“If it hurts, then why didn’t you dodge? Are you stupid?” Sheng Yan had already been worried sick. Hearing Qin Zigui admit he was in pain only made him angrier, and he immediately snapped at him again.
After the words left his mouth, though, he realized he’d sounded too harsh.
He lowered his head, softened his voice a little, and muttered irritably,
“You could’ve just called out to me. It’s not like I wouldn’t have gotten out of the way.”
Qin Zigui lowered his gaze and replied calmly,
“The alley was too narrow. The bike was going too fast.”
Meaning…
Even if he had shouted, Sheng Yan might not have been able to avoid it.
The moment Sheng Yan understood what he meant, it felt as though someone had punched his heart through a pile of cotton.
It still hurt.
But it wasn’t the kind of pain he could describe.
It just felt suffocating.
Heavy.
Aching.
Because no one knew Qin Zigui better than Sheng Yan did.
Qin Zigui was the type who kept everything bottled up.
Hungry.
In pain.
Tired.
Suffering.
He never said a word, as though he was afraid of becoming anyone else’s burden.
So if even he admitted that it hurt…
Then it had to hurt badly.
And honestly, Qin Zigui didn’t even have to say it.
Sheng Yan could see it for himself.
The bicycle looked ancient, so worn-out that the front had been held together with metal wire.
Getting hit by the bike alone would have been painful enough.
Yet when it crashed, that same wire had torn open his school pants and carved such a long, bloody gash into his leg.
Of course it hurt.
Serves you right.
Who told you to shield me?
Playing pitiful won’t work on me.
Those thoughts ran through Sheng Yan’s head, but he didn’t want Qin Zigui to notice how he really felt.
Keeping his head down, he forcefully tore away the fabric around the wound and muttered,
“I’m taking you to the hospital.”
Then he turned toward the culprit beside them.
“You too. You’re coming with us.”
The culprit was a skinny little boy, probably only eleven or twelve years old.
He was crouched on the ground, hurriedly gathering the lunch boxes that had scattered everywhere.
Hearing Sheng Yan, he looked up blankly.
“…Huh?”
Sheng Yan glanced at the delivery bags on the ground.
“Delivering food for your family?”
The boy nodded.
Sheng Yan held out his phone.
“Call home and tell them to remake the order and deliver it again. I’ll pay for this one. Then you’re coming to the hospital with us.”
The boy didn’t dare take the phone.
Lowering his head, he said quietly,
“But… I can’t afford the medical bills.”
If the person who’d hit Qin Zigui had been an adult man, Sheng Yan would never have let him off so easily.
But this was just a child.
All the anger bottled up inside him suddenly had nowhere to go.
Instead, seeing the boy’s frightened expression only made Sheng Yan feel miserable himself.
He tried his best to keep his tone gentle.
“I’m not asking you to pay.”
“I just want to make sure you weren’t hurt too.”
“You don’t have to pay for the examination either.”
“Hurry.”
“Hold the cat for me.”
As he spoke, Sheng Yan stuffed the kitten and his phone into the boy’s arms.
Then he stood up, draped Qin Zigui’s arm over his own shoulder, slipped one hand around Qin Zigui’s waist to support him, and with practiced familiarity reached toward Qin Zigui’s pants pocket with the other hand to take out his phone.
Instinctively…
Qin Zigui leaned back to avoid him.
Sheng Yan clicked his tongue and grabbed Qin Zigui’s arm again.
“Stop moving. It’s not like I’m going to eat you!”
Qin Zigui wasn’t worried that Sheng Yan would eat him.
What was difficult to endure was Sheng Yan’s hand reaching into his pants pocket, feeling around near the top of his thigh through the thin fabric of his school uniform pants.
To make matters worse, the pocket with his phone was on the other side. Since Sheng Yan was supporting him at the same time, it was especially awkward. After Sheng Yan’s hand slipped a few times, Qin Zigui finally said coolly,
“…Actually, I can get it myself.”
Sheng Yan: “…”
Right.
Qin Zigui’s hands weren’t disabled.
As if nothing had happened, Sheng Yan withdrew his hand.
“Then do it yourself. And while you’re at it, ask the Weasel for leave, or he’ll yell at me again.”
His tone was completely natural, making it obvious that he hadn’t found anything inappropriate about what he’d just done.
Qin Zigui glanced at him before looking away, taking out his phone with an expressionless face.
Just moments ago, he’d thought that no matter what happened in the future, he simply wanted things between him and Sheng Yan to return to how they used to be.
Less than three minutes later…
He was already starting to regret it.
Because straight guys could be terrifyingly oblivious.
Especially a straight guy who had grown up with you and had long since become accustomed to every kind of intimate physical closeness.
That was hell-level difficulty.
The worst part was that the straight guy himself had absolutely no idea.
Afraid he might not be supporting Qin Zigui steadily enough and that he’d fall again, Sheng Yan instinctively tightened his arm around Qin Zigui’s waist.
His palm even gave it an unconscious squeeze.
In the sweltering summer heat, the warmth of a teenage body seeped through the paper-thin school uniforms.
Qin Zigui’s breathing hitched involuntarily.
Sheng Yan immediately turned his head and frowned.
“What’s wrong? Are you feeling uncomfortable somewhere?”
Listening to Sheng Yan’s breath brushing softly against his ear, Qin Zigui forced himself to stay calm and answered without changing his expression,
“Nothing.”
“It just hurts.”
For Qin Zigui to say “it hurts” twice…
The injury couldn’t possibly be minor.
So throughout the entire examination, Sheng Yan sat beside him in an almost unbearable state of nervousness.
He stretched his neck to watch.
Leaned forward to peek.
Both hands clenched tightly into fists until his fingernails dug deep into his palms.
He was practically perched on the edge of his chair, as though he were the injured one.
The nurse beside them smiled and reassured him,
“Relax, little classmate. Your friend is fine. There’s no need to worry this much.”
Having his concern exposed so directly, Sheng Yan’s ears immediately turned red.
He awkwardly looked away and sat back.
“Who’s worried about him? He’s a grown man. A little flesh wound isn’t a big dea—”
Before he could finish, Qin Zigui suddenly sucked in a sharp breath.
Sheng Yan instantly sprang back up.
“What happened? What happened? Is it serious?”
The doctors and nurses could no longer hold it in.
They burst into laughter.
“So this is what you call ‘not worried’? We’ve really learned something today.”
Even Qin Zigui, whose forehead was already covered in fine beads of sweat from the pain, couldn’t help lowering his head with a faint smile curling at his lips.
Sheng Yan, realizing he’d completely given himself away:
“…”
Qin Zigui was way too devious!
Seeing the handsome boy’s ears turn completely scarlet again, the nurses finally stopped teasing him.
One of them smiled and said,
“Don’t worry. The wound has been fully treated, and he’s already had a tetanus shot. As long as you keep the wound clean, change the dressing on time, keep it dry, avoid putting too much strain on it, and prevent infection, he’ll be fine.”
“Is there someone at home who can take care of him?”
Sheng Yan thought about it.
Jiang Ping was away on a business trip.
Qin Ru had work at the company every day.
And besides, there were some things that weren’t very convenient for her to help Qin Zigui with.
Which meant…
Before he could finish thinking, Qin Zigui said calmly,
“You can just explain the aftercare to me. I can manage on my own.”
“That won’t do,” the nurse said immediately.
“You bruised your lower back. You need to apply cold compresses on schedule, then switch to warm compresses after a couple of days. How are you supposed to do that by yourself?”
“And the dressing on your leg needs to be changed regularly. You can’t get it wet or overexert yourself.”
“How can you manage without someone looking after you?”
Qin Zigui’s expression barely changed.
As he rolled down his pant leg, he said evenly,
“My family’s been busy lately. There’s no one to take care of me.”
“I’ve been used to taking care of myself since I was little.”
“So I should be able to han—”
“‘Should,’ my foot.”
Sheng Yan couldn’t listen anymore.
Rolling his eyes, he interrupted,
“What, am I not a person?”
Qin Zigui merely lowered his eyes and said quietly,
“But… weren’t you still refusing to talk to me?”
“…?”
The moment those words fell, every doctor and nurse in the examination room turned to look at Sheng Yan simultaneously.
Suddenly finding himself standing in the dock, condemned by everyone’s conscience and moral judgment…
Sheng Yan: “…”
Why did he suddenly feel like the scumbag in this situation?
It was true that he still hadn’t forgiven Qin Zigui.
He couldn’t shake the feeling that Qin Zigui still hadn’t told him the real reason behind everything.
But…
Qin Zigui had only gone to the fried chicken shop because of him.
He’d only chased after the cat because of him.
He’d only gone into that alley because of him.
And he’d only been hit by the bicycle because of him.
No matter how he looked at it, if he didn’t personally take care of Qin Zigui now, it really wouldn’t be right.
Still, he didn’t want to let everything slide without getting the truth first.
So, keeping a stern face and ignoring Qin Zigui completely, he turned to the nurse instead.
“Please explain all the aftercare to me.”
“I live with him.”
“I’ll take care of him.”
“Oh.”
The nurse seemed to understand something.
As she wrote down the instructions, she casually asked,
“Your older brother?”
“Did you two brothers have a fight?”
Sheng Yan: “…”
If you insisted on putting it that way…
It wasn’t exactly wrong.
“…Something like that.”
“Alright.”
“Here are the care instructions and medication schedule. Just follow everything written here.”
“Other than that, there shouldn’t be any problems.”
“Stay for observation for another thirty minutes, and then you can go home.”
The head nurse handed him the instruction sheet.
Sheng Yan accepted it carefully and tucked it into his pocket.
Then he asked,
“What about the other boy who came with us?”
“Oh, him?”
“He only scraped his knee a little. He’s perfectly fine.”
“He’s outside on the bench holding your cat and waiting for you.”
Sheng Yan nodded.
Then he turned to Qin Zigui.
“Wait here for a bit.”
“I need to go take care of something.”
After saying that, Sheng Yan quickly left the examination room.
As soon as he stepped into the hallway, he saw the little boy sitting obediently on a bench, just as expected, holding the kitten and waiting for them.
Sheng Yan walked over and patted him on the shoulder.
“Name. Phone number. Home address.”
The little boy looked up blankly.
“…Huh?”
Sheng Yan sat down beside him with his legs spread casually, opened Taobao on his phone, and scrolled through the listings before showing him the screen.
“I’m buying you a bicycle that’s actually the right size for you. Otherwise, if you crash into someone else next time, they might not be as easygoing as I am.”
The little boy was just about to refuse when Sheng Yan glared at him threateningly.
“If you don’t accept it, I’ll make you pay the medical bills.”
The boy had no choice but to obediently enter his address for the bicycle Sheng Yan had selected.
Taking back his phone, Sheng Yan snorted.
“So now you know to be scared, right? Are you still going to ride that fast in the future?”
The little boy nodded.
“Mm. I won’t ride that fast anymore.”
“But I’m not scared.”
“You’re not scared?”
Sheng Yan thought this brat was practically asking to be smacked.
The boy, however, explained seriously,
“I’m not scared of you, big brother.”
“You’re just loud, and your eyes are big, so you look fierce.”
“But you’re actually not scary at all.”
Sheng Yan—the infamous school bully of Shiwai High, who believed his reputation intimidated everyone—
“…”
Kids these days had absolutely no sense of judgment.
Before he could argue back, the little boy continued first.
“But I still think you shouldn’t pretend to be so fierce anymore.”
Sheng Yan raised an eyebrow.
The boy said earnestly,
“You obviously care a lot about that other big brother.”
“But you keep yelling at him.”
“If you keep doing that…”
“…he’ll definitely be sad.”
“Heh. As if I care about him.”
Sheng Yan crossed his arms along the back of the bench, turned his head away, and wore an arrogant expression.
The little boy frowned.
“Big brother…”
“You’re so childish.”
Sheng Yan: “…”
“And I’m not lying.”
“When I was riding my bike over here, I saw you.”
“You were walking in front, and that other big brother was following behind you.”
“He looked really sad.”
“Did you two have a fight?”
Still holding the kitten, the little boy leaned over and blinked curiously at Sheng Yan.
Sheng Yan’s hand, resting on the back of the bench, stiffened slightly.
So… Qin Zigui gets sad too?
For the past year, Sheng Yan had been consumed by the hurt of suddenly being pushed away without explanation.
He’d been fixated on why Qin Zigui had abruptly distanced himself.
But he’d never once stopped to think about why Qin Zigui still instinctively protected him whenever danger appeared.
Nor had he ever considered whether his own cold attitude and repeated outbursts might have hurt Qin Zigui in return.
The moment he imagined the expression Qin Zigui might wear when he was sad…
Something inside his chest twisted painfully.
Shaking himself out of his thoughts, Sheng Yan lightly flicked the little boy on the head.
“Alright, alright.”
“You’re just a kid.”
“Why are you thinking about all this?”
“Hurry home before your family starts worrying.”
He took the kitten back from the boy’s arms and turned to walk away.
But when he reached the door of the examination room…
He stopped.
From inside came a familiar, gentle voice.
It was Qin Ru.
She must have rushed over as soon as she’d gotten the news.
Her voice was thick with worry, almost trembling.
“You child… how could you be so careless?”
“It must hurt so much.”
“What if it leaves a scar?”
As always, Qin Zigui answered calmly,
“It’s okay, Aunt.”
“The doctor said I’ll be able to move around normally again in two or three days.”
“‘It’s okay, it’s okay.'”
“You always say it’s okay.”
“Can’t you be like other kids for once?”
“If you’re hurting, if you’re upset…”
“…can’t you act a little spoiled?”
This time, Qin Ru sounded genuinely heartbroken.
Qin Zigui comforted her gently for a while before speaking again.
“Aunt…”
“Can I ask you something?”
Without hesitation, Qin Ru replied,
“Of course.”
“…Can we keep a cat?”
“…?”
The moment those words left his mouth…
Both Qin Ru inside the room…
…and Sheng Yan outside the door…
…froze.
Qin Zigui continued,
“A little orange kitten.”
“About three or four months old.”
“I’ll make sure it’s had a full health check and all its vaccinations before bringing it home.”
“I’ll teach it to use the litter box.”
“I’ll feed it.”
“I’ll clean up the fur and litter.”
“I’ll take full responsibility.”
“It won’t cause any trouble for you or Uncle.”
“Wait…”
Qin Ru sounded bewildered.
“Why are you suddenly asking about this?”
“Your uncle and I both like cats.”
“But you’ve always been the one who didn’t want to keep pets.”
“You always said they couldn’t stay with you forever…”
“…and that raising them only made saying goodbye more painful.”
Back when Mrs. Xu hadn’t allowed Sheng Yan to keep pets, he’d begged Qin Zigui to secretly raise them for him instead.
Two hamsters.
A rabbit.
A little turtle.
In the end, none of them survived.
After that, Qin Zigui refused to keep any more pets.
He had simply said,
“If they’re destined to leave anyway…”
“…there’s no point bringing them into your life.”
From then on, neither family had kept any pets again.
So why was he suddenly willing now?
Had he really fallen for the little orange kitten?
Lowering his head, Sheng Yan stared at the kitten in his arms, silently trying to interrogate it with his eyes.
Just what kind of charm do you have, huh, you little orange stray?
Before the kitten could answer…
Qin Zigui’s calm voice drifted through the doorway.
“…Because Sheng Yan likes it.”
Sheng Yan froze.
Still staring at the kitten.
The kitten narrowed its eyes…
…and stared right back at him.
Completely unaware of what was happening outside the door, Qin Zigui continued explaining.
“Sheng Yan really likes that kitten.”
“But Aunt Xu is allergic to cat fur, so he can’t keep it.”
“I’m worried that if it stays outside and runs away again…”
“…Sheng Yan will be sad.”
“So I thought…”
“…I’d raise it for him.”
“Is that okay, Aunt?”
Qin Zigui had always been the most sensible child.
Because he knew he was living under someone else’s roof, he almost never made requests for himself.
If he ever did…
Without exception…
It was always because of Sheng Yan.
Inside the room, Qin Ru let out a long sigh.
“You…”
“When little Sheng Yan said he’d buy you for three yuan and twenty cents…”
“…you really did let him buy you.”
“That was quite the bargain.”
Outside the room…
Sheng Yan lowered his head and looked at the little orange stray that now seemed to be questioning him with its eyes.
After a long silence, he cautiously asked the kitten,
“…What do you think?”
“…Should I forgive him for a few days…”
“…for your sake?”
The little orange tabby lazily turned its head away, clearly having no intention of paying him any attention.
Sheng Yan, however, nodded with great reluctance.
“…Fine. Since you’ve tried so hard to persuade me, I’ll graciously agree.”
The completely silent little orange tabby whipped its head back in shock.
Feeling guilty, Sheng Yan quickly covered its eyes.
“Don’t look at me. Adults make every decision for the sake of children.”
“Besides, I’m only forgiving him temporarily. It’s not like I’ve switched sides and betrayed my own camp.”
Just…
Temporarily.
Just a little.
And Qin Zigui absolutely couldn’t find out.
Otherwise that smug bird would get all cocky again and start bossing him around.
Thinking this, Sheng Yan steeled himself, took out his phone, opened the message board in the Wish Comes True app, and typed:
[Excuse me, can I withdraw my wish to leave the feng shui treasure spot and make a new one instead?]
The system replied almost immediately:
[Host, your wish?]
Expressionless, Sheng Yan typed a few more words:
[I hope Qin Zigui’s injury heals quickly… and that it won’t hurt so much anymore.]
He was only…
Secretly…
Forgiving him a little.
No one would know anyway.
Sheng Yan felt that he was being extremely cold-hearted.
Meanwhile…
On the other side of the door,
Qin Zigui’s phone suddenly chimed.
Ding.
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