At the Hao Mansion, in the master bedroom, Yuan Gun Gun silently sat on the bed. She stopped missing Hao Yan Che since he slapped her cheek in Las Vegas. Long Liu Bao was wrong, Hao Yan Che wasn’t gentler toward her and he didn’t hit her bottom. She didn’t think there was a day Hao Yan Che would raise his hand to hit her face.

Yuan Gun Gun wouldn’t have ran away if Hao Yan Che wasn’t so controlling and mean to her. She was scared about what he would do next.

‘Go take a bath,’ Hao Yan Che said.

Yuan Gun Gun thought she misheard Hao Yan Che.

Hao Yan Che put Yuan Gun Gun’s nightshirt and underwear on the bed.

‘Go take a bath,’ Hao Yan Che repeated.

Yuan Gun Gun picked up the nightshirt and underwear from the bed, and she walked to the bathroom.

Hao Yan Che took out soothing cream from a drawer, and waited on the bed for Yuan Gun Gun.

After Yuan Gun Gun came out of the bathroom, she was surprised Hao Yan Che was waiting for her on the bed.

‘Come here,’ Hao Yan Che said.

Yuan Gun Gun slowly walked to the bed. She sat on the bed, and Hao Yan Che applied soothing cream on her red cheek.

‘Che, I…’ Yuan Gun Gun said.

‘It’s OK,’ Hao Yan Che said. ‘You don’t need to say anything.’

Yuan Gun Gun didn’t know if Hao Yan Che wasn’t angry or he was going to punish her later.

‘Dry your hair and sleep,’ Hao Yan Che said.

Hao Yan Che put the soothing cream in the drawer, and walked to the bathroom.

Yuan Gun Gun didn’t know why Hao Yan Che suddenly behaved differently. She felt the distance between became wider.

Hao Yan Che soaked his body in the bathtub, and thought about Yuan Gun Gun. They were together for four years. She didn’t change. But he changed. Each day he loved her more. But she couldn’t see how much he loved her.

Hao Yan Che had hoped Yuan Gun Gun would be a little smarter after four years. He only wanted her to be a little smarter enough to understand he loved her. Was he overbearing? Was he a scary person in her heart? Did she feel suffocated by him? He didn’t want her to leave him. He was scared of losing her to Na Liu Ting Du.

Hao Yan Che didn’t know what he should do to change. What did Hao Yan Que do to make Qiu Li Luo love Hao Yan Que unconditionally? He used to look down at how much Hao Yan Que and Qiu Li Luo loved each other. But after marrying Yuan Gun Gun, he wanted them to love each other like how deeply his parents loved each other. He wanted to be with Yuan Gun Gun every second and minute of the day.

Yuan Gun Gun forced herself to keep her eyes opened. She heard the bathroom door opened, and felt Hao Yan Che lie on the bed next to her. She was anxious about how he would punish her.

Hao Yan Che looked at Yuan Gun Gun’s nightshirt. He knew she was scared of him. It was his fault for being rough with her the first time he slept with her. He thought she would forget about the pain he caused her over time. He didn’t expect she would always be scarred from that day. He didn’t know what to do to make her more comfortable being with him. That night he felt like a failure.

Yuan Gun Gun felt Hao Yan Che hugged her waist from behind. She was anxious what he would do next.

Hao Yan Che felt Yuan Gun Gun’s body tensed. He missed her, and wanted to sleep with her. But if she didn’t want to sleep with him, he didn’t want to be selfish and only held her that night.

Yuan Gun Gun waited for a long time. Then she heard Hao Yan Che sleeping. Why didn’t he hit or curse her?

The next morning at half past eight, Mrs Chen was shocked to see Yuan Gun Gun eating breakfast at the dining table. Usually if Yuan Gun Gun did something to make Hao Yan Che angry, he would keep Yuan Gun Gun in bed all night and Yuan Gun Gun wouldn’t wake up until the afternoon.

Mrs Chen didn’t understand why Yuan Gun Gun running away was breaking a serious rule in Hao Yan Che’s eyes, but Hao Yan Che let Yuan Gun Gun off the hook. What also gave Mrs Chen a shock was Hao Yan Che let Yuan Gun Gun sit on a chair instead of holding Yuan Gun Gun on his lap.

Mrs Chen wondered if it was an omen. Was it the calm before the storm?

***

End of Chapter 160