Chapter 37

Chapter 37

Shen Muyun's fingertips, raw and bleeding, stained the earth crimson as he clawed frantically, seemingly impervious to pain.

"Sir, please step aside. Our rescue team is about to begin digging. You need to evacuate immediately."

Shen Muyun's eyes were bloodshot. "What did you say? Digging? What if someone is buried underneath? Can you take responsibility for that? No, no—Lu Huainan couldn’t be buried under there. It’s impossible..."

"Sir, I’ll say it again—you are obstructing official duties. Please move aside."

Fuming, Shen Muyun rose and grabbed the man’s collar. "And I’ll say it again—my friend might be in there. Can you take responsibility for that?"

He then dropped back down, resuming his desperate digging with bare hands.

The rescue team had no choice but to work around him.

Shen Muyun grew increasingly numb, mechanically shoveling dirt. "Lu Huainan, Lu Huainan, if you’re here, please answer me. I don’t believe it, I don’t believe you’re here."

A shadow fell over him. "Brother Yun, what are you doing here?"

Shen Muyun jolted, his body trembling slightly. That familiar voice—it was him.

He turned to see Lu Huainan, face splattered with mud, clothes wrinkled, and a red mark on his cheek. Lu Huainan extended a hand, smiling.

"Brother Yun, I’m here. Don’t be afraid. I’m okay. You’re here..."

Emotion surged, and tears streamed down his face like a broken string of pearls, soaking into the earth. He was speechless, only able to let out muffled sobs.

Sensing Shen Muyun’s emotional turmoil, Lu Huainan quickly took his arm and pulled him into a gentle embrace. "Brother Yun, it’s me. I’m here. Were you worried because you couldn’t find me? I’m back now, Brother Yun."

Shen Muyun pushed Lu Huainan away forcefully, jabbing a bloody fingertip at his nose. "Where did you go? I looked for you for ages! Do you have any idea? I saw your watch earlier, right next to this dirt pile. I thought—I thought you... And your clothes—wasn’t it a white shirt? I saw it..."

Shen Muyun’s voice broke, his head spun harder as the tension drained from his body. He swayed precariously.

"I’m sorry, I’m sorry, Brother Yun. When I left the village chief’s house, I passed by here. The rain was too heavy, and I grabbed onto a tree trunk. My watch must have fallen off then. As for the white shirt, Brother Yun, those are pretty common."

Lu Huainan took Shen Muyun’s hand and examined the wounds. All ten fingers were mangled and bloody—how long had he been digging? There were tools right nearby. Lu Huainan’s heart ached.

"Brother Yun, listen to me. Let’s treat your wounds first. After a flood, there might be a risk of infection. Many small animals in the village have died. The rescue team is handling the aftermath now. We should cooperate. Let’s go back to the homestay, okay?"

Shen Muyun glanced at the people around him, then suddenly reached out and grabbed Lu Huainan’s collar. An unnatural redness spread across his face, and his vision blurred, making Lu Huainan appear to see double.

"Lu Huainan, don’t ever do this again."

Everything went spinning.

"Brother Yun!"

Those were the last words Shen Muyun heard before everything went dark.

Lu Huainan immediately caught Shen Muyun as he collapsed and shouted at the people around him, "Does anyone have medical supplies? A med kit or anything?"

"Here, here! The rescue team has one. This..."

Lu Huainan reached out and felt Shen Muyun’s forehead—he was burning up. "How did he get a fever so easily?"

Shen Muyun’s eyes were tightly shut, his brows furrowed as if he were having a bad dream.

"Thanks."

Lu Huainan, exhausted, carried Shen Muyun back to the homestay. Fortunately, the infrastructure there was intact—the worst damage was near the village chief’s house.

He laid Shen Muyun on the bed and glanced at his own filthy clothes. He yanked them off and tossed them on the floor.

Shen Muyun shivered, clutching the blanket and mumbling, "So cold..."

Without hesitation, Lu Huainan opened the first aid kit he’d brought. Luckily, there was fever medicine, but...

He looked at Shen Muyun, unconscious on the bed, sighed, then bit the pill in half and fed it to him.

Shen Muyun seemed to sense something and pressed weakly against Lu Huainan’s chest.

"Don’t move. Just take the medicine."

Shen Muyun stopped resisting and let Lu Huainan feed him the pill. Lu Huainan almost wondered if he was faking it, even unconscious.

Once Shen Muyun swallowed the medicine, Lu Huainan picked him up and carried him to the bathroom, whispering softly in his ear, "Brother Yun, you’re a mess. You need a good wash. Don’t be afraid—I’ll help you."

Lu Huainan undressed Shen Muyun. The whip marks from a few days ago had just begun to fade, but now they looked angry red again. He felt a pang of guilt—he should have been better prepared, should have planned more carefully. His impulsiveness had led to this.

After taking the medicine, Shen Muyun became much calmer, putting up no fight. Lu Huainan smiled faintly, picked up the shampoo, and gently massaged it into his hair.

"Brother Yun, is it so hard to admit you like me?"

Shen Muyun let out a low moan. Lu Huainan thought he was waking up and quickly fell silent. After a moment, he realized it was just an unconscious sound.

"Brother Yun, you still owe me 50 million, and you owe me a promise. I need to think carefully about how to handle this."

Covering Shen Muyun’s mouth and nose, Lu Huainan carefully rinsed off the shampoo bubbles, then casually applied some body wash.

The wounds were red and sore. Could the fever be related to inflammation? Lu Huainan pushed the thought aside, hurriedly finished cleaning Shen Muyun, rinsed himself off hastily, and carried him out of the bathroom.

He walked to his suitcase, took out a spare phone, and stepped out of the room.

"Dr. Qi, it’s Lu Huainan."

"What’s going on? Calling so early?"

Lu Huainan paused. "Well, long story short—Brother Yun got caught in the rain, and his wounds look inflamed, red and swollen around the edges. He also has a fever. What should I do? His condition isn’t stable enough for a hospital right now."

Qi Beichen tightened his grip on the phone. "Lu Huainan, how could you let this happen? An infected wound can kill someone, you know? Where are you right now?"

Knowing he was at fault, Lu Huainan let Qi Beichen scold him. "We’re at Baitou Village in the northern part of the city."

Qi Beichen was taken aback. "Guess I owe you one. I’ll be there soon. Did you give him fever medicine?"

"Yes, but it doesn’t seem to be working. He still looks really feverish."

"Understood. Last night’s storm caused a landslide there. Are you two okay?"

"Well, Dr. Qi, actually, Brother Yun was looking for me when he—"

Qi Beichen’s face darkened. What was this? Weren’t the two of them supposed to have nothing between them? Tch. "Lu Huainan, let me tell you—every patient I’ve treated has recovered safely. I don’t want any mistakes on your end. If you have a first aid kit, disinfect his wounds now. Understood?"

Lu Huainan responded, "Yeah, got it. Dr. Qi, thank you. I’ll treat his wounds first. Call me when you’re on your way."

Qi Beichen hung up abruptly and immediately threw on his clothes, ready to head out.

"Beichen, where are you going? You haven’t eaten breakfast yet!" Bai Muxuan called out, holding a plate as he walked out of the kitchen.

"I've gotta go help someone, so I can't make it to dinner today."

"Save who, Qi Beichen!" Before Bai Muxuan could finish asking, the door slammed shut—bang!

Meanwhile, Lu Huainan was carefully going through the medical kit, preparing to disinfect the wounds with alcohol, knowing it might be very painful.

Seeing Shen Muyun's condition, Lu Huainan had no choice but to harden his resolve.

He held Shen Muyun's hand, noticing obvious abrasions on the fingers, with some nails even torn back. He had to disinfect them meticulously.

Lu Huainan gently cleaned the wounds on Shen Muyun's fingertips with a cotton swab, making Shen Muyun wince and instinctively try to pull his hand back.

In a soft, soothing voice, Lu Huainan whispered, "Brother Yun, I don't know if you can hear me, but I'll try to be as gentle as possible. Don't be afraid, it won't hurt for long."

Shen Muyun, half-asleep, instinctively flinched at Lu Huainan's words, but the next moment, he was pulled firmly into Lu Huainan's embrace, unable to move.

Lu Huainan carefully examined Shen Muyun's fingertips, cleaning out the dirt. He felt a pang of guilt—if only he hadn't made that detour to someone else's house and had gone straight to Shen Muyun, maybe this wouldn't have happened.

Beneath the intact nails were bruises, and it was possible Shen Muyun would have to endure the pain of getting a nail removed.

Lu Huainan lowered his head and gently kissed Shen Muyun's fingertips. "Brother Yun, don't scare me like this again next time."

Shen Muyun's breathing steadied a bit, but he was sweating heavily, shifting uncomfortably in Lu Huainan's arms.

"So hot..."

A hoarse voice squeezed out from Shen Muyun's throat.

Hearing Shen Muyun's voice, Lu Huainan lit up with relief. "Brother Yun, how are you feeling?"

Shen Muyun rubbed his eyes drowsily, feeling as if he were floating on clouds.

"Huainan, are... are you okay?"

A smile tugged at the corner of Lu Huainan's lips. He hadn't expected Shen Muyun's first concern upon waking to be about him.

"Brother Yun, I'm fine. Does your hand hurt?"

Shen Muyun shook his head slightly. "It doesn't hurt. Huainan, where were you? I couldn't find you earlier, I..."

Lu Huainan gently stroked Shen Muyun's cheek. "When I passed by a house, I heard cries for help inside, so I went to rescue the people there and got them to safety..."

Shen Muyun looked up at Lu Huainan, noticing the dark circles bruising his eyes. He must not have slept again last night.

"Huainan, I, I was just so worried..."

"I know. But thankfully, none of the villagers were hurt, and the rescue team arrived in time. Though some pets like cats and dogs might not have made it out."

Shen Muyun reached out to touch Lu Huainan's cheek, but just then, a knock came from the door.