Chapter 124: Words Left Unspoken
“We can eat. I have good news for our Xiao Wen.” Cheng Ge squeezed Wen Ling’s palm and used the back of his hand to wipe away the moisture from Wen Ling’s damp eyes.
Wen Ling’s round eyes stayed fixed on Cheng Ge. He reached into his chest pocket, but all that remained were the same few snacks from this morning.
Cheng Ge was amused by Wen Ling’s linear way of thinking. “No, it’s a different kind of good news.”
“What good news?”
“Do you see anything different here?” Cheng Ge pointed around the cave, prompting Wen Ling to look. However, Wen Ling simply scanned Cheng Ge from top to bottom, inside and out.
“Over here.” Cheng Ge chuckled and gently turned Wen Ling’s head, forcing him to look at the few pieces of charcoal on the ground.
“It’s all black,” Wen Ling described.
“Right. Now, try blowing on the charcoal.”
Wen Ling gave the charcoal a light puff. A layer of red glowed beneath the surface, and a wave of heat carrying a bit of dust puffed back into Wen Ling’s face.
“Careful, it’s hot,” Cheng Ge pulled Wen Ling back. “I actually succeeded. So, should we have grilled fish or boiled fish soup later?”
As Wen Ling pondered Cheng Ge’s question, he heard Cheng Ge reach a conclusion for them: “Let’s just have both.”
“Okay,” Wen Ling nodded. He added softly, “Cheng Ge is amazing.”
“Then give me a couple of kisses.” Cheng Ge beckoned Wen Ling closer with a hook of his finger. “Kiss me.”
Wen Ling blinked, momentarily dazed. Cheng Ge rarely spoke to him like this; usually, it was Cheng Ge who took the initiative to kiss him.
Wen Ling’s hesitation dissatisfied Cheng Ge. “Make it three kisses, then. Hurry up, kiss me.”
The words were a command, yet the tone was coquettish, almost pleading.
No matter the situation, Wen Ling could never resist a vulnerable Cheng Ge. Besides, Wen Ling truly wanted to kiss him.
Wen Ling didn’t dare lean his weight on Cheng Ge. He gripped Cheng Ge’s clothes and peppered his face with many small, lingering pecks.
To Wen Ling, any form of physical contact served as a source of comfort. He craved it, especially in such an uncertain situation.
If possible, he wanted to stay wrapped in Cheng Ge’s arms all day, kissing him, their skin pressed together.
However, it felt as though indulging in such intimacy under these circumstances was irresponsible—that it would be bad for Cheng Ge. Thus, Wen Ling had been suppressing his own needs and impulses.
He hadn’t realized that Cheng Ge needed these kisses just as much. This realization made the intimacy he craved feel justified, even necessary.
“Cheng Ge, kiss me too.” The corners of Wen Ling’s eyes were slightly red and moist, and his voice carried a sweet, needy lilt.
Cheng Ge, of course, did not hesitate. He pulled Wen Ling into a deep kiss, his hands constantly stroking him, offering the most profound affection to soothe the startled little beast in his arms.
In Cheng Ge’s view, making Wen Ling feel secure was the most important task at hand.
However, because of the injury to his leg, Cheng Ge couldn’t hold Wen Ling face-to-face. The effect of their embrace was always slightly weakened by the awkward positioning.
Cheng Ge’s leg was indeed a major problem. He could only sit in place to help out, unable to perform any heavy labor.
Cheng Ge wrapped his hands in plastic bags to clean the fish, piling the waste on another bag before restarting the fire properly.
Wen Ling found suitable stones and sticks nearby, cleaned them, and carried them back into the cave. He set up a makeshift stand to heat their pot.
Cheng Ge used a damp tissue to wipe the sticks clean, then held them over the fire to sterilize them with heat before skewering the fish and setting them over the stones to grill.
When the water in the pot became warm to the touch, Cheng Ge used half a plastic bottle to scoop some out and set it aside for the next day. Once the remaining water grew hotter, he poured a portion into a basin.
“Xiao Wen, come sit here. Get closer to the fire.”
Wen Ling sat beside Cheng Ge and watched his movements.
Cheng Ge dipped a tissue into the hot water, wrung it out, and first pressed it against Wen Ling’s eyes for a moment. Then, he gently wiped Wen Ling’s face, neck, and hands.
Before this, Wen Ling’s hands had been white and tender from daily applications of hand cream. Now, not only was the skin chapped from the wind, but they were covered in bruises and scratches.
Cheng Ge frowned as he held Wen Ling’s hand. His movements became even gentler as he soaked the tissue again to press against the bruises.
“It must hurt,” Cheng Ge murmured.
“It doesn’t. I can’t really feel it.”
“Are you angry? Or just frustrated?” Wen Ling asked suddenly.
“Neither,” Cheng Ge adjusted his expression. “I feel pained for you and worried. Those are the two emotions I’m feeling.”
Wen Ling pursed his lips and remained silent. He reached out and gently smoothed the back of Cheng Ge’s jacket.
Cheng Ge let him continue, quietly watching Wen Ling’s face for a moment before flicking the zipper of Wen Ling’s jacket. “Take your coat off. I’ll wipe you down.”
“No,” Wen Ling hugged himself tightly. “You won’t let me see yours.”
He was referring to the wounds hidden beneath Cheng Ge’s clothes.
Both of them had been silently hiding their injuries, never allowing the other to catch a glimpse.
Previously, they lacked the means to do anything, and Cheng Ge didn’t want to see Wen Ling’s wounds if he couldn’t treat them—it would have only added unnecessary pressure. Now that they had hot water, he was determined to clean them.
“I’m not hiding them. I’ll wipe you down first, then you can do the same for me.”
Only after Cheng Ge said this did Wen Ling agree to take off his jacket. “Then I’ll wipe you down afterward.”
“Mn.” Cheng Ge carefully rolled up Wen Ling’s sleeves, revealing several spots that had turned blue and purple.
The most severe was the knife wound. The man who had been driving hadn’t held back when he stabbed him; the dried blood looked like a dark, jagged scab.
Cheng Ge didn’t use much force as he wiped. “Tell me if it hurts.”
“Okay.”
Cheng Ge asked, “Do you want me to wipe your stomach too?”
Wen Ling pulled up his shirt. “Yes.”
After finishing with his stomach, Cheng Ge wiped Wen Ling’s back. There were no injuries there, so it went much faster.
Cheng Ge continued, “Your legs. Roll up your pants.”
Wen Ling’s legs were mostly uninjured, save for a large bruise on his calf. That, too, was cleaned quickly, though Cheng Ge made sure to apply a hot compress at the end.
Wen Ling watched as Cheng Ge helped him zip his jacket back up, then hurriedly tried to take over the work. “Now it’s my turn to help you.”
Cheng Ge grinned. “Just wipe my face.”
Wen Ling seriously cleaned Cheng Ge’s face and neck. When he asked Cheng Ge to take off his jacket, Cheng Ge complied, but he stopped after the upper body.
Cheng Ge’s arm injuries were far more severe than Wen Ling’s. Several areas of skin were so purple they appeared black. In reality, it was a struggle for him even to lift his arms.
Wen Ling hadn’t even finished cleaning before his eyes grew red. He tried to sniffle secretly, but Cheng Ge leaned over to look at him, teasing, “Are you going to be a crybaby?”
“…Hmph.” Wen Ling turned his face away. He knew Cheng Ge was doing it on purpose, but his heart ached terribly. He suppressed the urge to cry and silently continued wiping Cheng Ge’s back.
“It doesn’t hurt much now. It only hurt at the beginning, really.”
Wen Ling didn’t believe a word of it. He reached out to roll up Cheng Ge’s pant legs. “…Your leg.”
“I’ll do that myself,” Cheng Ge pressed down on Wen Ling’s hand. “Don’t look. It’s too ugly. Give me some face, Xiao Wen.”
Wen Ling stared into Cheng Ge’s curved eyes, his own eyes brimming with tears. Cheng Ge looked as if he were about to say “I beg you.”
“Hmph.” Wen Ling stood up and went outside to gather more firewood.
Cheng Ge’s leg had indeed reached an “ugly” state. One was deformed, while the other was mottled with scars. Fortunately, there was no active bleeding, so he wasn’t too worried about infection for the time being.
After Cheng Ge finished cleaning his legs and hands, he turned the grilled fish and gave the soup a stir.
Wen Ling returned with a bundle of dry wood, along with a few long, thin green branches.
Wen Ling had already composed his emotions. He sat cross-legged beside Cheng Ge and handed him the branches. “These can be used as chopsticks.”
“Good.” Cheng Ge rubbed Wen Ling’s head and held the branches over the fire for a moment to sterilize them.
The fish were only about the size of a palm, so they cooked quickly. They had a pleasant aroma, but the flavor was truthfully lacking—even a bit unpleasant due to the fishiness. However, both Cheng Ge and Wen Ling ate with smiles on their faces.
“Cheng Ge, try this fin. It’s crunchy.” Wen Ling held a crispy fish fin to Cheng Ge’s lips. It made a loud crunch-crunch sound as he bit into it.
Cheng Ge started laughing as he chewed. “I feel like we’ve become wildmen.”
“It seems our little life here is actually quite comfortable, huh?”
Wen Ling smiled as well. “I suppose so.”
Once the soup in the pot wasn’t too hot, Cheng Ge told Wen Ling to drink it.
“I’m not drinking it. It smells too fishy.” Wen Ling frowned, refusing. Earlier, if Cheng Ge hadn’t been constantly feeding him bits of fish from the pot, he wouldn’t have eaten any at all.
“Drink a few sips. All the nutrients are in the broth.”
Wen Ling didn’t care about a “nutritional scale” in his heart. “I’m full. I don’t want to drink it.”
Such a small fish didn’t have much nutrition anyway, so Cheng Ge didn’t push him too hard. “Then just one sip. Treat it like drinking water. I’ll drink the rest—we’ll share it.”
Only then did Wen Ling reluctantly take a small sip.
After they had eaten and drunk their fill, Cheng Ge and Wen Ling leaned against the cave wall to rest. Cheng Ge teased Wen Ling from time to time as they waited for the day to pass.
As the sky gradually darkened, Cheng Ge nudged Wen Ling with his elbow, appearing somewhat hesitant to speak.
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