Chapter 24: The Vicious Fake Young Master of a Wealthy Family · 24

Before Zhou Xu pointed it out, Su Wenyu hadn’t felt a thing.

But once he mentioned it, Su Wenyu actually did feel an itch on his elbow area—he wanted to scratch it.

Zhou Xu caught hold of his restless hand. Using the available light, he carefully examined it, but found no scratch marks. The wound wasn’t oozing blood either. Only the skin around the wound looked exceptionally tender and delicate.

“It probably got soaked with water when I showered last night,” Su Wenyu said after thinking about it.

Zhou Xu frowned. He indeed hadn’t considered that possibility last night.

“First, apply some anti-inflammatory solution. Don’t touch the wound with your hands today. Later, I’ll go buy some waterproof Band-Aids.” As Zhou Xu spoke, he picked up the medicine to treat the injury on his elbow.

Su Wenyu merely had to cooperate by raising an arm or a leg as needed—he didn’t have to worry about anything else.

Sometimes, Su Wenyu was quite curious. Zhou Xu clearly disliked him and was very resistant to him, so why did he still take care of him so meticulously?

But whenever the question reached his lips, Su Wenyu wisely swallowed it down.

He was afraid Zhou Xu might misinterpret his question again. He was also afraid that if he brought everything into the open and questioned it all now, it would affect their future relationship and, consequently, his ability to complete his missions.

Anyway, their current state—a murky, unclear, somewhat brotherly yet awkward relationship—was fine.

At least, Su Wenyu felt quite comfortable. As for what Zhou Xu thought, well, he wouldn’t delve too deeply into it.

Today, his ankle looked slightly more swollen than yesterday. It wasn’t convenient to wear shoes, so Su Wenyu opted just for slippers.

Zhou Xu told him to hold onto his own breakfast. He also asked for his class schedule and, following it, stuffed the textbooks needed for the morning classes into Su Wenyu’s backpack.

“First, I’ll drop you off at the classroom for your first two periods. During the long break, I’ll come back to take you to the classroom for your third and fourth periods,” Zhou Xu said.

Su Wenyu tried to recall the original host’s memories and felt a little guilty: “Wouldn’t it be too much trouble for you? The Faculty of Science is still quite far from the Faculty of Humanities.”

“No problem. I have a vehicle; there’s enough time,” Zhou Xu said after thinking for a moment. “After the morning classes end, I’ll go to the infirmary and borrow a wheelchair for you.”

Su Wenyu nodded and made an “Mm” sound when he heard this. He had no objections.

Zhou Xu had already planned so much for him, which was already very considerate. If it weren’t for Zhou Xu’s help, Su Wenyu estimated he would’ve had to ask for leave and stay in the dorm to recuperate until his foot was better.

But one thing Su Wenyu was curious about: “When did you get a car?”

Hadn’t they come to school together yesterday in the family’s car?

“It’s a temporary rental,” Zhou Xu said.

A question mark popped up above Su Wenyu’s head.

From yesterday to today, hadn’t they been together the whole time?

He had absolutely no idea when Zhou Xu had rented a car.

Zhou Xu didn’t explain further. He told him to put on his backpack, then hoisted him—a person and his pack—onto his back. His slightly calloused palms steadily supported him at his thighs as he carried him out the dormitory door.

When going downstairs, Zhou Xu slowed his pace, holding Su Wenyu with one hand while gripping the handrail with the other to prevent any slipping accidents.

It wasn’t until they exited the dormitory building that Su Wenyu saw the “vehicle” Zhou Xu had mentioned, and he instantly fell silent.

A somewhat rusty cargo tricycle stood quietly parked downstairs. The front was where the rider sat, and the back was a cargo bed.

The inside of the cargo bed looked like it had been temporarily lined with a couple of woven plastic sacks. It seemed relatively clean. In the very back sat a low stool. Who it was for went without saying.

Although Su Wenyu didn’t mind what kind of vehicle he rode, seeing this cargo tricycle up close… the gap between it and the sedan he’d imagined was truly vast. He still had to work hard to adjust his own mindset.

“Where did you… rent this?” Su Wenyu got off his back, supporting himself on the tricycle to stand on one foot by the roadside.

“The landlady of the fruit shop uses it for hauling goods. I paid a week’s rent,” Zhou Xu said. As he spoke, he grasped Su Wenyu’s waist and directly lifted him onto the cargo bed to sit.

“The stool isn’t fixed in place, so be careful sitting on it.” Zhou Xu glanced at the time. “If we dawdle any longer, we’ll be late. I’ll drive a bit faster. Remember to hold on tight.”

Su Wenyu immediately grabbed the side of the cart to steady himself, while also popping a steamed bun into his mouth.

“Mm, tasty.” Su Wenyu’s eyes lit up. It was so good he was shaking his head happily.

Zhou Xu sat in the front, twisted the throttle, and the tricycle instantly became a unique scenic attraction on campus, drawing the attention of all students rushing to class.

S University was huge. The dorms were quite far from the academic buildings, and there were campus buses.

At this time of day, the campus buses were packed to bursting. Other students rode either bicycles or electric scooters, carrying friends or roommates behind them, sticking to the roadside and pedaling or accelerating at top speed.

But no matter how fast their bikes were, they couldn’t match this cargo tricycle used for hauling goods.

Su Wenyu used a lull to stuff another bun into his mouth, continuing his hamster-like chewing with puffed cheeks.

He was sitting facing opposite the direction of travel. He could see the dormitory building and the students at the roadside growing smaller and more distant in his view. The morning breeze ruffled his hair. He squinted his eyes, in a fine mood, swaying his uninjured foot and humming a tuneless song.

Zhou Xu sped the little tricycle all the way to the Faculty of Humanities. Following the map he’d studied beforehand, he drove directly to the academic building where Su Wenyu’s class was scheduled.

There were still more than ten minutes until eight o’clock. Students were trickling in continuously at the base of the academic building for classes. As they passed the little tricycle, they all cast amazed and curious glances.

Probably no one had ever seen someone at school drive a cargo tricycle to class.

Zhou Xu hoisted Su Wenyu back onto his back and rushed him up to the third-floor classroom as fast as possible.

At this time, there were still only a few students in the classroom, because the vast majority of students only arrived half a minute before the bell.

Even so, when people in the classroom saw Su Wenyu being carried in on the back of a tall, handsome young man, they still widened their eyes in shock.

“Where do you want to sit?” Zhou Xu asked the person on his back.

Su Wenyu had just stuffed the last bun into his mouth and was too busy chewing to speak, so he casually pointed to a seat in the first row.

It was his first class; he wanted to sit in the spot closest to the teacher.

“Alright.” Zhou Xu set him down, helped him get settled in the first row, then pulled a thermos cup from his messenger bag and placed it in front of him, reminding him, “If you’re thirsty, just wet your lips. Drink less, so you won’t need to use the bathroom with no one to help you.”

Su Wenyu felt thoroughly taken care of and nodded repeatedly.

Zhou Xu still had to rush to his own classroom, so after giving a few more instructions, he strode out. Passing other students arriving for class at the doorway, he sidestepped to let them by, paying no mind to the surprised expressions on their faces when they recognized him.

Zhou Xu had never paid attention to all the varied speculations online about whether his relationship with Su Wenyu was good or bad.

Oh, except for that phrase “a bit gay.”

He felt that the minds of contemporary university students needed a good cleaning. Not everything they saw should be interpreted as gay.

Couldn’t it just be brotherly affection?

Zhou Xu strode downstairs, hopped on the little tricycle, and rushed off to his own classroom.

The atmosphere in Su Wenyu’s classroom was unusually quiet. People who had originally been chatting about how they spent their vacation now seemed to have forgotten what they’d just been talking about.

It wasn’t until the warning bell rang and a wave of students who had just barely made it on time rushed into the classroom that the somewhat eerie silence was dispelled, bringing a bit of liveliness back to the atmosphere.

Everyone who passed the first row couldn’t help glancing at Su Wenyu, who was sitting there.

Su Wenyu was currently pulling out books and a notebook according to his class schedule. The unfamiliar textbooks left him with absolutely no time to care about the gazes around him. He could only rack his brain to recall the original host’s memories, trying to remember what this particular course was mainly about.

Unfortunately, the original host’s memories thoroughly disappointed him.

After entering university, the original host skipped classes, neglected his studies, and spent his time eating, drinking, and having fun. He had basically done everything except touch his schoolwork.

He’d even failed a whole row of subjects last semester and would have to take makeup exams this term. Su Wenyu’s vision went dark. He felt like he couldn’t see any future at this school at all.

The class bell rang. The class representative had prepped the projector for the teacher. The teacher walked in, directly plugged in his laptop, swept his gaze across the classroom, and started the lecture.

Su Wenyu gnawed on his pen cap, staring with intense concentration at the projected slides. His brain spun wildly as he tried to comprehend what the teacher was talking about.

Ten minutes later, comprehension failed. His brain crashed.

Twenty minutes later, the teacher’s voice sounded like a lullaby. Su Wenyu’s focused gaze at the projection gradually grew bleary.

Half an hour later, Su Wenyu, still maintaining a perfectly upright posture, closed his eyes.

When the teacher finished explaining a slide and turned around, he was met with the sight of Su Wenyu’s head bobbing and nodding repeatedly.

Teacher: “…”

Already well aware of what kind of student Su Wenyu was, the teacher looked away, unsurprised. He glanced at the students sneaking naps in the back row and began his pointed remarks: “Some students… did they spend their summer vacation committing crimes or something? Sleeping in the very first class on the very first day of the semester! All of you, open your eyes!”

The last sharp shout startled the sleeping students in the back row awake. Su Wenyu also jolted, blearily opening his eyes.

But before Su Wenyu could make out the teacher on the podium clearly, drowsiness washed over him again. His eyes shut, and he fell back asleep.

The teacher glanced at the students in the back row, who were now sitting ramrod straight. Regarding Su Wenyu, all he could do was turn a blind eye and pretend not to see, rapping on the blackboard to continue the lecture.

Su Wenyu’s sleep this time wasn’t particularly restful. Every time the teacher raised his voice or knocked on the desk, it would make him jolt awake with a start, only to drift back off to the hypnotic voice, over and over again.

It wasn’t until the dismissal bell rang, and the teacher set down his textbook saying “Class dismissed,” that Su Wenyu’s brain slowly started working again. He groggily opened his eyes and let out a huge yawn.

Su Wenyu felt that attending class was truly a magical thing. During class, he was so sleepy he couldn’t bear it; as soon as class ended, he was inexplicably energetic again.

He pulled out his phone and sent Zhou Xu a message: [Today’s class was a bit… sleep-inducing.]

A few seconds later, Zhou Xu replied with a question mark.

Su Wenyu looked through his sticker collection, full of meme images, and picked the cutest one to send: [Hamster rubbing face.jpg]

Zhou Xu: […]

Su Wenyu: [Hamster wink.jpg]

Su Wenyu: [You must be charmed by me too.jpg]

Zhou Xu: [Silence.jpg]

Zhou Xu: [I don’t like this sticker. Please retract it immediately.jpg]

Su Wenyu: [Kitty drinking milk tea. I toast to you to apologize for my boldness.jpg]

Zhou Xu: [Got it. I’ll buy you one during the next break.]

Su Wenyu: ?

[Huh?]