Huangfu Jue mistook her panic for nervousness, leaned down, reached over the table, and gently covered her hand with his.
"You don’t have to worry, my parents don’t oppose us being together."
She lifted her face in surprise.
"How... how is that possible?"
Huangfu Jue cradled her palm in his own, locking fingers to grasp her hand, and his thumb gently caressed the back of her hand, "So... you don’t have to worry about your status anymore, they don’t care that you’re just an ordinary person."
Gan Yuan felt a tinge of sadness—if only she truly was just an ordinary person.
She tried to force a smile, "Really?"
Huangfu Jue nodded with a smile, "Mom even said she wants to meet you and Xiaotang!"
The normally composed man couldn’t hide the joy in his heart at this moment.
He never doubted his mother would be on his side, but as for his father’s reaction, Huangfu Jue wasn’t entirely sure.
That he didn’t oppose it was already a huge surprise.
"No, absolutely not!" Gan Yuan blurted out in a panic, noticing his gaze, she hurried to explain, "I... I... I can’t meet her, I’m... I’m not ready yet."
"Don’t be nervous, trust me, I’ll take care of everything. My mom is a very interesting person, you’ll see," he said as he lifted his hand to stroke her hair. Huangfu Jue’s fingers gently swept across her face. Noticing her pallor, he frowned with concern, "Is there something on your mind?"
"Then... are you feeling unwell?"
"I..." Gan Yuan lowered her eyelids, "I’m just a bit tired."
Huangfu Jue didn’t detect anything amiss. The sudden happiness had excited him so much that he naturally missed her lie.
"I’ll take you back to your room."
"Really, there’s no need." She stood up, "It’s almost National Day, and you must have a lot to do. I know the way."
He smiled and took her hand, interlacing his fingers with hers, drawing her forward.
Gan Yuan had no choice but to follow him out of the study, her fingers propped up awkwardly. She naturally bent her fingers so that the tips touched the back of his hand. Biting her lip, she gradually tightened her grip around his palm.
Their palms nestled together, fingers clasping the back of the other’s hand, as if all their nerves were focused on that small area of touch.
How many steps down the stairs, whether to turn left or right after descending... These details she usually paid attention to, this time, she noticed none of them.
All she felt was the warmth of his palm and the repeated beating of his pulse, their heartbeats rhythmically aligning in an extraordinary way.
So much so that, by the time he had led her to the inside of the bedroom and stopped, she was still holding his hand.
He lifted her fingers to his lips and kissed them, then spoke indulgently, "There’s some urgent paperwork I need to finish, but I’ll come straight back to be with you afterward."
Hearing the sound of his voice, she snapped back to reality and hurriedly withdrew her hand.
"You don’t have to, you... you... go do what you need to, I... can sleep alone too..."
Heavens, what was she saying? Did she imply that she didn’t want to sleep alone, but with him?
Realizing her own confusion and panic, Gan Yuan felt utterly embarrassed.
Gan Yuan, oh Gan Yuan, have you got it all wrong—it’s just holding hands, why are you freaking out!