He Chuzhou accepted his fate the moment he opened his mouth.

In early autumn, the nighttime temperature was not very high. This person had just come from the hospital, and looked so fragile running around like this. His head wasn’t healed yet, and he could catch a cold due to the wind.

It was just a 500-word letter of guarantee. He would just write it. There should be a lot of templates online, so he would just copy one and be done.

“He Xingxing knocked over the trash can. I was cleaning it up.”

He threw the blame on the dog without any burden of conscience, then put away his phone and walked over to casually touch Pei Xi’s half-dried hair: “Why did you come out without blow drying it?”

Pei Xi’s voice also seemed to be soaked in water vapor, with a moist, soft tone: “I couldn’t find the hair dryer.”

This straightforward and obedient attitude suddenly made He Chuzhou’s hands itch, so he simply patted him again: “I think I put it in the bedroom. Come on, I’ll find it for you.”

The soft hair felt surprisingly good.

Pei Xi followed him into the bedroom and watched him take out a white hair dryer from the bedside table. He asked: “Chuzhou, have you finished writing your letter of guarantee?”

He Chuzhou had known he wouldn’t forget. He bent down and inserted the plug into the socket, handing the hair dryer to him: “I was just discussing work with someone. I’ll write it right away, you blow dry your hair first.”

“Okay,” Pei Xi said.

He Chuzhou planned to go to the study and find a piece of paper first, but as soon as he reached the door, he was stopped by Pei Xi.

He turned around: “Can’t find the switch?”

“No.” Pei Xi put his free hand on his stomach, as if feeling something. “I haven’t eaten in a long time.”

“Chuzhou, I’m so hungry.”

*

*
In the open kitchen connected to the living room, He Chuzhou stood in front of the refrigerator, selecting ingredients.

A person who had just been discharged from the hospital would be weak and shouldn’t eat heavy food. It was best to eat something light. Cooking seafood noodles should do it.

He Chuzhou boiled some water and put in a handful of noodles. The faint sound of the wind could be heard in the room, and he found that this night was truly fantastical.

He had taken Pei Xi home, was cooking noodles for Pei Xi, and would soon write a letter of guarantee for Pei Xi.

Heh, the level of novelty was no less than that of Ultraman proposing to Captain America. Who would believe it if he told them?

His cell phone suddenly vibrated. Looking at the caller ID, he clicked to answer: “What?”

A crisp “Ge” came from the receiver. There was no telling what He Aiyue was excited about in the middle of the night: “What are you busy with?”

He Chuzhou said casually: “Who told you I was busy?”

He Aiyue: “Aren’t you ‘bosses’ busy all day long?”

He Chuzhou: “I’m going to hang up.”

“Ai, don’t, don’t!” He Aiyue quickly stopped him with a laugh, then said in a flattering tone: “Something’s going on, ah. Your dear little sister has a small favor she needs your help with.”

He Chuzhou turned down the heat: “What small favor? You want me to help you with a test paper again?”

He Aiyue spoke with a sense of righteousness: “How could that be? I’ve finished all my test papers this week!”

He Chuzhou raised an eyebrow and glanced at the call interface. Was she sensible?

He Aiyue: “Actually, it’s a mathematics olympiad exercise book. There are still two units and I really can’t write anymore. Ge, there is more merit in saving a life than in building—”^[1]

He Chuzhou: “I messaged Mom.”

He Aiyue: “…..a pagoda…..”

He Aiyue: “Ah?”

He Aiyue: “Ahhhhhhh!”

He Aiyue: “Boss He! How could you stab me in the back without regard for martial ethics!”

He Chuzhou: “Second child, you flatter me.”

“Okay, we’re playing for keeps, right?”

He Aiyue’s attitude changed instantly: “Believe it or not, I’m going to tell Mom that you’re hiding a beauty at home. When she comes to the house and finds out that you’re still a single dog, she will bombard you for three days and three nights!”

He Chuzhou had long been immune to these petty fights, and after saying “do what you want,” he neatly hung up the phone.

Once the noodles were out of the pot, he set the bowl on the table. Pei Xi also opened the door and walked out slowly in slippers that didn’t fit his feet.

His blow-dried hair was soft and covered his forehead, making him look years younger than his actual age. He looked tall and straight, with fair skin and a beautiful appearance.

He Chuzhou turned his head and saw him. At the thought of He Aiyue’s threat just now, the corners of his mouth silently twitched.

Keeping a beauty hidden at home. From a rather strange perspective, He Aiyue indeed got it right this once.

“Come and eat.” He placed chopsticks on the bowl.

Pei Xi walked over and sat down, looking at the fragrant bowl of seafood noodles in front of him. Then he looked up at He Chuzhou, a little confused.

Could it be that he was allergic to seafood?

He Chuzhou: “If you can’t eat it, I’ll make you a —”

Pei Xi: “Chuzhou, when did you learn to cook?”

The two spoke almost simultaneously, and He Chuzhou paused for a few seconds after being interrupted: “What?”

Pei Xi repeated: “When did you learn to cook?”

He Chuzhou, who had always been a good cook, was silent for a moment, unsure how to answer: “Should…..should I not be able to?”

Pei Xi shook his head: “No, I’ve always been the one to cook for you.”

Okay, got it.

He Chuzhou’s expression didn’t change: “Did you forget that you spent a month teaching me?”

Pei Xi stared blankly: “Me?”

He Chuzhou: “Yes, you.”

Pei Xi’s eyes widened slightly, and after a moment, he let out a semi-comprehending “oh.”

He really didn’t remember much, but this was very reasonable, and not unacceptable.

Having rationalized it in his mind, he lowered his head and concentrated on eating noodles. And having muddled his way through again, He Chuzhou was considering whether to go to the study and copy a letter of guarantee now.

During this period, he took the time to reply to a few work messages. By the time he noticed that something was wrong, Pei Xi had practically his entire face buried in the bowl.

“Tsk, what are you doing?”

He swiftly reached out to grasp the back of this person’s neck, lifting him up: “How unpalatable must it be that you want to die eating it?”

Pei Xi had eaten most of it, but couldn’t finish the rest. When he was picked up, he put down his chopsticks and lowered his eyes, rubbing his temples: “I don’t want to die.”

That voice was also weaker than before.

He Chuzhou was really afraid that if he let go, he would fall and wash his hair in the bowl, so he used his other hand to move the bowl away: “Then what is your explanation?”

Pei Xi: “Dizzy.”

His voice was very low, almost like a mumble, and He Chuzhou didn’t hear clearly: “What sound?”^[2]

Pei Xi must have felt uncomfortable being grasped by him. He tilted his head to avoid his hand, then reached over and grabbed it, pulling it in front of him to press his forehead against it.

The broad palm was warm and dry, which put Pei Xi greatly at ease. He just held it and pressed the entire weight of his head on it, closing his eyes: “Dizzy. Feels bad.”

This time, He Chuzhou heard him clearly.

But what was more intuitive than the verbal explanation was that the temperature against his hand was significantly higher than a normal body temperature.

“What’s wrong with you?”

His brow furrowed: “When did you get a fever? Why didn’t you tell me until now?”

Pei Xi’s words were sticky: “I thought I was hungry, and I would be fine if I ate something.”

He Chuzhou: “Can not eating give a person a fever from hunger? What is with your roundabout way of thinking?”

“I’m just dizzy, I didn’t know I had a fever.”

Pei Xi turned his face around in his palm and whispered to him: “Chuzhou, I feel really uncomfortable. Please stop being fierce to me.”

He Chuzhou: “……”

This was considered fierce?

Forget it, what could he say?

He could only let out a long sigh and say, “I won’t be fierce to you.” Then he took him back to the room and placed him on the bed.

The bed in the master bedroom.

After all, there was no telling what the “man of the house” would do if he found out he wasn’t sleeping in the master bedroom.

After taking his temperature and confirming that it was a low fever, he found a fever reducer in the medicine box. He went to the kitchen to pour a glass of water and came back to watch this person take the pills.

“What’s wrong with that hospital, do they only care about serious illnesses and ignore the minor ones? You were discharged so easily without any trouble.”

Mentally exhausted, he helped Pei Xi pull up the quilt: “Go to sleep. It’s a low-grade fever, nothing serious. You should be fine when you get up in the morning.”

Half of Pei Xi’s face was sunken into a dark pillow. He was even more pale and bloodless, and exhaustion could be faintly seen on his features, but a pair of eyes continued to stare at him.

He Chuzhou: “What, don’t want to sleep?”

Pei Xi pressed his elbows on the quilt, holding down the corners of it: “The medicine hasn’t taken effect yet, and I still haven’t seen your letter of guarantee.”

He Chuzhou: “……”

He Chuzhou could kowtow in admiration for him: “Okay, I’ll write it now. Just wait.”

He clapped his hands and was about to stand up, but Pei Xi grabbed him by the corner of his clothes: “Where are you going?”

He Chuzhou: “To the study, ah.”

Pei Xi: “You’re going to the study to write it?”

He Chuzhou raised an eyebrow: “Where else?”

“Can you not go to the study?”

Pei Xi moved his fingertips inward, drawing more fabric into his hands: “Just write it here, I don’t want to be alone.”

How could he copy it if he wrote it here? 

He Chuzhou made an excuse: “The pens and paper are in the study. There aren’t any here.”

“You can take them from the study.”

Pei Xi looked at him with misty eyes. His voice was slightly hoarse: “Chuzhou, I’m sick. I don’t want to be alone. Please stay with me for a while.”

“……”

He Chuzhou closed his eyes and slapped a palm to his forehead: “I’ll get the things and be back in half a minute.”

A minute later, He Chuzhou was sitting on the sofa, thinking hard about the contents of the letter of guarantee.

Guarantee that there would be no divorce.

Guarantee that he would not forget to pick him up in the future.

Guarantee not to call him President Pei again.

Guarantee……

What else needed to be guaranteed?

A guarantee that he would never bring anyone home again to bring trouble upon himself?

He really didn’t expect that after so many years, there would be a time when he would consume brain cells just to reach the word count for a composition.

“Is it very difficult to write?”

The voice came from the bed. Pei Xi lay on his side in bed, watching him. One of his hands came out of the blanket and was pressed under his cheek in a cute posture: “It’s okay if you write less.”

He Chuzhou felt as if he had received amnesty.

Pei Xi: “It doesn’t have to be 500. 480 is enough.”

He Chuzhou: “……”

Thank you very much.

He rambled on and rounded the word count up to 482, rubbing his brow tiredly as he prepared to hand in the paper. He saw that the examiner had sat up at some point and was leaning on the bedside, playing with a bracelet.

The bright white ice seed jadeite had a clear and delicate color under the light. Only after being put on, compared to the cold, thin, white wrist, it also became second-rate.

Not long ago, the two of them were competing for this bracelet at the auction house, money flying everywhere.

The memory-addled Pei Xi liked this bracelet very much. He wanted to say something to He Chuzhou, but when he looked up, he found that the other person’s expression was indescribably strange.

“Chuzhou, what’s wrong?”

After speaking, he thought of something and held his wrist with some anxiety: “Is it because I can’t wear this?

“No.” He Chuzhou waved his hand and stood up to walk over. “It’s not something you can’t wear. If you like it, just wear it for fun first.”

In any case, his mother had bought a lot of new jewelry recently, so there was no rush to give her this. He could just send it in a couple of days.

Pei Xi caught the key word and wondered: “First?”

“No, you heard wrong.”

He Chuzhou calmly deceived him and handed him the letter of guarantee: “Here is the guarantee. Can you go to sleep now?”

Pei Xi took it and read it carefully: “En, it’s good overall, but the details are lacking. Chuzhou, it’s been so many years. How are your essay writing skills still so poor?”

This, He Chuzhou really couldn’t refute.

His poor composition was not a matter of a day or two. Ever since he was a child, his teachers commented that his connotations and meaning were forced.

“I’ve already performed above average. Teacher Pei, don’t be too picky.”

He took the letter of guarantee from Pei Xi’s hand and set it aside: “Okay, it’s very late. Go to sleep quickly.”

Pei Xi lay down and pulled up the quilt.

But two seconds later, under He Chuzhou’s puzzled gaze, he rose again with his upper body propped up and carefully put the guarantee in the cabinet drawer.

He Chuzhou was speechless: “Would you like to find a picture frame so you can hang it on the wall?”

Pei Xi blinked: “Can I?”

“No.” He Chuzhou heartlessly refused, covering his eyes: “Hurry and go to sleep.”

After a night of hard work and great effort, he was already very tired and sleepy, and just wanted him to go to sleep quickly so that he could rest.

In the middle of the night, He Xingxing would probably bite the tail of the cow cat several times in his dreams.

Pei Xi took his hand and said seriously: “Chuzhou, my fever seems to have gone away.”

“It’s gone? So soon?”

He Chengzhu was dubious and tried to touch his forehead, but his hand continued to be grabbed: “Let go and let me see if it’s really gone.”

But Pei Xi said: “You can’t touch with your hands. Lower your head.”

He Chuzhou didn’t doubt him. He sat on the edge of the bed and leaned down to touch his forehead to his, feeling heat from the other person’s skin: “How can you say it’s gone—”

A pair of arms wrapped around the back of his neck, interrupting his next words.

Pei Xi didn’t let him retreat. Their foreheads were pressed together, and the tips of their noses were almost touching. They were so close that he could clearly see his own reflection in the other’s eyes.

“I have a cold, you can’t kiss me.”

Pei Xi whispered: “But you can sleep behind me, so I won’t breathe on you and won’t infect you.”

Inexplicably, he went from sitting to lying down with someone in his arms.

The slight numbness at the base of his ears passed. He Chuzhou didn’t know where Pei Xi had learned this trick.

The sensation of the breath that had gusted against his lips moments ago lingered for a long time, and the warmth that filled his arms at this moment continued to spread.

He couldn’t quite adapt.

He could only be happy for Pei Xi that the person he was “married” to was not someone else.

Moving the arm that was being pressed down, he thought with complicated emotions.

If he were to be replaced by someone with bad intentions, there was no telling if there would be any bones left by morning.

This person usually had ten thousand eyes on the back of his head, but didn’t inherit any of them due to his amnesia.

……After being held in his arms for a night, would Pei Xi really not want to commit suicide when he woke up?

The anti-fever medication finally began to take effect and Pei Xi calmed, his breaths gradually becoming light and long.

He Chuzhou was also tired.

Pei Xi had a small frame, a good sleeping appearance, and a fluffy head. Holding him in his arms could also help him sleep. A wave of drowsiness flooded over him.

But he didn’t dare sleep. He feared that if he slept, Pei Xi would wake up and be so furious that he performed hara-kiri.

After making sure Pei Xi was asleep, he climbed up and rolled onto the sofa by the window, putting a blanket over his head.

The night had been full of turmoil and the chaos of war. He could finally sleep, and would be completely liberated when he sent this person away in the morning.

From the darkness of night to the dawn of daylight. He Chuzhou heard the everyday sound of the dog scratching at the door.

Lifting his eyelids, he vaguely saw in his sleepy state a figure sitting up in bed. The figure quickly changed clothes, opened the door, and left the room without stopping.

The dog took the opportunity to rush in and jumped on the sofa, starting to rub against He Chuzhou’s face and neck.

He Chuzhou pushed the dog’s head away in a daze, wondering, did he intend to go back by himself?

That was good. It saved him a trip. 

It was still early, so he planned to close his eyes for a while.

Just a couple seconds after closing his eyes, he opened them again. He looked at the empty bed, then at the door.

No way, Pei Xi was……okay?

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[1] This is the full saying: “Saving a life is better than building a seven-story pagoda.” (救人一命，胜造七级浮屠) ⮐

[2] He Chuzhou didn’t hear clearly and confused the ‘yun’ (晕) in dizzy with ‘yin’ for sound (音). ⮐

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Chapter 6 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 8