A Good-for-Nothing

270. He Caught a Cold

Translator: Dragon Rider

It was 6 p.m. that they arrived in the transit city, and there was only one through flight from here to Coastal City, so they decided to spend the night in the hotel that they had stayed in previously and leave the next day.

Having had some hectic days, they were all exhausted. After dinner, they went back to their respective rooms to rest.

The curtains were closed, a lamp shedding a soft dim glow onto every inch of the room. He Zheng was sitting in a chair, silhouetted against the lamplight.

Scattered beside his feet were some blood-stained bandages.

He gently moved his arms. The terrible wounds in them had begun to heal, assuming a certain shade of flesh-colored pink.

“I knew those assholes wouldn’t let it go easily. Fortunately I had a contingency plan, and I didn’t have you apply drug to my wounds beforehand.” He Zheng swung his arms and felt that he no longer needed the bandages.

Li Zong rubbed He Zheng’s hair, stooped down, picked up the bandages from the ground and tossed them into the garbage can. The look in He Zheng’s eyes flickered as he saw this. His ear lobes were burning, and he seemed to remember that remark Li Zong had said in the forest that day.

This guy was by no means an “iceberg”. He was clearly a master of sweet talk.

Li Zong, having tossed the bandages into the garage can, was just about to straighten himself when he felt a sudden pressure on his back and noticed that his shadow on the wall was weighed down by another shadow.

“What’s the matter?”

He Zheng rubbed his face against the back of Li Zong’s neck and said thickly, “Can’t you tell I’m playing cute?”

Li Zong dissolved into chuckle, turned on his heel and sweetly settled He Zheng in his arms. The two of them sat on the bed, which instantly sagged.

By lamplight, He Zheng’s eyes were very bright, an unnatural flush on his cheeks. Li Zong stroked He Zheng’s forehead and found that He Zheng’s body was burning up. It was only then that he realized He Zheng must be having a mild fever.

“You have a fever. I’ll go and get you some boiled water. Do your arms ache?”

“No. It’s nothing serious.” He Zheng took Li Zong’s hand and said, “Sit here. I want to have a look at you.”

Li Zong smiled. He Zheng cuddled up against Li Zong. He was sitting on Li Zong’s lap. Li Zong was sitting on the bed. There was a large hollow in the bed because of their body weight, and Li Zong had to press his hand onto the bed at the back to support himself.

He Zheng said, “Li Zong, this sitting position of yours is so erotic.”

Li Zong had been listening to him. His lips curled in a faint smile at these words.

He Zheng, as though having just thought of something, suddenly leaned closer and blew at Li Zong’s ear. “It’s said that when you’re having a fever, that part is hotter than usual.”

Li Zong lowered his eyes and, with a twinkle in them, looked at He Zheng and said in a husky voice, “You’re still recovering from your arm injuries.”

“I’m not aching at all.” He Zheng swung his arms. “Look. There are scars forming.”

Then he added, “And I don’t need my arms to do that. You want to have a try?”

Li Zong’s mouth curved into another smile. He drew He Zheng into his embrace, kissed his ear and said in a hushed voice, “Which novel did you read about this in?”

He Zheng did not seem to notice what Li Zong was doing. “The one named A Bossy CEO’s Sweetheart,” he answered without a second thought.

It was after making this reply that He Zheng came to realize what he had just said. His face instantly blushed scarlet. It’s true what they say “You get to see all kinds of things if you live long enough.” There were actually times when a man like He Zheng flushed.

However, He Zheng without fail affected an annoyance to conceal his embarrassment after the blush ebbed away. He instantly raised his voice. “You said you wouldn’t check my cellphone! You did it the last time I told you about it, didn’t you?!”

“You mean when you told me about the one called I Want to Bear You a Lot of Children?”

He Zheng, beside himself with anger, heavily threw a punch at Li Zong’s stomach. He had thought that Li Zong would dodge it, but unexpectedly, Li Zong did not move. A muffled thud was heard. He Zheng panicked and hastened to lift the lower hem of Li Zong’s clothes to check his belly. “Wh–Why didn’t you dodge?”

Li Zong had a gentle look on his face and was not angry at all. As he saw that He Zheng got nervous and seemed to want to go and get some medication from Tao Wujiu, he put his arms around He Zheng’s waist, kissed the back of his head and said, “I’m fine. I was kidding. And you didn’t use much strength.”

Li Zong was an abstinent, seasoned government official, and he tended not to indulge He Zheng’s sexual needs, but it didn’t mean that Li Zong was not good at it. In fact, when in bed, Li Zong could make He Zheng cry from intense pleasure whenever he wanted.

As a result, after only a short while, He Zheng found himself unable to sulk. Feeling aroused, he wheezed, “S–Stop it … ”

Li Zong’s arm was around He Zheng’s waist, He Zheng’s back against Li Zong’s chest, his bare feet on Li Zong’s. Li Zong lifted He Zheng’s clothes and then his arms gingerly went in from under He Zheng’s armpits, avoiding touching He Zheng’s arms.

“Come to think of it, I could do what a bossy CEO usually does too. You want to be a CEO’s lover?”

“I–I’m not … Wait … You … Slow down a bit. I’m not short of money!” He Zheng was nearly driven up the wall. “Just try to focus on your present career, okay? Aargh … ” he sniffed.

The last word of his was uttered with a drawl.

The dim lamplight, as though it were warm, steamed down on He Zheng’s skin, and onto his and Li Zong’s lips which quickly parted after a brief contact. The two of them were kissing quietly. He Zheng lay back onto the bed, putting his hands on his head for fear of the wounds reopening. Li Zong’s gentle kiss further turned He Zheng on, making him very comfortable.

The next morning, at five o’clock, Chen Kai walked out of his room, dark circles under his eyes. He had shared a room with Zhang Jingqiu and had not slept all night, what with Zhang Jingqiu’s loud snores. He had just exited the room when he observed Li Zong walk out of another room.

“Li Zong,” Chen Kai called. Li Zong pressed a finger to his lips, motioning for him to be quiet. Chen Kai naturally lowered his voice when he spoke again.

“Why did you get up so early?” asked Chen Kai, having noticed that Li Zong was fully dressed.

Li Zong said, “I’m going to make He Zheng breakfast. He didn’t feel very well last night.”

It struck Chen Kai that Li Zong was like a total stranger when acting like a henpecked husband. He stroked his forehead, suspecting that he was imagining things, and bumped against a wall when he turned around to return.

They had booked a morning flight, and the departure time was ten a.m. He Zheng had looked a bit down since he’d got up, and he was still silent when they arrived at the airport.

Chen Qianlin had got used to bickering with He Zheng about something from time to time. He Zheng not speaking made him feel quite uncomfortable as though something in his life was missing. Therefore, Chen Qianlin annoyingly tried to strike up a conversation with He Zheng. “Oi, what’s the problem with you? Why are you so quiet today?”

He Zheng gave him a Just-leave-me-alone expression and then ignored Chen Qianlin.

Smiling, Li Zong said, “He caught a cold and is suffering from a sore throat.”

“He caught a cold? In such weather?” Chen Qianlin was amazed, gawping at the coat He Zheng was wearing.

Suddenly he noticed that He Zheng’s lips were faintly chapped. “Your lips are parched. I heard that cold could easily lead to inflammation.”

“Can–you–just–shut–up?” He Zheng enunciated in a hoarse voice which made him sound like a duck.

Chen Qianlin became even more bemused.

Tao Wujiu standing on the side, nicknamed Half-Straight Man, couldn’t bear it any more. He dragged Chen Qianlin away and sniffed, “Lao Chen, are you a fucking virgin?”

Color instantly suffused Chen Qianlin’s face and with that he raised his voice and retorted, “Who the fuck are you calling a virgin? That’s very insulting!”

Qiu Luo, taking his boarding pass from an automatic ticket machine, felt his eyelids twitch at these words. He quickly put his boarding pass away and returned.

Lao Tao curled his lip and said, “I’m not insulting you, but you should be more observant. Did you not see the hickeys on He Zheng’s neck? Was it because you wanted to get your ass kicked that you kept asking questions back there?”

Chen Qianlin was also from a rich family and knew what it was like to indulge in luxury and dissipation. At first he had really not thought of that. After all, in his eyes, Supt. Li was a god who did not eat or sleep or pooh!

Chen Qianlin was being driven crazy. Did gods do that as well?

“What are you guys talking about?” Qiu Luo walked up to them, smiling. Chen Qianlin, still in shock caused by his overturned belief, felt his back stiffen abruptly. He gave a little cough and, feigning composure, said, “Nothing. We’re just chatting.”

Tao Wujiu curled his lip as he saw Qiu Luo coming. He decided to leave so as to spare himself the upcoming display of affection.

Qiu Luo quietly touched Chen Qianlin’s face. Chen Qianlin was taken aback and glared at him. “What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” he hissed.

Smiling, Qiu Luo tilted his head to one side and said in a low voice, “You’re still a virgin. And I think that’s my fault.”

“How many times do I have to tell you this?! I’M NOT A VIRGIN!” Chen Qianlin thundered.

All those in the vicinity who were talking or chatting or laughing instantly fell silent. After two or three seconds, those among the crowds who could understand Chinese burst into laughter one after another.

Chen Kai enjoyed this very much and said in English, “Okay, Chen Qianlin, now the whole world know you’re a virgin.”

Chen Qianlin, ” … ”

Because of this, Chen Qianlin, who in the future became something of an international celebrity, got himself a nickname “Virgin Chen”, which was attached to him for many years, but that’s another story.

They finally boarded the plane bound for the Republic of Hua.

On entering the cabin, they all felt a wave of delight sweep through them, and it lingered in them.

Chen Qianlin, He Zheng, Tao Wujiu and the others, having never attended an international event before, were all secretly relieved. Even Zhang Jingqiu heaved a sigh of relief.

At least they had obtained everything they were supposed to bring back home.

He Zheng was unable to speak, and he felt a searing pain in the throat every time he swallowed. Anger rising in him, he was just about to go and make trouble for the culprit when he heard Chen Kai talking with Zhang Jingqiu in the rear.

Chen Kai said, “Did my grandfather visit you before you came here?”

Zhang Jingqiu replied, “He did.”

Chen Kai asked, “What did he say?”

Zhang Jingqiu said, “He wanted me to inform him when you returned. He said he’d break your legs with his bare hands.”

Chen Kai immediately wailed, “Why?! He made it so easy to be found. I’d be a fool not to take it!”

Lao Ka said, “Group Leader Zhang, Chen Kai, what are you guys talking about?”

Chen Kai said, “Mind your own business.”

Zhang Jingqiu said, “He stole something from his grandfather. And he’s going to have to explain his actions to the old man.”

Chen Kai muttered, “How could you call that stealing?”

He Zheng was bewildered. He gave Li Zong reading a magazine a push and glanced in the direction of Chen Kai. With that, Li Zong caught on to what he meant, put the magazine back and explained, “Chen Kai took Elder Chen’s Sun-Shooting Bow when leaving, which is an heirloom of the Chen family and supposed to be kept in a safe place. Elder Chen said he’d break Chen Kai’s legs.”

He Zheng’s eyes roved. ‘No wonder this bastard Chen Kai is so cocky. It turns out his grandfather is a high-ranking official!’ he thought.

The passengers talked and laughed as the plane slowly went through the clouds into the stratosphere. After a jolt, the plane steadied and headed for Coastal City.