Chapter 008 – Just be a human being.
Seeing that Xie Chenyang drank two full glasses in a row, Zhai Zhi warned, “This wine has quite a strong kick.”
Xie Chenyang put down his glass, wiped his mouth, and picked up his chopsticks. “You probably don’t know this, but I’ve had much stronger spirits.”
System: “Allow me to remind you that this body of yours hasn’t drunk alcohol before.”
[It’s fine–my soul doesn’t fear wine and meat!]
System: “… ” Wow, amazing1牛逼 (niú bī) Chinese internet slang for awesome. Can be used both positively and negatively.…
“Mmm–the fish you cooked is so tasty!” There was no fishy odor at all!
“Then eat more of it.”
“En, en!”
Halfway through the meal, Xie Chenyang’s hand that was seizing the food became a bit stiff, and his head was a bit muddled.
He shook his head.
Zhai Zhi: “…you’re holding ginger.”
“Huh? It’s okay, I love it.”
Zhai Zhi watched him eat the ginger slices with misty eyes, and as he watched his chopsticks head for the plate with the fish bones, he walked over and held his wrist.
Xie Chenyang raised his eyes. “What–what are you doing?”
Zhai Zhi removed the chopsticks from his hands. “You’re full.”
Xie Chenyang was not happy and smacked him on the shoulder with his palm. “Brother, you’re being mean! I’m full when you say I’m full? I’m still not full!”
“Cough, cough, cough.” Zhai Zhi’s face went black, and after he had a chance to recover, he gritted his teeth and snapped, “Can’t you be a little gentler?”
What happened to the promised delicate son? He was clearly a powerful ox!
“It’s not okay?”
Zhai Zhi rubbed his shoulder. “Still eating?”
Xie Chenyang shook his head vigorously. “Not eating.”
Ah, one shake of his head threw out a sky full of stars. He grabbed Zhai Zhi’s arm and stood up shakily, his tongue a little fuzzy. “Brother, brother, I’m a little dizzy. You take me, back to rest.”
System: “Host, are you okay?”
Xie Chenyang: “Who? Who’s talking?”
System: “…” Is the speaking program not working? How come he doesn’t even recognize it anymore?
Zhai Zhi supported Xie Chenyang’s waist. “No one is talking. Be good. I’ll send you back to your room.”
“Good, good.”
Zhai Zhi reached out to lift him up, and Xie Chenyang cooperated by wrapping his arms around his neck, but just as Zhai Zhi was about to move him, the weight in his arms directly caused him to stumble. Xie Chenyang hadn’t even gotten his bearings yet, before he was in a tangle, and with one fumbling motion, the two of them fell to the ground together.
Zhai Zhi was pinned to the ground with a bewildered look on his face. “How are you… so heavy?”
The system couldn’t bear to look at them. “Maybe it’s because I was added.”
Xie Chenyang: “What you? Me?”
Zhai Zhi pushed him. “Get up. Go sleep on the sofa, I can’t carry you.”
Xie Chenyang raised his head, squinting hard to look at him through the heavy shadows. “You can’t carry me?”
Zhai Zhi: “…” Kill me2要命 — yào mìng to cause sb’s death, very, extremely, frightening, annoying — Damn “要命” is a Chinese character phrase, which is “deathly” in English. Its basic meaning is generally an intensified word of “like dead” or “dead-like”. Show less.
Xie Chenyang’s eyes were naturally affectionate, and at this moment, he was looking at Zhai Zhi with drunken intensity, which was even more seductive. As if…he was looking at his favorite person. “Can’t carry me?” Xie Chenyang repeated again.
Zhai Zhi closed his eyes and surrendered. “Ah, can’t carry you. So get up.”
Really, heavier than fuck.
“Then I’ll carry you!”
“!”
Xie Chenyang scrambled to his feet and picked him up off the ground, staggering toward the stairs.
Zhai Zhi’s face went white. “Quickly put me down.”
“Don’t, don’t be afraid. I can swing a three thousand jin33000 jin = 3306.9339328 pounds /// 3000 jin = 1500 kg broadsword4大刀 dà dāo broadsword; large knife; machete.” Xie Chenyang weighed him and laughed. “You’re as light as Spirit Rabbit.”
Zhai Zhi tightly grabbed his shoulders, his cold brows colored with exasperation. “What drunken nonsense are you spouting! Stop, no going upstairs!”
Xie Chenyang hugged him tightly and said smugly, “Don’t be afraid. I can still fly! I’ll take you flying, flying you up.”
“No flying!” Because of the shock, Zhai Zhi’s voice cracked.
Xie Chenyang froze. “Oh, no flying then.” After he finished speaking, he quickened his pace and walked up the stairs.
Zhai Zhi closed his eyes in despair. If they fell, they fell. If they died, they died.
Thankfully, although Xie Chenyang swayed, the arms holding him were steady. They didn’t drop him, and they both didn’t fall to their deaths.
Xie Chenyang kicked open the door and fell into bed with Zhai Zhi, lying on his side with a pounding headache. “Sleep, brother!”
Zhai Zhi reached out and wiped the tears that had escaped from the corners of his eyes in shock, his voice hoarse. “In this life…I won’t let you touch another drop of alcohol.”
The system watching everything was filled with empathy in his heart. “Oh poor thing.” That was reckless, eh?
Lying on the bed, Xie Chenyang no longer resisted the alcohol and fell into a hazy sleep.
It took a while before Zhai Zhi sat up and tugged his collar down, his eyes glum when he saw the red palm imprint on his shoulder. Seriously, it was awfully strong and painful.
He looked sideways at the sleeping Xie Chenyang and began to wonder if it was worth it to risk his life for this small flutter in his heart. Should he… cut his losses?
While sleeping, Xie Chenyang’s seductive eyes were closed, and his delicate, petite face was finally wearing the simple look described in the files.
Zhai Zhi leaned over slightly, reaching out to gently caress the corners of Xie Chenyang’s eyes, his cold voice tinged with some helplessness. “Well, I’ve already fallen for him…”
Xie Chenyang’s nose twitched as he grabbed his hand and shoved it into his mouth.
“Ah–fallen, my ass!” Zhai Zhi jerked his hand back and looked at the teeth marks on it, his face grim. “You might as well go and torture Cen He!”
“Crane5The ‘He’ in Cen He and The ‘He’ of Crane sound similar 贺 hè – to congratulate 鹤 hè – crane?” Xie Chenyang smacked his lips. “What crane? Was I eating a crane?”
Rising to his feet, Zhai Zhi walked over to the window and opened it to settle his thoughts with the cold breeze. Pulling out a cigarette from his pocket, lighting it, and taking a long drag, he allowed the cooling night breeze to settle his jumbled mind a bit.
After finishing his cigarette, he went to the bathroom and dampened a towel to give Xie Chenyang a quick wipe down, and with difficulty, managed to help him change into comfortable pajamas.
By the time he got himself out of the shower, he was so exhausted he collapsed on the bed and didn’t even want to move. In the midst of his drifting off to sleep, Zhai Zhi was suddenly kicked off the bed.
Zhai Zhi: “!”
Feeling the pain in his back, he managed to push through and turned on the bedside lamp. Sliding out of his shirt, he took out his cell phone and snapped a picture of his backside. A stretch of blue and black. Should he… call his doctor?
Xie Chenyang was still there with his leg outstretched as if he were practicing kung fu, shouting with his eyes closed. “C’mon, let’s fight!”
Zhai Zhi reached up to cover his eyes. “Sooner or later, I’m going to die at the hands of this little fool.”
When Xie Chenyang quieted down and stopped “fighting”, Zhai Zhi took out his cell phone and made a call.
Zou Hao: “Mr. Zhai?”
Zhai Zhi: “Deduct your salary for half a year.” What kind of information has been checked? It does not match at all!
Zou Hao: “????”
Zhai Zhi hung up the phone, upset, and wanted to go directly to the next room to sleep, but glimpsed Xie Chenyang in a wide-open pose, and was reluctant again. Why should he?
He supported his back and climbed onto the bed, lowering his head and biting Xie Chenyang hard. If I’m going to be in pain, then we should be in pain together!
Xie Chenyang snapped his eyes open and pinned down Zhai Zhi’s arm with one hand, with a force so great that it almost crushed his bones.
Zhai Zhi thought to himself that he’d lose a lot if he let go at this point. He had received so many bruises, and he wouldn’t stop until he had gnawed this little fool all over his mouth!
A tear dripped onto Xie Chenyang’s face. Xie Chenyang was startled and suppressed his subconscious reaction of wanting to twist his arm off and let go.
——
When Xie Chenyang finally woke up the next morning the stinging pain coming from his mouth caused him to frown. “Syst–”
He had just sat up when he saw Zhai Zhi lying hollowly next to him, his brows furrowed and his already pale complexion whitened even more. He didn’t look too good. Xie Chenyang hurriedly slapped his face. “Zhai Zhi, wake up! What’s wrong? Did you have a nightmare? Are you sick?”
With a gloomy face, Zhai Zhi said, “Even though you’re awake now, you’re still hitting me?”
Xie Chenyang: “Huh?”
Zhai Zhi pulled the covers down, revealing his bruised and swollen arm. “Are you denying it?”
Xie Chenyang was confused. [Syst–System?]
System: “You did this.”
Xie Chenyang: [I don’t remember…]
System: “I reminded you that this body hasn’t drank any alcohol, and you still went wild with alcohol, didn’t you? Zhai Zhi was almost killed by you.”
Seeing his silence, Zhai Zhi gently spun around, revealing the bruises and swelling on his backside after being kicked. “This, too, you don’t recognize?”
Xie Chenyang: “!”
“How did that happen?” Xie Chenyang hurriedly got up. “Although I might have been a bit heavy-handed, but isn’t it normal for brothers to mess around with each other, and wasn’t the wound on my mouth caused by you?”
Zhai Zhi looked at him with a bland look. “I bit you a few times, while you kicked me and almost broke my arm. How do you call this playing around?”
Xie Chenyang felt sheepish. “Then I won’t hit you next time?”
“You still want to have a next time?”
“…No.”
Zhai Zhi covered himself with the quilt and draped a hand over his eyes, not wanting to look at him again.
Xie Chenyang: “You’re still sleeping? Not getting up?”
Zhai Zhi coolly snapped, “Do you think I can still get up?”
“I’ll carry you?”
“…My back hurts.”
Xie Chenyang frowned and lifted the covers, turning him over to check the injury on his back.
Zhai Zhi huffed. “Be a little gentler.”
Xie Chenyang patted his hip. “Don’t move. Let me take a look.”
Zhai Zhi’s body stiffened and he said indignantly, “Li Xuyang!”
Xie Chenyang didn’t care about this; he palmed the area and sighed in relief. “It didn’t hurt the bones. Once the swelling goes down, you’ll be fine.”
Zhai Zhi’s body trembled slightly in anger, and he buried his face in his pillow, not wanting to talk to him. Zhai Zhi was well cultivated, appearing aloof but with a firm personality. But once in front of Xie Chenyang, there was no trace of any of that.
The system couldn’t keep watching: “I’ll give you a bottle of medicine. Rub it on for him, and he’ll be better in ten minutes.”
Xie Chenyang: [There’s such a good thing? Thanks! Can it work on my mouth?]
System: “Can’t.” It really sympathized with Zhai Zhi. That was why it exchanged its own merits for a bottle of medicine for him. When he met the host, Zhai Zhi had really fallen into bad luck.
A small porcelain bottle suddenly appeared in Xie Chenyang’s hand.
System: “Smear the medicine on the injury, and massage the area of swelling. It has to be evenly applied, otherwise the effect will not be as good.”
Xie Chenyang: [Understood.] He opened the porcelain bottle and poured some on Zhai Zhi’s back side.
Zhai Zhi could feel a cooling sensation spreading across his aching waist and wanted to turn around. “What are you doing?”
Xie Chenyang set the porcelain bottle aside and held him down with one hand on his back to prevent him from turning around; the other palm applied pressure to the swelling on his backside and gently squeezed it. “Don’t move. I’m going to give you some medicine.”
Zhai Zhi: “…” Where did this medicine come from?
The cool medicine made him feel better, and as Xie Chenyang increased his intensity, he grabbed the pillow with both hands and endured the pain. “Be gentle.”
“Gentle doesn’t work, so just bear with it.”
Cold sweat appeared on Zhai Zhi’s forehead. How much force did Li Xuyang have in his hands?
Xie Chenyang heard the stifled grunts that occasionally escaped from him, and with the feeling of his warmed palm, felt a little strange. [System…]
System: “Let it be6放 fàng to put, to place, to release, to free, to let go, to let out, to set off (fireworks).”
Xie Chenyang: [Don’t you think he sounds odd?]
Xie Chenyang: [It makes me feel something peculiar. I want to cover his mouth.]
System: “You behave yourself.”
(small edit 8/6/24- changed sword to broadsword, added footnote)
Edited: Krone
Proofread: Choux_choux
