He went to the table and looked at Su Fuliu, still thinking to himself that he had never slept so soundly before, and he didn't even know that Su Fuliu had gotten out of his arms.
He knew that sleeping with Su Fuliu in his arms last night would be the first time he could sleep soundly.
"Jing'er, it's getting late, you should get up." With that, Xiao Shixun bent down and picked up Su Fuliu.
Even through her clothes, he could feel the heat emanating from Su Fuliu. He looked down at Su Fuliu's face and saw that her fair face was as red as an apple.
"Jing'er?!" Xiao Shixun carried Su Fuliu to the bed, then reached out and touched Su Fuliu's forehead. It was so hot that he recoiled. "So hot..."
As soon as he finished speaking, Su Fuliu began to cough violently: "Cough, cough, cough..."
Xiao Shixun immediately turned around and went to call someone to fetch a doctor.
Upon hearing that a doctor needed to be called, Qin Shi had already moved his feet, but he clenched his fists and endured it, waiting for Yuan Sichen beside him to respond and leave.
If he shows too much concern, it will be easily noticed.
After Yuan Sichen went to fetch the doctor, Qin Shi followed Xiao Shixun into the room, standing aside seemingly unintentionally to await orders, but his gaze was fixed on Su Fuliu.
He was standing right behind Xiao Shixun, so Xiao Shixun couldn't see his eyes, but he could see Su Fuliu directly.
He watched as the person he cherished so dearly lay in bed, coughing intermittently in pain, and his heart ached as if it had been ripped out and crushed.
He thought that Xiao Shixun was so devoted to Su Fuliu that he would at least take good care of her. But what happened? In this weather, he made Su Fuliu go barefoot and didn't give her shoes and socks. He was afraid that she would catch a cold because of this.
Delirious with fever, Su Fuliu coughed and cried, repeatedly saying, "Tinglang... cough cough, Tinglang... I feel unwell, cough, I feel unwell, cough cough cough..."
Chapter 538 Tinglang, save me, I'm so scared
Qin Shi's breath hitched. He gritted his teeth, suppressing the urge to rush over and hug his precious baby.
He swallowed hard, trying to steady his breathing so as not to give himself away.
"Waaah... Tinglang, cough cough cough, I want to go home... cough, Tinglang, where are you? Waaah, I feel terrible, don't you want me anymore? Tinglang, waaah... cough, cough cough..."
Su Fuliu cried, his hands flailing anxiously, trying to grab onto his Tinglang.
Xiao Shixun frowned and reached out to grasp Su Fuliu's hands: "Jing'er, don't cry, the doctor is coming soon."
Su Fuliu struggled to pull her hands back: "No, don't touch me, you're not Tinglang, you're not... cough cough, cough, Tinglang, Tinglang, save me... I'm so scared..."
Even though she wasn't fully conscious, and even though she hadn't seen the person in front of her, Su Fuliu could still sense that these hands weren't Feng Muting's hands.
Xiao Shixun's gaze grew increasingly somber. He looked at Su Fuliu, who was crying and shouting for Feng Muting, and unconsciously tightened his grip on Su Fuliu's hand, saying, "What 'Tinglang'? You're calling him so intimately. You'll never see him again, so don't think about it."
"It hurts, let go... Waaah, cough cough, Tinglang... I want Tinglang... Tinglang, where are you? I'm scared... I'm so scared..." Su Fuliu's tears kept overflowing from the corners of her eyes.
If it were his beloved Tinglang, he would have come over and gently comforted him, wiping away his tears.
But Xiao Shixun had a sullen face and held his hand tightly.
Qin Shi stood aside, and it must have taken immense patience for him to remain calm on the surface, while in reality, a raging storm was brewing inside.
Just when he was about to lose his temper and go crazy, Yuan Sichen returned with a doctor.
The doctor came to the bedside, wanting to take Su Fuliu's pulse, but saw that Su Fuliu's hand was being held tightly by Xiao Shixun. He was taken aback and then said weakly, "Young master, if you don't let go, I can't take your pulse."
Xiao Shixun gave the doctor a cold look, and the doctor was so frightened by his gloomy face that he swallowed hard.
Xiao Shixun then released Su Fuliu's hand, and the doctor tremblingly reached out to take Su Fuliu's pulse.
"Oh dear, this young master has a very high fever! This won't do. If the fever continues like this, he'll become mentally impaired. He needs a warm bath, and then I'll prescribe some fever-reducing medicine. Only by doing both can we control it. Hurry, hurry, we can't delay any longer!" the doctor said anxiously.
Upon hearing this, Xiao Shixun instructed Qin Shi to quickly find the waiter to prepare warm water.
Then Yuan Sichen was asked to go with the doctor to get the medicine and prepare it.
Qin Shi was much faster than the waiter. The waiter struggled to carry even one bucket of water, and before he could even reach the tub to pour it out, Qin Shi had already poured in two buckets and then went to fetch more.
Xiao Shixun lifted the quilt and reached for Su Fuliu's waist, intending to take off his clothes.
Su Fuliu clung tightly to his belt, refusing to let Xiao Shixun touch him. In his dazed state, he still dodged Xiao Shixun like a frightened cat.
"Don't touch me, you can't, cough cough cough..."
Seeing his resistance, Xiao Shixun's eyes darkened further: "I'm not touching you, I'm going to take off your clothes and make you take a bath!"
As he spoke, he reached out his hand again.
But Su Fuliu kept resisting, clutching his clothes tightly and shrinking into the corner of the bed. He cried out in fear, "No, don't touch me! Go away! Tinglang, Tinglang, save me! Waaah..."
Chapter 539 Lang San
"Xiao Shijing!" Xiao Shixun roared. Su Fuliu's resistance and constant calling him "Tinglang" infuriated him.
Then, he simply stopped untying Su Fuliu's belt and went straight over to tear Su Fuliu's clothes to shreds.
Terrified, Su Fuliu cried out, "No, no... Ah—Waaah, no—cough, cough cough..."
With a violent cough, Su Fuliu coughed up a mouthful of blood, which landed on the bed.
Xiao Shixun was taken aback, and reduced the force in his hand by a third.
Taking advantage of the situation, Su Fuliu grabbed the blanket and wrapped it around herself, shivering and shrinking into the corner of the bed.
He felt as if his whole body was being roasted on fire, his head was throbbing, he was disoriented, and his vision was blurry.
But he instinctively protected himself, preventing Xiao Shixun from getting close.
He didn't bother wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth or the tears streaming down his face; he just gripped the blanket tightly.
Qin Shi's eyes reddened. He gripped the buckets tightly, veins bulging on the back of his hands. He wished he could smash Xiao Shixun's head open with the two buckets in his hands.
Fortunately, Xiao Shixun's attention was focused on Su Fuliu; otherwise, Qin Shi's actions would have definitely given him away.
Yuan Sichen had already prepared the medicine and started brewing it, but it wasn't ready yet, so he thought he'd come back first to see if there was anything else he could help with.
When he returned, he found that Xiao Shixun hadn't even managed to coax Su Fuliu, who was still in bed, stubbornly refusing to comply.
But what he didn't know was that Xiao Shixun wasn't coaxing at all; that's not how you coax someone.
He noticed Qin Shi standing there, looking a bit off, and his eyes flickered slightly.
It was the waiter who brought Qin Shi back to his senses: "Young master, the water is ready, I will take my leave now."
Qin Shi quickly suppressed his emotions, which were about to explode, and put the bucket of water in his hand aside.
Yuan Sichen strode over and said to Xiao Shixun, "Master, how about I try to appease...Young Master Xiao?"
Xiao Shixun turned to look at him, his eyes filled with a terrifying intensity that seemed to want to devour him alive.
Yuan Sichen trembled, quickly lowered his head, and dared not utter a sound.
Then Xiao Shixun said, "You give it a try."
“Yes.” Yuan Sichen paused, then walked to the bedside.
Xiao Shixun stood aside with a cold face.
Looking at Su Fuliu's terrified and flustered face, Yuan Sichen sighed inwardly and said softly, "Young Master Xiao, you are sick now. You need to take off your clothes and take a bath so that your body temperature can be lowered and you will feel better."
Su Fuliu ignored him and continued to cower there, trembling.
Yuan Sichen thought for a moment and then said, "If Xiao Shilang knew that Young Master Xiao was like this, he would definitely be very upset. He doesn't want to see Young Master Xiao sick. Does Young Master Xiao want Xiao Shilang to worry?"
“Shilang…” Su Fuliu murmured, somewhat moved.
Seeing that his emotions had calmed down, Yuan Sichen gently climbed onto the bed and slowly approached him.
"Young Master Xiao, Xiao Shilang instructed me to take good care of you. You are sick now and need to take a bath. Shall I carry you there?"
Su Fuliu slowly raised his eyes. His vision was blurry, and he couldn't make out Yuan Sichen's appearance, but he knew who he was: "Yuan Sichen..."
“It’s me.” Yuan Sichen reached out and gently touched Su Fuliu. “I promised Lang San that I would take good care of his brother, so, Young Master Xiao, will you be a good boy and listen to me? I’ll carry you to the bath.”
Chapter 540 Called Xun Lang
Su Fuliu did not dodge, but let Yuan Sichen wrap him in the quilt and pick him up together.
Xiao Shixun's face darkened. Su Fuliu would rather let Yuan Sichen carry him than let him touch him.
Yuan Sichen carried Su Fuliu to the bathtub, and Qin Shi quickly came over and pulled the blanket off Su Fuliu.
He saw that Su Fuliu's body was flushed red from the fever.
Yuan Sichen quickly put Su Fuliu into a bathtub filled with warm water to soak in, while Qin Shi glanced at her and then quickly turned around and walked to the side, so that Su Fuliu would not notice him.
Yuan Sichen cupped his hands towards Xiao Shixun and said, "Master, it's done..."
Xiao Shixun stared at him for a moment and said coldly, "What a fine 'Lang San'! You're better at coaxing people than I am. But why didn't I see you manage to win over Lang San back then? Now you've let him fall into someone else's arms."
Yuan Sichen lowered his eyes and cupped his hands, saying, "Master is joking. I only wanted to help you coax Young Master Xiao to take a bath. I have not wavered in my loyalty to you."
Xiao Shixun coldly looked at him: "Is that so? That's good. You and Xiao Shilang grew up together and were comrades-in-arms. You certainly wouldn't forget that bond so easily. It's a pity about what happened back then, plus now that he sees you serving by my side, he will never forgive you in this lifetime. Heh, heh heh, so don't be delusional and think he'll call you 'Brother Yuan' again..."
Yuan Sichen replied calmly, "Your Majesty is overthinking it. Although I have been friends with Xiao Shilang for many years and have always regarded him as a younger brother, and he has regarded me as an older brother, I have severed all ties with him. Now I serve Your Majesty and will not have any disloyal intentions."
"You'd better not have any ulterior motives, otherwise, heh..." Xiao Shixun's cold laugh was full of threat.
"Yes, I'll go check if the medicine is ready." Yuan Sichen bowed and then turned to leave.
Xiao Shixun's threatening words were not only meant for Yuan Sichen, but also for Qin Shi.
He looked at Qin Shi, about to speak, when Qin Shi cupped his hands and said, "Master, I will go outside and wait."
After saying that, Qin Shi turned and left decisively, showing no sign of lingering.
Only in this way can we prevent Xiao Shixun from becoming suspicious.
Xiao Shixun lowered his gaze slightly and after a long while went to the bathtub.
At this moment, Su Fuliu leaned limply against the bathtub, the warm water reaching her chest, revealing a very noticeable scar on her shoulder blade.
His eyes were closed, his face flushed, and he was still murmuring softly, "Tinglang..."
Upon hearing those two words, Xiao Shixun felt a surge of anger. He leaned over, grabbed Su Fuliu by the back of the neck, and pulled him in front of him: "Don't say those two words again, I don't want to hear them!"
Su Fuliu, who had calmed down, was filled with fear again because of Xiao Shixun's sudden anger. He reached out to try to pry Xiao Shixun's hand off the back of his neck.
But he couldn't even muster any strength with his hands behind his back, so how could he possibly pry Xiao Shixun's hands open? Water splashed everywhere as he struggled.
Xiao Shixun leaned close to his ear and said, "Call me Xunlang, and I'll let go, okay?"