Slow to mature after marriage

Obviously, having sex and developing feelings are two different things.

She carefully reviewed the clause and confirmed that it was indeed outside the scope of the agreement.

The logic makes sense now.

"Okay," she nodded. "How would you like to negotiate?"

Before Bo Yan could speak, Mu Siwan asked another question.

"Frequency, timing, format—do you have specific requirements?"

Bo Yan: "..."

He suddenly felt like laughing.

Talking to the human-machine interface about this is just like talking about work schedules.

"At least once a week, nothing else." He countered, "And you?"

Mu Siwan pondered for a few seconds, then decisively said, "Then let's meet every Sunday. If no one dies that day, I'll be there on time."

Bo Yan was taken aback.

Then he crossed his arms, leaned against the door frame, and laughed so hard his shoulders were shaking.

Mu Siwan looked at him, not understanding what was so funny.

She turned to leave.

A lazy male voice came from behind, tinged with barely suppressed laughter: "Fine. Then I'll burn incense and pray to Buddha every day, hoping for world peace on Sunday."

-

Downstairs in the restaurant, Aunt Chen had already set out breakfast.

Mu Siwan sat at the dining table, drinking porridge. A military green coat was draped over the back of her chair, and she wore a black turtleneck sweater with the cuffs rolled up, revealing a small section of her wrists.

Bo Yan sat down opposite her.

Aunt Chen ladled out a bowl of porridge and handed it to him. He took it, but didn't drink it. He glanced at her first.

She ate with her head down, her expression exactly the same as it had been in the dressing room—as if the conversation about "once every Sunday" had never happened.

Bo Yan picked up the bowl and took a sip.

"About Grace," he suddenly spoke, "aren't you curious about what it looks like?"

Mu Siwan looked up.

"The Black-browed Rat Snake," she said. "I've seen it before."

Bo Yan raised an eyebrow: "Alive?"

"A specimen," she replied, "in anatomy class."

That's dead.

Bo Yan nodded and didn't ask any more questions.

The two ate quietly for a while.

Mu Siwan suddenly put down her chopsticks, her brows furrowed, as if she couldn't solve some problem.

"Thin inkstone".

"Um?"

"If having sex and developing feelings are two different things—"

Aunt Chen was carrying a plate when she heard this. She paused and silently took a detour.

Bo Yan put down his spoon and looked at her.

She paused, as if organizing her thoughts.

"What about the others?" Mu Siwan asked, "Hugging, holding hands, kissing—couldn't these things lead to feelings?"

She looked at him intently.

"If we're not talking about feelings," she repeated the principle he mentioned during their first meeting, "our relationship shouldn't be one where we do these things, right?"

Vague and ambiguous, holding hands, hugging, even kissing.

The sunlight was just right outside the window. Bo Yan lowered his eyes and slowly stirred the soup in the bowl with the spoon in his hand.

After a long while, he chuckled, looked up at her, and confirmed.

"right."

His tone was lazy, and you couldn't tell what emotion he was expressing.

"Hugging, holding hands, kissing—those are things that people in love do," he said. "We don't."

Mu Siwan nodded, as if confirming the answer to a question.

"And what about sex?"

She asked directly, without any awkwardness on her face.

Bo Yan looked into her eyes, which were too clean to be true.

"Sex is a physiological need," he said. "It's like eating and drinking; normal people need it. It has nothing to do with feelings."

Mu Siwan nodded.

"Okay, got it."

She picked up the bowl and continued drinking the porridge.

Bo Yan looked at her and suddenly added a sentence.

"So you don't need to feel guilty about Sunday's event."

Mu Siwan looked up at him.

He leaned back in his chair, smiling nonchalantly.

"Just treat it as... a regular weekly event. Like meetings or work schedules."

"I understand." She thought for a moment, then asked, "Is there anything I need to prepare in advance?"

Bo Yan was momentarily speechless at the question.

"...No need, I'll have everything prepared."

"Thank you for your hard work," Mu Siwan replied politely.

Bo Yan paused for a moment while holding the bowl of porridge.

He looked up at her; she was drinking porridge with her head down, her expression no different from when she had just finished a project coordination meeting.

"...It's not hard work." He replied slowly, then lowered his head to continue drinking his porridge.

Sunlight streamed in through the window, illuminating the space between the two people.

It doesn't seem like there's anything wrong with it.

-

The Japanese restaurant that Fan Qiqi had arranged to meet was on the top floor of the mall. Mu Siwan got off work and was caught in the evening rush hour, so it took her forty minutes to get there.

Fan Qiqi had already ordered the food. When she saw her come in, her eyes lit up and she waved to her.

"Here, here, here!"

Mu Siwan sat down opposite her.

Fan Qiqi rested her chin on her hand and looked her up and down.

"Not bad, you haven't lost weight, and your complexion looks good too." She leaned closer and lowered her voice, "How's it going with that Mr. Bo?"

Mu Siwan picked up her chopsticks and took a slice of salmon.

"good."

"What does 'okay' mean?" Fan Qiqi asked, resting her chin on her hand with concern. "Everyone online says that Bo Yan is a ruthless, domineering, and difficult person to deal with."

After finishing her salmon, Mu Siwan slowly said, "It's fine. We discussed it together, and the rumors online are wrong."

"What are you discussing?"

"He discussed our sex life with me."

Fan Qiqi almost spat out her tea.

"...What?" She choked and coughed. "You...you need to negotiate something like this?"

"Of course," Mu Siwan said matter-of-factly. "It's better to make things clear beforehand to avoid trouble later."

"How could everything be planned out in advance?" Fan Qiqi found it absurd. "Do you two have to decide how long you'll kiss, and stop when the time is up?"

Mu Siwan shook her head.

"We won't kiss."

She briefly told Fan Qiqi about the results of the negotiations this morning.

"Let's not talk about feelings, let's not interfere with each other, and be a respectful but unfamiliar couple."

After listening, Fan Qiqi remained silent for a long time before looking up and asking, "You agreed?"

Mu Siwan looked at her questioningly: "There's no reason not to agree."

It wasn't just because she needed to repay the Mu family for raising her. It was also because she herself liked this way of interacting.

The absence of feelings implies a long-term, stable, and unchanging relationship.

She likes this kind of relationship.

Fan Qiqi leaned back in her chair and let out a heartfelt sigh.

"You two... are a perfect match in some ways."

One dared to propose it, and the other dared to agree.

She shook her head, her tone filled with regret.

"It seems that falling in love is something you're destined to never experience in this lifetime. I really want to see what you're like when you fall in love with someone."

Are you feeling the stirrings of first love?

Mu Siwan lowered her eyes.

Actually, it's not that it hasn't happened before.

A long, long time ago.

In that dimly lit attic, a boy barged in recklessly.

He told her that the outside world was wonderful.

You must work hard and go out to see the world.