Chapter 70: Liu Fa’s Illness
Qiu Henian’s earlobes turned slightly red, but Qingyan didn’t notice it. He had already reached into the person’s clothes.
Just as he made contact, a large hand stopped him.
Qiu Henian grasped Qingyan’s wrist, maintaining this position, gazing deeply at him and softly asking, “Where do you want to touch?”
Qingyan blinked his watery eyes, blushing deeply, and replied, “I want to touch everywhere.”
Qiu Henian stared at him intensely, one hand still holding Qingyan’s wrist while the other lifted, untying his own clothes and tossing them aside.
Then he released Qingyan’s hand and said, “What you want to do, do it yourself.”
Qingyan felt his throat dry up. All he could see were the beautiful muscle lines and smooth, healthy light brown skin; he couldn’t take his eyes off them.
When he looked up, his eyes met the man’s, and Qingyan’s heart raced rapidly. The playful, teasing demeanor from earlier suddenly couldn’t be maintained.
Even though he was encouraged to take action himself, Qingyan hesitated, feeling as if he were being teased.
Qingyan leaned forward, instinctively wanting to bury his head in the man’s neck, using his cheek to feel the warmth of the other person’s body, which made him feel secure.
But Qiu Henian raised his hand and pressed down on Qingyan’s shoulder.
Qingyan suddenly felt aggrieved and stopped resisting the hand on his shoulder. He raised his arm to wrap around the man’s neck and threw himself into his embrace.
The man’s hand also withdrew in time, embracing him fully.
Qiu Henian’s lips were near his ear, his breath warm, his voice slightly husky, “Why did you stop touching?”
Qingyan tightly sealed his lips, refusing to speak, only burying his face deeper into the man’s neck.
Qiu Henian pinched his chin somewhat firmly to make him lift his head from his neck crevice.
With tearful eyes and a pitiful look, Qingyan gazed at him.
Qiu Henian’s deep gaze held, saying, “Open your mouth.”
Thinking Qiu Henian wanted him to respond to the earlier question, Qingyan pressed his lips together and shook his head.
Qiu Henian looked at him, his voice huskier now, “I won’t let you speak. Good boy, open your mouth.”
Now understanding, Qingyan blushed and obediently tilted his head back slightly. His tightly pursed lips parted slightly, revealing a glimpse of white teeth and a hint of red tongue.
However, Qiu Henian didn’t kiss him. Instead, he lowered his gaze to Qingyan’s lips, his thumb on Qingyan’s chin moving gently, caressing the soft and full lips, making them blush.
Then, withdrawing his thumb temporarily, he used his index and middle fingers to explore Qingyan’s mouth. Qingyan’s eyelashes fluttered as he felt his own soft tongue being gently teased, causing a tingling sensation inside his mouth, moist and sensitive.
Unable to resist for long, Qingyan’s eyes grew even more moist, looking at the man with eager anticipation.
The man stared back, slowly withdrawing his fingers and pressing Qingyan down onto the bed.
Qingyan made a couple of noises, then obediently spread out his limbs, reaching under the pillow for his wrist guard.
As he moved his arm, the hem of his inner garment rode up, exposing his fair and soft belly.
The man above him casually glanced down and seemed to realize something suddenly, freezing his body just as he was about to move downward.
Qingyan’s hand with the wrist guard was pressed under the pillow, and Qiu Henian’s expression changed.
Confused, Qingyan looked at him, but before he could understand the man’s expression, Qiu Henian abruptly kissed him with some forcefulness.
After the kiss, Qingyan felt a bit sore in his lips and tongue, yet he patiently awaited the man’s next move.
Qiu Henian then adjusted Qingyan’s loose clothing, pulled his hand from under the pillow, and embraced him fully, his voice deep and resonant, “It’s late. Let’s sleep.”
Qingyan blinked in confusion, wanting to say something but unable to form the words.
Recently, Qiu Henian had been taking medicine every day, which might have affected his body. Moreover, he had been busy all day in the shop, possibly tired as well.
Qingyan didn’t think much about it, calming the restlessness in his body. He hugged the man’s waist and slowly fell asleep against his chest.
…
The next day, Qingyan accompanied Qiu Henian to the old doctor’s for pulse diagnosis.
When the senior doctor left, he instructed them to adjust the medicine according to Qiu Henian’s condition at any time.
After diagnosing his pulse, the old doctor looked at Qiu Henian’s complexion and asked, “Have there been any discomforts these past few days?”
Qiu Henian replied, “Just too many dreams at night, but I don’t remember any of them upon waking.”
In the pharmacy, the old doctor added a sedative herb and handed it over to his young apprentice to prepare the medicine.
After receiving the medicine, the couple left the consultation room. They saw Liu’s ox cart parked at the roadside just outside the door.
Liu’s daughter-in-law had swollen eyes and a distressed look as she got off the cart. Behind her, Zhang Ju and Liu Xiang also got down from the cart, both looking grim and silent.
When Liu’s daughter-in-law saw Qiu Henian and Qingyan coming out of the door, she was momentarily stunned.
She walked up to them, forced a smile, and said, “What a coincidence, you’re here for a check-up too?”
Qingyan nodded and said, “Henian hasn’t been sleeping well at night these days, so we came to get a sedative.”
He didn’t mention the poisoning incident. It wasn’t necessary, and with so many people around, rumors could spread easily and unpredictably.
Qingyan then asked, “Why are you all here? Is someone not feeling well?”
Liu’s daughter-in-law smiled awkwardly, didn’t answer the question directly, but said, “It’s good that we met. Wait for me here for a while, we can ride the ox cart back together after we’re done.”
Qingyan glanced at Qiu Henian, who remained silent.
He then smiled at Liu’s daughter-in-law and said, “No need to trouble yourself. It’s sunny today, so we’ll take a walk and enjoy the sunshine.”
Liu’s daughter-in-law didn’t insist. Instead, she seemed relieved and said, “Then we’ll go in first. You both are welcome to visit our home when you have time.”
She turned to Qiu Henian and added, “Liu Fa at home was just talking about how it’s been a while since you played cards together.”
Qiu Henian nodded and said, “Alright.”
Liu’s daughter-in-law went inside, followed by Zhang Ju who had his head down and hurriedly followed her.
As Liu Xiang passed by them, his eyes lingered on Qiu Henian. Qingyan cleared his throat lightly, and Liu Xiang quickly looked away, hastening his steps until he disappeared behind the door.
A couple of days later, Qingyan heard from Aunt Li that Liu Youfu had found work in the county town and moved his family there.
This news circulated in the village for a few days. People said Liu Youfu seemed to have fallen on hard times but was quite capable. Finding work in the county town wasn’t difficult, but it wasn’t easy to support a family of four there.
Even if they didn’t buy a house, renting one was expensive, and the cost of living was higher than in the village or town.
Qingyan felt something wasn’t quite right but didn’t dwell on it.
Just a few days after Liu Youfu’s family moved out of the village, Liu’s daughter-in-law fell ill again, and this time, she couldn’t get out of bed.
No one knew about this. They secretly took the ox cart to see the doctor in the evening.
Liu Fa eventually couldn’t handle it anymore and came to find Qiu Henian, asking Qingyan to persuade his wife.
That’s when they found out what was going on!
Spoiler for the Next Chapter:
The two kissed for a while, Qingyan panting heavily, tightly hugged by the man’s arms, and his body shook all at once.
