NOVPUB47: Chapter 35 Sweet and Honeyed
47 -35 Sweet and Honeyed
After dealing with ginger, Gu Yanzhi set the entire 17th floor’s heating temperature to 22 degrees Celsius, the most suitable temperature for ginger to grow, which is between 20 to 25 degrees Celsius.
Ever since the extreme cold had begun, although the 17th floor was used to store some supplies, the heating had never stopped.
The heat from the 17th floor dissipated through the floorboards to the 16th floor, which made the temperature in Xiao Lin and Gao Zhi’s homes much warmer than in other households.
Gu Yanzhi couldn’t directly say, “I have supplies, I can provide everyone with heating items.” He could only offer this small token of help to his neighbors through such a method.
After tidying up the trash in the room, Gu Yanzhi and Song Zhao went to exercise in the gym for a while, then returned to the 18th floor.
“I’ll go take a shower first,” Gu Yanzhi said upon returning to the room, grabbing clothes and heading to the bathroom in the bedroom.
Gu Yanzhi filled the bathtub with hot water and soaked in a comfortable hot bath.
Water was cut off not long after the floods, and for the past two months, the water they used for washing had been stored in a space beforehand.
Song Zhao and Gu Yanlin would regularly check the water storage tanks and water heaters, and would promptly refill them when the water was nearly depleted.
After the bath, Gu Yanzhi washed his hair as well.
When he came out, Song Zhao had just finished bathing in the living room’s communal bathroom and was drying his hair with a towel.
Seeing Gu Yanzhi, Song Zhao immediately took a new towel that was set aside and gently began to dry Gu Yanzhi’s hair.
Song Zhao’s hands massaged his scalp gently yet firmly, making Gu Yanzhi feel relaxed.
Having been out and about for several days, he felt the fatigue surge up all at once now that he took a day to rest.
Once Song Zhao was nearly done drying the hair, he went to the bathroom to fetch a hairdryer and slowly began to dry Gu Yanzhi’s hair.
The warmth of the hairdryer started to make Gu Yanzhi drowsy.
By the time Song Zhao finished blow-drying her hair, he looked down to find Gu Yanzhi had already dozed off, head drooping.
“Zhizhi, Zhizhi.”
“Hmm?”
“Go to bed and sleep.”
Song Zhao gently woke Gu Yanzhi, carrying the sleep-bleary Gu Yanzhi to bed and tucking him in.
Watching Gu Yanzhi turn over and fall into a deep sleep, he then went outside and quietly dried his own hair as well.
After drying his hair, Song Zhao went into the kitchen, cut up two pieces of ginger and dropped them into boiling water to let them simmer, then picked up a book and sat quietly on the sofa to read.
“I’m back.”
At 8 o’clock in the evening, the wood-chopping squad from building 10 returned home, dragging their freezing bodies after being out in the cold all day, exhausted.
Gu Yanlin was an exception among them; thanks to the temperature-adjustable clothing he wore, he hadn’t felt cold throughout the day, though his arms were a bit sore from swinging an ax all day long.
As soon as he entered the house, Gu Yanlin felt the warmth.
He quickly put the wood he had earned that day into the storage room and then stripped off his clothes, bare-torsoed and wearing shorts, he walked toward the living room.
“Quickly put something on, don’t catch a cold.”
Song Zhao, hearing the noise, looked up from the book and immediately scolded upon seeing Gu Yanlin bare-chested.
Coming in from outside, the sudden change from cold to warm was the time when it was easiest to catch a cold.
“Brother-in-law, it’s too hot.
I’m going to take a shower first,” Gu Yanlin said with a silly smile.
He quickly slipped back into his room before Song Zhao could say a second sentence.
Just as Gu Yanlin had darted back to his room, Gu Yanzhi, who had been asleep in the master bedroom, heard the commotion and slowly woke up.
Gu Yanzhi rubbed his eyes and walked out of the bedroom, appearing somewhat languid in his pajamas.
“Zhizhi, you’re awake,” Song Zhao, hearing the sounds from the master bedroom, curved his lips into a handsome arc, his obsidian-like eyes twinkling with a gentle light, as if seeing the beauty of the whole world in Gu Yanzhi.
Former subordinates of the Gu Family would have been astonished by the sight of this tender and harmless man, finding it hard to believe he was once their boss who rarely smiled or spoke unnecessarily.
Faced with such a Song Zhao, Gu Yanzhi was also momentarily stunned, her heart pounding, professing her love for this man.
It took a few minutes before Gu Yanzhi could regain her composure, her hands covering her slightly flushed face.
Seeing Gu Yanzhi so adorable, Song Zhao’s smile deepened even further.
“Don’t laugh,” Gu Yanzhi, sensing Song Zhao’s amusement, quickly walked to the sofa and covered his mouth, chiding him with embarrassed reproach.
At the same time, she comforted herself in her heart, reminding herself that there was nothing shameful about being smitten by her own husband.
“Okay, okay, I won’t laugh,” Song Zhao agreed soothingly, but his shaking chest betrayed his laughter.
Song Zhao felt a darkness before his eyes as the hand on his face was removed, followed by a warm and moist sensation on his lips.
Song Zhao took the opportunity to wrap his arms around Gu Yanzhi, deepening the kiss.
“Is Yan Lin back?
I thought I heard something just now.”
“Yes, he went to take a shower.”
It was a long while before Gu Yanzhi, who was almost gasping for air, was finally released by Song Zhao.
Sitting on the sofa and catching her breath for a while, Gu Yanzhi then remembered she had gotten up upon hearing her brother’s voice.
Gu Yanlin, hearing the conversation outside, came out of his bedroom, greeted Gu Yanzhi, and sat down on the other side of the sofa.
“Sis, I’m back.”
Heavens knew, he had just finished showering and then saw the couple kissing intensely on the sofa, an immense shock to his pure-hearted youth.
Terrified, he quickly blushed and tiptoed back to his room, not daring to come out.
“Let’s eat,” Gu Yanlin suggested.
It was already 8 pm when he returned, and a delay meant it was nearly 9 pm now, leaving all three of them with growling stomachs.
“How about hotpot tonight?” Gu Yanzhi proposed.
Nothing suited the bitter cold like a hotpot.
“Sounds good, I agree,” Gu Yanlin, sharing similar tastes and thoughts with his sister, was in favor.
Song Zhao went to the kitchen, found the yin-yang pot usually used for hotpot, and started boiling water.
While waiting for the water to boil, he remembered the ginger tea still warm in the health pot and poured a cup for Gu Yanlin.
“Sis, brother-in-law,” Gu Yanlin looked at the ginger tea in his hands, his cry almost one of tears.
He had thought he would escape the ordeal today as his brother-in-law hadn’t made him drink it, but still couldn’t avoid it.
Under their watchful eyes, Gu Yanlin downed the unpleasant concoction and silently prayed that all the ginger in the world would freeze to death.
“Mm, it’s quite sweet, give me another piece,” taking advantage of Gu Yanlin’s grimace, Gu Yanzhi tossed a piece of chewing gum into his open mouth.
Gu Yanlin, almost reflexively, chewed a few times, which helped suppress the distasteful flavor in his mouth, and coquettishly asked Gu Yanzhi for another two pieces.
“Here you go,” Gu Yanzhi handed him the jar of gum she had prepared in advance, knowing his dislike for ginger tea.
Taking the jar, Gu Yanlin stuffed a few more pieces into his mouth before he finally suppressed the nauseating taste.
