HL 12

Xu Nanxiao sat in Ying Yusheng’s car, drinking several sips of hot water from his thermos, but he still couldn’t calm down. His eyes darted about uneasily.

For a grown man of his height and build to be so frightened that his behavior had regressed almost to that of a child—clearly, something serious had happened.

Suddenly, Xu Nanxiao started choking. He coughed raggedly, spluttering water out of his mouth and nose.

“Are you okay? Take it slow.” Ying Yusheng didn’t show the slightest hint of disgust. He quickly pulled out several tissues from the side and reached over to wipe Xu Nanxiao’s face. But Xu Nanxiao struggled and pushed him away, taking the tissues himself to clean up the mess all over his face.

Only then did Xu Nanxiao calm down a little.

“What’s wrong? What happened?” Ying Yusheng said in a very soft, gentle voice, trying not to agitate him further.

Xu Nanxiao just shook his head grimly.

“Don’t worry, we’re in the car. It’s safe now.” Ying Yusheng leaned in a little closer, looking at him with worried eyes, and continued to coax him, “You suddenly looked so upset—I’m really concerned about you.”

But Xu Nanxiao’s expression remained cold and hard, and he said nothing.

Seeing that he wasn’t going to get anything out of him, Ying Yusheng sighed and turned to open the car door. “It’s okay. You can stay here and calm down by yourself for a while. I’ll go to the convenience store and buy another bottle of water.”

However, a force pulled him back.

He turned back in surprise and found Xu Nanxiao, head bowed, gripping his clothes tightly.

For some reason, Ying Yusheng thought of the black stray cat on P University’s campus. Normally aloof and ill-tempered, but there were also moments when it would curl its tail around your ankle.

He understood. He sat back down, smiling, and placed a hand on Xu Nanxiao’s shoulder. This time, Xu Nanxiao didn’t refuse.

“I’m not going anywhere. Don’t be afraid.”

“Who’s afraid,” Xu Nanxiao muttered in protest.

“Fine, let’s say I misspoke.” Ying Yusheng went along with him on every point. “But the air in the car is too stuffy. How about we go to my place and talk slowly, okay?”

Xu Nanxiao didn’t respond.

A long time passed—so long that Ying Yusheng thought Xu Nanxiao wouldn’t answer at all—before he gave a small nod.

This time, they didn’t go to Ying Yusheng’s riverside penthouse. Instead, they went to his new home—a standalone little townhouse not far from the P University campus.

The decor style was just like Ying Yusheng himself—a bit cold and minimalist. Everywhere were pale cream tones, and the furniture and ornaments were all quite refined.

“Moved in so soon?” Xu Nanxiao asked.

“If I really want to move, then it’s quick,” Ying Yusheng said casually. “But the house is too big. Living alone is a bit lonely.”

Hah, what a rich young master’s problem. Xu Nanxiao thought mockingly to himself.

“Are you calmer now?” Ying Yusheng, however, didn’t want to talk about the house. His expression turned unusually serious. “What exactly happened just now?”

Xu Nanxiao paused.

The hooded man’s prolonged harassment had pushed Xu Nanxiao to his breaking point. He urgently needed someone to talk to. But the people around him were all good-for-nothing fair-weather friends, and Lu Yingjie was too young. So no matter how he thought about it, Ying Yusheng was the best person to confide in.

Xu Nanxiao’s lips moved. Finally, he steeled himself and reluctantly told Ying Yusheng the whole story.

Of course, he left out the hotel part.

After hearing him out, Ying Yusheng was silent for a long time. Then he pushed up his glasses and said, “I never imagined something like this would happen… How long has this man been after you?”

“A long time. The first time I saw his photo was three months before I even met you. As for how much earlier it started, I don’t know.”

“That long?” Ying Yusheng said in surprise, then gently chided, “You shouldn’t have shouldered this alone. You should have come to me for advice.”

He thought for a moment, then continued, “I’ve been busy lately. Next month, I’ll take you to the hospital for an examination, to first rule out the possibility of dissociative identity disorder and schizophrenia.”

“You suspect I have dissociative identity disorder?” Xu Nanxiao sneered. He’d looked up quite a bit of information these past few days and knew a thing or two. “Don’t worry. Even if I did have dissociative identity disorder, there’s no way I’d be a fucking queer.”

“I’m not accusing you,” Ying Yusheng said helplessly. “But I asked you before if there was anyone who knew you well and was skilled in psychological manipulation, and you said no. And there’s no drug currently on the market that can make someone obey your every command. So first we need to rule out psychiatric conditions, and then look for other possibilities.”

Ying Yusheng made sense. Xu Nanxiao lowered his head and didn’t argue further.

“Just to be safe, it’s best if you don’t act alone during this period. If you can find someone to live with you, it’ll be much harder for the hooded man to make a move.”

Find someone to live with…

He really did need to find someone to live with, or else the hooded man would drive him insane.

Xu Nanxiao didn’t have a girlfriend, and his bond with those fair-weather friends wasn’t deep. The only suitable person he could think of was Lu Yingjie, but his place was too far from Lu Yingjie’s school—two hours by subway, very inconvenient to go back and forth. Besides, as the older brother, he couldn’t bear to show his weakness to others.

At that moment, Xu Nanxiao suddenly looked up at Ying Yusheng, who was still wearing a concerned expression.

“You… would that be convenient for you?”

“What?”

“Could I stay at your place for a while? I can help clean the house, cook and stuff—though it won’t be anything great,” Xu Nanxiao said stiffly, his neck rigid.

Ying Yusheng looked at him in surprise. After a moment, he said reluctantly, “Um, sorry, that’s not really convenient… Don’t you have any other friends?”

Now it was Xu Nanxiao’s turn to be stunned.

For some reason, Xu Nanxiao had always felt that Ying Yusheng would agree to anything he asked. So when he was refused, his mind didn’t process it right away.

But on second thought, what kind of relationship did Xu Nanxiao have with Ying Yusheng? He was just his student’s older brother, barely half a patient of his. Why should he agree to such an outlandish request to stay at his place?

Realizing he had overestimated his own importance, Xu Nanxiao’s cheeks burned. He stammered twice before quickly replying, “Of course I have plenty of friends. I was just asking. Finding a place to stay is easy.”

Ying Yusheng also visibly relaxed and said with a smile, “That’s good. Though we can’t live together, you can come to me anytime if anything new comes up.”

Was finding a place to stay easy?

Not really.

Xu Nanxiao wasn’t used to asking for favors. When he first proposed staying at someone’s place, those acquaintances usually wouldn’t refuse. But it was fine for the first day or two; after a while, they started to mind.

For one thing, they’d bring women home, and those women would be unable to take their eyes off Xu Nanxiao, which made them lose face. For another, they didn’t trust Xu Nanxiao enough to leave him alone in their homes, afraid he might steal something valuable.

After some time, no one was willing to let Xu Nanxiao through their door anymore.