Chapter 47: Chi Yuheng, It Hurts
“Brother…”
“Xiao Bai.”
After greeting Chi Yuheng and the others over there, Ye Tingyun came over to find Qiao Yubai. Ye Ran’s position was with his back to him, so he didn’t see him.
From his angle, the first person he could see was Qiao Yubai running toward Ye Ran.
Ye Ran heard Ye Tingyun’s voice. He turned his head and saw that the man’s gaze was on Qiao Yubai, while Qiao Yubai was currently beside him, staring at his foot.
Ye Tingyun walked toward them, while also calling to Qiao Yubai, “Why are you running around everywhere? Are you hurt…”
Ye Tingyun was originally going to lecture Qiao Yubai a few more times. This kid was prone to getting lost whenever he went out. Before coming, he had told him to stick close after reaching the island; however he brought him here was however he had to bring him back. If he lost the boy, how would he explain it to the Qiao family?
Qiao Yubai couldn’t live in the Ye residence without someone to take care of him. Ye Muqing had previously scrambled to take care of this newly arrived brother, but after a few days, he abandoned him to focus on that novel of his.
He couldn’t ignore it either, so he had to take the boy wherever he went, always being careful not to lose him.
Sometimes putting himself in others’ shoes, Ye Ran had lived in the Chi residence for so many years; Chi Yuheng must have had a hard time too.
When he was abroad, he often heard Qiao Yousheng talk about the feeling of living under someone else’s roof when he was young. For Ye Ran, this feeling should be the same, right?
Thinking about the many things Ye Ran did before to frame Xiao Bai, perhaps it was because he didn’t receive love that he acted that way, wanting to attract the family’s attention. The Ye family truly owed him too much.
From Ye Tingyun’s perspective, Qiao Yubai seemed to be talking to someone. Qiao Yubai had nearly been taken away by human traffickers before, and his ability to judge people wasn’t great. Ye Tingyun instinctively quickened his pace.
It wasn’t until the person talking to Qiao Yubai looked up that Ye Tingyun’s footsteps paused.
He was somewhat surprised in his heart. He had just been thinking about Ye Ran, and Ye Ran was actually right here.
Ye Ran vaguely noticed a different emotion in Ye Tingyun’s gaze—he couldn’t tell if it was worry or something else—making him feel uncomfortable all over.
Was he worried about Qiao Yubai?
Before Ye Ran awakened, he had intentionally used Qiao Yubai’s pen to prick his own hand, then claimed Qiao Yubai did it because he couldn’t stand him.
Such low-level framing would naturally be seen through.
Right now, Ye Ran’s head wasn’t malfunctioning; he wouldn’t do something so stupid.
Besides, he was the one hurt now. Anyone who wasn’t blind could see that a rock had sliced his foot.
Qiao Yubai was well-protected in the Ye family; he hadn’t even broken a layer of skin. Seeing so much blood from Ye Ran’s foot, he was flustered for a moment. “Brother, so much blood! What should we do?”
Ye Ran rolled his eyes upon hearing this. Qiao Yubai’s heart was in the right place, but his brain tended to miss a few strings when things actually happened.
What should we do? Just stand there and do nothing, waiting for me to bleed to death…
Ye Ran was speechless. This was indeed a way to die.
He thought that perhaps the author had run out of ideas and orchestrated an accident to kill him off.
But at this thought, a flash of inspiration suddenly struck Ye Ran’s brain.
Qiao Yubai cared about him so much. He slightly suspected… based on Ye Tingyun’s gaze just now, had he imagined him as a love rival?
After all, some novels wrote that some CEOs’ jealousy extended even to their wife’s actual brother. Ye Ran just happened to be Qiao Yubai’s biological brother. Who knew if the plot was crazy enough that even if Ye Ran didn’t target Qiao Yubai, the Protagonist Gong would still kill him out of jealousy.
It wasn’t impossible. In the original plot, the two Protagonist Gongs fought to the death over Qiao Yubai. In the readers’ comments, one was a “vinegar jar” and the other was a “vinegar vat.”
They reached the point where if Qiao Yubai spared anyone an extra glance, they both wanted to strangle the other person.
At this thought, Ye Ran shuddered.
It truly was full of difficulties. There was an accident in front, and a Protagonist Gong “vinegar spirit” watching like a tiger behind. At this rate, did he have any chance of surviving?
While his wild thoughts were still circling in his brain, Ye Tingyun had already approached.
Chi Youchu and Xu Huiyang had gone far away catching the sea—so far they might be stuck in the sea at any time when the tide came in.
They didn’t know what was happening here. The only people with Ye Ran were Ye Tingyun and Qiao Yubai.
No village ahead, no inn behind, and no reinforcements on either side.
Ye Ran thought that if Ye Tingyun wanted to make a move on him, would his loud cry for help attract Chi Yuheng?
Ye Tingyun’s gaze toward Ye Ran was quite complex. He looked around as if he were being wary. Was it because he had been away for too long that this kid was so afraid of him?
He wanted to get closer to check Ye Ran’s foot, but Ye Ran suddenly took a large step back. In an instant, another small patch of blood appeared on the grey-brown mudflat.
Before Ye Ran could say anything, Qiao Yubai became anxious first. “Brother, don’t move! A lot more blood came out.”
Ye Tingyun’s mood was even more complex. He seemingly hadn’t done anything, so why did Ye Ran dodge him like he was dodging a man-eating tiger?
But now clearly wasn’t the time to obsess over this question. Since Ye Ran wouldn’t let him get close, Ye Tingyun could only maintain a certain distance as he looked at his bleeding foot and asked, “Does it hurt?”
These words were equivalent to nonsense.
Ye Ran was quite calm. “It doesn’t hurt.”
This was only in front of Ye Tingyun. If it were Chi Yuheng, a certain someone would likely have collapsed right there and whined, “Chi Yuheng, it hurts…”
“It doesn’t hurt?!” Qiao Yubai raised his voice. “Brother, you’ve bled so much and it doesn’t hurt? Are you made of iron?”
It was a lie to say it didn’t hurt. When it was first sliced, it was indeed so fast that there wasn’t much pain. Once the nerves reacted, every second felt like fire was burning in his flesh.
Stung by the seawater, the edges of the sliced flesh had slightly curled. Ye Ran’s face turned visibly pale.
Bright red blood often stimulates one’s visual nerves even more.
Ye Ran certainly couldn’t walk. Ye Tingyun didn’t care whether Ye Ran was dodging him or not; he came up to carry him.
Ye Ran instinctively wanted to retreat, but his wrist was caught by Ye Tingyun, who spoke in a low voice, “Don’t move.”
Ye Ran didn’t know what Ye Tingyun wanted to do. Following his previous guess, he blurted out, “Ye Tingyun, I have no intention of stealing your wife.”
Ye Tingyun: “???”
He didn’t understand what Ye Ran was saying. What wife?
Did the rock hit his foot or his head?
Or was Ye Ran on the island looking for a wife, and a small accident delayed his pursuit of someone?
The two brothers had their own thoughts. Ye Tingyun directly carried Ye Ran on his back, with Qiao Yubai helping from behind.
“Save your search for a wife for when your foot is better. I’ll take you to the hospital first. Based on the condition of your foot, you likely need stitches.”
“What?!” The Ye Ran who was calm just now wasn’t calm at all.
Hearing those two words, he already felt the sensation of a needle and thread pulling back and forth through his flesh. He wished he could faint immediately.
On the other side, Chi Yuheng and Xu Zhaoli were sitting by the lake, waiting quietly for fish to take the bait.
Pei Si was lying on a lounge chair with a foxtail grass in his mouth. He couldn’t do something that required patience like fishing at all. He slightly regretted it; if he had known, he would have gone catching the sea with Ye Ran and the others.
Watching Chi Youchu run around a crab with a bucket—how energetic that was! Compared to this side, it was deadly quiet.
Chi Yuheng’s fishing line suddenly sank violently, and the rod instantly bent into a tense arc. His wrist, which should have immediately reeled in, delayed for a split second. A moment later, the float was drifting empty on the water’s surface, the previous movement gone.
Seeing this, Pei Si “tsk-tsked” twice. “Even the fishing expert President Chi has moments of error.”
Chi Yuheng narrowed his eyes and silently reeled in the line. He was always very focused when fishing, but for some reason, he had just been distracted.
He checked the time. Ye Ran and the others should be back soon; the tide was about to come in.
Just as he put down his phone, the ringtone suddenly sounded.
Translator’s Note:
A “vinegar jar” (醋缸 – cùgāng) or “vinegar vat” (醋桶 – cùtǒng) is a Chinese metaphor for an extremely jealous person. Since the word for “jealousy” is “eating vinegar” (吃醋 – chīcù), someone who is very jealous is essentially a giant container of vinegar!
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