Chapter 71 Protection

"I'm not saying anything, but you guys are so brave!"

"Ferren completely lost his mind in the end. I don't think he wanted the Firebird's crystal, he just wanted to kill people to vent his anger..."

"If it were me, I'd lose my mind too. Not only are there people trying to take advantage of me, but I keep bombarding and bombarding and can't kill them. They haven't even launched a starship! If I weren't him, I'd be questioning my life!"

"Oh my god, so Mingyu, you're the 'colorful' LUCE?! You're hiding it too well, aren't you?! Um, Mu Baixing?! In the last round of the preliminaries, your mental power that looked like 3S..."

"The damage from the mental burst is the same as last time in the mining area, only more serious... It's okay, Brother Yu, it's okay. Brother Lian always carries a lot of medicine with him, use it first. Even if the effect is not great, it will be of some use! Come on, let's carry him to our starship, return to Maze City 1, and take him to the hospital..."

"Do you have anything else on your starship? Take it all with you. Let's move quickly. No one should die..."

A chaotic sound rang out, then disappeared, drowned in the vast golden light.

Mu Baixing's consciousness was floating in and out, sometimes clear and sometimes confused.

In the fragments of memory without any order, he saw a battlefield full of chaotic artillery fire and blurry human figures.

And the endless universe.

And the huge starship trapped in it.

The light was faint, but it was extremely conspicuous in the vast darkness.

It was a call from afar, a scene that Mu Boxing would dream of every time he encountered the Black Tide.

I dreamed of the ship that was sunk in the starry sea where the black tide was surging.

There is no standard to measure time. After a moment or a long period of silence, a new sound begins.

"How could it be like this? Even if you forcibly increase your spiritual power level, you can't do it so recklessly... and with this kind of physical condition... Hurry and rush to the emergency room!"

"This isn't the first time, is it?! He's got a lot of hidden injuries... The medical station's test results are all fine?! Those self-service checkups are full of problems they can't detect! If you keep messing around like this, you won't even know what happened if someone dies one day!"

"Doctor, please don't scare him! Hey, we don't know... How do you tell me how to treat it?"

"We... uh, my friend will definitely not let him have such a random mental burst..."

“…”

Mu Baixing's mind finally resurfaced.

The first thing he felt was the damp heat in his palms.

Mu Baixing opened his eyes, tilted his head with some effort, and saw the top of Mingyu's head.

This was obviously a hospital, with walls painted white.

Mingyu sat on a chair beside the bed, bent over, leaned on the edge of the bed, and buried his face in Mu Baixing's palm.

He cried.

Because I was too tired, I fell asleep in this position unconsciously.

Mu Baixing moved slightly, wanting to withdraw his hand, for fear of hurting Mingyu.

The designer was immediately awakened by this action.

He suddenly raised his head, his eyes red from crying and filled with panic. After his eyes met Mu Baixing's, he was even stunned for a moment.

"...Brother Mu?" Mingyu murmured, "You..." He paused, almost jumped up from the chair, and reached out to press the bell to call the doctor.

The doctor on duty reacted quickly, pushed the door open with a group of nurses, and operated the instruments to examine Mu Baixing's body.

Cui Xiaoduo, Mu Lian and two observers also appeared outside the door, looking inside to observe the situation in the ward.

Mu Baixing ignored the group of people and felt distressed when he saw Mingyu's haggard face.

"I'm fine." He took off his oxygen mask and said to Mingyu. The man's voice was still soft and weak, "Don't be afraid."

"It's not up to you to decide whether something is wrong or not!" The doctor from Labyrinth City had a tough personality and wore an earring. Without his white coat, he looked like a street thug. At first glance, one might even suspect that he was working without a license. He glared at Mu Baixing, then turned to Mingyu and said, "It's really not a big deal."

"You can be discharged after one more day of observation. Go back and recuperate well, and don't go sailing for a week. You can't do anything! Not even operate a civilian starship! Not even a manual one! Take good care of yourself!"

Mingyu nodded frequently, looking well-behaved.

The doctor looked at his pitiful appearance with red eyes from crying, and calmed down a little. He glanced at Mu Baixing again and said to Mingyu, "If you are afraid that he will die, then take good care of him and don't let him act recklessly. This man looks... well, he is a bit strong-willed. But he must listen to you! If he dares not to listen, make him kneel on the washboard!"

Mingyu: “…”

Mu Baixing: “…”

The people watching outside the ward: "..."

"...Cough." The gentlemanly doctor with long hair who was coming out of the ward opposite for rounds heard these words and couldn't help but cough lightly.

"Well...wife." He didn't know how to hide anything in front of everyone, and said frankly and sincerely, "I really didn't disobey you last night. I just couldn't control myself, which is human nature..."

Earring Doctor: “…”

He rushed out again with a group of people, grabbed Dr. Sven's collar and dragged him to the office at the end of the corridor.

Mingyu: “…”

Mu Baixing: “…”

Onlookers: “…”

"...Well." Cui Xiaoduo coughed dryly and waved to Mingyu, "It's okay, we'll be leaving first. Um, let's go to the trading market on Maze Star."

He paused, turned to Mu Baixing, cleared his throat and said, "Um, Brother Mu, please comfort him. Mingyu has cried several times in the past two days and can't eat or sleep well..."

Mingyu: “…”

"Ah, let's go." Cui Xiaoduo knew Mingyu didn't want anyone to tell Mu Baixing about this. He exposed Mingyu's shortcomings, his eyes wandering, and quickly ran away with Mu Lian and Vincent Yang Haoyuan.

Mingyu: “…”

Mu Baixing: “…”

Mu Baixing coughed lightly and sat up. Mingyu stuffed a pillow for him to lean on and whispered, "What do you want? Do you want some water?"

Mu Baixing looked up at him.

The designer did cry quite a bit.

He thought, his eyes a little swollen from crying.

"I'm sorry." Mu Baixing said, "I made you so worried."

Mingyu: “…”

Mingyu put the cup of warm water into his hand, but did not let go immediately, fearing that Mu Baixing would not have the strength to hold it steady.

"You went to the emergency room three times on the first day you were in a coma, and I signed three critical illness notices," Mingyu whispered. "Then you remained in a coma. The doctors thought you would wake up yesterday, but you slept again until today. The doctors suspect you've developed brain death after suffering a mental injury."

Mu Baixing: “…”

"It's not that serious." He felt the doctor's reaction was a bit excessive, so he explained, "I know it myself."

Mingyu: “…”

Mingyu pursed his lips, unable to hold back, and looked at Mu Baixing and said seriously, "You know shit."

Mingyu rarely curses.

He spoke these words so clearly and in such a proper tone that one could not help but find him endearing.

Mu Baixing looked at Mingyu, trying to remain serious, but couldn't help but let a smile show in his eyes.

"What are you doing!" Mingyu said angrily, "I'm scolding you!"

Mu Baixing nodded.

He took two sips of water from Mingyu's hand, then straightened his attitude, hid his smile, and nodded, "Yeah, okay."

"I'm listening."

Mingyu: “…”

Mingyu put the cup aside, making a soft "dong" sound.

"Don't you trust me, Brother Mu?" He pulled the chair forward and sat down on the edge of the bed again, his eyes tracing over Mu Baixing's pale lips.

Three nights ago, Mingyu watched the blood oozing out from between the two lips, and for a moment he suspected that all the blood in Mu Baixing's body was about to flow away.

"You're not the only one who can withstand Feren's mental cannon. I can, too." Mingyu whispered, "You know I can!... You also know you'll be seriously injured! I'm not... I'm not a useless loser who can't do anything!!"

The designer's shoulders rose and fell, and he couldn't control his emotions for a moment, and his voice rose slightly.

He immediately realized that he shouldn't lose his temper with the patient, wiped his face quickly, stood up and said, "Sorry, I need to go to the bathroom..."

Mingyu's wrist was held by Mu Baixing.

Because of the injury, the man's palms were cold and weak, and his fingertips were loosely wrapped around Mingyu's wrist bone.

"I'm not okay." Mu Baixing said, "Mingyu."

“…Don’t cry.”

Mingyu didn't say anything and wiped his face again with his free hand.

Mu Baixing has woken up, and he actually doesn't want to cry anymore.

But for some reason, when she heard Mu Baixing apologize, her tears flowed even more.

"It's not that I don't trust you." The man's voice was low, weak from his injuries. After a slight pause, he continued, "I just don't want to hurt you."

Mingyu: “…”

Mingyu was silent for a moment.

"You only care about what you want!" After a moment, he lowered his head and continued to accuse, wiping away his tears viciously, "I'm worried about you being hurt! I don't have to hide under your protection..."

"Yeah." Mu Baixing said, "Xiaoyu is getting better and better. He won't need me anymore in the future."

Mu Baixing: "I'm very lost."

Mingyu: “…”

Mingyu's accusation was interrupted by a word that came out of nowhere, and it got stuck there.

The designer didn't even want to cry anymore. He sniffed and said angrily, "Stop joking! Be serious! Let me tell you something!"

"I'm serious, Brother Mu." He said each word bluntly, "If...if, if dating you is like this in the future...I won't agree to it!"

Mu Baixing: “…”

Mu Baixing tightened his fingers, realizing that the young man was not speaking in anger.

Mingyu's voice was a little muffled as he continued, "As your teammate, I can fight alongside you. But if I become your... lover, I will have to be protected by you so desperately. I will never be your lover in my life."

Mu Baixing said subconsciously: "No."

Mu Baixing felt a little cold.

He lowered his eyes and was silent for a moment, with a hint of self-mockery in his expression.

He had originally thought that Mingyu might reject him, and he should remain calm, respect the other person's feelings, and not force it.

But at this time, Mingyu just said... a hypothesis that had not yet been fully concluded, and Mu Baixing found it unbearable.

His heart ached, and he wanted to pull Mingyu into his arms, force the designer to take back the words he had just said, and force him to swear to him that he would only whisper loving words to him from now on.

Mu Baixing: “…”

Mingyu was originally waiting for Mu Baixing to promise that he would never do it again, but he heard the other party say two words and then nothing else. He looked up with red eyes and dissatisfaction, but saw that the little bit of blood color on Mu Baixing's face had somehow faded away.

The man frowned tightly, as if enduring some pain. His left hand on the quilt subconsciously tightened, creating a wrinkle on the white cloth.

"Brother Mu?" Mingyu was startled by him and asked anxiously, "Where do you feel uncomfortable?!"

He reached out to press the call bell again, but Mu Baixing grabbed his arm and stopped him.

"...No." Mu Baixing came back to his senses, "It's okay."

Mingyu didn't believe it, so he called the doctor to check him again.

The earring doctor looked impatient, but did not do it perfunctorily. He brought the nurses to re-examine Mu Baixing and confirmed that there was nothing wrong with his body. He came in a grand manner and left in a grand manner.

Mu Baixing realized that he had really scared the designer this time. He reached out and pulled Mingyu to sit down on the bed, then touched Mingyu's cheek.

"At first, I was worried that you would feel pain." Mu Baixing explained seriously, "Then, I became a little unconscious."

"I didn't hear you tell me to retract my mental power. It's not that I don't believe you can't withstand the laser cannon and lead us out of danger. It's just... I didn't think, I just acted on instinct."

Instinctively, I want to protect the one I love most.

"I won't dare to do it again next time." His fingertips slid and gently wiped away the tears that were not wiped away from the corners of Mingyu's eyes, "Mingyu."

"Give me another chance."

"May I?"