Chapter 165: Putting an Arm Around Like This is Too Much Like Bros

The two of them spent some time dreaming about the future before parting ways to practice their respective cultivation.

This routine continued for about half a month, and Yun Huizhou’s injuries were finally almost fully healed.

Lian Li had just finished a day of training on the East Island and was preparing to leave when the East Island Matriarch suddenly called out to him.

“Xiyu said that kid Yun Huizhou’s injuries are considered fully healed today, so the two of you are taking a day off tomorrow.” The East Island Matriarch leaned against the trunk of a tree, a mischievous smile playing on her lips. “You two can carry on however you like tonight.”

Understanding the underlying meaning in the East Island Matriarch’s words, Lian Li’s face instantly turned beet red. He stammered slightly as he spoke, “What do you mean ‘carry on’? We’ve already agreed to leave the island tomorrow morning to go have fun in Jianggao City. We need to go to bed early and wake up early.”

“Heh!” The East Island Matriarch let out a laugh. “Fine, go to bed as early as you like, wake up as early as you like, and carry on however you please. Regardless, it’s a matter for the two of you under the covers; I can’t exactly crawl under your bed to watch.”

Lian Li’s face felt like it was about to catch fire. “I… Martial Uncle, we’re finished for today, right? I… I’m leaving.”

Seeing how thin-skinned Lian Li was, the East Island Matriarch laughed even more boisterously. “Go on, go on, go find your dear Senior Brother. You kid, how can your skin be so thin? If you’re like this, you’ll be bullied to death by Yun Huizhou. That boy’s skin is thick as a wall.”

Lian Li simply turned around and fled as if running for his life, leaving behind only a single sentence: “I’m leaving!”

The faster Lian Li ran, the louder the East Island Matriarch’s laughter became.

To ensure that the already distant Lian Li could hear her, she even infused her Internal Energy into her laughter.

Lian Li ran even faster.

When he returned to their residence on the South Island, Yun Huizhou was already back and was tidying up the things in the room.

The moment Lian Li saw him, he immediately recalled the East Island Matriarch’s teasing words, and he felt completely out of sorts.

Despite how Lian Li often had “Spring Palace pictures” on the tip of his tongue and had even brought them out before to test Yun Huizhou, he was merely a giant in speech but a dwarf in action.

Previously, he could lie on the same bed as Yun Huizhou and mess around with a clear conscience because he hadn’t thought much of it back then. Later, after he realized his feelings, he had been constantly oscillating between avoiding intimacy and not avoiding it.

And now, as he watched Yun Huizhou standing in front of the cabinet, he suddenly didn’t dare to go over.

This time it wasn’t because he was trying to avoid intimacy, but rather a sudden lack of courage. Even though Yun Huizhou didn’t know, Lian Li knew very well what the East Island Matriarch had just said to him.

Yun Huizhou had long since heard the commotion of his return. Seeing that the person hadn’t spoken or approached, he found it a bit strange.

He turned his head and saw Lian Li standing by the door, leaning against the doorframe, staring blankly with vacant eyes.

He put down the things in his hands and walked over to Lian Li. “Why are you just standing at the door?”

“I was thinking about what we should do tomorrow.” Lian Li hurriedly banished the improper images from his mind and answered Yun Huizhou’s question.

“What do you want to do?” Yun Huizhou draped an arm over his shoulder, leading him into the room.

Lian Li turned his head to glance at the hand Yun Huizhou had placed on his shoulder. He couldn’t help but think: How is this shoulder-drape exactly the same as when we were just pure fellow disciples?

Hadn’t their relationship already changed? Why was he still putting an arm around him like they were just bros?

Perhaps Lian Li’s gaze lingered for too long.

Yun Huizhou sensed something was off. He turned to Lian Li and asked, “Why do you keep looking at my hand?”

His grip on Lian Li’s shoulder tightened slightly. “Do you not want me to put my arm around you?”

“No.” Lian Li quickly shook his head in denial. “I just feel…”

“Feel what?” Yun Huizhou pressed.

“I just feel that this way of putting an arm around the shoulder feels like we’re just good bros,” Lian Li said seriously, looking at Yun Huizhou.

Yun Huizhou clearly paused for a moment. He then looked at their posture, seemingly contemplating what kind of posture would look less like “bros” and more like two people in a romantic relationship.

Lian Li didn’t move, simply waiting for Yun Huizhou to figure it out. Moreover, he was quite curious about what Yun Huizhou would come up with.

After a good while, Yun Huizhou finally seemed to have reached a conclusion. His hand gradually slid down to Lian Li’s waist.

Lian Li’s eyes widened slightly. Is Yun Huizhou planning to hold my waist?

Holding the waist feels a bit strange too, doesn’t it? And it makes it hard to walk.

But since this was something Yun Huizhou had spent quite a while thinking of, Lian Li didn’t feel right directly contradicting him.

As Lian Li expected, Yun Huizhou’s hand indeed stopped at Lian Li’s waist and then pulled him close.

Lian Li subconsciously tensed his muscles. He hadn’t felt it before, but now, being touched made him feel incredibly self-conscious.

However, Yun Huizhou’s movements weren’t over yet.

He suddenly bent down, his other hand sweeping under Lian Li’s knees, lifting him directly into a princess carry.

Not only did he lift him up, but he also gave him a little bounce, then tilted his chin at Lian Li. “This doesn’t look like bros anymore, does it?”

Lian Li was absolutely stunned. “You thought for so long, and this is what you came up with?”

“What else?” Yun Huizhou said. “Before we were officially together, we used all sorts of postures when walking together. If we used the same ones as before, wouldn’t we still be good bros?”

“But…” Lian Li’s face showed his conflict. “While this posture is definitely not ‘bro-like,’ if we go out, we can’t exactly stay like this the whole time.”

Yun Huizhou looked at him, raising an eyebrow. It seemed this one wanted others to know they weren’t just simple fellow disciples the moment they saw them walking together outside.

Seeing through Lian Li’s little thought, Yun Huizhou chuckled inwardly. He didn’t expose Lian Li, but simply set him down.

Lian Li subconsciously blurted out, “Why did you put me down?”

“Changing to a posture we can actually walk in.” As Yun Huizhou spoke, he reached out and took Lian Li’s hand, then interlocked their fingers.

Lian Li: “…”

Lian Li pretended not to care, pulled his hand away, and walked over to the table to sit down. “Hurry up and discuss what we’re going to do tomorrow. It wasn’t easy to get two days off; I don’t want to just be a shut-in on the island for two days.”

He paused, then added, “I can reluctantly be a shut-in with you for one day.”

Knowing what Lian Li meant by being a “shut-in,” Yun Huizhou found it amusing. What did he mean by “reluctantly”? It wasn’t as if he himself was much of a shut-in; this kid clearly wanted to stay in himself but had to find an excuse.

“Are you sure you’re ‘reluctantly’ staying in with me for a day? Hmm?” Yun Huizhou walked over to his side and looked down at Lian Li.

He was naturally half a head taller than Lian Li. Now that Lian Li was sitting and he was standing, a sense of pressure came rushing toward him.

Lian Li subconsciously leaned back, raising a hand to push him. “Don’t get so close to me, it’s a bit scary.”

Yun Huizhou pressed down on his shoulders. “Why are you leaning back?”

Lian Li froze. He suddenly felt that he shouldn’t have leaned back. It was rare for both of them to be free to nurture their feelings; how could he lean back and create distance?