Fever

Xin Wan said that, but in the end, when he followed Ying Huai back, he paid for all the food.

The reason was simple—Ying Huai's fever spiked again on the way back.

He was so feverish the whole way that he was nearly delirious—let alone paying, he could barely recognize people.

—Let alone having the energy to chase Xin Wan away.

"We're home, little shidi," Xin Wan opened the car door, frowning as he placed his hand on Ying Huai's forehead. "How can your fever be this high? Don't you take medicine?"

He chattered on for a long time, finally seeing the person in the car crack open his eyes a sliver, look him over for a few seconds, then suddenly close them again.

—Not only that, but he also covered his eyes with his hand, trying to cover up the fact that he was already awake.

Xin Wan: ......

He almost laughed out of exasperation: "Little shidi, I know you're awake. Pretending with me is useless..."

Before he could finish, he suddenly heard Ying Huai speak softly: "Let me sleep a little longer, Liang Shining. The recording hasn't started yet, has it?"

Xin Wan: ??

This time he wasn't exasperated into laughing—he was simply dumbfounded.

"What did you say? Ying Huai? What recording?" Xin Wan gritted his teeth. "Who did you say I am? Hmm?"

He reached out to pull Ying Huai straight out of the car, but the next second, a hand suddenly reached over and pressed down on Xin Wan's wrist.

Xin Wan felt pain and instinctively pulled his hand back. The next second, he watched Liang Shining lean half his body into the car, drape his jacket over Ying Huai, and half-support, half-carry him steadily out of the vehicle.

Xin Wan's brow twitched.

He quickly got out of the car too, stepped forward, and blocked Liang Shining's path: "Teacher Liang, why are you still following? Don't you need to go back to the company?"

Because of that memory from earlier, Xin Wan felt an inexplicable resistance toward Liang Shining: "Thank you, Teacher Liang, for looking after little shidi. Leave the rest to me..."

Before he could finish, he heard Liang Shining speak without looking up: "The car is mine. I'm taking Ying Huai home. What does it have to do with you?"

He wrapped Ying Huai tightly in the jacket, then looked up at Xin Wan: "Why did you follow?"

Xin Wan, who hadn't been able to get on Liang Shining's car and had taken a taxi to follow: ......

—He swore he could hear a hidden barb of mockery in Liang Shining's calm voice.

Liang Shining supported Ying Huai as he walked forward. Xin Wan gritted his teeth and lifted his foot to keep following, but saw Liang Shining suddenly turn his head to glance at him.

Xin Wan froze mid-step.

Because of that memory that had inexplicably surfaced in his mind, Xin Wan now felt an instinctive fear toward Liang Shining.

His steps involuntarily slowed as he watched helplessly as Liang Shining supported Ying Huai and walked quickly forward.

Liang Shining didn't care what Xin Wan thought. The person in his arms had a fever so high his lips had gone pale, yet a flush was slowly creeping across his cheeks, and his breathing was growing more and more rapid.

Liang Shining frowned and supported Ying Huai as he walked quickly forward.

But the fever-delirious person had no intention of cooperating properly.

"I can't walk anymore, Liang Shining." After a few steps, Ying Huai suddenly pushed Liang Shining away and stood swaying in place.

He was so feverish he felt dizzy all over. He opened his eyes and looked around, frowning, a hint of confusion in his expression: "Where did you take me, Liang Shining?"

Ying Huai tended to get confused when he had a fever, and Liang Shining couldn't tell for the moment how bad it was.

He reached out, trying to pull him over first: "We're almost at your home. Come here first..."

Before he could finish, he suddenly heard Ying Huai speak quietly: "Are we going to record the finals?"

Liang Shining was stunned for a moment.

He belatedly realized what Ying Huai was talking about.

—It was from when they had recorded the Cross-Genre Singer Program together before.

On that program, each mentor had to look after many trainees. Ying Huai was more responsible than most, always hands-on, and his manager didn't really look after him, so by the later stages he had started getting sick frequently.

To let Ying Huai sleep a little longer, Liang Shining had taken it upon himself to wake him up and bring him meals.

Ying Huai had originally scoffed at the idea. As a mentor, even though he was usually casual and irreverent, he didn't think he needed to be taken care of by his own student.

But within a week, Ying Huai had not only learned to bargain with Liang Shining when he refused to get out of bed, but had gradually started demanding specific breakfasts every day.

Now, looking at the fever-delirious person before him, Liang Shining's hand at his side trembled.

He looked at Ying Huai and spoke quietly: "We're not going to record the finals."

Ying Huai was stunned for a moment. Liang Shining slowly stepped forward and extended his hand toward Ying Huai: "The finals are still far off. There's no rush. I'm taking you to rest."

Ying Huai lowered his eyes, stared at the hand Liang Shining had extended for a few seconds, then suddenly spoke softly: "Why don't you call me 'shifu' anymore?"

Liang Shining was slightly startled.

"Why did you abandon me before the finals?" Ying Huai raised his head. He was clearly smiling, but it looked worse than crying. "Do you also think I harmed Le Xi?"

Liang Shining suddenly raised his head: "No."

He looked at Ying Huai, opening his mouth with some difficulty, seeming to want to say something: "It's because..."

Before he could finish, he was suddenly cut off by Ying Huai.

"Then now that this matter has been cleared up, why still won't you call me 'shifu'?"

Ying Huai's mind was muddled—one moment it was the program from his past life, the next it was this life, Liang Shining crouching by his bed, quietly begging him to believe him.

He looked up at Liang Shining, and a layer of mist slowly gathered in his peach-blossom eyes—whether from the fever or something else, it was unclear.

Liang Shining silently opened his mouth.

He stared at Ying Huai and suddenly spoke: "Then why did you lie to me so many times later in your past life, shifu?"

Liang Shining knew Ying Huai was so feverish he was barely conscious and wouldn't understand what he was saying at all.

But he still spoke in a trembling voice: "This won't be another 'The Boy Who Cried Wolf,' will it."

Ying Huai's expression was blank.

He leaned half against Liang Shining's shoulder, his eyes half-closed, the hot breath from his lips slowly fanning against Liang Shining's neck—whether he was unconscious or awake was unclear.

The surroundings were silent. After a few seconds, Ying Huai suddenly hummed softly, seeming to come back to himself: "Mm..."

Liang Shining's body tensed for a moment, but the next second, he heard Ying Huai speak quietly: "I'm hungry, Liang Shining."

The strength he had just gathered finally gave out, and his body uncontrollably went limp.

Liang Shining caught him in one motion, and the breath he had been holding instantly released.

—Ying Huai truly hadn't been lucid, and truly didn't remember what he had just asked.

Liang Shining closed his eyes briefly. When he spoke again, his voice had returned to its usual calm: "Mm. I'll take shifu to buy something to eat."

—But none of that mattered much, as long as Ying Huai was still alive.

Liang Shining carefully adjusted Ying Huai's collar and spoke quietly: "What does shifu want to eat?"

He looked down at Ying Huai, only to see the person before him break into a smile the next second: "I want Mint Chocolate Ice Cream."

Liang Shining's brow twitched.

·

Ying Huai's home was in a relatively remote area, but for some reason, the Commercial Street across from it happened to have an imported ice cream shop that just happened to sell Mint Chocolate.

Liang Shining, expressionless, held the fever-delirious person steady and walked quickly forward.

"You have a fever now, you can't eat it," Liang Shining tried, as before, to reason with Ying Huai. "Wait until your fever goes down, then I'll buy it."

But Ying Huai clearly had his own logic, just like when he refused to get out of bed before: "Last time at the company you said the same thing, and by the time I got home I still hadn't gotten to eat it."

Liang Shining: ...

—This person's sense of time was all muddled by the fever, yet he still remembered not having gotten his ice cream.

Ying Huai twisted his body as he spoke, trying to walk toward the Commercial Street.

Liang Shining wanted to hold him back, but out of concern for Ying Huai's condition, he didn't dare use force.

His expression, rarely, showed a hint of a headache. The next second, he heard a panting voice from behind: "What does little shidi want to buy?"

Xin Wan, who had steeled himself, finally caught up after hurrying.

He looked at the two of them before him and instantly understood: "You want Mint Chocolate Ice Cream, right?"

The memories that had suddenly appeared in his mind made Xin Wan inexplicably want to be nicer to Ying Huai.

—At the same time, he also wanted to outdo Liang Shining in front of Ying Huai.

Xin Wan glanced at Liang Shining and spoke teasingly: "No worries. If the great Actor Liang won't buy it for you, I will."

But the moment he finished speaking, he heard Ying Huai say with a beaming smile: "Also fried chicken, mint candy, jasmine milk tea..."

Xin Wan: "...Are you ordering a meal, Ying Huai?"

Ying Huai looked up at him, his expression half-smiling, half-not: "You don't want to come to my place anymore?"

Xin Wan gritted his teeth and decided not to argue with a fever-delirious person.

He turned around abruptly, but the next second, suddenly thought of something and turned back suspiciously: "You know who's buying you ice cream right now, right, little shidi?"

Ying Huai stared at Xin Wan for a few seconds, his peach-blossom eyes slowly curving: "I know, Xin Wan."

Xin Wan nodded in satisfaction: "Good that you know. Wait here for me, I'll be right back, and then I'll take you home."

He spoke as he turned around, not noticing that Ying Huai behind him slowly added another sentence: "Xin Wan—ATM."

Ying Huai, holding onto Liang Shining's arm, turned around and said with a beaming smile: "Good, I've chased him off. Let's go back quickly, don't wait for him."

Liang Shining: ...?

—For a moment, he suspected that Ying Huai had actually been lucid just now.

·

The fever had taken too great a toll on Ying Huai's heart. Even after taking medicine, he still had to rest for a long time after walking a little. By the time the two finally reached the front door, nearly ten minutes had passed.

But an uninvited guest had inexplicably appeared at the door.

"Long time no see, Ying Huai," Ying Huai's manager Wu Tian stood at the door, slowly turning around. "You've been going swimmingly lately."

After walking all the way, Ying Huai's mind had finally cleared a bit.

Wu Tian was his manager—and also the person who, in his past life, had been bought off by Le Xi and driven him step by step into the abyss.

He slowly straightened up and curved his lips: "Manager, you've come about Le Xi?"

Wu Tian raised an eyebrow smugly: "Good that you know. My request is simple—go clear up the matter about Le Xi and let him rejoin the Variety Show."

"This is the company's demand, and the matter started because of you, so you have to take full responsibility. If you can't resolve it, then Le Xi's breach-of-contract penalty is yours to handle—"

Before Wu Tian could finish, he was suddenly interrupted by an irritable voice from behind.

"Little shidi, why didn't you wait for me?"

Xin Wan, carrying two large bags, gritted his teeth: "Forget it, never mind. Why aren't you going inside? I can't carry this anymore."

Seeing Ying Huai staring at him without moving, he thought there was something Ying Huai wanted to eat that he hadn't been able to buy, and quickly spoke again: "Whatever else little shidi wants to buy is fine, I'll buy it for you later. Just let me put these down first—"

The next second, Xin Wan watched as Ying Huai stepped aside, revealing Wu Tian behind him.

"Perfect," Ying Huai said with a beaming smile. "Help me pay Le Xi's breach-of-contract penalty."

Xin Wan: ?