Staring at Xu Luoyang’s comment in a conflicted state, Ye Shanshan hesitated for a long time. However, seeing that Xu had praised Sparkle, he decided to reply:
“I’m really envious of those who like Sparkle. After all, they have the same good taste as me.”
Almost instantly, Xu Luoyang, an internet-addicted teenager, responded, “I really appreciate your taste.”
Ye Shanshan originally thought that, after being so straightforward, the focus of the comments would shift. However, it didn’t.
The entire comment section was still stuck in a bizarre tone with comments like, “I am that white shirt on Shanshan!” “Then I’m the belt around his waist!” “I’m the lighter, don’t fight over it!”
Or comments like, “I only need two more posters to complete the set, but they’re out of stock. Anyone know which counter in X city still has them?”
“My heart races whenever I look at the poster—am I getting sick?”
“My nose won’t stop bleeding—can anyone recommend a good blood tonic?”
Feeling utterly dejected, Ye Shanshan hugged Sparkle close to his chest, tenderly patting its little head.
“It seems the name Sparkle doesn’t work either. What should I change it to? Sparkle is still better…”
He muttered to himself, and then casually pinched Sparkle’s little ears. Accidentally triggering a switch, Ye Shanshan suddenly heard a recording of his own voice playing:
“Great Demon King, I am your most loyal knight, and I will protect you.” It repeated three times.
“…”
Feeling deeply embarrassed, with a strange sense of shame, Ye Shanshan quickly withdrew his hand. Then, he realized something.
—This was supposed to be a gift for Gong Yue, so why was he the one carrying it around all the time? Could it be that Gong Yue no longer likes cats?
Mother Youli once told him that when Gong Yue was young, he wasn’t allowed to have pets. The Grand Madam of the Gong family believed that, as the heir of the Gong family, he didn’t need such laughable things as so-called affection.
Gong Yue once wanted a Ragdoll cat badly, but the Grand Madam refused. Later, he secretly took care of a small injured kitten in a cabin in the woods, visiting it every day, carefully feeding it, and playing with it for ten minutes in a restrained manner.
But a week later, the Grand Madam found out, and she waited another two weeks before taking action.
So when Gong Yue, with hidden excitement, went to find the kitten again, he discovered that it was gone.
Gong Yue didn’t ask his grandmother what had happened to the kitten because he was certain that the answer would not be something he wanted to hear.
He might even have to be thankful that his grandmother had delayed for two weeks to allow him to bond with the kitten.
Since then, Gong Yue never kept another pet. He meticulously fulfilled his duties as the heir of the Gong family, but no one really cared about how Gong Yue himself was doing.
The Grand Madam once told Gong Yue that those animals have short lifespans and are not worth investing emotions in. So, Ye Shanshan made a mechanical cat, thinking that as long as it’s well-maintained, it could accompany Gong Yue for life, sparing him from the pain of separation.
When Gong Yue returned from working late, he saw Ye Shanshan with Sparkle perched on his head, looking distressed. The lollipops in front of him were still wrapped, and he was sighing deeply, one after another.
Handing his coat to Butler Hawk, Gong Yue bent down and kissed the spot on Ye Shanshan’s cheek where his dimple appeared. “What’s wrong?”
Seeing that Gong Yue had returned, Ye Shanshan, who was scrunching his nose, took Sparkle off his head and handed it to Gong Yue, looking rather disgruntled.
“Ge, this cat is too heavy! My arms are sore. Can you hold it for a bit?”
Without exposing Ye Shanshan’s words, Gong Yue hesitated for a few seconds before reaching out to take Sparkle and holding it in his arms.
Seeing Gong Yue’s rare moment of awkwardness, Ye Shanshan suddenly felt a pang of sadness. He leaned in and wrapped his arms around Gong Yue’s waist. “Ge, Sparkle and I will always be here for you.”
It took Gong Yue a while to respond, his voice slightly hoarse, “Okay.”
※※※
After dinner, Ye Shanshan lounged on the sofa, flipping through the script of *Mountains and Rivers Remain*, which he had read countless times. Then, he chatted in the “Mahjong and Barbecue” group about the pre-production work for the upcoming shoot.
When he felt the time was right, he quickly moved a low stool into the study, and with a mysterious air, asked Gong Yue, “Ge, are you done with your work?”
Seeing Gong Yue nod, Ye Shanshan cheerfully jogged over, put down the stool, picked up Sparkle from Gong Yue’s lap, placed it on the carpet nearby, and then pulled out a long, thin object from his pocket.
“Ta-da! Look, an ear pick! Mr. Gong, are you surprised? Want to try it out? You can exchange for this service with just one kiss!”
As he said this, Ye Shanshan leaned in, closing his eyes, clearly inviting a kiss, something he was quite adept at.
Gong Yue looked at his fluttering eyelashes and the smile on his lips, then seriously kissed him on the lips. “Done.”
With the deal sealed, Ye Shanshan positioned himself on the chair, letting Gong Yue sit on the lower stool, and then rested Gong Yue’s head on his lap. He proudly displayed the ear pick, which had a Pikachu design on one end.
“Ge, you’ve been really tired lately. I heard that cleaning your ears like this can be very relaxing. Want to give it a try?”
He had even sought out a craftsman with over thirty years of experience in this field, learning various tips and tricks, and after practicing on himself, he felt confident that it was indeed quite comfortable. Only then did he approach Gong Yue.
As he carefully moved his fingers, Ye Shanshan rambled on about his schedule.
“Ge, the Juno commercial shoot starts on the 20th. Zheng Dong said the response to the poster shots has been great, but Mr. Balmon and others are still debating, so the script for the commercial hasn’t been finalized. At the end of February, *The Observer*, which I filmed, will be released, and I’ve already promised Director Zhang that I’ll join two shows for promotion. Then in March, *Mountains and Rivers Remain* begins filming.”
He finished with a long sigh. “Sigh, no time to indulge in studying.”
Though, his tone didn’t carry much regret.
“Shanshan, have Lin Xiatian go with you and stay safe.”
“Okay,” Ye Shanshan responded, casually pinching Gong Yue’s earlobe. After a moment of silence, he suddenly said, “Ge, if your schedule allows, should we take a trip to France?”
Previously, when investigating Chabellna—the person who joined Professor Durant’s lab along with Gong Youli—Ye Shanshan had a lingering feeling that there were suspicious circumstances surrounding the car accident and subsequent amnesia. Although Gong Yue had ordered his subordinates to look into it with no results, Ye Shanshan wanted to go with Gong Yue personally.
He felt there might be some clues—this was his vampire prince intuition.
Relaxing gradually as he leaned on Ye Shanshan’s thigh, Gong Yue thought for a moment and replied, “Then let’s depart on the afternoon of the 12th.”
“Alright, I’ll pack a little tomorrow. They say this winter in France is particularly cold, though I wonder just how cold it really is…”
As his voice trailed off, Ye Shanshan noticed that Gong Yue’s breathing had already become steady—he had fallen asleep.
Without stopping his gentle movements, Ye Shanshan gazed at Gong Yue’s profile, feeling a swirl of emotions within him.
Gong Yue had been incredibly busy at the end of the year and the beginning of the new one, overwhelmed with work, and he hadn’t been sleeping well. Already not much of a talker, he spoke even less when tired. It was better at home, but when out, he might not even speak a few words all day. And ever since he had come to fully understand that Mother Youli had sacrificed herself to protect him, Ye Shanshan had noticed more than once that Gong Yue would often wake up in the middle of the night, startled by his dreams, even though his outward demeanor showed no trace of emotion.
For Gong Yue, holding back and not revealing his emotions had become second nature.
Once he was sure that Gong Yue was deeply asleep, Ye Shanshan breathed a sigh of relief, gently set the wooden ear pick aside, and stayed still in his current position.
※※※
The private jet landed at the nearest airport. By the time the group drove to the outskirts of the small town where Bernard lived, a heavy snowfall had just passed, leaving the roads buried under deep snow. The road was impassable by car, so they decided to park at the roadside and walk the rest of the way.
The cold wind made Ye Shanshan’s nose turn bright red, but even the snow, which reached up to his calves, couldn’t deter his adventurous spirit. He excitedly ran to a tree by the roadside, vigorously shook its trunk, and ended up covered in snow.
With his “battle trophies” all over him, Ye Shanshan struggled back to Gong Yue, eyes sparkling with excitement, and asked Gong Yue to brush off the snow.
After Gong Yue brushed him off, Ye Shanshan settled down for only a short while before he got another idea. He walked a few steps, grabbed some snow, and began molding it. Eventually, he formed a five-petaled ice flower.
He held the rather ugly flower out to Gong Yue, smiling far more beautifully than the flower, and blinked playfully,
“Handsome sir, this flower is for you.”
Gong Yue accepted it, and seeing Ye Shanshan’s even brighter smile, he solemnly replied, “Sir, accepting my flower means you belong to me now!”
Carefully holding the flower, Gong Yue nodded and earnestly answered, “Yes, I’m yours.”
Following behind the two, Chris, with his face stinging from the cold wind, pulled his hood tighter, thinking that the scene was too much to bear—he could go blind!
After walking for over twenty minutes, they arrived at a small house with cream-colored walls. Having called ahead, the three of them were quickly welcomed inside by Bernard’s caretaker after they identified themselves.
Bernard looked much more lively than in the photos. He was in his sixties, with red-brown hair that had mostly turned white. He was sitting in a recliner by the floor-to-ceiling window, reading a newspaper, and wearing a pair of black-framed reading glasses.
When Ye Shanshan mentioned Gong Youli, Bernard had to think for a long time before he spoke uncertainly,
“She was my classmate at Princeton, a genius, and quite young. We studied under the same professor, but she got married not long after.”
That seemed to be the extent of his memories of Gong Youli.
After chatting for a few more minutes, it seemed that old memories slowly started to resurface. Bernard’s gaze fell on Gong Yue, and his voice carried a tone of nostalgia.
“Let me think… Your eyes and face shape—they seem to resemble your mother’s a bit,” he said with a wistful smile. “My memory has been getting worse these past few years, and I can’t recall much. After all these years, I’ve almost forgotten what Youli looked like. How is she doing now?”
Gong Yue exchanged a glance with Ye Shanshan before replying, “Mother passed away five years ago.”
Hearing this, Bernard’s smile froze and then faded away. After a long silence, he took off his black-framed reading glasses and reached for the white cloth beside him to clean the lenses.
But if you looked closely, you could see his hands trembling slightly.
“She’s… already gone,” Bernard murmured, putting his glasses back on and looking at Gong Yue. “So, child, what is it you want to know by coming to see me this time?”
1TL: YSIAD “You can support me if you like my translations by leaving a comment below, or by sending me a Ko-fi. Thank you and Enjoy reading! ❤️”
![How to Escape from the Hands of Yandere [QT]](https://www.freenovels.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/images-94.jpeg "How to Escape from the Hands of Yandere [QT]")
