The previous moment of emotion instantly vanished. Su Lian didn't speak again, so angry he felt like he was having a heart attack.
This person was truly depraved, ungrateful, and oblivious to kindness or consequences.
Chi Wang nudged him with his arm and asked in a low voice, "Are you really angry?"
Su Lian pressed his lips tightly together.
Chi Wang said, "I was just trying to get some benefits for myself after boosting my favorability, wasn't I?"
Su Lian turned his head away coldly.
Chi Wang: "I was wrong, I was too brazen, I take back what I just said."
Su Lian wanted to use tape to seal his mouth shut.
People came and went as the hospital gradually became noisy. All around were hurrying crowds and voices at varying volumes, with only the two of them in silent tension.
Chi Wang propped his elbow on his knee, resting his head slightly, and inexplicably thought of his parents arguing at home. He felt the current situation wasn't much different, at least the atmosphere was equally heavy.
If it were Gu Anjiu or Lin Yan, he would have definitely turned and left, not bothering to deal with it at all.
In some ways, he felt Su Lian was special, but he couldn't quite put his finger on why.
Having upset Su Lian, his heart softened, and he wanted to try and comfort him.
Chi Wang lowered his eyes, pretending to look pitiful: "Alright, just pretend I didn't say anything."
Su Lian's face was expressionless, his tone cold: "Don't talk. Shut up."
Tsk, the attempt at comforting failed.
Indeed, cool guys were always so merciless.
The atmosphere between the two plunged back into an icy abyss. Chi Wang lazily leaned against the wall, pulled out his phone from his pocket, and started frantically double-tapping Su Lian's profile picture on WeChat.
Human Delusion patted SU.
Human Delusion patted SU.
Human Delusion patted SU.
The phone in his pocket kept vibrating incessantly, becoming unbearably annoying.
Su Lian couldn't stand it anymore. He took out his phone and showed the screen: "What exactly do you want?"
Chi Wang tilted his head slightly, speaking in a slow drawl: "You told me not to talk, so can I send WeChat messages instead?"
"I think that knife didn't cut your arm, it cut your brain." Su Lian stood up irritably, instructing, "Don't wander off, I'm going to get the results."
"Okay, I'll wait right here for you to buy me tangerines," Chi Wang smiled at him kindly.
Can you have any dignity at all, Su Lian thought wordlessly as he walked to the small window to retrieve the blood test and scan results.
He carefully read through all the indices and scans. The current situation was good, showing good health with all indicators normal, and no signs of cancer tendencies.
Putting the results in his pocket, Su Lian let out a long sigh of relief. As long as they strictly monitored Chi Wang's condition and had regular check-ups from now on, it shouldn't suddenly develop into late-stage cancer like before.
He went over and pulled Chi Wang up from the chair: "Let's go, time to head back."
Chi Wang stared at the test results in his pocket, raising an eyebrow slightly: "Aren't we going to ask the doctor about the results? Can you understand them?"
"I can read. The test results say there's no problem," Su Lian vaguely brushed it off as he walked to the entrance and hailed a taxi.
Fine, whatever you say, Chi Wang thought as he supported his arm and followed.
The two sat side by side in the back seat, making the already narrow space feel even more cramped. Chi Wang bumped his knee against Su Lian's: "Are you willing to talk to me now?"
Su Lian placed the bag on his leg, leaned back and closed his eyes, pretending to sleep.
"Your feet look about a size smaller than mine."
"..."
"Aren't you cold wearing pajamas?"
"..."
"How about you tie a new butterfly knot when you change my bandage tonight?"
Feeling that if he didn't compromise, this guy could keep up a solo act until nightfall, Su Lian finally gave in: "Alright, truce. Please stop talking, my head hurts."
Chi Wang raised his chin and smiled. He really was quite easy to coax.
-
When the two returned to the dorm still bickering, Gu Anjiu and Lin Yan had also just come back from the internet cafe one after another, exhausted from a night of gaming.
Song Jiaci, with his messy hair, was pulling out a small folding table and setting out food. Seeing the door open, he stuttered: "I-I ordered some f-food for you guys. You must be tired."
"Yeah, didn't sleep all night, dead tired," Lin Yan walked over and ruffled his hair, then turned and said, "Come on, everyone eat something. Especially you, Chi Wang, you need to replenish your strength with that injury."
Su Lian drawled meaningfully: "Yes, he should replenish a lot. I'll go to the supermarket this afternoon."
He calculated in his mind that he had 23 yuan left in his card, probably enough to buy a pack of dates and a bag of goji berries.
His brow twitched as an ominous feeling welled up again. Chi Wang smiled and pressed him down into a seat: "No need, you were exhausted last night. Get some good rest, don't overexert yourself."
The takeout boxes on the table were opened one by one, revealing dishes, soup, and stewed pots, all uniformly liver dishes. This was truly nourishing.
Chi Wang stared at the array of similar ingredients, feeling his appetite instantly disappear, completely uninterested.
Gu Anjiu plopped down on a small stool, pulling out a watch face and broken strap from his pocket and handing them over: "Lian bro, your kiddie watch. Just curious, why would a cool guy like you choose this... this..."
Unable to find the right words for a moment, he struggled: "This watch with such a childish and naive style?"
"Because it's cheap," Su Lian took it back carefully, too lazy to explain, and casually made up an excuse.
These words took on a different meaning when they reached Chi Wang's ears.
He had previously heard gossip from Gu Anjiu that Su Lian's family situation wasn't very good - a single-parent household where the father made a living delivering takeout, working hard in all weather conditions.
Teenagers at seventeen or eighteen all had very strong self-esteem, especially someone like Su Lian who valued his pride more than his life. Touching on a sore spot probably made him feel even worse inside.
Like now, with his lips pressed into a tight line, he was visibly in a bad mood. It was likely that Gu Anjiu's careless question had struck deep into a painful place.
Chi Wang took out his phone and generously transferred a thousand yuan from his wallet, typing a message: The tutoring fee for last week. My dad told me to pay you weekly.
Receiving the message, Su Lian mentally calculated the tutoring time - barely three hours - and very strictly refunded two hundred and fifty yuan.
This happened to be perfect timing. With an extra seven hundred or so yuan, he felt like he was instantly going from poverty to moderate prosperity.
The screen was quite bright, and Gu Anjiu caught a glimpse of it, sensing something amiss: "That... a thousand, it's not payment from Wang for last night's services, is it?"
Lin Yan looked up, advising kindly: "That's not good, guys. We're all classmates here. The two of you doing this is inappropriate, you should be more mindful."
Su Lian: "?"
This is what they call birds of a feather flock together? These people were all cut from the same ridiculous cloth.
Seeing no response, Gu Anjiu pushed further, teetering on the edge of disaster: "Wait, why did he refund two hundred and fifty? Is there a first-time discount or something?"
The more he thought about it, the more vividly the scene he witnessed last night played on loop in his mind.
"Get your mind out of the gutter, it's the tutoring fee," Chi Wang laughed, then turned the topic around to the two gossipmongers, "Why don't you two join for tutoring? Little Teacher Su can get paid three times as much."
Su Lian didn't even lift his eyelids as he picked up a piece of pork liver and put it in his mouth, chewing slowly: "Thanks, but no thanks. You alone are enough trouble for me."
His main purpose for tutoring Chi Wang wasn't about making money. Third High School offered scholarships every year, and winning one would be enough to cover his expenses.
Thinking Su Lian was just being modest, Chi Wang's mental gears started turning rapidly as he tried to persuade him: "What's the difference between teaching one person or three? The material is the same anyway. Wouldn't it be nice to earn triple the pay?"
"Chi Wang, you really sound like a scheming businessman right now," Lin Yan criticized mercilessly.
Gu Anjiu pondered for a moment before having a sudden realization: "I get it now. You just don't want to be tutored, so you're trying to deflect, right? Dragging your brothers down with you - your heart is truly black, blacker than today's overcooked pork liver."
Of course, that was part of the reason. Chi Wang just smiled without saying anything, tacitly agreeing.
If he could help Su Lian earn more money while avoiding one-on-one tutoring himself, it would be perfect - killing two birds with one stone.
Su Lian passed the chopsticks to the person next to him: "You've reminded me. Hurry up and eat. We'll have a tutoring session this afternoon."
Desperately trying to avoid it, a certain someone kept beating around the bush to delay. So he raised his arm dramatically and exclaimed: "No can do, my right arm is injured too severely. I can't even hold chopsticks or eat. How am I supposed to study? I..."
Before he could finish speaking, an entire piece of pork liver was stuffed into his mouth. Chi Wang was rendered speechless, slowly chewing with a shocked expression.
Su Lian picked up another piece, his expression as calm as ever: "No hands, right? I'll feed you."
Though it was a warm and considerate phrase, which would normally convey friendly classmate affection from anyone else, Chi Wang inexplicably detected a hint of murderous intent in it.
It was probably equivalent to saying "Want to die? Hurry up and eat, then get lost and do your homework" in terms of destructive power.
As a result, the entire Room 403 fell into silence, as if suddenly entering a silent film - only images, no sound.
Su Lian stuffed food into the mouth beside him, chopstick by chopstick, like force-feeding a duck. Chi Wang, as if his throat was blocked, opened his mouth to receive it, eating mechanically.
One feeding, one swallowing, cooperating with remarkable tacit understanding.
Gu Anjiu and Lin Yan exchanged a glance, their pupils quaking simultaneously.
Since stumbling upon them sharing a bed last night, their worldviews had been constantly shaken. This was the final blow, a shattering destruction.
The two of them had known Chi Wang since childhood, playing together in their underwear, getting up to all sorts of mischief.
By all accounts, they should have an intense brotherhood, and could reluctantly accept sleeping in the same bed, but feeding each other was unprecedented.
Besides, didn't Su Lian have germaphobia? How could he tolerate sharing a pair of chopsticks?
Gu Anjiu, unable to bear this bizarre scene any longer, broke the silence: "I have to say, you two like this, it's really... gay."
Chi Wang swallowed a mouthful of rice and slowly spoke: "This is clearly just mutual help between brothers. You people are so vulgar."
Yes, it's all our fault. We're vulgar, we're shameless, we see everything through yaoi-tinted glasses.
Su Lian: "Are you full?"
Chi Wang nodded: "More or less."
The chopsticks were placed on the table. Su Lian gave a silent prompt, the bell of death slowly tolling.
Getting the hint, Chi Wang was forced to stand up, one hand supporting his injured arm, cursing under his breath: "Why the fuck is life so difficult? I'm a free-spirited, wind-chasing young man, why do I still have to do homework?"
Staring at Chi Wang's back, Gu Anjiu sincerely felt that his Brother Lian really had something about him.
Su Lian went to the bathroom to change clothes, then casually grabbed a few workbooks and followed into the room across the hall, clearly familiar with the routine.
Sitting down on the small sofa, he picked up a math guidebook and opened it: "You know which homework to do, right? Just start with the problems the teacher assigned."
Chi Wang didn't even look, firmly stating: "I don't know how."
He wasn't lying. He hadn't paid much attention in math class. He recognized the numbers and could understand the questions, but just couldn't solve them.
A hint of frustration showed on his brow. Su Lian's expression cooled, feeling he should have a good talk with this person.
So he turned around, casually stretching his legs forward, and the two silently faced each other.
The atmosphere was tense. Su Lian frowned, clicking his tongue lightly. This guy was really hard to discipline.
"You find making money more interesting, so you don't want to study, is that it?"
"It's mainly that I might really not be cut out for studying. My talent just doesn't lie there."
Chi Wang flipped quickly through the book with his uninjured left hand, feeling bored as he stared at the dense exercises. He found them utterly uninteresting.
He raised his eyebrows to look out the window, feeling that even the plump sparrows fluttering outside were happier than him. He wanted to run.
Su Lian paused for a few seconds, then unleashed a torrent of criticism: "Fine, even if you like making money, with your junior high school math skills this poor, how will you keep the accounts straight? When your company goes public in the future, you won't even know if the CFO is ripping you off."
Chi Wang: "..."
I don't think I'm quite that illiterate.
Seeing him dazed, Su Lian continued his mockery: "Your Chinese is just as bad. How will you give interviews as a successful person in the future?"
Chi Wang's lips pressed into a straight line.
Su Lian pressed on: "If you can't learn English well, how will you expand into foreign markets? Will you be able to understand those English materials?"
Every word was a fatal blow. Chi Wang couldn't find any reason to refute, feeling both humiliated and having to admit the criticism was on point.
This guy Su Lian, usually so quiet, but when he opens his mouth, it's a critical hit every time.
He tragically opened the exercise book: "Say no more, I'll study."
Su Lian lowered his eyes, the corners of his mouth lifting: "If there's anything you don't understand, I'll explain it to you."
His voice was soft. Chi Wang felt as if a hand had gripped the back of his neck, squeezing hard then gently soothing, leaving him no choice but to comply.
They worked for an entire afternoon. Due to Chi Wang's hand injury limiting his movement, they mostly chose multiple-choice questions for convenience in writing answers.
Though Su Lian had a bad temper, he was patient when explaining problems, clarifying even which formulas to use in great detail, afraid the other wouldn't understand.
After switching through three subjects, Chi Wang put down his pen with considerable resignation: "It's been four hours, can we take a break?"
Satisfied with today's tutoring session, Su Lian generously let him off: "Alright, I'm going out for a bit. We'll stop here for today."
Chi Wang raised his head vigilantly: "Where are you going?"
"Just out for a walk." Su Lian patted his shoulder, reminding him: "Be careful not to get the wound wet."
This casual remark made Chi Wang keenly sense something unusual, feeling there was more to it.
As soon as Su Lian left, he quickly snuck out too.
First, he went to Night Color to check on its recovery, then joined the brothers who were beaten yesterday for some barbecue near the entrance. By the time he returned to the dorm, it was already past 10 PM.
The barbecue stand was heavy with smoke and oil, leaving one's body feeling sticky. Chi Wang struggled to take off his clothes, lowering his head as he entered the bathroom to shower.
He had just unwrapped the bandage on his arm, and trying to avoid the wound made it inconvenient. He could only awkwardly hold the shower head with his left hand to rinse off.
Halfway through washing, there came the sound of the door opening outside. Chi Wang called out: "Who is it?"
"Me." Su Lian answered, slowly entering and placing what he bought on Chi Wang's bedside table, then sitting down on the small sofa with bent knees.
"Wait a moment, I'm showering." Chi Wang replied through the door. A few seconds later, he followed with a curse.
Hearing the commotion, Su Lian asked: "What's wrong?"
"Lost my grip on the shower head, water got into the wound."
Su Lian quickly stood up and pressed down on the bathroom door handle. The scene before him once again shocked him.
A cloud of steam hung in the air. Chi Wang stood slightly bent in the center of the bathroom, his entire body taut in a beautiful curve, like a fully drawn bow.
He was indeed in a somewhat sorry state now, with water droplets all over his hair and body. The shower was still running, endless water droplets pounding down, flowing along the lines of his muscles, then disappearing into deeper regions.
Su Lian felt he was about to break out in a light sweat from the steam, as if he too had been drenched by that shower. He blinked slowly.
Again and again. You're doing this on purpose, aren't you? Pardon the intrusion, I'll take my leave.
"Wait, since you're already in here, help me out." Chi Wang, completely shameless, called out to stop him. "Get me a clean bath towel, there are some in the cabinet outside."
Su Lian averted his gaze, grunting an acknowledgment as he turned to search the cabinet, yanking out what turned out to be Chi Wang's shirt.
It was right not to choose to live in the same dorm room before, otherwise this kind of awkwardness would happen over and over.
Mind in a fog, he finally found a brand new towel after a while. He tore open the packaging, averting his eyes as he roughly tossed it over, then strode out.
By the time Chi Wang finished cleaning up and came out, Su Lian had gradually regained his composure, head lowered as he fiddled with the first aid kit in his hands.
Chi Wang stared at the pile of alcohol swabs: "Your timing is impeccable."
"I didn't particularly want such perfect timing." Recalling the earlier scene, Su Lian felt he had been shocked once again.
Chi Wang wore a short-sleeved shirt, easily lifting it to reveal his muscular upper arm: "Please help me bandage it again."
The wound had slightly split open from the movement, with blood seeping out. There were still traces of water droplets that hadn't been wiped clean.
Su Lian sniffed, feeling enveloped in a citrusy fragrance. Even the blood he wiped away smelled of shower gel, somewhat dizzying in its sweetness.
His hands were gentle, but his words harsh: "Didn't I remind you not to get it wet before I left?"
"Went out for some barbecue, it was hot, my body was all smoky." Chi Wang pursed his lips, lowering his eyes to look at the person bandaging him.
Light-colored hair ends, a slender neck, lowered eyelashes, long fingers. Because Chi Wang was blocking the light, half of Su Lian's face was shrouded in a dim atmosphere, softening his usually cold features.
How to put it... he was really easy on the eyes. If he were a girl, he'd probably be like one of those bewitching consorts from ancient times.
On the level of Su Daji, Chi Wang thought, coincidentally sharing the same surname.
Sensing the gaze upon him, Su Lian didn't raise his head, carefully winding the bandage, afraid of making a mistake: "What are you looking at?"
Chi Wang blurted out, "Watching Da Ji."
"...Have you been reading too much 'Investiture of the Gods'?" Su Lian applied a bit more pressure as he tied the butterfly knot on Zhou Zheng's bandage. "There, all done."
Chi Wang blinked, coming back to his senses: "Thanks. Why did you come to see me?"
Su Lian gave a vague answer: "Just to change your dressing. Now that it's done, I'm planning to sleep. I'll wake up early tomorrow to continue tutoring you."
The little Teacher Su always remembered his responsibilities, dedicated to his job.
"...Alright, good night." Chi Wang had no choice but to agree.
He escorted Su Lian to the door, watching him enter the room across the hall before looking down at the beautifully tied bandage on his arm.
He had to admit, this Su "Da Ji" was quite skillful and thoughtful.
He flexed his slightly sore shoulders, leaning back into the sofa. The backrest still retained the warmth from where Su Lian had been sitting. He used to dislike having someone live with him, feeling it was troublesome to disturb each other, so he had applied to live alone.
Now, he suddenly felt that having a roommate like Su Lian might not be so bad after all.
Chi Wang curled up on the sofa, casually flipping through a documentary until the early hours of the morning before yawning and groggily crawling into bed.
On a lovely weekend, just as the sky began to lighten, he was suddenly awakened from his sleep by a noise.
"Examine myself in three aspects daily: Have I studied today? Have I exercised today? Have I gone to bed early and risen early today?"
"Don't be lazy, don't degenerate, don't indulge in pleasure. Get up quickly for class."
Where the hell was this sound coming from? Chi Wang squinted, feeling around until he finally discovered an electronic speaker under his pillow.
He slapped it a couple of times, but the broadcast continued its dull, repetitive cycle. The electronic voice was somewhat distorted.
He strained his ears to listen carefully. The tone was emotionless, the voice flat, the content straightforward - if this wasn't Su Lian's voice, whose ancestor could it be?
Chi Wang: "..."
He went online to search for a similar model, scrolling for a while before finally finding the speaker's switch and turning off this deathly annoying disturbance.
For such an irritating little gadget, the price was actually 570 yuan.
Apparently, the tutoring fees he paid were spent on this.
Chi Wang raised his hand to rub his face, feeling touched but utterly helpless: "...You've really outdone yourself. Fine, I'm getting up."