The Flower Of The High Mountain Is Pregnant With The Son Of The Sand Sculpture Ceo Chapter 17
byChapter 17 A Good Husband
Lu Shangyan’s hand paused after sending the message, then he quickly pressed ‘Unsend,’ his ears turning red belatedly.
Just moments ago, he had dared to jump from the building, looking utterly fearless, yet upon seeing Pei Yumin’s message, he suddenly felt weak. This was despite the fact that it was just a normal thing Pei Yumin often said to him.
Lu Shangyan blinked, then took a photo of a small patch of blue-purple flowers in a planter by the roadside and sent it to him.
[I sent the wrong message just now. I meant to send you this. Found it near the school gate.]
Pei Yumin replied quickly:
[I saw it.]
Lu Shangyan stopped walking. Before he could execute his subtle probing, he saw a new message from Pei Yumin:
[m: Was it Chen Shuo?]
Lu Shangyan was now certain that his earlier unsending and his selection of the prettiest little patch of flowers were all futile efforts.
He took a deep breath. Normally, he walked to his part-time job, but lately, he got tired easily, so he started taking the bus. Even standing at the bus stop felt exhausting; he needed to sit down.
He didn’t know how to reply to Pei Yumin’s message, so he simply stared blankly at the screen. After watching for a while, he realized his hands and legs were trembling.
After he got on the bus, Pei Yumin’s message came through again, not continuing the previous topic, but simply asking him:
[m: Sweet and sour pork ribs or salt and pepper pork ribs.]
Lu Shangyan licked his dry lips and replied:
[s: Can’t choose.]
[m: Then I’ll make both.]
[m: I’m going grocery shopping now. I’ll pick you up after work later.]
Lu Shangyan did not refuse.
But he suddenly thought that in the past, no matter how difficult or painful things were, he never needed help. When he had no money for food at school, he went hungry for three and a half days, only drinking raw water from the sink, and he didn’t think anything of it. Not having to go back and see those aunts was actually a relief for him.
At school, people often called him an unwanted bastard child, mocked him for constantly wearing ill-fitting old clothes, always having unstitched holes in his garments, and having to pick up trash around the school after class or help clean nearby small restaurants in exchange for food.
…There were too many such incidents; he couldn’t list them all even if he talked for a day and a night. He had long ago let these unintentional or deliberate acts of malice wear down his so-called self-esteem, and he had developed a thick shell that was not easily pierced.
Now, that shell had developed cracks without him even noticing.
He only knew that he was becoming increasingly prone to feeling wronged, but he didn’t know why this was happening.
Today wasn’t a rest day, and work wasn’t too busy, so Lu Shangyan sat behind the counter, spacing out. He tried to think, but his mind remained blank. The girl working with him noticed his distraction and couldn’t help but ask, “Did you break up with someone?”
Lu Shangyan’s unfocused eyes finally sharpened. “No.”
Li Xiaorui looked at him suspiciously. “Then what are you thinking about? If the supervisor catches you slacking off, you’ll be fined.”
At the mention of money, Lu Shangyan straightened his back. “Thank you.”
Li Xiaorui was confused by the thanks. Seeing that he wasn’t in the mood for small talk, she didn’t press further. However, less than half a minute later, she couldn’t hold back. “Your hand is still bleeding!”
His hand had been scratched when he climbed through the window, leaving a shallow wound on the back of his hand. It had stopped bleeding on the way from school, so he hadn’t paid much attention to it.
If Li Xiaorui hadn’t cried out, he would have forgotten he was injured. Now, looking down, he saw that his entire hand was swollen, making the scratch look alarming.
Li Xiaorui had been standing to his right just now and couldn’t see his left hand clearly. Now that she saw it, she immediately jumped up, ran to get the first-aid kit, and crouched down to treat his wound. “You have to treat this wound properly, or it’ll be trouble if it gets infected and inflamed.”
The more she spoke, the more scared she became. Finally, she widened her eyes. “What if you need an amputation! This is your hand!”
Lu Shangyan had suffered many injuries, and although he was living such a life, he was still very afraid of death. Hearing her words, he instinctively pulled his hand back, nearly breaking out in a cold sweat again.
Li Xiaorui finished wrapping the gauze. “There, done.”
The wound looked gruesome, but once the blood was wiped away, it was fine. Lu Shangyan was no longer scared and thanked her, then started watching the clock.
It was still early before his shift ended.
Li Xiaorui leaned closer and whispered, “Who is that person who always comes to pick you up after work?”
Lu Shangyan said, “My roommate.”
Li Xiaorui raised an eyebrow, adopting an ‘I understand everything’ expression, and drew out her voice with several inflections, “Ohhh~”
Lu Shangyan didn’t know what she understood, only that her expression was very strange.
Li Xiaorui added, “I shouldn’t have helped you treat the wound. You should have let your roommate take you to see the injury. He would definitely feel very distressed for you.”
As she said this, she smiled wickedly.
Lu Shangyan didn’t understand and asked her sincerely, “Will he really feel distressed for me?”
Li Xiaorui said seriously, “Of course! Try it if you don’t believe me!”
—
When Pei Yumin came to pick him up, he didn’t wait in the car as requested this time. Instead, he arrived half an hour early and sat in the hotel lobby.
The moment Pei Yumin walked in, he stared at Lu Shangyan, causing Lu Shangyan to almost make a mistake while checking in a guest. Finally, he couldn’t stand it anymore and hid behind the counter to message Pei Yumin.
[s: Stop looking at me.]
Pei Yumin didn’t reply. Instead, he stood up and walked toward him. “Why?”
Lu Shangyan frowned slightly and used his eyes to signal him to sit back down.
It was a cryptic exchange, and Li Xiaorui covered her mouth, giggling nearby. Although she didn’t understand, she thought it was a secret code between the two of them.
Pei Yumin didn’t leave. He bent down and leaned on the counter, looking up at Lu Shangyan. Just as he was about to speak again, he noticed a flash of white. He craned his neck to look and realized Lu Shangyan was injured. “How did you do that?”
His tone was much more serious than before. Li Xiaorui stopped laughing and just pricked up her ears to eavesdrop.
Lu Shangyan said, “I accidentally scratched it.”
Pei Yumin walked around the counter to stand in front of him, took his phone, and took pictures of his hand from the front and back. “In this situation, you can ask Tang… ask Song Yuxin for workers’ compensation.”
He was about to send the photos to Song Yuxin, secretly signaling him to give more money.
Lu Shangyan said, “I scratched it at school.”
Pei Yumin turned off the screen, acted as if nothing had happened, and pulled out a smile before sitting back down. “Then there’s nothing we can do. I’ll just have to add an extra pig trotter tonight to help supplement your hand.”
“Chicken feet work too. They’re both for ‘treating like with like’.”
Before Lu Shangyan could say anything, Li Xiaorui couldn’t help herself. “What a good husband!”
Pei Yumin finally noticed the person next to him and looked at her with approval.
He had finally met someone who understood him so well!
—
After returning home, Pei Yumin went to the kitchen to cook, and Lu Shangyan, who had dust on him, went to shower first.
Pei Yumin still took the opportunity to send the photos to Tang Suichen.
[m: Chen Shuo did this.]
[m: Is the person you found reliable? It’s been days and there’s no movement at all. If it really won’t work, I’ll think of another way sooner.]
[Delicious Juicy Orange: I was busy with a date this afternoon and forgot to tell you. Everything you asked for has been taken care of.]
[Delicious Juicy Orange: Chen Shuo injured this hand? Why do I feel like he accidentally scratched it himself while climbing through the window.]
[m: He climbed the window to teach Chen Shuo a lesson! This matter is inseparable from him! The blame should be placed on his head!]
Tang Suichen didn’t dare to provoke him at this time and went along with his words: [Should I have him go tomorrow afternoon?]
[m: Lu Shangyan finishes class at 4:20 PM tomorrow. Have him go find Chen Shuo five minutes earlier.]
Tang Suichen had a headache but could only agree.
The sound of water came from the bathroom again. Pei Yumin stuffed his phone back into the front pocket of his apron, which was covered in little pufferfish, and peered at the closed bathroom door.
Somehow, he couldn’t resist walking to the bathroom door. He held his breath, but even so, he couldn’t hide for long before Lu Shangyan called his name. “Pei Yumin? What are you doing standing by the door?”
Pei Yumin stood ramrod straight like a primary school student caught misbehaving. “Your hand is injured, right? I was worried it would be inconvenient for you to shower, so I wanted to ask if you needed help washing.”
Hearing this, Lu Shangyan, who was standing steadily on flat ground, nearly slipped. “N-no, I don’t.”
He used to not think there was anything wrong with two men showering together, but now, the thought of being naked with Pei Yumin—no, him being naked alone—made him feel uneasy, and his breathing became irregular.
Pei Yumin acknowledged him but didn’t leave, still standing there.
Lu Shangyan looked at the dark shadow by the door, quickly rinsed the soap off his body with his left hand, and put on his pajamas without thoroughly drying himself.
The clothes were his old ones, already loose and baggy. They didn’t absorb water and sagged downward. When he came out, he was damp all over, half a shoulder exposed, and there were several fingernail-sized holes where the seams had come undone near his chest.
Pei Yumin saw it immediately, quickly looked away, but then looked back two seconds later, repeating the action several times. “It’s not that hot yet. Aren’t you cold wearing something so thin at night?”
Lu Shangyan didn’t understand the implication of his words. Not only did he not change clothes, but when he sat down, he sat on the bottom of his shirt, pressing it under his butt. The already inelastic fabric stretched tightly against his body.
Pei Yumin sat across from him, experiencing for the first time the agony of having a huge appetite but being unable to eat.
That night, after Lu Shangyan fell asleep, he placed his hand against the wall, thinking that Lu Shangyan’s bed was also against this wall, and they were separated by only a single wall.
His suppressed breathing grew heavier, and the movement of his hand accelerated…
Until his forehead rested against the wall, and he let out a heavy sigh. The world finally quieted down; everything was over.
The next day, after Lu Shangyan woke up, Pei Yumin avoided looking him in the eye.
All the way to school, Lu Shangyan couldn’t find an opportunity to ask him why he was changing his underwear three times a day. If he had some kind of male health issue, he needed to seek medical attention immediately, or it could become very difficult to treat!
He kept looking for the right opening to persuade Pei Yumin, as this matter was quite damaging to a man’s self-esteem.
He didn’t find a suitable chance until school ended. Instead, he saw Chen Shuo at the school gate.
A boy was hugging his neck in an intimate posture. “Hubby, you haven’t come to see me in so long. Did you forget about me?”
“But a while ago, you held me so tightly in bed, and you even bit my ear and said you’d love this little temptress forever.”
Author’s Note:
———————-
Pei Yumin: Wife won’t let me watch him shower, I’m sad, sob sob sob [Cat Paw]