Divorced - Chapter 19

()x15-19 minutes 23.05.2022

It was raining quite hard in the mountain, and the air was humid. Chen Yuchuan stood by the window, freshly showered and wearing a bathrobe. The dark rain and thick fog outside gave the window a heavy sense of oppression.

The sound insulation in the room was very good, such that Chen Yuchuan could not hear the rain from outside the window at all. However, he could still hear the sound of running water coming from the bathroom.

Later, Lu Yang laid down beside Chen Yuchuan on the bed, leaving a small night light to brighten the hallway. The gap between their two bodies lying on the bed was so large that an entire person could fit between them.

Chen Yuchuan felt the mattress beside him shift, causing his body to sway and move along with the motion.

When Lu Yang finally stopped moving, Chen Yuchuan turned over. Resting his head on his arm, he asked, “Brother Yang, it’s still raining outside. Does your leg hurt?”

Lu Yang didn’t speak and continued to lay on his back. Not hearing an answer, Chen Yuchuan lifted the comforter and got out of bed.

“Come back,” Lu Yang said suddenly. “Come back and sleep.”

Not listening, Chen Yuchuan went straight to the bathroom and ran a towel under hot water. When he returned with the hot towel, Lu Yang pressed down on the comforter.

Chen Yuchuan directly lifted the comforter away and shifted Lu Yang’s left leg closer to himself. “Don’t dawdle.”

Lu Yang didn’t move. He only let out a sigh and allowed Chen Yuchuan to do as he wished.

Lu Yang’s bathrobe was opened a little, with the hem lifted to below his thigh, revealing the sloping scar on his exposed calf. The scar ran from the inside of his calf all the way up to his knee.

The scar was a little darker than the surrounding skin, and when Chen Yuchuan touched it, he still felt the hard bulge of the trauma despite the fact that it had happened a long time ago.

He folded the hot towel and placed it over the scar. Then he began to press down lightly over the hot towel with his fingers.

In the past, on rainy days, he would put a hot towel on Lu Yang’s leg and message it until Lu Yang fell asleep. It was the same this time too. When Chen Yuchuan changed the hot towel, he heard Lu Yang’s deep, even breathing.

The scar on Lu Yang’s leg had been there for more than ten years. It had happened when he and Chen Yuchuan were together for a little over a year and he’d blocked a blow meant for Chen Yuchuan.

Before meeting Lu Yang, Chen Yuchuan’s friends were all gangsters. They were said to be friends, but truthfully, they were just nodding acquaintances.

But soon after he found steady work at the garage and at the bar, he slowly cut off contact with those people.

In fact, he knew very well in his heart who he should communicate with and who he shouldn’t.

But the only person he could not break contact with was Guang Haobo. Guang Haobo was the only person who had helped Chen Yuchuan and lent him money when his mother became hospitalized.

Guang Haobo had suffered a head injury when he was a child and so his intelligence was a bit low. He was slow to respond and he alway followed his cousin Hong San around.

In fact, Chen Yuchuan had met Hong San first before he later met Guang Haobo.

At the beginning, Chen Yuchuan didn’t bother much about Guang Haobo, who was always foolishly smacking his lips and looking at people with such silly cheerfulness. But after a long time, he could no longer stand watching people bully Guang Haobo and cheat him out of his hard-earned money.

Therefore, when Guang Haobo was once again cheated of his money, Chen Yuchuan told him not to give his money to others and to keep it only for himself.

Guang Haobo might be a little foolish, but even fools could tell the difference between good people and bad people. Since then, Guang Haobo had begun to call him Brother Chuan, even though he himself was two years older than Chen Yuchuan.

Chen Yuchuan quite liked being called Brother Chuan, and so he always protected Guang Haobo. At the time, Chen Yuchuan had fought horribly and desperately, such that people became afraid of him and no longer dared to bully Guang Haobo.

When Chen Yuchuan’s mother became hospitalized and he was in desperate need of money, he asked around to borrow money. It was only Guang Haobo who did not reject him and gave him all the 2,000 yuan he had on his person. After handing over his savings, he smiled broadly at Chen Yuchuan.

He said, “Brother Chuan, I’ll give you all the money I have so that your mother will have a good treatment.”

Chen Yuchuan was very grateful. As soon as he made enough money, he paid him back, but Guang Haobo didn’t want it. It wasn’t until Chen Yuchuan scolded him did he reluctantly put the money away.

Soon after Chen Yuchaun got together with Lu Yang, Lu Yang found the best doctor and the best hospital for his mother, who finally was able to receive a kidney transplant.

A month before the kidney transplant, Chen Yuchuan suddenly received a call from Guang Haobo.

Chen Yuchaun thought that Guang Haobo was in trouble, but when he got to his house, Guang Haobo took out 5,000 yuan from underneath his mattress, gave it to him, and said, “For the surgery.”

Of course, Chen Yuchuan rejected him, saying that he now had a very good boyfriend and his boyfriend had made all the arrangements for his mother’s operation.

Guang Haobo didn’t believe him and insisted on giving him the 5,000 yuan.

No matter how Chen Yuchuan tried to convince him, Guang Haobo would not believe him. When the fool was stuck in his ways, he would become angry when obstructed. In the end, Chen Yuchuan had no choice but to take the money, thinking that he would return it in a few days and say that his money’s surgery was completed.

Three days later, he took Lu Yang to Guang Haobo’s place to repay the money and introduce them.

They had just walked into the courtyard when they heard beating and cursing. Chen Yuchuan rushed to open the door and saw several people in the room, the house a complete and utter mess.

These people had cheated money out of Guang Haobo before in the past.

Without a word, Chen Yuchuan kicked the two people holding Guang Haobo in the head. Fighting ensued.

Later, someone grabbed a long, thick iron rod from the bottom of Guang Haobo’s bed and swung it at the back of Chen Yuchuan’s head.

By the time Lu Yang saw this, it was already too late to stop it. He could only knock Chen Yuchuan out of the way. As they hit the floor, the iron rod smashed directly onto Lu Yang’s leg.

Chen Yuchuan could hardly remember how Lu Yang got to the hospital. His memory of that moment was chaotic and confusing. Later, Guang Haobo told him that he’d grabbed the iron rod and swung at those people like a complete maniac until they ran away.

Lu Yang was operated on under general anesthesia. Before he entered the operating room, he looked at Chen Yuchuan standing beside his bed in a daze and told him not to worry.

But when Lu Yang left the operating room, only his parents were there. Man Yunxin’s eyes were red and Lu Xianfeng looked angry.

Lu Yang comforted his parents, “Dad, Mom, it’s alright.”

Man Yunxin looked at Lu Yang’s leg and asked if it hurted. Lu Yang said it didn’t hurt, then he looked around the ward and asked, “Where’s Xiao Chuan’er?”

“I drove him away. If it weren’t for him, you wouldn’t be here now.” Lu Xianfeng snorted coldly. “Such a ruffian, you don’t have to deal with him anymore.”

Lu Yang’s anesthetic had just passed, and he was still a little weak, but he still said seriously, “Dad, he’s my boyfriend. You absolutely can’t do this.”

Lu Xiangfeng wanted to say something else, but Man Yunxin stopped him with a hand. “Okay, okay. Lu Yang just woke up but you’re already being fierce with him. We’ll talk about this later. Right now, the most important thing is to take care of Lu Yang’s leg.”

Man Yunxin hired two nurses to look after Lu Yang. He laid in bed for three days and still hadn’t seen a peek of Chen Yuchuan. He wasn’t used to being bed bound, nor was he used to being taken care of by the nurses. However, he could not move nor get off the bed by himself, so he had no choice but to give in

On the afternoon of the third day, Lu Xianfeng had to stay at the company and did not come to the hospital. Man Yunxin had stayed in the hospital for three days and nights and so Lu Yang insisted that she go back home and have a good rest.

The nurse brought over lunch, and Lu Yang only took two bites before telling the nurse to take it away. He was permitted to walk around his ward and to make a telephone call.

During those three days, he’d called Chen Yuchuan, but after no one answered, he did not insist on calling anymore. Instead, he sent Chen Yuchuan a text message, asking him where he was. He did not receive a reply.

One phone call, one text message, and then no more.

Therefore, at noon on that third day, a big sun was hanging in the glass window of the ward, and as Lu Yang was dozing off, he heard the sound of the door opening very softly.

A head peeked in through the crack of the door, took a look around first, and then the rest of the body followed.

Lu Yang opened his eyes and took a look. It was a male doctor in a white coat. His eyes closed again and then snapped open.

The male doctor in a white coat had thick, somewhat messy hair. He wore black-framed glasses, a mask covered most of his face, and he held a blue book in his hands.

“Just making the rounds…” The doctor’s voice was a little hoarse, as if he’d caught a cold.

Lu Yang kept staring at him with bloodshot eyes. The doctor raised his hand and pushed the glasses up higher on the bridge of his nose. Then he took out a pen from the pocket of his white coat and asked, “Do you feel uncomfortable today?”

“Yes,” Lu Yang said, eyes still locked on him.

“What’s wrong? Where does it hurt? Is it your leg? Do you have a fever?” the doctor’s hoarse voice changed in tone.

“I don’t feel well anywhere. My leg hurts, my head hurts, and I don’t know if I have a fever or not,” Lu Yang replied.

The doctor placed his palm on Lu Yang’s warm forehead. Although he was unable to tell whether Lu Yang had a fever or not, he didn’t move his hand away. “Your leg hurts? Does it hurt a lot?”

“It hurts very much,” Lu Yang said. “I have dizziness and tinnitus, and I can’t see clearly. I keep hearing a humming sound.”

“Only your leg was operated on, why can’t you see clearing and your ears can’t hear?” The doctor sounded as if he was on the verge of tears.

Lu Yang shifted his body and said, “You have to ask your doctors.”

The doctor tore off the mask on his face and looked at Lu Yang. “Then can you see me clearly?”

“I can’t see clearly. Your face is blurred.” Lu Yang stared at Chen Yuchuan for a few seconds, and he knew that if he continued to look, Chen Yuchuan would definitely cry.

He turned his head away and asked, “Doctor, it seems like this is your first time making the rounds?”

“I, I’m an intern. Today is my first day…” Chen Yuchuan put his face mask back on and said hesitantly. He scratched his head with the pen in his hand, making his messy hair a little more messier. Then he carefully lifted the bedcover and looked at Lu Yang’s legs.

Lu Yang’s leg was still wrapped in gauze, the edges of which were stained with blood. Chen Yuchuan reached out and carefully touched it before retracting his hand once more.

The door to the ward opened, revealing the nurse who was here to do the rounds. Chen Yuchuan put the pen and notebook in his pocket and whispered, “I’ll go first and will return to check on you at night.”

After speaking, he hurried out. The nurse felt a gust of wind rushing past her.

She looked back a few times and muttered, “This isn’t a doctor at our hospital.”

Seeing that the man had run away, Lu Yang told the nurse, “That’s my boyfriend. He likes to role-play and has always wanted to wear a doctor’s white coat. He hasn’t had a chance before, but now he finally did.”

The nurse pursed her lips and smiled. “You guys are pretty good at playing.”

By the time Chen Yuchuan came back that night, Lu Yang had already asked his parents to go home and so he was alone in his ward. Chen Yuchuan was still in the same costume he’d worn at noon.

“Does it still hurt?” Chen Yuchuan asked.

“It hurts.”

“Can you see clearly?”

“I’ll take a look after you take off the mask,” Lu Yang said.

Chen Yuchuan tore off the mask and bent closer to Lu Yang’s eyes.

Lu Yang’s expression was a little serious at first, but then he smiled at Chen Yuchuan. Raising his hand, he touched the tip of Chen Yuchuan’s nose and said, “Xiao Chuan’er, haven’t you slept in a while? Your eyes are so red.”

Chen Yuchuan’s nose was already sour. When Lu Yang touched him, he sniffed and two drops of tears rolled down.

He straightened and tilted his head to look away from Lu Yang. Then, taking off his glasses, he rubbed his eyes with his sleeves and pressed his fingers hard to the sockets.

Seeing him rubbing his eyes so hard, Lu Yang felt a little pained. He took his hand away and asked, “Why are you crying?”

“I’m not crying…” Chen Yuchuan was still stubborn. That was the fourth time he’d ever cried.

The first time he cried was when his father died, the second time was when his mother was diagnosed, the third time was when he and Lu Yang had sex for the first time, and the fourth time was now.

“Why are you dressed like this?” Lu Yang asked.

“I’m afraid of being kicked out by your dad again.” Chen Yuchuan rubbed his eyes with his sleeve again.

“You’re not afraid of my dad. Are you afraid of me?” Lu Yang immediately pointed out Chen Yuchuan’s lie.

When Chen Yuchuan didn’t speak, Lu Yang asked again, “We’ve been together for over a year, what kind of you have I not seen? Wearing a white coat, a wig and glasses, you think I won’t know you anymore?”

Chen Yuchuan really had no idea. He’d been kicked away by Lu Xiangeng several times already, and he’d been hovering near the ward for the past three days. During the day, he would go see his mother,and at night, he would sleep in the hallway outside Lu Yang’s ward.

In fact, he had come in to see him several times already when he fell asleep at night. Then, after figuring out Lu Yang’s parent’s normal visitation hours, he came up with this trick.

But really, he was somewhat fearful to come in and see Lu Yang when he was awake.

At first, when he really thought that Lu Yang wasn’t able to see him clearly, like a contradictory fool he really wanted him to be able to see him.

Lu Yang wasn’t willing to drop the topic and so he asked, “You saw that I am injured because of you and so you wanted to run away, right? You wanted to retreat?”

Chen Yuchuan pulled the wig off his head, took off the white coat and placed it on the edge of the bed, and then pulled the stool and sat by the head of the bed. Without saying a word, he lightly placed his hand over the back of Lu Yang’s hand.

“Brother Yang, don’t block it for me next time.” Chen Yuchuan had been holding back this sentence for a long time.

“Next time?” Lu Yang asked, raising his eyebrows.

“No, no,” Chen Yuchuan said quickly. “There won’t be a next time.”

After pausing for a few seconds, he repeated, “I’m serious, Brother Yang. Next time there’s danger, don’t block it for me. I’m rough and thick, I’ll be alright.”

“Look at your thin arms and legs, where are you thick?”

Chen Yuchuan was only wearing a short sleeve shirt under the white coat. He rolled the sleeve up to his shoulder, raised his arm, and tensed his muscles, making it budge. Touching the muscles on his arm, he said, “See? Isn’t this strong? I’m a strong guy.”

Lu Yang said with a laugh. “Okay. Strong man won’t dodge so take good care of me.”

Chen Yuchuan rolled down his sleeve, blinked, and said, “I’ll take good care of you.”

Lu Yang added, “Don’t even think about running if something happens.”

Chen Yuchuan sniffed. “Brother Yang, I definitely won’t run. I’m reluctant to…”