Chapter 2: Letter of Guarantee

Cantonese people love drinking tea. Gu Lanxi began learning how to brew tea from her elders before she could even walk, so naturally, there was a tea room in her home.

Gu Lanxi entered, turned on the lights, and without waiting for him, turned left and pushed open the white arched lattice sliding door of the tea room. She walked to the tea table, poured herself a glass of plain water, gulped down half of it, and then turned to ask him

"What would you like to drink? We have water, tea, and milk at home."

Earlier downstairs, when she said she hadn't had a few sips of water all day, she hadn't been exaggerating at all.

After asking for a long while without receiving an answer, she walked out holding her glass, only to find him standing at the doorway, admiring the painting hanging on the partition wall.

To prevent fading, the hallway lighting was very dim. Nothing was placed there except for that one painting, making the space look empty.

He stood there in the hazy night, head tilted slightly, looking at the painting with earnest focus, his shadow stretched long and thin.

Gu Lanxi couldn't help but walk to his side and look with him.

It was a landscape painting, rich in color and delicate in brushwork, depicting a vibrant scene of a magnificent sunset over a field full of flowers. One look at it was enough to make a person feel genuine happiness from the bottom of their heart.

Although this happiness was a bit expensive—she had only won it at an auction this year for over eight million—she felt it was worth every penny.

"I happened to be there the day this painting went up for auction."

Lu Nanting turned his head, looking at her with a smile.

At the time, he had also fallen in love with the painting at first sight and intended to buy it as a birthday gift for his mother. Later, seeing that Gu Lanxi wanted it, he had opted for something else instead.

He hadn't expected to see it in person again.

Their lifestyle habits were very similar, and they shared many common points in aesthetics, which was why he stubbornly believed that Gu Lanxi was the other half custom-made for him by the heavens!

Therefore, every time he discovered a piece of evidence in life that supported this, his anticipation for the future would grow.

It was as if, in this way, Gu Lanxi’s avoidance and rejection wouldn't be quite so heartbreaking.

Gu Lanxi didn't know what he was thinking.

His train of thought was always erratic, often lacking any logic, making it impossible for her to guess.

He had probably just had a haircut today; the sides were faded, the hair on top was short, and as he tilted his head and looked at her like that...

They were standing so close that Gu Lanxi could even smell the faint woody scent of his cologne.

Gu Lanxi subconsciously took two steps back, gave a soft "hm," and then turned around and headed back to the tea room without hesitation.

Lu Nanting chuckled, followed behind her, and walked in as well.

Without waiting for her to play hostess, he poured himself a glass of plain water, not acting like a guest at all.

The two sat opposite each other, neither speaking.

Seeing him so calm and composed, Gu Lanxi, whose eyelids were fighting each other from exhaustion, finally spoke first

"You are still young. Even though you aren't following the 'traffic' route, marriage really isn't something you should be considering at this stage..."

Lu Nanting let out a "humph," took out his wallet, and pulled out a small sealed bag. He tore off the seal and took out a folded piece of light blue letter paper.

Then, as if he had been injected with adrenaline, he instantly perked up

"Here, black and white, see for yourself. Who wrote this guarantee for me? Hmm? Not going to honor it, are you? We even pressed our fingerprints on it! Do you have any idea how long I’ve been waiting for this day?"

Gu Lanxi didn't need to look to know what was written on it. She even remembered that, aside from the words "Guarantee" and the signature, the original content had only been one sentence

[I, Gu Lanxi, hereby guarantee that in this life, I will marry no one but Lu Nanting.]

It had ended up being him who pointed out all the loopholes.

Usually, he acted like the foolish son of a landlord, but at critical moments, he was sharper than anyone.

"What if you end up alone? What if you only date and never marry, changing boyfriends one after another? What if you find someone with the same name as me? What if you find some shameless 'love-brain' who, just to marry you, deliberately changes their name to match mine?"

Driven to her wit's end by his antics, they had first added their ID numbers to the guarantee, and later added another sentence

[When Lu Nanting reaches the legal age of marriage, if he still wishes to marry me, I guarantee to agree, and I shall not marry anyone else before then.]

This sort of thing interfered with the freedom of marriage; even with their fingerprints and signatures, it wasn't legally binding. But Lu Nanting hadn't kept it to sue her.

Lu Nanting unfolded the letter paper, let her take a look, then quickly folded it back up and put it into the sealed bag. After resealing it, he carefully tucked it back into his wallet.

The way he did it made Gu Lanxi feel both annoyed and amused: "Is it possible that someone is going to snatch it from you?"

It was just a thin piece of paper, written on a whim; it would be a lie to say she wasn't touched that he had kept it for so many years.

"Hey, you never know. What if you just stuff it in your mouth and swallow it? It’s not like you haven't done something like that before!"

"That was for a spy drama! Who would actually do that in real life?!"

Gu Lanxi finally couldn't hold it in and rolled her eyes dramatically.

"Anyway, just tell me if you're going to honor it or not!"

Lu Nanting picked up his glass and went to refill it with another half-glass of water, looking like he had the victory in the bag, not panicked in the slightest.

Gu Lanxi also downed half a glass of water, struggling to adjust her emotions before calmly reminding him

"Not to mention that I’m living perfectly fine on my own and have no plans to marry, we already broke up. We broke up many years ago."

Lu Nanting was young; in fact, she was two months younger than him!

She didn't even want to date, let alone get married.

"If you agreed, we would have gotten back together long ago. That’s not the problem."

Seeing Lu Nanting purse his lips with a look of displeasure, Gu Lanxi chuckled

"Just treat it as having met a 'scumbag' woman. With your qualifications, it’s easy to find a good girl to love and be loved by. Why waste your time on me?"

What "scumbag" woman hadn't made some outrageous vow when her blood was boiling in her youth?

That person who swore "I'll marry no one but XX," didn't they end up marrying someone else and having kids?

That person who said "The person I love most in this life is XXX," didn't they have their reputation shattered in the blink of an eye, living sweetly with a mistress?

Besides, there were hidden reasons why she had written that note back then; it wasn't because she was truly so in love with him that she had lost her mind.

"So, for all these years, I’ve liked you, thought of you, and waited for this day, and because of that, I haven't been able to accept anyone else. Am I just supposed to be ruined by you for nothing?"

This man was usually cool, cold, and taciturn. Now that he was no longer gentle, every word he said was piercing. Anyone with a conscience would feel a dull ache in their heart.

Because for all these years, he truly hadn't had any scandals, nor had he dated anyone.

Gu Lanxi had no evidence to challenge him when he said such things.

"I don't believe you don't like me at all! If that were true, when we were downstairs, you would have knocked me down and called security to arrest me! We have a foundation of affection! If we work through things for a while, we will definitely become a perfect match! I have no doubt about that!"

An ordinary person might be deceived by her gentle and delicate appearance, but Lu Nanting wouldn't be.

Because Gu Lanxi knew Wing Chun—she had practiced it since she was a child, and not just for show.

Years ago, when he was almost kidnapped, it was Gu Lanxi who had single-handedly taken down four burly men, holding them off until the police arrived to save him.

The reason she had embarked on the path of an actress was also because a director, while scouting for roles in the south, happened to see her practicing at a martial arts school. He was instantly captivated and pestered her repeatedly, which led to her becoming the young Golden Horse Best Actress she was today.

"You’re just suffering from unrequited desire, an obsession. You know my situation. I can't love you more than I love myself, and it’s highly likely I can't be a qualified wife or have a normal married life with you. There is no point in you marrying me; it will only trap you in endless mental exhaustion and turn you into an increasingly worse person."

Gu Lanxi’s emotions were far less volatile than Lu Nanting’s. She spoke calmly, her expression was calm, but her outlook on love and marriage remained as pessimistic as ever.

"Then let's try it. If it really doesn't work, we can divorce."

"You're a perfectly fine person, why are you rushing to be a second-hand husband? When you meet your true love one day, you'll regret doing this! And if we get married and I can't treat you well, I won't be able to face your mother. You know she treats me very well."

"See? There won't even be mother-in-law and daughter-in-law conflicts. How great is that!"

"You're using moral blackmail!"

"You don't even have any morals, so what moral blackmail? Don't talk nonsense."

"How do I not have any morals?"

"Well, you're not honoring what's written in black and white..."

In the middle of the night, they had argued themselves wide awake.

Gu Lanxi raised her hands in surrender—"Stop! Let's stop arguing. We'll go to the Civil Affairs Bureau tomorrow."

He wouldn't give up, insisting on trying, so they would try.

It would just so happen that he would resolve his inner knot, and she would find peace of mind.

(End of chapter)