EWH 39

Yang Moshou walked off with Mo Mo just like that.

When they first walked off, the underlings stepped up to block them once, but Xu Wanhe did not make any move. Yang Moshou simply went around the men and took Mo Mo back to the outpatient building for a check-up.

Mo Mo kept looking back at Xu Wanhe with every few steps. He had wanted to say something nice to smooth things over, but seeing how terrifyingly dark Xu Wanhe’s expression was, he decided against it.

The underlings around Xu Wanhe tried to comfort him.

“Xu-ge, Xiao Yang-ge is really a good person. He really has a kind heart. He must have seen that guy’s nose bleeding and went to help him. No wonder he is a doctor. He has a good medical conscience.”

The others quickly picked up the cue and chimed in.

“Yeah, exactly. If that guy were fine, Xiao Yang-ge would not have even paid him any attention. Besides, that brat is tall for nothing. He cannot even take a beating.
I watched it all. Xu-ge barely even touched him.”

Xu Wanhe did not say a word.
A fire of anger was trapped in his chest.

But deeper inside, there were other emotions too. Ones he could not clearly explain.

A bit of disappointment.
And a bit of anxiousness.

The midday sun was scorching.
Xu Wanhe stood under the blazing heat, staring toward the place where the two had disappeared. He desperately hoped someone would show up from that direction, walking toward him, smiling, all soft and pale.

Hopefully, he would say a few words to him, even if it was just to complain.
Xu Wanhe would be willing to hold back his temper no matter what.

As long as he spoke, whether he wanted to eat rice noodles or hot pot, whether he wanted to drink cola, Fanta, or Wong Lo Kat, Xu Wanhe would take him anywhere he wanted to go.

But he waited and waited, and still no one came.

Xu Wanhe was being baked alive under the sun. Sweat rolled down his forehead, one drop after another, like tears.

All he could think about was that bastard clinging to Yang Moshou, getting treated for his injuries, acting all sweet and fake, maybe even grabbing Yang Moshou’s hand while he was at it and confessing his feelings.

Getting ahead of him.

Fuck him.

The underlings had been talking beside him for a long time, but seeing that Xu Wanhe was not calming down at all, and that his face was looking worse by the second, they started to panic.

They could not tell if it was anger or heatstroke.

“Xu-ge… let us not stay under the sun anymore… you are going to get heatstroke.”

One of them added quickly, “Also… I saw your foot is bleeding too. Since we are already at the hospital, why not get it treated while we are here?”

Xu Wanhe snapped back to his senses and lowered his head to look at his foot.

Even though he was afraid that brat might beat him to it, Xu Wanhe still could not bring himself to go looking for Yang Moshou directly. His pride would not allow it.

Tending to an injury was a good excuse.
There was a chance they might bump into each other by accident. That way, it would not look like he had gone out of his way to seek him out.

He could see how things went from there.

With that in mind, the four of them headed to the outpatient building.

Mo Mo really wasn’t hurt too bad. His face would swell for a bit but it wouldn’t scar.

Yang Moshou’s anger had mostly faded too.

Once he finished up what he was working on, he thought of Xu Wanhe again.
The irritation from earlier did not feel as strong anymore, and he felt like giving him a call.

Yang Moshou could be petty, but mostly in the sense of holding grudges. And this time, Xu Wanhe had not even said anything harsh. He had not cursed or yelled. In fact, his attitude was actually pretty decent.

Most importantly, it was almost lunchtime.
Calling to ask where they were eating felt like a perfectly valid reason.

After parting ways with Mo Mo, Yang Moshou headed upstairs toward his department.

He did not expect to run into Xiao Wang from proctology on the way, who said he had brought fresh lychees and invited Yang Moshou to come eat some.

Yang Moshou loved lychees and got excited, completely forgetting about the phone call he had meant to make. He followed him upstairs to the proctology department.

Meanwhile, Xu Wanhe finished getting his wound treated and still hadn’t seen Yang Moshou.

He even sent one of his underlings to check in neurology. No one was there.

That made Xu Wanhe even more frustrated.
He snapped at the people around him, venting his anger. The nurse applying the iodine got so startled her hands trembled, and she spilled nearly half the bottle.

With his thick brows tightly furrowed, Xu Wanhe’s mind was spinning fast.

Staying passive wouldn’t cut it.

But making the first move, confessing and all that…. he wasn’t just bad at it, he had no experience whatsoever.

In his whole life, he’d only ever made a move once, and that was when he sent flowers to Tang Ziyan.

The ending was not great, so this time he decided not to do flowers.

The young nurse finished treating him and was about to leave when Xu Wanhe suddenly spoke.

“Has anyone ever chased after you?”

The nurse lifted her head in shock and stared at the man in front of her.

Normally, she’d have rolled her eyes, called him a creep, and stormed off.

But this time she didn’t. Not just because he was intimidating, but also because he looked manly as hell. Tall, solid, and, to be honest, kind of attractive.

She forced a polite smile. “Ah… I have a boyfriend…”

Xu Wanhe heard that and pulled back his leg. With a wave of his hand, he dismissed her.

“Alright, alright, go on then.”

Right after that, he pulled out his phone and called Tang Ziyan.

Their relationship wasn’t the same as before.

It had become much more relaxed.

In the past, Xu Wanhe used to talk to him with double meanings, never saying what he truly felt. Now, he was straightforward. A lot more casual.

Tang Ziyan had already handed over all his influence and territory. Soon, he would be gone for good.

With no more interest or power struggles between them, their connection had become cleaner.

Now that Tang Ziyan had stepped away from his role as a gang boss, to Xu Wanhe, he was nothing more than a little brother.

They hadn’t become lovers, and he had no desire to be friends either.

Every time he thought of him now, what came to mind wasn’t heartbreak. It was a memory from when they were young. Him leading a ten-something kid around, eating together, walking together.

Just like a big brother with his younger sibling.

The call picked up quickly. The voice on the other end was soft.

“What’s up?”

Xu Wanhe paced to the end of the corridor and stepped onto the terrace. He lit a cigarette.

“Need to ask you something.”

The voice on the phone chuckled. “Go ahead.”

Xu Wanhe held a cigarette between his lips.
The sunlight hit his skin, making it dark and shiny, almost as if a layer of oil had been brushed over it. “How did you chase Shen Han back then? Tell me.”

“I chased him?”

“Oh, so he chased you? Makes sense. He’s such a loser.”

Tang Ziyan laughed for a while. “Nah, it was me who chased him.”

Xu Wanhe could not say exactly what he felt.

He was not angry, nor was it the gut-wrenching feeling he had imagined.

It was just plain and flat.
“You really are shameless enough. Fine, tell me, how did you chase him?”

“Well… he was a cop, right? I went to the police station and filed a complaint. Told them I didn’t have a boyfriend…”

Xu Wanhe almost coughed up blood from pure frustration. “Fuck. You are such a fucking idiot and so damn cheap.”

Tang Ziyan’s voice stayed flat, same as always, calm and even-tempered. “Why are you asking this anyway?” He paused. “Wait… don’t tell me…”

Xu Wanhe didn’t miss the implication.

“Bullshit. Like I’d chase someone. You think I’m as cheap as you?”

After he finished cursing, Xu Wanhe started feeling a little less confident.
“You just say what you gotta say. Why are you asking all this useless shit… acting like some damn woman…”

Tang Ziyan was a smart guy. With just a few sentences, he had already guessed what Xu Wanhe was trying to get at. Once Xu Wanhe finished venting, he patiently gave him a few pointers.

“Whether you chase someone or not… if they don’t like you, it won’t matter what you do. On the other hand, if there is already something there, all it takes is a few words.”

Xu Wanhe got anxious. “Then what the hell am I supposed to say?”

Tang Ziyan started laughing.
“Say whatever you want.”

Xu Wanhe snapped back to his senses and muttered under his breath.

“Fucking bastard.”

Tang Ziyan could not stop laughing on the other end. “Any more questions?”

Xu Wanhe tossed away the cigarette in his hand and crushed it underfoot.

“Laugh, laugh, laugh. Laugh your fucking ass off. Shen Han was an ugly bastard anyway. Go ahead and laugh!”

He hung up the phone, then turned furiously to his underlings.

“You fuckers, all of you tell me… how the fuck do you even confess to someone?
Fuck this shit, this is fucking driving me crazy…”

The guys had been listening to his phone call for a while, and they had already guessed what was going on.

“Xu-ge… how about I call and book a restaurant right now? Later we can set off some fireworks outside. Once the atmosphere is right, everything else will come naturally.”

Xu Wanhe gave the guy a sidelong glare. “Where the hell did you learn that from?”

The underling gave a sheepish grin. “Xu ge, don’t laugh at me… that’s how I won over my wife.”

As soon as Xu Wanhe heard it actually worked, he nodded.

“Alright, we’ll go with that.”

—

Yang Moshou had eaten his fill of lychees in the proctology department.
Checking the time, he figured it was about time to show his face back at his own department. After saying goodbye to Xiao Wang, he got ready to leave.

Xiao Wang stuffed two giant lychees into his hand before he left.

Yang Moshou stepped out and headed toward the staircase near the terrace, thinking it would be quieter there.

But as soon as he climbed one flight, he spotted a few people standing by the terrace, chatting. One of them stood out because of his tall and striking figure.

Yang Moshou could not help but glanced over a few times.

And right then, he locked eyes with Xu Wanhe.

Xu Wanhe had been giving instructions to his underlings to buy fireworks, but when he noticed Yang Moshou looking at him, he got flustered and quickly turned his face away.

His cheeks were burning. He muttered a low curse under his breath.

The guys standing nearby instantly scattered, each pretending to be busy with something else.

Yang Moshou kept staring at Xu Wanhe for a while.

He clicked his tongue, thinking to himself that this man was handsome enough to hit him right in the heart.

An absolute male god.

Xu Wanhe heard the surroundings go quiet and thought Yang Moshou must have left. But just as he turned his face back around, he was met with those faint double eyelids right in front of him.

His heart itched.

It was a weird feeling.

He used to think Yang Moshou wasn’t much to look at. But now, the more he looks, the more pleasing he finds it. He even thought he was quite good-looking.

Fuck, handsome guy with handsome guy, talented and rich, it was something to feel a little proud about, damn it.

Yang Moshou looked at Xu Wanhe for a moment.

“Why are you here?”

“You were busy taking care of someone else, right? Nobody cared about me, so I came by myself.” Xu Wanhe kept a straight face. “Did he confess to you?”

Yang Moshou looked at him for a while, then suddenly grinned and laughed for a good while.

Finally, he shook his head and shoved a lychee into Xu Wanhe’s hand.

“Here, eat this. It is good. Very sweet.”

Then handed over the other one too.
“You can have both.”

Xu Wanhe stared at the two lychees in his hand and suddenly felt kind of ridiculous.

He was a grown man, a gang boss at that, doing this corny shit. What the hell.

But the more he thought about it, the more he felt… something. It was weird, but it felt kinda nice.

“Oh… uh… after work, I’ll take you out for dinner.”

Yang Moshou blinked, pleasantly surprised. He felt like their wavelengths were syncing up more and more. They were aligned physically, emotionally. All they needed now was to sync their fashion sense.

Damn, he really wanted to wear matching couple outfits and show off.

“Want to go eat rice noodles?”

“Yeah, sure.”

“That shop next to the hospital! The one I mentioned before!”

“Yeah, sure.”

“I’ll get the shredded pork and pickled veggie rice noodles. You get the crossing-the-bridge one. That way, I can have both.”

“Yeah, sure.”

“Hey, are you even gonna eat the lychees? If not, give them back. Don’t crush them in your hand.”

“Fuck you, you gave it to me and now you’re trying to take it back?” Xu Wanhe shoved the lychee into his pocket, grabbed Yang Moshou by the collar, and started pulling him away. “You really are fucking unreasonable… I’ll buy you a whole basket later…”