ABSTIWTVMST Chapter 77

As soon as Xu Chenghao entered the bedroom, he began to lock the door and close the windows. While he was checking for any oversights, there was a sudden banging on the door. Even through the heavy door panel, Xu Chenghao could hear Jing Yicheng’s suppressed anger: “Xu Chenghao, open the door for me!”

Xu Chenghao played dead. It was impossible for him to open the door. He had barely escaped a disaster by wit, how could he willingly throw himself back into the lion’s den?

Jing Yicheng gritted his teeth. “Don’t make me kick the door down.”

Xu Chenghao sat cross-legged on the floor, leaning against the door, taking a picture of himself and sending it to Jing Yicheng. “If you kick the door, you’re kicking me. If you kick me, I’ll turn hostile!”

Jing Yicheng who received the message: “…”

He saved the photo first, then stood at the door and sent a message, “Then you open the door!”

“I won’t.”

“Will you or you won’t?”

“I won’t!”

“…”

After engaging in a series of childish dialogues, Jing Yicheng fiercely typed, “You can hide on the first day of the month but not on the fifteenth! If you’re capable, don’t let me catch you!”

Xu Chenghao: “Get out of my house quickly!”

Jing Yicheng: “I won’t.”

Xu Chenghao: “You are shameless!”

Jing Yicheng: “Nope!”

Xu Chenghao: “…”

Forget it, he’d better think about what to do tomorrow morning. At least… at least for now, he wasn’t mentally prepared to face Jing Yicheng.

Xu Chenghao got up anxiously and went to the bathroom to freshen up and rest. Perhaps because he had been thinking too much before going to bed, Xu Chenghao was chased by Jing Yicheng all night even in his dreams, leaving him half-dead from exhaustion.

After finally waking up, as soon as he opened his eyes, he saw Jing Yicheng standing by the bed with two dark circles under his eyes, bending over to look at him, his voice faint, “You’re awake…”

“!!!” Xu Chenghao was instantly frightened awake, sitting up abruptly, “What are you doing h—” Xu Chenghao got up in a conditioned reflex and was about to exclaim in shock, but before Jing Yicheng could react, both of them bumped heads together, the pain causing Xu Chenghao to scream and fall back onto the bed again.

Jing Yicheng’s expression changed, hurriedly pulling the blanket, “Where did you bump? Let me see?”

Xu Chenghao covered his forehead, the tears of pain almost falling. “Is your head made of iron? Why is it so hard!”

Jing Yicheng checked his forehead, frowning. “It’s a bit red. Does it hurt a lot?”

“What do you think?” Xu Chenghao impatiently pushed his hand away and sat up, glancing at the door of his bedroom. “How did you get in?”

Jing Yicheng bluntly said, “Picked the lock.”

Xu Chenghao paused, then couldn’t help but grab a pillow and hit him. “So annoying, so annoying, you’re so annoying!”

Jing Yicheng, afraid of hurting him again, didn’t dare to move, apologizing while enduring the beating. “Sorry, sorry, won’t do it again next time.”

“You think there will be a next time?” Xu Chenghao exploded with anger. “Don’t stay in my house anymore! Go back to your own!”

Jing Yicheng: “…I really know I was wrong.”

Xu Chenghao remained stern, refusing to accept the apology. “Get out!”

Jing Yicheng had already forgotten why he had been squatting outside all night. Being scolded, he could only silently turn around and leave the room. As he closed the door, he said, “You brush your teeth and wash your face first, I’ll get medicine.”

Xu Chenghao didn’t want to talk to him, sitting on the bed sulking. After Jing Yicheng left, he got up to wash and dress. As he tied his tie, he tentatively touched the obvious swelling on his head. Inhaling sharply, he gave up the idea of touching it further.

Jing Yicheng’s head must be made of iron! Absolutely!

Jing Yicheng, who was being nagged, had just asked his bodyguard for some ointment for his injuries and was sitting in the living room waiting him. So as soon as Xu Chenghao came out, he followed him around: “Let me apply some ointment on you!”

Xu Chenghao said with a stern face, “I don’t want it.”

Jing Yicheng spoke gently, “It’s already swollen. Applying it will make it heal faster.”

Xu Chenghao sat at the dining table, bowing his head to eat, not wanting to pay him any attention.

Jing Yicheng sat beside him, propping his chin up, watching him, “It’s really swollen, with a red ring around it.”

Xu Chenghao couldn’t help grinding his teeth, “How dare you say that? If it weren’t for you scaring me like that, how could I end up like this!”

Jing Yicheng whispered, “If it weren’t for you avoiding me and not willing to talk to me clearly, I wouldn’t have had to pick the lock.”

Xu Chenghao glared at him sideways.

Jing Yicheng: “…Fine, I won’t say anymore. But you have to apply the medicine after you finish your meal.”

Xu Chenghao withdrew his gaze and continued eating, remaining silent for a while before suddenly saying, “Jing Yicheng, even friends have boundaries.”

He pointed at the fried egg on the plate and said softly, “Don’t you think you’ve crossed a line?”

Jing Yicheng was stunned for a few seconds, his expression gradually becoming serious, “If you feel that I’ve crossed a line or done something wrong, please tell me directly. As long as it’s you speaking, at least I’ll know these are wrong, and I’ll try to change myself. I don’t want you avoiding me, especially without any explanation, suddenly wanting to distance yourself from me. I won’t accept that.”

The chopsticks poking the poached egg suddenly stopped, and Xu Chenghao couldn’t help but glance back at Jing Yicheng. He never expected such logical and organized words to come out of his mouth.

Jing Yicheng stared at him intently.

Xu Chenghao met his gaze, his eyes began to wander, and he lowered his head to poke the poached egg again. “Then you should learn from Li Nian. At the very least, he never cares where I go, why I don’t answer the phone, never refuses to leave my house, and he doesn’t bully me into bumping my head like this.”

The incident of bumping heads did make Jing Yicheng feel guilty. He cleared his throat lightly. “Alright, I’ll try to improve.”

Xu Chenghao continued poking the poached egg. “Then when are you going to move out?”

Jing Yicheng: “When you stop avoiding me.”

Xu Chenghao muttered softly, “…I’m not avoiding you.”

Jing Yicheng suddenly leaned in close. “Then look at me.”

Xu Chenghao glanced at him but quickly averted his gaze. “I looked.”

Jing Yicheng: “…”

Suddenly, Xu Chenghao looked so cute. He even felt a sense of cuteness overload. What should he do?

Jing Yicheng felt a sense of being charmed and instinctively raised his hand to rub Xu Chenghao’s head. “Did you used to look at me like this before?”

“I’m eating!” Xu Chenghao was startled by the head-rubbing gesture, immediately moved his plate aside, and warned, “You can’t touch a man’s head.”

Jing Yicheng didn’t mind. “You can touch mine.”

Xu Chenghao said sternly, “Friends shouldn’t touch each other’s heads.”

Jing Yicheng relented. “Alright, I won’t do it again.”

Xu Chenghao nodded in satisfaction, then stared at his poached egg, which was about to be poked into a hornet’s nest, and suddenly realized: Was there ambiguity in his words?

Xu Chenghao: “…”

Once it was pointed out, everything really felt off!

Xu Chenghao felt both panicked and powerless against this change. He could only silently finish his poached egg, get up, and prepare to leave.

Jing Yicheng had been waiting for this moment. How could he let him leave? He reached out and blocked Xu Chenghao’s path, saying solemnly, “Medicine.”

Xu Chenghao said defensively. “I can do it myself!”

Without forcing him, Jing Yicheng handed him the ointment and watched until Xu Chenghao finished applying it before letting him go to work.

As Xu Chenghao drove out of the neighborhood, he breathed a sigh of relief, swearing not to come back tonight! Definitely not!

Upon arriving at the company, Li Nian noticed the obvious red mark on his head and frowned. “What happened?”

Xu Chenghao retorted irritably, “Because of you.”

Li Nian was puzzled. “What did I do? I’m so innocent, pure, kind, and cute, and yet you say such things to me!”

Xu Chenghao: “…”

Feeling disgusted, Xu Chenghao continued without looking back, heading straight to his office. Li Nian followed him in. “What’s going on? Do you need some medicine?”

“I’ve applied it.” Xu Chenghao placed the little yellow duck flowerpot on his desk and looked at the lush chili seedlings inside. He took out his phone to set a reminder for picking chili peppers, so he wouldn’t forget like last time, which led to a disaster where all the chili peppers in the little yellow duck and the big flowerpot were destroyed.

Now just the thought of it made him feel heartbroken.

After Li Nian waited for him to finish his tasks, he handed him today’s schedule and continued gossiping, “Who applied the medicine?”

“I did it myself. Can’t you see my two hands?” Xu Chenghao waved his hands to emphasize their existence.

Li Nian: “…You did it yourself, so why are you so excited? Or did you go home last night and think about what I said, feeling that it all made sense, and now you’re too embarrassed to face me?”

Xu Chenghao suddenly stood up and rolled up his sleeves. “If you hadn’t brought up yesterday’s matter, maybe I could have let it go. But since you did, then I’m sorry!”

With that, Xu Chenghao grabbed his folder and stormed off. Li Nian was already prepared. Seeing this, he turned and ran, shouting, “I told you not to think independently, but you always end up overthinking everything again!!”

Xu Chenghao chased after him, angrily saying, “I’m overthinking because of you!”

Li Nian leaped over the office desk, successfully creating distance between them, and began to walk around it. “So you’re saying you’re just embarrassed?”

“I’m not embarrassed at all!” Xu Chenghao swung his folder at him.

Li Nian dodged to the side and then quickly moved away, saying as he walked, “Then why are you so worked up? I’m telling you, you don’t appreciate a good person’s heart. It’s better for me to point it out early rather than you realizing it later. At least now you still have the right to choose!”

Xu Chenghao suddenly stopped, feeling annoyed as he said, “Yeah, so now I have to make a choice, don’t I?”

This sentence basically admitted it. Li Nian also slammed on the brakes and stood still, dumbfounded, saying, “Holy cow, you…”

Feeling a bit embarrassed, Xu Chenghao turned around and said, “Forget it, let’s not talk about it.”

“Don’t!” Li Nian caught up, excitedly saying, “The emotional master is here to unravel the mysteries!”

Xu Chenghao looked at him distrustfully, “Are you sure you won’t tell anyone else?”

Li Nian patted his chest, “Of course not, professional ethics.”

Xu Chenghao reluctantly believed him, so the two reconciled, closed the door, and continued chatting.

Li Nian sighed, “You fell too quickly. I thought it was just Jing Yicheng’s unrequited love, didn’t expect it to be so intense.”

Xu Chenghao sighed, “I didn’t want to either. If you hadn’t suddenly pointed it out, I probably could have continued to be clueless.”

Li Nian replied, “Don’t even think about it. If you continue to be clueless, you’ll end up getting swallowed whole by people.”

Xu Chenghao asked, “So what should we do?”

With an air of mastery, Li Nian calmly replied while pretending to stroke a nonexistent beard, “First, tell me about your current situation.”

After a moment of thought, Xu Chenghao continued, “It’s nothing much, just that he’s staying at my place, oh right, it’s the guest room you usually use. Previously, due to the project, the two of us might have gone to work together and had meals together at home, but we maintained a friendship. Usually, when sitting together watching TV, we keep our distance, at most getting closer to share some fruits…”

“… Actually, this morning, it was him who accidentally hit my head. He startled me by leaning over my bed, and our heads bumped resulting in my injury, his head is just too hard. The ointment I used was his, he even put it in my pocket…”

After Xu Chenghao finished his rambling, he earnestly said to Li Nian, “Apart from this, there really is nothing else.”

Li Nian: “???”
Is there even a need to mention ‘apart from this’?

 

The author has something to say: Li Nian: I can’t handle this emotional guru role anymore!!

T/N: Procrastinating this chapter because my old Pc that had my complete work got robbed did me no good. I’m done sulking lol. Cloud storage is my friend now hehe. Y’all have been missed😘