Cheng Yue always felt something was off, but since he wasn’t very bright to begin with, his anger only made him more confused, like traffic in Beijing—stuck in the front, unable to move in the back.
“He pinched you?”
Ji Xu, supporting Cheng Yue, slowly walked to a corner and used his body to block a few boys who had come to check.
Cheng Yue touched his sore buttocks and nodded, still panting with anger.
“He slapped my butt!”
“Did it hurt?” Ji Xu asked.
“It hurt!” Cheng Yue wanted to turn around and check his buttocks, which were definitely swollen from the slap.
“Next time, don’t wear this kind of skirt,” Ji Xu said as he opened a bathroom stall and led Cheng Yue inside. He looked at the increasing number of people outside and added seriously, “If you wear it, make sure it doesn’t show.”
“I won’t wear it again,” Cheng Yue pouted.
“Turn around,” Ji Xu instructed. “I’ll check it for you.”
“Check what?” Cheng Yue’s hand, which was covering his buttocks, stiffened.
“See how it is,” Ji Xu said as he bent down and lifted the skirt from the bottom, pulling down the underwear halfway.
A red handprint was clearly visible on the rounded part covered by the underwear, especially against the surrounding pale skin. It seemed a bit swollen.
Ji Xu placed one hand on Cheng Yue’s waist and used the other to gently rub the area.
Cheng Yue’s buttocks had been numb from the initial slap, and Ji Xu’s rubbing made him flinch backward.
“It hurts…”
Ji Xu looked up at him.
As Cheng Yue was getting overwhelmed by Ji Xu’s gaze and was considering enduring the pain for a bit of relief, Ji Xu spoke.
“Change your clothes,” Ji Xu straightened up and wiped under Cheng Yue’s still-red eyes. “Be careful next time.”
Cheng Yue was stunned for a moment and quickly nodded.
After Ji Xu left the bathroom, Cheng Yue struggled to take off the skirt, which hurt even more when he pulled on it.
Once he removed it, he looked at his buttocks in the mirror and saw that it was indeed swollen.
Cheng Yue frowned for a long time, realizing that today’s trouble was all because he wore that skirt.
Clenching his teeth, he thought that anyone who made him wear a skirt again would be in big trouble.
Ji Xu frowned as he looked at the closed bathroom door. He took out a cigarette from his pocket, lit it, and took a drag.
He was not in a normal mood today. Following Cheng Yue into the small bathroom, tying his hands, blindfolding him, and slapping his butt—he wouldn’t have done that before.
Part of his emotional outburst was caused by those people who fainted in court.
To avoid legal consequences, these people would do anything.
Watching those kids being led away by the police without receiving proper justice made him restrain himself.
But the main reason was Cheng Yue’s skirt and the way those men stared at Cheng Yue’s legs and waist.
As Ji Xu’s suppressed control issues and certain pathological tendencies began to resurface, he even thought about locking Cheng Yue in that small stall forever, binding his eyes, gagging him, and just keeping him pinned down…
“Ji Xu,” Cheng Yue opened the bathroom door, carrying a paper bag, and frowned at Ji Xu who was smoking.
Ji Xu usually didn’t smoke in front of him. Besides the first time he picked him up, Cheng Yue had never seen Ji Xu smoke in his presence again.
But today, Ji Xu had smoked once during their video call, and now he was smoking again.
Cheng Yue wrinkled his brow and sniffed. The smell of smoke on Ji Xu was indeed strong.
“Today… weren’t you in court?” Cheng Yue looked at him, concerned if something had happened.
Ji Xu was silent for a moment, took the paper bag from Cheng Yue’s hand, and brushed aside the disheveled hair from his forehead.
He said calmly, “Nothing happened. Are you hungry?”
Cheng Yue was momentarily distracted by Ji Xu’s question. He touched his stomach and realized he was indeed quite hungry.
“Let’s go, I’ll take you to get something to eat,” Ji Xu led him out, and they happened to run into Chen Zong, who had not yet changed clothes.
Ji Xu squinted, showing a hint of unspoken disdain.
“Cheng Yue!” Chen Zong greeted cheerfully and then noticed the tall man next to Cheng Yue. He immediately became respectful, greeting, “Uncle, hello, uncle!”
“How is it outside?” Cheng Yue asked.
“It’s unprecedentedly lively!” Chen Zong was excited. “Jiang Gezi is leading our class’s girls in doing Tai Chi up there. We’ve already set up the second donation box!”
“Great,” Cheng Yue smiled. He then remembered the skirt he had just changed out of. “Who should I give the clothes to?”
“Keep them as a memento. By the way, this is the makeup remover Gezi asked me to give you. You can use it yourself,” Chen Zong said and then, hearing someone calling him, quickly greeted them and ran off.
Cheng Yue looked at the large bottle of remover, unsure how to use it. He went to the sink, poured some into his hand, and tore off a few paper towels to soak in the remover.
“So dirty,” Ji Xu discarded the paper towels Cheng Yue had torn and handed him a dark-colored handkerchief from his own pocket.
“Use this.”
Cheng Yue looked at the clean handkerchief that was thrust into his hands and hesitated. “They put who knows what on my face. It’s hard to clean.”
“Stop dawdling,” Ji Xu frowned, took the remover bottle from Cheng Yue, poured some onto his own hand, and started wiping Cheng Yue’s face.
“Close your eyes.”
“Okay,” Cheng Yue obediently closed his eyes.
While wiping Cheng Yue’s face, Ji Xu advised, “Wearing a skirt is fine; personal preference is normal, but don’t wear…”
“I didn’t…”
“Alright, go wash your face,” Ji Xu said.
Ji Xu guided Cheng Yue to the sink, where he could only use his hands to splash water on his face.
After washing his face, Cheng Yue forgot what he initially wanted to say. He looked at the handkerchief and found it was quite dirty.
He asked Ji Xu, “Will it clean up?”
Ji Xu glanced at the strange colors on the handkerchief and said, “Throw it away.”
Cheng Yue carefully wrung out the handkerchief and put it in his coat pocket.
They went to a restaurant Ji Xu had found nearby because he needed to help his classmates clean up later.
The restaurant had a nice environment. Cheng Yue had only eaten a few pieces of bread in the morning, so he was very hungry and hot.
He ordered two steaks and a huge ice cream for himself and asked the waiter to bring the ice cream out before the meal.
“You can’t have ice cream,” Ji Xu said, looking at Cheng Yue’s sweat. “After all that exercise, ice cream isn’t a good idea.”
“Then I’ll have a small ice cream,” Cheng Yue said softly.
Ji Xu sighed, seeing his persistence, and compromised. “Have it after the meal.”
Cheng Yue also sighed, “I won’t be able to eat it after the meal.”
“Then don’t eat it,” Ji Xu said.
“I will eat it,” Cheng Yue quickly replied.
As soon as the dishes were served, Ji Xu’s phone rang. He gestured for Cheng Yue to start eating and then answered the call.
The call was from Tang Jing.
“I’ve settled the kids. Mu Jia is staying here with them, and I’ll head back later,” Tang Jing explained.
“Have the people at the hospital woken up yet?” Ji Xu asked.
“Not yet. I wish those bastards would just stay unconscious,” Tang Jing’s voice was filled with anger.
“I was just saying that the people from Xingchen were still smiling at me before they went on stage. It turns out they were just setting me up. Now that public opinion is at its peak, if they keep dragging it out, I’m worried something might go wrong.”
“Nothing will go wrong,” Ji Xu’s voice was cold, “Have someone keep an eye on their family, don’t let them move around. Also, have people watch the outside of the hospital. If they wake up, knock them out again.”
“What?” Tang Jing was a bit stunned.
“If they want to stay unconscious, let them,” Ji Xu said indifferently as he put a piece of meat into Cheng Yue’s bowl.
“Have your contacts post the financial loopholes we found in their company online. Mix in some fake news, like mismanagement? Embezzlement? Spread whatever rumors you can. Their reputation is already so bad; someone will believe it.”
“What are you…” Tang Jing hesitated for a moment.
“Hit the snake at its weak spot. Do you think the people at Xingchen would fight us over a losing case?” Ji Xu sneered, “They’re just trying to avoid trouble by using the money they received.”
“Alright, I’ll wait for your news,” Tang Jing said.
“By the way, be careful…”
While Cheng Yue was eating and listening to Ji Xu’s conversation on the phone, he was taken aback when he figured out what was happening.
Once Ji Xu hung up, Cheng Yue quickly asked, “Did something go wrong at the court?”
“The three defendants fainted in court,” Ji Xu replied simply.
Cheng Yue frowned, thinking about what Chen Zong had mentioned earlier in the morning, and suddenly became angry. “They must be faking it.”
“No,” Ji Xu smiled, “If they were faking, I’d have kicked them awake on the spot. They’re genuinely unconscious; the hospital hasn’t given a reason yet.”
“So when will they wake up? What about the lawsuit?” Cheng Yue asked anxiously.
“It will be postponed,” Ji Xu said, “Don’t worry, it’s nothing.”
Cheng Yue pouted, feeling that Ji Xu was treating him like a child. Just as he was about to say something, a woman with a fragrant aura passed by their table.
Cheng Yue, not knowing why, instinctively glanced at her and found her familiar. He turned his head to follow her path.
“What’s wrong?” Ji Xu asked, noticing Cheng Yue’s actions.
Cheng Yue stared intently at the woman’s back, not having time to answer his question.
Ji Xu squinted as he observed the woman’s backless dress and asked, “Do you like this kind of style?”
Cheng Yue thought Ji Xu was asking if he liked the woman and looked at her more closely. “No, I don’t like this type.”
“Then what type do you like?” Ji Xu asked.
“Hmm… I like…” Cheng Yue thought about it and realized he had never really liked any particular guy. The only man he had been quite fond of was a soccer player, but that was more admiration than anything else.
After thinking for a long time, Cheng Yue couldn’t figure out what type he liked and just mentioned the name of the soccer player.
“Specific uniforms?” Ji Xu squinted, “Really wild.”
“What?”
Cheng Yue was puzzled, feeling something was misunderstood, but he quickly ignored the strange feeling as the woman in front turned around and walked toward them.
When Cheng Yue clearly saw the woman’s face, he instantly understood why she looked familiar.
