The youth’s skin was fair and flawless, turning red at the slightest touch of a finger. Xu Wangzhi retracted the hand that had been gripping his arm securely. Averting his gaze, he asked in a deep voice, “Can you take a bath by yourself?”
“I can,” Cheng Shuoning replied, nodding obediently once more, completely forgetting how he had just lost consciousness beneath the water. “Of course I can.”
His vision was somewhat hazy, close to losing sight of Xu Wangzhi entirely. His head felt heavy and slightly painful, his consciousness clearing for an instant before turning chaotic again as he let out another sneeze.
Xu Wangzhi didn’t leave this time, closing his eyes to stand beside him and wait.
A few minutes later, Cheng Shuoning stood before him wearing his clothes. “I am finished. I think I was just too sleepy earlier and accidentally dozed off for a moment.”
Xu Wangzhi opened the door and walked straight out.
Cheng Shuoning followed behind him. Before he could react, Xu Wangzhi had already taken a towel and began drying his hair.
The actions were exceptionally gentle, leaving Cheng Shuoning somewhat dazed. He asked with a heavy nasal tone, “Why are you so good to me?”
After drying his hair, Xu Wangzhi retrieved a hairdryer to dry it completely before measuring his temperature. Fortunately, he didn’t have a fever.
Xu Wangzhi was taller than Cheng Shuoning, so the clothes hung loosely on him, appearing excessively oversized.
He sat on the sofa, sipping the hot milk Xu Wangzhi had prepared for him. The tip of his nose was red, making him look indescribably obedient and compliant. Having just bathed, his body carried a faint flush of pale pink.
“Thank you,” Cheng Shuoning said, losing track of how many times he had uttered the phrase. “I will head back to school once the rain stops.”
“I already requested a day off for you. Go after you’ve rested properly,” Xu Wangzhi said.
Cheng Shuoning offered an answering sound, feeling a wave of drowsiness.
It was very strange; he had slept quite early the previous night, so rationally he shouldn’t feel sleepy, yet a profound exhaustion washed over him, compelling him to collapse onto the sofa.
Before falling asleep, he forced himself to ask Xu Wangzhi once more, “Why are you so good to me?”
Regrettably, he drifted off into sleep without receiving an answer.
The apartment fell completely silent, filled only with the youth’s steady breathing. Xu Wangzhi walked over to stand beside him, staring down at him for a quiet moment. Bending down slightly, he lifted him from the sofa, carried him into the bedroom, and settled him beneath the covers.
Beneath his soft, dark hair was a face flushed with a healthy pink, his long eyelashes thick and curled, his beautiful features joining together into an exceptionally delicate countenance.
Xu Wangzhi reached out, removing a stray strand of hair from his face. When his thumb brushed against the corner of the youth’s mouth, he couldn’t help but press lightly against the soft skin.
His fingertip sank into the gentle warmth. Xu Wangzhi lowered his eyes to stare at the youth, a deep darkness swirling in his gaze.
Ultimately, he suppressed all his desires for the youth within his heart. Retracting his hand, he sat on the chair beside the bed, resting his cheek against his hand as he stared at Cheng Shuoning, as though he could never get enough, his eyes filled with an endless gentleness.
The rain outside continued without pause, and Xu Wangzhi remained watching him until Cheng Shuoning finally woke up.
“What time is it?” Cheng Shuoning asked, rubbing his eyes as he sat up.
After a long sleep, his energy had clearly recovered significantly.
Cheng Shuoning failed to notice that his oversized clothes had slipped slightly, exposing a wide patch of fair, smooth skin that cast a warm glow beneath the lights.
Xu Wangzhi adjusted his clothes to pull them straight. “Intertwined with the clock at eleven. Are you hungry?”
Cheng Shuoning pressed his empty stomach. “A little.”
Without another word, Xu Wangzhi walked straight out of the room.
Unsure of what he was doing, Cheng Shuoning rose to follow him, discovering that he had entered the kitchen.
Having nothing else to do, Cheng Shuoning began examining the apartment.
It was a one-bedroom apartment with a spacious living room, featuring a bookshelf packed with volumes, and a balcony where several plants were cultivated.
Before long, Xu Wangzhi emerged carrying dishes and set them on the table, calling him over to eat.
The aroma of food drifted through the air. Cheng Shuoning walked over, discovering that the two dishes were precisely his favorites, even down to the soup.
“We are so similar,” he couldn’t help but comment. “We like exactly the same foods.”
Xu Wangzhi offered no reply, handing the rice and chopsticks to Cheng Shuoning.
Not long ago, he could only sit at a distance, watching Cheng Shuoning dine alongside Han Tian and the others.
Now, Cheng Shuoning was inside his home, sitting directly across from him, drawing them closer together.
Thinking of this, the hand Xu Wangzhi used to hold his chopsticks trembled slightly.
Cheng Shuoning noticed his abnormality. “Are you cold?”
“I am not cold.” His throat clearing, his dark eyes reflecting Cheng Shuoning’s figure completely, Xu Wangzhi said, “I am very happy.”
Cheng Mother suffered from a severe headache, failing to go to the company.
By evening, only Cheng Meng had returned. Cheng Shuoning hadn’t come back at all, and his phone calls went unanswered.
She knocked on Cheng Meng’s room door. “Have you seen Ningning at school today? Ningning hasn’t returned yet.”
“What does his absence have to do with me?” Cheng Meng’s impatient voice issued from inside the room. “I don’t want to hear his name. Even if he dies, do not tell me about it.”
The sharp words sounded exceptionally grating in the quiet night. Cheng Mother froze on the spot, realizing belatedly how hideous his statement was. Her face darkening, she snapped, “Cheng Meng, what kind of language is that?”
“Don’t disturb me!” Cheng Meng’s temper flared further, and he smashed a glass against the floor to vent his displeasure.
Knowing full well how deeply he detested Cheng Shuoning, Cheng Mother feared that pushing him further would only stimulate him into committing some harmful act. She could only turn around and return to her own room.
With her headache worsening, she found herself unable to process her work properly, closing her laptop in frustration.
Staring out at the rainy night, she turned over the events of the day in her mind, finding her own words to be utterly absurd.
The Cheng Meng she favored didn’t appreciate her goodness at all, remaining constantly resistant and averse to her, showing no care or respect whatsoever.
In contrast, Cheng Shuoning was exceptionally attentive. Whenever he noticed she was exhausted, he would take the initiative to massage her shoulders to relieve her stress.
The more she thought about it, the more suffocated she felt. She called the Han family to request Han Tian’s contact details, inquiring if he had seen Cheng Shuoning.
“No,” Han Tian replied, still harboring resentment. He hadn’t approached Cheng Shuoning at all and had returned home immediately after dismissal, completely unaware that Cheng Shuoning hadn’t gone to school. “Is Ningning missing?”
Cheng Mother said, “We had a small argument, and I don’t know where he went now. Han Tian, did you and Ningning have a conflict?”
“No,” Han Tian said immediately. “It is just a small misunderstanding. I will clear it up as soon as possible.”
“That is good.” Cheng Mother let out a sigh of relief, hanging up to dial Li Shengfei’s number next.
Hearing that Cheng Shuoning hadn’t returned home so late, Li Shengfei grew intensely worried, attempting to search for him the moment the call concluded.
Zhou Xundu similarly received the call, pausing slightly. “He didn’t return home?”
“Is Ningning not at your place?” He had stayed over at Zhou Xundu’s apartment in the past, so Cheng Mother assumed he would be there. Hearing his words, her final shred of hope disintegrated.
“Rest assured, Auntie, I will find Ningning. Do not worry, and take care of yourself. Your voice sounds very exhausted,” Zhou Xundu said softly.
Cheng Mother was indeed deeply fatigued. Hearing his words, her fondness for him increased significantly, and she smiled. “I am troubling you. It is just”
“Mm?”
Cheng Mother said, “Ningning and I had a falling out, and he might not want to return. If he refuses to come back then”
“I understand. I will look after Ningning and speak with him properly. Rest assured, Auntie.”
Zhou Xundu set aside his work, staring at the photo of the youth on his desk before calling Cheng Shuoning’s homeroom teacher.
“Cheng Shuoning? He didn’t come to school today, he requested leave. He claimed he had a cold. As for where he is, I have no idea,” the teacher said.
Cheng Shuoning’s social circle was exceptionally small; outside of their group, he had virtually no friends close enough to take him in. A hotel remained highly probable.
An individual suddenly flashed through his mind, and Zhou Xundu let out a low laugh, asking unhurriedly, “Did Xu Wangzhi from your class attend lessons today?”
“No, he requested leave as well.”
…
There was only one bed in the room. When night arrived, Xu Wangzhi prepared to set up a pallet on the floor, but Cheng Shuoning stopped him.
“I only need this much space,” Cheng Shuoning said, curling tightly into the edge of the mattress.
He was sitting so close to the edge that he wouldn’t even need to roll over; the slightest movement would send him tumbling to the floor.
Xu Wangzhi watched him silently, his underlying thoughts impossible to fathom.
Under that scrutiny, Cheng Shuoning felt an indescribable wave of nervousness. Assuming the other boy was reluctant to share a bed with him, he climbed down. “Then, I will sleep on the floor.”
“You have a cold, sleep on the bed.” Xu Wangzhi didn’t hand him the blanket.
“Then you”
Xu Wangzhi placed the pillow on the mattress. “Half each.”
He stepped out of the room, returning a moment later with medicine in hand, which he handed to Cheng Shuoning. “Drink this before sleeping.”
Seeing the black liquid, Cheng Shuoning’s entire face contorted in aversion, expressing deep resistance.
He had consumed this medicine at noon, and it was so bitter he could barely swallow it down, it was the most wretched thing he had ever tasted, and he couldn’t forget that lingering bitterness. In the end, he had only managed to force it down by pinching his nose.
“Can I not drink it” His words of refusal died in his throat upon meeting Xu Wangzhi’s dark gaze. Cheng Shuoning accepted the glass obediently, held his breath, and swallowed it in one gulp.
But the bitterness spread through his mouth instantly. Clutching his mouth, he rushed into the bathroom to rinse, emerging a moment later to complain softly about how bitter it was.
Xu Wangzhi sat on the edge of the bed, seemingly waiting for him, turning his head to look over upon hearing his steps.
Locking eyes with him, Cheng Shuoning’s heart began to leap frantically, completely silencing his complaints. He walked quickly to the bed and lay down, pulling up the covers, his body thoroughly rigid.
Before long, the other side of the mattress dipped slightly.
The lights were turned off, plunging the room into darkness.
Cheng Shuoning stared up at the ceiling, motionlessly, his heart beating with immense speed.
“Can’t sleep?” the youth’s deep voice echoed beside his ear.
“I am just turning some things over in my mind,” Cheng Shuoning said softly.
Beside Xu Wangzhi, he always felt relaxed and unconstrained, unable to resist sharing his underlying doubts with him.
After he finished speaking, the room fell silent, filled only with their breathing. Unsure of what Xu Wangzhi would say, Cheng Shuoning grew increasingly anxious as he waited.
A moment later, Xu Wangzhi’s steady, powerful voice finally resonated, “Do not overthink things, Cheng Shuoning. If you feel sad, stay away from the people who cause you pain.”
Cheng Shuoning offered an answering sound. Perhaps because he had been too tightly wound earlier, relaxing now made his eyelids grow intensely heavy, and he drifted into sleep before long.
He curled his body slightly as he slept. Before long, he began drifting toward Xu Wangzhi’s side, only stopping once he made contact with him, as though finding a certain sense of security that kept him from moving further.
Xu Wangzhi opened his eyes, staring at the youth’s blurred outline, feeling his warm aura.
He ran his fingers through the youth’s soft hair, a doting, satisfied smile curling his lips.
In the next second, his shirt was gripped tightly. Unsure of what he was dreaming about, Cheng Shuoning mumbled indistinct words, drawing even closer to him.
Xu Wangzhi reached out, gently patting Cheng Shuoning’s back to soothe him, only retracting his hand once he settled down completely.
Suddenly, three sharp knocks sounded on the front door. Xu Wangzhi rose to switch on the bedside lamp, experiencing a fraction of resistance as he prepared to step off the bed.
He lowered his eyes, looking at Cheng Shuoning’s hand gripping his clothes. With a gentle touch, he pried the fingers loose, tucked his arm back beneath the covers, switched off the lamp, and exited the bedroom.
The person outside knocked three more times, appearing highly patient, or perhaps indicating that as long as the door remained closed, he would continue knocking indefinitely.
Xu Wangzhi switched on the living room lights, walking unhurriedly to the door to pull it open.
The man standing outside wore a black suit, his frame tall, his features handsome and soft. He wore glasses this time, appearing a fraction more scholarly than usual.
He offered a slight smile to Xu Wangzhi, his eyes filled with warmth, showing no sense of intrusion for disturbing someone so late. He extended a hand to prop open the door, preventing Xu Wangzhi from closing it.
Seeing him, Xu Wangzhi’s expression remained entirely unchanged, nor did he inquire about his purpose.
The surroundings fell into a bizarre silence as the two men locked in a stalemate, neither willing to speak first.
Two minutes later, Zhou Xundu let out a low laugh. As that smile appeared on his features, he exuded a captivating gentleness beneath the dim corridor lights.
“I told you previously not to harbor thoughts that shouldn’t exist toward Ningning. Why do you lack self-awareness?” He stared at the expressionless Xu Wangzhi, his narrow eyes narrowing slightly behind his lenses as he pushed the door open completely, his tone turning cold, carrying an absolute command that brooked no argument, “Now, please hand over Ningning.”