Chapter 8
On New Year's Eve six years ago, in the duty room of the school hospital, Shang Mu agreed to go home with Zhou Wangchuan to celebrate the New Year.
The two first went to Liulin, placed a soft little nest in the place where Si Xi often appeared, added cat food and canned food, and then walked out of the school together.
On the way, Zhou Wangchuan asked, "How did you usually celebrate the New Year? With friends?"
Shang Mu said, "About the same."
In fact, he had never really celebrated Chinese New Year properly since he was a child. His only memory was when he was five years old, his mother put a red Santa hat on him and took him to the rooftop to watch fireworks. He had sweet chocolate in his mouth, and the smell of sulfur in the air gave him an inexplicable sense of warmth. Since his mother died, he has never had a good Chinese New Year again.
Zhou Wangchuan, who was walking in front, stopped and waited for him, saying with a smile, "Walk faster! Aren't you cold? You're not wearing enough to begin with."
Shang Mu slowly stopped walking. He actually regretted agreeing to spend the New Year together. They didn't seem to be that close yet. Especially... after what he said in the school hospital, the atmosphere between them seemed to have become more sensitive.
Zhou Wangchuan added: "A few years ago, I had several friends who couldn't go home for the New Year, so I took them to my house and played poker all night. You don't have to feel psychologically burdened." He saw Shang Mu's hesitation and comforted him.
Shang Mu nodded and followed his footsteps.
"What do you want to do tonight?" Zhou Wangchuan asked. "We can't play cards. Do you like playing games? Or watching a movie? If you want to drink, I can have a couple of drinks with you."
Shang Mu laughed and said, "Doctors actually drink alcohol? I thought you would say that drinking is harmful to health."
Zhou Wangchuan also laughed: "It's not that drinking is harmful to health, but anything in excess will be harmful to health."
The atmosphere was harmonious and comfortable, and the two of them chatted and laughed as they arrived at Zhou Wangchuan's house.
But as soon as the door opened, the two of them were stunned.
“Surprise——”
The parents who had just said in the morning that they would not be coming home for the New Year unexpectedly showed up at home, operating a switch that came from nowhere, and colorful strips of color splashed all over the person at the door.
Zhou Wangchuan stared at the people in the living room in astonishment: "Dad, Mom, you——"
Shang Mu reacted soon after. He took off the colorful strips on his shoulders, lowered his voice and said with gritted teeth: "You lied to me--" He still maintained a polite smile on his face.
Zhou's mother smiled and said, "Oh, there are guests. Come in and sit down!"
Zhou Wangchuan hurriedly said, "Dad, Mom, this is my junior. He didn't have time to go home for the New Year this year, so I forced him to come back with me. I told him that no one was home, and you scared him—"
"Little classmate, come in and sit down." Zhou's father has an elegant appearance, and his smile gives people a feeling of being bathed in spring breeze.
Of course Shang Mu didn't want to go in. The family of three was celebrating the New Year, so why should he join in the fun?
But Zhou's mother had already come forward with a smile and took his hand: "What a handsome boy! It's so windy outside, come in quickly. You two haven't eaten yet, right? Auntie and uncle just made the New Year's Eve dinner, come on."
She is dignified and beautiful, and her eyes and eyebrows are gentle and smiling when she speaks, making people unable to bear to say no.
In a flash, Shang Mu was being dragged to the dining table. The table was laden with colorful dishes, and the chandelier overhead shone brightly. He felt it was unreal. The scene of a group of people gathered together for a New Year's Eve dinner was something he had never seen before in his 19 years of life.
Zhou Wangchuan sat down beside him, reached out and gently pressed his shoulder, and gave him a soothing look.
"Mom, didn't you say you wouldn't come back for the New Year?"
"I want to give you a surprise." Zhou's mother said with a smile.
Zhou Wangchuan joked, "Now it's become a shock. Not only did it scare me, but it also scared my junior brother."
Shang Mu had originally planned to sit for a bit before leaving, but what happened next felt like a dream. Zhou's father and mother were gentle and talkative, and the chatter at the dinner table never stopped. He didn't feel left out at all.
After dinner, he was about to leave when Zhou's mother stopped him again: "Don't leave tonight. It's so pitiful to spend the New Year alone." With a gentle pity on her face, she added, "Let's all sit down and talk. If you young people stay up late, let Xiao Zhou play games with you."
Shang Mu had no way of saying no to her, so he hesitantly turned his gaze to Zhou Wangchuan.
Zhou Wangchuan smiled and said, "It's okay, stay for the New Year. I'll take you back to school tomorrow morning."
And so, Shang Mu stayed.
The Spring Festival Gala had just begun when Zhou's father said, "The Spring Festival Gala nowadays is boring."
Zhou's mother said, "I like looking at their skirts! They are so beautiful!"
At this point, she seemed to remember something and took out her phone: "The designer sent me the first draft of the dress I'm going to wear this spring, but I always feel that it doesn't look good, but I don't know what's wrong. Can you guys help me take a look?"
Father Zhou took her phone, stared at the picture for a while, smiled and shook his head: "I can't tell, it will definitely look good on you."
Zhou's mother said angrily, "You only know how to say nice things, but you don't have any constructive suggestions at all!"
She passed Zhou Wangchuan and handed the phone to Shang Mu. "Xiao Shang, please take a look. You are good-looking and your taste must be good too." She glanced at Zhou Wangchuan again and smiled, "You can't count on me. You are even more short-sighted than your father."
The picture shows a light blue wavy pleated long skirt, embellished with pearls and necklaces, which is luxurious and fresh.
Shang Mu thought for a moment and said, "The design is good, but the accessories on the skirt are too evenly distributed, which reduces the visual impact and doesn't really catch people's eyes. If you want to make some changes, I suggest removing the pearls on the sleeves and shoulders and focusing them on the waist." Immersed in the relaxed atmosphere in the room, he talked a little more than usual.
Mother Zhou's eyes lit up: "Oh! You feel the same as I do!"
Zhou Wangchuan, munching on sunflower seeds nearby, said with a smile, "Mom, my junior is a top student at the School of Design. He even won first place in some creative competition last semester. He's also been a model for some clothing brand and has been on the cover of a magazine. He has excellent taste, so you've come to the right person by asking him."
At this moment, Shang Mu turned his head to look at him, with a faint smile on his lips: "How did you know?"
Zhou Wangchuan paused in his snacking of melon seeds.
"Come, Xiao Shang, come and sit down." Mother Zhou patted the seat next to her and said with a smile, "Help me look at a few other skirts. I just don't feel right."
Shang Mu sat down obediently and discussed the design of the skirt with Zhou's mother. Zhou's mother exclaimed in amazement from time to time, liking this pretty boy more and more, and pulled him to chat about all sorts of things.
Zhou Wangchuan and his father sat on the other side of the sofa, one cracking melon seeds while the other played chess on his mobile phone.
At this moment, the mobile phone on the table vibrated. Zhou Wangchuan glanced at the screen and found that it was a message from Shang Mu who was sitting on the other side of the sofa.
He picked it up and saw that Shang Mu had sent the message: "Senior, my stomach hurts."
Zhou Wangchuan looked up. Shang Mu was still chatting with Zhou's mother, a sweet smile on his face. But his once straight waist was slightly bent, and his face was paler than usual. His skin was pale, so others couldn't see it, but Zhou Wangchuan could see it at a glance.
"Okay, Mom, we won't disturb you and Dad anymore." Zhou Wangchuan walked over, smiled and patted Shang Mu's shoulder, "I'll take him to my room to play games."
"Oh, that's right. I'm sorry for interrupting your fun." Mother Zhou winked at Shang Mu. "Thank you for tonight. Go and have fun."
When Shang Mu was walking up the stairs, his steps staggered. Zhou Wangchuan quickly grabbed his waist and asked worriedly, "Are you okay?"
Shang Mu hummed softly in his throat.
As soon as he entered the room, Shang Mu collapsed onto the bed, clutching a pillow and pressing hard against his stomach. It felt like a pair of iron hands gripping and squeezing his stomach, the pain so intense that his vision went black. Following his experience, he held his breath deeply and exhaled slowly, but the technique failed, and his breathing soon became disordered again.
Zhou Wangchuan was a doctor after all, so he quickly calmed down and asked, "How long has the pain been going on?"
"I... don't know..." Shang Mu's voice was hoarse, "I get stomachaches when I eat fish."
"Did the pain start after eating?" Zhou Wangchuan frowned slightly, "Why didn't you tell me?"
Shang Mu raised his eyes and looked at him: "I can bear it."
He had been able to endure pain since he was a child. A normal person would probably writhe on the ground in agony, but he could endure it expressionlessly, his face only paler. This didn't mean he didn't feel pain; on the contrary, he was more sensitive to pain than many others.
"Relax." Zhou Wangchuan motioned for him to lie flat, reached out and pressed his stomach, then felt his pulse. "It's okay, just take a pill. I'll go downstairs to get the medicine and be back soon."
Shang Mu grabbed his wrist and said, "Don't go."
"I had New Year's Eve dinner at your house, but ended up having a stomachache and needing medicine. How will my uncle and aunt think of it?" Shang Mu bit his lower lip to endure the pain and said hoarsely, "Don't go."
"But you're in pain." Zhou Wangchuan looked at him disapprovingly. "What should we do?"
what to do?
Shang Mu looked up at him, at his hands——
Shang Mu had noticed Zhou Wangchuan's hands the first time he stepped into the school hospital more than half a year ago. His fingers were long and slender, with distinct joints. As he gripped the stethoscope, mixed the potion, and inserted the needle into the vein on the back of his hand, his hands were nimble and warm, the quintessential doctor's hands.
Then, in the alley at the west gate, these hands struck down three enemies fiercely and directly.
He has always longed for a pair of hands like this.
He had practiced with many people in the circle, and few of them had good-looking hands. They were all cruel, ugly, and ruthless.
But Zhou Wangchuan's hands are different. They are beautiful and compassionate, but they can get to the point when necessary.
When practicing, Shang Mu always kept his eyes closed. He didn't want to make eye contact with those people because those eyes were filled with cruelty, greed and madness.
What he wanted was tyranny tinged with kindness and tenderness.
No one is better suited than a doctor.
Shang Mu reached out his hand tremblingly, took Zhou Wangchuan's hand, and pressed it hard on his stomach.
"Help me, Senior."
He whispered, "It's disobedient. Help me, beat it."
Zhou Wangchuan frowned slightly: "No."
"Senior." Shang Mu called again, his voice soft and slow. He knew his voice was pleasant, and speaking in this tone was especially pleasant.
He whispered in a coquettish tone, "Help me, it hurts me, it's not behaving well, help me beat it up."
He gripped Zhou Wangchuan's wrist tighter and thrust hard into his stomach, causing a sharp pain mixed with pleasure.
He raised his head and looked Zhou Wangchuan in the eye. Since he was a child, he had felt the love of too many people. He knew Zhou Wangchuan's little secret thoughts, those thoughts that Zhou Wangchuan himself might not be able to distinguish.
But it didn't matter, Shang Mu thought. If he succeeded tonight, he could take the initiative to take that step. A man like him couldn't have a lover in the secular sense. He could only struggle hard in the gutter with a group of like-minded people, hiding his incompatible hobbies in the secular order. But if there was a one in ten thousand chance...
If you have a lover who shares the same ideals...
This was a blessing he had never dared to hope for.
He had tried it once in the alley at Ximen that day, and today was the second time.
Shang Mu stared at Zhou Wangchuan with burning eyes. If he succeeded, if he succeeded—
But--
"Don't press like that." Zhou Wangchuan grabbed his wrist again and broke free from the restraints. "I heard my parents go back to their room. I'll go downstairs to get you some medicine. Just bear with it for a while, it will be fine soon."
Cold sweat rolled down his forehead from the pain, and Shang Mu looked at Zhou Wangchuan's back in a daze.
He failed.
A few minutes later, Zhou Wangchuan returned with hot water and handed the medicine to the person on the bed. Shang Mu silently took the medicine, wrapped himself in the quilt, and turned over, facing away from him.
Zhou Wangchuan thought he was just in pain, so he sat at the head of the bed, wiped the sweat from his forehead with a tissue, and stroked his hair: "Be patient, the medicine will take effect soon."
Shang Mu didn't say anything.
Zhou Wangchuan asked again: "You can't eat fish? Why?"
"I don't know." The voice was cold and hard.
Zhou Wangchuan thought he was just feeling unwell, so he held his wrist and massaged his acupoints, distracting him with small talk: "I've only learned the basics of Chinese medicine so far, but there's an acupoint here that seems to relieve stomachaches. If you're in so much pain, tell me and it might help."
Shang Mu buried his head in the quilt and said nothing.
Ten minutes later, the medicine took effect, the pain in his stomach eased, and Shang Mu's breathing gradually stabilized.
Zhou Wangchuan keenly sensed that his junior, for some unknown reason, was deeply disappointed. He pondered for a moment, patted his head again, and said comfortingly, "Okay, it's okay. Take good care of your stomach, and you'll be able to eat fish one day."
Shang Mu's cold and muffled voice rang out: "Heh."
The next morning, Zhou Wangchuan sent Shang Mu back to school.
After walking a few dozen meters, Shang Mu stuffed the two big red envelopes he had just received back into Zhou Wangchuan's arms and walked in front without saying a word.
Zhou Wangchuan caught up with him and stuffed the red envelope back: "My parents gave it to you, keep it."
He added: "Before, when some classmates came to my house for the New Year, my parents would give them red envelopes."
Shang Mu thought of Zhou's mother's gentle smile and put the red envelope back into his pocket without saying a word.
When they reached the school gate, Zhou Wangchuan thought of his junior who had been in a bad mood since last night, so he asked him to wait a moment and quickly went to the flower shop to buy a rose.
He repeated, "Medical research has confirmed that the fragrance of flowers can make people happy." Just as he was about to hand over the flowers, he remembered the bouquet of flowers that was thrown into the trash can by the lake, and the cold words, "I don't like flowers."
"Sorry, I forgot you don't like flowers." Zhou Wangchuan retracted his hand.
The roses were bright red, with morning dew settling on their curled petals.
Shang Mu glanced at him and took the flowers from his hand: "I like it."
On the way back to the dormitory, Shang Mu looked at the flowers in his hand, pursed his lips, and blamed himself in his heart. His attempt last night failed. No one could accept a lover like him. He should keep his distance.
He shouldn't have accepted the flower.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
