Wen Ming was slightly startled. Looking at Liang Ling, who carried a burnt smell and a face full of eager expectation, he couldn’t bear to let the other person down, so he just took the bowl and drank a sip.
It felt warm going down into his stomach, leaving a lingering fragrance on his lips and teeth. Because rock sugar and snow pears were added, it also had a refreshing and sweet taste. It could be said to be the most delicious thing Liang Ling had ever made for him.
Seeing him finish drinking it in small sips, Liang Ling could not hide his joy and said, “President Wen, lie down, and I will help you massage your stomach.”
Hearing this, Wen Ming felt his head covered in black lines. “No need, I am going to sleep. I still have a meeting tomorrow morning.”
Who would have thought that this time Liang Ling would be rather disobedient, shaking his head stubbornly. “That won’t do, President Wen. Health is the capital of revolution. You drank so much tonight and couldn’t throw it up. If I don’t massage it, it will hurt a lot.”
Wen Ming paused for a few moments, watching Liang Ling enthusiastically come over and pull him onto the bed, then pull out a hot water bottle from the bathroom, place a towel as a cushion on his stomach, rub his hands together, and prepare to start massaging.
Seeing this posture, Wen Ming quickly reached out to stop him. “Do you know how? Be gentler.”
Liang Ling nodded and confidently gave him an OK sign. “Don’t worry. When my stomach used to hurt, my dad would massage my mom like this. Sometimes when I ate something cold by mistake and upset my stomach, my mom would massage me too. It’ll be totally fine.”
Half-doubting, Wen Ming put his hand down and his expression relaxed. “Alright then, thank you very much.”
Seeing that he agreed, Liang Ling skillfully placed his hands on the hot water bottle, gently massaging it counterclockwise first, and then clockwise after a while. Lying down comfortably, Wen Ming felt a warm current flow from his abdomen throughout his entire body. Coupled with the effect of the hangover soup, the stomachache that usually tortured him for the whole night was indeed alleviated quite a bit.
Watching Liang Ling working hard and taking care of him earnestly, Wen Ming felt somewhat moved and smiled lightly, “Your technique is really good. You could even go open a shop.”
Praised by him, Liang Ling felt secretly delighted and began to lecture him with a straight face, “I just saw the stomach medicine President Wen left on the coffee table. It is not gentle at all, it’s all painkillers. Treating the symptoms like this instead of the root cause will leave you with ailments when you get older.”
Scolded, Wen Ming smiled and obediently uttered an “mm” for once. Suddenly remembering something, he asked, “I remember you were also quite drunk earlier. How did you recover so fast?”
“This thing,” Liang Ling scratched his head with embarrassment, “is just my constitution. Alcohol goes to my head easily, but it comes and goes quickly. Just getting some breeze blows it right away.”
Hearing this, Wen Ming felt slightly envious. He was the exact opposite; no matter how much he drank at the dining table, he could maintain his elegance, but once he got home, he would vomit violently and suffer for several days straight.
More than half an hour later, Liang Ling wiped the sweat from his face, cleaned up the bowl he had used, poked his head around the door frame, and smiled softly, “President Wen, good night. I hope you have sweet dreams.”
His tone was as gentle as comforting a sick child, and Wen Ming couldn’t help finding it amusing, nodding stiffly.
“You too, good night.”
Getting his response, Liang Ling happily gave an “mm” and went to sleep in his own room with a great sense of accomplishment.
Yet, President Wen spent the entire night sleepless.
First, he felt a wave of intense heat. He unbearably hugged the pillow tighter, while a series of pains flared up at the back of his neck. The crisp Longjing fragrance surrounded him like an airtight net, making it almost impossible for him to breathe. What was even more fatal was that he seemed to have some kind of irrepressible impulse.
“Liang Ling,” Wen Ming spat out the two words heavily, and the intense lust contained within them startled even himself. He wanted to wake up quickly, but his eyelids felt heavy as lead, leaving him with no choice but to sink deeper and deeper into the dream.
In a daze, he seemed to see Liang Ling sleeping naked and soft right beside him, looking shy with breath as sweet as orchids, leaning close to his ear and whispering softly, “Brother, mark me.”
Mark. Liang Ling had also said such words to him before.
What on earth did it mean? Wen Ming couldn’t help frowning, trying his best to understand, but Liang Ling had already leaned closer, his smooth, soft little hands cupping his face, while his tear-filled eyes seemed to blame him, “Why aren’t you coming yet?”
Wen Ming could no longer endure it and pressed down heavily to kiss those two thin lips.
Early the next morning, Liang Ling got up as usual to water the plants, and as soon as he looked up, he saw Wen Ming washing his pajamas in the bathroom.
Liang Ling: “?”
A bit baffled, he asked, “President Wen, why are you washing clothes early in the morning?”
Wen Ming paused his hands in rubbing the clothes, his face darker than the bottom of a pot. Without turning his head, he retorted ungraciously, “My pajamas are dirty. I am a germaphobe, I can’t stand it.”
Weren’t those pajamas just changed last night? Liang Ling was speechless. Why had this person’s germaphobia worsened again? It felt like it was reaching the point where he needed to see a doctor.
“Then I’ll go brew your tea first. Remember to come over and drink it after you finish washing your clothes,” Liang Ling shouted to him. After fiddling with the plants, he sat down at the rosewood tea table on the balcony to brew tea for Wen Ming.
“Mm.” Having finally washed away those embarrassing traces, Wen Ming blushed slightly when Liang Ling handed him the tea and looked away.
Liang Ling found it a bit strange, tilting his head to look at him. “President Wen, what is wrong? Is there something dirty on my face?”
Wen Ming: “i”
Of course he wouldn’t admit that he had a wet dream all night just because Liang Ling massaged his stomach. It was too embarrassing. Even though he had a bit of a crush on the other person, he was still someone who had seen the world. How could his self-control be this terrible?
Feeling that he was acting weird today and not wanting to ask too much, Liang Ling folded his hands, rested them on the table, and asked with innocent curiosity, “President Wen, can I ask for a leave of absence with you next Saturday?”
Wen Ming took a small sip of tea and glanced at him sideways. “Why?”
“Wait a second.” Liang Ling quickly pulled up a poster on his phone to show him.
“Phantom High School Elite Cup, champion prize money of ten thousand yuan, venue at Night Internet Cafe next to S Middle School.” Wen Ming read the small print on the poster and frowned. “Phantom?”
This game name sounded so familiar. It seemed. Ye Wanqing was an esports player for this game?
Liang Ling nodded, his little face flushed with excitement, raising one finger and saying pitifully, “Just half a day, is that okay?”
Wen Ming smiled, took another sip of tea, uttered an “mm,” and said, “Alright, go ahead.”
Liang Ling let out a quiet cheer, then suddenly thinking of something, looked at Wen Ming with bright, shining eyes. “Then, President Wen, can you come see my match?”
Wen Ming was slightly startled. “What?”
“The match,” Liang Ling pulled a spectator ticket out of his pocket, grinning to reveal two little tiger teeth. “The organizer said that participating contestants can get a free spectator ticket, first row, the seats are really good.”
Seeing Wen Ming lower his head and stay silent, Liang Ling paused, then tightly pinched the corner of his shirt with a cautious yet hopeful expression. “Can you come? If not, never mind, I can exchange it for popcorn and cola.”
“When?” Wen Ming raised his head and asked indifferently.
“Huh?” Seeing that he readily agreed, Liang Ling could hardly believe it. Excitedly handing him the ticket, he pointed at the date on it, “Next Saturday at eight o’clock in the evening. President Wen, give me a call when you finish your work, and I’ll come out to pick you up.”
Wen Ming smiled and nodded. “Alright, I’ll bring popcorn and cola to find you then.”
“Mm!” Liang Ling happily poured a cup of tea for Wen Ming, and sensibly pushed the plate of mung bean cakes that he liked so much toward him. “Thank you, President Wen!”