Chapter 26: The Spoiled Villain in a Period Novel 26
—What I really want to say is, let’s break up.
These two sentences were like some vicious curse, echoing endlessly in Xu Nongqing’s mind, causing his expression to falter slightly, his narrow brow twitching.
Shu He felt the hand on the back of his neck tighten a little. He turned his head away and pushed Xu Nongqing’s hand away, as if to forbid him from being so intimate with him anymore.
Xu Nongqing’s hand was pushed aside, frozen.
He slowly thought that maybe he had misheard the word.
That he had heard another word as “break up.”
Their relationship was so stable. How could it suddenly come to the point of breaking up?
Absurd.
Xu Nongqing lifted his dark eyes, then looked away, not meeting Shu He’s gaze, and not intending to continue the previous topic, pretending that he had misheard. He said in a low, hoarse voice, “I’ll come find you often then. We won’t be in a long-distance relationship. I…”
“Don’t you understand?” Shu He’s beautiful brow furrowed as he interrupted. “I said break up, break up!”
In an instant, Xu Nongqing’s throat felt as if it had been fiercely choked.
He suddenly looked at Shu He, but Shu He’s eyes were evasive, his lips slightly pursed as he shifted backwards.
He twisted his fingers nervously and nodded. “I’m serious.”
Under the dim yellow lightbulb, Xu Nongqing stood motionless, looking at the boy in front of him. His dark eyes seemed to reflect a moist light from the bulb. He was silent for a long time before he managed to say, “Why?”
Why break up?
Why so suddenly?
Shu He had initially prepared a lot of heart-stabbing lines, but when it came time to act out the scene, he found that it was really hard to say those nasty words.
But if he didn’t say them, the effect would be greatly diminished.
Shu He saw the slight redness in Xu Nongqing’s eyes.
Xu Nongqing seemed to be holding back, his emotions always tense. Seeing that Shu He didn’t answer, he stepped forward and grabbed his wrist, staring at him and repeating, “Why?”
“Many reasons.” Shu He puffed out his cheeks and tried to shake off his hand. He felt that this distance was not safe, so he said spoiledly, “Don’t pull me.”
But unexpectedly, Xu Nongqing, who had been almost completely obedient to him before, not only didn’t listen this time, but also suddenly moved closer to him, almost fiercely pulling him into his arms.
Caught off guard, Shu He stumbled into Xu Nongqing’s chest. He widened his eyes, and a familiar sensation soon came from his lips.
No longer the calm and detached person he usually was, Xu Nongqing kissed him fiercely, as if that was the only way to soothe the anxiety in his heart. His movements were urgent and fierce. Shu He was kissed until he could barely breathe, his head spinning, his lips moist and slightly parted, his small tongue faintly visible, and the soft fragrance he exhaled was completely swallowed by the man.
Hearing the noise, Little Fu suddenly woke up and barked at the scene from the side of the bed. “Woof woof!”
The barking was completely ignored.
Shu He’s waist was held by the man’s large palm, his body slightly tense, his slender back straight, the beautiful curve visible even through his clothes.
He was almost completely limp, and it was useless to hit Xu Nongqing with his hands and feet.
The already loose clothes were so messed up that the fabric on his right shoulder had completely slipped down to his slender arm, and the exposed pale shoulder and neck were also faintly red.
He had just taken a bath, and besides his natural scent, his body was also filled with the fragrance of his body wash. Without even having to press against his skin to smell it, it was enough to make a person lose their mind and fall.
Xu Nongqing was like the mutt Little Fu. Shu He was kissed and bitten by him until his lips were numb. He could only tremble with a pitiful voice, exhaling those nasty words one by one with a soft breath.
“Is it so hard to understand that I want to break up?”
He tilted his long neck up, his cheeks covered in moist teardrops, his eyelashes wet. He was like a bristling calico cat, saying fiercely and urgently, “You have no money and no ability. Who knows if you’ll ever succeed in the future. I don’t think you will. Why should I waste my time with you?”
“I said it before, a man with no money has no wife. You want to do business. How many years will it take for you to succeed? Ten years? Do you want me to be with you for ten years? For ten years, I’ll have to deal with my parents and not date?”
Xu Nongqing panted, his eyes scarlet.
At some point, he had stopped forcing himself on Shu He and stood there, stunned, looking at him.
The fragile, beautiful boy barely managed to pull up the collar on his shoulder, his fingertips pale pink.
“Do you really think we can be together forever?”
Shu He’s fingertips clutched his clothes, his breathing short. His oxygen-deprived brain gradually recovered as he spoke one sentence after another.
But his face was still red, the corners of his eyes tinged with a thin blush, his eyelashes wet and lowered, looking extremely pitiful.
Shu He stubbornly continued his lines. “When the rain stops, I’m leaving. My home is in the Capital, and you’re doing business in Shuian City. There’s such a long distance between us. You say you’ll come find me. Once every three days or once a week?”
“Is it because of these things?”
Xu Nongqing’s voice was hoarse, his eyes red as he looked at him. “Is this why you’re breaking up?”
“Not just that.” Shu He’s emotions rose and he shed another tear. He clutched the blanket under him. At this moment, he really wanted to hug his tail.
“The most important thing is, I don’t think you can succeed.”
“You haven’t read many books. Not only is it hard for you to succeed, but you’re also not worthy of me at all.”
“I was just playing with you at first. Did you really take it seriously? No way.”
After throwing out the harsh words, Shu He scrambled off the bed, preparing to go find his mother to avoid a beating.
Of course, he didn’t forget to stubbornly throw out a final, emphatic line. “I don’t think you can succeed in your career, Xu Nongqing.”
The more flags he planted, the more the protagonist would be motivated by them.
By then, Xu Nongqing would be able to climb up with the thought of the Dragon King’s comeback, getting revenge on all those who looked down on him.
After speaking, Shu He turned and left.
“So you never liked me at all.” Xu Nongqing stood up and looked at his back, a hint of obsession in his eyes.
Shu He lowered his head to open the door, the tears on his face making him a little itchy. He wiped them messily, his voice thick with a nasal tone. “Yes, I was just playing with you. I never thought of having a future with you.”
Xu Nongqing strode forward.
Hearing the footsteps, Shu He’s wet lashes trembled, his whole body tense, afraid he was about to be beaten.
But the expected pain did not come.
He turned his head, opened his shimmering eyes, and looked at him in a daze, only to see that Xu Nongqing was just standing by the door, not moving at all.
“It’s raining outside.” Xu Nongqing’s voice was hoarse. He pressed his hand on the door behind him, the force muffled and heavy. “Your health is not good. You can’t go out in the rain.”
Shu He was stunned for a moment.
He looked at him blankly and heard Xu Nongqing continue, “I haven’t agreed to the breakup. It’s late. You should sleep. We’ll talk about it tomorrow.”
Shu He: “…”
Even the system was speechless.
【…】
Where was his face?
Shu He was sure that Xu Nongqing really had no intention of hitting him. His tense body slowly relaxed. He took two steps back, stared at him, and then quickly turned and climbed into bed to hide.
But the October weather was hot.
In less than a minute, Shu He threw off the covers and turned over. He turned his head and saw that Xu Nongqing was still standing at the door, as if he had been punished to stand there, motionless.
Shu He’s cheeks puffed out slightly, and he said in a whisper, “Don’t turn off the light tonight.”
After a long moment, Xu Nongqing: “Mm.”
Shu He didn’t know that Xu Nongqing’s heart was churning with lava beneath his calm exterior. That night, he closed his eyes and didn’t know when he fell asleep.
Perhaps because he had cried so hard, his head hurt when he woke up the next day. His small face was pale and listless, quite weak.
Xu Nongqing was no longer at the door.
It seemed he hadn’t been punished to stand there all night.
Shu He slowly moved to the edge of the bed. Little Fu was panting with its tongue out, its doggy eyes slanted, looking at him with some worry.
“Woof woof.”
Shu He patted its head, pulled it into his arms, and whined, closing his hot eyelids and saying his head hurt so much.
Little Fu was so anxious it was about to crawl all over the place. It struggled a couple of times, wanting to go find its other master. Just then, Xu Nongqing, holding a glass of water, walked over to Shu He with a normal expression.
Shu He subconsciously looked up at him.
Xu Nongqing’s eyes were lowered, not meeting his. He just brought the medicine to his lips. Shu He opened his mouth and took it, holding it in his mouth.
The kiss last night had been fierce, so much so that his lips were still a tender red, and the corner of his mouth had been slightly broken.
The temperature was scorching, a brief touch with the man’s thumb, both intimate and distant.
Their relationship seemed to have suddenly returned to when they first met.
Shu He lowered his head and took the glass of water, taking a sip of warm water. He didn’t speak to Xu Nongqing, and Xu Nongqing didn’t speak either, just silently following by his side. Wherever he went, he would follow.
It was still raining outside.
The rain had not let up. Shu He stood by the dilapidated wooden door. The raindrops from the eaves pattered on the ground, and the splashing water flew onto his pant legs.
In the end, Shu He went back into the house.
For the past two days, the others had been eating at other villagers’ houses and didn’t come over much in the afternoon. Shu He was a little listless, counting the days until the rain stopped.
Fortunately, the law of attraction worked.
In the afternoon, the rain stopped.
A thick fog rose, still not suitable for driving, but at least he could find people. Shu He found his parents and said that he had had a falling out with Xu Nongqing, and his attitude towards him might be very, very bad for the next two days.
He wanted his parents to criticize him a couple of times when they saw him being fierce to Xu Nongqing, pretending to be on Xu Nongqing’s side.
Shu’s mother was greatly shocked. “…Huh?”
How could she possibly criticize her Little Bao!
Shu’s father was at a loss for words. “What kind of falling out?”
“It’s hard to say.” Shu He said vaguely, “Anyway, just criticize me.”
Shu’s mother didn’t agree.
Shu’s father didn’t agree either.
In fact, they didn’t have much of a chance to criticize him, because the next day, the fog cleared, and they prepared to take Shu He away.
Including the troublemaker, Wang Zhi.
Xu’s mother eagerly followed, planning to return to the city with them. As for Xu Nongqing, Shu’s mother saw him holding an umbrella for Shu He, still with the same silent appearance as before, not looking like he had had a fight.
Shu He paused for a moment and looked back at Xu Nongqing.
It was drizzling, not enough to affect travel, but Shu He had a delicate constitution, and it had gotten even weaker after the incident a few days ago. He couldn’t get a single drop of rain on him.
Xu Nongqing didn’t say a word, just held the umbrella for him.
At this moment, he lifted his gaze from under the umbrella, and his dark eyes met Shu He’s.
“Don’t hold it.”
Shu He lifted his chin and pushed Xu Nongqing’s hand away. “I made myself very clear that night.”
Xu Nongqing moved his hand back to its original position.
Still holding the umbrella for Shu He.
His voice was hoarse. “My answer was also very clear.”
Shu He bit the inside of his lip slightly, raised his hand, and forcefully knocked the umbrella held over his head to the ground, pretending to be impatient and spoiled. “It’s useless. I’ve already made myself very clear!”
With a thud, the umbrella was thrown to the ground, stained with wet mud.
Xu Nongqing stood there, stunned, motionless.
Qiao Zelan suddenly saw a happy event: “?”
Shu’s mother, Shu’s father: “…” To criticize or not to criticize?
Xu’s mother: “…” Huh? The road to riches was gone?
Shu He turned and got into the car without another word, looking like a spoiled, dissolute young master. But no one knew that he was so nervous his hands were clenched.
All the scenes were over.
The little villain should have succeeded, right?
—The car door slammed shut.
No one said another word, and the car drove away.
Little Fu, who had been left behind, belatedly looked at the distance and barked once, then barked louder and louder, horrified. Where was its little master?!
Xu’s mother couldn’t move.
She postponed her trip, walked over to Xu Nongqing with an ugly expression, and couldn’t force a smile. “What happened? Did you have a fight with that child?”
Xu Nongqing’s expression was dazed for a moment. He ignored her and continued to stare in the direction the car had left.
The thick fog in the distance blurred everything.
In his dark eyes, there was also a hint of crazy obsession.
*
From last autumn to this autumn.
In one year, heaven had sent him a dream that should not have been his.
The dream was over, but he refused to wake up.
—He would turn the dream into reality.