Feed Me, Husband - Chapter 76

Chapter 76

Over the next few days, Ruan Beibei finally settled down. Perhaps the shock of Gu Xiaonuan’s appearance had been too much for her, leaving her unsure of how to even begin attacking this new girlfriend.

After all, her looks and figure were both superior to her own, and she possessed a unique, striking aura.

Finishing her day’s work, Gu Xiaonuan changed her clothes and walked out of the library. Lu Yichen was waiting outside, a smile spreading across his face the moment he saw her.

“You’re off work.”

Gu Xiaonuan nodded and walked out with him without saying much. All of Lu Yichen’s fellow students knew the two of them were on good terms.

She was the librarian for the Ancient Texts Room, and it was common for her to walk with a graduate student from the History Department, so there was no gossip. After all, on the surface, she was just an older woman.

“Is that girl still pestering you?”

“She’s likely retreated in the face of difficulties. After all, she met the ‘girlfriend’ and saw that we’re close enough to stay together.”

Lu Yichen smiled bashfully. “It’s all thanks to Teacher Gu’s help.”

“As long as it resolves your trouble.” Gu Xiaonuan looked ahead through her oversized glasses. Someone behind them shouted Lu Yichen’s name and quickly ran over.

“Lu Yichen!” Two boys and two girls approached. Seeing Gu Xiaonuan, they all politely greeted her, “Hello, Teacher.”

Gu Xiaonuan nodded, and the group naturally fell in line around Lu Yichen. Gu Xiaonuan stepped aside slightly to give them space.

From their conversation, they all seemed to be graduate students from the History Department.

“I saw the post! I didn’t think you had it in you-you’re already living together?”

One of the boys laughed. “Then again, for a handsome guy like you, it’s not that surprising. It would be weirder if you didn’t have a girlfriend.”

Gu Xiaonuan frowned slightly. A post? People were even talking about this on the forums.

“We aren’t living together. She just came to visit and stayed at my place,” Lu Yichen replied with a smile. The two girls laughed upon hearing this, though their smiles were somewhat bitter.

“Teacher, we’ve seen you walking with Lu Yichen several times now. Do you live in the same complex?” the other boy asked, leaning in toward Gu Xiaonuan.

“Teacher, you must have seen his girlfriend, right? What does she look like? You can’t see her face at all in the photos.”

“Even if Teacher lives in the same complex, there’s no need for her to care about a student’s private life. Stop asking,” the two girls interjected. “Teacher, we’re very sorry.”

Gu Xiaonuan pushed the glasses up the bridge of her nose. “I saw her once.”

“Whoa! So, is his girlfriend pretty?” The two boys’ eyes sparkled with gossip. “We’ve been asked about his girlfriend countless times. We’ve gone from not being curious at all to being forced into curiosity.”

The two girls also looked at Gu Xiaonuan expectantly. As of now, Teacher Gu was the only one who had actually seen Lu Yichen’s girlfriend.

“I only saw her from a distance. I didn’t see her features clearly.” Gu Xiaonuan turned her head. “Is it really that important what his girlfriend looks like?”

The two girls shook their heads with soft smiles. “Unless she actually comes to campus for a visit, people probably still won’t believe it. After all… he really is exceptional.”

It was rare for someone so outstanding to be so devoted to a relationship.

“I won’t have her come here.”

The smile on Lu Yichen’s face faded significantly. The others laughed. “You think just because Ruan Beibei is gone, there won’t be others?”

“Nowadays, some people think it’s normal to try and steal someone away. Don’t they always say that love doesn’t care who came first?” one of the boys said, patting Lu Yichen on the shoulder. “I’m not just warning you for nothing-you’re only in your first year of grad school. You’ve still got several years ahead of you.”

The four students turned toward the cafeteria. Lu Yichen and Gu Xiaonuan continued toward the school gate, neither of them speaking for the rest of the way.
Lu Yichen’s brow furrowed slightly as if he were in a difficult position. After a long silence, he spoke in a low voice.

“If there’s really no other way, I suppose I could rent a fake girlfriend.”

Hearing this, Gu Xiaonuan raised an eyebrow. “How long would you need to rent one for? Until you finish grad school?” She paused. “That might end up being an astronomical expense.”

Lu Yichen gave a wry smile and followed her onto the subway.

While they waited, the glass doors of the platform dimly reflected their figures along with the people waiting on the opposite side.

Soon, someone noticed Lu Yichen from across the tracks. Excitedly, they pulled out their phone and snapped a photo.

Gu Xiaonuan looked at his tall, handsome reflection, thinking about the overwhelming number of posts speculating about his girlfriend and the comments from those young people earlier.

Gu Xiaonuan let out a soft sigh. “I’ll help you during your years in grad school.”

Lu Yichen looked a bit surprised. “Really, Teacher Gu?”

“Yes. I’ll help you pretend when the situation calls for it. It’s only a few years, after all.” Gu Xiaonuan looked at her own blurred reflection on the glass.

To her, time was the most trivial thing of all.

“Teacher Gu, why do you keep helping me over and over again?” As the train arrived, Lu Yichen followed Gu Xiaonuan into the carriage and couldn’t help but ask in a low voice.

Gu Xiaonuan stood in her usual spot, her lips pressed together. Lu Yichen stood right in front of her.

His clean, beautiful eyes looked down at her slightly. “Do teachers really just like well-behaved students? Or is it because of that ‘friendship across generations’ I mentioned before?”

Gu Xiaonuan lowered her head and gave a small hum of affirmation. Lu Yichen’s lips curled upward. “On a day you don’t have classes, Teacher Gu, change your look and come find me at the university.”

Gu Xiaonuan leaned against the subway car, her eyes downcast as she looked at the ring on her ring finger.

For the sake of this ring, she had erased Ruan Beibei’s memories. Now, for the sake of a face that was far too similar, she had agreed to provide such an absurd kind of help.

Her cold fingertips touched the surface of the ring, stroking it gently.

On the night his name had been called, she had sent a message to Ji Xiangnan.

“Is it possible for a dead human to come back to life?”

A second later, Ji Xiangnan called her. His voice was cold as always, tinged with unmistakable mockery.

“Little girl, what kind of stupid question is that?”

“I met someone. The Blood Contract reacted to the call for him.”

“…” This time, Ji Xiangnan was silent for a long while, retracting his previous sarcasm. “Perhaps he had Lu Yichen’s organs or blood transplanted into him. You saw his death with your own eyes; there’s no mistake about that.”

“…Is that so?”

Gu Xiaonuan murmured, not even realizing how disappointed she sounded.

“If you still can’t move on, then just treat that person as Lu Yichen,” Ji Xiangnan whispered. “Just start over. Wouldn’t that be fine?”

Gu Xiaonuan stood in her pitch-black living room, her red eyes shimmering like jewels.

Hearing those words, her hand tightened around her phone.

“No. I don’t want to drag him into this world again.”

“Suit yourself. For the current you, having a blood bag is enough.” Ji Xiangnan hung up the phone, sounding somewhat annoyed.

Gu Xiaonuan reached out and touched the Cross Mark on her neck. Something belonging to Lu Yichen was inside his body; Lu Yichen was within him.

The moment the thought surfaced, her fangs excitedly poked out from her gums.

Gu Xiaonuan knit her brows. This time, she would stay by his side as a human and watch over him for the duration of the life he was meant to have.