CH 42

“Eh?” Jiang Qingyue stopped in his tracks, his whole body stiffening. “Am I sleeping here?”

Ren Shuhan: “Any objections?”

Of course, he had no objections because Ren Shuhan supported himself with his arms and moved forward, getting closer to him.

Jiang Qingyue’s cheeks quickly turned red: “I,I’m already an adult, isn’t it a little inappropriate?”

Why was he blushing? Ren Shuhan keenly sensed something.

It had been many years since Jiang Qingyue had slept in the same bed with his third uncle, probably about ten years…

“The last time we slept together was twelve years ago, right?” Ren Shuhan said.

“You remember it so clearly,” Jiang Qingyue was pleasantly surprised, his voice soft and respectful, revealing a different kind of cuteness that Ren Shuhan experienced.

“At that time, my leg was still fine.”

Jiang Qingyue’s mood suddenly turned low, his voice very soft, “It’ll be fine in the future.”

He just said that, but from what the uncles in the Lu family had told him, Ren Shuhan’s legs would never recover.

Ren Shuhan was the illegitimate child of the Lu family, originally raised outside, only brought back to the Lu family after his mother passed away. Since childhood, he had not been favored by the family and even kept his mother’s surname. Every time the Lu and Jiang families gathered, the other uncles and older brothers had their own things to discuss and play, while Ren Shuhan was sent to take care of the children, so he was quite familiar with them.

Later, Ren Shuhan endured silently until he turned eighteen, when he suddenly took over many affairs inside and outside the family, and people realized that he had become influential at such a young age.

This experience seemed too legendary to Ren Shuhan, but to Jiang Qingyue, it was just admirable.

Unfortunately, when he was twenty-three, Ren Shuhan had an accident and injured his waist. He lost feeling in his lower body and had been in a wheelchair for seven years.

That accident wouldn’t have happened to him if he hadn’t tried to save Jiang Qingyue…

It happened when he was at the age when he should have been thriving, and Jiang Qingyue was just eighteen at the time. After miraculously surviving, he started dating Shi Xi and had been in a tumultuous relationship until they broke up now at twenty-five. Meanwhile, Ren Shuhan was thirty years old now, still needing crutches to move.

Thinking about it, Jiang Qingyue’s nose became sour.

For some reason, Ren Shuhan had been strict with him, but it was for his own good. He had been patient, teaching him many things, and caring for him all these years, even in the smallest matters. He even asked for his opinion when he broke up with his ex-boyfriend, but he had been selfish and only enjoyed his youth in recent years, never turning back to show filial piety to him.

“Uncle, let me massage your legs.”

Jiang Qingyue sat down, gently touching his legs with concern.

Ren Shuhan: That’s fine.

Then he realized he couldn’t feel anything at all.

“Forget it,” Ren Shuhan said, “You must be tired too.”

“It’s alright, I have a nearby press conference to attend tomorrow, and I was planning to come here anyway. I’m not tired,”

Jiang Qingyue said softly, lifting the blanket and was shocked to find that his uncle’s legs were straight and muscular even through his sleeping pants. He didn’t look like a disabled person at all.

Ren Shuhan was also surprised as he saw his own body under the blanket.

The system said, “The treatment has already been completed when you entered the book, but because the protagonist’s halo has not been completely suppressed, a sudden recovery may expose a loophole and trigger a backlash from the halo. It is recommended that the host wait for the background update to be completed, and it may take three years before you can stand up again.”

Ren Shuhan: “…”

You seriously want to update for three years this time?

System: “Three years is the timeline of the original work, but the expected time for this update is half a month. Gradually weakening the protagonist’s halo together with other supporting characters may shorten the recovery time. The host can check it in the background. The current estimated time is 2.8 years.”

Ah, is it because you helped Qingyue suppress it?

Ren Shuhan: How am I supposed to handle this? I don’t want other people to get close to me like this.

System: “After the first installation, you can extend the blocking radius to 5 meters, and the estimated time for the update to be completed is one day.”

Ren Shuhan: Can you give back my sensation first?

System: “It is not recommended, as it may lead to uncontrolled movements.”

Ren Shuhan: I can pretend.

System: “No, you can’t.”

Ren Shuhan glanced at the obedient Jiang Qingyue massaging his legs: Hmm… I really can’t.

After all, as a man, his lower half was sensitive, and from this angle, who wouldn’t react?

“Don’t massage anymore,” Ren Shuhan said, “help me up, I want to take a bath.”

Originally, Ren Shuhan could stand up by himself; his upper body strength was even stronger than in the previous world. But why not take advantage of a good opportunity? No, it was that he needed to stay close to Qingyue for a moment, he had no choice.

Jiang Qingyue supported him closely, and his face turned even redder.

“When we were kids, I used to bathe you often, right?” Ren Shuhan teased him, “You’ve grown up, and I’ve gotten old. Can’t you help me for once?”

Not to mention that Jiang Qingyue was bound with a high favorability memory package towards Ren Shuhan, and even in this book, they had a deep emotional foundation before the protagonist’s halo took effect.

Ren Shuhan was sure that if there were no plot obstacles, Jiang Qingyue would have probably confessed his feelings a long time ago.

When he returned to the Lu family back then, he was only thirteen years old, and Jiang Qingyue was eight. As soon as they met, Jiang Qingyue hugged his thighs and wanted to play with him.

The Lu family has always been strict about generations and etiquettes, but they ridiculed him: “Children should play with children. You go and entertain little Qingyue. We have other matters to discuss.”

Although Ren Shuhan could endure their remarks, he was too lazy to listen to them. He would outwardly agree, but secretly do his own thing. However, when it came to coaxing children, he was very serious about it, simply because little Jiang Qingyue was too adorable.

Initially, Jiang Qingyue called him “brother,” and even when adults corrected him, he didn’t listen because he had his own judgment. At such a young age and looking so handsome, he must be a little brother, not an uncle. Ren Shuhan sternly made him change it twice before he listened.

“Little uncle, play this with me,” “Little uncle, I want to eat that.” Ren Shuhan was almost completely obedient, always carrying him around.

But when Jiang Qingyue grew a bit older, Ren Shuhan no longer allowed him to play and started tutoring him.

In theory, Jiang Qingyue liked to study and had good grades, but since the protagonist in this world was a model, the setting of this host was focused on fashion and clothing, so his academic performance couldn’t be good. The only thing he could learn instead was drawing.

In Ren Shuhan’s view, this was a useless skill because back then he couldn’t control his own destiny, and the Jiang family was gradually declining. Ren Shuhan disagreed with him learning to be a designer; he only wanted him to study well in the cultural subjects and major in business in the future, so that the Jiang family could stand strong. This made a severe impression on Jiang Qingyue.

Later, when little Jiang Qingyue didn’t listen and insisted on pursuing a designing career, Ren Shuhan found himself unable to control him and lacked the authority to do so. As a result, they drifted apart.

“Of course. But you’re not old at all. You’re only a couple of years older than me,” Jiang Qingyue complained, “Don’t say that!”

Ren Shuhan gazed at his profile: “It’s been a long time since you’ve used this tone with me.”

Jiang Qingyue also seemed taken aback.

Both of them had just loaded their memories that night, and they were feeling nostalgic about the past years.

“It’s my fault,” Jiang Qingyue said with guilt.

“It’s not your fault,” Although it sounded a bit foolish, Ren Shuhan still wanted to say it, “It’s this world’s fault! You’ve been busy with work, and today I just wanted to find a chance to see you and talk to you.”

Thinking about work, Jiang Qingyue felt a bit upset.

“These years, my work and life have been a mess,” he felt even more ashamed, “I should have listened to you back then and studied business. I don’t have any talent in design, and I squandered the family’s assets…”

“No, you have talent, it’s just the timing that was off,” Ren Shuhan said, “I’ll help you in the future, don’t worry about these things.”

Jiang Qingyue couldn’t even lift his head, feeling incredibly guilty. He didn’t know what he was thinking back then and was even wary of asking Ren Shuhan for help, despite how good he had been to him.

The two of them entered the bathroom, and Jiang Qingyue started running the water while they chatted about work. Afterward, he helped Ren Shuhan sit by the bathtub, ready to leave, but was stopped.

“Aren’t you supposed to help me?” Ren Shuhan said.

Jiang Qingyue covered his face: “Uncle Han, I’m not straight.”

You know it!

“So what?” Ren Shuhan said, “It’s not that convenient for me to move. What if I fall if you leave me alone here?”

In fact, Ren Shuhan had been washing himself all these years. After all, thirty years of being single doesn’t come without some strength.

But Jiang Qingyue fell for it, feeling concerned and sat down to help him take off his clothes, wipe his back, and wash his hair. As he was about to leave, Ren Shuhan said, “It’s getting late, and I want to soak for a while before sleeping. You go ahead and shower.”

There was a shower nearby, but having Jiang Qingyue wash in front of him…

“Are you afraid I’ll sneak a peek at you?” Ren Shuhan said, “I’ll cover my eyes.”

He used a warm wet towel to cover his eyes, leaned against the edge of the bathtub, and closed his eyes to rest.

“Hurry up, I need to rest quietly with the lights off, and if you take any longer, it’ll affect my sleep.”

Jiang Qingyue had no choice but to undress beside him and start showering.

The sound of clothes falling on the floor and the sound of water running made Ren Shuhan’s mind wander, and he felt a sense of indescribable sourness. Suddenly, he asked, “Qingyue, all these years, you haven’t been very careful, have you?”

The statement was ambiguous, but Jiang Qingyue understood it.

He turned off the showerhead and took a moment before whispering, “I haven’t been careless, but if I’m with you, then it doesn’t matter.”

“It doesn’t matter?” Ren Shuhan suddenly felt a bit unhappy, “I’m also gay, and it doesn’t matter?”

Jiang Qingyue dried his hair and softly replied, “Hmm.”

Ren Shuhan’s heart skipped a beat and he tried, “Can I take a look at you?”

Jiang Qingyue remained silent for a while, and after a long pause, he said, “Yes.”

He couldn’t explain why he had pursued Shi Xi before. During their seven-year relationship, he had never felt any impulses towards Shi Xi. It was only today that he realized he had liked his little uncle for a long time.

Since the year he turned eighteen and began dating Shi Xi, this feeling had been suppressed. Now, it was finally coming back, so familiar that it made him want to cry.

That year, during his own fashion show, he had originally intended to confess to Ren Shuhan. However, he lost control and walked towards Shi Xi, who he had just met, telling him that he had fallen for him at first sight. Meanwhile, Ren Shuhan, who had recently been injured, was sitting in his wheelchair not far away, watching him confess to someone else.

There we have more world building! Looks like their relationship is going to take off soon… Or as long as Jiang Qingyue stays close to Ren Shuhan I guess~

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