fragrance of her hair lingered around his nose, and just holding her like this, the restlessness within him, which had only been dormant for a short time, began to resurface.

He kissed the top of her head, then lingered his lips on her face, his breathing becoming heavier, and asked indistinctly, "Um... is it done?"

God knows how much he endured.

While I'm abroad, I just want to come back and see her as soon as possible.

But when he was by her side, holding her, kissing her, he realized that his thought of "it's enough to just see her" was simply self-deception.

He wanted more.

It was almost impossible to control.

Lu Xiran gently shook her head in his arms, "I...it will take me about a week."

Gu Yanshen paused, letting out an almost inaudible sigh as he forcefully suppressed his surging desire. He simply held her tighter in his arms, letting her lean on his shoulder, and then gently and tenderly kissed the top of her head.

"You go to sleep first," he said, preparing to get up and take another shower, using the familiar method to resolve this sweet torment.

But her sleeve was grabbed by a slender hand.

Gu Yanshen paused, then turned around.

Lu Xiran looked up at him. His clear eyes, reflecting the soft light, held a hint of shy evasion, and a pure, tentative concern. She whispered, "Will...will you feel very uncomfortable?"

Gu Yanshen was completely stunned.

So… she knew. She knew the torment he endured every night holding her, she knew why he got up and left. This realization left him momentarily embarrassed, as if a carefully maintained mask of composure had been abruptly ripped off. His ruthless business acumen and masterful negotiation skills all crumbled in that instant.

He felt like a boy who was revealing his weakness to someone he liked for the first time, and his ears even started to feel hot.

But seeing the pure, unadulterated concern in her eyes, his initial embarrassment was quickly replaced by a more surging emotion. He sat back down, took her hand that was clutching his sleeve, his fingertips tracing the delicate, fair back of her hand, his gaze fixed intently on her.

"You know," his voice was hoarser than before, carrying an almost helpless sigh and frankness, "how tempting are you to me?"