Dazzling

Three days after Xing Wu was hospitalized, his condition had significantly improved. Every time the doctors made their rounds, they would marvel at how quickly young people recovered.

Xing Wu had many injuries. Though they looked severe, most were superficial wounds that couldn't get wet, which meant he couldn't shower.

Even his buzz cut had grown out a bit during these days, sitting somewhat messily on his head, giving him an unintentionally rugged handsomeness. Li Lanfang brought a set of clean hospital clothes and told him to get out of bed and go to the bathroom so she could help wipe him down.

Xing Wu didn't object, but as he reached the bathroom door, he suddenly turned back to Li Lanfang, who was preparing to follow him in, and said, "I don't want you to do it."

Li Lanfang laughed and scolded, "You little brat, are you getting shy with me?"

Xing Wu's gaze drifted toward Qing Ye, who was preparing medicine nearby, and he said to her, "You do it."

Qing Ye was taken aback and looked up at him. His eyes held a faint smile. Li Lanfang turned to look at Qing Ye, who exchanged an awkward glance with her before lowering her head, rushing to the bathroom door, pushing Xing Wu inside, and quickly closing the door. "Are you crazy?" she said.

Xing Wu leaned against the wall, suppressing a smile at the corner of his mouth, looking utterly unrepentant. "I'd rather rot than let my mom wash me. Besides, she knows about us now anyway."

Qing Ye's cheeks flushed slightly. It was true—after that impulsive kiss at the stadium, probably the whole world knew. But since it hadn't been explicitly discussed, she still felt somewhat uncomfortable in front of Li Lanfang.

Seeing her hesitate, Xing Wu said, "What are you standing there for? Help me take off my clothes."

"Can't you do it yourself?"

"If I could, why would I need you in here?"

"..."

Qing Ye reached out and began unbuttoning his shirt. The bathroom was very small, and in the cramped space, Xing Wu's breath fell on the top of her head. She looked up at him and met his intense, burning gaze. That familiar feeling made her inexplicably nervous.

Once all the buttons were undone, his faintly visible chest was exposed. Xing Wu looked at her pink-tinged cheeks and suddenly pressed her against the wall behind her, kissing her. Her hands pushed weakly against his chest, but her body grew soft under his kiss. Xing Wu pulled her into his arms and whispered in her ear, "I missed you."

Qing Ye slipped out of his embrace and glared at him. "If you want your wounds to reopen, go ahead and mess around."

Seeing her fierce expression, Xing Wu suddenly grinned. "Am I going to be henpecked in the future?"

"Yes. Now sit properly."

Xing Wu actually behaved and stopped fooling around. Qing Ye had him tilt his head back so she could wash his hair first, then she wet a towel and carefully wiped his body, avoiding his wounds. But he had so many injuries that even brushing against the edges made his muscles tense, which made Qing Ye nervous. She kept saying, "Tell me if it hurts."

"Just go ahead, don't worry."

Xing Wu never once said it hurt. To ease her tension, he casually chatted with her about the recent situation at the factory.

Liu Nian had been managing production at the factory, while Du Qiyan was handling the online store. Some traffic came from the streamer that Fatty had recommended. Although orders were few, they were steady. At this rate, the monthly earnings would likely only cover their two salaries plus operating expenses like utilities.Qing Ye crouched down to help wipe around his lower abdomen, but her hand suddenly paused. She looked up at him, her eyes shimmering with a misty haze. Xing Wu asked her, "What's wrong?"

Qing Ye pointed at his underwear. "Do you want to take it off?"

As soon as she said this, Qing Ye rarely saw a trace of embarrassment on Xing Wu's face. He snatched the towel from her hand and said, "I'll do it myself. You go out."

Qing Ye smiled and leaned closer, tilting her head to look at him. "Are you shy right now?"

She was crouched between his legs at that moment. From Xing Wu's angle, her loose T-shirt revealed an alluring view, causing his blood to rush in reverse.

Qing Ye seemed to catch a glimpse of something out of the corner of her eye. When she looked down again, the dragon had already awakened. Xing Wu looked at her with a half-smile. "Did you do that on purpose?"

Qing Ye quickly stood up and waved her hands. "My apologies for disturbing you."

Xing Wu narrowed his eyes dangerously at her. "If you don't leave now, you won't be able to."

Qing Ye hurriedly ran out of the bathroom. Fortunately, Li Lanfang was no longer in the hospital room, or else she would have inevitably seen the scene and caused another awkward moment.

When Xing Wu came out of the bathroom, Qing Ye had gone to his grandmother's side. Li Lanfang had just returned with water and grumbled, "That Cao guy confessed, right? But his family refuses to compensate us, saying they have no money and their son is going to jail anyway. I’m going to make a scene at their place later."

As she spoke, she handed Xing Wu a freshly washed apple. He took it casually, took a bite, and remained silent. After a while, he said, "His mother ran off with someone, and his father gambled so much he even sold their house. Aren’t you afraid his father might pull a knife and take you down with him?"

Li Lanfang’s face turned pale. "No way? But we can’t just let it go! Our old house may not be worth much, but they still owe us tens of thousands. Besides, the money to build the new house came from Qing Ye."

Xing Wu lowered his gaze and took another bite of the apple. Li Lanfang sat down by the bed, looking at him, hesitating for a long time before finally saying, "Wu Zi, you and Qing Ye... you two..."

Xing Wu calmly raised his eyes. "What do you want to ask?"

Li Lanfang lowered her head with a bitter smile. "Even though you're my son and I only want the best for you, you have to understand our family’s circumstances. You’ll hold her back."

Xing Wu’s Adam's apple moved silently, but he said nothing, taking another bite of the apple.

Li Lanfang sighed, staring at the floor tiles. "Qing Ye is exceptional in every way. If our family ends up holding her back, I won’t have the face to see her mother in the future. I need to get the money from the Cao family for her education."

Xing Wu tossed the apple core into the trash and said to her, "Don’t worry about this. I’ll figure something out."

...

Half a month later, Xing Wu’s concussion had fully healed, and the various wounds on his body had scabbed over and recovered. However, one day when Qing Ye arrived at the hospital after school, she found three people standing in his room. Pushing the door open, Qing Ye was somewhat taken aback.

The three were dressed in trendy clothes, the kind of style that clearly didn’t belong to locals. When they turned around, Qing Ye recognized one of them—he had once driven a sports car to Xing Wu’s house to look for him.

The man named San Sheng clearly recognized Qing Ye too and teased, "Oh, Wu Zi, it’s the beauty from last time?"

Xing Wu gestured for Qing Ye to come closer. She put down her bag and walked over to him. He took her hand and said to them, "My girlfriend, Qing Ye."Qing Ye smiled at them, and Xing Wu said to her, "They're from the AEG Club."

Even though Qing Ye wasn't part of the esports circle, she had heard of the AEG Club's reputation. It had a very famous team that was highly sought after.

They didn't stay long before leaving. As they were about to go, San Sheng said to Xing Wu, "Rest well these next few days. See you next week." Xing Wu nodded.

After they left, Qing Ye lowered the table on the hospital bed, ran out to rinse the bowls and chopsticks, then laid out the food she had brought from home earlier on the table. She said to Xing Wu, "The house is getting electricity connected these two days. Your mom won't be coming today."

Xing Wu silently took the chopsticks and looked at Qing Ye. She handed him the rice and added, "After we eat, I need to go back to the factory. If it's late, I'll head straight to the inn."

Xing Wu lowered his head and called her name, "Qing Ye."

"Oh, by the way, the mock exam results came out today. Guess how much Pang Hu scored? 476. He didn't expect it himself. If he pushes a bit more at the end, he should be able to get into a bachelor's program, right?"

Xing Wu put down his rice and said in a muffled voice, "Qing Ye."

Qing Ye slammed her bowl on the table and stood up to leave. Xing Wu finally couldn't hold back and said to her in one breath, "You don't want me to go?"

Qing Ye didn't turn around, but her eyes were already blurred with tears, her shoulders trembling slightly. After a long moment, she raised her hand to rub her eyes and turned back. "Your injuries have just healed. Can't you wait a little longer?"

Xing Wu frowned slightly, his eyes deep and unfathomable. "I can't wait. The domestic EA league starts next month. They're willing to pay 100,000 yuan for travel expenses for me to go to Shanghai. I'll need to be there for about a month."

The AEG Club didn't have a strong FPS team. FPS refers to first-person shooter game competitions, which have always been a weak point for many domestic clubs. A few years ago, San Sheng, who had left the county, recommended Xing Wu to the club's top brass. After several executives anonymously watched one of Xing Wu's matches, they had been sparing no effort to recruit him into the club over the years.

Xing Wu slowly turned to look out the window. Unknowingly, spring had arrived. The coldest harsh winter had passed, but this remote county still lacked the vibrant scenery of blooming flowers. He said to Qing Ye, "Changing the path I want to take because of money—this kind of shitty thing has happened to me too many times. So I won't allow it to happen to you, including the money for building the house at home. Consider it a loan from you, and I'll raise the money to pay you back as soon as possible."

Qing Ye looked up at him. "I don't care!"

"I care," Xing Wu turned his gaze to her firmly.

The air fell silent in an instant. Xing Wu got out of bed and came to her, looking down at her. "Do you not want me to go?"

Qing Ye just shook her head silently. It wasn't that she didn't want him to go—Grandma was currently in the hospital, maintained by medication daily, and didn't need Xing Wu by her side every day.

If Xing Wu was willing to take this step for her, it might be a good thing for Qing Ye. It was just that after such a long time, she had grown accustomed to having Xing Wu by her side, used to bickering and fooling around with him. The sudden separation of a month left Qing Ye somewhat unsure how to face it.

Xing Wu pulled her into his arms and said to her, "I should be able to make it back before your college entrance exam."

Qing Ye choked up and said, "There are lots of beautiful girls in Shanghai.""I'm going for a competition, not to pick up girls."

"With your looks, even if you don't hit on others, they'll hit on you."

"What's wrong with my looks?"

Qing Ye looked up with tears in her eyes: "Don't you know?"

Xing Wu smiled at the corner of his mouth: "I don't know, tell me."

Qing Ye said angrily: "I heard those esports gods are always surrounded by influencers."

Xing Wu said amusedly: "Who told you that? Country bumpkins like me aren't their type."

"Then how come I fell for you?"

Xing Wu pressed against her chin, his warm breath spraying on her face: "You have poor judgment."

Qing Ye sniffled: "My taste is excellent. The things I like are usually limited edition, everyone wants them."

Xing Wu laughed, straightened up and held her shoulders: "I promise after I go, I'll even eat KFC without touching chicken wings."

Qing Ye couldn't help but laugh through her tears.

On the day Xing Wu was discharged from the hospital, Huang Mao and the others all came. When they heard Xing Wu was going to Shanghai for EA league training, they were more excited than him. A group of guys shouted excitedly on the street, and if not for Xing Wu just recovering from serious illness, they would have lifted him up.

Although the ID "Sniper Emperor" was quite famous in their county, with many people impersonating his account, he wasn't a real professional player yet.

This trip to Shanghai, although Xing Wu hadn't explicitly stated he would join AEG Club as a professional esports player, Huang Mao and the others seemed to see tomorrow's esports superstar.

Originally everyone planned to host tables the next day to see Xing Wu off, but he directly refused. Thinking about Xing Wu leaving for a whole month, Huang Mao couldn't contain himself and called Xing Wu again, suggesting they go to his hotel room to hang out.

Xing Wu held his phone, watching Qing Ye showering in the bathroom. She forgot to draw the curtain, and from outside the frosted glass revealed her alluring silhouette. His eyes darkened as he said to Huang Mao: "Are you so bored your balls ache?"

Huang Mao was taken aback, replying: "Well, kinda bored. I've been dying of boredom while you were hospitalized."

"Go play with mud if you're bored. I don't have time for you." After saying this he hung up.

His footsteps approached the bathroom door. Qing Ye turned off the water and asked: "What are you doing at the door?"

"Getting you a towel."

"I already have one."

"Getting you clothes."

"Got those too."

"Oh, then I'm coming in."

"..."

Qing Ye panicked, covering her body, but Xing Wu had already opened the door. Through the misty steam, her well-proportioned, fair body was breathtakingly beautiful.

Xing Wu directly took off his clothes and walked toward her step by step: "Huang Mao called."

Qing Ye looked at him trembling slightly: "And then?"

"He wanted to come over."

"What did you say?"

Xing Wu pulled her hands away, his eyes hazy as he scattered light kisses: "I told him to go play with mud."

Qing Ye's whole body heated up from his kisses. She hooked her arms around his neck, her water droplets transferring to Xing Wu's skin, carrying a sweet fragrance, but her eyes showed a fierce light: "If he dares come, I'll directly throw him off the second floor."

Xing Wu carried her out from under the showerhead and laughed: "Then what do you want to do?"

Qing Ye buried her flushed face in the crook of his neck, her soft body making Xing Wu instantly lose control.After being discharged from the hospital, Xing Wu disappeared for two days. This time, however, his buddies weren't as clueless as they'd been during the New Year period—even Huang Mao knew better than to disturb him.

But on the morning of his departure, everyone still showed up to see him off. Quan Ya, Da Hei, and the whole crew gathered noisily at the long-distance bus station.

The weather was beautiful that day, with occasional gentle breezes. Qing Ye wore the light blue dress Xing Wu had bought her after leaving the hospital—she'd chosen the color herself. Against her fair skin, the dress stood out vividly. As the breeze brushed against her skirt, Xing Wu carried a bag in one hand and held her hand with the other.

At the station entrance, his friends swarmed forward for hugs, but Xing Wu scowled, "Get lost, keep your distance."

Huang Mao and the others insisted on crowding around to pull at him, while Qing Ye stood by, giggling.

During the commotion, someone accidentally tugged at Xing Wu's collar, revealing the faint love bite on his neck. The group froze for a moment, the atmosphere turning awkward. Qing Ye's face flushed crimson instantly.

Xing Wu quickly straightened his collar and snapped, "Looking for a beating?"

He kicked Huang Mao, who dodged away laughing. Then Xing Wu pulled Qing Ye into a side hug and told the others, "After I'm gone, if anything happens to her—"

Before he could finish, Quan Ya shoved his hands in his pockets and said coolly, "Relax, did you really need to say it?"

He then looked down at Qing Ye and added, "I've talked to my mom. She'll be at the hospital during this time. Just focus on your own things—don't worry about Grandma."

Qing Ye nodded.

When it was time, Xing Wu turned to enter the station. His friends lined up against the railing outside, watching him. He wore clean, sharp sportswear, his tall frame sturdy and upright, carrying only a simple travel bag. This was Xing Wu's first time leaving his hometown for somewhere far away.

Qing Ye had been laughing and joking with them all the way there, but the moment Xing Wu turned to enter the station, she could no longer hold back—her eyes reddened.

As if sensing it, he glanced back at her. Time seemed to freeze in that second. Qing Ye suddenly remembered when she first arrived in this town and had noticed him immediately—his sharp features and intense gaze. Back then, she never imagined this boy would leave such a profound mark on her life.

Tears blurred her vision, obscuring Xing Wu's figure. A deep ache seized her. It was only a month—she'd been reminding herself these past few days, just one month, it would pass quickly.

But for some reason, watching Xing Wu walk away now felt like they were being torn apart indefinitely, leaving her restless and uneasy.

She blinked, tears falling and clearing her sight. Then she saw Xing Wu suddenly push through the crowd and stride back toward her. They clung to each other through the railing, and he told her, "Wait for me."