Getting Hands-On

He hurriedly withdrew his hand, accidentally tugging at the wound on his chest.

"Hiss..."

Blood seeped out in thin streaks, quickly staining his white inner robe red.

The sight was alarming.

"Senior brother, don't move." Xie Jun pressed down on his shoulders, almost draping herself over Xiao Qinghe.

The memory of her body pressed against Xiao Qinghe's in the Scripture Pavilion suddenly surfaced. Xie Jun stiffened and quickly averted her eyes. "The wound seems to have reopened. We need to change the dressing immediately."

Xiao Qinghe grimaced in pain. "I can do it myself..."

Xie Jun abruptly looked at him, something dark stirring in her gaze. An inexplicable hint of danger edged her voice. "Master can apply medicine for you, but I can't?"

Xiao Qinghe: "???"

What kind of competitive streak was this?

The system suddenly spoke in its mechanical voice.

[The host may not refuse Xie Jun's request.]

Xiao Qinghe could no longer make sense of what the system was doing. "Why?"

[The readers want to see it. There is no why.]

What kind of freaks were this system's readers? Why would they want to watch one man apply medicine to another?

Xiao Qinghe was utterly exasperated, but he couldn't let Xie Jun notice. He barely managed to maintain a serious expression. "Then sorry for the trouble, junior brother."

Then he lay back.

Perfectly compliant, he left himself entirely at her mercy.

Xie Jun froze for a moment.

Seeing Xiao Qinghe like this...

"Junior brother?" Xiao Qinghe called.

The thought that had just surfaced in Xie Jun's mind instantly scattered. She gave a light cough and finally reached out, undoing Xiao Qinghe's inner robe bit by bit.

The wound was on his chest. Bai Yuqing had bandaged it, but now blood was seeping through again, like a vivid crimson flower blooming against his chest.

The contrast made his fair skin look as fine as porcelain, the thin layer of muscle fragile and alluring.

One glance was enough to leave Xie Jun unable to look away. Her movements as she applied the medicine grew slower and gentler.

Rather than applying medicine, she seemed to be caressing him.

[Aaaaaah!!!]

[She's getting hands-on! Hands-on!]

[Jun, baby, you've finally stepped up! Keep it coming! Give us more!]

The readers' comment section went wild, flooding the screen with some sort of slang Xiao Qinghe couldn't understand.

Before Xiao Qinghe could figure out what had them so excited, the pain nearly made him pass out. "Junior brother, why are you touching my wound... hiss... it hurts..."

Xie Jun snapped out of her daze. Looking at Xiao Qinghe now, her breath caught slightly.

Xiao Qinghe's robe hung half open, his eyes squeezed shut from the pain. Suppressed agony filled his usually calm, gentle face, lending him a fragile beauty.

No wonder Master had insisted on applying the medicine himself instead of letting her do it.

If it were up to her, never mind letting someone touch her senior brother like this-she would want to gouge their eyes out for so much as looking at him.

Just then, Ouyang Susu's anxious voice suddenly broke in. "Senior Brother Xiao, something terrible has happened!"

Xie Jun's expression shifted slightly. She swiftly yanked up the quilt, covering Xiao Qinghe almost from head to toe.

She raised her eyes and shot Ouyang Susu a look as cold and sharp as a blade.

Ouyang Susu shuddered violently. For a moment, she actually felt as though Xie Jun wanted to gouge out her eyes. "What... are you doing?"

Xie Jun's face darkened. "Get out!"

Youngster, you need to be gentle with girls! She's your future wife!

Afraid that Xie Jun really would drive Ouyang Susu away, Xiao Qinghe endured the pain and poked his head out from beneath the quilt. "Junior sister, what happened?"

"Senior Brother Xiao, hurry and talk Master Yu Qing down! He's going to beat Senior Brother Zhao to death!"

"Master is beating Senior Brother Zhao?" Xiao Qinghe froze.

He genuinely didn't dare imagine that Master was avenging him. After all, according to the plot, Master would kill him someday!

Xie Jun, however, didn't care about the reason. She scoffed. "He brought it on himself!"

"Senior Brother Xie, how can you be so cruel?" Ouyang Susu covered her mouth, her eyes red and pitiful. "Senior Brother Zhao is so good to me. I can't just watch him get beaten... sob... Senior Brother Xiao, please save him!"

Xiao Qinghe's mouth twitched violently.

He had almost forgotten that the Female Lead was supposed to be a sweet, innocent little flower. Naturally, she couldn't bear to see Zhao Guangyi suffer.

The problem was that Zhao Guangyi had been the one to stomp all over Xie Jun's sore spots first-and he had stabbed Xiao Qinghe, nearly killing him!

Before you plead for Zhao Guangyi, couldn't you at least show a little concern for me?

Did cannon-fodder supporting characters have no rights?

Xiao Qinghe pressed a hand to his forehead. "If Master is angry, no one can talk him down. You're the only one he listens to."

Who told you your Master was your devoted second male lead?

Ouyang Susu froze, then burst into a fresh flood of tears. "I tried to stop him, but I couldn't... sob... Master Yu Qing even snapped at me. He said no one's pleas would help unless Senior Brother Xiao was willing to forgive Senior Brother Zhao... Master Yu Qing is so mean. How could he snap at me? Sob..."

Xiao Qinghe was dumbfounded. He silently asked the system, "According to the character setup, aside from being obsessed with cultivation, doesn't Master only care about the Female Lead?"

How could Master refuse to show the Female Lead even a little consideration?

Had the plot not reached the point where Master fell in love with the Female Lead yet?

The system fell silent for a few seconds. Instead of speaking in its electronic voice, it displayed a line of scarlet text on the screen that only Xiao Qinghe could see:

[Wake up already!!!!]

Xiao Qinghe: "???"

Ouyang Susu was still sniffling. "Senior Brother Xiao, are you really going to let Senior Brother Zhao die without helping him? I never thought you were that kind of person... sob..."

Xiao Qinghe rubbed his brow, lamenting only that he couldn't break character as a hopeless simp. "I'll go plead with Master, then."

"Senior Brother Xiao, I knew you were a good person! You'd never refuse me!"

Xiao Qinghe: "..."

No good-guy cards, thanks.

Just then, a chime rang out.

The system suddenly issued a mission.

[The host must ask Xie Jun to carry him there.]

Xiao Qinghe felt as though he had been struck by lightning.

Thinking he was about to go back on his word, Ouyang Susu hurried forward. "Senior Brother Xiao, can you get up?"

Xiao Qinghe didn't answer. He merely turned stiffly toward Xie Jun, a stampede of curses thundering through his mind.

System, are you serious?

You want the Female Lead's future husband to carry a man right in front of her?

Weren't Xie Jun and the Female Lead supposed to be a couple?

Even if the plot needed to make the Female Lead jealous, wasn't this going too far?

Every fiber of Xiao Qinghe's being rejected the idea.

The system remained cold and merciless.

[If the mission fails, the host will receive a random punishment. Please think carefully!]

Watching Xiao Qinghe's expression shift over and over, Ouyang Susu grew anxious and reached for him. "Senior Brother Xiao, let me help you there. If we don't hurry, Master Yu Qing might beat Senior Brother Zhao to death!"

But before her slender hand could touch Xiao Qinghe, another hand blocked it.

"Don't touch him." Expressionless, Xie Jun pressed Xiao Qinghe back onto the bed and said in a low voice, "Senior brother is injured and shouldn't be moving around. He can write a letter for you to deliver to Master."

Xiao Qinghe wholeheartedly approved.

Compared with being carried there by Xie Jun, writing a letter was a brilliant idea!

With Xiao Qinghe's handwritten letter in hand, Ouyang Susu hesitated. "Will this really work? Will Master Yu Qing let senior brother go after reading it?"

"Senior brother needs to rest." Xie Jun was showing her out.

Ouyang Susu had always been doted on and had never received such cold treatment. Her beautiful eyes glistened as she gazed at Xie Jun, wanting to speak but holding back.

Xie Jun sat beside the bed, immovable as a mountain and utterly expressionless.

Youngster, acting cool will get you struck by lightning! Keep this up and you'll drive your wife away!

Watching anxiously, Xiao Qinghe gave her a meaningful look. "Junior brother, see junior sister out."

Xie Jun frowned and finally stood, looking for all the world like a miserable wretch whose wife had run off with someone else.

Like a butterfly taking flight, Ouyang Susu followed lightly beside the youth. When they finally reached the door, she gazed at that exquisitely handsome profile, then lowered her eyes shyly. "Senior Brother Xie, I..."