Free Web NovelChapter 213: I’VE NEVER FELT THAT SCARED BEFORE
The moment they stepped through the front doors, Guiying understood why there had been so many people waiting outside.
The mansion was surprisingly lively. Employees moved through the hallways with practiced efficiency while others stood ready to assist whenever needed. The place felt less like a private residence and more like a small community operating under one roof.
Guiying had barely taken a few steps when a maid approached him with a respectful smile.
"Young Master Guiying, may I carry your things?"
Before he could answer, another employee stepped forward.
"If Young Master Guiying would like, I can show you to your room."
A third employee appeared almost immediately.
"Would Young Master Guiying like tea or refreshments prepared?"
Guiying froze.
Then he looked at the employees.
Then he looked at Liuxian.
Then he looked back at the employees again.
The entire situation felt slightly overwhelming.
Liuxian watched the scene with obvious amusement before finally stepping in.
"I’ll take him there myself."
The employees immediately straightened.
"Understood, Sir."
Several maids bowed politely before stepping aside. One of them offered Guiying a warm smile.
"If Young Master Guiying needs anything, there are employees stationed throughout the residence. Please let us know and we’ll take care of it immediately."
Guiying watched them leave before turning to Liuxian.
"This place is very lively."
A laugh escaped him.
"I’ve never seen this many people in one place before."
Liuxian didn’t seem surprised by the observation.
"The estate is large enough to require a considerable workforce. There are employees responsible for different sections of the property, and many of them work in shifts to ensure everything continues operating smoothly."
Guiying nodded.
That explanation made sense.
The estate was practically a small town disguised as a private residence.
A thought immediately crossed his mind.
Before he could even open his mouth, Liuxian sighed.
"I already know what you’re about to ask."
Guiying looked innocent.
Unfortunately, the expression had never worked on Liuxian.
"You want to know why you haven’t seen any Omegas working inside the main house."
Guiying coughed lightly.
The accuracy was irritating.
Liuxian looked entirely pleased with himself.
"Personally, the only Omega I want around me is you. I don’t particularly enjoy the idea of other pheromones lingering around my living space."
Guiying stared at him.
The answer sounded ridiculous.
The worst part was that Liuxian looked completely serious.
"There are Omegas employed throughout the estate," Liuxian continued. "They work in other sections of the property. They simply aren’t assigned to the main residence."
They continued walking side by side while he spoke.
"The staff working inside the house are primarily Betas. Butler Wang and Old Li are the only exceptions, and they’ve been with me since I was a child. Then there’s you and me, of course."
Guiying looked at him for several seconds before shaking his head.
"You actually prepared for that question?"
Liuxian shrugged without the slightest hint of embarrassment.
"I know you."
The answer arrived so quickly that Guiying couldn’t even argue with it. A smile tugged at the corner of his lips, and Liuxian immediately noticed the reaction, looking far too pleased with himself for comfort.
"Come on."
Guiying narrowed his eyes suspiciously as they continued walking through the hallway.
"Come on where?"
Liuxian’s smile widened.
"I’ll show you our rooms."
Guiying stopped in his tracks and stared at him.
"Our?"
The single word immediately made him suspicious. Liuxian, meanwhile, remained completely calm, which only made Guiying even more certain that something strange was happening.
"Yes. Our rooms."
Guiying folded his arms across his chest.
The wording felt deliberate, and judging from the amusement on Liuxian’s face, the man knew exactly what he was doing.
"You’ll understand when we get there."
Several minutes later, they arrived on the upper floor. Liuxian led him through a quiet corridor before stopping in front of a large wooden door, and the moment it opened, Guiying finally understood why his husband had been acting so mysterious.
The room was beautiful in a way that immediately caught his attention. Floor-to-ceiling windows allowed sunlight to flood the suite while elegant furnishings filled the space without making it feel crowded or overwhelming.
Unfortunately for Liuxian, Guiying’s attention landed somewhere else entirely.
His eyes immediately found the balcony.
Without a second thought, he walked straight past everything else and headed toward the glass doors, causing Liuxian to laugh behind him.
"I knew that would be the first thing you’d notice."
Guiying ignored him completely and stepped outside. The balcony overlooked a large section of the estate, and the view stretched so far into the distance that it almost felt unreal beneath the warm evening sunlight.
A cool breeze brushed against his face as he admired the scenery. For several moments, he simply enjoyed the view before something inside the room caught his attention.
A door.
Guiying turned around and pointed at it.
"What’s that?"
Liuxian’s smile immediately widened.
"That leads to my room."
Guiying stared at him before looking toward the door. Then he looked back at Liuxian before returning his attention to the door once more as the realization slowly settled in.
The rooms were connected.
Liuxian looked entirely too pleased about that fact.
"So we can visit each other whenever we want."
Guiying immediately pointed at the door again.
"Can it be locked?"
Liuxian blinked in confusion.
"Yes."
A brief pause followed before he added another question.
"Why?"
Guiying looked at him as though the answer should have been painfully obvious.
"So you don’t sneak into my bed."
Liuxian immediately burst out laughing.
The sound echoed throughout the room while Guiying watched him with complete seriousness.
"You force yourself into my room every single night and somehow I’m the one being blamed."
Guiying looked deeply offended by the accusation.
"You always end up taking over the entire bed. I wake up hanging off the edge while you’re sleeping comfortably in the middle like some kind of emperor."
Before he could retreat, Liuxian grabbed his wrist and pulled him toward the bed. The movement was so unexpected that Guiying nearly lost his balance.
"Liuxian!"
His husband looked completely unapologetic.
"This is a king-sized bed."
Liuxian sat down before gently pulling Guiying down beside him.
"Even if both of us rolled around all night, there would still be enough room for us to sleep comfortably."
Guiying rolled his eyes.
That wasn’t the point and they both knew it.
Liuxian’s expression softened slightly as he looked at him.
"Tell me honestly that you don’t like it."
Guiying immediately looked away.
The reaction answered the question before he even opened his mouth, and the amusement in Liuxian’s eyes deepened almost instantly.
"Every time you fall asleep, you end up curling toward me."
"I do not."
"You absolutely do."
"I do not."
Liuxian laughed again, and this time the sound felt lighter than it had all day. The exhaustion that had followed him for the past month seemed noticeably absent whenever Guiying was around.
"You hug me like I’m a giant body pillow."
Guiying stubbornly refused to look at him.
Unfortunately, that only made Liuxian more confident in his argument.
"Are you saying that’s just an unconscious habit?"
Guiying opened his mouth to argue before immediately closing it again. No matter how hard he thought about it, he couldn’t come up with a convincing response.
Liuxian looked unbearably pleased with himself.
At that moment, Guiying became even more convinced that locking the connecting door was an excellent idea.
Before Guiying could continue arguing, Liuxian suddenly pulled him closer and wrapped his arms around him. The embrace wasn’t forceful, yet there was a quiet desperation behind it that made Guiying instinctively return the hug.
For a few moments, neither of them spoke.
Liuxian buried his face against Guiying’s shoulder and held him a little tighter, as though reassuring himself that the person in his arms was truly here and not another dream he would wake up from.
"You really went through with your ultimatum," Liuxian said quietly. His voice carried none of its usual confidence, only the lingering fear of someone who had spent an entire month searching without results. "I’ve never felt that scared before."
Guiying’s grip tightened around him.
The words sounded simple, but hearing them from Liuxian made his chest ache. This was a man who could face boardrooms, rivals and billion-dollar negotiations without blinking, yet the thought of losing him had terrified him.
"I missed you so much," Liuxian continued as he rested his chin against Guiying’s shoulder. "I missed your voice, your scent and your presence. Every day felt longer than the one before it, and every night I kept wondering where you were."
His arms tightened slightly.
"You can’t leave me again."
