Chapter 78: She Pushed Me So Many Times!
Wen Ling’s mind was a chaotic mess of negative emotions. His throat and chest felt tight, as if filled with wind, making it hard to breathe.
His only thought was to get away. He didn’t know where he was running; it felt like there was nowhere left for him to go.
Cheng Ge had never seen Wen Ling run so fast. Furthermore, Wen Ling was running completely aimlessly, fleeing toward the most secluded areas he could find. Cheng Ge nearly couldn’t keep up.
However, Wen Ling’s stamina was ultimately no match for Cheng Ge’s. Combined with his high fever, he was eventually caught.
The two had run into a patch of woods somewhere. The sun was about to set, and the light, filtered through the leaves, felt even more dim and oppressive.
The woods were silent, save for the sound of a rushing stream nearby.
Cheng Ge gripped Wen Ling’s hand tightly. His tone wasn’t harsh, but it was far from gentle. “What on earth are you trying to do?”
What Wen Ling had done today was truly over the line. Cheng Ge couldn’t maintain his good temper anymore.
But Cheng Ge didn’t realize that every word of interrogation, every sharp tone, and every furrow of his brow was like a blade cutting into Wen Ling’s heart, systematically breaking down his remaining sanity.
“Let go of me! Get lost! Why didn’t you stand on my side?!”
“Didn’t you say you liked me the most?! Why are you helping them? I hate you!”
Cheng Ge was also driven to anger by this version of Wen Ling. “You did something wrong yourself—how am I supposed to stand on your side?”
To Wen Ling, not standing on his side was an act of betrayal. He could not accept betrayal, especially not from Cheng Ge.
“Go away!” Wen Ling tried to push Cheng Ge again. Anticipating the move, Cheng Ge pinned Wen Ling’s hands. As he leaned in, he felt the scorching temperature of the person in his arms and the heat of his breath. Cheng Ge belatedly realized something was wrong. He froze, his voice softening considerably. “You have a fever?”
Wen Ling couldn’t hear a word Cheng Ge was saying. He only knew he had to break free. He didn’t want this version of Cheng Ge!
“Go away!”
This time, Cheng Ge was caught off guard. Wen Ling pushed him so hard that he tumbled directly into the nearby river.
The water was somewhat deep, reaching Cheng Ge’s shoulders, and the current was swift and cold. It immediately swept him away from the bank.
Wen Ling froze in the pushing posture, unable to process what he had just done.
“Wen Ling, are you crazy?!” Cheng Ge called out in disbelief. Although falling into this river wouldn’t kill him, Wen Ling’s disregard for his life was truly infuriating. “What kind of madness are you having?”
With reddened eyes, Wen Ling looked at Cheng Ge. He suddenly didn’t know what he was doing anymore. Was it as Cheng Ge said—was he really crazy? He was just a madman, wasn’t he?
For a moment, a massive sense of bewilderment enveloped him.
But Cheng Ge had clearly promised to stay with him forever. He clearly said he liked him the most. Did Cheng Ge mean to go back on his word just because he was crazy? Would Cheng Ge stop caring about him? Did he not want him anymore?
Cheng Ge managed to swim back to the bank. Looking up at Wen Ling’s hollow eyes, he didn’t want to deal with him anymore. He really didn’t want to care about Wen Ling ever again.
He couldn’t be taught. No matter how he tried, he just couldn’t be taught!
Just as Cheng Ge was about to pull himself up onto the bank, he heard a loud splash beside him. His movements froze entirely for at least three seconds.
Fuck.
Wen Ling was truly insane!!
A complete madman.
Cheng Ge rescued Wen Ling and pulled him over to a large tree. He hugged Wen Ling tightly—or rather, he practically strangled him. He truly wanted to choke Wen Ling to death.
Regardless, Wen Ling was clearly seeking death. Setting aside the fever, that pathetic constitution of his dared to jump into such cold water? Considering Wen Ling couldn’t even swim, this madman was literally looking to die.
Cheng Ge punched the thick tree trunk behind Wen Ling. “You’re looking for death, aren’t you?! Are you fucking crazy?! Huh?!”
The leaves rustled in response to Cheng Ge’s roar. Cheng Ge had never been this fierce, not even when he first transmigrated here.
Just as Cheng Ge was about to pull Wen Ling out of the water, Wen Ling had actually tried to shake off his hand. If he had been even slightly weaker, Wen Ling might have died!
“You can’t even swim, yet you dared to jump! You jumped into water this cold! Has the fever turned your brain to mush?!”
“Do you really care so little for your own life?! You think you’re so capable, don’t you?!”
“You just have me figured out—you know I’ll care no matter what, right?!”
Cheng Ge paused to catch his breath, preparing to continue his scolding, when he suddenly heard a soft voice: “I’m sorry.”
Cheng Ge’s mouth was still open, his eyes still fierce enough to kill. Then he heard Wen Ling speak again: “Cheng Ge, I’m sorry…”
He watched as Wen Ling’s numb, hollow eyes suddenly turned red. A pool of tears welled up, and Cheng Ge’s voice failed him.
Actually, he had wanted to ask Wen Ling if he would ever learn. Pushing a girl, then pushing him—fucking pushing him twice! Unreasonable, willful to the extreme—who the hell could put up with him?
But Wen Ling began to cry harder and harder. Tears started to fall with a patter, patter. His sobs were suppressed, but the tears were unstoppable. Suddenly, Cheng Ge couldn’t bring himself to scold him anymore.
“Cheng Ge, Cheng Ge, I’m sorry. I was wrong.”
Cheng Ge could never understand Wen Ling’s logic. He wouldn’t be embarrassed when he should be; he wouldn’t be serious when he should be. He had jumped into a river without a second thought, and yet he dared to cry.
Of course, Cheng Ge didn’t understand. What Wen Ling wanted was to be the top priority in Cheng Ge’s heart. He wanted to be cared for by Cheng Ge, whether it was through gentle words or fierce scolding. He liked it when Cheng Ge held him so tightly it felt like he might die; he liked it when every word out of Cheng Ge’s mouth was about him. Only straightforward love could soften him and pull back his sanity.
Wen Ling thought Cheng Ge was going to call him a madman for pushing people and say he would never care for him again. Wen Ling thought Cheng Ge would never stand on his side again. But what Cheng Ge actually talked about was how he couldn’t swim, how the water was cold, and the fact that he would care for him.
That surge of bitterness and grievance that had been suppressed in his heart swept over Wen Ling like a tidal wave. It drowned his heart and reached his nose. His tear ducts lost control, and tears flowed continuously down his cheeks, hitting the ground and splashing onto Cheng Ge’s clothes.
Wen Ling wanted to hug Cheng Ge, or be held by him. Once his sanity returned, it was followed by extreme insecurity. Just looking at Cheng Ge wasn’t enough; smelling him wasn’t enough. He needed to touch, to embrace, to kiss—otherwise, that insecurity would drive him insane.
Cheng Ge watched Wen Ling with his red eyes and flowing tears, leaning in to beg for a hug. That pitiful look made Cheng Ge’s heart ache sharply. However, his actions remained merciless, and his tone was freezing. “Don’t touch me.”
Wen Ling froze for a moment. His sobbing became even more intense, yet he still sought the embrace. “No!”
“Cheng Ge, I’m sorry, I’m sorry… I… I really know I was wrong…”
Cheng Ge endured it, ignoring how pitifully Wen Ling was crying, and gave him not a single shred of mercy. “Don’t make me hate you, Wen Ling.”
“No…” Wen Ling didn’t dare move anymore. His hands hung in mid-air. “Cheng… Cheng Ge, don’t… don’t hate me. I’m sorry, Cheng Ge…”
Wen Ling cried until he was breathless. Cheng Ge’s heart was also being stabbed with pain, but he kept his face stern. “I need an explanation.” Cheng Ge casually wiped the tears from Wen Ling’s face and lashes with the back of his hand. He said word by word, “I cannot embrace someone who intentionally pushes a girl, nor can I be intimate with someone who pushes me into a river.”
“Most importantly, you don’t cherish your own life.”
“I… I didn’t do it on purpose!” Wen Ling’s mind was a mess of tears. He only thought of explaining, of begging Cheng Ge to forgive him. “I was waiting for you at the playground. I was taking photos of you.”
Wen Ling explained intermittently through his crying. “That girl blocked me. I… I moved away, and she blocked me again. I didn’t even argue with her… but, but she said I was upskirting her. She was the one who pushed me first! She pushed me so many times!”
“They all came to push me, so I pushed her. She… she even tried to grab my phone! They kept pushing me!”
“I wasn’t upskirting…”
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