Lu Shiyi was sitting in a wheelchair. Since they all came in a standard size, a man nearly six foot three inevitably looked a little cramped in one, his impossibly long legs stretching out beyond it.
Yet Lu Shiyi remained composed. Even in a wheelchair, he had lost none of his commanding presence, drawing people's eyes despite themselves.
Yu Qingchuan pushed Lu Shiyi outside, while Lu Shiming went off to the rehabilitation room to book an appointment, practically whimpering.
The doctor had drawn up a two-week rehabilitation plan tailored to Lu Shiyi's condition. Since it was already rather late today, they would start tomorrow.
By the time Lu Shiming returned, Lu Shiyi and Yu Qingchuan were settled in the back seat, still holding hands.
"Tsk, you and Sister-in-Law are way too lovey-dovey, bro." Lu Shiming grumbled, "I'm kicking this bowl of PDA right over."
Inside, though, he thought, Poor Sister-in-Law has to put up with him.
Yu Qingchuan still couldn't face this teasing with complete composure. He pressed his lips together without speaking, but didn't let go either.
Lu Shiyi's hand was much larger than his, with well-defined knuckles, and could completely envelop his own. Holding it felt so warm that he couldn't bear to let go.
He had no idea that Lu Shiyi had a thing for hands.
"Shiming, have you been practicing Muay Thai lately?" Lu Shiyi asked mildly.
After their parents passed away, the Lu family's relatives had descended to divide up the inheritance. They had even arranged for people to bully the brothers at school, hoping to force them to drop out.
Lu Shiming had been small back then. All he knew how to do when bullied was bawl; he couldn't fight back at all.
So Lu Shiyi had enrolled both of them in Muay Thai classes, so they could fight back whenever someone picked on them.
They had kept at it for over a decade, and both brothers were now experts in Muay Thai.
Lu Shiming's scalp prickled. He had been busy with work lately and hadn't trained in ages. His brother's meaning was obvious: once he recovered, he intended to spar with him.
Of course, the sparring was just an excuse. Beating him up was the real point, wasn't it?
Lu Shiming looked at Yu Qingchuan in the rearview mirror, trying to win his sister-in-law over. "Sister-in-Law, rein my brother in. What kind of big brother takes pleasure in beating up his little brother? Little brothers are meant to be spoiled, okay?"
Yu Qingchuan was very fond of Lu Shiming, so he really did try to persuade Lu Shiyi. "How about you skip the sparring?"
"I'll go easy on him," Lu Shiyi replied.
Yu Qingchuan gave Lu Shiming a helpless look. Knowing there was no way out, Lu Shiming decided he would start training as soon as he got home tonight.
After all, his brother had only just recovered. He might not be in better shape than Lu Shiming. Besides, his brother was several years older, while he was in the prime of his youth. There was no reason he couldn't beat him.
The thought that he might actually defeat his brother made Lu Shiming excited. Ah, I can't wait!
Lu Shiming drove them home, reluctantly ate the food delivered from a private kitchen, then carried his brother upstairs to the master bedroom before heading home.
"Qingchuan, I'd like a bath. Could I trouble you to run one for me?"
Although Yu Qingchuan had wiped Lu Shiyi down every other day recently, no amount of wiping could compare to a proper bath. Yu Qingchuan understood perfectly and immediately nodded. "Okay, Brother Yi. I'll get it ready right away."
With that, he went into the master bedroom's en suite bathroom.
A round whirlpool bathtub had been built into a raised platform along the bathroom wall. It was bound to be comfortable to soak in, and it was so large that it looked like a two-person tub.
Yu Qingchuan filled it and tested the water. The temperature was just right.
When he came out, however, he found that Lu Shiyi had taken off his loungewear and was wearing only a pair of black briefs.
"I'll help you over."
Lu Shiyi could walk now, but still needed support. With Lu Shiyi's firm, supple arm draped over him and heat pouring off his body, Yu Qingchuan found it rather overwhelming.
And although most of Lu Shiyi's abs had faded, their outline remained. His figure was still lithe and long-limbed, without an ounce of excess fat. Yu Qingchuan didn't know where to look.
"Once I'm through rehabilitation, I'll build my muscles back up," Lu Shiyi said with a smile. "I'll look a little better then. It should suit your tastes, too."
"I don't..." Yu Qingchuan had meant to say that he liked Lu Shiyi no matter what he looked like, but who could resist a Lu Shiyi with abs?
He really was a shallow sucker for good looks, no better than Liang Xingyao.
He swallowed the rest of his sentence, earning a knowing chuckle from Lu Shiyi.
After helping him into the tub, Yu Qingchuan set a bath towel on the shelf beside it. "Brother Yi, I'll head out now. Call me when you're done."
"Mm, go ahead."
Yu Qingchuan worked on a commissioned drawing on his Pen Display. Before long, he heard Lu Shiyi call and immediately went to the bathroom, only to be struck by the sight of the handsome man about to emerge from his bath.
Having wiped Lu Shiyi down so many times, Yu Qingchuan was already well practiced. He dried him off, dressed him in fresh pajamas, and helped him back to bed, then tidied the bathroom and put the discarded clothes into the underwear washing machine. The five-figure machine had built-in drying and sterilizing functions and ran silently, so he could simply take them out tomorrow morning.
What to do next, however, left Yu Qingchuan a little conflicted. Now that Lu Shiyi had recovered, he no longer needed recharging, and their relationship wasn't official yet.
Shouldn't I sleep in the guest room downstairs?
As though sensing his thoughts, Lu Shiyi spoke in a soft, low voice. "Qingchuan, stay here tonight."
"Is that appropriate?" Yu Qingchuan lifted his eyes to him.
"Why wouldn't it be?" Lu Shiyi chuckled, his shimmering eyes utterly beguiling. "We'll be sharing a bed sooner or later anyway. I just won't do anything intimate for now."
A sound argument. Very convincing.
Yu Qingchuan thought that he was a guy too, so who knew which of them would be getting the short end of the stick by sharing a bed? Besides, he really did like snuggling up to Lu Shiyi. Without agonizing over it further, he agreed. "All right. I'll go take a shower first..."
As he spoke, he felt he ought to say something nonchalant, but after racking his brains, all he managed was, "Warm the bed up for me first."
He ended up laughing first. Lu Shiyi smiled too. "Go on. I'll be waiting for you in bed."
Blushing, Yu Qingchuan fled into the bathroom.
After showering and drying his hair, Yu Qingchuan came out to find Lu Shiyi already lying under the covers, just as promised. He wore gold-framed blue-light glasses as he read something on his tablet. Hearing him, he looked up, his deep eyes behind the lenses lending him an air of cultured restraint, exactly like Yu Qingchuan's earlier painting.
Yu Qingchuan climbed into bed. The covers were already warm, and warmth enveloped him the moment he slipped underneath. He sighed in comfort.
Lu Shiyi put away his tablet and lay down too. Turning onto his side, he draped an arm around Yu Qingchuan's waist with practiced ease and drew him closer into his embrace. "Good night, Qingchuan," he murmured.
"Good night, Brother Yi." Yu Qingchuan nestled obediently in Lu Shiyi's arms, closing his eyes and letting sleep come.
Already accustomed to sharing a bed, Yu Qingchuan wasn't particularly worked up this time and soon fell sound asleep. The next day, he accompanied Lu Shiyi to rehabilitation.
By the fourth day, Lu Shiyi's rehabilitation was already showing results: he could drive and walk on his own without Yu Qingchuan supporting him. Even his rehabilitation doctor said that he was in excellent physical condition and recovering quickly. At this rate, he might finish rehabilitation in less than two weeks.
Yu Qingchuan had been following the messages in the class group chat these past few days. People had begun handing their paintings to the class representative, but to keep those at neighboring Q University from finding out what they had painted beforehand, nobody had posted their work in the chat. They were, however, discussing whether their paintings would be chosen to represent their college in the competition.
The class representative posted another reminder that submissions closed at noon today. Yu Qingchuan told Lu Shiyi that he needed to hand in his painting, and Lu Shiyi drove him there.
It was still morning. Yu Qingchuan called the class representative and said he wanted to submit his painting.
The class representative was a very talented young man, and he was a little puzzled to receive Yu Qingchuan's call. After all, everyone in class knew that Yu Qingchuan came from an extremely wealthy family and was only attending their college to coast his way to a diploma.
Hearing that he wanted to enter the competition struck the class representative as even more unbelievable. Still, mindful of his background, he arranged a meeting place. He could collect the painting first; if it wasn't good, they could simply eliminate it.
There was no need to offend anyone.
That was the class representative's worldly-wise thinking.
But when he reached their meeting place and saw a beautiful young man in white sportswear approaching with a painting in his arms, he was stunned, his eyes full of admiration.
"Yu Qingchuan?"
Yu Qingchuan had already received a similar look from Liang Xingyao, so he didn't dwell on it. He handed the rolled-up oil painting to the class representative and smiled. "I heard about the competition in the class group chat and wanted to participate too. Sorry for the trouble."
That bright, refreshing smile was even more disarming. Most art students had a weakness for good looks, and the class representative flushed a little as he hurriedly said, "No problem. You're the last person to contact me about submitting a painting. I'm about to go with our student advisor to see Professor Kong and have him select the entries. We'll announce the results in the group chat."
"Okay, thank you." Yu Qingchuan didn't linger to chat, since they weren't particularly close. He said goodbye; Lu Shiyi was still waiting for him in the parking lot.
The class representative had wanted to unroll Yu Qingchuan's painting for a look first, but there wasn't time. Instead, he gathered people to take all the paintings to Professor Kong.
The student advisor arrived too and helped the class representative unroll all the oil paintings. But when the advisor saw the signature on one of them, he paused. "Zhiran, this painting is Yu Qingchuan's?"
Song Zhiran leaned over to look and was instantly captivated by the rich emotion in the painting. Yu Qingchuan painted this? When had his skills improved so much?
"He's the one who gave it to me," Song Zhiran answered. "Sir, he's changed so much lately."
The student advisor said nothing, however, and instead took out his phone. "I have something to take care of. I'll step outside for a moment."
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