ASFSODS 55

No one knew when the boy had woken up. He was curled under the blanket with only his nose and eyes showing, lying on his side because of the injury on the back of his head. Wen Chi’s eyes curved when he saw Jiang Siheng looking at him.

He looked completely carefree.

Jiang Siheng was both annoyed and amused. He walked over, sat by the bed, reached out to lightly ruffle Wen Chi’s hair, then glanced at the hand with the IV drip and asked, “Does your head still hurt?”

Wen Chi gave a small shake of his head. “Not really.”

“Mm.”

After that, Jiang Siheng didn’t say anything else.

Wen Chi peeked at him, then stretched a hand out from the blanket to tug at the hem of Jiang Siheng’s shirt. “Teacher Jiang, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing.” Jiang Siheng tucked Wen Chi’s hand back under the blanket.

“Oh.” Wen Chi quickly glanced at the man’s hand, which was still resting on the back of his own, and his heartbeat quickened. “Why aren’t you going back to rest?”

Actually, he had heard everything earlier—Jiang Siheng saying he was staying to take care of him. For some reason he couldn’t explain, Wen Chi wanted to hear him say it again.

Jiang Siheng seemed to know exactly what little game Wen Chi was playing and said, “Because the hotel’s too far. I’m too lazy to go back.”

Wen Chi: “???” That was definitely not the reason he gave earlier!

Being stared at by Wen Chi, Jiang Siheng only smiled. “Hungry?”

Wen Chi: “No.”

“Oh. I thought after putting in that much effort in a fight, you’d be starving.”

“…” Wen Chi pointed at him. “Teacher Jiang, you’re being so passive-aggressive.”

Jiang Siheng took Wen Chi’s hand, which had just been pulled away, and held it again. “The doctor said you’ll need someone to take care of you for the next few days.”

Wen Chi: “Hm?”

Jiang Siheng: “When do you want to go back to Linquan City?”

Wen Chi: “…Uh? T-Tomorrow?”

Jiang Siheng nodded. “I have an apartment in Linquan City.”

Wen Chi seemed to know what he was getting at and held his breath, not daring to blink, afraid of missing even a trace of his expression.

“Want to stay at my place for a few days?” Jiang Siheng said, then paused when he saw Wen Chi staring at him, and added, “The doctor said it’s best not to get the wound on the back of your head wet these next few days. You live alone, and your assistant’s a girl, so it’s inconvenient. I don’t have any work coming up, so I can take care of you.”

The warm yellow light in the room was bright. Wen Chi’s fingers curled slightly in Jiang Siheng’s palm, lightly brushing against his skin, sending a faint tingling sensation.

After hearing this, Wen Chi didn’t respond right away. He seemed to be hesitating.

Jiang Siheng couldn’t stand seeing him looking conflicted and said, “It’s fine. If you want to stay home, that’s okay too.”

The room fell quiet. Wen Chi lowered his gaze, lost in thought, and then suddenly shivered.

Jiang Siheng had been watching him the whole time. Noticing this, he let go of his hand and touched his forehead. “Cold?”

Wen Chi shook his head. “No.”

Worried the wound might get infected and cause a fever, Jiang Siheng checked his forehead now and then.

During that time, a nurse came in to change the IV fluid. She kept her eyes to herself, finished the job, and left.

There were still two more bottles to go. The hand with the IV was icy and stiff, very uncomfortable. Wen Chi buried his face into the soft pillow, and drowsiness slowly crept in.

“Get some sleep.” Jiang Siheng tucked the blanket around him and spoke softly.

Wen Chi hummed in reply, and his eyelids, heavy with sleep, slowly closed.

Not long after Wen Chi fell asleep, the Xiao Pang who had left earlier returned, carrying several bags.

“Jiang Ge.”

Hearing the voice, Jiang Siheng turned his head. Seeing Wen Chi asleep, Xiao Pang lowered his voice instinctively. “I brought you and Teacher Wen’s clothes and toiletries, and some food. Want to eat something?”

“I’m not hungry.” Jiang Siheng put the bags on the sofa. “You eat.”

Xiao Pang responded with an “oh” and didn’t bother being polite. He took out box after box from the takeout bags, and soon the whole ward was filled with the smell of food.

Jiang Siheng sat back down by the bed. After looking at Wen Chi for a few seconds, something came to mind. He took out his phone, lit up the screen, ignored the dozens of unread WeChat messages, and opened Weibo.

More than four hours had passed since the hotel incident. Sure enough, when he checked the trending topics, both his and Wen Chi’s names were there—Wen Chi’s in more places.

#JiangSihengPrincessCarriesWenChi#

#WenChiFighting#

#WenChiInjured#

#JiangSihengDefinitelyLikesWenChi#

He clicked on the fourth tag. The top trending post under it was from a blogger named “Triple Concentrated Cheese.”

[@TripleConcentratedCheese: My focus might be different from yours, but can I just say… damn, the way Jiang Siheng looks at Wen Chi is exactly like my boyfriend when I accidentally hurt myself—half angry, but mostly heartbroken [image][image]]

Comments:

[Finally! I’m not the only one who thinks so.]

[Ahhh me too!]

[? Your focus is seriously different.]

[Shouldn’t we be focusing on Wen Chi fighting? As a public figure, that’s a blemish, okay?]

[Uwu my Chi baby.]

[Sure, he was fighting in the video, but I believe he had a reason. Argue all you want, I’m still on his side.]

[Honestly, after I heard Wen Chi risked himself during that riot to save a family, I can’t help but see him in a better light.]

[OMG, everyone go check the 27th trending topic!!! I’m dying laughing.]

Drawn by the promise of gossip, netizens refreshed the trending list and found a new one sitting at number 27.

#BannerPresentedToMrWenChi#

Netizens: What kind of bizarre trending topic is this???

From start to finish, after piecing everything together, gossip-hungry netizens were stunned. It turned out the family of the pregnant woman Wen Chi had rescued in Country Y had presented him with a commendation banner. Since customizing a banner takes time, by the time they tracked down the guesthouse where Wen Chi had stayed, the show was already over. Luckily, two fans from Huaguo who were traveling there happened to run into them and took a photo, posting it on Weibo and tagging @WenChi and @JiangSiheng.

Somehow, the pregnant woman’s family had managed to copy the Huaguo-style banner perfectly. In the picture, the two fans each held one corner of the banner, their other hands holding up phone screens displaying photos of Wen Chi and Jiang Siheng. The pregnant woman and her family stood on either side, everyone smiling at the camera.

[@XiaoZhaoNeverFailsClass: Alright, my mission is complete! Already sent it off via international express~ Full story in pic 1 @WenChi @JiangSiheng [image][image][image]]

Netizens munching on gossip: “Fighting scandal on top, grateful foreign friends below—what a rollercoaster!”

Because of the time difference, the fan who posted the photos only saw the other Wen Chi trending topics afterward.

That fan had a filter on, eight hundred meters thick: “No way! Those guys must have done something bad. Wen Chi would never hit someone without a reason.”

There was no need for Jiang Siheng’s team to suppress or delete the trending topics. The fans and most casual viewers were in perfect harmony. Truth to be told, even Jiang Siheng’s PR team didn’t know why they were managing Wen Chi’s trending topics at all, but since the boss said so, they followed orders.

While happily devouring his late-night snack, Xiao Pang suddenly thought of something. He turned to Jiang Siheng. “Oh right, Jiang Ge, that girl Teacher Wen rescued is in a ward downstairs.”

Jiang Siheng only gave a quiet “mm” and said nothing more, clearly uninterested in anyone else.

Even having to whisper didn’t stop Xiao Pang’s urge to share. “You know, for someone who looks so intimidating, President Huo is actually pretty kind at heart.”

Jiang Siheng gave him a glance, then decided not to tell him the truth. After all, there was no chance he would ever get close to Huo Yanting.

After finishing his midnight snack, Xiao Pang cleaned up and left.

Jiang Siheng took a shower, and only after Wen Chi’s IV drip was finished did he sit in a chair by the bed, leaning forward to sleep. With his height just under 1.9 meters, sleeping like that all night would guarantee he would wake up sore the next day.

Perhaps because he was subconsciously guarding the wound on the back of his head, Wen Chi’s sleep was restless in the second half of the night. He kept worrying he might roll over and press on it.

Not being able to sleep deeply was irritating. At some unknown hour, Wen Chi opened his eyes, staring at the ceiling with a blank, dead-fish gaze. The main light was off, leaving only the small night lamp on.

The hand that had been cold from the IV slowly warmed under the blanket. Wen Chi shifted his gaze to the man sleeping with his head resting beside his pillow. It was his first time taking such a close, careful look at Jiang Siheng’s sleeping face. Back when they filmed the first episode and shared a room, they hadn’t been familiar yet, so Wen Chi had always slept with his back to him. By the time he woke, Jiang Siheng was already up.

He watched for a long while, then, very quietly, reached out to lightly touch Jiang Siheng’s eyelashes. For some reason, seeing him asleep gave Wen Chi the feeling he’d be easy to bully.

In the stillness of night, it was easiest for the mind to wander. Looking at Jiang Siheng’s face, Wen Chi suddenly remembered Qiao Congnan asking him a few days ago—if Jiang Siheng confessed to him after the show ended, what would he do?

He thought… he might say yes.

He couldn’t deny it. When he saw Jiang Siheng appear in the private room earlier, his first reaction was to feel wronged and want the man to hold him. If it were anyone else seeing him in such a sorry state, he would have put on a front, acting cool and unbothered, I’m fine, no big deal.

Before the show, Wen Chi had only planned to finish filming, collect the money, and leave. He had never expected to develop feelings for his co-guest.

He sighed silently and tried to sit up and turn over to sleep facing the other way, but the moment he moved, Jiang Siheng woke up.

Still half-asleep, his mind foggy, Jiang Siheng instinctively reached out, carefully avoiding the wound and to touch Wen Chi’s head. His just woke up voice was low and husky. “Does your head hurt again?”

“Hm?” Wen Chi shook his head and pulled his hand down. “Teacher Jiang, go sleep on the sofa. Sleeping like this can’t be comfortable.”

Jiang Siheng sat up straight. He never slept too deeply, so now he was fully awake. Glancing at their joined hands, then at Wen Chi’s pale face, he said, “No need. I’m not that sleepy.”

Wen Chi didn’t buy it—how could he not be sleepy? Looking at the bed, he realized it could actually fit two people. “Then why don’t you sleep here? The bed’s big enough.”

Jiang Siheng looked into his smiling eyes. Wen Chi seemed genuinely happy to offer him a comfortable place to sleep but Jiang Siheng’s mind went somewhere else.

He silently stared until Wen Chi started to feel awkward and lowered his gaze. Then Jiang Siheng chuckled lightly. “Wen Chi, you know inviting a man onto your bed can have… other meanings, right?”

Of course Wen Chi knew. Especially since they shared the same orientation, and on the surface they already had a “CP” dynamic for the dating show. But when he had said it just now, he had been perfectly innocent!

His eyes darted left and right. “Th-th-then… just pretend I didn’t say anything.”

No sooner were the words out than Wen Chi stared in shock as Jiang Siheng climbed into bed.

“Didn’t you just say that?”

Lying lazily on the other side, Jiang Siheng turned his head toward him. “You already invited me. How could I refuse?”

Wen Chi: “…” Jiang Siheng, you’re such a dog!

He huffed softly and turned his back to him. Lying in one position for too long got uncomfortable, so after some hesitation, Wen Chi turned over—this time facing Jiang Siheng.

The warm glow of the night lamp seemed to heighten the inexplicable tension in the air. Jiang Siheng looked at Wen Chi’s face. It was still pale, but beautiful nonetheless. The image of him curled in pain on the floor hours earlier surfaced in his mind again, impossible to shake.

“Xiao Chi…”

Wen Chi, lost in thought, instinctively answered, “Mm?”

In the dark, it was easier for darker impulses to rise to the surface. Jiang Siheng slid an arm around his neck, pulling him closer.

Cool, soft lips pressed against warm ones. Wen Chi’s eyes widened in disbelief as he stared at Jiang Siheng.