34

Today, Lin Xiao went to a friend’s birthday party. He drank too much, and stumbled back to Su Bai’s dorm, completely drunk.

But luckily, he still recognized who he was.

When Su Bai saw Lin Xiao in this drunken state, he furrowed his brows and poured a cup of warm water from the thermos, trying to get Lin Xiao to drink it.

However, Lin Xiao refused to drink and instead hooked his arm around Su Bai’s neck, clinging to him like a spoiled child, and gave him a deep kiss.

The strong taste of alcohol filled his mouth.

Lin Xiao half-opened his eyes, holding Su Bai’s hand, let out a small burp, and whispered, “Don’t be mad…”

Su Bai puffed out his cheeks but said nothing.

Lin Xiao rubbed his face against Su Bai’s hand, looking completely innocent, and said, “They kept feeding me…”

Su Bai pressed the edge of the cup to Lin Xiao’s lips, gently saying, “Drink some water.”

Lin Xiao tilted his head back and gulped down a few big swigs, his drunk eyes staring at Su Bai as he murmured, “I love you.”

Su Bai’s roommates immediately looked stunned, as if they had been blinded by the scene.

Su Bai widened his eyes, about to say something, but Lin Xiao had already collapsed face-first onto the pillow, fast asleep…

Lin Xiao slept on the upper bunk in his dorm, while Su Bai took the lower. With Lin Xiao in such a drunken state, it seemed like even climbing into bed would be difficult for him. So, Su Bai simply laid Lin Xiao down on his own bed, helped him take off his shoes and outer clothes, tucked him in, and then went to sleep in Lin Xiao’s bed instead.

35

The next morning, at breakfast, Lin Xiao kept clutching his stomach, wincing and sucking in cold air. He didn’t touch the bowl of congee or the side dishes in front of him.

Su Bai, concerned, asked, “What’s wrong with you?”

Lin Xiao, weakly lying on the table, barely managed to whisper, “Stomach ache.”

Su Bai, like he was soothing a child, managed to get Lin Xiao to drink some congee. Lin Xiao endured the pain all day, it coming and going intermittently. Since there were no classes the next morning, Su Bai decided to force Lin Xiao to go to the hospital.

Lin Xiao was highly resistant, almost sitting down in protest: “I’m not going. I’ll just drink porridge for a few days and it’ll get better.”

Su Bai shook his head seriously. “No, you have to go. Listen to me, stomach issues can be serious.”

Lin Xiao tried to resist, but Su Bai had already started rambling, almost quoting half of a medical paper.

After being practically bombarded with a lecture from Su Bai, Lin Xiao was left with the strong impression that if he didn’t go to the hospital today, he might not survive. Reluctantly, he gave in.

After the doctor asked Lin Xiao a few questions, he was scheduled for a gastroscopy.

Lin Xiao, looking pained, asked, “Can I skip it?”

He had heard that gastroscopies were agonizing, practically worse than death.

The doctor was about to speak, but Su Bai interrupted, saying: ‘Actually, many stomach issues have similar symptoms, and doctors find it hard to pinpoint the exact type of stomach problem just based on the symptoms. To treat it thoroughly, you still need to get a gastroscopy. I had one when I was in middle school, and it’s not as painful as people say. You just need to relax, avoid swallowing too much in your throat, and keep your breathing steady. The discomfort is manageable.'”

The doctor remained silent for a moment and then said: “That’s right.”
You’ve said it all!

Lin Xiao: …

So, despite being extremely reluctant, Lin Xiao still obediently followed Su Bai to get a blood draw, submitted the test results to the gastroscopy room, and then waited quietly at the door.

While waiting, Lin Xiao poked Su Bai and said, “I feel like the pain has suddenly disappeared.”

Su Bai seriously scrutinized him: “You just want to avoid the examination.”

Lin Xiao, feeling completely miserable: “…”

Su Bai comforted him: “Whenever I face difficulties, I think about the revolutionary ancestors, the Red Army’s Long March, climbing snow-capped mountains, crossing grasslands, and then I feel that my own difficulties are nothing compared to that. You should try thinking the same.”

Lin Xiao immediately felt as if he had returned to elementary school moral education class and flatly refused: “I don’t want to think about it.'”

Su Bai hesitated for a moment and said: “Then think about me.”

Lin Xiao instantly felt much better: “That’s more reliable… Wait, why do you keep flirting with me lately?”

Su Bai waved his hand: “I’m not flirting. I just thought that if you think about me, you’ll feel a bit more at ease, because… because you love me, right?”

Lin Xiao grabbed Su Bai’s hand and said seriously: “Comrade Su Bai, I suspect you’re actually a schemer. You’ve disguised yourself as a silly little guy, infiltrated my ranks, secretly stirred things up, shaken the morale, caused chaos, and then took advantage of the situation to seize the revolutionary high ground.”

Su Bai was stunned for a moment before bursting into laughter: “Why do you sound like my dad and grandpa?”

Now it was Lin Xiao’s turn to be stunned: “…Your dad and grandpa talk like that normally?”

Su Bai nodded as if it were completely natural: “Yeah, our whole family of five are all party members.”

Lin Xiao: “…”

No wonder! No wonder, no wonder, no wonder!

At this moment, a call came from the gastroscopy room. Lin Xiao took a deep breath, silently chanting Su Bai’s name in his heart, striding into the room with determination.

Five minutes later, Lin Xiao came out holding the report, his eyes red and teary.

Su Bai hurriedly handed him a tissue, asking with concern: “How is it?”

Lin Xiao wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes and shook the report in his hand. “I don’t think it’s anything serious. I’ll let the doctor take a look.”

Su Bai: “Alright.”

Lin Xiao smacked his lips in frustration and said, “My mouth tastes bitter. That anesthetic I drank earlier made me feel sick, but the nurse said I can’t eat or drink anything for another hour.”

Hearing this, Su Bai suddenly stopped, turned around, hooked his arm around Lin Xiao’s neck, and lifted his face to kiss him.

Lin Xiao: “…”

Su Bai’s eyes sparkled: “Still bitter?”

Lin Xiao licked his lips and excitedly said, “How can it be bitter? It’s fucking sweet!”