Did My Wife Break Up With Me Today? - Chapter 32

Chapter 32: “Even if something were going on between Chen Kongqing and me, what does it have to do with you?”

Chen Kongqing spoke up quickly: “Dr. Xu!”

However, he still wasn’t fast enough to beat Ling Xiao’s fist.

Xu Jingmo, standing right beside him, took a punch right before his eyes. It wasn’t a light blow. The man took it, turning his head from the impact.

The startled “rabbit” stared with eyes full of shock, unconsciously grabbing the man’s arm: “Dr. Xu! Are you okay?”

Xu Jingmo slowly straightened himself, a trace of blood seeping from the corner of his mouth: “I’m fine.”

That trace of blood pierced Chen Kongqing’s pupils, and his tone became incredibly anxious: “You’re bleeding, how can you be fine?”

Ling Xiao watched the scene before him.

Well, his “sponge” was currently clutching someone else’s hand, worrying about whether that person was hurt. Meanwhile, Xu Jingmo, still bleeding, let his gaze sweep over Ling Xiao.

That look.

Ling Xiao didn’t know if it was his imagination, but it felt like a boast—or even a provocation.

The man felt his teeth ache with a sour fury. He clenched his fists, standing opposite them: “Chen Kongqing, I’m bleeding too.”

The youth before him acted as if he hadn’t heard a word. He didn’t even turn his head, let alone spare him a glance.

“Chen Kongqing!” Ling Xiao roared, seemingly unable to bear the anger. “You’re blaming me for being with someone else, but aren’t you doing the exact same thing? And with my cousin, no less! What is this to you two? Is it a thrill?”

Chen Kongqing had originally intended not to argue further with Ling Xiao, wanting only to take Dr. Xu and leave as quickly as possible. But… Ling Xiao actually said something like that.

Ling Xiao could slander him, but Dr. Xu—who had tried his best to help him from start to finish—should not be slandered or insulted like this.

“Ling Xiao, he is your cousin. Even if you don’t respect me, you should respect him.” Chen Kongqing opened his lips, his eyes full of coldness.

Xu Jingmo turned back, his ink-like phoenix eyes falling deeply upon the rabbit beside him. The rabbit’s eyes were red, and his fingers resting on Xu’s arm were trembling slightly.

In the next instant, the man’s large hand gently covered his.

Chen Kongqing felt the back of his hand enveloped by a blazing warmth. His gaze slowly traveled up from the large, veined hand on his own.

Xu Jingmo happened to look back at that moment, staring directly at Ling Xiao. The gentleness in his eyes vanished instantly, replaced by a layer of chilling sharpness. The corner of his mouth curled into a slight, unintentional arc: “Even if something were going on between Chen Kongqing and me, what does it have to do with you? Ling Xiao, the two of you have already broken up.”

Ling Xiao was certain that arc was not accidental—it was blatant mockery.

His fist was already poised, ready to strike again the next second. However, Xu Jingmo didn’t move to defend himself; instead, he tilted his chin up slightly, as if waiting for the punch.

It was as if… he was begging Ling Xiao to hit him.

Ling Xiao frowned, wondering what Xu Jingmo was up to. His raised fist remained suspended in mid-air.

The next second, a slap rang out, leaving his ears ringing for several seconds.

That slap didn’t come from Xu Jingmo. It came from Chen Kongqing.

Yes. It was Chen Kongqing.

Ling Xiao hissed in pain, half of his face going numb. Chen Kongqing’s hand was shaking—whether from overexertion or because it was the first time in his life he had ever slapped someone.

“Chen Kongqing, you hit me?” Ling Xiao spoke, but his tone wasn’t one of questioning; it was one of grievance.

The Chen Kongqing standing before him wouldn’t meet his eyes, nor did he respond. It was as if Ling Xiao were nothing but air.

Immediately, Chen Kongqing pulled Xu Jingmo and his luggage away, passing right by him.

“Chen Kongqing!” Ling Xiao would not let it go, practically screaming.

The youth behind him seemed to pause his steps for a moment, then said coldly and faintly: “This is what you owe me.”

Another set of footsteps followed, along with the abrupt sound of a door closing.

After that, the large space fell into a terrifying silence.

Was it always this quiet to be alone in the apartment? It was so quiet it made one’s heart race.

So, when I didn’t come home, did Chen Kongqing just stay in this lonely place by himself, waiting for me?

The man touched his still-numb cheek and, surprisingly… wasn’t angry at all. There was only fear.

A fear that the “sponge” was truly… truly gone.

…

“Are you sure we don’t need to go to the hospital?” Chen Kongqing sat in the car, observing the injury on Xu Jingmo’s face up close.

A circle of swelling, tinged with red and purple, appeared at the corner of his mouth. There was still bleeding in his oral cavity; it was unclear if his teeth were damaged. Originally, Dr. Xu only had a small injury on his hand, but now he had taken such a punch to the face.

It was all because of him.

The rabbit’s eyes were full of anxiety and concern, his brow tightly knit.

Xu Jingmo used a tissue to lightly dab the corner of his mouth, shaking his head while observing the rabbit’s expression. After his observation ended, he said in a somewhat short-winded tone: “It’s fine. I’ll just apply some medicine myself when I get back.”

“Can you do it yourself?” Hearing the man’s slightly weak tone, Chen Kongqing became even more worried.

Xu Jingmo: “I should be able to. It’s just that the wound is on my face, so it’s a bit of a hassle to do it in the mirror.”

Without thinking, Chen Kongqing took over the task: “Then I’ll help you. Does Dr. Xu have medicine at home? Or should we still go to…”

“I have it. I have everything at home. It’s just that I’ll have to trouble you.” Xu Jingmo replied, adding a bit of bashfulness to his words.

“How could it be a trouble? It’s clearly my fault… if it weren’t for me, how could you have been hurt, Dr. Xu?”

The rabbit lowered his eyes in self-blame, his ears drooping. Then, as if remembering something, those red eyes lifted again, his tone becoming urgent: “Never mind that, let’s go back and apply the medicine first.”

“Alright,” Xu Jingmo responded, starting the car.

Since he had been to Dr. Xu’s home once before, Chen Kongqing was much more familiar with the way this time. As soon as the car reached the apartment building, he pulled Xu Jingmo toward the elevator, heading straight for the sixteenth floor.

Xu Jingmo didn’t speak the whole time, simply following the youth quietly. Through the fabric, he could feel the temperature of the rabbit’s palm on his wrist.

The rabbit’s palm wasn’t hot, just a tiny bit of warmth. He’s so thin, his health surely isn’t great. A layer of worry crossed the man’s eyes.

But soon, he was ordered to open the door. Then, he was pressed onto the sofa.

Chen Kongqing remembered that the last time he scraped his leg, Dr. Xu had gotten the first-aid kit from behind the TV wall. He walked quickly behind the wall and returned with the kit.

“Should we disinfect it with povidone-iodine first?” The rabbit opened the medical kit, looking at the pile of medicine with a bit of helplessness.

Xu Jingmo nodded slightly: “Mm.”

Chen Kongqing carefully dipped a cotton swab into the dark iodine and slowly brought it toward the man’s face.

Xu Jingmo’s face looked good from a distance, and even better up close. But Chen Kongqing couldn’t focus on the handsome features right now because his eyes were entirely filled with the wound at the corner of the man’s mouth. A few traces of blood still seeped from the split. Moreover, it seemed more swollen than before.

The rabbit knit his delicate brows again, then very gently and carefully dabbed the wound with the swab. Worried he couldn’t see clearly or wouldn’t be able to control his strength from a distance, he shifted his body, moving closer to Xu Jingmo.

To make it easier to apply the medicine, the man’s face was turned halfway to the side. His gaze was fixed straight ahead on the TV. The TV wasn’t on; in the black screen, the two people on the sofa were reflected.

Chen Kongqing was pressed tightly against his side. Even without the screen’s reflection, he could feel it. The faint herbal fragrance of the rabbit grew stronger in his nose, and his cheek was brushed by the rabbit’s regular breathing. His cheek and half of his neck turned stiff.

“Does it hurt?”

Even though Xu Jingmo didn’t cry out in pain, the man was as stiff as a living fossil—it must be because of the pain, right?

After a long while, the man opened his lips with a delayed reaction: “It’s fine. It doesn’t.”

“I’ll be even gentler then.” Chen Kongqing held his breath, applying the medicine even more carefully.

The last medicine used was a powder. When he sprinkled the powder on the wound, the man clearly frowned. The rabbit immediately pulled his hand back: “Did I use too much force?”

“No, the medicine is just a bit irritating.” Xu Jingmo finally turned his eyes—which had never strayed—to look at the youth right in front of him.

The ceiling light in the living room was on, providing plenty of light. Yet, for some reason, at this moment, the light in the room seemed to dim several degrees.

The light was just like those ink-like phoenix eyes, making it impossible to see clearly. Chen Kongqing had no room to maneuver or turn away; he met that gaze head-on from such a close distance.

Dr. Xu’s pupils were very deep, the color of ink. And those perfect phoenix eyes were simply too similar. They were too similar to Ling Xiao’s eyes. They were even more similar to the eyes in his dreams. That was why it was always so easy for him to get lost in them.

“Meow!” Black Cat Detective approached the sofa at that moment, giving a sharp cry.

Their interlocking gazes broke away in a slight panic. The little tuxedo cat stepped onto the rug, rubbing against Chen Kongqing’s feet: “Meow, meow~”

“Is… is he hungry?” Chen Kongqing finally escaped those deep black pupils, though he still hadn’t quite recovered.

Xu Jingmo opened his lips slowly, his peripheral vision still fixed on the rabbit: “He’s been fed milk, and I gave him an extra snack. He probably misses you.”

“Wait a second, I’ll hold you in a moment,” Chen Kongqing explained to the kitten on the floor. He had to finish treating Dr. Xu’s wound first. “Is there still a risk of infection or inflammation?”

Since it was on his face, he was still a bit worried. The kitten curled up by the rug, as if it understood, waiting quietly.

“Usually not,” Xu Jingmo said, reaching out to touch the corner of his mouth.

Suddenly, his hand was caught.

“Don’t touch it!” The rabbit was very serious, his brow deeply furrowed, though he still didn’t look very imposing.

“Your hand is also injured. Was this from the fight with Ling Xiao last time?” Chen Kongqing looked at the large hand he had intercepted mid-way. The knuckles were a strange red, with a hint of purple bruising.

“It’s nothing, just a little bit. I just bumped it,” the man smiled.

The more Xu Jingmo said that, the more uneasy Chen Kongqing felt. His palm tightened instinctively, clutching the man’s hand. His fingertips pressed against the man’s warm wrist, just happening to touch a pulse.

The pulse throbbed against his fingertip, beat after beat.

His skin, which had been so tense it had forgotten its own “illness,” seemed to be jolted awake. A wave of tingling swept through his body, and dormant cells woke up one by one.

No. I can’t.

The tips of the rabbit’s ears turned pink. He didn’t know where he got the willpower, but he slowly loosened his grip.

Before his hand could retreat, that silent, large hand turned the tables in an instant. The warm and powerful palm tightly gripped the youth’s thin, white hand.

His sensitive body couldn’t take it, and he trembled slightly.

Xu Jingmo took it all in: “Don’t run away. Let me help you.”