Chapter 58

Without any intention to hide it, Yu He pushed the wheelchair back into the living room and invited Liang Ran and the others inside, "This is my boyfriend's. His wheelchair is too big, and it's not convenient to use it in here."

Liang Ran asked, "Last time you called me, you mentioned that your boyfriend’s legs had regained some sensation. How is he doing now?"

Yu He carried the groceries into the kitchen, saying, "He is indeed getting better, but he refuses to take painkillers and often can’t sleep because of the pain."

"Refusing painkillers isn’t necessarily a bad thing," Wang Guangbin commented as he helped Yu He wash the vegetables. "The spinal nerves are sensitive. Taking a large amount of painkillers over a long period can decrease nerve sensitivity, which could lead to dull sensations during treatment. However, enduring such pain all the time is unbearable. Traditional Chinese medicine is milder; maybe you could consider giving him some herbal treatments?"

Yu He, not proficient in picking out vegetables, simply cut off the roots with a kitchen knife. "My dear Guangbin, with my level of expertise, I wouldn’t dare to prescribe him any herbs. Maybe I'll consider it after a few more years of study. His body has suffered a lot; I'll take my time to help him recover in the future."

Liang Ran stood at the kitchen door, slowly sipping on a can of soda. "Paraplegia doesn’t mean there's no chance of recovery. I remember Guangbin telling me about someone in his village who recovered after being paralyzed for over a decade."

Wang Guangbin nodded in agreement. "When it comes to spinal nerve issues, it’s all about nursing and time. The human body’s capacity for recovery is strong, but it requires time. Yu He, the return of sensation to your boyfriend's legs is a good sign, but remember, haste makes waste. Patients are naturally impatient, but as their family, it’s important to provide reassurance and support."

Yu He responded while placing the chopped potatoes onto a plate, “Got it, I understand.”

After the meal, Liang Ran washed the dishes, Yu He wiped the table, and Wang Guangbin took out the trash.

Just then, the sound of the lock cylinder in the security door turning could be heard. Yu He’s mind stirred, and he turned his head towards the entrance.

The door opened, revealing Fu Yunzhe standing at the doorway.

Yu He went up to him, "Why didn’t you call me to pick you up?"

“I parked downstairs and just took the elevator up,” Fu Yunzhe responded, hearing the noise inside the house. “Are your friends here?”

Yu He stepped outside, lifted Fu Yunzhe’s wheelchair over the threshold, and then closed the door behind them. “These are my friends, Liang Ran and Wang Guangbin.”

Fu Yunzhe nodded in greeting, "Hello."

Yu He then introduced, “Ran-ge, Guangbin, this is my boyfriend, Fu Yunzhe.”

Liang Ran and Wang Guangbin greeted Fu Yunzhe, “Hello.”

Fu Yunzheng said, "No need to be polite, please make yourself at home."

Yu He pushed the simple wheelchair over, crouching halfway down: "Have you eaten yet? We just had hotpot, and there are slices of meat and noodles in the fridge. Shall I make you a bowl of sesame paste noodles?"

Fu Yunzheng laughed, "You can make sesame paste noodles?"

Yu He said, "The noodles are ready-made from the supermarket, and the sesame paste was mixed by Liang Ran. It’s really delicious."

Every time Yu He crouches halfway down to talk seriously with Fu Yunzheng, Fu Yunzheng really wants to pat Yu He's head, but Yu He's friend is here now, so Fu Yunzheng didn't reach out.

He turned his wheelchair towards the living room: "I've eaten already. You and your friend go ahead and have fun; don't worry about me."

Liang Ran’s hands were still covered in dishwashing foam: "Mr. Fu, we’ve finished eating already. I’ll just wash these bowls and leave."

Fu Yunzheng’s gaze gently fell on Liang Ran before returning to Yu He: "How can we let a guest do the dishes?"

Yu He was nonchalant: "He’s willing to do it."

Fu Yunzheng helplessly said, "The driver is still downstairs. He’ll take your classmate home later."

Yu He nodded and went back to the kitchen, taking over the task from Liang Ran: "My boyfriend says you shouldn’t do the dishes. The driver will take you guys home later."

Liang Ran rinsed off the foam from his hands, muttering quietly, "You choose your boyfriend over your friends."

Wang Guangbin asked quietly, "Your boyfriend is Fu Yunzheng?"

Yu He said, "Yes, it’s the one who talked about providing for me tonight, the CEO of Fu’s Corporation, Fu Yunzheng."

The kitchen was a bit crowded with the three of them. Wang Guangbin leaned in and whispered to Yu He, "Many patients with paralysis reject going out or meeting strangers. It’s not convenient for us to be here; we should leave."

Yu He was slightly taken aback, not sure whether to be moved by Wang Guangbin’s consideration or to marvel at the fact that Fu Yunzheng, who usually disliked going out, had made a special trip to find him. He nodded, "Okay, save me a seat in class tomorrow."

Liang Ran and Wang Guangbin greeted Fu Yunzheng, put on their coats, and left.

Yu He went to the stairwell to see them off, and while waiting for the elevator, Liang Ran sent Yu He the question bank for the Simiao Cup.

Liang Ran whispered to Yu He, “Focus on some serious business tonight, take a look at the questions and such. During the initial stages of spinal cord recovery... cough, you know what I mean.”

Yu He looked at Liang Ran, his eyes clear and bright, making Liang Ran feel like his thoughts were dirty.

With a ding, the elevator arrived.

Wang Guangbin scratched his chin, stepped into the elevator, and started to admonish Liang Ran on his behalf: “During the initial stages of spinal cord recovery, avoid vigorous exercise, nourish the yang energy, and avoid engaging in...”

Liang Ran covered Wang Guangbin’s mouth, frantically pressed the door close button, and forcefully stopped the word 'sexual activities' from coming out of Wang Guangbin's mouth.

The elevator descended, and the red numbers jumped continuously.

Yu He stood there for a while before realizing what they were talking about.

Those two are really funny.

Back at home, Yu He changed into slippers and asked Fu Yunzheng, "How come you decided to come over today?"

Fu Yunzheng raised his eyebrows slightly: "It was a bit noisy at home, my cousin's family kept coming over, so I decided to come here for a couple of days of peace and quiet."

Knowing that his cousin Fu Conglin had leaked information about Yu He to the media, Fu Yunzheng had openly reprimanded his cousin’s family. He had simply spoken some words about how the Fu Corporation was a united family, and how the fortunes of one member affected the entire family, scaring his cousin Fu Hui and Fu Conglin into making several trips to the Fu residence to apologize.

Fu Yunzheng feigned illness to avoid seeing them, finding their presence bothersome.

His unwillingness to see the Fu Hui family made them very anxious. Fu Yunzheng couldn’t be bothered with them and simply decided to pack up and leave Yun Su to stay with Yu He.

Yu He said, “The more you avoid them, the more anxious they become, and the more they want to see you. Your leg still requires infrared therapy, and there's no one here to take care of you. How can this be okay?”

Fu Yunzheng looked up at Yu He, “What’s wrong? You don’t want me to come?”

Yu He lifted Fu Yunzheng horizontally and gently placed him on a regular wheelchair, “I couldn’t ask for more. Where’s your therapy lamp? I can do the infrared therapy for you just as well.”

Fu Yunzheng leaned back in the wheelchair, “They will deliver it tomorrow.”

Yu He pushed the wheelchair towards the bedroom, “How have you been feeling recently? Is it still very painful?”

Compared to Fu’s mansion, this house was indeed too small. It was a two-bedroom apartment with an area of just under ninety square meters. Since Yu He usually lived alone, there wasn’t much furniture. Even so, the wheelchair seemed somewhat cramped as it moved through the rooms.

It was as if there wasn’t quite enough room to turn around, but Fu Yunzheng didn’t feel that the space was cramped.

Fu Yunzheng didn’t answer but suddenly said, “Xiao He, I kind of want to eat sesame sauce noodles.”

“I’ll go make it.” Yu He asked, “Do you want to accompany me to the dining room, or would you prefer to go back to bed first?”

Fu Yunzheng said, “I’ll cook the noodles.”

In the kitchen, Yu He talked to Fu Yunzheng about everything that had happened over the past two days. The school matters were trivial, but Fu Yunzheng didn’t mind and listened attentively. When he heard that Yu He was going to Beijing to participate in the Simiao Cup competition, he asked how many days Yu He would be gone.

Yu He obviously didn’t know these details.

Fu Yunzheng said, “Send your itinerary to Uncle Zhang in advance, and he will arrange a hotel for you.”

Yu He also talked about the conflict with Liu Ruitong, and how Liang Ran and Wang Guangbin had helped him argue his case, looking even more proud than if they had won a fight. Yu He looked up, and in the warm, dim light of the kitchen, said to Fu Yunzheng, “I have new friends now.”

Fu Yunzheng used long chopsticks to fish out the noodles and put them into a bowl. He looked back at Yu He, his tone warmer than the steaming vapor above the pot, “That’s very good.”

In the evening, Yu He prepared a herbal foot soak for Fu Yunzheng using mugwort leaves, old ginger, tendon-stretching herbs, and chicken blood vines, while he himself curled up on the sofa with a tablet to review competition questions.

Calling it a question bank is a bit of a stretch; it’s more like a summary of the top ten classics of Traditional Chinese Medicine, filled with large chunks of knowledge and spanning over a thousand pages. In the past, Yu He would definitely not even give it a glance and would have directly categorized it as something to read ‘in this lifetime’.

The so-called ‘in this lifetime’ series refers to the kind of books that one tells oneself they will read or study when they have the time, only to possibly never open them again for the rest of their life.

However, the moment Yu He thinks of the brotherhood team he formed with Liang Ran and Wang Guangbin, he can’t help but settle down and read it line by line.

Everyone knows that Yu He is a novice in professional knowledge, practically inexperienced. Joining him for the Simiao Cup may not be the best choice, but even so, knowing that the chances of winning are slim, they are still willing to participate in the competition with Yu He. This sense of trust is enough to support Yu He’s patience to read diligently.

Yu He’s memory is mediocre, not possessing the nearly photographic memory that Liang Ran has. His learning style is stream of consciousness, meaning that everything he has read once is jumbled up in his mind. If you ask him what he has just read or memorized, he wouldn’t be able to tell you. However, when answering questions, he can rely on his intuition to extract and apply the relevant information.

For example, with multiple-choice questions, Yu He can vaguely sense that one of the options resonates weakly with the chaotic knowledge blocks in his mind, as if that option is continuously telling Yu He, ‘Try choosing me’.

Yu He usually trusts his intuition because, besides that, he doesn’t have anything else to trust.

All in all, reading through once is definitely better than not reading at all.

Turning another page of questions, Yu He lifts his head and rubs his eyes.

Fu Yunzheng says, “Take a break for now. Print it out and read it tomorrow. Reading on a tablet can easily make your eyes dizzy, and soon you might feel a headache and nausea.”

Upon hearing this, Yu He puts down the tablet and exclaims, “There are so many questions.”

Fu Yunzheng smiles, his handsome face looking even more striking under the light, “The water is getting a bit cold; could you add some hot water for me?”

Yu He stands up to get the kettle and only realizes what has happened as he is pouring the hot water into the tub.

He looks at Fu Yunzheng in surprise, “You can feel the temperature in your feet now?”

It’s normal for the spinal nerves to start regaining sensation and for one to gradually feel temperature changes after several days of pain. The doctors had already explained this to Fu Yunzheng, so he wasn’t overly shocked when he noticed. After all, if we were to represent Fu Yunzheng’s recovery progress with data, regaining pain sensation from complete numbness would be going from 0 to 1, and regaining temperature sensation could only be considered going from 1 to 2. There is still a very long way to go to reach a complete recovery of 100.

This time around, Fu Yunzhang told himself to stay humble and calm, avoiding the previous rushed approach to surgery that had backfired. He kept the progress to himself, not announcing anything until there was further improvement in his condition. However, he really wanted to share the news with Yu He.

As expected, compared to Fu Yunzhang's composed and indifferent demeanor, Yu He seemed somewhat overly excited. From his medical perspective, if experiencing pain was a mixed blessing, then regaining thermal sensation was a clear sign that the body was recovering.

Immediately, Yu He put down the kettle, crouched on the ground, and pressed several acupoints on Fu Yunzhang's calf, asking about his feelings.

"Does it hurt when I press here?"

"Does it feel sour?"

"Do you feel any numbness?"

Fu Yunzhang answered each question in turn, looking down at Yu He and remarked, "You really seem like a doctor."

Yu He's fingers paused on Fu Yunzhang's ankle. Remembering Wang Guangbin's advice that family members should be responsible for comforting the patient, he realized that he was more nervous than the patient himself. He wished he could immediately share Fu Yunzhang's medical records on the global medical student forum's intranet, letting the whole world know that Fu Yunzhang's leg was getting better.

Yu He splashed some water from the bucket onto Fu Yunzhang's calf and massaged the meridians, commenting, "This bucket is too small; only half of the calf can be soaked."

Fu Yunzhang responded with a smile that was not quite a smile, "Do you really want to soak both of my legs?"

Yu He replied, "Of course, a full-body soak would definitely have a better effect. Let’s try it in the bathtub when we get back to Yun Su over the weekend."

Fu Yunzhang was somewhat resistant, "Won’t I just end up soaking in bitterness?"

Yu He also laughed, teasing Fu Yunzhang, "Mr. Fu, such a grand CEO, surely you're not afraid of a bit of bitterness?"

Fu Yunzhang remained composed, replying indifferently, "I won’t be lying there drinking it, nor will I be licking myself like a little dog."

Whoever would be licking, only they themselves would know.

If Fu Yunzhang ended up soaking and tasting bitter, the one to experience that taste would only be Yu He. Recalling Wang Guangbin’s advice to avoid intimacy in the early stages of recovery, Yu He couldn’t help but feel a bit embarrassed, his ears turning red.

Yu He's fingers gently glided, suggesting, "Then how about a bath with rose petals? It would be fragrant."

Fu Yunzhang gently tapped Yu He’s nose with his hand and gave a four-character evaluation: “Putting the cart before the horse.”

Yu He stood up, cradled Fu Yunzhang under his knees, carried him into the bedroom, and placed him on the bed. He first moved the wheelchair within Fu Yunzhang's reach, then brought over a cellphone and some books he often read to place on the bedside table. After serving a cup of hot water and putting it by Fu Yunzhang’s hand, he added, "Do you need to use the restroom?"

Seeing Fu Yunzhang shake his head, Yu He then turned around and went back to the living room to tidy up the wooden bucket.

Watching Yu He take care of him so attentively, Fu Yunzhang couldn’t help but recall the first time he got a fever when Yu He didn’t even know how to pour a cup of hot water. During their first bath together, Yu He even made him catch a cold.

The stark contrast between the past recklessness and the current attentiveness was clear.

Yu He said he would learn to take care of Fu Yunzhang, and he truly did learn.

Fu Yunzhang felt a profound warmth in his heart, completely satisfied with being in Yu He's presence, making the hustle and bustle of Yu He's special trip to Yun Su seem trivial in comparison.

After tidying up the living room, Yu He returned to the bedroom and asked Fu Yunzhang if he wanted to take a bath, to which Fu Yunzhang replied that he had taken one before coming.

Hearing this, Yu He smiled, sat down by the bed, and stared at Fu Yunzhang, “On my first visit to Fu’s house, you had also taken a bath beforehand.”

Since understanding each other’s feelings, Fu Yunzhang and Yu He could talk about anything and everything. Even recalling that awkward first meeting, they were now able to candidly share their thoughts from that time.

Fu Yunzhang didn’t hold back, explaining, “I’m not very mobile, and taking a bath is a slow process for me. If I waited until you arrived to take a bath, what if you changed your mind while waiting?”

Yu He chuckled, “President Fu is indeed thoughtful and has far-sighted plans.”

Fu Yunzhang slightly furrowed his brow, pondered for a moment, then smiled again, saying, “Or perhaps Young Master Yu is eloquent and extraordinarily talented; any fine phrase seems... strange when coming from your mouth.”

Yu He also burst into laughter.

Chatting with Fu Yunzhang is always interesting, regardless of the topic, even if it's just playful bickering when there's nothing else to talk about.

Yu He asked, "Then why did you take an early bath today? I'm certainly not going to change my mind now."

Fu Yunzhang pretended to be disdainful, "Because your bathroom is too small and doesn’t have a bathtub. Isn’t that obvious?"

Yu He nodded in agreement, "Alright, alright, my bathroom is small, and it can’t accommodate someone as important as you. I’ve measured this bathroom before; it can’t fit a tub as big as the one at the Fu residence, but it can accommodate a small bathtub of 1.6 meters. I will order one online later, so it will be more convenient for you if you stay here often."

Fu Yunzhang responded without any objection, not bothering to refute the matter of him staying over frequently, as settled by Yu He in just a few words.

It seemed as if he preferred to squeeze into a 90-square-meter apartment in the suburbs of Fengcheng with Yu He, rather than staying in the thousands of acres of villa estates in the Guanyun Mountain Scenic Area.

Yu He took a measuring tape to the bathroom to measure again, and came back saying, "A 1.6-meter bathtub can fit in there, just enough for you to half lie down for your bath. It’s also convenient for medicinal baths, and a smaller tub saves water and herbal materials."

Fu Yunzhang was truly delighted, reaching out to pinch Yu He’s cheek, "You’re really good at managing daily life."

Yu He held onto Fu Yunzhang’s hand, "Did you not think about living here when you bought this apartment? When I first moved in, there weren’t any assistive devices on the walls or ceiling," he looked around at the newly added handrails and rings, "all of these were added later when I asked a designer to redo the layout."

Fu Yunzhang explained, "I didn’t want to disturb you while you were at school, and it would raise questions if your classmates saw me."

Yu He rested his chin on Fu Yunzhang’s shoulder, "You always think too much. Were you also thinking of using this place as a hideout from me? Not wanting to leave anything that belongs to you here, just in case we break up one day and these things bother me."

Fu Yunzhang didn’t speak, simply stroking Yu He’s hair.

Yu He felt extremely clever, guessing that Fu Yunzhang, always planning ahead, had prepared a way out for him, setting up a ‘Fu Yunzhang-free’ environment in advance.

When he bought this apartment, Fu Yunzhang had no intention of living here with Yu He, but in the end, he moved in.

The small apartment slowly filled with his belongings, bearing traces of Fu Yunzhang’s life everywhere.

Their life paths overlapped, hiding shadows of each other everywhere.

Their love for each other was so profound that being together was as natural as flowers blooming in spring. How could one possibly avoid that?

Yu He pulled Fu Yunzhang tightly into his embrace, "You're not allowed to think about leaving me in the future. Since you've come, I won't let you go."

Fu Yunzhang closed his eyes, "I'm not as domineering as you. I'm happy that you came, but if you want to leave..."

"What will you do if I leave?" As if afraid that Fu Yunzhang would say something he didn't want to hear, Yu He shook Fu Yunzhang’s shoulders.

Fu Yunzhang was left feeling a bit dizzy from Yu He’s shaking.

Yu He seemed to have discovered that shaking Fu Yunzhang was an effective tactic; he’d give him a little shake every time he tried to change Fu Yunzhang’s mind.

Really dizzy.

Fu Yunzhang sighed, "If you leave, I’ll bring you back. Is that okay now?"

Yu He gripped Fu Yunzhang’s hand, their fingers interlocking, "Neither of us is allowed to let go. Only death can part us."

Fu Yunzhang's fingers moved slightly, "Xiao He, isn’t it too early to say these things?"

Yu He made a move to grab Fu Yunzhang’s shoulder again.

Fu Yunzhang dodged backward, still feeling a little shaken, and agreed good-naturedly, "Only death can part us."

Yu He rolled over, back onto the bed, and tried to pull Fu Yunzhang into his arms as if hugging a plush toy. However, given Fu Yunzhang's impressive height, he could only manage to hold onto his arm, pressing closely together as they fell asleep.

The next morning, Yu He had a class at 8:00 AM. When the alarm rang at 7:10 AM, Fu Yunzhang was already awake.

Yu He turned off the alarm, flipped over, and burrowed into Fu Yunzhang's embrace. After nestling there for a while, he asked, "What time did you wake up?"

Fu Yunzhe answered, "Not yet seven."

Yu He tried to sit up, but the bed was so warm that he couldn't resist. He grumbled, "It's strange; I never have this much trouble getting up on my own."

Regrettably, Fu Yunzhe had never seen Yu He get up early on his own and had no way to verify the claim he just made.

He pushed on Yu He’s shoulder, saying, “It’s almost 7:30, not early at all.”

Yu He took out his phone, glanced at his class schedule, and closed his eyes in despair: "An 8 a.m. public English class... Did the teacher at the academic affairs office schedule this on purpose to keep me from sleeping?"

Fu Yunzhe, holding onto the rings of his wheelchair, felt deeply that if he didn’t sit up first, Yu He could stay in bed until noon. So, he uncovered the quilt and moved towards his wheelchair, saying, “You can sleep again when you come back at noon.”

Just as expected, the moment Fu Yunzhe got up, the bed’s seductive hold on Yu He weakened significantly. Yu He also sat up and started to get dressed.

Yu He yawned, swaying as he walked towards the washstand, “What are you having for breakfast?”

Fu Yunzhe answered from the bathroom door, "Don't worry about me, someone is coming over in a bit."

Yu He brushed his teeth while looking at Fu Yunzhe through the mirror, raised his eyebrows, and said, "Then, I’m off to school."

Fu Yunzhe nodded, "Go ahead."

Washing his hair, face, and shaving, Yu He completed the whole process in five minutes. After washing his hair, with water still dripping from it, Yu He bent over and reached back with his hand searching for a towel.

The towel was hanging on the balcony to dry, and Yu He did not think to get it before washing up, it was unclear what he was trying to grab.

Fu Yunzhe threw the towel he was holding onto Yu He’s head: “Still not grown up.”

Yu He, pressing the towel to his head, retorted, “Does being unable to find the towel mean I haven’t grown up?”

Fu Yunzhe responded, “Which twenty-year-old adult doesn’t know to prepare their own towel?”

Yu He emerged from the bathroom and stopped next to Fu Yunzhe, his body carrying the refreshing scent of toothpaste and aftershave: "It's from your place."

Fu Yunzhe looked down at his watch: "It's 7:45 now."

Cursing under his breath, Yu He grabbed his phone and rushed toward the door in a hurry: "I finish class at 11:50 am; I'll bring you lunch from the cafeteria!"

There was a clatter at the entrance as he put on his shoes, knocking something over in his rush.

"It's fine, no need to clean it up," Yu He called out. "I'll pick it up when I get back."

Then, with a slam, the security door closed, and the room suddenly fell silent.

Fu Yunzhe sat at the bedroom door.

It felt like all the commotion had gone with the closing of that security door.

So, a ninety-square-meter apartment feels this quiet when there's only one person in it. Just like how even a few thousand square meters villa could become lively because of Yu He's presence.

It has never been about the size of the place; it's always about who is in it.

Before he could reflect any further, the electronic lock of the security door beeped, followed by the turning of the lock core, and the door opened.

Yu He's face appeared at the door: "Boss Fu! I can't find my motorcycle keys! Can you please check if they are on the desk?"

Fu Yunzhe’s heart quivered slightly.

The liveliness had returned.