Yi Shi rarely got to be a freeloader, lounging around at Yu Xue’s place, doing nothing. He woke up early in the morning, went out for a walk, and bought breakfast on the way. The shopkeeper saw his arm in a sling and gave him more soy milk than others.
Just as he got off the elevator, Yu Xue was standing at the door, draped in a light coat, not sure how long he’d been waiting.
“Don’t tell me you went for a morning run.”
“Just a walk,” Yi Shi knew better than that. Intense exercise could cause his fracture to shift and lead to secondary injuries. If recovery didn’t go well, it could cause long-term problems. Even though he really wanted to run a few kilometers to get warmed up, he forced himself to hold back.
“Injured people shouldn’t be wandering around. You’ve got a rare chance to relax, why not take a break? How long has it been since you last took any annual leave?”
Yi Shi thought for a moment, “Uh… I’ve never taken one.”
“You’re really dedicated. I at least apply for leave every couple of years,” Yu Xue smiled and pulled him inside. “Well, think of this time as catching up on all of it at once.”
That was just great. Now, the only time Yi Shi could leave the house was for an hour each day to change his bandages, and even that was spent sitting in the car. Plus, with Qi Wenyu assigned to cook, he was constantly making nutritious soups, and Yi Shi’s face had gotten rounder by the day from all the eating.
Standing in front of the mirror, Yi Shi touched his cheeks. His complexion had become more radiant, and without even stepping on a scale, he knew he’d gained a few pounds. He didn’t care much about the weight, but if he kept eating and sleeping like this without any chance to exercise, he’d be so out of shape that he’d be embarrassed if he couldn’t handle a criminal when the time came.
“Kid! Come out and drink your soup.”
Today, Qi Wenyu had made crucian carp tofu soup. He had gone to the market at 7 a.m. to buy fresh crucian carp, cleaned and prepared it himself, and simmered it for half an hour. The soup was milky white, fragrant, and garnished with fresh green onions—a feast for the eyes and nose.
Yi Shi walked out of the bathroom slowly and muttered in a low voice, “I have a name.”
Technically, Qi Wenyu was twelve years older than him, but the way he talked sounded like he was from a generation older. Especially when calling Yi Shi for meals or soup, he’d keep calling him “kid” as if he were addressing his own son.
Yi Shi had no choice but to “weakly” protest since he was on the receiving end of both free meals and care. But Qi Wenyu just pretended not to hear and went about his business, calling him whatever he wanted.
Qi Wenyu pointed at his watch, “Drink it quickly. I have to go to the bureau early today. I’ll be out by eight.”
“Then you should just go; don’t worry about me.” Yi Shi picked up the spoon and noticed there was fish in the bowl. He got up to get chopsticks, but Qi Wenyu stopped him. “No, no, no, just use the spoon. I’ve already removed the bones. Do you think I want to watch you? Yu Xue specifically told me before he left to watch you drink the soup and even take a picture!”
Yi Shi’s mouth twitched. These two didn’t have kids, but maybe they’d adopt one in the future. Were they using him to practice parenting?
Fortunately, Yu Xue had returned to Haijing yesterday. If he were still at home, Yi Shi would probably have ended up with two dads.
Qi Wenyu rushed him to eat the fish and drink the soup. Yi Shi slowly spooned it up, taking small bites. Once the photo was taken, he placed the phone on the table and quickly dashed into the room to change his clothes.
The phone screen was still lit. Yi Shi’s eyes glanced over, and the first thing he saw was Yu Xue’s contact name, saved as “Little Wife.” A piece of tofu went down the wrong pipe, and he started coughing hard.
Little Wife: [He looks pretty good, seems like he’s gained weight since I left. Make sure he finishes that whole pot of soup. Tomorrow, make him soybeans and pork trotters.]
“…” Yi Shi couldn’t help it. He picked up Qi Wenyu’s phone.
Wenyu: [That’s for boosting milk production.]
Little Wife: [You’ve been a forensic doctor for all these years for nothing? What’s going on in your head? Boosting milk is the only thing it does?]
Wenyu: [He can’t drink anymore. He’s about to burst.]
Little Wife: […]
Little Wife: [Qi Wenyu, your wings are growing, huh? Finding excuses to slack off, huh? Trying to save time to play games, huh?]
Little Wife: [Fine, if you’re so capable, don’t do anything. Wait till I get home, you know what’s coming. (smile)]
Yi Shi stared silently at the sinister yellow-bean smile. Qi Wenyu rushed out with his coat, anxiously searching for his phone. When he saw it in Yi Shi’s hand, he snatched it away. After seeing the chat, his face changed dramatically.
Yi Shi said innocently, “I really am about to burst.”
“! You little brat!” Qi Wenyu didn’t have time to argue. He quickly put on his shoes and called Yu Xue. As the call finally connected just before he walked out, the entire hallway echoed with his desperate cries, “Yu Xue, listen to me!”
Yi Shi quietly continued drinking his soup. He’d accidentally caused trouble for Qi Wenyu and had no way of contacting Yu Xue himself, so he figured, might as well let them spice up their relationship a bit.
That evening, Qi Wenyu returned and threw a new phone to Yi Shi. Yi Shi felt embarrassed to accept it, but Qi Wenyu waved it off. “Don’t be shy. Take it and use it, so you don’t get bored at home and keep messing with my relationship.”
“…Sorry.” Yi Shi scratched his cheek. “Did you two make up?”
Of course they did. Yu Xue hadn’t been mad in the first place. He just liked to say a few things. To outsiders, Yu Xue seemed gentle and magnanimous, the type to repay grievances with kindness. But around Qi Wenyu, it was like he became a completely different person, indulging in all sorts of playful tempers.
At this time of day, Yi Shi would usually be heading out to change his bandages, but today, with Qi Wenyu being so lazy, he had brought the medical kit right to the house. “Take off your clothes. I’ll help you change.”
“I want to go out to change.”
“What, don’t trust my skills?” Qi Wenyu rolled up his sleeves. “I can remove a bullet, changing bandages is child’s play. Hurry up, strip! I’ve got a guild mission at eight.”
Yi Shi weakly protested, “I want to go out…”
He was already getting stir-crazy from being cooped up, and that one outing to change bandages was his only chance to get some air. But as the saying goes, “Under someone else’s roof, you can’t call the shots.” Yi Shi sighed and resigned himself to unbuttoning his shirt.
Suddenly, the doorbell rang. Qi Wenyu went to open the door, and Yu Xue’s aunt stood there with her arms full of gifts, smiling warmly as she came for a visit.
“Just got back from Fiji, bringing you some local specialties,” Shen Ruirui said as she took off her sunglasses. “Where’s A-Xue?”
“On a business trip, left just yesterday.”
“Oh… and who is that on the sofa?”
The short-haired man, with his back to the door, turned around, revealing an astonishingly beautiful face. His shirt was unbuttoned down to his waist, his clothes half off, and his bare white shoulder was quite dazzling.
The atmosphere suddenly became mysteriously silent.
Qi Wenyu’s survival instincts kicked in. “Auntie! Let me explain! What you’re seeing is not what you think!”
“Are you out of your mind? A-Xue isn’t home, and you’re pulling this?! You think his family won’t come after you?!” Shen Ruirui’s finger trembled as she pointed, then looked at the man in the room again. He was indeed more refined and delicate than their own A-Xue, and younger too. No wonder men all prefer the young and beautiful. How infuriating.
Qi Wenyu was utterly miserable, feeling like he was being splashed with a bucket of dog blood. He was even more wronged than Dou E. There was no escaping this. Even if he took Yi Shi out for a checkup and bumped into Shen Ruirui, she’d think they were heading to a hotel.
“Miss Shen, Dr. Qi and I aren’t in that kind of relationship,” Yi Shi stood up at the right moment, his fingers on his buttons, and asked Qi Wenyu, “Do I still need to take off my clothes?”
“… You’re not just naturally innocent; you’re sharp too, aren’t you?”
Qi Wenyu looked up at the ceiling, feeling like he must have committed terrible sins in a past life to be dealing with this now.
—
“So, he’s your colleague? Recuperating at your place?”
Yu Xue’s voice came from the speakerphone, “Yes, I left him there and told Wenyu to take good care of him.”
Shen Ruirui scrutinized the slender young man across from her. “But when I walked in, he was undressing.”
Yu Xue paused, and his voice dropped several degrees. “Qi Wenyu, you were going to help him change his bandages? Didn’t you have something at eight?”
Qi Wenyu folded his hands in repentance. He was wrong, really wrong. If he could turn back time, he would never have made that decision. He swore it on his life.
After the three-way conversation ended and the misunderstanding was cleared up, Shen Ruirui finally relaxed, and her impression of Yi Shi instantly improved. Especially after witnessing the whole bandaging process—those wounds under the gauze were horrifying. Despite the obvious pain, the young man didn’t make a sound. He was elegant but not frail, delicate yet not weak—a real man. Not like those TV show idols who cry over a paper cut and by the time they reach the hospital, the cut has already healed.
A-Xue had mentioned a capable and attractive partner before. It must be him, right?
Shen Ruirui propped her chin in her hand, smiling sweetly, “What’s your name, young man?”
“Yi Shi.”
She was startled for a moment. The name quickly clicked in her mind, and she exclaimed, “You’re the boy that Captain Sheng adopted?! You’ve grown up so much! We met before, you know, back in the office; I even gave you candy.”
Yi Shi awkwardly buttoned his shirt. “Uh… I don’t remember.”
Shen Ruirui leaned closer to take a good look. The more she looked, the more convinced she was. Yes, this was definitely him. His little face had grown into this.
“Qi Wenyu, come here!”
Hearing his aunt’s call, the newly pardoned Qi Wenyu didn’t dare to delay. He rushed out of the bathroom, drying his hands on his shirt. “What is it?”
Shen Ruirui grabbed him by the arm, pointing at Yi Shi. “Do you remember? Twenty years ago, when you came to Nanyi for a case, Captain Sheng had a little tag-along—that was him!”
“How would I know? I spent all my time in the autopsy room with my mentor. I wasn’t part of the cross-provincial case.”
“Heh, sure you weren’t. You didn’t come to Nanyi, you didn’t flirt with A-Xue, you’re really something, aren’t you? Acting so high and mighty.”
“I honestly didn’t mean anything at the time!” Qi Wenyu got anxious. “I just genuinely admired A-Xue’s talents and wanted to be friends with him.”
“Yeah, right! You were how old back then? What were you doing trying to befriend a middle schooler? You were clearly up to no good!” Shen Ruirui sighed. “And it’s partly my fault for always having A-Xue bring you meals, unintentionally inviting the wolf in. My poor outstanding nephew got turned! I feel so sorry for my sister and brother-in-law!”
“…”
Qi Wenyu was about to kneel down. Auntie, what more do you want from me? Are you really trying to break up this happy family today?
Successfully making Qi Wenyu feel depressed, Shen Ruirui turned back to Yi Shi with a bright smile. “If I’m not mistaken, you’re almost thirty, right? Do you have a partner? Should Auntie introduce someone?”
“Thanks, but I already have someone,” Yi Shi cautiously responded. “Someone from Haijing, named Lin Heyu.”
“Lin Heyu? Which ‘He’ and which ‘Yu’?”
“The ‘He’ from ‘gully’ and ‘Yu’ from ‘give’.”
Shen Ruirui was puzzled at first, then her face paled with realization. Yi Shi’s shoulders immediately tensed. Had she remembered something? Was she about to have a memory flashback like Yuxue?
“Lin Heyu? That’s your partner?!” Shen Ruiru began beating her chest in frustration. “Another guy?!”
“…?”
“It’s true what they say—birds of a feather flock together. Gays just congregate, don’t they? In this day and age, all the good men are getting taken by each other.”
The slightly boiling blood in Yi Shi quickly cooled down, but he wasn’t ready to give up. He pressed on, “Auntie, do you remember who the captain of Haijing’s team was twenty years ago?”
“Haijing’s captain? You’re asking me?” Shen Ruiru smiled, her eyes curving. She couldn’t help but pat Yi Shi on the head. “Weren’t you the one who used to stick to him the most, following him everywhere, from Haijing to Nanyi, like a little shadow?”
She continued, “But when the original captain had to handle a case, they had to leave you with Captain Sheng’s girlfriend. A few days later, you went missing, and it had poor Miss Lin frantic. She cried rivers. My colleagues and I were out on a mission when Captain Sheng called us, asking us to check the train stations and road surveillance; everyone was running around like headless chickens.”
“And then?”
“Then… I don’t really remember. I think after a few days, they found you back in Haijing, and Captain Sheng and Miss Lin adopted you.” Shen Ruiru stretched, sighing. “Come to think of it, they first met on a bus. Captain Sheng helped Miss Lin deal with a pervert, and she later came to the station to deliver a banner. One thing led to another, and they got close. You never know—helping the public can sometimes lead to winning over a beauty. It made all the bachelors in the station green with envy; everyone started taking the bus to and from work, hoping to have a similar chance.”
Qi Wenyu snorted disdainfully. That was because they didn’t have the charm. Look at Haijing’s “gardener,” attracting people wherever he goes—no need to take the bus.
Shen Ruiru giggled, nodding in agreement. The former captain was indeed handsome, though his reputation wasn’t the best. Every precinct he’d been to had some romantic entanglement. Whoever planned to marry him would need to prepare a “table of exes” at the wedding.
The two of them continued laughing and chatting, while Yi Shi sat quietly, his head hung low, feeling downcast.
Most of the story fit together, even the details were vivid, but Lin Heyu’s presence was missing. Their memories had automatically filled in and smoothed over any gaps, making everything seem perfectly cohesive, even though it wasn’t quite right.
He, too, had gone from total oblivion to gradual clarity, but how much time did he have left? How much longer would he remember Lin Heyu?
