The Downtrodden Villain In A Redemption Romance Novel Chapter 12

Chapter 12 Morning

Sunlight filtered through the thin curtains, dappling Xu Wen’s face. He groggily opened his eyes and was abruptly met with a pair of slightly vacant peach blossom eyes. Lu Qingrang had been awake for who knows how long, quietly watching him.

“Morn—morning,” Xu Wen mumbled instinctively, his voice thick with sleepiness and hoarseness.

Lu Qingrang didn’t respond, only blinked. His long lashes fluttered gently in the morning light, and no emotion was discernible in those beautiful eyes.

The two stared at each other without moving. The room was so quiet that only the sounds filtering through the thin walls of the rental unit remained: a neighbor’s morning cough, the muffled news on a TV, and the faint traffic from the distant street.

Xu Wen was the first to break, awkwardly shifting his gaze, preparing to get up and wash.

The moment he moved, he felt a distinct tug on his left wrist. Only then did he belatedly remember his handiwork from the night before. He turned his head and saw that Lu Qingrang’s arm had indeed been slightly pulled out of position by the rope.

“Ahem…” Xu Wen scratched his head with his free hand, trying to look perfectly justified.

“Well, this, this was mainly because I was worried you’d kick off the blanket in the middle of the night.”

He fumbled to untie the knot while speaking, his ears slightly flushed.

“Seriously, trust me. You won’t find many roommates as considerate as me these days.”

The knot finally loosened. Xu Wen let out a sigh of relief and flexed his newly freed wrist, which bore a faint red mark. He subconsciously looked at Lu Qingrang’s wrist and found a similar mark there, which was more noticeable against his pale skin.

“Sorry,” Xu Wen whispered, rubbing the red mark on his own wrist. “Did I tie it too tightly?”

Lu Qingrang didn’t answer, merely withdrawing his hand quietly, his fingertips lightly tracing the mark on his wrist. This subtle action made Xu Wen’s heart clench. This was probably the closest Lu Qingrang had come to responding in the past few days.

After finally undoing the messy knot he had tied and rubbing his slightly numb wrist, he was about to call Lu Qingrang to get up and wash together.

“Let’s go, CEO Lu, a new day…”

Before he could finish, Lu Qingrang, who had been cooperating with his movements and was about to sit up, suddenly swayed. His already pale face instantly drained of all color, and he softly began to fall backward.

“Watch out!”

Xu Wen’s heart seized. Almost instinctively, he lunged forward, spreading his arms to catch the man securely in his embrace. Lu Qingrang’s slender body was almost weightless, leaning entirely against him. The fine strands of hair on his forehead brushed against Xu Wen’s neck, causing a slight tickle.

Unlike any previous contact, this time, in the complete exhaustion and dizziness, Lu Qingrang seemed unconsciously to seek support, his forehead lightly resting on Xu Wen’s shoulder.

The touch was light, yet it felt like an electric current.

Xu Wen froze completely, daring not to move. He could only feel the other man’s faint breath against his collarbone and the unusually clear body heat transmitted through the thin fabric.

This reliance lasted only a few short seconds.

Lu Qingrang’s eyelashes fluttered, and his consciousness rapidly returned. As if scalded, he abruptly straightened up, quickly pulling away from Xu Wen’s embrace, and took a half-step back, his footing still slightly unsteady, increasing the distance between them.

He turned his head, avoiding Xu Wen’s gaze, but a faint flush uncontrollably spread across his fair earlobes.

Xu Wen took in his reaction, his heart soaring with delight, but he maintained a facade of calm, even deliberately adopting a light, teasing tone:

“Oh dear, CEO Lu,” he rubbed his nose, unable to stop the corners of his mouth from curling up. “Your attempt at faking an injury isn’t very good. It’s too obvious, isn’t it?”

At the same time, he was screaming frantically at the System internally:

“System! System!! Did you see that! Just now! He leaned on me! A full three seconds! A historic three seconds! Quick! Record it! Did the Redemption Value skyrocket?! This counts as a major breakthrough, right?! It absolutely does!”

[System Notification: Detected brief physical reliance behavior from the target. Current Redemption Value: 2%]

Listening to the System’s calm broadcast, Xu Wen looked at Lu Qingrang, who was trying to maintain composure despite the lingering blush on his ears, and his smile grew even brighter.

It was worth it! Forget 2%, even 0.2% would be cause for celebration with firecrackers!

“Here, sit down for a bit,” Xu Wen helped Lu Qingrang sit on the edge of the bed. “I’ll go get a hot towel for you to wipe your face, and then we’ll eat something.”

He hurried toward the cramped bathroom, turning on the faucet and waiting for the hot water to flow. The reflection in the mirror showed his messy hair, but his eyes were startlingly bright.

He couldn’t help but flash a victory sign at the mirror, then quickly retracted it, afraid Lu Qingrang outside might see.

The warm towel gently wiped his cheek. It had been barely three or four days since he was brought out of the hospital, yet this person had taken care of him so meticulously so many times.

Lu Qingrang’s gaze fell on Xu Wen’s face, which was close by. In the morning light, the young man’s lips were slightly pursed, his expression one of genuine concentration.

His overly long black hair was sticking up messily, and there was fine sweat on his forehead from rushing to catch him earlier. His eyes, which were always excessively bright, were carefully examining Lu Qingrang’s face, as if completing a task of utmost importance.

Three or four days.

This realization deepened the confusion in Lu Qingrang’s heart. He still couldn’t understand why he, a hollowed-out shell, was still being treated with such careful attention. What was this person after?

When the towel gently wiped his forehead, Lu Qingrang unconsciously closed his eyes. This feeling of being treated tenderly was too unfamiliar, so unfamiliar that it left him feeling helpless.

He was accustomed to being used, abandoned, and hurt, but he didn’t know how to respond to this kind of unprompted care.

Xu Wen noticed him closing his eyes, and his movements became even softer.

He could feel Lu Qingrang’s tense body relaxing bit by bit, and this subtle change filled his heart with joy.

“Success! Successfully completed a perfect face-washing!” Xu Wen suppressed the urge to smile, claiming credit frantically to the System in his mind: “See that! He was especially compliant today! What does that mean? It means yesterday’s damsel-in-distress rescue was highly effective, System!”

His hand movements grew even gentler. Using the opportunity of wiping his face, he secretly took a few more glances at Lu Qingrang’s rare, clear, and focused appearance.

“Even though it’s only been three or four days, I feel like the progress bar is moving! This sense of accomplishment is more satisfying than finishing a project after working overtime for a month in my previous life! Quick, check if the Redemption Value has fluctuated? Even 0.1% is fine!”

[Target cooperation is good. Redemption Value is accumulating. Host, please remain patient.]

Xu Wen inwardly clicked his tongue, dissatisfied with the vague phrase “is accumulating,” but seeing Lu Qingrang not looking away for once, he was immediately reinvigorated.

And Lu Qingrang, simply gazing at the excessively bright eyes of the person before him, watching his focused, almost devout expression, allowed himself for the first time to immerse himself in this brief but genuine warmth, without immediately questioning whether it was worth it or if he should accept it.