Shang Jue learned from Wen Jiayue the next morning about Lu Yuxing's incident with Tian Miao. Without even taking the time to request a day off, he took a taxi directly to the hospital.
The previous night, he had waited until almost eleven o'clock at home, but Lu Yuxing didn’t show up. Instead, he received a message: “I have something to do tonight, can’t make it.” Upon reading that, Shang Jue felt a bit disappointed since he had mentally prepared several versions of what he wanted to say, and who knew if he would remember any of it in the morning…
In a hurry, he arrived at the emergency room and made a quick round of the large ward, his gaze locking onto a hospital bed in the far corner, draped with a blue curtain. He hurried over.
He pulled aside the curtain and met Lu Yuxing's gaze, whose forehead was wrapped in a white bandage. There were no other visitors around, and seeing that Lu Yuxing was still conscious relieved Shang Jue’s anxious heart.
"Is it serious?" he asked, still carrying his bag as he approached.
Lu Yuxing took a few seconds to respond, and Shang Jue lost his patience waiting: "Can I take a look?"
Lu Yuxing leaned his head back gently against the wall. To see the injury at the back of his head, Shang Jue reached out to hold his chin, tilting Lu Yuxing's head towards him.
When he reached out, Lu Yuxing turned his head slightly to the side to avoid him, but Shang Jue was quicker. His anxiety made him oblivious to the strange little interaction.
The wound was tightly bandaged by the doctor, and Shang Jue could only see a small patch of blood seeping through, unable to see the actual injury. Just seeing that small amount of blood was enough to make his heart ache.
He lightly scolded Lu Yuxing, his breath brushing against Lu Yuxing’s hair and ear, their position feeling overly intimate.
Lu Yuxing: “…”
Shang Jue released his hand, watching Lu Yuxing’s pressed lips and the slight flush in his ears, and naturally continued, “Where’s your phone, babe?” He had called repeatedly, but no one answered.
“…”
Lu Yuxing’s phone was on the cabinet nearby. Shang Jue easily picked it up, pressed the power button, but it didn’t turn on. It had run out of battery.
After such a big incident last night, there would undoubtedly be many people coming to check on Lu Yuxing today. Shang Jue quickly ran out to grab a power bank and came back to charge Lu Yuxing’s phone.
Lu Yuxing: “…”
He stared at Shang Jue as he effortlessly handled his phone, his expression unchanging.
Shang Jue sat down on the stool beside him and couldn’t help but voice everything he had held in: “Why bother with someone like Tian Miao? Let him say whatever he wants; why compete with him? And fighting? You already got a reprimand and a warning; are you going to continue your graduate studies? Getting into a fight on campus could lead to expulsion…”
“…”
Shang Jue had been talking for a while, but Lu Yuxing didn’t say a word. He wondered, “Why aren’t you talking?”
“…” Lu Yuxing’s lips trembled slightly, but he still didn’t respond, silently staring at him.
Shang Jue glanced at his dry lips and frowned, asking, “Thirsty?”
After saying that, he found a paper cup from the cabinet and went out to get a cup of warm water.
The drinking facilities in the emergency room were hard to find, and Shang Jue had to wander around the department before locating the water room.
When he returned to the ward with the water, he saw another person sitting next to Lu Yuxing.
Shang Jue called out, " Sheng Ge”
Lu Yunsheng looked pleasantly surprised to see him. “It’s Xiao Shang! What are you doing here? Didn’t have class today? I was just asking Xiao Xing why he had an extra backpack; I asked him, but he didn’t say anyone was coming…”
He pulled over a chair and gestured for Shang Jue to sit down, unable to help but complain, “That brat has gotten so bold after going to university, now he dares to fight at school… I asked him why he got into a conflict, and he didn’t say a word.”
Shang Jue sat down, holding a paper cup, and noticed a piercing gaze fixated on him. He looked up to see Lu Yuxing staring intently.
“...What are you looking at?”
Shang Jue felt a bit confused, as Lu Yuxing’s gaze seemed different from usual—more intense, almost predatory.
He averted his eyes and chimed in with Lu Yunsheng’s complaints.
Lu Yunsheng sighed, “...But on the bright side, Xiaoxing remembered everything from before, so it’s a blessing in disguise.”
“Hmm.” Shang Jue replied, but only realized what Lu Yunsheng had said after he finished, causing him to spill half of the hot water onto his lap.
“Hey—” Lu Yunsheng quickly grabbed some paper towels from the cabinet and handed them to him.
Shang Jue accepted them, lowering his head to wipe the water stains off his pants. Lu Yunsheng watched him for a moment and continued talking for a few more minutes.
Shang Jue kept nodding in response, though he didn’t understand why he hadn’t looked up; even after the water stains were dry, he continued to rub the paper towel back and forth.
“I’m going downstairs to grab some lunch. Have you eaten, Xiao Shang?”
“Hmm.”
“You’ve already eaten before eleven? That can’t be true. Don’t be polite with me; I’ll bring some noodles up for you?”
Shang Jue smiled slightly. “Okay, thank you, Sheng Ge.”
Lu Yunsheng stood up and left the hospital room.
Shang Jue lowered his head to finish the remaining half cup of water, tossing it into the nearby trash can, then cleared his throat forcefully.
That posture made it seem like he hadn’t just drunk water but had downed a shot of courage.
Only then did he look up, meeting Lu Yuxing’s gaze.
“…”
“…”
“…”
“…”
The two of them stared at each other in silence for a full minute.
The corners of Shang Jue’s eyes and lips curved down slightly; his lips parted a few times, but no sound came out. It was rare to see such an expression on his face, making him look somewhat adorable.
Suddenly, Lu Yuxing turned his face away.
The air remained still for a while before he redirected his gaze back to Shang Jue.
Shang Jue seemed to have adjusted himself as well, returning to a slightly aloof expression that Lu Yuxing was very familiar with.
“Remembered everything? All of it?”
“Hmm.” Lu Yuxing replied, his eyes locked onto Shang Jue’s face, eager to see his reaction.
Embarrassment, guilt, anxiety, or perhaps a brazen laugh of mockery?
Lu Yuxing suspected the last possibility was the most likely.
From the moment he woke up, he understood why Shang Jue had deceived him. It was ridiculous that he had spent the past few days imagining someone had a crush on him. How foolish he must have been.
Lu Yuxing had to admit that Shang Jue really knew how to hit his sore spots. Just the thought of the stupid things he had done over the past few months filled him with overwhelming shame, making him wish he could disappear on the spot. This feeling would likely accompany him for the rest of his life, only ceasing when he was buried in the ground.
From morning until now, he had blushed so often with embarrassment that it had startled the doctor to come check on him several times.
Expecting Shang Jue to apologize? Only an amnesiac version of himself would foolishly hope for that.
The entire morning, Lu Yuxing hadn’t figured out how to retaliate. His pathetic performance in this charade was far more humiliating than being deceived by Shang Jue.
He had been completely played.
Meanwhile, Shang Jue thought, Well, it’s good that he remembered; it saves me from rambling on about it.
A flicker of regret passed through his mind: After all this time and effort, he had even put himself on the line, yet he hadn’t seen the look on this guy’s face when he regained his memories.
Lu Yuxing didn't know how long he had been processing everything, but now he looked just like the Lu Yuxing in Shang Jue's memory, except for his bright red ears.
Shang Jue was willing to bet that Lu Yuxing was currently thinking of ways to kill him. As for whether he would strangle him or stab him with his violin bow, Shang Jue wasn't quite sure.
His fingers mindlessly rubbed against the damp fabric of his knee.
In the wording he had prepared the night before, every version ended with: "I think I've started to like you, so could you please stay with me?"
He could say something like that to the amnesiac Lu Yuxing, but not to the current one… he just couldn't.
Shang Jue leaned back in his chair, gripping his knee tightly; the pads of his fingers almost rubbed the fabric raw.
"So, are we breaking up?"
His voice was tense, sounding icy and stiff, like a sharp icicle.
To Lu Yuxing's ears, it felt like a kind of mockery even worse than laughter.
It was as if the word "breakup" was something Shang Jue could easily bring up, a word he could toss aside when he got tired of playing.
He truly didn't understand what qualification Shang Jue had to utter that word. Shouldn't it be him bringing it up?
All those angry, ashamed, anxious, and conflicted emotions suddenly burst forth, like a balloon being popped. He felt like he had been punctured, leaving him feeling hollow.
Shang Jue's nonchalant attitude felt more insulting than mockery or cursing, as if he had never taken Lu Yuxing or the past few months of their joke seriously.
Lu Yuxing's eyes turned red.
He thought, From start to finish, I was the only fool here.
"Break up?" He felt unbearable embarrassment, forcing a cold smile that was more indifferent than Shang Jue's. He shot back, "When were we ever together?"
Damn...
Shang Jue bit his lip.
Though it was the expected response, saying such a harsh truth was genuinely painful.
He could even feel his nose getting slightly sore.
Damn, I won’t cry in front of this guy, will I?
Fortunately, he didn’t.
“Ha ha.” He forced a laugh and said, “What did the doctor say about your head injury? Is it serious?”
Lu Yuxing thought, What does that have to do with you? But then he realized it was still somewhat relevant to Shang Jue.
“Do you want me to tear off the bandage and show you?”
Shang Jue asked in surprise, “Can you do that?”
Lu Yuxing replied, “No.”
“…”
After being shot down, Shang Jue had nothing to complain about and asked, “What did they say, then? Otherwise, I’ll ask Sheng Ge.”
“Cracked skull.”
Shang Jue froze.
Skull, fracture...
Seeing him look dumbfounded, Lu Yuxing reluctantly explained, “It’s a minor fracture, not serious. It can heal on its own.”
Shang Jue was silent for a moment before saying, “This injury is my debt to you.”
Lu Yuxing suddenly felt a warm, fuzzy feeling in his chest.
My debt to you? You owe me far more than that. Can you ever repay it?
The two of them sat in silence for a while until Lu Yuxing's phone powered on and rang.
Shang Jue said, “You should let your dorm mates know; they were worried when they didn’t see you come back last night and asked if I had seen you.”
Lu Yuxing replied, “It’s fine; they’ll probably think I stayed at my girlfriend's house.”
“…”
Shang Jue fell silent.
Not long after, Lu Yunsheng brought up lunch for the two of them. They finished their meal quickly, and Shang Jue still had no intention of going back to school.
Lu Yunsheng was surprised, saying, “Xiao Shang, don’t you have any classes in the afternoon?”
“...Uh-huh.”
In fact, he did.
He had classes from the second period in the morning until night, all specialized courses.
But Lu Yuxing's injury was related to him, and since his head had been cracked open, Shang Jue simply couldn't bring himself to leave.
“Sheng Ge, you still have work, right? I’ll stay here; if you have something to do, don’t worry about me.”
Lu Yunsheng was deeply moved. However, he had already taken a leave for today, so there was nothing urgent to attend to.
In the afternoon, Ge Zhicheng and Lin Xuying also rushed to the hospital; their news always arrived a little late.
When the two entered the ward, Shang Jue was propped up against the wall next to Lu Yuxing, trying to take a nap. He hadn't slept much the night before and had been sleep-deprived for several days, so he took the opportunity to rest.
As soon as Ge Zhicheng saw Lu Yuxing, he called out loudly. Shang Jue stirred from his shallow sleep, blinking awake.
Ge Zhicheng had just arrived and immediately began to bombard Lu Yuxing with questions about his condition. Lu Yuxing turned his gaze away, distracted, and stole a glance at Shang Jue's sleepy face.
Seeing someone come in, Shang Jue got up and voluntarily gave up his seat to them, pulling out his phone and leaving the ward.
At the entrance, he leaned against the wall and dialed a number.
It was quickly answered, and on the other end, He Yang's loud voice was annoying: “Hey hey?”
“He Yang.” Shang Jue lowered his eyelashes slightly, “Can I borrow your detective for a bit? I need help keeping an eye on someone.”
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