Chapter 22: Arrogant Big Star

“Injured?”

Lin Wu put on a worried expression and followed them out the door.

They circled around for a bit before returning to the private hospital.

“Mr. Lin is here.”

Someone immediately shoved a massive medical box into Lin Wu’s arms.

“We’re counting on you. We have no idea what kind of injury the Young Master sustained.”

Lin Wu asked anxiously, his acting flawless. “Is it serious?”

The assistant could only repeat that they truly had no clue.

Lin Wu clutched the medical box tightly, brushed past them, and headed straight inside.

When he pushed open the door, he discovered Ji Xingci huddled inside the cabinet.

The moment he heard someone enter, Ji Xingci snarled, “Get out!”

He was just like a large wild animal trapped in a cage, lashing out in a fit of temper.

Lin Wu softened his voice. “…It’s me.”

Ji Xingci fell silent at once.

Lin Wu walked over and set the medical box down first.

With his long arms and legs, Ji Xingci barely fit in the cabinet. Lin Wu could see one leg dangling out while the other was bent up.

The cabinet door hung half-open, but his face was still shrouded in shadow.

Lin Wu reached out to gently pull the door wider.

In the next instant, however, Ji Xingci shot out a hand and yanked him inside.

Lin Wu collided straight into his embrace. For a split second, his muscles tensed as he wondered if Ji Xingci had recognized him.

But in reality, Ji Xingci simply hugged him fiercely.

The embrace was so tight that color flooded Lin Wu’s face, yet Ji Xingci showed no sign of letting go.

He buried his face in the crook of Lin Wu’s neck, inhaling his scent like a child clutching a familiar doll for comfort.

Lin Wu could feel that Ji Xingci’s breathing was still erratic. He couldn’t help reaching up to stroke his head. His fever had broken, but sweat still beaded on his skin.

Lin Wu pressed his palm against the man’s damp, warm neck and asked, “Ji Xingci. What’s wrong? Where does it hurt? I’ll put some medicine on it for you.”

It took Ji Xingci a long moment to respond, his voice rough and hoarse.

“You’re not mad at me anymore?”

They had argued not long ago, after all. In the heat of the moment, Lin Wu had said some harsh things—like how he didn’t want to like him anymore. He hadn’t expected Ji Xingci to take it so personally.

Lin Wu sighed.

“Even if I’m mad, that doesn’t stop me from worrying about you or caring. Do you really think I could stop liking you overnight?”

“They said you were hurt, so of course I…”

Lin Wu glanced down and realized that at some point, Ji Xingci had bitten his own lip until it split open. The wound was red and raw.

His tone grew even gentler. “What happened to you?”

“Let me take a look, okay?”

Perhaps satisfied with Lin Wu’s earlier words, Ji Xingci leaned quietly against him and didn’t resist as Lin Wu undid the top buttons of his collar.

Only then did Lin Wu notice that one side of his chest was severely swollen from the heat—puffy and almost pitiful-looking.

His gaze drifted lower, naturally landing on Ji Xingci’s slightly rounded belly.

Ji Xingci suddenly tried to cover it, but Lin Wu caught his hand.

“Ji Xingci. It’s okay.”

With his wrist pinned, Ji Xingci met Lin Wu’s eyes in near panic. Yet all he saw there was gentle, calm warmth—a deep, soothing black.

“Let me see.”

Lin Wu gazed at him with heartache. No matter how closely Ji Xingci scrutinized his face, he found no trace of disgust or revulsion.

His heart began to pound.

“Someone hurt you, didn’t they? But that doesn’t make me hate you.”

The two of them were crammed together in the cabinet, their breaths mingling, their hearts beating close.

Lin Wu leaned in and kissed the broken spot on his lip, bringing a sting of pain but far more warmth.

“You could have just told me…”

Ji Xingci stared at Lin Wu in disbelief.

He accepted it just like that? As if a man with a swollen belly was perfectly normal?

The rage, the anxiety, the sleepless torment that had plagued him—it had all become their shared secret.

Once the burden was shared, it didn’t seem quite so terrible anymore.

Even in the dim, cramped confines of the cabinet, Lin Wu seemed to glow like an angel.

Had he always been this handsome?

“Does it hurt? I’ll apply the medicine right now.”

Ji Xingci was still staring dazedly at his face when Lin Wu opened the medical box. He started to prepare, then paused.

Milk was leaking out.

Ji Xingci’s face flushed even deeper.

Lin Wu looked troubled. “This makes it hard to apply the medicine.”

Even so, he reached out to do it. But the moment he touched…

The milk kept diluting the ointment.

Ji Xingci gritted his teeth. His body was still burning up, and in a surge of reckless abandon, he blurted, “Help me…”

“Hm?”

His face burned crimson.

“Squeeze it out first.”

The air went still for a beat.

Humiliated and furious, Ji Xingci pressed a hand to the back of Lin Wu’s head, nearly shoving him forward. “…Mm, okay. Got it.”

A little while later, Lin Wu looked up. “Does it hurt?”

Ji Xingci had buried his face in his wrist again. His ears and neck were still red. “Mm.”

“…” But it didn’t sound like dislike.

Lin Wu glanced downward.

No, definitely not dislike.

He asked, “Do you want it?”

Ji Xingci nodded. Sweat glistened on his throat and collarbones, and if you looked closely, there was a hint of urgency in his posture.

Lin Wu helped him. That area was injured too, but still quite responsive. He coated it thoroughly with the ointment.

Lin Wu gave him a soothing kiss. “Good job. You’re amazing.”

What? In this ugly, embarrassing state?

Even as a five- or six-year-old child, Ji Xingci had never been praised like this. His mind reeled, his heart racing wildly.

Suddenly, he heard Lin Wu ask, “Is it hurt down there too?”

He touched it.

Every ounce of Ji Xingci’s attention zeroed in on that spot. His brain short-circuited, leaving him speechless.

All he could feel were Lin Wu’s cool fingers.

Lin Wu found a bit of swelling. No matter what had happened in his dreams, the electric baton had been a first in reality. It was indeed inflamed from the heat.

He carefully applied a ring of cool ointment, then pulled his hand away.

Ji Xingci remained rigid the whole time. When he finally looked up, there was a fleeting glimmer of disappointment in his eyes.

…?

Once Lin Wu realized what it meant, the already cramped cabinet felt even stuffier and hotter.

“What’s wrong?”

Lin Wu’s throat bobbed. His own mouth had gone dry, and sweat was prickling his back.

“Is it deeper inside that’s hurt too?”

Ji Xingci didn’t speak. Not even his eyelashes fluttered. But his entire body was flushed red, slick with sweat. His breaths came hot against Lin Wu’s skin, and his face burned brighter still. Those light brown eyes simply stared at him.

Lin Wu’s dark, glossy eyes didn’t even dare to blink.

Although he had always known that Ji Xingci was the type with a sex addiction, he himself wasn’t one, right? Ji Xingci wouldn’t go that far, would he?

No. It was precisely because he knew Ji Xingci had that addiction that he absolutely could not…

This world had already become very strange.

“Then, should I help you apply it again?”

Lin Wu wanted to back away.

Ji Xingci suddenly grabbed him tightly, and Lin Wu almost thought he was going to hit him. But Ji Xingci merely gripped his shoulders firmly and turned his head away.

He even lifted his hips slightly.

This kind of tacit permission made even more sweat bead on Lin Wu’s forehead. He could only apply the medicine for him. He deliberately squeezed out a lot of ointment.

But it still felt like it was instantly burned away by the scorching heat of Ji Xingci’s skin…

“It’s so hot. Hurry up and finish.”

Lin Wu closed his eyes.

“Here…”

He merely wanted to ask if it hurt.

But Ji Xingci was already panting, gripping him even tighter.

Lin Wu: “……”

Lin Wu: “I’m really at my wits’ end.”