Jiang Yu’s waist went soft, and he nearly collapsed to the floor. Fortunately, he braced his hands against the sink just in time. His eyes widened in disbelief. He wanted to snap a curse, but all that escaped his lips were uncontrollable tremors. He was forced to bite his lower lip hard, his entire body breaking into a cold sweat from the torment.
What exactly was going on?
Had he really encountered a ghost?
Was it a perverted ghost?
Jiang Yu struggled to pull on his bathrobe, attempting to shield himself from the gaze of the non-existent perverted ghost. He finally managed to catch his breath and wanted to yell a few insults, but then it started all over again.
He was going crazy.
Perhaps the bathroom was too hot, causing the alcohol to hit him faster. His eyes grew hazy and he slid to the floor, propping himself up with both hands. Moments ago, he had been awkwardly wondering if Chen Zhiyan would scold him for making a mess; such private matters should have been handled in his own room. Now, overwhelmed by emotion, he could not care about anything else.
His head hung low, and the thin, pale skin of his neck flushed deep red, tensed into a sharp line and slick with sweat. At the height of his breathing, both hands clenched into fists so tight his knuckles turned white and blue.
The showerhead nearby was still running. Water hit the floor and splashed into a spray of droplets, quickly soaking the hem of Jiang Yu’s bathrobe.
Jiang Yu’s mouth hung open. He could not stop it, nor could he suppress it. His mind was a mess, and his only thought was that he had to go to the family graves tomorrow to burn incense and beg his ancestors for protection. If this happened a few more times, he would suffer from kidney exhaustion.
When Chen Zhiyan emerged from his own bathroom, Jiang Yu was still in the other one. His eyes were bloodshot, and he no longer had the strength to keep his fists clenched.
“Jiang Yu.”
“Jiang Yu.”
Jiang Yu kicked the door once to prove he was still alive.
“You are sleeping on the sofa tonight.”
“No, I want to sleep on the bed.”
His voice was too faint, and Chen Zhiyan did not hear him. Wearing disposable gloves and holding rubbing alcohol, Chen Zhiyan began to wipe the floor. His brows remained knitted in a frown; he clearly loathed the smell of alcohol clinging to Jiang Yu.
Once the floor was clean, he did not take off his gloves. Instead, he stood outside the bathroom door, planning to clean inside as soon as Jiang Yu came out. However, even after the sound of running water stopped, the door remained closed.
After waiting five minutes, Chen Zhiyan knocked. “Jiang Yu, come out.”
Guiltily, Jiang Yu used the showerhead to rinse the floor. He turned on the exhaust fan and even squeezed out a large amount of body wash. The entire room smelled so strongly of soap that one breath could make a person dizzy. He felt like he was being pickled in the scent. The moment he pulled the door open and saw Chen Zhiyan, he jerked his head away. “Calling me over and over, what do you want!”
Chen Zhiyan remained expressionless. “To clean.”
“No need for you to clean,” Jiang Yu said, pushing Chen Zhiyan away. “I already cleaned it. It is very clean.”
Chen Zhiyan smelled the overpowering fragrance and saw the half-empty bottle of body wash on the shelf. His face darkened. “Since when did you care so much about cleanliness?”
“What kind of talk is that? I have always been clean!” Seeing him staring into the bathroom, Jiang Yu’s face flushed a deep red. He reached back and slammed the door shut. “I am warning you, this bathroom is mine now. You are not allowed to enter.”
Chen Zhiyan looked down and peeled off his gloves. His tone was flat. “This is my room, so the bathroom is naturally mine. You will not let me in, did you pee inside?”
“Chen Zhiyan!” Jiang Yu covered his burning ears with his hands. “Are you sick? You are the one who peed inside! You pee inside every day! Your whole family pees inside!”
Seeing Jiang Yu’s outburst of shame and anger, Chen Zhiyan said, “I will not go in.”
He thought it was dirty.
Stunned by the insult, Jiang Yu grabbed a clean towel to dry his hair. When he saw Chen Zhiyan opening the cabinet for a thin quilt, he sprinted to the bed and hopped onto it. He lay there peacefully. Hearing the commotion, Chen Zhiyan frowned coldly. “Get down.”
“I told you just now, I am sleeping on the bed.” The redness around Jiang Yu’s eyes had not faded, making him look somewhat pitiable, but his words remained as arrogant and annoying as ever.
“Jiang Yu.”
“Brother.”
A great man knows when to yield. The bizarre experience from earlier had left him shaken, and he desperately needed comfort. What was wrong with sleeping on a bed?
Thinking this, Jiang Yu called out again, “Big Brother.”
Chen Zhiyan replied heartlessly, “Do you not usually call me Chen the Dog?”
“I do not think so.”
“Get out.”
Jiang Yu refused to move. Chen Zhiyan ended up rolling him into the quilt and tossing him onto the sofa. Jiang Yu watched him replace the bedsheets. “I am clean from head to toe. I do not even have a single armpit hair. Why do you hate me so much?”
Chen Zhiyan said, “I do not need a reason to dislike someone.”
Hearing those words, Jiang Yu’s thick skin finally cracked. He ground his teeth fiercely, wanting nothing more than to take a bite out of the man. However, he froze when Chen Zhiyan turned around, revealing bruised and purple knees.
“You.”
“When did you hit your knees?”
“While I was looking for you.”
Jiang Yu’s eyelids twitched. His fingers gripped the quilt as he asked in a trembling voice, “What time was it? Exactly?”
“Why are you asking that?”
“Just say it.”
“Around 11:29 PM.”
He found the reason. There was no ghost. He and Chen Zhiyan were sharing sensations.
How was this even possible? Who would believe this? And why did it have to be a connection with Chen Zhiyan of all people? They were arch-rivals. After the embarrassment of that moaning dream last time, he had handed Chen Zhiyan another piece of leverage against him.
Jiang Yu stared at the ceiling lamp in despair. He decided that Chen Zhiyan must never find out about this, or he would be finished.
Seeing Jiang Yu so quiet, Chen Zhiyan grabbed a pillow from the bed and tossed it at him. He walked over and asked, “How long has it been? Are you already worn out?”
“What do you mean worn out?” Jiang Yu was momentarily confused, then glared at him with a red face. “Can you not talk like a normal person?”
His voice was as loud and boisterous as usual. Chen Zhiyan turned off the lights and went back to bed.
About half an hour later, Jiang Yu reached out and pinched the skin on the back of his hand. He strained his ears to hear if Chen Zhiyan would cry out in pain, but he heard nothing. He pinched himself harder. Chen Zhiyan still had no reaction, but the pain brought tears to Jiang Yu’s own eyes.
He refused to believe it.
Jiang Yu threw off his quilt and crept to the bedside. He started pinching himself again, but Chen Zhiyan remained still. He did not want to believe this connection was one-sided. He reached his hand under the quilt to squeeze Chen Zhiyan’s finger.
Then, his heart sank.
“What are you doing?”