A Major Change

The next morning, when Tang Wulin drifted into the dining room like a wandering ghost, sporting two enormous dark circles under his eyes, what he saw made him briefly wonder whether he was still dreaming.

Gu Yue was sitting properly at the table, elegantly sipping milk. The outrageously seductive black lace miniskirt, black stockings, and high heels she had worn were nowhere to be seen. In their place was a tailored, crisp dark gray business suit. Her hair was neatly tied behind her head, exposing her smooth forehead and graceful neck. She even wore light office makeup, making her look refined and dignified.

If he had not seen it with his own eyes, Tang Wulin never would have connected this "office worker" before him with the flirtatious seductress who had teased him so relentlessly the night before.

"Morning, young master with kidney deficiency." Gu Yue looked up and gave him a flawless, standard professional smile. "The weather is nice today. Remember to take your medicine on time."

Tang Wulin opened his mouth, but no sound came out for a long while. He was still reeling from last night's visual feast and the torment of the long night that followed, and then... that was it?

Overnight, she had gone from a "midnight horror" back to "the office worker next door"? The whiplash was more thrilling than a roller coaster.

After breakfast, Gu Yue picked up her briefcase. Before leaving, she considerately patted Tang Wulin on the shoulder. "Get some proper rest. Don't overthink things. I'll bring you soup noodles from that place south of town when I get off work tonight. Didn't you say you wanted some last time?"

With that, she headed out in comfortable flats, her steps brisk.

Tang Wulin sat alone at the table, staring at the simple breakfast without any appetite. He felt as though he had punched a pile of cotton. He had spent the entire night building up his strength, ready for a satisfying "cold war" or "counterattack," only for the other side to dismantle the arena entirely, leaving not even an audience behind.

What... was this supposed to mean?

Over the next few days, Gu Yue completely returned to "normal mode." She went to work and came home every day in appropriate, elegant office attire, never wearing anything outrageous again. Sometimes when she came back at night, she would even bring Tang Wulin snacks he liked, late-night food, soup noodles from south of town, or fried chicken cutlets from the west side.

Her attitude toward Tang Wulin also changed from "blatant provocation" to "courteous concern."

One day, Tang Wulin accidentally opened the wardrobe in the master bedroom and discovered that the "loving gift" Gu Yue had once casually tossed onto the bedside table had been carefully cleaned, packaged, and tucked into the deepest corner of the wardrobe, with a packet of desiccant beside it.

Tang Wulin: "..." He felt like an abandoned young wife, empty inside and utterly aggrieved.

What the hell was this girl up to?

Could her earlier provocations really have been just to anger him and watch him suffer? Now that she had achieved her goal, had she simply gone back to normal?

Then why had she given up on that rubber toy so completely? He remembered it clearly—Gu Yue had used it efficiently, and the sounds had been utterly intoxicating. But these past few days, although Gu Yue still entered the bedroom after coming home at night, it had been peaceful and quiet inside. No suspicious sounds came from within.

Until one night, when Tang Wulin got up to drink water and passed the study, he faintly heard a soft sound of fabric rubbing against wood. Drawn by some inexplicable impulse, he leaned closer to the crack in the door and saw Gu Yue sprawled across the desk, a document in hand. Her body was unconsciously brushing lightly against the edge of the desk, her cheeks tinged pink as she let out a barely audible, satisfied sigh.

Tang Wulin: "..."

He silently retreated to the living room and downed a huge glass of cold water.

So that was it! She had switched to rubbing against the desk corner?!

What was this, energy-saving mode? Or did Gu Yue think that while it was efficient, it still could not compare to the thoughtfulness of the "genuine original," so she could not even be bothered with a substitute and simply solved it through physical friction?

A complicated wave of emotions surged through Tang Wulin. Was he happy? A little, perhaps. That rubber toy had truly been a thorn in his throat. Was he speechless? Very much so. Gu Yue's willful ways were simply challenging the limits of his understanding.

But more than that, he felt an inexplicable sense of reassurance and... anticipation.

He realized that although Gu Yue no longer deliberately provoked him, her concern for him was genuine. The late-night meals every day, the occasional snacks she brought him, and what he had accidentally witnessed that night—Gu Yue's subconscious dependence on the "genuine original" when she dealt with her needs alone—all gradually dissolved the lingering knot in his heart.

He even began to feel that perhaps Gu Yue was right. The only one who could truly make her heart race, make her willing to give herself to him body and soul, and even explore the ultimate pleasure with him after the future Liberation Day, was himself.

Only three days remained until the doctor-mandated month of abstinence was over.

He no longer agonized over whether Gu Yue used something, rubbed against a desk corner, or had some other strange method. Those were all merely temporary substitutes, a reasonable outlet for her normal physical needs.

The only thing he had to do was restore his health, take his medicine on time, and then... when that day arrived, prove to Gu Yue—and to himself—with his actions that the "genuine original" was irreplaceable!

When the time came, everything else would have to step aside!

Tang Wulin took a deep breath, swallowed the last few Liuwei Dihuang Pills, and stared intensely toward the bedroom.

Gu Yue, just wait for me.

On Liberation Day, I'll show you what it means to truly go... all out.

At that moment, Gu Yue was working seriously at her computer in the study. As if sensing something, the corners of her lips lifted slightly, revealing a meaningful smile that no one else would ever see.

This psychological battle during the "recovery period" seemed about to enter its decisive stage. She was rather looking forward to seeing whether that "young master with kidney deficiency" would really make her unable to get out of bed for a month, just as he had sworn.

Hehe, just thinking about it was rather exciting.