Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"004"

For the first time in his life, Xiao Mian got slapped. It took him a few seconds to whip his head around and glare at Xiao Lancui, bellowing, "How dare you—"

*Smack!*

Another slap cracked across Xiao Mian's right cheek.

This time Xiao Mian was totally stunned. Two slaps in a row, and he'd even forgotten to be mad. He stayed frozen in that half-crouch, still reaching for the book, staring at Xiao Lancui, who was right there.

Xiao Lancui had put some real force behind those slaps; his palm was stinging. His breathing turned ragged, and he broke into low, rapid coughs. A faint flush bloomed across his pale skin, and his dark eyes, coldly fixed on Xiao Mian, glistened with a barely-there sheen of moisture.

Xiao Mian had always known Xiao Lancui was beautiful—otherwise, his fox-spirit of a mother wouldn't have seduced his dad into cheating and knocking up his mistress. But it was just that—beautiful. Bland and unremarkable, like plain boiled water.

Today, though, Xiao Lancui was different.

Fierce and sharp... like a cactus bristling with spines.

Was it from being soaked in seawater? His brain had turned to mush... The pathetic bastard who used to cower and grovel at his feet had actually slapped him twice today!

With that thought, Xiao Mian pulled his hand back. His tone was still nasty, but there was a hint of awkwardness in it now. "You're sick, so I'll let you off today. But I'm keeping a tab on those two slaps! You just wait!"

Xiao Lancui had pegged Xiao Mian the second he kicked the door open.

Xiao Anfeng's admirer number four—the Xiao family's little young master, Xiao Mian.

Later, when Xiao Anfeng's real identity came out, Xiao Mian would have a falling-out with him, then go on to fall head over heels for him too.

Because he was all brawn and no brain, he was constantly getting into fistfights with Lu Siye.

In other words, a total himbo.

Xiao Lancui finished coughing, closed his book at a leisurely pace, and finally lifted his gaze to properly look at Xiao Mian. His tone was flat. "Who are you?"

Xiao Mian hadn't expected Xiao Lancui's first words to be those three little words. Sure, he'd heard from his second brother that Xiao Lancui had amnesia. He hadn't bought it. Was this some kind of soap opera? Fall into the sea and get amnesia!

But now Xiao Lancui was asking him that, and on top of the two slaps he'd just dished out—something that would've been pure fantasy before—maybe he really had lost his memory!

Xiao Mian thought, well, the amnesiac Xiao Lancui was way more interesting. Both his cheeks were burning, yet he felt something he'd never felt before. When Xiao Lancui slapped him, he'd caught a whiff of his fingertips.

It wasn't perfume or flowers—it was a faint trace of ink.

Xiao Mian glanced at Xiao Lancui's hands. They were clean, so translucent he could see every pale blue vein underneath.

No leftover ink stains.

Was it the smell from flipping pages?

Xiao Mian thought ink actually smelled pretty good. He stared at Xiao Lancui and snorted, "Hmph. I'm your brother!"

Xiao Lancui put down his book and said offhandedly, "Oh, Xiao Mian. Sorry, I thought you were some psycho who wandered in off the street."

Maybe it was all in his head, but Xiao Mian thought Xiao Lancui's voice sounded nicer too—cool and unhurried, as refined as the ink scent on his fingertips.

Xiao Mian's left cheek hurt like hell. The right one, slapped later with less force, didn't hurt as bad. He gingerly rubbed his left cheek and sneered, "It's not like you're popular enough for anyone else to come see you! Tsk, aren't you always all over that dumbass Lu Siye? Why isn't he here?"

Just mentioning that brought Xiao Mian's anger surging back. Xiao Anfeng never said anything, but Xiao Mian knew Xiao Lancui had been using his good relationship with Lu Siye to gang up on his second brother at school!

Lu Siye was a total player—he'd been running through women since high school, and by college he'd racked up a body count in the hundreds. There were even rumors he'd slept with guys.

Xiao Mian had actually seen it with his own eyes. Last year, he went to a club with friends to play ice hockey and walked into the bathroom to find Lu Siye going at it hard with some guy in a stall.

The guy was the club's badminton coach—red-lipped, fair-skinned, and pretty. One of Xiao Mian's friends was gay and had been chasing after this coach.

Xiao Mian narrowed his eyes, suddenly giving Xiao Lancui a once-over. He'd never thought about it before, but now that he did—Lu Siye was arrogant and domineering as hell, yet he was oddly nice to Xiao Lancui. Could Lu Siye have his eye on him?

Xiao Lancui was way better-looking than that badminton coach.

He must have learned it from his fox-spirit mother! A man, seducing another man—was he down on all fours under Lu Siye, moaning and begging for it?

Suddenly the badminton coach's sweet moans rang in his ears, and Xiao Mian was hit with a wave of disgust. He hated gay people more than anything. If he hadn't known his friend was gay from the jump, he would never have hung out with him!

Was Xiao Lancui gay too?

So disgusting!

His face went cold, and he finally remembered why he'd come, cutting to the chase. "Xiao Lancui!"

Xiao Lancui stayed calm. Xiao Mian showing up to pick a fight was probably because last week he'd deliberately screwed up Xiao Jingli's chance to attend Xiao Anfeng's celebration dinner. Today, with Xiao Jingli not coming to the hospital, Xiao Mian had come to get revenge for his second brother.

Xiao Mian said exactly what he expected: "Dad isn't just your dad! If you pull any more shady tricks using Dad's favoritism, I'll beat your ass even if you are my older brother!"

Xiao Mian showing up was unexpected. Xiao Lancui had figured they'd meet when he got back to the Xiao family. But since it was happening sooner than expected, he quickly came up with a new plan.

He raised a hand and beckoned, his voice calm. "Xiao Mian, come here."

That ink-elegant voice again. Xiao Mian froze for a second, then growled, "What?!"

Xiao Lancui's tone stayed flat. "Come here first."

Xiao Mian hesitated. Was Xiao Lancui going to hit him again? He ran his tongue over his back teeth, thinking, fine, I'll go—let's see what else he dares to do!

But the lingering sting on his face made him cautious this time. He leaned in close to Xiao Lancui while keeping a sharp eye on his hands.

Xiao Lancui noticed. He reached for Xiao Mian's right cheek, and just as Xiao Mian's face changed and he moved to grab his hand, Xiao Lancui veered left and landed on his left cheek instead.

Xiao Mian sneered inwardly—he knew this bastard was still trying to hit him! A gutter rat who couldn't show his face in the light of day! The curse words were already on the tip of his tongue, but the next moment, his left cheek didn't get slapped again. A faint scent of ink drifted into his nose, a cool, thin palm pressed softly against his cheek, and a cool breath brushed his nose. He heard Xiao Lancui's voice, right next to his ear.

"Sorry, little brother. Does it hurt?"

Xiao Mian was at a loss for words.

He was dumbfounded, staring blankly at Xiao Lancui, completely speechless.

Xiao Lancui wasn't trying to hit him—he called him little brother, apologized, and even... touched his face!

The original owner had been too scared of Xiao Mian to ever call him little brother, let alone do something as intimate as touching his face. But Xiao Mian was actually a simple-minded himbo—once someone showed him kindness, he'd be completely at a loss.

Xiao Lancui's long lashes lifted slightly as he went on, "Did I used to bully you a lot? You really hate me."

Xiao Mian: "..."

No, it was always him doing the bullying, not the other way around.

The palm covering his left cheek was slightly cool, and Xiao Mian suddenly felt a strange sense of disconnect.

The last time someone had touched his face like this was in elementary school, when his mom did. He actually loved that kind of closeness—it made him feel really warm inside.

Xiao Mian was dead sure he hated Xiao Lancui, yet today Xiao Lancui had made him feel all warm and fuzzy...

Xiao Mian abruptly snatched Xiao Lancui's hand away, his face burning red—whether from the slap or pure embarrassment, he couldn't tell. He didn't need Xiao Lancui's damn concern! The mistress's brat! Even with amnesia, he was still the bastard who stole his dad, made his mom miserable, and broke his second brother's heart!

They were enemies, plain and simple!

"Don't touch me!" He didn't look at Xiao Lancui again. His gaze swept around and found a chair by the hospital bed. He walked over, kicked it over, and sneered, his grin all twisted, "Let me tell you, Xiao Lancui, our relationship is garbage! Absolutely trash! Touch me again and I'll knock your teeth out!"

Xiao Lancui just said, totally calm, "No need to be angry. No matter how much bad blood we've got, just tough it out another year or two, and I'll be out of your hair."

Xiao Mian sneered, "Oh, so you're finally gonna fuck off overseas, huh?"

Xiao Lancui smiled too, his lips curving coldly. "I'm gonna die soon, little brother."

Xiao Mian froze. For a kid his age, his first real brush with death was a week ago when Xiao Lancui fell into the sea—and he hadn't even been there—he'd only heard Xiao Lancui got rushed to the hospital, dying.

But now, Xiao Lancui was smiling right in his face, saying, "Little brother, I'm gonna die soon."

Xiao Mian's heart slammed in his chest. He was rattled, confused, and totally lost. He turned and walked off without looking back, slinging threats as he went, "You hear me—I don't give a shit if your brain's fried or whatever. If you mess with Second Brother again, I've got plenty of ways to make your life hell! And if you so much as breathe a word to Dad about me coming here today, you're dead!"

He slammed the door and bolted.

Once he got outside the hospital, the snow was already coming down hard. The whole building was lit up, snowflakes falling thick as goose feathers.

Xiao Mian finally stopped, gasping for air. He turned and looked up at a certain ward on the top floor.

The top floor had the VIP private suites—where Xiao Lancui was holed up.

Xiao Mian's heart was pounding. He'd come here to stir shit—was Xiao Lancui gonna rat him out to Dad?

Knowing Xiao Lancui's petty ass, he wouldn't pass up a chance like that to tattle, would he?

He'd tell, wouldn't he? Fuck yeah, he would!

Xiao Mian sneered. He wasn't scared—worst case, Dad would just chew him out. But still...

He raised his hand and lightly touched his swollen left cheek—the spot Xiao Lancui had touched. A tiny, faint voice whispered somewhere deep inside him—

Would Xiao Lancui actually die? He could still throw a punch, after all...

Xiao Lancui must be lying!

Foxes were all pros at lying and playing the victim. Bad weeds never die. No way he'd kick the bucket!

Xiao Mian's head was a total mess. He dropped his hand and walked out into the heavy snow. He'd ridden his bike here, but there was no way he could ride it back now, so he just ditched it at the hospital entrance and called a car back to school.

Once he was in the car, another big realization hit him.

Wait—back in the ward, was Xiao Lancui calling him a psycho? A straight-up lunatic?

Xiao Mian: "..."

He ground his molars in annoyance and let out a little huff. "You're gonna pay for that, Xiao Lancui!"

Xiao Lancui got out of bed to wash his hands. He was a clean freak—though a month in Shoucheng had cured him of all that—he still went to the bathroom and washed his hands three times, then carefully dried every single finger.

He might actually die soon.

Today's test results were in. The original body had swallowed a ton of seawater, and the shadows on his lungs showed a severe pneumonia infection. Down the line, it could turn into idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, and the doctor thought the odds were high. He had to stay in the hospital to treat the pneumonia first, and could only leave once his lungs were totally clear, then come back for a re-check in three months.

Xiao Lancui had already braced himself. The test results matched what his pulse had been telling him.

The doctor had also tried to reassure him, telling him to just focus on clearing up the inflammation first, come back for a check-up three months after discharge, and even in the worst-case scenario, treatment could buy him more time. There was even a chance a miracle could happen and the illness would just go away—of course, all of that depended on him staying positive and optimistic.

Xiao Lancui was actually super calm. He'd danced on the edge of death plenty of times and had even actually died once. Death wasn't anything new to him. Now it was just a maybe-he-gets-pulmonary-fibrosis—he didn't give a damn.

He even had a shot at getting back to the Great Li Dynasty.

Quantum teleportation—a theory he'd picked up on recently.

Though unproven, since he could travel from ancient times to the modern world, there was no reason he couldn't travel back.

While fulfilling his promise to the original body in this world, he also needed to find a way to return to the moment before Lu Ao poisoned him.

So time was precious. He had to use every minute well.

Xiao Lancui dried his fingers and left the ward.

These days, he trained himself to walk for an hour each day, and his legs were becoming more natural with each step.

He took the elevator down.

Today, Xiao Jingli hadn't come, and Xie Jingfang's poisoned meals had been delivered again. He'd dumped the food and planned to read for a while before going downstairs to eat, but Xiao Mian's unexpected arrival had disrupted that plan.

Xiao Lancui didn't go to the hospital cafeteria. He'd never eaten at a modern cafeteria, but institutional food was probably the same everywhere—he had no appetite.

Xiao Lancui went to the convenience store instead.

There was a 24-hour convenience store on the first floor of the hospital. Xiao Lancui had been there once to buy tissue paper, but this was his first real browse.

The shelves were stocked with a dazzling array of goods. Xiao Lancui picked up a pack of matcha milk pudding-flavored ice bread, a pack of preserved plums, and a carton of Da Hong Pao milk tea.

After paying, he noticed the convenience store had a temporary dining area and found a small single-person table to sit at.

He was most curious about the matcha milk pudding ice bread, so he tore open one corner and took a small bite.

As it entered his mouth, his pupils trembled slightly, a faint glimmer lighting up his dark eyes. He held the ice bread with both hands and took another bite, chewing slowly.

Such delicious food.

Xiao Lancui ate slowly and finished the ice bread quickly. He liked it so much he went back to buy another pack. After two ice breads and a carton of Da Hong Pao milk tea, he was full.

The preserved plums were still unopened, so he took them back up to the top floor.

The elevator was intermittent, taking two or three minutes to reach the top floor. Xiao Lancui stepped out—his ward was at the far end of the left corridor, facing a large, clear floor-to-ceiling window.

As he neared his ward, a sudden rush of hurried footsteps came from behind, charging toward him.

Xiao Lancui turned around, and his vision shot upward as a long, withered hand seized his neck and lifted. He caught only a flash of stark white gauze before the back of his head slammed hard against the floor-to-ceiling window. His back pressed against the glass as he was hoisted off the ground.

At the same time, he heard a hoarse, muffled voice, dripping with violence—

"Die!"