The Eldest Brother is Handsome but Sick. - Chapter 29

The “Lady-Like” Junior Brother

The carriage creaked along the narrow path. Yan Jin felt as if he were the fine snow kicked up by the wheels ready to scatter at the slightest breeze.

He curled himself up like a quail, determined to remain silent until they reached the Marquis of Dingyuan’s estate.

However, the Su Huai beside him had no intention of letting him have his way. The younger man let out a cold snort: “Senior Brother abandoned me yet again… was it all for the sake of that Miss Wen?”

Yan Jin thought about it silently. Treating the young Marquis Wen Wu did have a connection to Wen Luopu; by extension, one could say it was for her sake.

Su Huai continued his cold sneer: “I never knew you liked that type.”

Yan Jin looked down at the hand-warmer Wen Luopu had prepared for him. He suspected Su Huai was driven mad by anger; otherwise, the boy would never say such things in normal circumstances.

Su Huai snatched the hand-warmer away and tossed it out of the carriage. He then stuffed the one he had brought himself into Yan Jin’s hands, his voice trembling with rage: “If you… if you like that type, I can also dress as a lady. In terms of appearance and being gentle or dignified, I do not lose to her.”

That’s not how this works…

Yan Jin scratched his cheek and shifted his gaze guiltily. Suddenly, his train of thought halted. Wait, what did Su Huai just say?

He felt as though his brain was still muddled from the dry bread earlier; he couldn’t quite wrap his head around Su Huai’s words for a moment.

Seeing that he didn’t respond and was clearly dazing off, Su Huai nearly choked on his own breath, his chest aching with suppressed frustration.

“Answer me.” He rubbed his temples, exhaling a breath of turbid air. He softened his voice: “What are you thinking about, Senior Brother?”

Su Huai reflected on how this man could handle the most world-shaking events with ease, yet when it came to his feelings, the man’s only instinct was to run. Where was the justice in that?

Before catching up, Su Huai had sat in Yan Jin’s room for half a day without eating or drinking. His gaze had swept over every corner of the bedroom, calculating where to place ropes and chains so that Yan Jin could never escape again.

This thought had existed for years. He had struggled with it for a long time, chanting “Senior Brother” in his mind countless times just to keep his true desires hidden. However, unconsciously, even the title “Senior Brother” had taken on a different flavor—becoming more heart-stirring than simply calling Yan Jin by name. This subtle, unacknowledged intimacy had twisted in his heart until he was on the verge of madness.

But quickly, he thought of everything that had happened over the years. He remembered Yan Jin’s chronic pain, the medical talent Yan Jin had suppressed because of the burdens of the Hall of Three Lives and the Yan family, and the way Yan Jin’s eyes looked at him beneath the crabapple tree and under the ten thousand prayer lanterns.

And so, his heart ached again. He slapped himself, settled his emotions, and donned the mask of the “usual Su Huai.”

Unfortunately, he was still young, and he couldn’t hide his feelings in front of Yan Jin.

While fireworks were going off in Su Huai’s brain, his face grew increasingly calm. He took a deep breath, thinking he had frightened Yan Jin.

I was too hasty, he sighed in his heart, thinking he should coax the man.

However, before he could speak, the “awakened” Yan Jin suddenly turned to look at him.

His expression could only be described as “beyond words.”

Su Huai’s brow jumped. Years of experience told him that nothing good followed that look.

Yan Jin asked with total sincerity: “Then next time, should I call you the gentle and dignified… Miss Su?”

Su Huai: “…………”

The “gentle and dignified Miss Su” felt like becoming a “shrew” for the first time out of sheer anger.

Yan Jin added: “Then you can’t get angry at me at the drop of a hat. Being stingy is very undignified.”

Su Huai could no longer keep up the act. He said woodenly, “Originally, I wanted to imprison you so no one could approach you. Now, I’ve already compromised to the point where I only ask that you let me stay by your side.”

These words were a direct bombshell, showing his hand completely. Yan Jin was blown to bits.

Heaven knows why Su Huai, who had hidden so well and used “deep brotherly affection” as a disguise just a few days ago, suddenly stopped pretending.

Yan Jin shakily pieced himself back together, weeping to the System in his mind. He felt like he was the one who couldn’t keep up the act anymore.

With his brain overloaded, he filtered his thoughts several times before finally managing a trembling sentence: “Then… do I also have to praise you for being generous?”

Su Huai: “Praise away.”

Yan Jin followed suit: “Generous.”

“………………”

Silence. Silence was the only life-saving straw at this moment.

Damn it, they are both beyond saving.

As if accepting his fate, Su Huai closed his eyes. He rose, moved to sit opposite Yan Jin, and turned to look out the window.

Out of sight, out of mind.

The Ambush

Having reached this point, Yan Jin actually calmed down. There couldn’t possibly be a worse situation than the current one.

As the protagonist of this incident, he suddenly asked curiously: “Why do you like me?”

Although everyone in Jingning Town praised Doctor Yan of the Hall of Three Lives as a celestial being, Yan Jin himself was very self-aware. He knew he was sharp-tongued, troublesome, shameless, and occasionally put on airs. Anyone who got to know him wouldn’t be fooled by his looks; instead, they would likely look down on him because of the contrast between his appearance and personality.

Logically, Su Huai should be the one most familiar with him and thus the one who should look down on him the most.

He thought this, and he said it. After finishing, he added: “Surely you aren’t so blind as to reach this level?”

The “generous and blind Miss Su” did not want to speak.

But Yan Jin, whose chatter-box had been opened, wouldn’t let him go: “You haven’t been reading those fabricated romance novels, have you? Did you hallucinate a perfect version of me?”

He covered his face and said, “Ayo, how embarrassing is that?”

“But I think two of them are actually quite interesting. I still remember the contents. I was just worried I had no one to read them with how about I recite a passage for you?”

Yan Jin truly opened his mouth to recite a segment, and then Su Huai pinched his mouth shut.

Su Huai, in a state of “breaking the pot since it’s already cracked,” threatened: “If you say another word, I won’t be using my hand to pinch you.”

Yan Jin flailed his arms and made muffled “mmph-mmph” sounds that meant: I’m your Senior Brother!

Su Huai smiled: “The one I’m looking for is exactly my Senior Brother.”

Fine. No problem.

Yan Jin stopped talking, letting the nearly-mad Su Huai be.

The carriage fell silent once more.

After a long while, Yan Jin said seriously: “Favoring men isn’t a big deal. But Su Huai, family and the person you love are different.” Love was a contract, it was romantic; but he didn’t possess such “romantic” things.

The common point between family affection and romantic love was “dependency.” But unfortunately, that single commonality often caused people to accidentally conflate the two, only to wake up later and realize they had hurt both themselves and the other.

Yan Jin couldn’t describe his exact mood. He could be certain it wasn’t “heart-fluttering” attraction; he might have had a bit of it before, but it had been digested along with the bread he swallowed earlier.

He had wanted to keep Su Huai by his side because he felt the “child” hadn’t grown up and he was worried, or perhaps because Su Huai called him “brother,” and he had a two-life obsession with having a relative to accompany him.

He had truly intended for Su Huai to join the Yan family genealogy.

Now that his “family” wanted to cross the line and become a “lover,” Yan Jin was at a loss. He had never received much affection, so he didn’t know how to respond, and he didn’t dare let Su Huai step into it so easily.

Looking back at his several decades of life, Su Huai was his only concern. He had to treat this with absolute gravity.

Su Huai was stunned upon hearing this. He frowned slightly, displeased that Yan Jin was once again treating him like an ignorant child.

“Yan Jin, I can tell the difference—”

“BOOM!!!”

His words were cut short!

A sharp whistle of air split the stifling atmosphere of the carriage, followed by the dull thud of a sharp object slamming into wood.

Su Huai acted on pure instinct, lunging forward to pin Yan Jin to the floor of the carriage.

Thwack! A black crossbow bolt pierced the carriage wall where Yan Jin had been leaning. The sharp arrowhead glinted with a cold, murderous light.

Assassins!

Yan Jin’s expression turned solemn. Wen Wu had many enemies in the court. Regardless of whether the news of his critical illness was true, his political rivals would not pass up any chance to destroy the Wen family. These assassins were likely targeting him to prevent the doctor from arriving.

“Protect the Miss!”

The panicked shouts of the guards came from outside. The horses pulling the carriage were startled, letting out shrill neighs as the carriage lost control and galloped wildly. The violent jolting nearly threw them out of the frame.

Yan Jin looked out.

Outside, the sharp whistles of arrows and the clash of steel had already erupted. Through the violently swaying window, he could see dozens of dark shadows surrounding them.

“Crash!” Another huge jolt—a wheel seemed to run over an obstacle. The entire carriage tilted violently, nearly flipping over.

Yan Jin shouted to Su Huai: “Don’t worry about me! Protect yourself!”

“Watch your head!” Su Huai roared. A blade edge carrying a chill swept past the side of Yan Jin’s face, cutting a few stray hairs.

Su Huai kicked open the shaking carriage door, sent an assassin flying, and snatched the man’s saber. In the nick of time, he held the long blade horizontally above his head!

Clang—!

The massive force of the blow pushed Yan Jin directly to his knees. He shoved Su Huai away, his body diving toward the exit to roll off the carriage and shed the momentum.

At the very instant the assassin’s blade swung toward Yan Jin again

Whiz!

The assassin about to strike Yan Jin was pierced through the throat by an arrow and collapsed.

Yan Jin, now clear of danger, hurried to regroup with Su Huai. Only then did he look up.

The “Wen” family flags fluttered in the wind. Dozens of light-armored guards had arrived. they split into two groups one to protect the center, the other to slaughter the assassins.

The Wen family guards were clearly well-trained; the battle turned in an instant.

“Your subordinates arrived late and startled the Miss.” The guard captain helped Wen Luopu up.

“It seems we were exposed after all. How is my brother?”

“The Young Marquis is awake, but his complexion is poor. He looks unwell.”

Wen Luopu nodded slightly, straightening her slightly ruffled collar. She showed no panic, saying only: “Leave a few alive.”

The guard captain bowed: “Understood!”

Wen Luopu turned to look at the silent Su Huai. Seeing a wound on his hand, she said apologetically: “My apologies. The situation has changed, and you both were frightened.”

Su Huai acted as if he hadn’t heard her. He tossed the snatched saber aside and took half a step back.

“Your hand…” Yan Jin began. Before he could finish, he was pulled into a tight embrace. Su Huai leaned his forehead against Yan Jin’s shoulder and remained silent for a long time.

“Are you okay? Let me check the wound on your hand to see if it hit the bone,” Yan Jin said.

“It’s fine. What could happen to me…” Su Huai said in a muffled voice. “But my hand hurts terribly. Senior Brother, coax me.”