Uncle Liu sent them back to the homestay. Zhu Tong wanted to go in by himself, but as soon as he opened his leg, he felt a tingling pain, and finally he could only be carried back by Shao Ming obediently.
Shao Ming put him on the sofa – the one that he complained about being “narrow” – and went to get the medicine box without saying a word.
Zhu Tong breathed a sigh of relief and lifted his leg up again in an instant.
He watched Shao Ming sit down on the sofa next to the medicine box. Zhu Tong said in shock, “Can you go back for now…”
Shao Ming replied, “After a while, the pants will be stuck to the wound.”
Zhu Tong: “…”
Isn’t this a little too straight to the point?
He glanced at his room again, “Then… then I’ll go back to my room and apply the medicine myself.”
Shao Ming chuckled. “What? Are you afraid I’ll see it?”
Zhu Tong was stunned, thinking to himself, ‘A little bit…’
He lowered his head and said, “No, it’s just… a little awkward.”
Shao Ming opened the medicine box. “Huh? Why?”
Zhu Tong: “…”
He actually does not know why.
But when he thought that Shao Ming was going to give him medicine on his inner thigh, he felt awkward.
Or rather… sorry.
How did it happen to hurt in such an awkward place?
Shao Ming had already taken the medicines he might use from the medicine box. Zhu Tong looked at his skilled movements, and his heart tightened slightly. ‘Why are you so skilled? Have you used it often before?’
Thinking of being forced into an obstacle on the racecourse today, Zhu Tong paused and asked, “How did you deal with this kind of thing before?”
He suddenly changed the subject, making Shao Ming raise his eyebrows. “What?”
Zhu Tong: “Did anyone trouble you like this before?”
Shao Ming said honestly, “Yes.”
“Then you…”
“To face the enemy with force, to use terrain for cover when confronted with water, and to fight if possible, run if unable. If all else fails, seek help from the country. How’s that? Am I still a qualified citizen?”
Zhu Tong: “…”
Is there such a thing as a citizen being qualified or unqualified?
He couldn’t help but smile, and then the smile faded again.
If the enemy used their actions, then it could be solved. But what about if the enemy used their words?
There were a lot of people like He Xiaoxiao who thought they were superior. Those who are jealous of Shao Ming because they like Xia Yang, what do they say about him in school?
Even if no one dared to say those words in front of him, what about behind his back?
With so many people gossiping behind his back, Shao Ming was bound to catch on a few. What did he think when he heard those words?
“You…” Zhu Tong thoughtfully said, “If you encounter trouble in the future, you can tell me, I… I will scold them for you.”
“…”
Shao Ming paused as he opened the medicine bottle. “…Aren’t you afraid of offending them?”
Zhu Tong was stunned and said in surprise, “Really, ah? Afraid of who? Who is it?”
Shao Ming: “…”
He had an expression as if he was ready to fight someone in the next second. Shao Ming felt a flutter in his heart, his lips curled slightly, and he calmly said, “No, just asking casually.”
Zhu Tong breathed a sigh of relief. After he thought for a while, he replied, “If you offend people, you shouldn’t be afraid.”
There are not many in the whole country who he doesn’t dare to offend.
‘But wait, it’s always people in this country, is it?’
Zhu Tong pondered for a moment about Xia Yang’s numerous suitors in the original novel; it seems there aren’t any formidable foreigners among them.
He said it easily, but Shao Ming narrowed his eyes.
When he was at the racecourse today, he discovered that Zhu Tong’s identity might be more complicated than what he originally guessed.
He also knew about the Zhu family in A City. Although they are a big family, their status shouldn’t be enough to make a respectable person like He Biyou scared just by hearing his name.
And Uncle Liu, who can make He Biyou scared, is only playing the role of a driver and bodyguard beside Zhu Tong?
Shao Ming said meaningfully, “So our Young Master is a formidable person?”
“…”
Zhu Tong inexplicably trembled at the top of his heart when Shao Ming referred to him as “our Young Master”. He always felt that it sounded indescribably intimate. He subconsciously said, “No, just…”
Wrong.
What “intimate”?
Shouldn’t it be the opposite?
Zhu Tong suddenly raised his eyes to look at him.
Shao Ming smiled and asked, “What’s wrong?”
Zhu Tong’s tone became full of suspicion. “You… you’re not the type who, you know, would ignore me if I hid my identity from you, right?”
What he did on the racecourse was actually not much different from what He Xiaoxiao and the others did. It’s still a matter of who has the upper hand and who calls the shots… Shao Ming wouldn’t misunderstand him because of this, right?
He explained, “Actually, I don’t do this to all the people I hate. I’m not the type who likes to flaunt my status to others, I’m just someone who prefers an eye for an eye. I’m actually very ordinary, not that much different from you.”
Shao Ming froze slightly.
What kind of unconventional thoughts does this young master have, ah?
But unexpectedly… it works.
Shao Ming was silent for a moment, then said seriously, “I know, you are different from them.”
“…”
“Are you afraid that I will ignore you?”
Zhu Tong: “Of course, after all, you are my…”
He stopped mid-way talking.
Shao Ming’s eyes brightened. “What am I to you?”
Zhu Tong: “…”
He was his first real friend.
And perhaps, it goes just beyond normal friendship.
Shao Ming treats him very well, no one has ever treated him so well like him.
Grandpa and the Cheng family are also good to him, but they are his family members.
He suddenly didn’t know how to express it. He hesitated for a long time and could only say, “Anyway, it’s…”
“Okay, I see.”
Shao Ming interrupted him with a chuckle, “Don’t worry, I won’t ignore you, and I don’t care about your identity. I will work hard to make myself worthy of you.”
“…”
“How is it? Inspirational, isn’t it?”
Zhu Tong: “…”
‘Hmm, very inspiring.’
It just sounds weird.
He smiled suddenly, and seriously said, “You will definitely succeed.”
Shao Ming was stunned. “You trust me so much?”
Zhu Tong nodded. “Of course… wait, what are you doing with that scissor?”
Shao Ming had a pair of small medical scissors in his hands.
He looked down at Zhu Tong’s pants, which were already a little torn. He looked up and smiled, “Do you want to take off your pants, or should I cut them off?”
Zhu Tong lowered his head subconsciously.
He was sitting on the sofa, his legs were slightly apart, and as long as he didn’t move, it didn’t hurt much.
Realizing why Shao Ming took the scissors, he was stunned for a moment, his ears were slightly warm. He reached out and said, “I’ll do it myself.”
Shao Ming looked at him for a while, then got up, “Okay, I’ll go tell Uncle Liu…”
“Wait!”
Zhu Tong eagerly grabbed him before he could move.
Shao Ming lowered his head.
Zhu Tong blushed slightly. “You… you cut it.”
He thought to himself: ‘Isn’t this just showing my legs to a male friend? It’s not a big deal!’
Shao Ming’s lips curved up in a smile.”Cut your pants off?”
Zhu Tong nodded.
It’s better than taking off his pants in front of Shao Ming!
Shao Ming raised his eyebrows and joked, “Oh, that’s really a pity.”
Zhu Tong: “!”
What is he pitying about!
The answer: It’s a pity that he could only cut the pants.
Of course, Shao Ming would’ve preferred for him to take the pants off Zhu Tong’s legs directly. However, that pants were uncomfortably stuck to Zhu Tong’s chafed skin, and his legs hurt if he moved it even the slightest bit.
Thinking of Zhu Tong’s injury, the burgeoning lewd thoughts instantly vanished.
He pulled the medicine box closer and squatted down beside Zhu Tong’s legs.
The sudden approaching distance and the sudden change in height made Zhu Tong felt nervous.
Shao Ming had already cut off his pants and went all the way up.
Zhu Tong’s legs were very fair, with slender ankles, straight and long calves. The scissors continued all the way up to just above the knee, and a sudden flush of red appeared on the fair skin. Shao Ming couldn’t help but furrow his brow.
“Does it hurt?”
Zhu Tong’s body was tense. “It’s okay.”
Shao Ming raised his head and glanced, “Just be honest with your pain, don’t bear it alone.”
Zhu Tong nodded.
The chafing on the skin was really serious. Zhu Tong’s skin was originally very tender, so the friction from the saddle was enough to break his skin during that bumpy ride.
Zhu Tong himself was a little frightened.
No wonder he felt so much pain. If Uncle Liu saw this, he would probably insist on taking him to the hospital, right?
He couldn’t help worrying about Shao Ming, “Are you all right?”
They rode the same horse and on the same saddle, they should receive the same amount of friction.
Shao Ming said: “I’m okay, I have thick skin.”
Zhu Tong: “…”
For some reason, he felt that the air pressure was a little low when Shao Ming said this.
Shao Ming looked at the reddened skin between his legs, his eyes darkened.
Sure enough, he shouldn’t have easily let go of those bastards on the racecourse!
Regardless of his turmoil, when he opened his mouth, his voice was very soft. “First thing first, we’ll have to clean the wound. The blood has dried up. I’ll use an antiseptic solution to moisten it. It might sting a bit, but bear with it.”
Zhu Tong nodded lightly.
The wound felt cold when Shao Ming dabbed the solution on it. Then there was a sharp shrill of pain, making his gasp. He subconsciously shrank his legs.
Shao Ming squeezed his leg and said, “It will be fine soon, don’t move.”
“…”
He moved skillfully, cut the fabric open, and cleaned the wound. When Zhu Tong couldn’t help shrinking his leg again, he held down his leg and blew on the wound.
“!”
It felt slightly cold between his legs. Zhu Tong was suddenly shocked, and his face burned in a flash.
Shao Ming raised his head at this time, “How is it? Better…”
He made a purely instinctive action. When he looked up and saw Zhu Tong’s blushing face, he realized what he had just done.
Their current posture was truly ambiguous.
Zhu Tong sat on the sofa with his legs apart, and Shao Ming squatted between his legs in order to clean his wounds.
It was originally a pure wound-dressing, but because of Zhu Tong’s sudden blush, there was a slight unclear undertone beneath.
Due to his injury, a hint of a smile appeared on Shao Ming’s originally unclear and somber face. “Why is your face so red?”
Zhu Tong’s body stiffened slightly. “I am…”
Startled!
Why was he blowing on his wound all of sudden when he was applying medicine?
Of course, Shao Ming knew why he blushed, but he didn’t want to tease him at the moment. Instead, he lowered his head and said, “During my childhood, if I was injured and cried, that’s what my mother would do to me.”
Zhu Tong asked, “Auntie did that?”
“Yeah.” Shao Ming took the medicine and applied it to him, “She said that I will make the pain go away. What do you think?”
Zhu Tong: “…”
It really doesn’t hurt that much.
But that “during my childhood”… Although it is common for children to be injured, Zhu Tong inexplicably thought of Shao Ming’s abusive stepfather.
Although Shao Ming didn’t mention it… it was logical to guess that a stepfather who beat his own wife could extend that beatings to his child, right?
Thinking of this made Zhu Tong feel distressed, and didn’t even notice that the cold ointment was applied to the wound.
After Shao Ming finished applying it, he raised his head, only to meet with Zhu Tong’s drooping eyes.
Zhu Tong didn’t expect to suddenly meet his line of sight.
Shao Ming smiled slightly, and deliberately leaned closer and said, “What? It still hurts? Then I’ll give you another blow…”
“N-no need.”
Zhu Tong subconsciously wanted to close his legs.
Shao Ming held him down and said, “Don’t close your legs. Be careful, lest the wound is infected. Also, if it doesn’t heal properly, it will leave scars.”
“…”
His hand rested on Zhu Tong’s naked leg, making a full skin-on-skin contact. The two of them were startled at the same time.
Shao Ming lowered his eyes and looked at the injury on his inner thigh. Although it was shocking, it was also inexplicably… feel hot.
His eyes were dark and his pupils gradually lost focus.
Zhu Tong was stared by Shao Ming’s mysterious gaze. He also felt the warm temperature of Shao Ming’s palm against his thigh, and it made him feel shy all of sudden. A very strange feeling welled up in his heart.
Feeling uncomfortable, he said, “…doesn’t this need to be bandaged?”
Shao Ming’s crooked thoughts immediately halted. He resisted the urge to touch the inviting creamy thigh, and withdrew his hand. “No, the weather is hot and humid. Your wound will not be able to recover well since the bandage I have here isn’t very breathable. Just pay more attention to your wound, and apply the ointment on time.”
Zhu Tong said: “Then what if I wear pants?”
Shao Ming: “…”
Zhu Tong asked seriously, and at the same time this question hit him.
What about wearing pants?
This is a problem.
Shao Ming doesn’t mind him not wearing pants, but he couldn’t help imagining a certain someone walking around the living room with just his upper garment on. That might not be good for his heart.
He suddenly raised his hand to cover his face.
Zhu Tong felt Shao Ming was acting strange. He asked, “What’s wrong with you?”
Shao Ming replied, “It’s nothing, I just feel ashamed all of a sudden.”
Zhu Tong: “?”
Ashamed for what?
Shao Ming turned his head to look at him and said, “I took you to ride a horse, but it hurt you.”
Zhu Tong: “It’s not because of you that I got hurt, it’s because of He Xiaoxiao and her gang…”
“But I took you to the racecourse. Thanks to that, you may not be able to go out these two days.”
Zhu Tong paused for a while, collecting his thoughts. Then he replied, “It’s okay if I don’t go out, I’ll just finish my homework after playing for two days.”
Anyway, it was normal for him not to go out.
Shao Ming looked at his legs again, his eyes darkened. “You may… still need to reduce your walking.”
In order to avoid friction between his legs, he had to walk with his legs as far apart as possible.
Zhu Tong thought about his walking posture, only to feel his brows twitching.
Even if Shao Ming didn’t remind him, he would try to reduce his walking as much as possible.
Thinking that Shao Ming was reminding him of the precautions after applying the medicine, Zhu Tong was about to nod when he heard Shao Ming continue, “So, if you want to go somewhere, tell me, I’ll carry you around.”
Zhu Tong: “…”
The author has something to say:
Tongtong: Is it because I am small?
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