Husband, Let Me Touch Your Abs - Chapter 194

In the blink of an eye, it was already the twentieth day of the twelfth lunar month, and Zhao Guangsheng’s health was gradually recovering.

During this period, Lu Yao and Zhao Beichuan went to the hospital every day to take care of him. The old man, who had initially been unable to take care of himself, had gradually regained enough strength to sit up and eat on his own.

Though his body hadn’t fully recovered yet, his speech had improved significantly. Aside from a slight slur, he could now talk almost like a normal person.

He didn’t tell his son about the past-life memories that had surfaced in his mind; he only confided in his wife. Interestingly enough, in his previous life, he had fallen off a roof and died, and in this life, he had almost died from another fall.

Fortunately, modern medicine was advanced, and thanks to the unwavering efforts of his children and wife, he had managed to cling to life.

Liu Chunyan found his stories incredible. The more she thought about how Lu Yao had been her child in the past life, the stronger her sense of closeness to him grew. No wonder she had felt an instant connection the first time she saw him.

“Our Beichuan is really benefiting from Lu Yao,” Liu Chunyan said while peeling an apple. “I heard these two kids have started some kind of self-media business and have made quite a bit of money lately.”

“That boy Lu Yao is capable. He was impressive in his past life too. After marrying into the Zhao family, he managed to build a very prosperous life.”

Liu Chunyan burst into laughter. “You mean, in the era you lived in before, men could marry other men?”

“Yao’er wasn’t exactly a man—he was a ‘ge’er.’ Ge’ers may look like men, but they can bear children.”

“Oh my, hahahaha!” Liu Chunyan doubled over, laughing uncontrollably.

Zhao Guangsheng looked at his wife helplessly, feeling like she was making fun of him.

“Tell me more about our past life.”

“In our past life, we had five children. The eldest was named Lu Hai, the second was Lu Lin, the third was Lu Yao, and below him were two ge’ers, Lu Yun and Lu Miao.”

“No Xiaodou and Xiaonian?”

“No…” Zhao Guangsheng hesitated to admit that those three kids hadn’t been theirs in the past life. Who would have thought that in this life, they would be born from his wife’s womb?

“Was our family well-off?”

“Not really. Most people in that era were poor. I made a bit of extra money as a bricklayer, so we could get by, but just barely.”

“That’s not too bad,” she said, satisfied. She didn’t have grand ambitions—having enough to eat and spend was already a good life.

“I’m just worried that these two kids won’t be able to have children. What will they do when they get old?” Liu Chunyan had already told her husband about Lu Yao and Zhao Beichuan’s relationship, and Zhao Guangsheng had no objections.

“They couldn’t have kids in our past life either. When Yao’er married into the family, he was already quite old. By the time I passed away, they still hadn’t had children. Let them be. If they really need to, they can adopt or bring in a child through kinship adoption.”

As they were chatting, Lu Yao and Zhao Beichuan arrived.

“Uncle, how are you feeling today?”

“Much better.” Zhao Guangsheng’s eyes lit up when he saw Lu Yao, even more than when he saw Zhao Beichuan. He felt like Lu Yao was his real son, while Beichuan was just his son-in-law.

Zhao Beichuan didn’t mind at all. As long as his parents accepted Lu Yao, he was happy.

“We just spoke with the doctor. It looks like you’ll be discharged in the next couple of days.”

Liu Chunyan was so excited to hear this that she clapped her hands. “Finally! I’ve had enough of staying here!”

Zhao Guangsheng, however, was a bit worried. “Where are we going to live when we get back? We sold the house and land…”

Zhao Beichuan reassured him, “Don’t worry. We’ll rent a place first. If you want, we can build a new house when spring comes.”

“No, no, no. We still owe a lot of money. We can’t afford to be extravagant. If necessary, we can clean up your grandpa’s old house and live there for now.”

Zhao Guangsheng agreed. “Yes, let’s fix up your grandpa’s house. The windows aren’t great, but we can cover them with plastic sheets. We should use any money we have to pay off our debts first.”

Over the past few months, Zhao Beichuan and Lu Yao had earned nearly 200,000 yuan through their videos and livestreams. Zhao Beichuan had given 100,000 yuan to Lu Yao and planned to use the rest to help his parents pay off their debts.

Since his parents were willing to stay in the old house for now, he had no objections. He went to handle the discharge paperwork and planned to leave the hospital that afternoon.

Lu Yao wanted to invite his parents to stay at his place for a few days before they all returned home together when Xiaonian and Xiaodou finished school.

But Zhao Beichuan declined. “They wouldn’t want to trouble you. I’ll rent them a small hotel room. In just two days, Xiaonian and Xiaodou will be on break too.”

Thinking about the upcoming separation, both of them felt reluctant.

□*□

After showering, they lay in bed, with Lu Yao resting his head on Zhao Beichuan’s arm, feeling drowsy.

Zhao Beichuan gently stroked his back. “Can I send you video messages when I’m home?”

Lu Yao chuckled. “Of course. I’m just going home, not going to prison.”

“I really don’t want to be apart from you,” Zhao Beichuan murmured, hugging him tightly.

Lu Yao, feeling a bit suffocated, reached out and pinched his chest.

“Hiss—” Zhao Beichuan winced. He had noticed that Lu Yao had a particular fondness for his chest. Every time they were intimate, he would cling to it, biting and nuzzling relentlessly.

Lu Yao giggled and pressed his face against it, rubbing affectionately. “Feels so nice~”

The day of their separation arrived quickly. Lu Yao drove his parents to the train station first. A while later, Zhao Beichuan arrived by taxi with Xiaonian and Xiaodou.

The two kids were wearing brand-new down jackets that Lu Yao had bought for them. Their family’s financial situation had been poor these past few years, so they hadn’t had new jackets in three years. Xiaonian was fine since she hadn’t grown much, but Xiaodou had shot up in height, and his old jacket was now far too short, with his wrists fully exposed.

After visiting them at school once, Lu Yao had bought each of them two new outfits the very next day, covering them from head to toe. Zhao Beichuan felt a little guilty—he hadn’t even noticed how much they needed new clothes as their older brother.

“Lu Ge!” The two kids ran up to him excitedly, sticking to him like glue.

“How were your final exams?”

Xiaonian answered first. “I got 674 points—13 points higher than my last test!”

“That’s amazing!”

Xiaodou shyly added, “I ranked first in my grade.”

“Good job!”

Zhao Guangsheng and his wife beamed with pride. Their children had never given them any trouble with their studies—they were both sure to get into university!

“Did you buy the train tickets?”

Zhao Beichuan pulled out his phone. “Yeah, we did. Boarding starts in 40 minutes, so we should head inside now.”

Since both Zhao Guangsheng and Zhao Beichuan had physical issues, they had bought five sleeper tickets for the trip home, each costing over 400 yuan. The price made Zhao’s mother’s heart ache.

Lu Yao retrieved a prepared bag from his car’s trunk and handed it to Zhao Beichuan. “Here’s some food for the trip, and gifts for your parents. Give it to them for me—I’m afraid they won’t accept it if I do.”

“Okay.”

Inside the waiting hall, it was packed with people. It was the Spring Festival travel rush, and everyone was heading home.

Liu Chunyan pushed Zhao Guangsheng’s wheelchair toward the restroom, while Xiaonian and Xiaodou huddled together to go over study materials. Though Xiaodou was smart, he was still young and needed his sister’s help with some questions.

Lu Yao glanced up at the departure board—boarding was about to start soon. Zhao Beichuan held onto Lu Yao’s hand, reluctant to let go.

“Call me when you get home.”

“Mm.” Zhao Beichuan’s eyes turned red.

Lu Yao, affected by his emotions, felt a lump in his throat too. He reached out and wiped Zhao Beichuan’s eyes. “Don’t worry, we’ll see each other again soon.”

“Yeah.”

“Take care of your parents.”

“I will. You take care of yourself too.”

Lu Yao grabbed Zhao Beichuan’s collar and quickly kissed him. “Go on.”

After sending them off, Lu Yao was driving home when his phone rang. It was his eldest sister, Lu Fang.

“Hello, Big Sis.”

“A-Yao, when are you planning to come home for the New Year?”

“I bought a ticket for the day after tomorrow.”

“I’ll pick you up at the station then, and we’ll go home together.”

“Okay.”

Lu Fang hesitated for a moment before asking, “What about Xiao Zhao?”

“They’ve gone back to their hometown. His father has recovered and was discharged from the hospital a few days ago.”

“He’s recovered? That’s great! You should hurry back too.”

After hanging up the phone, Lu Yao packed up at home. Since he’d be away for quite a while, he cleaned out the kitchen in advance to prevent anything from going moldy.

Once he was done, Lu Yao called Bai Chi and invited him out for a meal.

But something sounded off over the phone—Bai Chi’s voice was broken and intermittent. In the end, he muttered a curse through gritted teeth before abruptly hanging up.

Lu Yao stared at his phone, baffled. It took him a while to process what had happened, and when he did, he couldn’t help but rub his forehead. Those two really didn’t know how to hold back.

He left Bai Chi a message on WeChat, but he didn’t get a reply until evening.

Bai Chi video-called him. He was sprawled lazily on the sofa, looking well-fed and satisfied, wearing a bathrobe. Through the neckline, Lu Yao could see faint red and purple marks on his skin.

“You called at noon—what’s up?”

“Nothing… Do you two really have nothing else to do?”

“I’m fine, but Xiao Yi is just too much.”

“Take care of yourself.”

“Don’t worry, I’m in great shape~”

Bai Chi lit a cigarette and had just taken a puff when Yi Mingde walked over, staring at the cigarette in his hand without saying a word.

“Tsk, fine, I won’t smoke.” Bai Chi put out the cigarette and tossed it into the trash, then looked at Lu Yao helplessly. “He’s too strict.”

“Master Yi is just looking out for your health.”

□□□

Yi Mingde, his face flushed, retreated into the inner room.

“Where’s your Xiao Zhao?”

“He went back to his hometown today. He probably won’t be back until after the New Year.”

“You’re home alone?”

“Yeah, I’m heading home for the New Year the day after tomorrow too. I called you because I wanted to ask… how did you come out to your family?”

“Are you planning to come out?”

Lu Yao hesitated. “Beichuan has already told his parents, and it wasn’t as hard as I imagined. His parents are actually very accepting of me.”

Bai Chi was a little surprised. “His father recovered?”

“Yeah, he’s doing much better. He still can’t walk around much, but aside from that, he’s pretty much back to normal.”

“Didn’t expect Xiao Zhao’s family to be so open-minded. But coming out is something you shouldn’t just blurt out all at once. If you ease them into it, they might accept it better. My coming-out experience isn’t really a good reference.”

“When I was in high school, I just told my parents I liked men. At the time, my mom was in Italy attending a fashion gala, and my dad was in Australia working on a project. Neither of them cared. They only reminded me to be safe and not mess up my health, and that was it.”

Lu Yao fell silent… Yeah, not much of a reference.

“I’m really jealous of you and Xiao Zhao. When I get the chance, I’ll design a pair of wedding rings for you two.”

“No need, that’s too much trouble.”

“You’re being polite with me now?”

Lu Yao chuckled. “Alright, go ahead and design them if you want. I just hope I can successfully come out to my family this time.”