After they left, Qize Mountain returned to its usual peace.
The golden crow sank in the west, casting dim, yellowish light into the room like threads of gold.
Li Jingsheng’s medicine was divided into two types: external application and internal use, both to be taken three times a day.
The internal medicine was brought punctually by Mo Yu, so he didn’t have to worry about it at all.
To be honest, Li Jingsheng really couldn’t understand what else the original owner had to be dissatisfied with. Having such a junior brother who took care of him so meticulously would make him smile even in his dreams, yet the original owner had actually gone out of his way to bully him.
However, the external medicine was indeed rather awkward.
If the other person didn’t mention it, he wouldn’t have the face to ask for help, but the injury happened to be right on his back where he couldn’t see or reach it.
He woke Xiao Yu up again: “Get up, stop sleeping. Why do you love sleeping in so much?”
Xiao Yu woke up quite quickly this time, presumably fearing that Li Jingsheng might once again submit a resignation out of dissatisfaction.
It sophistically defended itself: “I’m awake, I’m awake! I’m not sleeping in; I’m accumulating energy.”
Li Jingsheng didn’t believe it’s nonsense at all.
He poked Xiao Yu’s feathered tail and said, “Everyone else accumulates energy to help their host. What are you doing it for?”
As he poked, he accused it: “You don’t help out at all day after day, you completely ignore things after issuing tasks, and you draw a blank no matter what I ask. What on earth are you trying to do?”
Unable to handle the continuous poking and questioning, Xiao Yu shrank back and said pitifully, “Xiao Yu has things to do too, you know.”
Releasing some of his frustration, Li Jingsheng felt much calmer and dropped the clumsy excuse.
He brought up the main point first: “To prove that you still have some value, can you help me apply this ointment?”
Hearing that it still had a use, Xiao Yu eagerly agreed: “I can!”
Seeing it agree so readily, Li Jingsheng felt a slight sense of comfort.
It still had some usefulness after all.
Then, that comfort vanished into thin air the very next second.
Because in the next second, he felt the sensation of needles piercing his back.
Thanks, I am no Ziwei, but you really are Nurse Rong.
“Xiao Yu!!!”
Still thinking it had done an exceptionally good job, Xiao Yu quickly floated in front of him to ask for praise: “What’s wrong? What’s wrong? Did Xiao Yu do an exceptionally good job?”
Looking at the feathers stained with medicinal liquid, Li Jingsheng realized what had happened and smiled at it without any real warmth: “What do you think?”
Looking somewhat shy, Xiao Yu covered its face with its feathered tail: “Oh, Host, stop praising me. I’ll get embarrassed.”
No, Big Brother, which ear heard me praising you? Why don’t you try being narcissistic at me again?
He pried open Xiao Yu’s feathered tail, grabbed a plume, and pulled it right in front of his eyes: “Big Brother, how can you use this to apply medicine to me? I asked you to rub the ointment on me, not give me acupuncture!”
Dragging Xiao Yu’s tail over, he got ready to shove it straight into the medicine bottle: “Use this part to wipe. Wiping with this should be fine.”
Before he could even start stuffing it, Xiao Yu broke free from his grip and flew far away: “No way! Host is so cruel, actually wanting to use Xiao Yu’s such pretty feathered tail to wipe medicine.”
With that, it started trying to shed golden teardrops again.
Li Jingsheng: Why are your tear ducts so hyperactive for a feather?
Li Jingsheng was most afraid of people crying. Seeing Xiao Yu cry so sadly, he began to reflect on his own behavior.
He imagined Xiao Yu’s situation; if it were a human, it would probably be equivalent to using someone’s hair to mop the floor.
And very thick, very nice-looking hair at that.
Hmm.
Thinking about it that way, it did indeed seem a bit excessive.
No, wait, it should be extremely excessive!
Once he figured it out and looked at Xiao Yu hiding in the corner crying nonstop as a mere feather.
It was actually quite pitiful.
He started coaxing it: “I was just joking around earlier. How could I possibly use your glowing, dense, and pretty feathered tail to wipe medicine?”
Hearing him say that, Xiao Yu stopped shedding golden tears, turned its head, and asked him: “Are you telling the truth?”
Seeing it believe him so easily, Li Jingsheng immediately chimed in: “True, true! How could I ever lie to you?”
Hearing this, Xiao Yu happily flew back to his side and circled around him: “I knew Host wouldn’t be that bad.”
Li Jingsheng’s conscience suffered another fierce blow.
How come every single one of you feels like a master of subtext?
Although Xiao Yu had been coaxed, Li Jingsheng’s problem remained completely unresolved.
What was he going to do about his injury?
＊
Li Jingsheng stayed sprawled on the bed like a corpse until Mo Yu came to deliver his medicine.
He was already a salted fish who loved lying flat, and now that he was injured, lying flat felt all the more justified.
Besides, even if he got up, he wouldn’t create any value anyway.
Walking in, Mo Yu saw Li Jingsheng slumped lifelessly across the bed.
The young man was lying flat with his eyes tightly closed, dark hair cascading straight down and covering half of his brows and eyes.
Perhaps hearing him enter, the young man slowly woke up. When he turned his head to look at him, his gaze was sleepy, showing the satiation of a little cat that had slept its fill.
Propping himself up, Li Jingsheng sat cross-legged, rubbed his eyes, and spoke with the hoarseness of just waking up: “You’re here. Is the medicine ready?”
Recovering his senses, Mo Yu brought the medicine before him: “It’s ready. Senior Brother, drink it while it’s hot.”
Looking at the medicine before him, Li Jingsheng furrowed his brows tightly together.
Feigning profoundness, he coughed twice and cast a sidelong glance at Mo Yu: “Ahem, well… does Junior Brother happen to have any candied fruit today?”
It was definitely not because I am a glutton; this medicine really is that bitter.
Mo Yu had anticipated this situation long ago and had specifically gone looking for some candied fruit in the afternoon.
He took out the candied fruit he had gathered earlier.
“Senior Brother, I have some here.”
Seeing that candied fruit, Li Jingsheng looked as though he had laid eyes on a divine stabilizing needle.
Taking two deep breaths, he picked up the bowl of medicine and chugged it straight down. Holding his breath until he finished, he immediately grabbed a piece of candied fruit and shoved it into his mouth.
Phew, saved.
Watching his dear Senior Brother’s series of operations, Mo Yu found himself inexplicably wanting to laugh.
Who would have thought that a Senior Brother who appeared pristine and aloof on the outside secretly loved sweets like a child?
As he watched Li Jingsheng finish his medicine and prepared to step back carrying the medicine bowl, he suddenly heard the other person’s inner thoughts.
How am I supposed to apply the medicine to my back tonight?
Mo Yu’s hand holding the medicine bowl placed it back down.
Raising his gaze to look at the young man propping his chin in a daze, he tentatively spoke up: “Senior Brother, shall Zigui help you apply the medicine?”
Li Jingsheng froze for a fraction of a second, then raised his eyes. He felt as though Mo Yu’s back was radiating golden light right at that moment.
Baby, you must be an angel sent by the heavens to save me!
At that moment, plot details and everything else were tossed to the back of the mind by Li Jingsheng; he only felt that the person in front of him was simply his savior.
Putting on the last shred of a villain’s dignity, he nodded: “If it’s convenient for Junior Brother.”
A hint of quiet delight stirred within Mo Yu’s heart: “Zigui finds it convenient.”
Li Jingsheng tossed the external ointment to him: “Then you’d better apply it properly.”
Lowering his gaze to look at the medicine in his hand, Mo Yu replied: “Yes.”
Although having someone apply the medicine solved a huge hassle for Li Jingsheng, troubles were endless.
Because he discovered an even bigger trouble.
How was he going to apply the medicine?
As everyone knows, clothing in the realm of immortal cultivation is not as convenient as modern attire and cannot simply be lifted up for applying medicine.
Instead, it had to be undressed from the top down. But if he undressed from the top down, wouldn’t everything be completely exposed?
Even though they were both grown men, it was still so awkward!
Seeing him turn around and remain motionless for quite a while, Mo Yu thought the other person was uncomfortable and inquired: “Senior Brother, how should I apply the medicine?”
Closing his eyes tightly, Li Jingsheng thought: Whatever, we’re both men, what’s so awkward about this?
Swiftly and decisively, he stripped off his upper garments, exposing the wounds on his back completely to make it convenient for Mo Yu to apply the medicine.
Mo Yu didn’t have many stray thoughts; he simply felt that Senior Brother’s back was so white and soft, as smooth and delicate as mutton-fat jade.
His knuckle-defined fingers brushed across Li Jingsheng’s back, sending a tingling, electric sensation rippling through him.
Li Jingsheng lightly bit his lip.
This is so uncomfortable.
That ointment had been specially formulated for him by Elder Fang Xiuxian. Applied to the wounds, it carried an icy-cool sensation while simultaneously bringing a trace of burning pain.
Cold sweat broke out across Li Jingsheng’s forehead.
Uuwuwu, it hurts so much.
He gritted his teeth and forced himself not to cry out.
He endured until Mo Yu finished applying the medicine.
The indoor candlelight flickered, outlining Mo Yu’s slender figure. Putting down the ointment jar, Mo Yu wiped his hands: “Senior Brother, the medicine has been applied.”
Regardless of whether the ointment had dried or not, Li Jingsheng immediately pulled his clothes back up. Perhaps because his back had hurt so much just now, a trace of nasal inflection crept into his voice: “Thank you, Junior Brother.”
The moment he turned around, Mo Yu caught sight of his slightly reddened eye rims in the candlelight.
The young man’s eye rims were faintly red, with teardrops sparkling at the outer corners of his eyes. Under the reflection of the candlelight, it added a touch of pitiful vulnerability.
Acting on a momentary impulse, Mo Yu reached out and wiped away a tear droplet from the outer corner of Li Jingsheng’s eye.
“Why is Senior Brother crying?”
Stunned for a moment, Li Jingsheng looked at him in shock: “What are you doing?”
Only then did Mo Yu snap back to reality and realize what he had done. Flustered, he immediately took a step back out of reflex, dropped to his knees, and cupped his hands in a salute to Li Jingsheng: “Zigui overstepped his bounds! Please punish me, Senior Brother!”
Li Jingsheng was only a bit surprised; it hardly warranted calling it overstepping bounds.
A man has gold under his knees; young people shouldn’t go around kneeling at the drop of a hat.
Yet since he had already said it, not punishing him seemed a bit unjustified.
Putting on the airs of a wicked senior brother right then and there, Li Jingsheng declared: “Since you know you were wrong, then as punishment, go copy five times of the Sword Classic.”
Mo Yu accepted the sentence immediately: “Yes, Senior Brother.”
Seeing him still kneeling there with the strong aura of you don’t dismiss me, I won’t get up, Li Jingsheng sighed inwardly: Are all you immortal cultivators this rigid?
He had no choice but to speak up: “What? Still not leaving? Do you want me to escort you out?”
Mo Yu replied instantly: “Zigui wouldn’t dare.”
He got up to retrieve the medicine bowl, his peripheral vision catching a hint of crimson blushing across Li Jingsheng’s earlobes.
Then he heard the other person’s inner monologue: What are you staring at? Hurry up and leave, I’m about to lose all my old face.
An inspiration flashed through his mind.
Is Senior Brother, shy?