The moment Xiao Bao regained consciousness, he felt like his body had been trampled by ten raging bulls, every inch of it throbbing with pain.
Grimacing and groaning in agony, he lay still on the bed, afraid to move a muscle.
The mere thought of his injuries made him break out in a cold sweat, intensifying the
pain, especially at the back, searing hot and reaching all the way to his forehead.
No wonder he had to lie face down to sleep. He even doubted if he could ever bow
properly again in the future. Damn it, was that place even meant to be used like that?!
Twenty years' worth of vulgar curses churned in his chest, cursing Huai'en's
ancestors to the eighth generation.
"You damn deceitful bastard, ungrateful!! I swear I won't rest until I avenge this!!"
Gritting his teeth, Xiao Bao's mind spun with malicious ideas, contemplating how to
deal with that despicable bastard who violated him.
Of course, the most satisfying revenge would be to do the same back, to regain some dignity, and... despite his revulsion at the thought of self-castration, his brain shamelessly recalled Huai'en's enchanting allure... it was just... ohhh... too thrilling, too enticing... impossible to forget... Damn it, he wouldn't be a man if he didn't give it back to you at least once!!
Lost in his fantasies of how to overpower and strip Huai'en, Xiao Bao's thoughts
were abruptly interrupted by the creak of the door opening.
Startled, Xiao Bao laboriously turned his head to look at the doorway.
Entering the room was a young woman clad in a lake-green muslin dress, her glossy
black hair casually tied up in a bun at the back of her head. She wore minimal jewelry,
and her attire was simple, yet it exuded a subtle sensuality and mature charm.
Normally, if Xiao Bao encountered such a graceful and seductive beauty, his soul
would have practically left his body, and he would have eagerly approached her with a
smile. But given the current situation, seeing a woman, especially such a beautiful
woman, darken Xiao Bao's expression by half.
Was she the one who had been taking care of him all this time? Then, behind him...
in this state... had he exposed everything to a young lady...
Even Xiao Bao, shameless as he was, now felt a pang of embarrassment, damn it all.
Seeing his unattractive expression, the young woman also felt a twinge of concern
despite her vast experience as a healer. As soon as she entered the room and saw
Xiao Bao's discomfort, both of them felt incredibly awkward.
But Xiao Bao quickly regained his composure, "Uh... Sister... where is this?"
"Oh... Mr. Jin, you're finally awake. You've been unconscious for three days. This is
the residence of our young master in Wujiang Prefecture."
"What? Wujiang Prefecture? Why am I here?"
"It was Lord Youying who followed the clues to rescue you and the young master."
Xiao Bao's face flushed instantly, wishing he could just bash his head against something and end it all.
He had no idea what happened to Huai'en afterwards. All he knew was that he had
passed out from pain, woken up in pain, passed out again, and it had happened over
and over countless times, with Huai'en always there... never stopping... It was like a
nightmare. He had brought this upon himself, damned unlucky, trying to steal a
chicken only to lose the rice.
The deed was done, and even if he regretted it to the core of his being, he couldn't change anything. He blamed his unfortunate fate and his poor luck for encountering such a calamitous star. It was bearable, but having those unfortunate events exposed so nakedly... it was truly devastating.
Seeing Xiao Bao's embarrassed and angry expression, the young woman hurriedly
changed the subject. "Lord Youying instructed me to ask Mr. Jin if he wants us to
notify his household to come pick him up, or if we should send someone to escort Mr.
Jin back."
"What? You haven't informed my family yet??" Xiao Bao panicked. Being missing for
three days, his parents and his fiancee would be frantic. His father would start hitting people when he got anxious, and his fiancee might faint from worry.
"No... because... Mr. Jin was still unconscious... Mr. Jin's injuries... are hard to
explain..."
Beating around the bush and circling back again, damn it, had she never seen someone in a tight spot before? Backwater folks.
Xiao Bao cursed Huai'en in his heart once again, "Good sister, please quickly inform
the Su Prefecture Jin Family and tell them I'm safe. Ask my fiancee to come pick me
up."
"Alright, I will." The young woman didn't want to linger any longer and turned to leave.
"Uh... Good sister..."
"You can call me Cuiniang, sir."
"Oh... Cuiniang... um... how is your young master?" Despite his attempts to appear
indifferent, Xiao Bao couldn't help but feel a twinge of concern, then immediately
despised himself for it.
"My young master nearly lost his life. The doctor said he had lost a lot of blood and
was in critical condition. Thankfully, he has a strong constitution, and now he's out of
danger. He woke up yesterday and is currently recuperating."
"Oh, alright, then you should go." Hearing that Huai'en was fine, Xiao Bao breathed
a sigh of relief. But then he realized that his concern was only natural. If Huai'en had
really passed away, how would he ever get his revenge? Would he violate a corpse?
That would require too much skill, and besides, he really wasn't into that.
Lying lifelessly on the bed for two days, Xiao Bao's only amusement was teasing
Cuiniang a bit. Later, he learned that this mature and charming lady not only took
care of him but was also a doctor.
That meant she had seen every bit of his
embarrassing mishap. However, Xiao Bao, always optimistic but somewhat naive, took
it in stride. In front of Cuiniang, he became even more unrestrained.
Cuiniang was no innocent maiden to be bullied by a tyrant. Despite their bickering,
their interactions helped Xiao Bao pass the dreary time confined to bed.
One evening, after dinner, someone arrived, and when Xiao Bao saw the person's face, he was startled, "Huh? You're already better so quickly?"
Youying looked at him with a puzzled expression, thinking he must have been
delirious from a fever the past two days.
Xiao Bao calmly pondered for a moment, "You wouldn't happen to have a twin
brother, would you?"
Youying paused, "I do have an older brother, but we're not twins."
"That's right, then. I've met your brother before." Xiao Bao recalled the man he had
encountered covered in blood, resembling him in both appearance and demeanor.
"You've met my brother?" Youying exclaimed, grabbing his shoulders eagerly. "Is he alive? Where is he?!"
"Ouch, ouch!" Xiao Bao winced as Youying's forceful shaking aggravated the wounds on his lower body, as well as various bruises inflicted by some beastly creature's biting, pinching, or punching and kicking.
"Oh, Mr. Jin, my apologies." Youying quickly released him.
"Be careful... geez..." Xiao Bao grumbled, giving him a reproachful glance. "Your
brother... when I saw him, he was barely alive, severely injured. I'm not sure if he's
alive or dead now."
"Oh..." Youying's disappointment was evident as he lowered his head. After finding
the young master and Mr. Jin, he had instructed people to search for bodies along the way.
Everyone brought by Zuo Ying had died, but there was no sign of Zuo Ying's body. He firmly believed that Zuo Ying must still be alive.
"Mr. Jin, your two household servants have come to pick you up. Can you walk, or
should I have them come in to carry you out?"
"No, I'll walk by myself." Xiao Bao didn't want those two idiots, who were sure to
pry into his injuries, to find out the truth.
What would he say? "Oh, nothing, just got
stabbed in the butt all day."
After a moment of thought, he gave Youying a sidelong glance. "You didn't tell them... about... how I got injured, did you?"
"Uh... Cuiniang said you were bravely injured while saving my young master."
Xiao Bao sighed, feeling that a man being put in such a predicament was truly one
of a kind. Wasn't it courageous to sacrifice one's butt so fearlessly? How brave was
that, offering up his rear end without hesitation?
Slowly propping himself up with his arms, Xiao Bao held a push-up position for about three seconds before falling back onto the bed. With his weight, even the sturdy wooden bed frame groaned in protest, and he couldn't help but let out a groan himself.
Youying felt like laughing but refrained, thinking, was it really that painful?
Xiao Bao gave him a side-eye, thinking, try enduring a day of getting pounded
relentlessly in the ass and see how you feel.
Actually, it wasn't really that bad, especially after using good medicine these past
few days. Most of the wounds had healed.
But look at who got injured—Jin Xiao Bao,
the sole heir of the wealthiest family in Jiangnan. Since childhood, even a minor
scratch or a couple of coughs would warrant a consultation with three doctors.
He had always been well-protected, delicate and pampered, never allowed to suffer any
hardships. When had he ever experienced such suffering? He had been bullied but
couldn't voice his grievances. Now he just wanted to hide in his mother's arms and cry.
But despite being a bit delicate in private, Xiao Bao was very concerned about his
image. Just by looking at Youying's expression, he knew that Youying thought he wasn't manly enough.
So, with determination, he straightened up again, finally managing to sit up completely, and then slowly, unsteadily, he got off the bed.
Originally thinking he couldn't even walk, Xiao Bao found that it wasn't as bad as he
had feared. It was a bit fiery and painful, but he could pretend he was fine.
Xiao Bao patted his round and soft belly, habitually drew circles and poked it with
his fingers, sighing at the unpredictability of life. In just a few days, he had become
thinner.
Taking a deep breath, he walked out confidently.