Chapter 19 Invitation

Chapter 19 Invitation

His hair stood on end.

Wen Yu instinctively lunged forward. The milk tea fell to the ground, and the bottle shattered.

Amidst startled cries, a beer bottle hurtled through the air, smashing onto the ground with a deafening crash.

Wen Yu dropped to one knee, raising a hand to shield himself from the flying glass shards and splattering milk tea.

The blinding glare made him squint.

The blue-haired man raised another bottle.

"Run now—"

Wen Yu instinctively stood up, but his feet slipped on the liquid, sending him tumbling backward, poised to fall onto the scattered glass.

Crap...

He closed his eyes, bracing for impact, but instead landed in a firm embrace.

His head was pulled against a sweaty chest, a large hand cradling it, while another trembling arm wrapped around his shoulders and neck.

The rapid thumping of a heart echoed in his ears.

Though his body was held captive by a powerful grip, a faint, clean scent wafted to Wen Yu’s nose.

He instantly recognized the owner of this embrace.

"Crunch—"

A low, muffled groan came from above.

In his line of sight, glass and alcohol splattered everywhere, the light scent of perfume drowned out by the smell of alcohol and blood.

Wen Yu jolted back to awareness, quickly pushing at Xue Shu’s arms, trying to free himself from the embrace.

The man tightened his arms, the force so strong it felt as if he wanted to meld Wen Yu into himself.

Wen Yu struggled briefly, then went still.

The body pressed against his was trembling uncontrollably.

Even in such a tight embrace, he could still feel the tremors.

Beyond their embrace, the noisy crowd was in motion. Wen Yu heard the blue-haired man’s frenzied curses and the sound of him being pinned to the ground by others.

Close by, he heard the man’s uneven gasps, faintly mixed with a stifled sob.

Overwhelming fear and raw panic filled Wen Yu’s mind, subtly mixed with a strange tenderness.

His heartbeat slowly fell into rhythm with the other man’s.

=====

"Come on, one, two, three—"

"Cheese—"

"This photo turned out well," Gu Wei enlarged the group shot, pointing at Wen Xiaoyi’s mouth, "but big brother’s face still has a smudge."

"I think it’s perfect. Paired with big brother’s pout, it has real charm," Liang Hule praised, "it has a bit of a playful, goofy vibe."

"Huh?" Wen Xiaoyi, who had just shoved more food in his mouth, sensed something odd about that comment.

"What’s going on?" Gu Wei’s finger slid to the scenery behind the three of them. "So many people over there."

Above Wen Xiaoyi’s head, beyond a few clusters of trees on the other side of the street, a human wall had formed.

"Maybe it’s some kind of street event?" Liang Hule guessed.

"But today isn’t a special day."

The two of them squinted at the distant crowd for a while.

Sirens wailed in the distance.

"Did something happen?" Wen Xiaoyi looked at the still-gathering crowd, his brows knit anxiously. "Why hasn’t Dad come back yet?"

Right on cue.

Ding—

Ding—

The two adults looked up from the photo, checking their phones.

======

Inside the ambulance.

After sending a message telling Liang Hule to keep Wen Xiaoyi occupied, Wen Yu turned to look at the man beside him.

The doctor in the vehicle was working on the wound on his head.

Amidst the crowd, the stern-faced man, covered in blood and alcohol, was playing on his phone?

Wait.

Wen Yu’s eye twitched.

Xue Shu got a sudden chill, sensing a hidden pressure. He turned and saw Wen Yu’s flat stare fixed on his hand.

"..."

Ignoring Gu Wei’s angry questions about his broken promise, Xue Shu turned off his phone and put it away.

Wen Yu’s expression softened.

Xue Shu’s eyes crinkled with a smile, and he smiled.

The man’s soaked jacket had been removed, a few buttons of his shirt undone, revealing his sweaty neck and chest. The muscles on his face twitched occasionally from the doctor’s movements.

Despite being in pain, he kept smiling at Wen Yu.

Wen Yu detected a hint of foolishness on that shrewd, aloof face.

He lowered his eyes and picked up the iodine and cotton balls.

The doctor glanced over, noticing the man’s professional movements, and left him to it.

"Hand here."

Xue Shu paused in surprise, then extended his hand to him.

Wen Yu held his hand and looked it over for a bit, confirming that the slender wound was merely a scratch with no debris left inside, before pressing an iodine-soaked cotton ball onto the area grazed by glass shards.

Though it was a pain he would normally disregard, under the young man’s intense stare, the sensation of the wound inexplicably grew more pronounced.

Xue Shu hissed softly.

The fingers holding the tweezers paused.

“Does it hurt?”

“It hurts,” Xue Shu lowered his eyes, his gaze settling on the corner of Wen Yu’s eye, his voice subdued. “A lot.”

The doctor, tending to the large gash on Xue Shu’s head, went silent.

Is this what young people in love are like?

Unaware of the doctor’s exasperation, Wen Yu felt a bit flustered by Xue Shu’s complaining tone.

He thought of the injured little Xiao Yi, his eyes glimmering slightly before he lowered his head.

A cool breath suddenly swept across his palm. Xue Shu’s pupils widened as the young man’s exhalation flowed from his palm straight into his heart.

Wen Yu blew on it a few times and looked up. “Does it still hurt…?”

He caught sight of Xue Shu’s ears, flushed a deep crimson.

“Doctor!”

Hearing the call, the doctor turned his gaze, scanning the anxious young man and the area he indicated before looking at the man with a tightly controlled expression.

“...There,” a soothing sound escaped from beneath the medical mask. “He’s fine.”

But if you two don’t tone it down, that might change.

The dedicated doctor struggled to keep his hand steady.

The redness on Xue Shu’s ears spread, creeping up his cheeks and seeping down into his neck and shirt.

Witnessing this, Wen Yu finally grasped what had happened.

He wished he could vanish into the ground out of embarrassment.

After a long moment, Wen Yu managed to push aside the earlier scene and resumed his task, asking, “How did you know I was there?”

His hand, reaching for the iodine, paused briefly before continuing as if nothing had happened.

“Why?”

Xue Shu raised an eyebrow and leaned in closer. “I was guessing at first, but now I’m certain—it was you.”

That key figure involved in Liao Junjie’s case, the one who anonymously provided evidence to the police.

There was no reproach or displeasure in Xue Shu’s eyes; instead, he seemed appreciative and pleased by this clever side of him.

Wen Yu averted his gaze and asked, “What about Lele?”

Surely that wasn’t a guess too? Or… could it be the work of the Liao family?

Wen Yu’s heart sank with frustration.

“No,” Xue Shu frowned, his tone icy. “It wasn’t him…”

His eyes clouded with gloom, and though his lips parted several times, he couldn’t bring himself to say the words.

Wen Yu looked at him, puzzled.

Xue Shu took a deep breath, his deep eyes firm as he changed the subject. “I promise you, he won’t appear before you again.”

Wen Yu blinked his peach-blossom eyes.

The doctor’s hand obstructed the exchange of glances between the two.

When their eyes met again, what greeted him was the gentle smile on the man’s face.

After finishing the treatment at the hospital, the two went to the police station where Lele was detained to give their statements.

======

By the time everything was settled, the sky had long since darkened.

Xue Shu accompanied Wen Yu to his doorstep.

Before getting out of the car, Wen Yu hesitated for a moment and asked, “Would you like to come up?”

He felt a bit awkward and self-conscious, as if the words carried an unintended invitation.

Though he’d said it countless times before without a second thought, today the phrase felt oddly out of place.

Xue Shu sensed that subtle shift in mood, and a glimmer stirred in his eyes.

Wen Yu avoided his warm gaze and said, “I’d like to introduce someone to you…”

“Riiing, riiing, riiing—”

Xue Shu’s phone rang, cutting Wen Yu off.

“Who is it?”

“Got it, I’ll be there soon.”

Xue Shu ended the call and turned to Wen Yu apologetically. “Sorry, there’s something I need to take care of at the company.”

Wen Yu was surprised. “Now?”

What could possibly require attention so late at night?

“A minor issue,” Xue Shu’s eyes flashed coldly. “Someone’s causing trouble at the company.”

Wen Yu frowned. That’s minor?

His puzzled peach-blossom eyes widened, giving him a somewhat childish look. Xue Shu couldn’t resist raising his hand.

Wen Yu instinctively wanted to pull away, but seeing the bandage on Xue Shu’s head, he forced himself to stay still.

Xue Shu’s hand rested on the young man’s fluffy hair, ruffling it gently.

His movements suddenly stilled as his gaze slowly drifted downward—the young man’s fair face was faintly flushed under the car’s interior light.

His heart felt as if it had been kicked by a cute little person; sweet emotions surged out and flushed his face.

Wen Yu heard him emit a few chuckles from his throat and couldn't help looking embarrassed.

What are you laughing at?

He eagerly pushed open the car door. "I'm going first!"

After taking a few steps, Xue Shu's voice, tinged with suppressed laughter, rang out behind him.

"Wen Yu."

Wen Yu stopped and turned back.

Xue Shu got out of the car and looked at him. "Remember my gift?"

Wen Yu took a deep breath, as if making some kind of decision. "Remember, next week I..."

"No need," Xue Shu took a few steps closer and brushed away a trace of redness by his face. "No need to send it to the company."

Their intermingling breath made Wen Yu uneasy, and he unconsciously held his breath.

"Are you free lately?"

"...I'm free on the weekend."

"Wen Yu," Xue Shu's lowered eyes were deep and profound, his voice lowered slightly as he asked, "Would you like to go see the scenery at Sibō Lake with me?"

His gaze was gentle and alluring.

Although he knew it was inappropriate, Wen Yu still... thought of Gu Wei—almost like... a master-disciple kind of smile?

He couldn't help zoning out for a moment.

After his flirtatious look, Xue Shu showed a hint of confusion.

Wen Yu snapped back to reality and smiled faintly.

"Okay."

======

Xue Shu watched as Wen Yu's figure gradually disappeared into the street.

A faint, dense pain throbbed from the wound on his head.

If he hadn't made it in time today, that bottle would have smashed onto Wen Yu's head.

For the sake of his ridiculous desire for control, that person was capable of anything.

A mix of sorrow and cold severity surfaced in Xue Shu's eyes.

His low voice echoed in the night, carrying long-accumulated hatred.

"Xue Zhu..."