After being moved to tears by the sworn enemy's pheromones - Chapter 86

“Was the argument that bad?” Qin Zhu clapped his hands and said, “Great, my suggestion is to break up immediately.”

Shen Jin’s words got stuck in his throat: “…I haven’t even told you why Gu Yu and I argued yet.”

“What else could it be?” Qin Zhu deliberately enunciated each word, “If you argue and don’t break up, are you waiting for New Year’s to pick an auspicious day?”

“…The year is already over.” Shen Jin angrily poked Qin Zhu’s arm with a lighter, then sat down by the hotpot and changed the subject, “I want shrimp paste!”

The shrimp paste, taken out of the freezer, was cold to the touch. Qin Zhu almost threw it back at Shen Jin’s neck with his chopsticks. “If you want it, squeeze it yourself. Do you think you’re some kind of princess?”

“Yeah.” Shen Jin grinned like a rascal, “It’s too cold, I don’t want to touch it. Otherwise, I might catch a cold and end up dying here with a high fever.”

“If you die, I could at least get a master’s and PhD in one go.” Qin Zhu glared at him and grabbed the shrimp paste bag, squeezing it into the pot while saying, “No wonder your husband doesn’t want you—when’s he coming to take you back?”

Shen Jin’s movements paused for half a second, and his tone turned bitter: “…We argued, so he probably won’t come looking for me.”

Xu Tingyun handed a glass of coconut juice to Shen Jin, saying, “You’re talking nonsense… He’d have to know where you are first to come looking for you. He didn’t put a tracker on you.”

Shen Jin patted his stomach and said, as if it were true: “It’s not like there’s no other way to track me…”

Qin Zhu wanted to burn his mouth with a freshly cooked piece of tripe. While the two of them were messing around, Xu Tingyun secretly sent a WeChat message to Gu Yu, pretending to ask innocently: 【Why didn’t Shen Jin bring you to the dorm for hotpot?】

The reply came quickly and concisely: 【Because I’m paralyzed.】

【Really?】 Xu Tingyun was surprised, 【Great, so you’re just paralyzed. I thought you two had argued. He’s not saying anything, just crying.】

Gu Yu replied just as fast: 【Don’t try to fool me.】

【Can’t hide anything from you, huh～】 Xu Tingyun sighed and snapped a picture of the hotpot on the table, sending it over. 【I’ll bring Shen Jin back when we’re done.】

Amidst the rising steam, Shen Jin noticed Xu Tingyun’s actions but hesitated only for a second before continuing to fight Qin Zhu over a piece of yam, pretending he hadn’t seen anything.

Half an hour passed, and Shen Jin glanced at the empty doorway. He lowered his head and reached for a can of beer, but Qin Zhu stopped him: “Miss Shen, this is cold. Warm it up before you drink it.”

Shen Jin pretended to punch him, while Xu Tingyun interjected, “Weren’t you getting IVs every day? Feeling any better?”

“…” Shen Jin wiped his face evasively, “I wouldn’t say better or worse…”

Qin Zhu finally looked a bit serious when this topic came up: “Can you talk like a normal person?”

Shen Jin hesitated for a while before speaking. It wasn’t until Qin Zhu actually threatened to burn his mouth with the freshly cooked beef that he finally answered, “…I went for a follow-up twice recently. The situation has become a bit complicated.”

Both of his roommates frowned, looking at him. Shen Jin praised the coconut juice for being tasty and continued, “It’s not really a big deal, just some bronchiectasis complications, so I need to keep taking medication. If it still can’t be controlled, then surgery to remove part of the lung might be necessary.”

Before his roommates could respond, Shen Jin quickly patted both their shoulders. “It sounds scary, but it’s probably not that bad.”

Usually calm, Xu Tingyun’s eyes widened: “You call removing part of your lung ‘a little scary’?”

Qin Zhu was even angrier, his brain practically steaming: “Do you even know how important the lungs are among the five vital organs? What do you think this is, the market where they sell things by the pound and throw in some peppercorns and star anise?”

Half a second later, he clenched his fists and said, “Sorry, I’m used to talking trash.”

“Oh, it’s fine. Worst case, my ashes will weigh five kilos, and I can even have some traditional carvings on the urn.” Shen Jin reassured him, “I said it’s just a possibility. Besides, people have multiple lung lobes, cutting a bit off won’t be a big deal and won’t affect life expectancy.”

The hotpot didn’t smell as fragrant anymore. Qin Zhu wouldn’t even let Shen Jin drink the warmed beer. “You were fine before, how did it suddenly get this bad?”

“How would I know?” Shen Jin pretended to pull out his phone and opened the search bar, “Who won this year’s Nobel Prize in Medicine? Maybe I can help you get in touch with them?”

“…Still joking, huh.” Qin Zhu pushed him away, but when he reached for the food, he couldn’t help recalling last winter.

At that time, Shen Jin had the typical blind confidence of a young male in his own health, combined with a poor college student’s natural reluctance to spend money on medical care, brushing off every issue with ‘just drink more hot water.’

Neither Qin Zhu nor Xu Tingyun ever thought it was anything serious. They considered it kind enough that they didn’t drag Shen Jin out for long walks in the cold wind.

Now, Xu Tingyun was feeling overwhelmed: “Isn’t part of it because you let this drag on too long and didn’t take it seriously?”

He and Qin Zhu exchanged a glance. Both guessed that after the diagnosis, Gu Yu had become overly worried, constantly restricting Shen Jin’s freedom. Shen Jin, being carefree by nature, probably promised to follow orders but often forgot, which might have caused Gu Yu to get anxious and use a harsher tone, leading to conflict between them.

“Maybe.” Shen Jin added vinegar to his bowl, mumbling absentmindedly, “…If I do need surgery, I wonder how much it’ll cost.”

Xu Tingyun sighed, “Alright, if you’re short on money, you can borrow from us. After all, we can’t let the kid suffer.”

“We’re not that short on money,” Shen Jin said thoughtfully, “But it’s not right to keep using Lao Gu Yu’s money. We’re all just students, and a surgery would cost at least 30 to 50 thousand. I’ll save up first.”

“For what?” Qin Zhu looked disbelieving. “Are you telling me that someone would refuse money out of pride? Have you lost so badly in a fight that you won’t even spend a penny of the junior’s money anymore?”

“…What fight and loss?” Shen Jin calmly raised an eyebrow. “It’s just me lecturing my husband—”

However, before he could finish, there was a sudden knock on the door.

Shen Jin’s heart skipped a beat. He was about to stop Xu Tingyun, who was the closest to the door, but Xu seemed prepared as he got up and opened the door. Sure enough, standing outside was Gu Yu, his eyes cold as ice.

Seeing no way out, Shen Jin met Gu Yu’s gaze with an indifferent expression. But he couldn’t stop Gu Yu from walking in and sitting down right next to him, saying in a flat tone, “Lecturing your husband?”

“…” Shen Jin pretended to look away calmly. “Where’s the education committee’s address? I’m going to report this dormitory for shoddy construction and lack of soundproofing.”

“The local education committee probably doesn’t have jurisdiction over C University,” Gu Yu replied, glancing down at the hotpot in front of him, then asked, “Red broth?”

Hearing the sharp tone in Gu Yu’s voice, Xu Tingyun and Qin Zhu were almost certain their guess was right.

With the way Shen Jin grew up, like a weed with no one to care for him when he was sick, he must have been anxiously thinking about how to deal with any blame from home. He was likely assuming that Gu Yu was angry with him, too.

Sure enough, Shen Jin’s lips pressed into a thin line after hearing that. After a moment, he forced a mischievous smile. “What’s wrong with red broth? My son’s filial piety doesn’t concern anyone else, does it?”

Muttering to himself, he started picking at the food. “Even if I drink the broth, I won’t die. The university hospital is just 800 meters away…”

Gu Yu stared at him for two seconds, then kindly reminded him, “The university hospital doesn’t treat people who drink red broth hotpot. You should be looking for the city psychiatric hospital, 16 kilometers away.”

Shen Jin’s face turned red, unable to argue back. Qin Zhu muttered regretfully, “Seems like you’re the one getting lectured by your husband.” Xu Tingyun quickly stepped in to mediate, “It’s fine, it’s fine. The restaurant just doesn’t offer a split pot. Here’s a bowl of hot water; he can rinse the food before eating.”

“It doesn’t matter how he eats.” Gu Yu, maybe infected by Shen Jin’s attitude, also started grumbling. “I used to like meddling, but I must have been annoying.”

Shen Jin paused for a few seconds upon hearing that. Then, he immediately lit a cigarette, fished out a piece of spicy beef covered in chili from the hotpot, rolled it around in more chili, and looked like he was ready to meet his ancestors.

Gu Yu’s mouth twitched, and he threatened sternly, “Don’t say I didn’t warn you—if your stomach starts hurting, no one’s going to rub it for you.”

“…I don’t need that!” Shen Jin was so angry he nearly burst, then turned to his roommates, “After this meal, help me call the hospital’s gastroenterology department. If they need to operate, do it quickly, so my heart doesn’t keep hurting after I’m gone.”

His roommates looked more and more disgusted. Xu Tingyun asked, “How old are you two? You should both be going to the pediatrics department.”

“…Heh.” Shen Jin ignored the advice and was really about to shove the beef into his mouth. “Pediatrics it is. Your dad’s still young, after all.”

The broth, dark red, continued to boil. He hesitated for a moment, but seeing Gu Yu sitting calmly beside him, he became even more reckless, as if he was ready for the funeral home to come and get him, hoping the heat would help him pass in peace.

But just as he felt inexplicably down, a hand suddenly reached over, yanked him onto someone’s lap, and smacked him a few times on the lower back.

Luckily, he was wearing a thick coat, or it would have hurt.

And from the look of it, if it weren’t for the others in the room, Gu Yu probably wouldn’t have limited his smacks to just his lower back.

Embarrassed and enraged, Shen Jin instinctively wanted to bury his face in Gu Yu’s chest, though he quickly pushed him away. Still, Qin Zhu gave them a disdainful look, “You two play pretty wild, huh? Why not hit a little lower? Don’t mind me; I love watching this.”

Shen Jin was about to explain when Gu Yu covered his mouth. Looking down at him with an expressionless face as he struggled, Gu Yu calmly responded, “I’m very traditional. It’s Senior Shen who likes this kind of thing.”

“You—” Shen Jin looked like he was ready to kill. Gu Yu, expression cold, leaned in closer and asked, “Still want to eat?”

Their roommates’ laughter filled the room as Shen Jin gritted his teeth and asked, “Didn’t you say you’d stop meddling in my business, or else you’d be a dog?”

“Do you have proof?” Gu Yu adjusted Shen Jin’s position on his lap, then, with a reluctant expression, swished a piece of shrimp in the hotpot’s broth. “Whoever can’t show proof is the little dog.”

Shen Jin’s face flushed with anger, and after struggling to find words, he finally gave up and turned away in frustration. Gu Yu, as stubborn as ever, pretended to be unwilling as he held up the shrimp and brought it to Shen Jin’s mouth. “I heard little dogs choke on this. Do you want to test if it’s true, little dog Senior?”