At ten o’clock, after finishing an online meeting and handling a few documents, Qin Zelin returned to the bedroom.
The moment he entered, he saw Cen Miao, who had just come out of the shower. His face was flushed red from the steam, his eyes were moist, and his naturally curly hair had become even curlier and messier after getting wet.
Paired with his new brown fluffy pajamas, he looked exactly like a scruffy little curly-haired puppy.
A smile unconsciously rippled through Qin Zelin’s eyes. He reached out and rubbed the fabric of Cen Miao’s pajamas. “Why didn’t you blow-dry your hair?”
Cen Miao, who felt that it would dry on its own and was too lazy to bother, rolled his eyes slightly.
“You blow it for me.”
After saying that, he mimicked what he had seen in the video, grabbing Qin Zelin’s sleeve and gently shaking it as he spoke.
“Husband~ please, please~”
Qin Zelin lowered his head, looking at the redness at the corners of Cen Miao’s eyes. “………”
The little monster liked him so much—if he refused, he would probably cry again like last night.
Seeing that Qin Zelin didn’t react much, Cen Miao tilted his head. “Husband? Please?”
Cen Miao: ………? Why wasn’t it working? Was it because he hadn’t said the third sentence?
“Husband, you’re the bestest??”
“Ahem,” Qin Zelin suddenly turned his head away and cleared his throat. “Just this once. No next time.”
“Go wait on the sofa. I’ll get the hair dryer.” After saying that, he quickly walked into the bathroom.
Cen Miao nodded. “Okay.”
The videos were right after all!!!
After saying all three lines, he really agreed!
The hair dryer hummed softly. Qin Zelin’s fingers threaded through Cen Miao’s soft, slightly curly hair. Occasionally, his hand would brush against his ear or the back of his neck, making Cen Miao shrink his neck like a little quail.
After noticing that he was ticklish, Qin Zelin deliberately teased him, wanting to see that reaction.
Cen Miao raised his head and frowned. “Don’t touch my ears.”
“Then dry it yourself. If I do it, I’ll touch them.”
Cen Miao puffed his cheeks. “…Then… then be more careful.”
Qin Zelin suppressed a smile and replied with a soft “Mm,” but his teasing hands showed no restraint at all.
After a while, the sound of the dryer stopped.
“Thank you, husband.”
Before Qin Zelin could respond, Cen Miao fiddled with his ears a bit, then shuffled in his slippers and padded over to the bed, happily burrowing himself into the blankets.
Qin Zelin stood where he was, his fingers unconsciously rubbing together. Then he picked up his sleepwear and went into the bathroom to wash up.
The bathroom was filled with steam, carrying the lingering scent of body wash. In the laundry basket were the clothes Cen Miao had changed out of—on top sat a small white garment, laid there in plain view.
Qin Zelin paused, his Adam’s apple bobbing slowly. A sudden heat surged through his lower abdomen. He cursed silently in his heart and quickly grabbed a towel to cover it.
The little monster… couldn’t have done that on purpose, right?
He ended up taking a long shower. By the time Qin Zelin dried his hair and returned to bed, Cen Miao was already half-asleep.
Sensing someone lying beside him, Cen Miao instinctively moved closer, wanting to hug his arm. But as he got near, he wrinkled his nose and sniffed, then shifted back toward his own side.
As if he had smelled something he didn’t like.
Qin Zelin: “………”
He coughed lightly, touched his nose, and turned off the light.
After one in the morning, the world was silent.
Curled up in bed, Cen Miao twisted uneasily, faint whimpers escaping from under the blanket.
“Mm… sob…”
Qin Zelin was awakened by the movement. He stretched out his arm and turned on the bedside lamp.
“Cen Miao? What’s wrong?” he asked, gently touching the curled-up figure.
“It hurts… sob…”
Qin Zelin immediately woke up fully and sat up, his expression tense. “Where does it hurt?”
“My stomach… my stomach hurts.”
Seeing sweat already forming on Cen Miao’s forehead, Qin Zelin quickly got up, changed clothes, told the driver to prepare the car, and grabbed a pair of thick socks to put on him.
Then he bent down, brushing aside the damp strands of hair stuck to Cen Miao’s forehead, and asked softly, “Cen Miao, we need to go to the hospital. Can you get up and put on your shoes first?”
Cen Miao buried his face in the blanket. “No… sob…”
Left with no choice, Qin Zelin placed one knee on the bed, leaned forward, and gathered him into his arms, lifting him up against his chest before standing.
Even though he was gentle, the movement still made Cen Miao cry out in pain.
“Ah~~~~~ sob…”
Qin Zelin patted his back soothingly with one hand as he carried him downstairs.
In the living room on the first floor, Old Lin rushed out in a coat after hearing the noise. “Oh dear, what happened to Madam?”
“He suddenly has stomach pain. I’m taking him to the hospital first,” Qin Zelin said as he walked toward the door without stopping. His gaze swept over the wool blanket draped over the sofa. “Uncle Lin, please grab that blanket for me.”
“Ah, okay, okay, coming.”
Qin Zelin paused briefly and lowered his head slightly, his voice steady and calm. “Cen Miao, hold onto my neck.”
Feeling Cen Miao’s arms wrap around him, Qin Zelin released the hand supporting his back. With one arm securely holding him, he took the blanket from Old Lin and carefully wrapped him up before heading out.
The driver had already opened the rear door. Qin Zelin got into the car sideways, shielding Cen Miao’s head.
“To the hospital. Drive faster.”
“Yes, boss.”
In the car, Cen Miao curled up in Qin Zelin’s arms, his face buried in his neck, crying in hiccuping sobs.
“Ah~~~~ sob… make it stop hurting…”
Driver: ………? The boss doesn’t have superpowers.
“Mm,” Qin Zelin held him with one arm, while the other slipped under the blanket, his warm palm gently rubbing his stomach. “Does this feel a little better?”
He felt the person in his arms move slightly, followed by a muffled “Mm.”
Driver: Haha! So this is the superpower of love!
Clearly, as a single man, he had no experience!
At the hospital parking lot, Qin Zelin carried him quickly into the emergency department.
After the doctor issued the examination orders, Cen Miao refused to cooperate no matter what.
Qin Zelin was at his wit’s end. Like handling a piglet, he coaxed and tricked him until he finally completed all the required tests.
In the hospital room, Qin Zelin sat on the bed, leaning against the wall. In his arms was Cen Miao, who had just had blood drawn and was crying loudly in grievance.
“Ah~~~~~ sob, you’re a bad human, ah~~~~~~”
Qin Zelin felt a throbbing at his temples. He decided to take back what he had said earlier about the little monster being easy to coax.
Not easy at all!!!
“You’re a bad person~~~ sob sob sob.” He missed his Caretaker Dad!
Qin Zelin: “………”
Heh. When he had begged him to blow-dry his hair earlier, what had he said? That he was the bestest.
It wasn’t even him who drew the blood.
“Ah~~~~~~~~”
Qin Zelin felt a ringing in his ears. He leaned his head back and looked at the ceiling. “Mm, I’m a bad person.”
“Hiss—Cen Miao,” Qin Zelin stiffened. “Are you a puppy? Why are you biting people?”
“Bite bad people! I’ll eat you! Sob sob sob.”
“……..”
The driver looked away, his toes curling awkwardly: This… this is something I’m allowed to hear?
An hour later, the test results finally came out. After knocking, the nurse entered the room.
(⊙o⊙)…