The Missing Husband Is Back (08)

Xue Ci did not understand why everyone was standing at the door without speaking.

Zhao Ying had his back turned to him and did not bother to introduce his friend either; as for that friend opposite, he was dressed impeccably, tall and handsome, and one could tell at a glance that he was not from the village.

He also kept staring at him with a strange look in his eyes.

Xue Ci lowered his head.

He was not wearing patched clothes today...

Yet before the protagonist was even recognized back into the Lu Family, had he already made acquaintance with such a friend?

Perhaps they met through that car accident.

The late August sunlight remained glaring. A thin layer of perspiration broke out over Xue Ci's body, making him resemble a ball of glutinous rice dumpling that was almost steamed through, soft and fragrant enough to melt upon the bite.

"Are you done asking? Leave already." Zhao Ying's tone was not at all kind.

Xue Ci did not understand why the protagonist had this attitude; could it be that he was relatively familiar with the other person? But no matter how one looked at it, this man opposite was currently the protagonist's only hope to enter the city, acknowledge his family, and advance the plot.

He immediately tugged at Zhao Ying's clothes: "Don't be so fierce..."

Lu Xiunan turned his head. Xue Ci was lifting his face and leaning close to his shoulder to speak, his light-colored pupils reflected by the sunlight as pretty as colored glass.

His lips parted and closed, exuding a moist, soft, and rich fragrance.

Lu Xiunan's shoulder paused, his Adam's apple rolling.

His irritable mood was instantly smoothed out. Looking at Fu Yun once more, his expression was slightly peaceful, and even the arrogance in his bones was reined in.

"You should leave."

"..."

The stark contrast in attitude before and after was solely because of a single remark from the youth.

Fu Yun felt as though he were watching a dog-training performance; that noble, pedigree dog which viewed everyone with self-righteous detachment and looked down on all living creatures equally, was retracting its sharp teeth before a pretty, frail, domestic cat.

Yet this domestic cat was truly...

Fu Yun could find no words to describe him.

In an instant, he understood the reason why Lu Xiunan would rather stay here than return.

"The weather is too hot, I'll leave in a bit." He randomly grabbed an excuse, his gaze shifting back to Xue Ci once more.

The oversized short-sleeve hung loosely over his shoulders, the hem fluttering with the gentle breeze, occasionally revealing the outline of a slender waist.

So thin, he could probably be picked up with one hand.

Seeing that Fu Yun was still staring at Song Xueci, Lu Xiunan's face sank.

Just as he was about to chase the visitor away, Xue Ci muttered into his ear, using that breathy voice with a soft tone: "Your friend seems very hot. Should we let him come in for a glass of water?"

"He-"

Before Lu Xiunan had time to refuse, Fu Yun stepped ahead of him: "Thank you."

It was not as if Fu Yun failed to notice the impatience on Young Master Lu's face, but the weather was simply too hot, so hot that he could not walk another step.

"Oh..." Xue Ci pushed Zhao Ying, "Let's go inside."

Fu Yun followed behind the two of them, and just like that, uninvited, he entered the house.

The conditions inside the house were crude, yet it was tidied up warmly enough.

Xue Ci wanted to grasp what seemed to him the only hope, and thus prepared to treat Zhao Ying's friend. However, after searching for a long time, he could not find any tea leaves.

He was not usually the one who cleaned up around the house.

Lu Xiunan put down the washbasin: "What are you looking for?"

Xue Ci: "Tea leaves."

With a cold face, Lu Xiunan nevertheless had his body move uncontrollably to take the tea leaves out of the refrigerator and go to the kitchen to boil water.

Xue Ci pushed the candies toward Fu Yun, then sat down on a stool in the corner.

Fu Yun: "For me to eat?"

Xue Ci nodded, then gave him a shy smile.

So obedient.

Realizing that he had been staring for too long, Fu Yun immediately withdrew his gaze, unwrapped a cheap milk candy-one he had never eaten before-and popped it into his mouth.

The room was very quiet. Fearing that he was hot, the youth turned on the only electric fan and pointed it toward him.

"You should have it." Fu Yun turned the fan around, watching the youth's soft hair flutter while his own heart fluttered along with it. "My name is Fu Yun. What's your name?"

"Song Xueci."

Xue Ci had not seen this name in the world data given by 11: "Are you from the city?"

This question was asked quite bluntly, sounding extremely vain and as if he were trying to cozy up to someone.

Had it been anyone else, Fu Yun would have long since sneered and ignored him. But for some reason, he felt that Song Xueci harbor no such intentions; on the contrary, it was he himself who desperately wanted to show off something in front of the other person.

"Mn, from the city. Have you ever been there?"

Xue Ci nodded: "I went once when we registered our marriage."

Fu Yun was so shocked that his speech stammered: "Reg, registered your marriage... You, you actually married Lu-"

"Drink your tea."

Placing the cup down heavily before him, Lu Xiunan interrupted, "Drink up and get lost."

"You, you guys..."

Wanting to say something more, Fu Yun swallowed the words back upon seeing Lu Xiunan's expression.

Having spent a long time together, he understood what the other person meant-there was a hidden story, so he should not talk nonsense.

His heart filled with suspicion, Lu Xiunan urged him to leave before the tea had even cooled.

Fu Yun knew Young Master Lu very well; if he stayed any longer, they wouldn't even be friends anymore. He lingered no longer, though he did not forget to purloin a milk candy on his way out.

Xue Ci actually still wanted to ask Fu Yun some questions, but unfortunately, by the time they went outside, the figures of the two men had already vanished.

*

"So you're currently posing as someone else's husband?" Fu Yun could simply not believe his ears. "What the hell are you playing at? How can someone not recognize their own husband?"

"Maybe they just look alike." Lu Xiunan wore a warning look. "Keep your voice down."

Fu Yun glanced around.

With a complicated expression, he fell silent for a long time.

No wonder he was washing clothes and sending things over; as it turned out, he had mistaken the person for his real husband.

Thinking for a moment, he suddenly asked: "Then you guys... have you done it?"

Lu Xiunan glanced at him sideways and said nothing.

It seemed they hadn't... Fu Yun's breathing grew slightly heavier, and after a few seconds, he could not help asking: "Then you've at least kissed, right?"

Lu Xiunan tightly knitted his brows, yet remained utterly silent.

"You fucking haven't even kissed, yet you're helping people wash underwear? And sending so much stuff?" Fu Yun was shocked over and over again today. "I never expected you to be such a coward."

"..." Accustomed to saving face, Lu Xiunan casually lied upon being described this way.

"We kissed."

Fu Yun's smile grew somewhat stiff. He uttered an "oh," and a moment later, abruptly threw out a question: "What does it feel like to kiss?"

Annoyed to death, Lu Xiunan spoke in a sinister tone: "Why don't you go try it yourself and find out?"

"Where am I supposed to get a partner?"

Fu Yun had been single for over twenty years, and his only good friend had suddenly dropped a pretty wife out of nowhere; he could not describe the taste in his heart, especially after having seen what Song Xueci looked like.

"You've already kissed, but your brother hasn't even been in a relationship. What's wrong with describing how it feels?"

Lu Xiunan thought of that night in the cornfield, the closest he had ever been to Song Xueci.

Merely drawing near allowed him to smell the fragrance between their teeth and lips.

His lip tubercles were small and sparkling, and his lips looked very easy to kiss.

Seeing him remain silent for a long time, Fu Yun asked: "Was it very comfortable?"

Heat surged up Lu Xiunan's back, and he gave a perfunctory "Mn."

Sure enough...

Fu Yun's Adam's apple rolled slightly, his throat feeling as though it concealed a ball of fire.

His mind was filled entirely with Xue Ci's face.

"Alright, alright, get lost!" Utterly annoyed by the other's enchanted, utterly bewitched appearance, Lu Xiunan snapped, "You won't need to come over anymore. I'll drive and buy these things myself from now on."

Clearly, Lu Xiunan had already regarded himself as the real husband.

He even treated his bro here as a hypothetical rival in love.

Fu Yun offered a reminder: "What if one day Song Xueci's delusions clear up, and he discovers you're not his husband? Or what if his real husband comes back and dumps you?"

Lu Xiunan's face sank; he had considered this question-yet every time he thought of it, he would immediately persuade himself otherwise.

"How could he possibly come back? Her husband died long ago."

Fu Yun asked nothing further: "Then what else do you need me to bring next time? I saw earlier that his house seems to lack a washing machine; shall I bring one over next time?"

What the hell.

They had only met once, yet he was being so attentive.

Lu Xiunan stared at him coldly.

Fu Yun felt his scalp tingle under that gaze: "I just figured washing clothes every day is pretty tiring for you."

"Don't busy yourself with matters you shouldn't concern yourself with."

Lu Xiunan reached out a hand: "Return the candy."

Fu Yun: "?"

Damn it, he wasn't even willing to part with a single candy for him?

*

After Zhao Ying returned, Xue Ci asked him about some things concerning Fu Yun.

As it turned out, the other party was extremely reluctant to discuss those matters.

After asking for a long time, all he got was useless information like Fu Yun being very fickle and having gone through many partners.

Just as he wanted to ask more, 11 issued a new task.

[The plotline has reached the time for the protagonist to be recognized by his family and return.]

Xue Ci was startled-unawares, so much time had passed.

Yet the protagonist had still not recovered his memory.

11: [Host, our progress bar has never regressed. Even though it's a bit strange, once the proper timeline is reached, fixed task content will be issued.]

Xue Ci: [Is he going to start focusing on his career?]

11: [That's right! If things progress normally right now, the plotline should have the protagonist throwing himself into his career, acting all mysterious every day, and neglecting you.]

Xue Ci thought deeply: [Should I pick a fight with him then?]

11: [There are both fights and intimacy.]

Xue Ci was stunned for a moment: [How intimate does it need to be?]

11: [The protagonist told you right from the start about being recognized back into the Lu Family. According to your character setting, you were terrified of being abandoned by a protagonist who had transformed into a young master, which, coupled with his lukewarm attitude, led you to use a very primitive method to make him stay.]

Xue Ci had a bad premonition.

Sure enough.

Upon hearing the instruction to "make the marriage status a reality," Xue Ci bit down hard on his lower lip.

Fortunately, 11 timely added: [However, Zhao Ying is a career-focused male lead and isn't interested in matters of affection; you just need to be responsible for luring him.]

[He will righteously refuse you.]

As for luring a man, Xue Ci understood it only vaguely.

It probably meant being proactive...

In short, his husband would surely resist it very much.

*

Zhao Ying still failed to get in touch with Xue Ci.

He used the hospital phone to call Village Chief Zhou, and the only time it got through, he was mistaken for a scammer.

"Can you scammers have some shred of virtue? The man went to the city to visit relatives, and you're cursing him for getting into a car accident. Have you no conscience?" Zhao Ying was not from Zhou Family Village, so Village Chief Zhou was unfamiliar with his voice and naturally did not recognize it. "You even inquired about the man's wife-you've got some real nerve. The man's wife is doing just fine, being taken care of by someone, so you don't need to trouble yourself."

The "Beep, beep, beep" of a busy tone quickly sounded on the line.

Zhao Ying tightly pressed his lips together, his knitted brow having failed to relax for days.

When he dialed again, the other party no longer answered.

What did it mean that Xue Ci was being taken care of by someone?

That dream surfaced in his mind once more, causing Zhao Ying's eyelids to twitch frantically. He found the nurse and stated that he could not get in touch with his wife, was extremely worried, and wanted to request discharge from the hospital.

"But there's no way you can be discharged in your condition. Your injuries are very severe; you almost became a vegetable."

The slaughter among fragments was exceptionally cruel.

The original plotline had deviated; if not for Xue Ci's red cloth strip, Zhao Ying would have been long gone.

Yet, knowing nothing of these external forces, he kept his mind entirely on Xue Ci.

During the day, the severely injured man performed rehabilitation training, and in his spare time, he persistently called the village and wrote several letters, hoping the nurses could help mail them out.

Yet even a letter tossed and turned for half a month before reaching Xue Ci's hands.

After some thought, he still put the letter away and placed it inside his backpack.

A few days later, the nurse conducted her routine checkup on Zhao Ying and discovered to her astonishment that the patient's injuries had recovered amazingly, leaving only superficial wounds.

Such a medical miracle startled several attending physicians, and even drew a Professor Chen from a neighboring province and city.

"Where is the patient?"

Driving over and following the nurse's directions to the ward, Professor Chen pushed open the door to find the bed already neatly made. The person inside was packing their luggage, back slightly curved, though one could still tell his figure was tall and robust.

"Hello," Professor Chen called out.

The man straightened his back and turned around.

Professor Chen thought his eyes were playing tricks on him.

"Lu family boy? You got into a car accident? Your parents didn't mention a thing!"

Although somewhat tanned, this was unmistakably Lu Xiunan.

He had a deep connection with the Lu Family, and Lu Xiunan was a junior he particularly valued.

"How did you end up like this? Didn't your family come?"

Zhao Ying didn't really understand what the unfamiliar doctor in front of him was saying. His thoughts were fixed on his young wife at home. "Sorry, I've already completed the discharge procedures. I'll come back and pay the rest once I've gathered the money at home."

The man in front of him clearly spoke as though he barely knew him.

Professor Chen asked the nurse for the patient's records.

In the name field: Zhao Ying.

Were there really people in the world who looked exactly alike?

Wait... Professor Chen's pupils contracted.

He seemed to have remembered something from a long time ago.

Xue Ci had been waiting for a task these past few days. Zhao Ying, meanwhile, really did keep going out mysteriously, just as he did in the plot.

Perhaps he was discussing how to start a furniture factory with his friends.

The progress bar, which hadn't moved in a long time, was also advancing.

Xue Ci was pleased with the protagonist's ambition and no longer restricted the time he spent out.

The villagers didn't know Zhao Ying well. Sometimes, when they saw him passing by and wanted to greet him, the cold look on his face put them off.

After a while, people began gossiping behind his back.

"Could things be bad between him and his spouse? He wears a sour face all day."

"That child from the Song Family looks frail. He can't take much."

"He certainly dresses respectably. I bet he's made quite a bit of money making furniture."

"Look, he even got a big refrigerator for the house."

Xue Ci was living comfortably.

Not only was the progress bar slowly advancing, but Zhao Ying often brought home furniture, making life increasingly convenient.

Zhao Ying also asked him what he liked, and after that, he always brought back snacks and comic books.

Comic books were precious in this era. Only a few series had been published in collected volumes, and every one he read was one fewer left to enjoy, so Xue Ci couldn't bear to read them.

Lu Xiunan saw him turning the pages slowly, one by one, and thought he couldn't read. "Want me to teach you?"

Xue Ci shook his head. "I can read them."

So he was literate after all. Only a handful of people in the whole Zhou Family Village could read, and Song Xueci was one of them.

That surprised Lu Xiunan.

"Did you go to school before?" He hadn't noticed that he was growing curious about Song Xueci's past.

When an arrogant person grew curious about someone, they weren't far from falling in love.

Xue Ci nodded. "I did, but later my parents both fell ill and died. The family was in debt, so there was no money for me to keep going to school."

Xue Ci's black hair lay smooth and neat, and his tone was calm as he said this, with no intention of playing on anyone's sympathy.

But Lu Xiunan still thought he had it rough.

He knew about the debt. After Zhou Qize called Xue Ci to the market to pick out flowers last time, those creditors had come to the house with wooden clubs to demand payment.

He had paid off the few thousand yuan for him and sent them away.

Only after they left did fear set in.

What if Song Xueci had been there alone?

He was so frail. How helpless must he have felt when those people came to demand payment?

Lu Xiunan didn't know what the feeling was, but it made him uncomfortable. Suddenly, he called softly, "Xue Ci."

Xue Ci looked up.

After a brief moment of confusion, he tilted his head and smiled at him.

Lu Xiunan shuddered. It was as though he felt something melting deep inside him.

A cold, arrogant heart, but also a fragile, faithful one.

It was like a crack opening in a glacier, and through that crack, which he thought wouldn't affect him, came a warm Xue Ci.

Xue Ci.

A poor little thing whose fate hasn't been kind.

From now on, I'll be your husband.

From beginning to end, I'll be your only husband.

Lu Xiunan said this silently to himself.

Xue Ci saw that he had been staring at him without speaking for a long time.

He leaned closer.

His voice was barely more than a breath. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing..." Lu Xiunan came out of his lovestruck daze. "Do you want to go to school in the city later? Or whatever you like, you can learn it. Piano? Or something else?"

Although it wouldn't happen, Xue Ci still gave it serious thought. "Can I learn to paint?"

"Whatever you like."

Tiny flecks of light sparkled in Xue Ci's eyes.

"Honey, you're so good to me!"

Lu Xiunan's eyelids kept twitching, and his voice was hoarse. "...Oh."

Xue Ci went back to his comic, but the next second, an arm wrapped around his waist and lifted him up.

His view swayed upward.

Once his view steadied, Xue Ci realized Zhao Ying had picked him up and put him on his lap.

The man's legs were all muscle, hard when tensed, and uncomfortable to sit on.

Xue Ci shifted uncomfortably.

The next second, he was pulled completely into an embrace.

"I'm uncomfortable..." he said quietly. "Can you put me down?"

"Where are you uncomfortable?" The person in his arms was so soft that Lu Xiunan felt he could drown in him. "Is it uncomfortable when your husband holds you? Then who do you want to hold you?"

Xue Ci's eyelashes fluttered.

The man was forceful, and Xue Ci couldn't break free, so he simply stayed where he was.

Xue Ci was very stiff, curling himself into a ball. Lu Xiunan's voice had gone hoarse, but he didn't actually do anything. "Your husband is just holding you."

But it's so tight...

Xue Ci felt he was about to be squeezed into a puddle.

It was so hot, yet the man insisted on holding him and kept coming out with strange remarks.

"You smell so good."

"Does your mouth smell this good too?"

"Your eyelashes are so long..."

The man's breath made Xue Ci's earlobes burn, and they soon turned pink.

Fortunately, it was soon time for dinner.

The man finally let him go.

Xue Ci ran off to the main hall, leaving Lu Xiunan sitting there, breathing in the lingering fragrance.

That night, just as Xue Ci was about to fall asleep, a task suddenly appeared.

-He needed to have intimate contact with the person beside him in bed within ten minutes.

Xue Ci forced his eyes open, his voice thick and nasal. "...Honey?"

Ever since Lu Xiunan had started sleeping in this room, he had rarely fallen asleep before the second half of the night. He answered lightly, "Hmm?"

Xue Ci had known beforehand that he would have to do a task and had long since thought up an excuse. "I'm a little cold. Do you want to come up and sleep here?"

Xue Ci's body temperature was always low, and the weather had recently turned cooler, so Lu Xiunan thought nothing of it and climbed up with his thin blanket.

The mattress immediately sank on the other side, tilting half of Xue Ci's body toward him, so he simply pressed himself against the man.

Lu Xiunan's body stiffened as he felt Xue Ci's cool, soft body.

It was pure torture for him.

He couldn't sleep even when they were merely in the same room, let alone pressed this close together.

Lu Xiunan held his breath in check, but his body temperature rose uncontrollably.

Xue Ci felt the heat too and wanted to move away, but the notification that the task had succeeded still hadn't sounded.

Does it have to be very intimate...?

By the moonlight, Xue Ci glanced at the man's face.

His eyes were shut tight, and his breathing was steady.

He looked as though he had already fallen asleep.

Growing bolder, Xue Ci rubbed his foot against the man's lower leg, his rounded toes squishing slightly out of shape.

Soon, the sound announcing the task's completion rang out.

Satisfied, Xue Ci slowly moved to the edge of the bed, only to be scooped up by the waist and pulled straight back the next second.

"Mmph..."

Xue Ci let out a frightened little cry.

Lu Xiunan held him from behind, restraining him effortlessly. His scorching breath fell on Xue Ci's neck, and the heat stirred the fragrance, making it even stronger.

"You smell so damn good."

The person in his arms was trembling slightly. Lu Xiunan said fiercely, "Scared?"

"Then you went and rubbed against me on purpose just now."

"You've nearly bewitched the life out of me."

Xue Ci seemed stunned with fright, unable even to resist. He could only make faint, even more enticing sounds in his throat.

Lu Xiunan swallowed.

The distinct sound echoed throughout the room.

His breathing was heavy, like a beast controlled by desire.

"We've been married a long time."

"And now we're even sleeping in the same bed."

Xue Ci was like a little ball of snow, about to be melted by the man behind him.

He was held so tightly that the air was nearly squeezed from his chest, and his speech came out in short breaths.

"Let's sleep..."

"I touched you by accident."

Xue Ci's voice already sounded pitiful.

But Lu Xiunan still didn't let go.

"Last time, Fu Yun asked me what kissing on the lips felt like, and I didn't know how to answer. I still haven't even touched you."

"But I bet it feels amazing."

"Other things must feel even better."

Everything he said seemed to be urging Xue Ci to fulfill his duties as a wife.

Author's note:

The carpenter guy should be back next chapter??