After I Married the Comatose CEO - Chapter 4

Under Su Wanrong’s expectant gaze, Xie Qiu could only nod and agree.

He had said such nice things earlier; he couldn’t very well refuse a small task like wiping down the man’s body.

Besides, they were both men. What was the big deal about wiping a body?

“Good, good. From now on, Siyan’s body is in Xiao Qiu’s hands.” Su Wanrong smiled very happily. “Xiao Qiu, your husband is a bit of a clean freak. You have to keep him nice and clean every day.”

Xie Qiu nodded while listening, but when the word “husband” came out, his pale ears turned a suspicious shade of red.

“So sweet, what a good child.” Su Wanrong reached out and touched his head. “Mom is going back to her room to rest now. Good luck, Xiao Qiu!”

Xie Qiu: “I will do my best!”

Su Wanrong left with a satisfied look, leaving Xie Qiu and the caregiver, Li Wei, staring at each other.

After a moment, Xie Qiu spoke up: “Um… what should I do now?”

“Oh! This is actually very simple!” Li Wei snapped out of it and suggested, “How about I demonstrate it for you tonight, and you can try it yourself tomorrow night? Does that sound okay?”

Xie Qiu agreed: “Of course.”

“Then I’ll go to the bathroom to get a basin of warm water. Please wait a moment,” Li Wei explained as he turned around. “It must be warm water—not too hot and not too cold.”

Xie Qiu: “Okay, warm water.”

Soon, Li Wei returned from the bathroom with a basin of warm water and began unbuttoning He Siyan’s pajamas.

As the buttons were undone, the man’s chest was gradually revealed to Xie Qiu.

He had been bedridden for nearly half a year. Despite having the best nutritionists and professional care, his body had still grown thin.

Because of the lack of sunlight, the man’s skin was pale. However, to Xie Qiu’s surprise, the outline of abdominal muscles was still faintly visible on his lean waist and stomach.

It wasn’t hard to imagine what a strong physique He Siyan must have had before becoming a “vegetable.”

Xie Qiu instinctively touched his own stomach, but he only felt a flat surface.

Whether it was the original owner’s body or his own, his physique was actually not as good as a man who had been lying in bed for six months.

How embarrassing, truly embarrassing…

After opening the clothes, Li Wei lifted a white towel from the basin and continued his lesson: “Just wring the towel until it stops dripping.”

Xie Qiu silently lowered his hand: “Okay, I’ve got it.”

Li Wei began wiping the man’s upper body, from the long neck to the broad shoulders, then to the arms, armpits, chest, and abdomen. He was very thorough.

Once finished, he put the towel back in the basin and efficiently pulled down He Siyan’s pajama pants.

Xie Qiu looked away as a reflex, but once he saw out of the corner of his eye that the man was wearing underwear, he turned back.

However, in the next second, his eyes widened uncontrollably.

As He Siyan lay flat on the bed, the area covered by his black underwear was really quite…

Xie Qiu rubbed his eyes, unable to believe it. Could a man still be so “well-endowed” even while in a deep sleep?

“Next is wiping the lower body,” Li Wei said. “The Eldest Young Master’s legs can be bent, but you have to be careful with the strength you use.”

Xie Qiu suddenly snapped back to attention: “Oh, oh…”

Seeing Li Wei preparing to put the pants back on, Xie Qiu hesitated: “Is… is that considered fully cleaned?”

Li Wei paused: “Do you think there is somewhere I didn’t wipe well?”

Xie Qiu gestured with his hand: “There… doesn’t that need to be wiped?”

“Oh, do you mean the private parts?” Li Wei relaxed. “You don’t need to do that. The Eldest Young Master has a regular schedule for waste, and we clean him thoroughly every time before putting him back.”

Xie Qiu instantly breathed a sigh of relief: “That’s great!”

But then he couldn’t help but feel sorry for He Siyan.

A person in a coma really has no dignity. Lying on a bed unable to move, they rely on others for everything, even the most basic needs.

Thinking this way made the idea of helping wipe his body much easier to accept.

“I’ve learned it,” Xie Qiu promised seriously. “Starting tomorrow night, I’ll take over this job.”

The next day was Monday, and Xie Qiu woke up early out of habit.

Before he traveled into this world, the Xie family had requested a month-long leave of absence for the original owner, then tricked him into going home to lock him up.

Since he was now married to He Siyan, it was time to go back to school for classes.

After washing up, Xie Qiu first went next door for a visit.

“Mr. He, good morning,” Xie Qiu greeted him with a high-energy voice and pulled open the thick curtains.

It was a sunny day. The morning sunlight poured into the room, casting a warm glow on that pale, thin face on the bed, making it look a bit livelier.

Xie Qiu walked to the bedside and started talking nonsense with a straight face: “Mr. He, you should get more sun to absorb the ‘essence of the sun and moon.’ It helps the body recover.”

The man on the bed, as usual, did not react.

Xie Qiu didn’t care if there was a response and reported his schedule anyway: “Starting today, I’m going back to school for classes. I won’t be home during the day from Monday to Friday, but I’ll be back in the evening.”

After speaking, he tucked the corner of the blanket in for the man: “Mr. He, bye-bye.”

Xie Qiu turned to leave, ready to go downstairs for breakfast.

Behind him, bathed in the sunlight, the man’s brow twitched imperceptibly.

Just as he walked down the stairs, Xie Qiu heard Su Wanrong call out to him: “Xiao Qiu, you’re up.”

“Mom, good morning,” Xie Qiu greeted her with a smile, noticing He Jingchen sitting at the dining table. “Xiao Chen, good morning to you too.”

He Jingchen frowned. Because his mother was there, he held back and didn’t say anything.

Su Wanrong asked: “There isn’t much going on today. Why did Xiao Qiu get up so early?”

“Mom, you forgot, I’m still in university,” Xie Qiu explained softly. “It’s Monday, so I should go back to class.”

“Oh my, look at my memory,” Su Wanrong patted her forehead. “Xiao Qiu is still in school. You married our Siyan at such a young age; he really got the better end of the deal.”

Xie Qiu laughed: “Brother He isn’t that much older than me.”

Su Wanrong teased him on purpose: “Xiao Qiu, you’re married now. Why are you still calling him ‘Brother He’?”

“I’m just used to it,” Xie Qiu spoke up first and changed it. “Then I’ll call him ‘Siyan-ge’ from now on.”

He was absolutely not going to call him “husband” or anything like that—it was way too embarrassing!

“Alright, that works too,” Su Wanrong waved him over. “Come sit.”

Xie Qiu walked over and sat in the seat next to them.

After the three finished breakfast, Xie Qiu was about to get up and leave when he was called back.

Su Wanrong said, “Xiao Qiu, you should take the family car to school with Jingchen. You can come back together in the evening, too.”

Xie Qiu: “No need!”

He Jingchen: “No!”

The two refused almost at the same time.

Su Wanrong was stunned for a moment. “Why not?”

Xie Qiu: “Uh…”

Too many things had happened these past few days. He had forgotten that the original character and the story’s protagonist attended the same university. This had made it very easy for the original Xie Qiu to interfere and cause trouble.

Seeing that neither of them answered, Su Wanrong made the final decision. “It’s settled then. You two go to school together and come home together. You’ll have company on the road.”

Ten minutes later, a black Lincoln slowly drove out of the He family estate.

In the back seat, Xie Qiu and He Jingchen each leaned against their own window. The gap between them was large enough for a very large person to sit in.

Fortunately, the He estate was hidden within the city and was not far from A University. After Xie Qiu took a short nap, the car stopped at the school gate.

He glanced out the window and realized that A University in this novel was exactly the same as the real A University.

He really had to suspect that he was the prototype for the villainous cannon fodder in this book. At the very least, the author must have been a student at A University.

While he was lost in thought, He Jingchen was the first to open the door and get out. The driver only had time to open the door on Xie Qiu’s side.

“Thank you,” Xie Qiu said. After getting out, he tried to catch up with the long-legged figure in front of him. “He Jingchen, wait!”

However, He Jingchen walked faster and faster, as if a ghost were chasing him.

Xie Qiu gave up and slowed his pace, muttering to himself, “So what if your legs are long?”

Forget it. He Jingchen’s prejudice against him was so deep that it couldn’t be resolved with just a few words.

Xie Qiu opened his phone, checked his class schedule, and walked toward the familiar teaching building.

Before long, he reached the building for public classes and successfully found his usual classroom.

After Xie Qiu entered the room, he looked around. Luckily, the students didn’t have faces he recognized from his real life.

He found an empty seat. After sitting down and taking out his books, he noticed that the students were glancing at him, intentionally or not.

While he was wondering why, a familiar voice rang out: “Xiao Qiuqiu!”

Xie Qiu looked up and saw a familiar face. He was stunned for a moment.

Meng Ziye rushed over in a few steps. “You finally came to school! If you hadn’t shown up, I was going to call the police!”

“Meng Ziye?” Xie Qiu lowered his voice, his tone a bit disbelieving. “Did you travel here too?”

Meng Ziye plopped down in the seat next to him. “Huh? Travel where?”

“You…” Xie Qiu studied him closely. Seeing that his confusion seemed real, he dropped it for now. “It’s nothing.”

Meng Ziye was easygoing and didn’t mind the strange behavior. He was only interested in gossip. “Quick, tell the truth! What have you been doing these past few days?”

“I…” Xie Qiu twirled the pen between his fingers. “It’s a long story.”

“Then tell it slowly!” Meng Ziye wouldn’t let him off. “I have plenty of time anyway.”

Xie Qiu: “…”

How was it that the Meng Ziye in the book had the exact same personality?

Wait! Could this dramatic novel have been written by this troublesome friend of his?

No, probably not. Meng Ziye didn’t have that kind of imagination or patience.

His friend was still pushing for answers, but luckily the school bell rang just in time, saving Xie Qiu.

After the two morning classes ended, the students in the classroom began to leave.

Xie Qiu was slowly packing his books when he suddenly heard a “Holy crap!” in his ear.

He turned his head. “What now?”

“Xiao Qiuqiu, you, you, you—” Meng Ziye’s finger trembled as he pointed at him. “You came to school this morning in He Jingchen’s Lincoln?!”

Xie Qiu was confused. “How did you know?”

“It’s not just me; the whole school knows!” Meng Ziye shoved his phone screen in front of Xie Qiu’s eyes. “Someone uploaded a photo to the forum!”

Xie Qiu looked closely. In the photo, one of his feet was stepping out of the Lincoln, and he was looking longingly at the tall figure walking away.

Meng Ziye: “Don’t you have anything to say?!”

Xie Qiu nodded. “My profile looks pretty good.”

“Is that the point?!” Meng Ziye was going crazy. “The point is, why were you getting out of He Jingchen’s Lincoln!”

Xie Qiu replied in a small voice, “That car doesn’t belong to He Jingchen.”

Oops. He had overlooked another thing. As the protagonist of the novel, He Jingchen had many “buffs,” one of which was being the most popular “school grass” at A University. His every move was watched.

By appearing so boldly with the school grass this morning, he must have caused a huge stir.

Sure enough, while they were talking, people passing by the window were all looking in Xie Qiu’s direction.

“You’re dead. You’re really dead, Xiao Qiuqiu.” Meng Ziye quickly took off his jacket and covered Xie Qiu’s head. “This is not a safe place. Let’s get out of here!”

Xie Qiu folded his hands in a respectful gesture. “I can’t thank you enough!”

Meng Ziye: “Oh, you definitely need to thank me!”

Xie Qiu: “…”

The two of them snuck back to the dormitory. Meng Ziye quickly locked the door behind them. “Finally, safe!”

Xie Qiu sat on a chair and praised him sincerely. “Ziye, if you were born during a war, you would definitely be great for the underground resistance.”

“Of course!” Meng Ziye looked proud, but then his expression changed again. “But don’t think you’re getting away that easily! Tell the truth!”

Xie Qiu thought for a moment. “Ziye, did you know I had an engagement?”

“Yeah!” Meng Ziye picked up a water cup from the table and took a sip. “But your fiancé was in a car accident and became a vegetable. Wasn’t the engagement canceled?”

“Actually, it wasn’t.” Xie Qiu pursed his lips. “During the days I disappeared, I went to get married.”

“Pffft—” Meng Ziye sprayed a mouthful of water. “Married? To a vegetable?”

Xie Qiu: “Yes.”

Meng Ziye realized that Xie Qiu’s expression was not a joke. He immediately began to curse, “What is wrong with that family? Are they out of their minds? Letting you marry a vegetable—isn’t that just forcing you to live like a widow?”

Xie Qiu added, “But his mother gave me a card, and I received a lot of expensive meeting gifts.”

Meng Ziye looked dismissive: “How much can those things be worth? Can they compare to the best years of your youth?”

Xie Qiu raised one hand and gestured a number to him.

“How much?” Meng Ziye guessed. “Five hundred thousand?”

Xie Qiu encouraged him, “Be a bit bolder.”

“Holy crap!” Meng Ziye was shocked. He stopped drinking his water. “Is your half-dead husband’s family that rich?”

He knew Xie Qiu’s family was actually quite wealthy, but since Xie Qiu wasn’t their biological son, they weren’t willing to spend much on him. Because of that, Xie Qiu’s lifestyle was usually just like a normal person.

This amount of money—how many years would they have to work like slaves to earn it?

Xie Qiu shrugged slightly. “So, you see, this marriage isn’t a bad deal for me.”

“When you put it that way, it’s true…” Meng Ziye smacked his lips, then suddenly remembered the important question. “But what does this have to do with you getting out of He Jingchen’s car?”

Xie Qiu replied calmly, “Because the husband I married is He Jingchen’s older brother, He Siyan.”

As soon as he said those words, Meng Ziye stumbled and almost knelt down in front of Xie Qiu.

Xie Qiu reached out to help him. “It’s too early for New Year; there’s no need for such a grand bow.”