DCISBS chapter 67

Lu Nanyang froze when he heard Xie Quan’s words. “I didn’t lie—”

The bedding around him suddenly sank. Without any warning, Xie Quan leaned over him, supporting himself on one arm beside Lu Nanyang’s body. His gray eyes stared into his at close range, sharp and unyielding.

Ever since they started dating, Xie Quan rarely showed his cold and piercing edge so directly.

“Don’t lie to me, Lu Nanyang,” Xie Quan said.

He’s angry, Lu Nanyang thought.

Though they’d had countless arguments since they met, Xie Quan usually countered with sarcasm or indifference—rarely with such direct, visible anger.

The intensity in his eyes was overwhelming. Even when Lu Nanyang instinctively tried to look away, Xie Quan gripped his chin, forcing him to stay still.

“I…”

Xie Quan raised his arm in front of him. As the sleeve slipped down from his wrist, a shocking scar was clearly visible.

It was a bite mark. The irregular wound had healed into an ugly, raised scar on his otherwise pale skin.

“I have many scars like this. From being hit, whipped, or from hurting myself. I never let others know, and I definitely don’t let them see. I can hide all of them perfectly,” Xie Quan said calmly. “But Lu Nanyang, if it’s you, I’m willing to show you every wound.”

Lu Nanyang stared at him, stunned.

“Because I know you won’t hurt me. I’m willing to trust you with my whole heart,” Xie Quan lowered his head until their foreheads nearly touched. The tips of his bangs brushed Lu Nanyang’s cheek, making it ticklish. “So don’t lie to me.”

Lu Nanyang’s breathing became rapid, his chest rising and falling uncontrollably. For a moment, Xie Quan even thought he might cry.

But he didn’t. Lu Nanyang lowered his head, and after a long pause, said softly, “…It’s something personal. You’ve been so busy lately. I didn’t want to drain your energy with something so insignificant.”

Insignificant?

Driving himself to a high fever in the middle of the street was “insignificant”?

Anger surged in Xie Quan’s chest but was quickly suppressed.

No one understood better than him how hard it was to change something that’s carved into your bones.

Like how he used to habitually hide his true self, wrapping up his wounds layer by layer until they festered—insisting on enduring even when he was at his breaking point.

Until someone told him, “If you want, you can walk away anytime.” Someone who said, “It’s okay even if you’re not perfect all the time.”

So what about Lu Nanyang?

The relentless kindness he showed, the baseless guilt he carried, and his near-extreme selflessness—how deep did the roots of those habits go?

The wounds he hid were so subtle, easily overlooked under his gentle smile—quietly fading away in an untouched field of snow.

Xie Quan was silent for a moment before looking up at him. “Is it about your family?”

Lu Nanyang didn’t speak—he just nodded.

The Lu family’s situation wasn’t exactly news in Yuncheng. Anyone with a bit of knowledge about the city had heard something.

Xie Quan had grown up here, so of course, like everyone else, he’d heard the rumors.

Lu Hongzhen was a well-known entrepreneur in Yuncheng. It was said he started in the restaurant business and later moved into real estate, where money flowed endlessly into the Lu family’s pockets. His wife, originally named Zhao Yunyao, was a famous opera singer at the national level. After marrying Lu Hongzhen, she changed her surname and dedicated herself to being a full-time mother.

Xie Quan remembered when the couple got married—their wedding photos were plastered on billboards all over the city. All the shopping malls under the Lu family’s name held a full day of half-price sales. It was obvious how deeply in love they were.

But misfortune struck without warning. A few years later, their four-year-old son went missing. The Lu couple did everything they could—reported it to the police, offered a reward, sent people to search neighboring cities. But nothing ever came of it.

Madam Lu spent years in grief. Later, it was said that Lu Hongzhen took her to a northern city to help her heal, and during the trip, they stopped by an orphanage. There, they adopted a well-behaved and sensible boy.

For many years afterward, the Lu family treated the adopted boy very well. They brought him to important events, and Lu Hongzhen publicly declared that he was his son and future heir.

Xie Quan had once come across an old photo of Lu Nanyang from that time.

He was wearing what looked like a very expensive custom-made suit, with a warm, radiant smile. His hair was immaculately styled. Though his face was still a bit youthful, he already had the charm of a very attractive young man.

But that photo hadn’t actually left any deep impression on him at the time—it was just something he casually swiped past.

Because, to the Xie Quan of that time, a rich kid from a wealthy business family, living a life of luxury and privilege, had nothing to do with him. Their worlds would never intersect.

But life has a way of being incredibly dramatic.

Xie Quan remembered it happened around four years ago. Suddenly, all the local news was dominated by a single headline—the Lu family’s long-lost biological son had been found.

The Lu family was overjoyed, and the son who had been found, Lu Zhanlei, was also very happy. The entire city was flooded with this good news. The Lu family even donated money to build a temple specifically to pray for children who had been abducted.

Everyone was happy, but no one saw that adopted boy again.

Xie Quan stayed silent for a long time, eyes lowered as he looked at him.

Even though Lu Nanyang was running a fever, his face was completely pale. When he sensed Xie Quan’s gaze, he still forced a smile to show that he was fine.

“I understand now,” Xie Quan finally said.

Lu Nanyang looked at him in surprise. He had expected Xie Quan to ask more questions—like who had called earlier, or what exactly had happened at home.

But Xie Quan didn’t ask anything. He simply picked up the basin of water, changed it out, soaked the towel in colder water, wrung it out halfway, and placed it gently back on Lu Nanyang’s forehead.

The sudden chill made Lu Nanyang let out a low groan, instinctively trying to shy away. But Xie Quan gave him no chance to escape, holding his head in place with both hands.

Xie Quan’s fingers were cool but not cold. As they touched his cheeks, it felt oddly comforting, and Lu Nanyang couldn’t help but nuzzle into the touch.

Then the hand stopped moving and instead began to gently stroke his face along the path of his motion.

“I’m not trying to pry into your private matters. If there are things you don’t want to talk about, you don’t have to,” Xie Quan said. “But pushing yourself to this extent—not only is it irresponsible to yourself, it’s unfair to the people who love you.”

A surge of guilt rose almost instantly in Lu Nanyang’s chest. He opened his mouth, his voice hoarse, “I’m sor—”

Xie Quan raised a finger to press against his lips, stopping him from finishing the apology. His gray eyes looked into his with full attention, emphasizing every word: “Don’t apologize. You haven’t done anything wrong. Lu Nanyang, you’ve never done anything wrong.”

…..

Lu Nanyang’s fever lasted an entire day.

Xie Quan found Wen Fei’s number in his phone contacts and had him request a leave of absence on Lu Nanyang’s behalf. He then stayed in the apartment to care for the patient.

By now, Xie Quan rarely did housework, but once he got started, he realized his muscle memory was still frighteningly precise.

His mother’s health had always been poor, and it worsened year by year under Xie Yuanqiang’s abuse. Every time she was beaten, she would be bedridden for over a week, unable to move.

During those times, someone still had to do the chores. His mother still needed someone to take care of her. From a very young age, Xie Quan had to juggle caring for Xu Qian while also handling all the household chores during her recovery—without making a single mistake. A single slip could land him in the same situation as his mother.

After Xie Yuanqiang was imprisoned, Xie Quan had a long period where he hated doing any kind of housework. He would rather spend money to hire help than touch even a dirty dish.

But now, things were different.

He was doing this willingly. He wanted to take good care of Lu Nanyang, wanted to make him feel as comfortable as possible, wanted him to recover quickly.

The place was a mess, the floor filthy. It was clear Lu Nanyang hadn’t had the time or energy to clean up while he was away.

He honestly couldn’t imagine how he had gotten by recently.

Xie Quan cooked millet congee, swept and mopped the floor, then returned all of Lu Nanyang’s scattered belongings to their rightful places. By the time he finished, the congee was ready.

He tasted a spoonful first—only to nearly gag at the bitterness.

When he brought the bowl into Lu Nanyang’s room, the fever medication seemed to have kicked in. He looked a little better.

“Drink some. Careful—it’s hot,” Xie Quan said, sitting at the edge of the bed and feeding him a spoonful.

Lu Nanyang obediently opened his mouth. After drinking half of it, he asked, “It smells good. Want some too?”

“I just tasted it,” Xie Quan frowned. “It was so bitter I almost died.”

Thinking of Xie Quan’s taste disorder, Lu Nanyang couldn’t help but laugh. He looked up at him, the flush of fever adding a soft blush to his cheeks that made him seem gentler than usual.

“Then… how about a kiss,” Lu Nanyang said with a cheeky grin, “to balance it out?”

Xie Quan stared at him for a moment, then put the bowl aside and leaned in to kiss him.