Chapter 43 Beggar City

Chapter 43: Beggar City

Crumbling walls and collapsed houses.

Beggars and refugees with vacant eyes shuffled along, dragging their weary bodies.

On the main roads and in the alleys, people sat or lay scattered around, trying to stay still to save energy.

Large cauldrons were set up every so often, with thick steam and white mist rising.

Su Zheng didn’t even want to think about what was being boiled in those cauldrons.

Everywhere he looked, beggars of all sizes filled the streets.

This place had turned into a beggar city.

The scene before him, the numb crowd, felt familiar and terrifying to Su Zheng.

In a daze, Su Zheng felt like he was back in the early years of the apocalypse, struggling to survive in helplessness, desperately clinging to life.

That awful time seemed to come rushing back, and a suffocating feeling gripped him, making it hard to breathe.

Suddenly, Su Zheng's vision went dark as a warm hand covered his eyes.

He was also yanked backward, stumbling into a hot, firm chest.

Two fingers gently pinched his cheek, forcing him to unclench his lower lip.

A finger slid through Su Zheng's slightly parted lips, resting against his teeth to stop him from biting.

Soon after Su Zheng lifted the curtain, Luo Yunchen noticed something was off.

His eyes were reddening, his teeth biting hard into his lower lip, and his body started trembling slightly.

Luo Yunchen first wanted to step forward and lower the curtain to stop Su Zheng from seeing outside.

But Su Zheng's hand seemed frozen, gripping the curtain and refusing to let go.

Only then did Luo Yunchen use force, covering Su Zheng's eyes and pulling him into his arms.

Luo Yunchen lowered his head and coaxed gently, "If you want to bite, bite me. Don't hurt yourself."

"Don't be afraid. I'm here. I'll protect you. I won't let anything hurt you. Don't be scared."

The repeated soothing words gradually calmed Su Zheng's panicked heart.

Su Zheng let go of the strength he'd been forcing, softening and leaning back fully.

He clenched his teeth around the finger, but even in his fury, he held back, biting down just once before loosening.

He pulled his teeth away, leaving a deep mark but not breaking the skin.

Su Zheng closed his eyes, and a single hot tear slid silently from the corner of his eye.

Luo Yunchen's hand trembled slightly, his head lowering even closer to Su Zheng.

After a moment, Su Zheng removed Luo Yunchen's arms, turned to face him, and knelt up, looking at him: "Chen Di, do you still remember that promise you made me?"

"What do you want to talk about now, brother?"

Su Zheng nodded, looking at Luo Yunchen seriously: "The rulers of the Dayin dynasty are rotten to the core. Whether it's the Su, Shen, or Lin families, none of them deserve to rule this land! I hope that when you take that high seat, you'll do everything you can to keep this land from becoming a hell, and do your best to give the people a stable country with food and clothes. Can you do that?"

Luo Yunchen smiled, meeting Su Zheng's eyes: "Do you trust me that much? Trust that I won't tell anyone, trust that I have the ability to promise you this?"

Su Zheng was about to nod.

Suddenly, the carriage lurched.

Su Zheng lost his balance, let out a soft cry, and started to fall sideways.

A hand quickly caught Su Zheng's waist, and Luo Yunchen pulled him into his arms.

With his other hand, he reached up to stroke Su Zheng's cheek, wiping away the tear streaks.

Luo Yunchen's eyes were deep and dark as he stared at Su Zheng, who was caught in that heavy gaze, forgetting everything.

He felt like something in those eyes was about to burst out.

In his daze, Luo Yunchen slowly leaned closer to Su Zheng.

Without thinking, Su Zheng closed his eyes instinctively.

The next moment…

Just as Su Zheng vaguely felt something was off and tried to figure it out,

Luo Yunchen tilted his head slightly, his thin lips close to Su Zheng's ear: "I promise you, brother. I'll do it."

The low, hoarse voice coiled around his ear like a temptation.

Su Zheng couldn't quite process what Luo Yunchen had just said.

He only felt his heart suddenly race, his body go weak and numb, and a sharp pang in his chest.

It made his fingers curl like a nervous twitch, instinctively grabbing Luo Yunchen's clothes.

With the last shred of his clear mind, Su Zheng thought darkly: Was this a delayed bridge effect?

But soon, even that last bit of clarity was diverted.

As if suddenly understanding something, Su Zheng's eyes widened slightly, a sense of disbelief washing over him.

Before he could react, Luo Yunchen had already straightened up, pulling back a little distance.

Seeing the complex and distant look in Su Zheng's eyes as he stared at him,

Luo Yunchen knew that his sick, mad, and shameless thoughts could no longer be hidden.

He no longer wanted to hide them!

But he wondered how his brother would see him—would he find him filthy and disgusting?

Yet, what did it matter!

He would just dirty his brother too!

That way, his brother wouldn't think him repulsive and want to leave him, right?

Luo Yunchen smiled, and under Su Zheng's glaring gaze, he leaned in to kiss him.

Su Zheng leaned back to avoid him, pressing a hand on Luo Yunchen's shoulder to hold him back. "A-Chen!"

Luo Yunchen ignored the pressure of Su Zheng's hand and leaned in further, forcing Su Zheng to retreat again.

The carriage was already cramped, and Su Zheng had nowhere left to go. He glared at Luo Yunchen, frowning, and said coldly, "Luo Yunchen, calm down!"

Luo Yunchen grabbed Su Zheng's wrist, raised it, and pinned it against the carriage wall. His smile stayed as he leaned in, his lips just a hair's breadth from Su Zheng's.

His voice was low and hoarse, unhurried, as he accused, "Brother, I've been very calm all along. I've already agreed to do what you asked. Can't you agree to one thing I want? Think of it as a little reward from you to me, okay, brother?"

"It's really just a small reward. If you don't say anything, I'll take that as a yes."

With that, Luo Yunchen moved forward, but before he could close the distance, he let out a muffled groan.

His body trembled as if something was racing through him, gnawing at his flesh with a sharp, biting pain and numbness.

His fingers tightened around Su Zheng's wrist, gripping even harder.

Su Zheng spoke coldly, "Let me go if you don't want it to get worse."

Instead of letting go, Luo Yunchen let out an excited, low laugh. "No! A Zheng is so cruel, making me hurt so much! I need A Zheng's reward to feel better!"

Su Zheng's brow furrowed deeply. After a moment, he told the system to crank up the electric shock.