Chapter 47

Chapter 47

The following Friday, Ji Mian was as usual dropped off at the decoration shop by Uncle Lin.

Before Ji Mian got out of the car, Uncle Lin asked him, "Master, the young master is returning from school today. What time will you be back tonight, so I can schedule picking up the young master?"

After a moment of thought, Ji Mian said, "Pick up Zhi Xia first." He didn't mind staying at the shop as long as he liked.

"Alright, understood."

After Uncle Lin left, Ji Mian entered the shop.

To avoid upsetting the owner and his wife, he bought a wooden sculpture today and had it sent directly to the Xu family. Then he found a seat under the owner's watchful eye.

It was his usual spot—the most comfortable seat in the shop.

Ji Mian planned to nap to kill time, but occasional coughs kept rousing him from his drowsiness.

When Lu Ge sat across from him, Ji Mian was half-asleep and didn't notice his arrival.

Lu Ge propped his chin on his hand, silently watching him.

"Hmm..." The tickle in his throat jolted Ji Mian awake.

Opening his eyes, the familiar face before him instantly banished his sleepiness.

"Mr. Lu," Ji Mian greeted, then glanced at the vintage clock on the wall.

It was nearly six-thirty. Meaning Lu Ge had come straight from work.

Ji Mian blinked.

Lately, he'd noticed Lu Ge visiting the shop more often.

He'd heard the owner's wife say Lu Ge used to come every week or two, staying for a few hours.

But lately, Ji Mian noticed Lu Ge was coming almost every other day.

Honestly, this bothered him a bit.

He just wanted solitude, to breathe in the wood's scent, which made him feel like he was back in Duan Zhuo's world.

But Lu Ge's presence always dragged him back to reality.

The issue was, the shop wasn't his, so he couldn't just bar others from coming.

The system, though, saw this as a positive, since having someone around kept Ji Mian from dwelling on the past.

"Mr. Lu, you seem to come here a lot?" Ji Mian asked.

"Yeah."

"Work's not too hectic lately?"

Lu Ge didn't reply, staring at him for a moment before saying, "You seem pretty reluctant about me coming here?"

"...Not at all," Ji Mian said flatly, though he thought, How does he notice everything?

Lu Ge nodded and said, "Even if you are, it doesn't matter. This shop isn't yours."

"..."

"And by the way, you're sitting in my seat," Lu Ge pointed at the chair beneath Ji Mian, "I bought this chair, and my name is carved under the right armrest."

Ji Mian was stunned. He had assumed Lu Ge's earlier claim of 'my spot' was just his bossy nature, but now it seemed there was more to it.

Lifting the right armrest, he indeed found two bold black characters printed underneath: Lu Ge.

"..."

So he was actually sitting in Lu Ge's chair.

No wonder the chair looked so out of place among the 'refined' decor.

Lu Ge's chair, like his personality, was a big, bold red armchair, thick and soft to the touch. Sitting in it was like sinking into a fluffy cloud.

Ji Mian didn’t argue but made no move to get up—the chair was indeed quite comfortable.

Ever since he became 'Xu Chiqiu,' he’d grown more self-indulgent.

Lu Ge sat on a stiff wooden chair, resting his chin on one hand, silently watching the person nestled in the armchair with his name on it.

The chair was a bit too big for Ji Mian’s slender build.

Ji Mian was lean. His posture had been proper at first, but lately he’d loosened up—too lazy to keep up the act, since Lu Ge already knew the real him.

Ji Mian’s legs were slightly splayed, his slender arms draped over the wide armrests, his posture much more languid than before.

Like a spoiled cat sprawled on a red velvet cushion.

Lu Ge’s lips curled slightly.

Ji Mian suddenly let out a soft cough.

Lu Ge’s smile vanished as he hurried to get him a glass of water.

Ji Mian took the cup and muttered, "Thanks."

Lately, he’d gotten used to Lu Ge’s once 'rare' kindness becoming routine.

"Seriously," Lu Ge said, unusually serious, "there must be a reason for this constant coughing, right?"

The hot water soothed his throat, and Ji Mian replied, "It’s probably just a leftover from my last fever."

"Last time?" Lu Ge recalled.

Ji Mian’s last fever was on that cruise, but that was nearly a month ago, right?

"It hasn't gone away after all this time?"

Ji Mian smiled, "That's why it's called a lingering effect."

He abruptly stopped speaking as the itch in his throat surged again. He took a quick sip of hot water, but it didn’t do the trick. As he took a second sip, he nearly choked on the cough that followed.

Ji Mian tossed the cup aside, bent over, and coughed violently, his brows tightly furrowed, his neck turning red from the strain in just a few seconds.

It seemed unstoppable.

"Hey..." Lu Ge stared at his hunched back, his arm twitching as if unsure what to do.

Lu Ge racked his brain but couldn't come up with a single useful way to stop the cough.

His hand reached out and pulled back several times before finally settling on Ji Mian's back.

He patted Ji Mian's back twice, recalling the clumsiest method he knew, but even with the gentlest touch, it felt like the person under his palm might break.

Lu Ge's hand froze for a moment, then he placed his palm below Ji Mian's neck, gently stroking down his spine, like smoothing fur.

Halfway through, he suddenly sensed something was wrong.

The skin under his palm felt slightly warm, yet Ji Mian was clearly someone who felt the cold easily.

Lu Ge paused, then reached with his free hand toward Ji Mian's tilted cheek, gently pulling him upright.

Then, ignoring Ji Mian's expression, he pressed his hand to his forehead.

Two seconds later, he looked at Ji Mian and said firmly, "You're running a fever."

"..."

"Didn't you feel it yourself?"

Ji Mian: "I... cough..."

Aside from a slight dizziness, he didn't feel much else. And Xu Chiqiu's body was always prone to discomfort—whether from lack of sleep or eating something too rich.

Lu Ge kept his hand there, his palm still pressed to Ji Mian's forehead.

It wasn't too hot, probably just a mild fever, nothing serious.

"Where's your driver? Call him to pick you up."

"Cough, Uncle Lin... cough..."

Lu Ge pieced together the words between coughs: the Xu family driver had gone to fetch the young master.

He thought about asking Ji Mian when the driver would be back, but decided it wasn't worth it.

"Come on, I'll drive you."

"It's fine..."

"It's nothing, Master Xu, no need to stand on ceremony," Lu Ge said casually. "We're friends, after all."

He had already cast himself in the role of a friend, though it made no sense. Not long ago, he'd been calling his 'friend' 'as venomous as a snake.'

Ji Mian pressed his lips together, conflicted, but in the end, he got into Lu Ge's car.

Even though it was late summer evening, the heat lingered. Lu Ge glanced at his passenger, shrugged off his suit jacket, and left the AC off.

Only now did Ji Mian truly feel the fever, his head growing heavy and his legs turning weak.

When people run a fever, they're often unusually fragile—not just physically, but mentally too. The dizziness and weakness can break down their defenses, making them act clingy or irrational with those closest to them.

But Ji Mian had no one close to him, so he just leaned back, silently holding back the flood of negative emotions. Well, not entirely silent—his cough hadn't let up.

Twenty minutes later, Lu Ge's car pulled up to the Xu residence.

Ji Mian unbuckled his seatbelt and was about to step out when Lu Ge suddenly leaned over and grabbed him.

Then, without hesitation, he reached out and touched Ji Mian's neck and cheek, but sensing it wasn't quite right, he finally placed his palm on Ji Mian's forehead.

Ji Mian remained silent...

"If you need it, I can be kind enough to take my old friend to the hospital," Lu Ge said casually.

Ji Mian had already figured out the real meaning behind Lu Ge's indirect words—his fever was getting worse.

He shook his head, managing only a soft cough. His throat felt like it was on fire, the pain spreading to his chest. Even the smallest effort made his fingertips shake with pain.

Seeing this, Lu Ge fell silent.

Noticing Ji Mian's trembling legs, he said, "Wait," then stepped out of the car and walked to the passenger side.

He opened the door, reached in, and said, "Get out."

Ji Mian got out of the car.

In the designated parking spots behind the Xu family villa, there was Lu Ge's car, Uncle Lin's daily driver, and another black luxury car.

Ji Mian's eyes lingered on the black car for a moment.

Noticing Ji Mian's hesitation, Lu Ge also looked at the car.

"Qin Yan's car," Ji Mian said with a faint smile.

"What? Does the Young Master plan to sleep in this car tonight?" Lu Ge asked.

Ji Mian: ...

Five minutes later, Lu Ge half-supported Ji Mian as they approached the villa entrance.

As they neared, the villa's door suddenly swung open from inside. A familiar tall figure emerged, leaning slightly back as if speaking to someone inside.

It was Qin Yan.

Ji Mian was about to call out when half the door swung open from inside. A slim young figure followed closely behind Qin Yan.

Then, the villa door closed.

At the entrance, Qin Yan and Xu Zhixia stood face to face, unaware of the two figures in the shadows.

Ji Mian couldn't hear their words, but the scene alone made the tension between them palpable.

Nearby, Qin Yan leaned in to hug Xu Zhixia, as if saying goodbye. But this farewell hug lasted longer than it should have.

In a corner where Xu Zhixia couldn't see, Qin Yan couldn't resist kissing the young man's hair, unnoticed. The tenderness of the gesture spoke volumes about his affection for the young man.

Ji Mian's hand on Lu Ge's forearm suddenly tightened.

"That hurts, Young Master Xu," Lu Ge complained in a low voice.

"Affection Points +100 (50x2), contributor Lu Ge."

"Feeling heartbroken?" Lu Ge asked cheekily, leaning close to his ear.

Ji Mian glanced at him, his eyes slightly red from the high fever and resentment.

When he looked back towards the villa entrance, the two people hugging at the door had already separated, bidding each other farewell.

Xu Zhixia lowered his head, seemingly a bit shy.

It wasn’t until Qin Yan left that he raised his head again, went back into the villa, and closed the door.

Ji Mian looked at the tightly shut door, his legs frozen in place.

He had hardly eaten anything all day, and now with a fever, his body had no extra energy to spare. He was breaking out in a cold sweat, and his legs were shaking from exhaustion.

Seeing that Ji Mian hadn’t moved forward, Lu Ge figured he was still rattled by what had just happened and didn’t even want to enter the door.

He said, "If you don’t want to go back, I’ve got plenty of room in my trunk. I can let you crash for the night."

Ji Mian’s legs were so weak that he couldn’t help but lean heavily on Lu Ge.

He gripped Lu Ge’s shirt at the waist to support himself, his forehead weakly resting against Lu Ge’s chest, gasping weakly.

Lu Ge couldn’t help but remember the time when Ji Mian was so angry with him that he coughed and chose to lean on Qin Yan. The difference was, back then, Ji Mian had actively relied on Qin Yan, whereas now he had no choice but to lean on Lu Ge.

"Affection Points +120 (60x2), courtesy of Lu Ge."

"You’re not making it easy to walk, Young Master Xu," Lu Ge poked the head resting on his chest.

Ji Mian took a deep breath and tried to stand up straight.

Suddenly, a strong arm wrapped around his waist, stopping him in his tracks.

He heard Lu Ge sigh, though he wasn’t sure if it was out of impatience or something else...

The next moment, Lu Ge grabbed Ji Mian’s right wrist, and then he turned around and bent down.

Ji Mian felt the hand holding his wrist pull him forcefully, and he was suddenly hoisted onto Lu Ge’s back.

"...Mr. Lu?"

"No problem."

Ji Mian was stunned for a moment, then gently lowered his eyes.

*

After closing the door, Xu Zhixia’s polite demeanor in front of Qin Yan quickly slipped away.

"Young Master Zhi Xia, did Mr. Qin leave?" Uncle Lin asked in the hall on the first floor.

"Yes."

"Mr. Qin seems to have gotten even closer to you over the years. He even made a point to pick you up from school after work," Uncle Lin remarked.

Xu Zhixia didn’t respond to that and asked, "Where’s my brother?"

"Oh, Young Master Chi Qiu went out and hasn’t come back yet. He told me to go pick you up from school first," Uncle Lin said.

However, before he could go pick up Xu Zhixia, Qin Yan had already driven him back in advance.

Xu Zhixia paused, "My brother... told you to pick me up first?"

"Yes."

Xu Zhixia’s expression grew even more peculiar. Given that person’s nature, if he knew he was back, faking an illness to keep Uncle Lin at home on standby would be more his style.

Let alone sending Uncle Lin to pick him up early.

"Go ahead and rest. I'll wait for Young Master Chi Qiu's call and go pick him up later."

"Yeah."

Xu Zhixia responded and headed upstairs to rest.

When he reached the staircase on the first floor, his footsteps paused for a moment, and he looked over at a cabinet about waist-high to the left of the staircase.

A long time ago, there used to be a vase on this cabinet, but after he broke it, it was never replaced.

Blocked by the staircase, the fragments of the fallen vase formed a beautiful fan shape. But as a young child, he was so caught up in the panic of breaking his father's "antique" that he found the perfect fan shape particularly terrifying. After quickly cleaning up the fragments on the floor, he hid in his room and cried for no reason for what felt like forever before finally getting up to find something to thoroughly clean up the remaining pieces.

Grabbing the cartoon fleece blanket from his room that could be used as a towel, he carefully opened the door.

But someone else was there at the staircase, standing still in front of the fan-shaped fragments with lowered eyes.

"Brother..."

Before he could warn him, he saw his brother, who usually doted on him the most, slowly slipped off his shoes and stepped barefoot onto the fan-shaped fragments.

Blood pooled beneath his brother's feet, forming a smaller, more beautiful fan shape.

...

Xu Zhixia gazed at the cabinet for a moment, then brushed a strand of hair above his left ear—exactly where Qin Yan had kissed him earlier.

—As long as I take Qin Yan away, I can completely destroy him.

Looking away, he made his way upstairs.

*

"So, Young Master, trunk or park bench tonight? Your pick."

Outside the villa, Lu Ge had just hoisted Ji Mian onto his back when he couldn’t resist cracking a joke again.

Ji Mian’s head lolled on Lu Ge's shoulder, and he didn’t respond.

Lu Ge gave up and fell silent.

This was the second time he had carried Ji Mian, and it felt a bit different from the first time.

He was just as light, just as warm, but that unsettling, weightless sensation was somehow more real and profound than last time.

So light.

So light...

Lu Ge frowned, but this feeling, which he hadn’t paid attention to last time, stuck with him this time, tangling around him like threads.

After a while, Ji Mian started coughing softly again.

Because it was hot, Lu Ge hadn’t worn his jacket when he got out of the car.

Ji Mian's body heat transmitted through the thin fabric of his shirt, making it sweltering.

Lu Ge thought for a moment.

Screw the trunk or the park bench—this time, he had to get him to the hospital.

"Cough... cough..."

Through the layers of their clothing, Lu Ge could feel the tremors in Ji Mian's chest, each cough sending a shudder, making him wonder if the person on his back might fall apart from the force.

Ji Mian covered his mouth with one hand, coughing more violently, the sound unrelenting. Lu Ge could clearly feel the initial tremors on his back turn into constant trembling.

Then, something warm oozed through Ji Mian's fingers, dripping onto Lu Ge's neck and collar.

Like a drop of scalding rain. Lu Ge glanced sideways.

It was blood.

"..."

Ji Mian clearly felt the person beneath him momentarily stop breathing. He stared at the bloodstains on Lu Ge's neck and collar, momentarily stunned, "Sorry, Mr. Lu..."

Lu Ge, gasping for breath, hissed two words through clenched teeth, "Shut up."

Ji Mian felt Lu Ge's heartbeat noticeably quicken, and the arm clutching his thigh seemed to quiver slightly. He couldn't help but speak, "Actually, it’s not as bad as it looks—"

Lu Ge suddenly sped up, turning his head to shout at him, "Shut up!"

Ji Mian had no choice but to remain silent.

He wanted to explain that coughing up blood might just be a bronchial or mucosal tear, not a sign of a sudden fatal disease.

After all, from Lu Ge's reaction, it seemed he thought Ji Mian was on the verge of death.

So that night, Ji Mian didn't sleep in the trunk or on a park bench.

He ended up spending the night on a hospital bed in the ER.

The familiar IV was hooked back up to Ji Mian's left hand, and on the bedside table lay a thick stack of lab reports along with several fever reducers and anti-inflammatory meds, as well as a bottle of thick, dark cough syrup.

Lu Ge filled a cup with hot water and set it on the table.

The ER doctor had just pulled him aside for a lengthy chat, which could be summarized into two sentences:

"No immediate danger to his life" and questioning him, "How could the patient's physical condition be so poor?"

How was he supposed to know why the patient was in such bad shape? It's not like he was his child.

Lu Ge glanced at the stack of lab reports, most of the levels were below the normal range.

"Do you have previous hospitalization records?" he asked.

Ji Mian nodded and said, "My primary doctor will help arrange a room."

"Oh," Lu Ge sat down by his hospital bed, seemingly with no intention of leaving, "We’ll wait until tomorrow morning to move to a regular ward, stay here for tonight."

Ji Mian was a bit surprised, "Mr. Lu, aren’t you heading back?"

Lu Ge blinked slowly, suddenly realizing: Oh, why was he still here?

He immediately stood up, preparing to leave when he thought of something and asked, "Then who will help you transfer wards tomorrow?"

"I can do it myself."

Lu Ge's steps halted, another question arose, "What about when you're hungry or thirsty?"

"Tomorrow morning, I’ll have the caregiver from home come over."

"What if you need to use the restroom tonight?"

Ji Mian was confused: "Then I'll go."

"But you’re hooked up to an IV."

Ji Mian tilted his head, pointing to the detachable IV stand by the bed. "It’s movable; I can take it with me."

Lu Ge paused for a moment.

He pictured Ji Mian dragging the IV stand in the middle of the night and sneered, "Don’t act so pitiful."

Ji Mian: "Huh?"

Anyway, Lu Ge sat back down.

He said, "You’re a patient, you know."

Ji Mian gave him a confused look.

"Patients shouldn’t do things on their own."

Ji Mian explained, "Lots of single patients manage on their own."

Lu Ge thought for a moment and said, "You’re different."

Ji Mian asked, "What’s different about me?"

Lu Ge stared at his calm face and thought, "You’re fragile. Fragile things need to be handled carefully."