Chapter 27: Twenty Seven: I could do with a bath.

“It was no effort at all, you’re overly praising me.” Out of the corner of his eye, Cheng YuTang noticed Ji XiaoYu’s unhappy expression. There was a bit of a dark thought in his heart, but he didn’t let it show on the surface, “Officer Huang, excuse me, but where did your nephew get my picture from?”

Officer Huang was suddenly tongue-tied, “Uh, that, maybe someone gave it to him, I don’t know……”

Cheng YuTang put on a solemn expression, saying, “I’m sorry, but this is a violation of my editorial photography rights. I’ll trouble you to tell your nephew to remove my picture and destroy it immediately.”

“Yes, yes, yes, Cheng Zong is right. I’ll go back and teach that little bastard a good lesson. He’s too disgraceful!” Officer Huang hurried to agree and, at the same time, didn’t miss the opportunity to kiss up. “Nowadays, it’s really rare for people who have a good career to also be righteous and, at a critical moment, be able to stand up disregarding their own safety to fight bravely with traffickers, like Cheng Zong. I think you can compete for the next year’s ‘Top Ten People in Ning City!’”

Ay, how nauseating! Ji XiaoYu couldn’t help but rub the layer of goosebumps that had burst out on his arms. Isn’t that the natural action to take? Is it necessary to tout it like this?

Cheng YuTang obviously found it a bit unbearable as well. He said sternly, “I didn’t dare not to act. Trafficking in children is something that society as a whole hates. No citizen should just stand idly by when they encounter such a thing.

“And the one was just able to intercept the traffickers’ van in time, bravely fight with the traffickers, and rescue the kidnapped child was this person, not me, so the main credit should go to him.”

With that, he stepped aside and pushed Ji XiaoYu in front of himself.

Ji XiaoYu was a little nervous all of a sudden.

Officer Huang’s eyes went wide as he said, “Cheng Zong, you’re saying that this kid brought down those traffickers just now? No way!”

Ji XiaoYu was a little defiant as he said, “Uncle, I’m already 20, I’m not a kid anymore! I’m also very skilled. If you don’t believe me, let’s compare our abilities!”

“I’m very busy at the moment, I don’t have time.” Officer Huang waved his hand, obviously not believing he was really capable. “Young man, you come back to the police station with me first and give me a statement on the incident.”

Ji XiaoYu had to follow him to the police car, and then Cheng YuTang also got in and sat side by side with him.

Ji XiaoYu was surprised, saying, “Cheng Zong, aren’t you going to the hospital to get treatment for your wound?”

Cheng YuTang replied, “It’ll be fine to go later. I’ll go to the police station with you first to assist with the investigation.”

“Oh, okay!” Ji XiaoYu was very happy to hear that. He had been worried about a human police station, so hearing him say that gave him peace of mind. “Cheng Zong, you’re really a warm-hearted, enthusiastic citizen!”

Cheng Zong: “……”

Wang Qiang ran up to the window and asked, “Cheng Zong, what about me?”

Cheng YuTang said quietly, “You drive the car back first, I’ll give you other orders later.”

“Yes.” Wang Qiang’s expression seemed to be both lost and a bit reluctant. Before turning around and leaving, he also shot Ji XiaoYu a mysterious glance, but the other man wasn’t paying attention.

When Ji XiaoYu arrived at the police station with Cheng YuTang, luckily no one came to make things difficult for him or question his identity. Instead, he received a lot of praise. When Officer Huang heard that they hadn’t eaten dinner, he very enthusiastically called in a delivery order for them.

The family of the little chubby kid was particularly enthusiastic, their only response to bow down to him. When they heard that he was a HongSheng employee, they even said that they would send a golden banner to HongSheng tomorrow. This made him embarrassed, so after giving his statement, he immediately rushed out.

After leaving the police station, Ji XiaoYu found that Cheng YuTang wasn’t in good condition and he quickly rushed him to a taxi and went straight to the hospital.

When they arrived at the hospital, the nurse cleaned and disinfected Cheng YuTang’s wound. Then she applied the medicine and also gave him a tetanus shot. After all that, it was already 10:30pm.

Standing at the entrance of the hospital, Ji XiaoYu yawned because he was a little sleepy. He had always maintained a healthy routine. If he wasn’t on duty, he would bathe and get ready for bed at this time. “Cheng Zong, it’s late, I’ll head back, hmm? Bye-bye, see you tomorrow.”

The hell see you tomorrow! I’m so reluctant to separate, why doesn’t this guy feel any yearning at all? This little thing has no conscience! Cheng YuTang’s heart was very unsettled and the look of his pale face got even worse. He lifted his arm, which was wrapped up like a hammer, and shook it in front of his eyes.

Ji XiaoYu stared and said in confusion, “What’s wrong, isn’t it a good bandaging job?”

Cheng YuTang ground his teeth and said with boldness and conviction, “I hurt my right arm, a lot of things will be inconvenient, so you have to see me home.”

Ji XiaoYu wanted to say that it was just a wound on his arm and not a broken foot, so he should be able to go home on his own, but it was difficult to get the words out when he looked at Cheng Zong’s face. He had to obey.

So he called a taxi again and went to the villa community with Cheng YuTang.

When Ji XiaoYu entered the living room and saw that exquisite, comfortable, big couch, he couldn’t help but think of what happened last time. His face suddenly felt hot with shame and embarrassment and he did not know where to put his hands and feet.

Cheng YuTang looked at his tangled expression and wondered if he was misunderstanding. He himself felt a little embarrassed too, so he cleared his throat and said, “I’m a little thirsty, could you get me with a glass of water?”

“Okay.” Ji XiaoYu’s attention was shifted by this distraction. He took a glass of water from the water dispenser and gave him to him. He also felt thirsty, so he poured another glass and chugged down most of it.

Cheng YuTang picked up the remote control and turned on the TV. He serenely said, “Come and sit for a while, you’ve worked hard today.”

Seeing his natural, calm expression, Ji XiaoYu relaxed a little and sat down beside him holding the glass of water. The distance between the two was thirty or forty centimeters; not too close, but not too far.

Cheng Zong’s living room was very large, so naturally the TV was large, with an HD screen, vivid colors, and excellent visual effects. It was a lot better than the old 21-inch TV in the dorm.

Although this channel was showing an advertisement, Ji XiaoYu couldn’t keep from sighing, “So beautiful!”

Cheng YuTang smiled slightly and, in what seemed to be an unintentional way, picked up a glass of water from the table and took a sip. After relishing it, he said, “There’s a special projection room on the second floor. The effect’s much better than this. I also have quite a few classic movies here too. You can watch when you’re free.”

“Really? Okay!” Ji XiaoYu said in joy. When he went to take a sip of water, he suddenly realized something was wrong. “Hey, Cheng Zong, you used the wrong glass. You’re holding the one I just used.”

“Is it? I accidentally took the wrong one.” Cheng YuTang shifted his wounded hand a bit. “Forget it, it’s a pain to switch again. I’ll just use this one – say, you don’t have any messy illnesses, right?”

Ji XiaoYu still thought this was weird, thinking, doesn’t Cheng Zong always worry about cleanliness? How come he doesn’t mind using a glass I’ve drunk from? After hearing his question, he quickly answered to clarify the situation, “Of course not, I’m in good health! When I entered the company, I also had a physical examination. All categories were up to standard!”

That wasn’t a lie. When he first went to the XinHao Hotel as a housekeeper, he had to do a physical examination. After entering HongSheng, he did one again according to Yang YiPeng’s request. The results showed that his health was excellent and that he was in good condition, with no problems. Grandpa Hou had said that although the physiques of the spiritual beasts were different from those of human beings, ordinary medical testing instruments couldn’t detect anything unusual. Only by using advanced equipment would it be possible to find problems. Otherwise the spiritual beasts who mixed in with human society would be very easily exposed.

“That’s good.” Cheng YuTang smiled and took a sip of water from the glass.

After watching the advertisement for a while, Ji XiaoYu became sleepy again. Seeing that the wall clock showed that it was almost 11:30, he quickly got up and said, “Cheng Zong, it’s pretty late, I have to go back.”

Cheng YuTang nodded. “It is a bit late. But, there’s no bus in this villa community and this is pretty far from HongLe Garden. If you take a taxi back, I’m afraid you’ll have to spend quite a bit of money.”

This one sentence stabbed at Ji XiaoYu’s weak point. He couldn’t help but start to worry a little. What now? If I don’t take a taxi, should I run back?

He calculated it silently in his mind. If it was at the normal speed for human beings, he would have to run for almost 2 hours. That was just too much time wasted.

Cheng YuTang made a timely suggestion, “Let’s do this, you stay here with me tonight. There are clean rooms already made up.”

Eh, can I? Ji XiaoYu’s heart filled with joy and he raised his head with a whoop. But then he remembered what happened last time and he became a little hesitant, what if……..

Cheng YuTang was a bit anxious upon seeing Ji XiaoYu’s overcautious expression but he didn’t reveal this on his face. He just sighed and muttered to himself, “I hurt my right arm. Now I can’t exert myself too much and it’s not convenient to go out. I’m afraid I’ll have to work at home the next few days.”

Ji XiaoYu heard him perfectly. Cheng Zong is injured, what am I thinking he can do — hmm, even if he’s not hurt, I can take care of myself. So he’s actually worried about his own situation. He’s already told me that it was just an accident last time.

Besides, Cheng YuTang got hurt blocking the knife for me. If I avoid him after that, it would really be unspeakable.

Looking at Cheng YuTang frowning with a bit of a distressed expression, Ji XiaoYu’s heart couldn’t bear it, so he said, “Then I’ll stay at your house tonight. If you want to do something that’s inconvenient, just tell me. I’ll do it for you.”

“Alright, then I’ll be troubling you. But I don’t need your help for the time being.” Cheng YuTang’s lips twitched slightly. “It’s already late, sleep first and leave the rest for tomorrow. Let’s go, I’ll take you to the guest room.”

He actually really did want to do something, but unfortunately he was lacking the strength. Besides, the little thing hadn’t dispelled his concerns yet and was still a bit wary towards him. At the moment, it was better to exercise his restraint, to avoid scaring this person away again.

Ji XiaoYu followed Cheng YuTang up the stairs and listened to him as he walked, “The second floor has the projection room, the gym, and two guest rooms. The third floor is the master bedroom, the second bedroom, and the study. I should have you stay on the second floor, but I’m afraid that I might have to call on you for something inconvenient during the night, so I’ll trouble you and have you stay next to me in the second bedroom.”

This request was reasonable. Ji XiaoYu agreed.

Then they went up to the third floor.

The furnishings in the villa were very elegant, but they were just so cold. Ji XiaoYu looked around while wondering what was behind each door.

Such a big house, isn’t just tidying it up a waste of one’s lifespan?

I’ve heard that Cheng Zong is a bachelor. Why do you want to live in such a big house? Doesn’t it feel too cold to live alone every day? There are still so many rooms, isn’t it a waste? Isn’t it hard to sleep alone here at night?

If this were him instead, he’d definitely go crazy after a few days. It would be better to bring all his friends together and live with them boisterously.

“There’s a cleaning staff in to clean and maintain every day. I don’t need to do it myself.” Cheng YuTang seemed to sense what he was thinking, so he took the initiative to chant leisurely with lyrical intonation, “I do not like noise and fuss. When I stay alone for too long, sometimes I do feel lonely, but I do not like it even then and will feel half-hearted. Instead of messing around with people to relieve my loneliness, it is better to savor the loneliness alone until I meet the most suitable person. Then I can share the world with them as a couple. Even if you make the house a little messy or make a little noise, it doesn’t matter.”

Ji XiaoYu was stunned as he listened and then after a long pause, he sighed, “Cheng Zong, what a pity that you don’t write novels, such great literary talent!”

Cheng YuTang: “…….”

Why doesn’t he understand? Is a romantic mood just casting pearls before the swine with this kid?

Or does only a practical application work?

Cheng YuTang went to the door of a room and said, “This is my bedroom, yours is next door.”

Ji XiaoYu replied, “Okay, good night.”

“Don’t rush off,” he turned and looked at Ji XiaoYu, his expression gentle. “Today, I was soaked in filthy smells from outside. I could do with a bath before sleeping, but it’s not easy to act with this bandage wrapped on my arm. Can you give me a hand? The overtime pay will be triple your normal rate.”

Ji XiaoYu’s eyes lit up, “Sure, no problem!”

Triple, yay! According to my rate, it’s going to be dozens of yuan per hour!

The corners of Cheng YuTang’s lips hooked up slightly as he pushed open the bedroom door and walked in.

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Footnotes:

1. golden banner (面锦旗): a silk banner given as an award/sign of appreciation with writing in gold on it, usually the size of an adult torso or even half an adult body

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The translator has something to say – Cheng YuTang relishing the backwash-filled water: mmmm indirect kiss