Chapter 123

Chapter 123

An hour later, the door of Room 207 was pushed open.

The young man who walked in without knocking had golden hair that stood out strikingly in the somewhat dull ward.

Yu Chuang was stunned when he saw him, "Young Master... why are you here?"

Ji Mian didn’t answer, instead, he first looked Yu Chuang up and down to confirm that he was indeed unhurt, then calmly raised his eyes. "I was bored, so I came to check in."

At this moment, he noticed the thin young boy on the hospital bed, "Is this your brother?"

"Yes, his name is Yu Xing."

Yu Xing greeted Ji Mian, "Hi, big brother."

Ji Mian nodded slightly in response.

Yu Xing had never seen any older person greet someone like this, and his gaze became even more fixed on Ji Mian, curiously looking at his dazzling golden hair. It looked awesome, like a character from an anime.

Seeing this, Yu Chuang took hold of Ji Mian’s arm and led him out of the ward, closing the door behind them.

They stood in the busy hospital hallway.

"What brings you here?"

Ji Mian said, "Didn’t you hear me? I was bored."

He coldly added, "You’re something else, disappearing without a word. What kind of sugar baby treats their patron like this?"

A passing nurse pushing a cart perked up.

A sugar baby and patron? Do go on.

She slowed her steps, pretending not to eavesdrop. Hospitals are full of gossip, but this kind of drama is unusual.

Yu Chuang’s eye twitched, "...Are you married?"

"Of course not."

Then why call it that? Besides, I asked for time off, but you didn’t approve.

Yu Chuang didn’t defend himself, saying, "I’m sorry. It’s my mistake."

"..."

Ji Mian paused for a moment, wanting to ask about Yu Xing’s condition, what illness he had, how risky the surgery was... but given his usual personality, it was clear that he wasn’t the type to care about these things.

He’d even asked Li Song to find out why Yu Chuang needed money so badly, but unfortunately, nothing was found out.

In the end, he only impatiently asked, "So when’s the surgery?"

"Tomorrow morning," Yu Chuang said, "Once Yu Xing’s stable the day after, I’ll be there."

The day after? Ji Mian’s brow furrowed.

Yu Xing seemed barely eleven or twelve years old. After the surgery, it would be the time when he needed someone the most.

He didn’t say anything, but his expression spoke volumes.

Just then, a nurse came over to check on Yu Xing.

Ji Mian and Yu Chuang also entered the ward.

Once the nurse had finished and left, Ji Mian sat down on the chair beside the hospital bed.

There was only one chair, and he took it. Yu Chuang got him a cup of water and then stood by respectfully.

Yu Xing looked at Ji Mian and felt that he didn’t seem like a friend of his brother, but more like a 'boss' figure. Even his own brother had to stand by respectfully.

"Brother Ji Fan, are you a friend of my brother?" His voice was faint, and you had to listen closely to make out what he was saying.

"Yes."

"No."

Two voices answered at the same time.

Surprisingly, Ji Mian was the one who said 'yes,' while Yu Chuang was the one who said 'no.'

They automatically glanced at each other, clearly reading the emotions in each other's eyes.

One looked somewhat startled, the other was incredulous.

It was Ji Mian who looked incredulous.

'How could you say no in front of the child?' Yu Chuang seemed to understand this from his look.

He hesitated, then changed his answer: "Yes."

Yu Xing was even more puzzled.

Though young, Yu Xing was good at reading expressions and decided not to ask more about their relationship.

After speaking for about ten minutes, he began to feel out of breath.

Ji Mian, aware that there would be pre-op preparations and checks, so he left on his own.

*

The next day, Yu Chuang did not receive a call from Ji Mian.

Yu Xing's surgery started in the morning. Yu Chuang waited outside the operating room until the afternoon when the door opened, and a gurney was wheeled out.

Yu Chuang immediately stood up.

The boy on the gurney was still unconscious, and the nurses were walking hurriedly.

The lead doctor noticed his worry and said, "He’s still under anesthesia, but the surgery went smoothly."

Yu Chuang felt relieved.

"The key is the postoperative recovery, you must be careful..." The doctor gave him many instructions.

Yu Chuang had misjudged the time he could leave. Yu Xing only woke up that night, and on the second day after the surgery, he couldn’t find time to go to the Ji Family.

He called Ji Mian to explain the situation, but unfortunately, no one answered. He had to call Li Song and asked him to relay the message.

After listening, Li Song was quite surprised: "Didn’t you know?"

"What?"

"The young master had a meeting with Young Master Lin this morning and headed to S City. He’s probably on the plane now and might not have checked his phone, which is why he missed your call."

Yu Chuang hesitated, "He’s not in Ningcheng?"

"No."

"Didn’t the young master mention it to you?"

"No." After a moment of silence, Yu Chuang continued to ask, "When will he return?"

"His return time hasn’t been set yet. If you have time, Mr. Yu, you could call the young master so he won’t miss you..."

Yu Chuang thanked him and hung up the phone. He glanced at the person still asleep on the hospital bed and reached over to tuck the blanket around Yu Xing.

*

Over a week later, Ji Mian came back to Ningcheng from S City.

When he got to the Ji Family, he opened the door to find Yu Chuang standing there, as if he’d been waiting for him.

After a brief moment of surprise, Ji Mian took off his coat and tossed it to Yu Chuang, casually asking, "When did you get here?"

"This morning. Butler Li mentioned you’d be back today, so I came over."

Ji Mian walked ahead but heard Yu Chuang murmur behind him, "Thank you."

He turned around, his brow furrowing.

Yu Chuang tilted his head, his expression calm, as if he hadn’t just spoken.

Ji Mian looked away, too lazy to press further.

After traveling a thousand kilometers, Ji Mian didn’t feel the usual rush of a traveler. Flying on the Lin family’s private jet, the trip was just a few leisurely hours of sipping tea and playing games.

After being away for ten days, he found his bedroom corner piled with gift boxes that hadn’t been there before. A few days earlier had been an important holiday, and these were small gifts from luxury brands, along with a few magazines.

Ji Mian opened a couple of boxes casually, then lost interest and handed them off to Yu Chuang to deal with.

Instead, he flipped through the magazines a few times and chose one to read. It was from a luxury watch shop where he’d spent a fortune.

The bookshelf was mostly filled with these kinds of magazines, with hardly any substantial books in sight.

Ji Mian brought the magazine to the Ji Family’s open-air garden. Outside, the sun was bright, but as autumn deepened, the temperature was dropping steadily. The moment the sun disappeared behind the clouds for a couple of minutes, the chill immediately set in.

Ji Mian reclined on the long wicker chair in the garden, a finely embroidered pillow supporting his back.

He held the magazine up, shielding his face from the direct sunlight.

Flipping to a page, the watch face dominated the spread, covered in diamonds that seemed to sparkle on the page.

Ji Mian wasn’t particularly into luxury goods, but these glittering items were never unappealing.

Yu Chuang spent a lot of time organizing those gifts and came to the garden.

He usually didn’t touch the cabinets where the luxury goods were kept, so he didn’t know where to put the small ornaments and miscellaneous items in the gift boxes, which delayed him for a long time.

Ji Mian, with his back to him, was reading the magazine, seriously playing the role of a brainless, flashy, superficial rich young master.

The garden was filled with the mixed fragrance of different flowers, extremely rich, making one dizzy upon entering.

The sunlight fell, and the dew-covered leaves showed a bright luster under the light.

Ji Mian sat at the heart of these vibrant, dazzling hues, with a few strands of golden hair peeking out from beneath the magazine.

Yu Chuang felt as if he’d stumbled into a shimmering, golden world of color and light.

He shut his eyes briefly to adjust to the glaring brightness.

"Yu Xing's surgery was successful, and he's been recovering well recently."

Ji Mian flipped a page of the magazine without a care, showing no reaction to his words.

Yu Chuang didn't bring up Yu Xing again.

He spotted a streak of bright red nestled in Ji Mian’s golden locks.

Maybe a breeze had carried a stray petal into his hair.

Yu Chuang stepped closer, leaned down, and plucked the petal.

Ji Mian stopped reading as Yu Chuang drew near.

He set the magazine aside and fixed his gaze on Yu Chuang’s face. He wanted Yu Chuang, after all, for this very face. Staring straight at him felt completely natural.

He even quipped to the system, "Hehe, my brother’s a real looker."

The system: "..."

His eyes lingered on the tiny mole on Yu Chuang’s nose, as if it were begging to be kissed.

Yet he was aloof, rarely smiling. It seemed as if this person's soul was naturally averse to laughter. From the start, he’d always worn a cold demeanor. Even Lu Ge’s smile felt like a mask, giving off a sense of cold detachment.

Just as Yu Chuang started to rise, Ji Mian looped an arm around his neck, not letting him leave.

The icy watch strap grazed his neck, making his lashes flutter.

Leveraging his role as the benefactor, Ji Mian ordered, "Smile for me."

"..." Yu Chuang revealed a smile he had practiced in front of the mirror a few times.

It felt forced, but Ji Mian seemed pleased anyway, planting a kiss on Yu Chuang’s nose.

Yu Chuang didn't struggle, and his nose grazed Ji Mian’s chin, catching a whiff of something floral yet unfamiliar.

Perhaps it was perfume or the smell of body wash.

Before he could place the scent, Ji Mian let go, grabbed the magazine, rolled it, and tapped it lightly on his head.

"Get up, you're blocking my light."

Called and dismissed at a whim, like a toy.

Without his looks, he’d mean less to Ji Mian than the magazine.

Yu Chuang stood up, yielding the sunlight to him, and as he looked down, he noticed that the index finger and thumb of his right hand were stained red. He’d crushed the petal without realizing it.

He left the garden to wash his hands.