CH 60

He YunTing froze after hearing these words.

The hands that were gently wrapped around Lin Han’s body moved, and he first couldn’t help but reach out and wipe the wet marks at the corners of Lin Han’s eyes, letting out a low sigh in his heart, and looking down at him.

Lin Han pushed him a little bit, obviously with no force, but He YunTing felt like he had made a big mistake and felt an uncontrollable feeling of guilt. His original intention was clearly not to hurt him, but he never thought he would end up shedding tears for him.

He YunTing only cared about looking at him, deliberately not paying attention to the clock on the wall, as if he and Lin Han were still in the desolate border area. Time at this moment was a superfluous thing, and he squandered it freely, without remorse.

For a moment, he almost wanted to take off those heavy things on his shoulders and just let time stay here, without those complicated struggles, without sacrifices, without conspiracies. He could just be He YunTing, someone who could easily fall in love, and then easily say what he wanted.

This way Lin Han wouldn’t be sad, nor would he shed tears.

Or maybe Lin Han really had the ability to read minds, so the ending wouldn’t be the same. But He YunTing would never make these assumptions, he would make the most suitable decision based on the moment.

So when no one else could see it, He YunTing had something in mind that he didn’t want to talk about. Like kissing Lin Han’s hand while he was sleeping in the border area — He YunTing looked down at the young man close at hand, and that secret thought came up again.

Because of the wetness of tears, Lin Han’s long and distinct eyelashes were now muddled into a few clusters, softly pressing against his eyelids, looking not a bit aggressive, but only heartbreaking. He YunTing was getting closer little by little, and then leaned down very gently.

Once, just once.

His lips pressed against Lin Han’s lower eyelid, feeling a little of the liquid that had become cold.

He YunTing’s movements were careful, perhaps now that he was so close he might catch a cold himself, but he couldn’t care less about that and only thought about how to kiss away the tears at the corners of the other’s eyes. Similarly how he had done in the border area.

At that time, Lin Han was as soft as he was now, and his cheeks were as red as they were now, making him want to mark him.

He YunTing then complied and bit him on the back of the neck, but eventually let him fall away because of poor control of the force and because of some change in his body.

That was when he learned about his own lust, about how he wanted to lick up even Lin Han blood and not share it with anyone. Now He YunTing stretched out the tip of his tongue, very lightly against the upper lip, tasting a bit of the salty but sweet taste that he had just kissed.

He was now in a calm mood, without even a bit of lust. But he still longed for everything of Lin Han’s, for all of him to be his own, his smile and his tenderness. He YunTing’s mind became clear again at this moment. His heart began to flutter, becoming excited by the knowledge of the craving, and uneasy by the fear of harm.

Unfortunately, he didn’t get to kiss for long, and was soon startled by Lin Han’s slight movement, his lips leaving his cheek. Probably because of the fever, Lin Han seemed to be unsettled in his sleep, moving uncomfortably, frowning, subconsciously trying to find a warmer place — and finally his head sank, burying himself deeper and deeper into He YunTing’s chest.

He YunTing remained motionless for a minute, not knowing whether he was afraid of waking up Lin Han or worried about his actions being discovered.

Only after confirming that the other was still in sleep, He YunTing dared to move a little and put the jacket back on Lin Han. He was also eager to rest, in such a rare position.

He YunTing was almost asleep with Lin Han in his arms, when he suddenly felt a not-so-subtle tingle in his hand. He opened his eyes and found a small black blob shrinking into his right hand and biting him with an open mouth.

The Kudzuar Race, in order to protect themselves, had a bite that was actually comparable to some larger creatures. If the bite was hard, they could even bite off a small piece of flesh. Grr was biting now, but obviously not with full force, as if he knew Lin Han didn’t hate He YunTing, but was unwilling to give up this action due to his own hostility.

The little guy’s sharp teeth grinded He YunTing’s skin, but this little pain was too insignificant for him who had been in battle for a long time. He YunTing even let it bite for a little longer without expression before raising his hand to shake it to the ground. This action obviously made Grr angry again, and it let out a “squeak” with anger, trying to re-bump into He YunTing.

But He YunTing was worried about disturbing Lin Han and didn’t dare to fight with this little thing on the bed.

He first reached out and touched Lin Han’s forehead, and the earlier hot temperature dropped a bit before he felt a bit more at ease. He carefully protected him under the covers before he got up and stared at Grr.

Grr had watched He YunTing’s face countless times on the news these days, and had gotten a bit bolder, daring to look straight at him for two minutes without rolling over. Just when he was about to blow up his fur and show off his ‘viciousness’ with the intention of making He YunTing feel scared and thus retreat, he heard a compromising apology from the other.

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry,” He YunTing’s voice was low, without much of a rise or fall, but he was sincerely apologizing to the little guy, “for what happened in the border area before.”

I shouldn’t have involved you. He YunTing didn’t say this sentence.

The little one’s reaction was half a beat slower, as it still maintained hostility towards He YunTing, with a pair of small eyes trying to glare, showing its anger.

“But… Thank you for staying with him.” Even if He YunTing was slow, he knew that Grr was angry with him because of Lin Han. Maybe it was the mark, maybe it was the hug, maybe it was the kiss.

Despite the misunderstanding, this little one was truly following Lin Han. It was willing to return with them from so far away and leave its familiar home and friends for the sake of this human, and from this aspect, He YunTing still retained a trace of gratitude for it.

At least it wouldn’t be too lonely when he couldn’t be with Lin Han.

He YunTing wanted to reach out like Lin Han and gently touch Grr’s little head. Unfortunately, it didn’t work out, as the other puffed and dodged, rolling away from He YunTing’s hand and pulling away a little.

He YunTing, “…”

After a while, Grr seemed to finally understand that the human in front of it seemed to be apologizing to it. But it was a principled one, so it decided that it couldn’t just easily lose its frame, or shake its buttocks at He YunTing.

The other didn’t care, looked at Lin Han, and then looked at it.

It wasn’t until after another moment that Grr finally felt he’d had enough of his rack and turned around again, intending to accept this human’s gesture of affection, when he heard He YunTing open his mouth again, as if explaining something, “I have no desire to hurt Lin Han, never.”

To an outsider, it seemed almost an impossible thing to happen that the Imperial General, who was always on top, would apologize to a small creature from a different planet.

But He YunTing did do that, and said more than one thing, “Maybe I made you misunderstand, I’m sorry.”

Grr understood with hindsight what He YunTing was talking about, and instead became a little embarrassed.

It decided to be generous.

The way to show generosity was to show closeness to humans — so it intended to condescend to rub up against He YunTing as well. Just as it gathered up its short limbs and rolled next to He YunTing, it heard his last words, “Because I love him.”

Lin Han finally got a full night’s sleep.

He didn’t even dream, and by the time he woke up, it was dawn. Grr was asleep on his hand, and the man who had waited downstairs last night was nowhere to be found. He hadn’t slept this well in a long time, his fever subsided, and his body, though still a little heavy, had a sense of relief after a serious illness.

And soon, he slowly began to recall the events of the previous night. After spending a short time recalling, Lin Han’s mind was empty for a moment, and the next moment his face turned red.

What had he done?

He YunTing politely said he wanted to take him to the hospital, but he waited for a long time, grabbed him with red eyes, begging him to stay with him. Lin Han blinked, all the blood rushed to his head. He just sat up from the bed, but then covered his face with the blanket again, burying himself in it.

Did he say anything else?

From the grab, Lin Han was a little groggy, maybe even spoke some nonsense, maybe even… 

He covered his face with his hands to calm down.

And soon, Lin Han smelled an aroma of food. He dragged his legs, which were still a little weak and walked to the living room, where he was surprised to find an ordinary-looking breakfast plate sitting on top of the table. It was a pasta dish. Lin Han observed it and found that it wasn’t delivered to his door through the internet system, but had just been prepared and was even still a little warm.

He froze for a moment and walked curiously toward the kitchen.

The kitchen wasn’t completely clean, like He YunTing had urgent business halfway through, and left in a hurry without having time to deal with the rest. Lin Han looked down and unexpectedly found a lot of dumped noodles and failed ingredients in the trash.

He YunTing made it several times before he could barely produce the dish in the living room. Just by looking at the barely cleaned up table in front of him, the scattered vegetables and various dishes, Lin Han could almost imagine the man’s rare frazzled appearance.

He might not know how to cook the noodles, and might be at a loss as to what to do with the bubbling pot, blowing off the foam, and tasting it several times because he didn’t know whether it was cooked or not.

Lu AnHe had told him before that He YunTing’s life was extremely boring and that he would not be able to cook for himself if he didn’t have to.

Lin Han didn’t know why He YunTing didn’t just buy ready-made food and chose to do it himself, but his mood inexplicably got better. The images he was ashamed to remember before suddenly became less embarrassing.

Even though he still didn’t want to eat, Lin Han still managed to eat a few bites until there was a knock on his door and his colleague Shen XiuNan came to visit him.

Shen XiuNan was lively and talkative, and while entering the door, he explained the reason for his visit, “Lin Han, I’m here to deliver some research materials to you. By the way, the hospital asked me to tell you to rest well at home, and it’s not too late to go back to work when you get well. You can also send a video message if you have any problems—”

Lin Han smiled at him and took the papers he handed over. He had not worn gloves for a long time, so Shen XiuNan said with some surprise, “Your cleanliness issue is better?”

The gloves were entirely to avoid unintentional contact and to read the mind without the other party knowing either, but now because of the absence of this ability and being at home, those spare gloves were naturally useless.

Lin Han nodded, “Hmm.”

Shen Xiu Nan didn’t stay long, and after confirming that Lin Han was feeling better, he planned to go back, and when he reached the foyer, he handed Lin Han the documents he came to deliver. Lin Han took it in his hand and touched Shen XiuNan’s little finger when he took it back.

Originally, this was perfectly normal, and Lin Han didn’t even care about it at first, but at this moment, he heard Shen XiuNan’s plan for work.

Lin Han’s finger stiffened for a moment.

Shen XiuNan didn’t know what Lin Han was thinking and asked with concern, “What’s wrong?”

Lin Han quickly responded, “Nothing.”

Shen Xiu Nan casually chatted with him for a couple of minutes and then left. The other was not someone who could hide secrets, so he said his work plan in passing, which was roughly the same as what Lin Han heard when he touched his finger just now. Maybe it was because his body had really gotten a lot better, or maybe his mood had brightened with the fever receding and He YunTing’s not-so-perfect breakfast.

But whatever the case—

His mind-reading skills had returned.

The author has something to say: 

It’s coming, it’s coming, it’s really coming! I promise! It’s the episode I super wanted to write!