Transmigrated as the Villain and Driven Crazy by the Vengeful Male Lead - Chapter 52

Chapter 52: A Hesitant Hug — Do You Truly Want to Embrace Me?

Lv Shuyao hadn’t replied yet when Su Cheyue spoke first: “Two rooms.”

“…”

Two rooms it is then; that’s what he was thinking anyway. Lv Shuyao said, “Right, two rooms.”

After a pause, he decided to judge Cheyue’s heart by the standards of a gentleman, “Two adjacent rooms.”

He Zixu softly called out “A-Tong,” and the boy with the double-bun hairstyle entered again. “Take Second Young Master and Master Lv to the east wing.”

From beginning to end, He Zixu never rose from his seat. As Lv Shuyao carefully pushed Su Cheyue away, He Zixu sat in his place, his eyes following them lingeringly, lost in thought.

Once the music and dance faded, the vast manor was left in silence. A-Tong led them to the east wing and pointed out the rooms. Lv Shuyao continued pushing Su Cheyue forward, neither of them saying a word.

Perhaps influenced by the fire-and-water relationship between Tao Xuanxuan and He Zixu, Lv Shuyao felt things were no longer as easy between him and Su Cheyue.

Or rather, ever since they had gone through the ordeals of Chang Huaichen and Jiang Zhiqing, things hadn’t been the same.

“What are you thinking about?”

Su Cheyue remained silent for a while before asking back, “How did you know Cong Shang was Tao Xuanxuan?”

In his mind, Lv Shuyao thought: Because I have the God’s Eye view, of course!

On the surface, Lv Shuyao replied: “Looking across the world, every other medical cultivator has examined your legs except for the Tao family. She claimed she’d never heard of the Baoshan Sect or Xifeng Ferry, yet she’s so familiar with the turbid air of the Evil Ghost Purgatory and knows your condition like the back of her hand. She doesn’t show herself, yet she keeps a constant eye on the major events of the cultivation world. She talks big about your illness and pretends not to treat it, but in reality, she’s already seen through it all.”

He smiled. “I was just giving it a shot. I didn’t expect her to fall for it so easily.”

“She was hidden in Pingluan Town living a stable life; our arrival is like a giant wave hitting a calm pond,” Su Cheyue said. “She will surely remember this grudge.”

Lv Shuyao thought to himself: It’s fine, she won’t. You, Second Young Master, have successfully caught her attention. Your grudge is about to turn into passion, dry wood meeting a blazing fire, a surging river of love… Forgive him, his vocabulary was failing him.

Su Cheyue asked again, “Then, what kind of person is Master He?”

Paying attention to the hypothetical love rival already!

Lv Shuyao raised an eyebrow. “I guess they’re childhood sweethearts or something.”

But don’t worry, the original book is a story where the childhood friend loses to the one who falls from the sky!

“…He seems very ill.” Su Cheyue sat in his wheelchair, eyes lowered.

“Yeah.” Wait, why do I hear a hint of sympathy?

“If Miss Cong really is a descendant of the Tao clan, why would she let Master He suffer under the torment of illness?”

Lv Shuyao sighed. “Even the most capable people have times when they are powerless.”

Su Cheyue fell silent again.

It was strange. When they talked about business or other people, they were perfectly normal. But as soon as it went quiet, the atmosphere became so awkward that Lv Shuyao felt physically uncomfortable.

Through the long silence, he finally delivered the Second Young Master to his room. As they entered, Su Cheyue said, “I can hear it.”

“Hear what?”

“This manor.” Su Cheyue looked at him under the moonlight. “Malice resides within this manor.”

Lv Shuyao said, “Oh, right.”

Su Cheyue asked, “Will you accompany me to find it?”

“No need. You rest; I’ll go take a look for you.” Lv Shuyao bent down, his hand reaching halfway before stopping.

Su Cheyue said, “What is it?”

He remembered that during the day, Su Cheyue hadn’t wanted him to hold him.

Su Cheyue’s dark pupils were soaked in the white moonlight, looking like stars or snowflakes. Lv Shuyao spaced out for a second, averted his gaze, and masked it with a smile: “Just one hug?”

They had done this countless times before, yet why was he feeling nervous?

Usually, Su Cheyue would ask not to be touched or get angry. In the past, Lv Shuyao was thick-skinned and went straight for it, prioritizing efficiency—as long as the result was achieved, he didn’t care if Su Cheyue wanted it or not.

So why the hell am I nervous now?

The moonlight flowed quietly between them for a moment. Su Cheyue said, “Do you truly want to embrace me?”

Do you truly want to embrace me?

He very, very rarely used such a light, soft tone—as if asking for an opinion—when speaking to Lv Shuyao.

Lv Shuyao’s eardrums suddenly tightened.

…Do I truly want to embrace him?

If he were actively trying to coax Su Cheyue into being happy, he would certainly take a proactive stance. But truly wanting to hug him? They were both men; who would willingly show such softness or weakness? He understood that.

But now Su Cheyue was asking him—inquiring—his voice so low it was as if the question was being asked within Lv Shuyao’s own heart.

He didn’t know.

His fingers froze in mid-air, becoming a bit stiff. He looked at Su Cheyue and forced a laugh: “If I don’t carry you, how will you get into bed?”

Dammit, what kind of nonsense am I saying? Does that have anything to do with what Su Cheyue asked? Completely off-topic.

The stars dimmed, the snowflakes melted away. Su Cheyue said without much emotion, “Mm.”

He still carried him to the bed. Su Cheyue lay there quietly. Lv Shuyao said, “You only need to focus on healing your injuries here. Don’t worry about the matters in the manor; I’ll handle them.”

After all, he had transmigrated with the “God’s Eye” perspective. The first two arcs didn’t let him use his “golden finger” much, but he finally caught a break this time!

Su Cheyue said, “Okay.”

Strangely obedient.

“Goodnight, Second Young Master.”

Lv Shuyao closed the door. Su Cheyue watched his silhouette disappear from the window and slowly closed his eyes.

“As soon as Su Cheyue recovers, I can leave! Zenless Zone Zero, here I come! River Snail Rice Noodles are waiting for me! I must speed up the progress at all costs!!”

…What kind of food was “Luoshi Fen” (River Snail Rice Noodles)?

And who was “Zenless Zone Zero”?

Whatever it was, whoever they were, he just wanted to leave.

And he was in a great hurry to go.

If he wants to go, let him go.

Once his cultivation is restored, he won’t need anyone; he only needs his sword.

A breath was stifled in Su Cheyue’s chest. It had nothing to do with ghost energy or the Desire-Probing Pearl; it was purely his own emotion.

An emotion he had never felt before—the fear of losing something. He was once an peerless warrior who looked down on the world. Though he appeared gentle and elegant on the surface, he was arrogant to his core. Others had always watched his back; he had never stood behind anyone, gazing at them for a long time.

Let alone this person, Lv Shuyao—someone seven years younger, equivalent to a nephew or a disciple. Given the murky truth of the Evil Ghost Purgatory, he was even half an enemy.

…But this person was also nominally his spouse. The whole world knew Lv Shuyao had married Su Cheyue, and Su Cheyue had married Lv Shuyao. They were constant companions, inseparable, living in domestic harmony.

In the past, Su Cheyue would have detested such talk. But now, just lying in bed thinking about it, he felt his neck grow warm and his heart race.

He even hoped to use this relationship to openly bind Lv Shuyao to him.

Su Cheyue felt more and more that things were spinning out of control—that he himself was spinning out of control. He suppressed the tightness in his chest and whispered to himself, “What is wrong with me…?”

…

Lv Shuyao stood in the night air for a while before stopping a passing young servant: “Where is your Young Master?”

The east wing had two rooms for them, and the remaining two were the residences of He Zixu and Tao Xuanxuan. They didn’t mind the distinction between men and women; their rooms were right next to each other, separated by only a thin wall.

The rooms were close, but the people were a different story.

When the servant brought Lv Shuyao over, A-Tong was kneeling outside the door, watching a snail crawl slowly from the shadows into the moonlight. Lv Shuyao heard arguing inside. “A-Tong?”

A-Tong looked up. He seemed a bit sleepy, his expression tinged with a faint weariness. “Master.”

“What happened?” Lv Shuyao tried to help him up, but the boy refused. “Why are you kneeling?”

A man’s knees are worth gold; to be forced to bend like this at such a young age would crush his spirit for a lifetime.

“I made a mistake,” A-Tong said. “I forgot to keep an eye on the Young Master’s medicine…”

Lv Shuyao thought, somewhat uncharitably, that since He Zixu was already so ill, missing one dose wasn’t a big deal. Why take it out on others?

“I’m very tired today and don’t want to fight with you. I’ll ask one more time: where is the medicine?” Tao Xuanxuan’s voice came from the room.

He Zixu said, “I’m also very tired of saying this: the medicine is gone. I’ve finished it.”

“If it’s finished, why didn’t A-Tong prepare more?! The Night-Sleep Pill must be brewed seven days in advance! It’s always been that way! Why was it forgotten this time?!”

“No man is a saint; mistakes happen,” He Zixu said calmly yet helplessly. “Just as no mortal is immune to illness, everyone eventually—”

“Shut up!”

“…Tao Xuanxuan,” Lv Shuyao heard He Zixu call her name for the first time. “I’m sleepy. Can you let a patient rest?”

Tao Xuanxuan sneered, “Do you think I’ll believe that?”

“This time it’s true.” He Zixu exhaled. “I really just want to sleep. Before the New Year arrives, I want a good night’s sleep.”

“Consider it a celebration of me surviving another year.”

The room went silent. Tao Xuanxuan opened the door and was stunned to see the purple-clad figure standing outside.

“…What are you doing here? Wanting me to treat those legs in the middle of the night? Even if you and the Second Young Master are close, there’s no need to push this hard.”

She was still in her black dress, cold and somber. She glanced at A-Tong: “If you’ve knelt long enough, get out.”

A-Tong asked, “Then the Young Master tonight…”

“I’m here; he can forget about it,” Tao Xuanxuan pursed her lips. “Go back.”

After A-Tong retreated, Tao Xuanxuan untied a dark, old pouch from her waist and spread it open to reveal a row of silver needles.

She picked a medium-thick one and, without a second thought, stabbed it into her own fair tiger’s mouth (Hegu point). Lv Shuyao gasped, “Tao—”

“Call me Cong Shang.” Her expression didn’t change. “What is it, exactly?”

Lv Shuyao said hesitantly, “That needle…”

“Ignorant.” She put the needle pouch away. “It’s just the ordinary Hegu point.”

“Then why did you stab yourself?”

Tao Xuanxuan replied, “Does it have anything to do with you?”

Apparently not. Lv Shuyao said, “I came to visit Young Master He.”

Tao Xuanxuan frowned and sized him up. “Why see him?”

Before Lv Shuyao could speak, Tao Xuanxuan added: “One look costs five hundred taels.”

“…”

You’ve really got money on the brain!

Inside, He Zixu’s health was poor, but his hearing was sharp: “Let Master Lv come in.”

Hearing this, Tao Xuanxuan stormed back inside. “He Zixu, are you playing with me?”

“No,” the man in plain white sat on the bed with a pure smile. “I’m just bored and want someone to talk to.”

“You know there’s no medicine today,” Tao Xuanxuan’s cheeks flushed with anger. “You’re trying to wear me out, aren’t you?”

He Zixu propped his head up lazily. “If you want to sleep, go sleep. I never intended to wear anyone out.”

He looked up at her tenderly. “I know you’re tired from watching the shop all day. Go to sleep, Zhouzhou.”

At the mention of “Zhouzhou,” Tao Xuanxuan’s expression froze instantly, and her aggressive energy vanished in an instant.

His tenderness was like a sugar-coated poison, making one easily lower their guard. Yet, once that affection was accepted, his dark intentions would succeed, and she would fall into his trap—a trap from which there was no return.

Tao Xuanxuan said, “He Zixu.”

“Yes?”

She didn’t answer him again. Turning to Lv Shuyao, she said, “I’m right next door. When you’re done talking to him, you must—must—come call for me.”

She stared at Lv Shuyao, enunciating every word. “Otherwise, if I can save Su Cheyue, I can just as easily take his life.”

Lv Shuyao said, “I know. Don’t worry.”

With her back to the person on the bed, Tao Xuanxuan called out one more time: “He Zixu.”

“I’m here.”

It seemed that only by constantly calling his name could she confirm he still existed—that he was still alive.

She eventually left, her back stiff. Lv Shuyao closed the door and pulled up a chair by the bed.

“Can you drink?”

He Zixu smiled and shook his head. “I secretly had a sip once. Just one tiny sip. As a result, she stayed awake for three days and three nights to pull me back from the brink.”

Lv Shuyao didn’t speak. He Zixu said, “Master Lv, do you think I’m a beast in human clothing? Bullying and taxing a weak woman like this.”

Lv Shuyao said, “She is not a weak woman.”

“True,” He Zixu agreed deeply. “You’re right. Which is exactly why she shouldn’t stay here.”

“Where she stays is her own choice,” Lv Shuyao poured him a cup of warm water. “Is water okay?”

He Zixu took it and drained it in one gulp. Only after finishing did he say slyly, “Actually, it’s not entirely okay.”

“What?”

“Master Lv, have you heard of the Heart-Reversing Poison?”