With a fractured right hand, Gu Pan had taken a two-week leave from school.

　　Ever since Ling Hanlu learned that the kid got hurt stumbling around in the dark on the mountain, looking for the "male bird" version of their couple bracelets, she cherished her matching bracelet even more. She wore it all the time.

　　This was Gu Pan's third day at home. Ling Hanlu was in the kitchen, doing her best to whip up dinner.

　　She carried the last dish to the living room, and as she passed by the bathroom on her way back to the kitchen, she heard a clatter and a muffled groan.

　　"Gu Pan, are you okay?" Ling Hanlu knew it was a pointless question.

　　She hesitated at the door, trying to figure out what was happening inside. Did she really need to guess? How good could it be?

　　"It's fine, just knocked over a few bottles. My left hand's not used to it yet! It'll get better! Today's already better than yesterday!"

　　Gu Pan's shower time had more than doubled. He had to wash his body with his not-so-nimble left hand and make sure his right hand, encased in plaster, didn't get wet. Being so meticulous, it was like doing embroidery.

　　"Are you really okay?" Ling Hanlu moved a bit closer to the frosted glass door.

　　"Yeah! Honestly, it's my own fault. I knew I couldn't move well, but I still wanted to stay clean. I don't really need to shower every day; I could just tough it out..."

　　"What are you doing in here?"

　　"Taking care of the patient."

　　"I don't need..." Gu Pan, despite having fantasized countless times about being intimate with this woman, couldn't bear the thought of looking so weak and ridiculous while stark naked.

　　"What, feeling shy because I saw you?"

　　"No."

　　"Give me the showerhead!" Ling Hanlu reached out, not taking no for an answer.

　　Water streamed down Gu Pan's neck and collarbone, flowing over his firm chest. Ling Hanlu's fingers gently scrubbed his skin, with the only barrier between them being the foamy body wash.

　　Then, she crouched down to rinse Gu Pan's legs.

　　At this moment, the boy noticed her cheeks turn from slightly pink to a deep blush... "Teacher, come in here!"

　　"What?"

　　"You're soaking wet... If you don't take a hot shower, you'll catch a cold. Come on in?"

　　Before Ling Hanlu could react, Gu Pan grabbed the showerhead from her and set it aside.

　　The boy looked straight into her eyes and, with his only uninjured hand, pulled her into his arms. "Are you embarrassed?"

　　"Be careful, your hand is still hurt!"

　　"Yeah, we'll be careful in a bit."

　　"What?"

　　"Go to the bedroom."

　　"I thought we were taking a shower?"

　　"No, to the bedroom. Now."

　　2

　　Ling Hanlu's top was soaked at the front.

　　It was a fitted knit undershirt. The wettest part was around her upper abdomen, clinging to her body. But she didn’t have the kind of figure that would turn this into a seductive display. Instead, she looked more like a child who had gotten their clothes wet while drinking water or eating watermelon. It made Gu Pan feel a pang of tenderness.

　　"Aren't you going to take it off?" Gu Pan, standing by the bed, looked at her. With his cast-bound arm immobile, he clumsily tried to lift the hem of her shirt with his other hand.

　　"The food's getting cold; it took me a lot of effort to make it..." Ling Hanlu clutched at her shirt, still trying to escape.

　　"Not hungry. What about you, Teacher?" The boy gently pulled her closer with his one good arm.

　　"I... I guess I'm not hungry either?"

　　"Hehe, you're too cute!" Gu Pan laughed, pulling her into a hug. "Teacher, get closer to me."

　　Ling Hanlu turned off all the lights in the room and took off her uncomfortable wet clothes. Just a foot away, the boy let the large bath towel around his waist drop. Even without additional lighting, his naturally youthful glow highlighted the woman’s face, making her look both charming and shy.

　　"So, what now?" Ling Hanlu almost mumbled.

　　"Well, how about we finish what we started last time? I'm generally a good student."

　　Ling Hanlu remembered the time they were interrupted by Xu Shuping's video call. She shrugged and said, "But you're not wearing that hoodie."

　　"Haha, Teacher, how do you interpret the story of buying the box and returning the pearls?" Gu Pan laughed, his charm radiating.

　　Ling Hanlu nodded, "Yeah, you're the pearls inside the box. Alright then, young man, shine as bright as you can!"

　　3

　　With the bedroom light on, Ling Hanlu and Gu Pan sat on the floor, chatting casually.

　　"Teacher, I really, really want to thank Ms. Xu and Uncle Ling!"

　　"Thank them for what?" Ling Hanlu was wearing Gu Pan's oversized cotton shirt, her knees up, resting her arms on them.

　　Seeing her looking like a performer in oversized stage clothes, Gu Pan couldn't help but laugh. "Haha, Teacher... ahem, I mean, thank them for not disturbing us."

　　"You!" Ling Hanlu knew exactly what he meant. She bent down, resting her forehead on her knees, trying to hide from Gu Pan's chuckles, but her body was visibly shaking with laughter.

　　"Teacher, you get embarrassed so easily."

　　"Says who? What do you mean?"

　　"I mean, at certain moments."

　　"I see... Does that surprise you?"

　　"What does?"

　　"...You know I was married before, right? I remember we first met outside a mall on Children's Day. You showed up right at that moment. I'm sure you heard what my ex-husband's sister said back then."

　　"Yeah, I caught some of it." Gu Pan hadn't expected that his straightforward observation of Ling Hanlu's awkward and shy body language would prompt her to revisit her past. These memories, along with her belief in their "Children's Day encounter," were subjects he tried to avoid at all costs.

　　"His sister wasn't making things up. When I found out I was pregnant, his sentence hadn’t been decided yet, but it was pretty much a foregone conclusion. I was more focused on the child's future, so I didn't tell anyone and went alone to end the pregnancy. At that time, I thought that knowingly facing life's hardships wasn’t brave, but cruel. But from the perspective of the right to life, giving up is the cruelest option. Would you have the heart to tell those who struggle with their own innate or acquired hardships, even when faced with hopelessness, 'You shouldn't have come,' or 'Stop trying'?"

　　"So, did that slap from her actually give you some peace? You didn't feel wronged?"

　　"Yeah, it hurt, and having people gossip about me was awful. But thankfully, you showed up, my little knight! My little angel!" Ling Hanlu said, looking at the pure white clouds on the curtains.

　　"I..." Gu Pan felt a wave of confusion at the pure and holy titles she bestowed upon him. He struggled to stop blaming himself for not being entirely innocent. Looking at her, he replied, "Yes."

　　"You were sent from heaven, weren't you?" Ling Hanlu turned slightly, gently touching the plaster on his arm with her fingertips. "How did you manage that earlier?"

　　"You mean my strength?" Gu Pan's lips curved into a mischievous smile.

　　Here is the refined translation with a more natural and emotionally resonant tone, maintaining the original meaning and incorporating colloquial expressions where appropriate:

　　---

　　"Yeah."

　　"Actually, it’s more about core strength..."

　　"Had any experience in that area?"

　　"Practically, it was my first time." Gu Pan's gaze was utterly sincere as he said this.

　　"Studied the theory?"

　　"Yeah. White woman with black man, white woman with white man, black woman with black man, and yellow woman with yellow man... I've seen them all. Want to see?"

　　"Huh? Oh..." Ling Hanlu's mind flashed to a small dark room. The darkness in that room was both visual and spiritual. "Gu Pan, let me tell you a story about a small dark room!"

　　Before the marital status in Ling Hanlu's personal file changed to "widowed," there was a special room in her home.

　　A talented sculptor had displayed some of his works there. The room was filled with a strong artistic atmosphere.

　　But when night fell, it became a stage for a different kind of spectacle.

　　---

　　"Yep."

　　"Actually, it’s more about core strength..."

　　"Got any experience with that?"

　　"Practically speaking, this was my first time." Gu Pan's gaze was completely sincere.

　　"Read up on the theory?"

　　"Yeah. White woman with black man, white woman with white man, black woman with black man, and yellow woman with yellow man... I've seen them all. Wanna take a look?"

　　"Huh? Oh..." Ling Hanlu's mind flashed to a small dark room. The darkness in that room was both visual and spiritual. "Gu Pan, let me tell you a story about a small dark room!"

　　Before the marital status in Ling Hanlu's personal file changed to "widowed," there was a special room in her home.

　　A talented sculptor had displayed some of his works there. The room was filled with a strong artistic vibe.

　　But when night fell, it became a stage for a different kind of performance.

　　The room's owner dimmed the lights. In the center of the room, the rectangular table was cleared and covered with a soft sheet. A projector was turned on, displaying scenes of various colored bodies entangled and moaning.

　　At that moment, the artist's wife was bathing in the adjacent washroom.

　　She came to the dark room, wrapped in a bathrobe. The only light sources were the large screen on the wall and the cigarette glowing between the man's fingers.

　　Smiling, the man reached out and took her hand, guiding her to the makeshift bed.

　　"But this is a table!" the woman questioned.

　　"Ling, use your imagination. Why can't this be a bed?"

　　"On top of this?"

　　"Yes!"

　　The man placed the cigarette in his mouth and eagerly lifted the woman onto the table.

　　He looked down at her, but didn't see the response he was hoping for.

　　Too damn calm! He took a deep drag on the cigarette, the end glowing brighter, like a tree teetering on the edge of a cliff.

　　The red ember of the cigarette sparked a flicker of worry in the woman. Seeing the worry flash across her face, the beast within the man started to roar.

　　He anticipated seeing more pain and distress on her face.

　　He quickly straddled her, holding the cigarette between his fingers. In her confused but still calm state, he tried to move the cigarette closer to her inner thigh...

　　But her cry was still too restrained, not satisfying the man.

　　He turned up the volume of the video and forcibly turned her head toward the screen. "Listen carefully, watch closely! Aren’t you supposed to be a genius? A smart woman should use her brains in the right way!"

　　---

　　"But the smart woman never met his expectations. So he went out looking for other ways to vent. Some people’s kindness isn’t a fleeting whim; that’s the luck of those they help. But some people’s cruelty isn’t fleeting either, and that’s a disaster," Ling Hanlu said calmly.

　　"Why did you marry him back then?" Despite his strong physique, Gu Pan still asked with the innocence of youth.

　　"Maybe you should ask why he married me... I guess we were drawn to each other’s talents."

　　"Didn't your generation believe in getting to know each other well before marriage?"

　　"You mean, were we too impulsive? When you're captivated by someone’s dominant traits, you can become blind to everything else. What you think you see is just what you want to see. That’s all."

　　"Love makes people blind, right?"

　　"In a sense, yes."

　　"Teacher, did it hurt back then?"

　　"What?"

　　"Your thigh, where the cigarette burned you."

　　"Of course. Flesh and blood, after all."

　　"You forgave him many times?"

　　"Yes."

　　"I saw those scars just now... Teacher, can I see them again?" Gu Pan turned and hugged Ling Hanlu’s shoulders, kissing her neck where her hair fell.

　　"…Alright." Ling Hanlu closed her eyes, a bit dazed.

　　"Teacher, you were talking about how kindness and cruelty aren't just whims. My feelings for you aren’t a whim either. Do you believe me?"

　　Gu Pan began unbuttoning the oversized shirt she was wearing, one button at a time...