Xu Yizhou felt pretty damn aggrieved. He’d just come downstairs to grab something to eat, and ended up getting a beating for no reason at all. It hurt like hell. But when he heard footsteps coming down the stairs, Xu Yizhou quickly wiped the grimace off his face. Even though he’d been hit, he had to admit there was some pent-up frustration behind it this time.
He forced a smile, twisting his body into an awkward position to look at Wen Jiang.
“Bro, you’ve already hit me, you can’t still be mad, right?”
He did notice Wen Jiang’s expression soften a bit.
“Go lie down, I’ll put some ointment on it.”
“Okay.”
Without thinking too much, Xu Yizhou obediently lay face-down on the sofa. He wasn’t sure if this counted as hitting someone and then giving them candy. Not long after, he felt a chill on his tailbone. Wen Jiang was actually pulling down his pants!
“W-Wait a minute!”
Xu Yizhou practically sprang up, clutching his underwear in panic. He felt this wasn’t quite appropriate. Sure, when they were kids, Wen Jiang had seen him naked plenty of times, even when he was still wearing split pants.
But they were adults now. The thought of taking his pants off in front of his brother was just too much. His face grew hotter by the second. Xu Yizhou stole a glance at Wen Jiang.
The culprit’s expression was completely blank, just looking at him calmly as if there was nothing wrong with what he was doing. It made Xu Yizhou feel like he was the one with a guilty conscience.
“Bro… I-I can do it myself…”
Xu Yizhou avoided eye contact, feeling like his face was burning up enough to fry his brain.
Wen Jiang didn’t press the issue, handing the small bottle of ointment to Xu Yizhou.
“Go upstairs and apply it. I’ll make dinner.”
“Dinner at this hour?”
Xu Yizhou managed to get a clear sentence out for once. Usually, if Wen Jiang cooked dinner at home, it wouldn’t be until seven or eight in the evening. But it was only a little past five in the afternoon. Wen Jiang turned to find an apron.
“Haven’t you eaten yet?”
Oh, right. He hadn’t eaten. And not only had he not eaten, he’d also gotten beaten up.
Thinking about it made Xu Yizhou feel even more wronged. He decided he was going to eat a lot later, even Wen Jiang’s portion, so there’d be nothing left for him. Fuming inwardly, Xu Yizhou took the medicine and limped his way upstairs, holding onto the railing.
Every step was agony.
Meanwhile, Wen Jiang, who had just tied his apron, watched Xu Yizhou’s limping figure ascend the stairs. The loose underwear even offered a glimpse of what lay beneath.
His Adam’s apple bobbed slightly as Wen Jiang looked away.
If Xu Yizhou hadn’t offered to apply the ointment himself earlier, just watching might have been too much to bear. Glancing down at his own reaction, Wen Jiang’s eyes darkened.
Back in his room, Xu Yizhou made sure the door was locked before daring to climb onto the bed to check the injury on his backside.
Unfortunately, he couldn’t twist around enough to see it properly; his bones were too stiff for that maneuver. But from the corner of his eye, he could almost see the skin there was a completely different shade of red compared to the surrounding area. And it was clearly swollen.
“You animal, Wen Jiang!”
Xu Yizhou groaned as he opened the small bottle of ointment, scooped some out with his finger, and applied it by feel. The moment the cool ointment met his burning skin, he felt like he was about to ascend to heaven on the spot. It was like a clash of ice and fire!
After spreading the ointment evenly, its cool sensation against the skin brought a comfortable chill. During this time, he didn’t hold back from cursing Wen Jiang.
Even when Wen Jiang finished cooking and called him downstairs to eat, he remained standing. He felt that when Wen Jiang looked at him with those utterly unreadable eyes, there was a hint of exasperation in his gaze.
Usually, it was him looking up at Wen Jiang, so it was quite rare for Wen Jiang to lift his eyes and meet his gaze. Halfway through the meal, his phone rang from his pocket. Xu Yizhou held his bowl and chopsticks in one hand while fishing out his phone with the other to glance at the screen.
Although there was no caller ID, he could pretty much guess who it was. If he didn’t reply on WeChat, they’d call to bring up his embarrassing antics from last night, right? Well, he wasn’t going to answer. Thinking this, Xu Yizhou directly hung up the call.
Besides, if Wen Jiang heard him talking to Wen Shi again, he wasn’t sure if he’d end up with a few more slaps. But soon, the phone rang again, and Xu Yizhou clearly saw Wen Jiang’s brows furrow.
He turned off his phone directly. Though Wen Jiang didn’t say anything, he noticed the man’s expression grow even colder. Recalling the scene of being hit earlier, Xu Yizhou couldn’t help but shiver all over. Now, he completely lost his appetite. After picking at his food a few times, he returned to his room.
Around eight or nine in the evening, after submitting his final draft, he could finally collapse onto his bed and rest. Don’t ask why he was lying face down—it was because his butt was already swollen. Just as he settled in, a knock sounded from outside the door. With only the two of them in the house, Xu Yizhou reluctantly went to open it. The lights were off, and Wen Jiang’s figure stood in the shadows, his expression unclear.
“Brother… why aren’t you—” asleep?
Usually, by this time, Wen Jiang would have long been asleep in bed. What was he doing here now?
Before he could finish his sentence, Wen Jiang pulled him into an embrace.
“Xu Yizhou, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have hit you.”
Just as Xu Yizhou was about to struggle, he heard Wen Jiang whisper those words in his ear.
The cold frame of Wen Jiang’s glasses brushed against the back of his ear, making Xu Yizhou instinctively shrink his neck. He was momentarily stunned. This was the first time Wen Jiang had ever apologized to him, and his voice sounded slightly hoarse. He had already been feeling quite wronged, but Wen Jiang’s words only made him feel even more so.
His nose tingled, and his eyes grew sore. It had been a long time since Wen Jiang had held him like this. His broad chest felt just like it did when they were children.
It gave him a sense of security.
“Does it hurt?”
Wen Jiang asked softly in his ear, his tone gentle enough to melt.
“It hurts…”
A soft, slightly hoarse voice escaped Xu Yizhou’s lips. What he feared most was being comforted when he was at his most vulnerable, because it always made him unable to hold back his tears. That was exactly what was happening now, but thankfully, the room was dark, so no one could see the expression on his face. Wen Jiang patted Xu Yizhou’s back, his tone filled with reassurance and remorse.
“I was just too angry today. Seeing you not listen to me, and if I had arrived any later last night, who knows what Wen Shi might have done to you.”
“I was afraid you couldn’t protect yourself, that you couldn’t even tell who the bad people are. That’s why I got so angry.”
“Xu Yizhou, don’t hate me.”
Only then did Xu Yizhou realize what might have happened last night. And if Wen Jiang was saying this, then the reason why he had been at home last night finally made sense. He sniffled and shook his head.
“Brother, you’re doing this for my own good. How could I ever resent you?”