TLSMLMMM Chapter 46

Raising a Dragon-Aotian meant discovering something new at any moment.

Si Yunyi sat on the sofa while Chu Junlie rolled his wrists a little. He carefully placed both hands on the shoulders of the person in front of him. He hadn’t even started doing anything yet, and his face was already growing hot.

Mr. Si had a straight, upright back and broad, well-defined shoulders. Even through the rather thick fabric of his clothes, Chu Junlie could feel the tension around Mr. Si’s shoulder blades as he gently squeezed them a few times.

“Mr. Si.” Chu Junlie lowered his voice and leaned toward Si Yunyi’s ear, his face flushed. “Could you… take off your jacket?”

The temperature in Hong Kong had dropped sharply, and Si Yunyi’s suit was made of thick, insulating fabric.

Considering that the material would indeed make it difficult for the masseur to do his job, Si Yunyi unbuttoned his suit jacket. Turning his back to Chu Junlie, he took it off.

“Let me hang that up for you!” Chu Junlie immediately took the jacket and hurried over to hang it on the coat rack.

When he turned around, he saw Mr. Si sitting on the sofa, his eyes slightly lowered behind his glasses as he tugged at the tie around his neck with one hand.

Suddenly, Chu Junlie found himself unable to move his feet.

Long, slender, fair fingers rested on the knot of the tie. His chin tilted up slightly, his gaze lowered as he loosened the restraint around his collar. There was an indescribable, restrained beauty about him that Chu Junlie couldn’t quite put into words.

Chu Junlie stared intently as the other hand, with its distinctively defined knuckles, gently pulled the narrow end of the tie free. Si Yunyi then placed the loosened tie to one side.

The entire movement was casual and natural, as though the person before him had performed this action countless times in his daily life. Yet Chu Junlie had seen it only once, and already his heart was beating wildly beyond his control. Even the slight chill he had felt in his short-sleeved shirt was gradually giving way to warmth.

With the tie hanging to one side, Chu Junlie had no idea where to look. His gaze drifted upward, only to meet Mr. Si’s eyes as they lifted from their previously lowered position.

Chu Junlie’s face burned fiercely. It was as though he had been caught secretly admiring something by its owner. He raised a hand to cover his scorching face, yet his gaze seemed fixed on the person opposite him. No matter how loudly his rational mind screamed at him to look away, his body simply refused to move.

Seeing Chu Junlie’s reaction, Si Yunyi lowered his gaze to the thick-fabric suit vest he was wearing.

The room wasn’t cold, and Chu Junlie was wearing short sleeves. Perhaps there was no need for him to wear an extra layer either.

Chu Junlie’s eyes widened little by little as he watched those fingertips, cool and pale as jade, undo the buttons of Si Yunyi’s suit vest one by one.

The fitted vest accentuated Mr. Si’s waistline, revealing almost the entire curve of his waist beneath the fabric. Chu Junlie pressed a finger against the tip of his itching nose and watched as the vest was placed to one side as well.

With the well-fitted suit vest removed, only the white shirt underneath remained.

Seeing Chu Junlie standing motionless for quite some time, Si Yunyi raised his wrist to check his watch. It was already very late.

“Hurry up.”

Si Yunyi lifted his eyes. “I’m tired.”

Chu Junlie practically jogged over to the sofa and sat down behind Mr. Si, placing his hands on the shoulders in front of him.

Perhaps to make the massage easier for Chu Junlie, Si Yunyi gathered his long hair loosely with one hand and brought it forward over his shoulder. His black strands swept across Chu Junlie’s bare arm like a dark cloud. The silky, smooth, and soft sensation left Chu Junlie dazed for quite a while.

Looking at the beautiful, fair nape of Mr. Si’s neck now exposed by his gathered hair, Chu Junlie felt his teeth begin to itch. He pressed his tongue firmly against the backs of his teeth, and only then did the feeling ease a little.

“Mr. Si, I watched some shoulder and neck massage techniques on my phone.” Chu Junlie forced himself to regain his composure. “The first step is to relax the shoulders and neck.”

Feeling his shoulder blades being kneaded, the pressure bringing a mixture of soreness and tingling, Si Yunyi lowered his head slightly. It seemed this Dragon-Aotian actually had some professional skills after all.

“The second step is to knead the shoulders with all five fingers.”

Chu Junlie treated him as carefully as if he were handling a fragile object, gradually increasing the pressure of his fingers. Every now and then, he would ask, “Mr. Si, is the pressure okay?”

“It’s fine.” Si Yunyi closed his eyes sleepily.

“Next, use your thumbs to massage the Dazhui acupoint.”

With four fingers resting on Si Yunyi’s shoulder, Chu Junlie used his thumbs to alternately rub the Dazhui acupoint just below the seventh cervical vertebra, working through the thin layer of his shirt.

The collar of the shirt was somewhat in the way, and it felt a little tight around the shoulders and neck during the massage. With his eyes closed, Si Yunyi undid two buttons, immediately feeling more comfortable.

“Next, alternate between the left and right hands and press, press…”

For a moment, Chu Junlie couldn’t remember the name of the muscle he was supposed to be working on. His hand moved forward before his brain could catch up, pressing down on the spot.

The skin beneath his hand felt smooth and slightly cool.

Chu Junlie froze. He leaned forward and saw that, at some point, Mr. Si had unbuttoned the collar of his shirt. Half of Chu Junlie’s hand had slipped beneath the fabric, allowing him to touch the skin near Mr. Si’s collarbone without anything in the way.

Chu Junlie’s mind went completely blank.

It was as though something had exploded inside his head with a loud bang. He snatched his hand back as if he had been electrocuted, but the sensation still lingered on his fingertips. It felt like touching a flower petal with his lips—a feeling of exquisite comfort.

His already unsteady heartbeat began to race. Chu Junlie sat frozen in place, feeling as though he could hardly breathe. The scene replayed endlessly in his mind, while a voice deep inside him screamed wildly in unrestrained excitement.

Si Yunyi’s eyes were half-open. Without showing any reaction, he raised a hand and fastened two buttons again.

“Is there another step?”

“Yes, yes.” Chu Junlie stiffly raised his hands, loosely clenched both fists, and began gently tapping the shoulders in front of him.

He had no idea how long he continued tapping. He simply couldn’t remember which steps he had skipped. His heart felt painfully constricted, and his chest felt as though something were swelling inside it, leaving him both bloated and suffocated.

For some reason, the sound of Yan An’s voice from the past suddenly echoed in Chu Junlie’s ears.

“Brother Yunyi, are you really willing to let Chu Junlie touch you with those dirty hands of his?”

He had just touched Mr. Si with those very hands—the same dirty hands that carried plates in restaurants, cleaned up garbage, and pushed handcarts around construction sites.

Would Mr. Si feel… uncomfortable?

“That’s enough.”

Si Yunyi checked the time once more, feeling that Chu Junlie had nearly pounded his shoulders numb.

The movement behind him stopped immediately.

Si Yunyi stood up and picked up the suit vest and tie he had set aside. As he turned around, he saw Chu Junlie still sitting in the same spot, his head bowed deeply like some enormous dog that had done something wrong. His hands rested on his knees, clenched tightly into fists.

Si Yunyi paused for a moment before walking up to Chu Junlie. Although it went against what he truly felt, he still spoke.

“You did a pretty good job.”

Just don’t do it again next time.

Chu Junlie kept his head lowered. Seeing the man standing before him and hearing Mr. Si’s calm, unchanging tone, he slowly raised his head. He looked at the way the person before him gazed down at him.

The silver chain attached to Si Yunyi’s glasses swayed gently under the light, seemingly carrying a few traces of moonlight. It fell upon Chu Junlie as though offering him compassion and soothing his emotions.

It was just like when Mr. Si had seen the filthy state of his refrigerator. Behind those lenses, his cool, clear eyes had held understanding and reassurance.

Mr. Si hadn’t looked down on him.

“Mr. Si, I’m sorry.”

Chu Junlie looked at his hands again. It was as though two little figures were fighting inside his mind. One was intoxicated by the sensation of that brief touch, endlessly savoring the memory, wanting more, wanting to embrace Mr. Si and plunge with him into the abyss of desire. The other represented his conscience, constantly berating him and trying to slap some sense into him with the harshest words possible.

Mr. Si sacrificed his own marriage to save you. He rescued you from a life of misery and gave you everything you have now. He even forgives all your mistakes!

And yet, even if you don’t know how to be grateful, your mind is still full of filthy thoughts. Look at yourself! You actually think you can lay a hand on Mr. Si? You have absolutely no shame! You’re repaying kindness with betrayal!

Go ahead, cross the line! Keep taking advantage of Mr. Si’s tolerance and doing whatever you want. The day he finally decides he doesn’t want you anymore, you’ll lose him forever. You’ll lose everything you have now. You won’t even have the right to look at him from afar. You’ll die alone, miserable and destitute, despised by everyone!

Si Yunyi watched as tears gradually welled up in Chu Junlie’s eyes. His thin lips pressed into a straight line. The young man looked utterly consumed by guilt.

“It’s all right.” Si Yunyi raised a hand and rubbed his own shoulder, deliberately steering the conversation away from what had happened. “Perhaps you’ll get better with a few more practice sessions.”

Chu Junlie blinked as he looked at the person before him. Mr. Si didn’t seem troubled at all by his earlier actions.

Mr. Si… isn’t angry?

“It’s late.” Si Yunyi draped the suit vest over his arm, his expression as calm as ever. “Good night.”

Chu Junlie watched the man walk into the bedroom and close the door. He stared at the bedroom door for a long time, unable to tear his gaze away.

Could it be that Mr. Si… doesn’t mind me touching him?

Or perhaps Mr. Si realized that I hadn’t done it on purpose and decided to let me off the hook this time?

Chu Junlie sat uneasily on the sofa, lowering his head to look at his hands. A few sparks of light couldn’t help but appear in his eyes.

That night, Chu Junlie couldn’t bear to wash that hand. Under the covers, his eyes gleaming in the darkness, he quickly kissed one of his fingers. Immediately afterward, his entire face turned red, and he buried himself under the blankets.

Today was the old man’s surgery day. Feeling a little embarrassed, Chu Junlie asked for another day off and accompanied Mr. Si to the hospital to visit him.

Si Yunyi bought some nutritional supplements, while Chu Junlie carried the bags and packages, following behind Mr. Si. After placing everything in the old man’s hospital room, they went to wait outside the operating room.

All the necessary documents had been signed in advance. The surgery lasted two hours. Before long, a doctor had already informed them that the old man’s liver cancer was at an early stage. The tumor was relatively small and located near the edge of the liver, making it easier to remove and the operation comparatively less complicated.

Despite the doctor’s reassuring explanation, Chu Junlie still couldn’t help feeling nervous as they sat outside the operating room. When the light above the operating room finally turned green, they stood up and watched as the old man was wheeled out.

“The surgery was very successful. It will take about half an hour for the anesthesia to wear off. Don’t give the patient anything to eat once he wakes up,” the doctor explained concisely.

“Then when can he eat?” Chu Junlie asked, wanting a precise answer.

“After the patient has passed gas.”

The doctor patiently looked at the young man before him. He had also learned from Director Wen and the others that this young man wasn’t related to the old man. For him to go to such lengths for someone unrelated to him was truly admirable.

Si Yunyi accompanied Chu Junlie as they waited for the old man to wake up.

The old man was still groggy, his eyeballs moving restlessly beneath his eyelids.

“You unfilial brat…” The old man hadn’t fully recovered from the anesthesia, and his speech was somewhat slurred. “I’d rather have a piece of barbecued pork than have a son like you…”

His eyelids opened halfway. He looked at the person before him, confused and weak.

“Xiao Chu, I want some meat.”

“Meat, meat, meat! I’ll get you a big piece!” Chu Junlie immediately answered.

“Don’t take my bottles away from me.” The old man weakly reached out into the air. “Cardboard, beer bottles—they’re all mine.”

The old man’s head swayed slightly. When he saw the person beside Chu Junlie, his voice became somewhat sorrowful.

“Father, I’ve let you down. I didn’t study hard enough, and I failed to pass down our family’s medical skills.”

Chu Junlie turned to look at Si Yunyi beside him, desperately trying to suppress his laughter.

“Father, Mother is gone too.” Tears welled up in the old man’s cloudy eyes. “My wife is gone as well. Please take good care of her for me. I’ll collect cardboard for a little while longer, then I’ll be along.”

The old man moved his feet, skillfully mimicking the motion of stepping on cardboard boxes.