Don't call me a singing god, I just want to go back to doing scientific research.

He raised his red, tear-filled eyes and glared at Ling Luo: "Give me the pen."

Ling Luo readily handed her a pen.

Gu Yang grabbed a pen and forcefully wrote his name on the last page of the document, in the section for Party B.

Each stroke is as if he is engraving his name into the paper.

After he finished writing, he pushed the document and pen back together, saying, "You need to sign it too."

"Okay." Ling Luo lowered her head and signed her name.

With tears in his eyes, Gu Yang picked up another one, pulled Ling Luo's hand, and put it on him as well.

"Ling Luo, I don't care where you go or what you do, I just want you to come back safe and sound, understand?"

"I've got it."

Gu Yang sniffed: "If you dare to get into trouble, I'll take this agreement, forget about you completely, and then use your money to find ten or eight young and handsome men."

"I mean what I say."

Ling Luo looked at his fierce appearance, but a gentle smile appeared in her eyes.

He bent down and gently kissed away the tears on his face.

Gu Yang carefully folded the signed agreement, stuffed it into Ling Luo's laptop bag, and zipped the bag up, as if hiding some priceless treasure.

Ling Luo watched his series of actions, and the smile in her eyes deepened.

"Yang Bao".

Gu Yang snorted and shook his hand, which was adorned with a ring, deliberately showing it off in front of Ling Luo: "It's really beautiful. From now on, I'm your guardian. If you dare to disobey me..."

"I'll do whatever you say." Ling Luo held his hand and kissed the ring on his ring finger.

Therefore, the guardian, Yang, was satisfied. He leaned back in the rattan chair, looking at the room full of flowers, and felt that the winter in Beijing was not so cold after all.

"Hmm... does this mean I'm married?"

  

"Of course, you wore my ring and signed my agreement. What, you want to back out, Mrs. Ling?"

"What Mrs. Ling? You're the former Mrs. Ling."

Ling Luo raised an eyebrow, neither confirming nor denying. Anyway, since they were in bed, Gu Yang knew who was on top.

The two lingered in the warm greenhouse for a while longer, until it got dark before preparing to leave.

On the way back, Gu Yang was still immersed in the joy of his new identity, leaning his head against the car window and humming a song casually.

"Yang Bao," Ling Luo suddenly spoke, "there's something I need to tell you."

"Hmm?" Gu Yang turned his head, his eyes sparkling. "What is it? Are you preparing a surprise for me?"

Ling Luo looked at him like this, paused for a moment, and then said, "The international brand Verve Collective is looking for a spokesperson in China. I'd like to give it a try."

"Verve Collective?" Gu Yang knew this brand; it was a top global luxury brand with an incredibly high level of prestige. "Wait, isn't it true that you don't do endorsements?"

Ling Luo paused. This was indeed a minefield, but...

Ling Luo glanced at Gu Yang. He didn't want Gu Yang or any of his artists to take risks; this was something he needed to do.

"Verve Collective just sent an invitation to the company. I think the brand's concept is pretty good, so I'd like to give it a try."

"Sure, when?"

"The interview is in the US. I'm leaving this Wednesday, and the interview is on Thursday."

Gu Yang counted on his fingers: "Leaving on Wednesday? What about the recording of 'New Voice' on Thursday?"

"So, I'd like to ask you for a favor." Ling Luo looked at him, "Could you go to the recording on Thursday for me?"

"Me again?" Gu Yang pointed to his nose, looking incredulous. "No, you weren't planning on taking me with you."

Moreover, the last time I replaced Ling Luo almost left me with a psychological trauma. This time it's a four-into-three competition. What if I mess it up?

"You don't need to do anything," Ling Luo reassured her. "I've already written the song and given it to Qin Lan. You just need to sit there and be a mascot."

"Who's the mascot!" Gu Yang retorted defiantly, but inwardly he was already relieved. "Hmph, you'd already planned this all along?"

"Um."

"Fine," Gu Yang pouted, with an expression that said, "I've sacrificed a lot for you." "For the sake of our Teacher Ling's path to the championship, I'll reluctantly substitute one more time."

Ling Luo smiled: "I brought you a gift when I came back."

"That's more like it," Gu Yang leaned closer, "So how long are you going to be gone?"

Ling Luo's eyes flickered, so quickly it was almost imperceptible: "I'll be back after the interview, probably in about a week."

"A week..." Gu Yang drawled, then said understandingly, "Alright, since you're going to pursue your career, this guardian approves."

He now uses the word "guardian" with exceptional ease.

……

When Ling Luo got home that evening, he went into the study, and Gu Yang began rummaging through drawers and cabinets to pack his luggage.

He muttered to himself quietly.

"Honestly, he just got me hooked and now he's running away. He doesn't care about me at all. I don't know what kind of luck he had to find such an understanding and lovable person like me."

He carefully packed Ling Luo's usual eye mask and cold medicine into a corner of his suitcase.

Ling Luo heard Gu Yang's 'whispering' voice while she was in the study, and this was the scene she saw when she came out of the study.

Gu Yang squatted in front of his suitcase, like a little squirrel busy stocking up for winter, his mouth opening and closing as if he were muttering something.

He walked over, pulled the person into his arms from behind, and rested his chin on Gu Yang's shoulder.

"Finally, Yangbao will help me pack my luggage?"

Warm breath brushed against his ear, and Gu Yang stiffened for a moment before relaxing, tilting his head back to rest against his chest: "Hmph, what can I do when I'm such a diligent and kind guardian?"

Ling Luo tightened his arms around Gu Yang, buried his face in the crook of Gu Yang's neck, and mumbled, "Yang Bao."

Gu Yang could feel the tension emanating from his body. He turned around to face Ling Luo, reached out and pinched his cheek: "What's wrong? You're already reluctant to leave me even before you've gone?"

It was meant as a joke, but Ling Luo didn't laugh.

He just stared at him, and those eyes, which were always so clear and aloof, now seemed to hold a whirlpool, unfathomable, threatening to suck him in completely.

The next second, an aggressive kiss landed on her.

It wasn't the gentle, cautious kind she usually was; this time, it carried an irresistible force, as if it wanted to devour him whole and ingrain him into his very bones.

Gu Yang was forced to retreat by his kisses, and was finally picked up by the waist and carried straight to the bedroom.

That night, Ling Luo was exceptionally brave, even somewhat out of control.

It was as if he wanted to reclaim all the longing he had accumulated over the past week, as well as the money he had saved up for the next week.

Gu Yang was so confused by his antics that his mind was completely blank.

Is this guy... insane?

It's just a week's absence, why are you making it sound like a life-or-death separation?

He thought vaguely, but his fingers unconsciously gripped the bed sheet beneath him.

Oh well, if he can't bear to part with it, so be it. Let him be.

Who told him to be his "ward" now?

He tilted his head back to respond to Ling Luo's request, comforting the man he couldn't understand but loved deeply in his own way.

As night deepened, Gu Yang fainted several times. Each time he woke up, Ling Luo was busy with something.

Gu Yang didn't wake up until noon the next day.

Seeing that no one was around, Gu Yang lay there listlessly, his wild hair disheveled.

He couldn't afford to mess with Ling Luo last night.

He suspected that without the restorative medicine from the research institute that Ling Luo had given him, he would have died here.

But when Gu Yang thought about last night, he felt that it was not bad.

"Hmm, ⁄(⁄⁄•⁄ω⁄•⁄⁄)⁄"