Husband, Let Me Touch Your Abs - Chapter 168

Not long after, the elevator doors opened, and Zhao Beichuan came up carrying the food.

Lu Yao was wearing a beige loungewear set. The neckline was a bit wide, revealing a small red mole on his collarbone. His lower half was clad in light gray shorts, exposing his fair and straight legs.

Zhao Beichuan withdrew his gaze and handed over the meal box. “Still not asleep this late?”

“Couldn’t sleep. But you’re still busy this late too?” Lu Yao, emboldened by the alcohol, was slightly braver than usual.

“This is my last order.” Originally, Zhao Beichuan had planned to finish work, but when he saw an order pop up from his own apartment complex, he took it. He hadn’t expected it to be someone familiar.

“Have you eaten? I mean, I ordered a bit too much… Want to eat together?” Lu Yao’s cheeks were burning red. He lowered his head, not daring to meet the other’s eyes.

After waiting for a while and hearing no response, Lu Yao assumed he would be rejected. Just as he was feeling disappointed and about to go inside—

“Why?”

“Huh?”

“Why invite me to eat with you?”

“Just… as a thank-you for helping me fix the water pipe?”

“Okay.”

Lu Yao hadn’t expected him to agree. His eyes instantly lit up, and he hurriedly opened the door to invite him in.

The living room was a bit messy. He had spent the whole day alone on the couch watching movies, and the table was littered with snack wrappers.

Feeling awkward, Lu Yao rushed over to clean up. “Have a seat.”

Zhao Beichuan took off his helmet and the neck gaiter, placing them by the entrance. Out of habit, he pulled out plastic shoe covers and slipped them on.

Lu Yao chuckled. “It’s fine, you can just come in with your shoes on.”

“Don’t want to dirty your floor.” Truthfully, Zhao Beichuan himself wasn’t sure why he had agreed. Maybe it was because Lu Yao had looked a bit pitiful with his head lowered, or maybe it was because he didn’t want to return alone to the parking garage to sleep.

After a while, Lu Yao brought over some bowls and chopsticks. He had ordered barbecue and crawfish. Since he still had some beer at home, he brought that over too.

Once everything was set up, Lu Yao turned on the TV, randomly selecting a movie. Sitting next to Zhao Beichuan, he said, “This northeastern-style barbecue is pretty good. Give it a try. I wasn’t really that hungry—I accidentally ordered too much.”

Zhao Beichuan chuckled, reached for a can of beer, opened it, and placed it in front of Lu Yao. Then he opened one for himself and tilted his head back, taking a few big gulps.

He was quite thirsty.

Lu Yao put on gloves and started peeling a few crawfish. The flavor was quite spicy. He took a sip of beer to wash it down.

“I never asked your name.”

“Zhao Beichuan. ‘Bei’ as in ‘north,’ and ‘Chuan’ as in ‘rivers and mountains.'”

“I’m Lu Yao.”

“I know.”

Lu Yao curved his lips into a slight smile. “This might be a bit intrusive, but… are you going through a tough time? You seem to be busy all day.”

Zhao Beichuan nodded as he nibbled on a skewer. “My dad is sick. Hospital bills are expensive.”

“What kind of illness?”

“He’s in a vegetative state.”

“Hiss… No wonder.” Lu Yao took another sip of beer.

Zhao Beichuan had never been willing to talk about his family situation with outsiders. The reason the market owner knew was because they had run into each other at the hospital once, and after a brief chat, the news spread.

“Aren’t you tired?”

“A little. But if I don’t push through, I’ll lose my dad.”

Lu Yao saw the brief glimmer of moisture in Zhao Beichuan’s eyes. Suddenly, he had the urge to hug him. But… he hesitated. Forget it.

At first, the two were a bit reserved. But as they drank, they gradually loosened up.

Zhao Beichuan shared some funny stories from his time delivering food, making Lu Yao laugh until he was almost in tears. Lu Yao, in turn, shared a few amusing incidents from his job, and their rapport grew closer.

Noticing that Zhao Beichuan only ate skewers, Lu Yao pushed the barbecue plate toward him. “You don’t like crawfish?”

“Too much hassle to peel.”

Lu Yao chuckled. “It’s really easy. I’ll do it for you.”

He had always loved eating crawfish and had mastered a quick peeling technique. His slender fingers grabbed the tail, pulled off the head, and in one motion, revealed a whole piece of shrimp meat.

Lu Yao lifted his hand to offer it to him, but to his surprise, Zhao Beichuan lowered his head and took it directly with his mouth. Though he didn’t touch Lu Yao’s fingers, the atmosphere suddenly became inexplicably charged, making Lu Yao’s heart race.

Zhao Beichuan, however, seemed unfazed. He simply chewed and said, “You eat too. It’s too much trouble.”

“It’s no trouble at all…”

Lu Yao felt full after just one can of beer. He wasn’t used to eating late at night, so his appetite wasn’t large.

“Haven’t you thought about doing another job?” Lu Yao quickly clarified, “Not that delivering food is bad, but it’s tough—rain or shine. And the pay isn’t great.”

“I have. But aside from this, which brings in money quickly, I can’t think of anything else.” Zhao Beichuan had majored in athletics, specifically javelin. He had even won a provincial gold medal, but at higher levels, his talent wasn’t enough.

“Originally, after graduation, I planned to take the exam to become a coach. But then things happened at home, and I couldn’t go through with it.”

“Mm. Have you considered making money online? Like posting videos? It might be a faster way to earn.”

“What kind of videos?”

“You know, like TikTok-style short videos. I have a friend who gained over a hundred thousand followers by making transformation videos. Just from sponsorships and product promotions, he earns tens of thousands a year.” Lu Yao, a bit tipsy, pulled out his phone and showed Zhao Beichuan his friend’s videos.

“You’ve got a great physique. Your videos would probably perform really well.”

This friend of his was actually a colleague. His videos leaned toward the suggestive side—he had an average face but a great body and never showed his face on camera. Fans had dubbed him the “Shrimp-Type Hunk.”

Zhao Beichuan watched a few and became intrigued. “How do you make these? Do you know how?”

“Of course! My main job is in advertising design and marketing. If you want to make some, I can help.”

“Wouldn’t that be a bother?”

“Not at all.” In fact, he’d be thrilled!

“Maybe I should forget it…” Zhao Beichuan hesitated. They had only met a few times, and he felt bad about troubling Lu Yao.

Forget it? No way!

Lu Yao got anxious. “If you really feel bad about it… Once your account starts making money, how about we split the revenue 80/20? You get 80, I take 20.”

Zhao Beichuan burst out laughing. “Alright. If I ever become a millionaire influencer, I’ll share some of the money with you.”

“Deal!” Lu Yao was so excited, as if he were afraid Zhao Beichuan might back out. He quickly confirmed a filming schedule.

As they drank, they fantasized about how much money they could make as influencers…

Lu Yao drank too much—mixing hard liquor with beer. He dozed off on the couch.

“Lu Yao, wake up.”

The person on the couch mumbled and turned away, not waking up.

After hesitating for a moment, Zhao Beichuan picked him up and carried him into the bedroom, tucking him under the covers. Then he cleaned up the table, took out the trash, and quietly left.

The next morning, Lu Yao woke up past ten, rubbing his forehead as the memories of last night slowly came back to him.

Suddenly sitting up in bed, he realized he was still wearing the clothes from last night, but his shoes weren’t by the bedside—he must have been the one to carry him in.

“Zhao Beichuan.”

The name felt so familiar on his tongue, as if he had called it a thousand, ten thousand times before.

Lu Yao pressed down the strange flutter in his heart, got up, and walked toward the living room. The place had been tidied up, and even the trash had been taken out before he left. His favorability score shot straight up.

Taking out his phone, he sent a message to the other party: “I drank a little too much last night, sorry about that.”

After sending the message, he waited for a long time without getting a reply. Setting his phone aside, Lu Yao went to the bathroom to take a shower.

*

At the hospital, Zhao Beichuan was discussing his father’s condition with the doctor.

After spending so much time there, the doctors were familiar with him. Upon seeing Zhao Beichuan, one of them called him into the medical office to talk about Zhao Guangsheng’s situation.

“We did a brain CT scan on your father the day before yesterday. There’s still a bit of a hematoma inside, but the previous blood clot has shifted toward the lateral lobe. A surgery could be considered.”

Zhao Beichuan’s eyes lit up. “Will my dad wake up after the surgery?”

“It’s possible, but we can’t rule out the chance that things might get worse. You and your family will have to weigh the risks.”

“How much would the surgery cost?”

“Around fifty thousand. The real expense is in the post-operative care. I know about your family’s situation, so I’ll do my best to apply for financial aid and subsidies for you.”

“Thank you, Dr. Yan. I’ll discuss it with my family.”

“All right.”

Leaving the medical office, Zhao Beichuan’s heart was pounding. His father had been in the hospital for three years since the accident. In those three years, they had sold their house, borrowed from every relative they could, barely managing to keep him alive. Watching his once-healthy father’s life slowly fade away—there was no worse situation than this.

Back in the hospital room, he explained everything to his mother. “The doctor said Dad can have surgery.”

“How much will it cost?” Mother Zhao wasn’t worried about anything else—only whether they could afford it.

“I still have a few thousand saved up. Take it first,” she said, handing him the money. It was what Zhao Beichuan had given her for living expenses, plus whatever she had saved from collecting recyclables. The elderly woman never spent on herself, saving every bit she could.

“You keep it. I’ll figure something out.”

“Ah…”

Leaving the hospital, Zhao Beichuan was about to start taking delivery orders. When he checked his phone, he saw Lu Yao’s message.

He quickly replied: “I was just at the hospital and didn’t notice your message.”

“No worries. Are you about to start making deliveries now?”

“Yeah.”

“Be safe.”

“Thanks.” Zhao Beichuan hesitated for a moment before typing again. “About what you mentioned yesterday, I think it’s worth trying.”

“Hm?”

“Would 11 p.m. at your place be okay?”

“…Alright.”

Lu Yao put his phone down and sprang up from the sofa. What had he agreed to yesterday?

He had blacked out from drinking!!!

Thinking hard, he couldn’t remember anything and felt too embarrassed to ask directly. Could it be that he had really been that bold while drunk and invited him for… that?

Oh god, had he actually been so reckless after drinking?! The more he thought about it, the more likely it seemed. After all, being single for thirty-five years, it was hard not to become a little… off.

Lu Yao clutched his chest, nearly unable to breathe from excitement. He never would have thought that Zhao Beichuan was also into men… It was completely unexpected!

This was his first time. He didn’t have anything prepared at home, so he hurriedly got dressed and went out to buy some XX supplies.

Since he didn’t know the other person’s size, he bought three different sizes of condoms and also picked up a bottle of lube. He’d heard the first time was painful…

With his face burning red, Lu Yao paid for his purchases and headed home. Just thinking about finally ending his thirty-plus years of virginity made it impossible to suppress the smile on his lips.

Back home, he immediately tidied up the bedroom, changed to a dark-colored bed set, and lit some scented candles. There were still eleven hours until the evening—he could hardly wait!

Meanwhile, Zhao Beichuan worked until late at night, completing his last delivery at 11 p.m.

Taking a quick shower and changing into clean clothes, he anxiously made his way toward Lu Yao’s apartment.

Yesterday, he had looked up a lot of trending transformation videos online. It seemed doable—he just wasn’t sure if anyone would watch. But to raise money for his father’s treatment, he had no choice but to give it a shot.