Didn't they say that a wife would be assigned to you as soon as you started working there? (Chinese)

For a moment I felt a little embarrassed and guilty, as if I had touched a sore spot. So I lowered my head in a sullen voice. Although the disciples of the Nine Schools loved to play tricks on people, they would never be so heartless as to take pleasure in other people's pain.

I don't know how much time passed, but I remember that I ate all the big fish and meat on the table, leaving only the bottom of the plate with its beautiful patterns.

That day, Quan sighed heavily and forced a smile. "You're right, I like men. Laugh if you want to."

Well……

"Why are you laughing?" I asked, puzzled.

“I,” he pointed to himself, “am a man, and I like men. Isn’t that a relationship that people criticize? Isn’t that strange?”

"Mwah, that's a bit annoying." I immediately covered his mouth. "You're so weird, you really think this is something special? I've seen it all, don't bring up something so ordinary to condemn yourself, okay...?"

"A...normal...thing?" He repeated each word carefully, his thin lips opening and closing, making my palms itch a little. Interesting. I'd heard that most of the disciples of Tianquan were rough northerners, so why did this guy have such soft lips?

Sitting at the same table, the two were thinking very differently.

Anyway, all I noticed was that his eyes were blinking, and when I took my hand off his face, I found that there was a hint of tenderness in his eyes.

Suddenly, he asked me, "What's your name?"

"Liang Si, what about you?"

"Chen Ning, this meal is on me today!"

I curled my lip in disdain. "You should be paying anyway." I hadn't forgotten my status as a "patient."

After he finished eating, he went to pay the bill, and wanting to see a good show, I quietly followed him.

However, my smile vanished halfway through, and I hurriedly reached for my purse in my pocket.

It's still there. Then what's that in his hand?

"Wow, you, you, how do you still have money?!"

Chen Ning gave a short "Ah," then smiled gently, his smile as warm as a spring breeze. "I don't have much on me, just a bit too much money. Bringing a few extra purses can help the poor and also be useful in case of emergencies."

Heh heh heh heh... You damn rich people, you better explain to me what it means to have "lots of money even though you have nothing".

Perhaps the money in one bag wasn't enough, so Chen Ning pulled out two more equally "plump" money bags. After counting them, he looked puzzled. "Why is one still missing..." His gaze shifted to the purse in my hand, and Chen Ning's pupils suddenly shrank. "How did it get in your hand?!"

"Oh dear, you're right. How did it end up in my hands?" I said, moving it around. "Well, you carelessly dropped it on the second floor and I picked it up. I was just thinking—"

Perfect opportunity! While he was distracted, I snatched the other three money pouches from his hand.

"—I was just thinking of taking a few more. Thank you so much, dear brother, don't miss me too much!" I disguised myself and blended into the crowd. If he can find me, I'll take his surname.

Chen Ning could only stomp his feet in frustration, yelling, "You dog, come back here!"

Hmph, isn't that obvious? Only a fool would go back.

Those few days I lived quite comfortably. My fellow disciples were all envious. Like mice entering a rice jar, they stared at the purse in my pocket with shining eyes, asking me where I had picked up a rich but brainless fool, and letting me steal from him.

I smiled and replied, "He came to rescue the damsel in distress."

"Oh dear, something's up here?"

I pushed my senior's head aside with disdain, saying, "What's the big deal? We've only just met."

"You can't put it that way." My senior started spouting his grand theories again. This guy always uses the fact that he started learning two years earlier than me to lecture me. "Who hasn't gone through this stage? What's the next step after you meet? Holding hands. What's next after holding hands? Kissing. What's next after kissing? Getting married! You've already taken a big step in your life!"

Uh, although all the couples I've seen seem to follow this process, why does this sound so unpleasant to hear? Especially coming from this kid's mouth.

"Is that how it works? You teach me, but you don't even count how many deals you've failed to close, and you still have the nerve to analyze the situation for me?"

The senior brother was clearly a guy who lacked self-awareness. "Let me ask you, what do you think of him?"

I pictured that handsome, dashing face in my mind and blurted out, "Beautiful."

"...Who asked you that?" the senior brother cursed. "I asked you what you think of him?"

"Silly."

"Anything else?"

Chen Ning's panicked expression flashed before my eyes, and I couldn't help but smile. "Pretty cute."

The senior student slapped his thigh and exclaimed, "See? It's done!"

It's like an egg.

Later, my senior asked me how I met "him," and I told him the whole story. As a result, my senior slapped me on the back of the head and pointed at me with a look of exasperation, saying, "You got slapped and still fell in love at first sight, Liang Si, you son of a bitch!"

What the heck?

"That's not true! Don't talk nonsense."

My senior brother shook his shoulders and laughed in a ridiculous way, which was particularly annoying. When he left, he left with the words, "Let's see how long you can keep up this act," and then disappeared into the dark night.

Pshaw, anyone can pretend to be deep.

But... I think I really want to see Chen Ning.

But if I see him again, he'll probably beat me to death. After all, he stole his purse, and he probably did a week of odd jobs and backbreaking work at Zuihuayin because he couldn't pay.

"Squeak, squeak~" The little mouse crawled out of the outer pocket. I knew it wanted to sleep, so I put it inside and climbed back onto the roof. I wanted to stay up a little longer, but I had exhausted myself during the day, running around and fighting several times without a moment's peace. Now I felt like my eyelids were weighed down, and I fell asleep almost as soon as my back touched the roof tiles.

...Who would have thought that this nap would lead to such a disaster?

I dreamt that I was drifting aimlessly in a lone boat, sometimes crossing glaciers with frosty snow, sometimes crossing scorching lava, and I couldn't sleep peacefully.

Emerging from the suffocating dream, I opened my eyes to see the attire of Qingxi disciples, and then the familiar face of Doctor Qingxi.

"You're awake." Seeing me slowly open my eyes, she made a quick note and then walked to another bed. "You're alright, you haven't gone crazy from the fever."

As soon as Qingxi left, the face of the patient next to me was no longer covered and was fully exposed. Upon seeing who it was, I sat bolt upright. "What are you doing here—cough cough cough!"

It was fine if I didn't open my mouth, but once I started to speak, I realized my voice was hoarse and raspy, as if I were on fire. Qingxi hates patients who move around on their own, and without any mercy, she slapped me back onto the bed.

I:"???"

Qingxi: "If he weren't here, you would have been soaked to death by now and be buried in peace."

Huh? What does that mean?

Chen Ning sat silently to one side, biting his lower lip hard—his hand was broken and had just been reattached by Qingxi, and he was sweating profusely from the pain.

What a quack! Couldn't he have been a little gentler?!

Qingxi explained that this silly Tianquan was ambushed by the enemy on his way back after finishing his night shift, and lost one of his hands. While fleeing, he ran so fast that he didn't notice that he had run into the territory of the Nine Streams Sect, and by the way, he found me unconscious on the roof.

"So that's how it is. Thank you, Brother Chen Ning, for saving my life." But why does my head hurt like this? It's not the kind of pain that comes from a fever.

"Cough." Seeing me grimacing and rubbing my head, Chen Ning looked away guiltily, his tone very unnatural. "It must have been because it was still dark at the time, and I didn't see clearly, so... I accidentally kicked it."

"Feel sorry."

"No need to apologize to him." Qingxi rubbed her wrist, her delicate eyebrows slightly furrowed. She had one attitude towards Chen Ning, but a completely different one towards me. "I heard about you robbing someone's purse. They didn't hold a grudge and carried you to Qingxi Clinic in Qinghe in the middle of the night. What's wrong with kicking you a little?"

"What? Why don't you say he attacked me first—" Wait, what did I just hear?

This is...Qinghe?

I said something felt off. According to the monthly schedule, this doctor from Qingxi should be on duty at Qinghe Medical Clinic this month, but I was delirious with fever and didn't realize it for a moment. I even thought I saw her in Kaifeng.

No wonder I didn't hear the hustle and bustle of the city when I woke up.

"Alright, stop standing there like an idiot, pay the bill first, including the one yuan from before." Seeing the bill Qingxi handed me, I felt even more dizzy and lightheaded.

"Sister-in-law, just one more time on credit, this is the last time."

"Stop it!" Qingxi interrupted me harshly. "Your senior brother and I have already separated, so don't call me that. That bastard is always lying to me. If you follow his example again, I'll teach you a lesson too." She seemed very angry; I could hear her back teeth chattering as she spoke.

Faced with such rage, I could only cower and shrink back. After all, I, Liang Si, fear neither heaven nor earth, except for this fiery and fiery sister-in-law, Qingxi.

But then, Chen Ning! He actually! Laughed at me!

He didn't even try to hide it; he laughed openly and honestly. His laughter was full of energy; I knew immediately that the rascal was almost fully recovered!

Chen Ning was laughing heartily, and only after he finally stopped laughing did he realize that I was looking at him with a resentful expression. "What are you laughing at?"

"Sorry, sorry." Chen Ning cleared her throat, her smile still on her face. "I just think that the way you two get along is very interesting, like a family."

"Family?" Before I could speak, my sister-in-law, or rather, my ex-sister-in-law, chuckled, pointed at the center of my brow, and said, "This little money-grubber and I are not from the same family. He's so stingy he's practically the emperor."

Tianquan: "Money-grubber?"

Qingxi's ex-sister-in-law: "Yes. You don't know, do you? This kid has been saving money since he was a child, all for the sake of getting married."

My ex-sister-in-law exposed my past, but because my throat was sore, dry, and hoarse, I couldn't speak and could only listen blankly.

"Getting married?" A strange light suddenly flashed in Chen Ning's eyes. He sat up. "How much have you saved?"

I waved my hands frantically, but no sound came out. Then my kind and lovely sister-in-law Qingxi answered for me with a mischievous smile: "The dowry list is all ready, and we've even figured out what the house will look like and where it will be built. We're just waiting to meet our sweetheart!"

I buried myself under the covers in despair—it's all over now, my image as a wise and mighty Liang Si in front of Chen Ning is ruined!

Chen Ning: No.

"Alright, you two lie down properly." The sister-in-law packed her medicine kit to go out for a house call. "Especially you, Liang Si. If you dare to sleep on the roof again, I'll let a wild cat carry off your fat rat."

Once her footsteps faded into the distance, the room became eerily quiet. I secretly lifted a corner of the blanket and met Chen Ning's probing gaze.

"Um..." I said in a hoarse voice, "Why did you bring me to Qinghe? It's so far, it must be tiring..." I'm a grown man, I know how heavy I am. Chen Ning was carrying a Mo Dao (a type of long-handled sword), and he also had to carry me. He even had a broken hand. The road from Kaifeng to Qinghe is so far... Oh no, my conscience is starting to hurt.

“I wasn’t that tired,” Chen Ning said. “I heard you keep saying ‘Qinghe’.”

I:"……"

"You used to live here?"

I turned to look out the window as if to escape: the bamboo groves were still lush and green, and the purple lilies on the open ground in front of the clinic were unusually vibrant. Looking further into the distance, I could see a few sparse houses below the mountain—Qinghe seemed unchanged during the days I was away.

Sigh, I'm feeling a bit sad.

"Yes, I'm from Qinghe." I sat up against the wall, coughing every few words. "The place where I used to live was so beautiful, with flowers, grass, streams, and very fragrant wine. ... Later, the village was burned down by thieves, and my father and mother couldn't escape the fire."

I saw Chen Ning's eyes widen slightly, her gaze filled with shock, "...So how did you live after that?"

“Wandering, I guess.” I yawned and stretched. “Qinghe isn’t like Kaifeng, but there are wild grasses and fruits everywhere to fill my stomach. Sometimes I run into refugees from the south, and they’ll give me food too. Ah, it’s pretty carefree.” I didn’t mean to make the atmosphere so gloomy; I wanted to laugh to ease the bitterness and sorrow in my heart, but I failed. “Then I met a troupe of performers. They said they needed people and asked if I wanted to come with them. I asked what the benefits would be, and they said they could help me earn money to buy good food and take me to the most luxurious places in Kaifeng…”

But in reality, all I did along the way was beatings with whips. I never got any money I earned, I was always hungry, and I was locked in a cage every night. Sometimes, to avoid inspections, they would break my limbs and stuff me into a sealed box. I hate being confined. Even in the biggest room, I don't feel safe sleeping there. Even after learning martial arts from a sect, I still resisted them. I never used the rope darts they gave me, and I preferred hand-to-hand combat.

"Then Elder Ni went to watch the tricks and saw that I had a unique physique and was a good prospect, so he stole me out. And then, well, I met you~ Oh, you saved me today, so to be precise, you are my benefactor..." I panicked a little, and my voice began to tremble at the end because Chen Ning's expression was not right. The more he listened to me, the more his brows furrowed.

Me: "What? Are you worried about me?"

Chen Ning nodded.

“If you feel sorry for me, then help me find a wife. You heard what my sister-in-law said. I’ve been thinking about her since I was a child. I’ve prepared everything, but I still don’t have a wife.”

Why are you so fixated on this?

“Before, I was conflicted about this because I wanted a home,” I said softly. “But I didn’t know how to have a home. I thought of my parents and my old neighbors, and I felt that I needed a house first, and then a wife. But then my senior sister told me that a home is where you have friends and people you care about.”

After that, I thought about it carefully, and it seemed to be true. When my senior sister got married, someone found a room full of food that she had prepared especially for me. She explained, "My younger brother is a bit shy, and I was worried that he would feel uncomfortable sitting with strangers." Even if my senior brother was mischievous, I had long regarded him as my older brother. Otherwise, I wouldn't have called this Dr. Qingxi "sister-in-law".

After I figured it out, I didn't care much about getting married and starting a family, because I knew I already had a family, even if it was a family that was sometimes unstable.

The tension that had been building up inside me for so many years suddenly eased, and I felt a sense of relief.

"I'm struggling with this now... probably because I'm quite envious of others. Don't laugh at me, but I know a lot of people, but I don't have many friends. Even if I do have true friends, they can't stay with me for long because of one thing or another. My wife is so great; if I'm good to her, she'll stay with me. Although people always tell me that a person in the martial arts world shouldn't have any attachments, I don't think so. I always feel that having attachments is good..."

Oh, right.

I took out four money pouches. "Here you go." I returned them to you intact, without touching a single penny.

Chen Ning hesitated to answer, and my arm was getting sore from holding it up. Even if he didn't count, I knew there was a lot of money missing. "...Didn't spend any? Then how did you pay for all the meals you had at the Kaifeng restaurants the other day?"

"I spent my wife's savings," I said, rubbing my nose sheepishly. "Occasionally, I'd feel down and think I'd never get married, so I impulsively spent all that money. But how did you know? Were you following me?"

"With so much money you took away, I'm starting to worry that you might be doing something bad."

"oh."

"So," Chen Ning still refused the money, but her voice became very soft, her tone tentative, "what kind do you like?"

Light streamed in through the window, gilding his high, straight nose with a golden edge, and my heart skipped a beat—perhaps my senior was right, some things are destined from the first glance.

Does Chen Ning mean he took what I just said seriously and wants to find me a wife? But didn't I just say that I've already spent all the money I saved for a wife?

"Yes, I want someone with bright, beautiful eyes, like stars," I heard myself say. "And someone with a good temper, someone who can't always hit me... It would be best if they knew martial arts so they could protect me."

Chen Ning suddenly laughed out loud, "That's quite a specific request."

"Of course!" I proudly raised my chin. "I've been thinking about this since I was ten years old."

I regretted saying that as soon as the words left my mouth. Sure enough, Chen Ning laughed so hard that his whole body was shaking, and he accidentally touched his wound, making him wince in pain.

"Idiot," I muttered.

The fool wasn't annoyed at all; after laughing, he even generously poured me a glass of water. As he handed me the water, our fingers accidentally touched. His hand was warm, mine was icy. Chen Ning's body heat flowed into my body through his fingertips, and my temperature gradually rose; I felt my face burning again.

Does this count as...holding hands?

What did my senior brother say again? What were we supposed to do after holding hands?