61 – Emotional

Chapter 61: Emotional

It was a post tagging Huzhou Medical University, pressuring Xie Qingcheng to submit his resignation.

He Yu’s gaze scanned the screen blankly.

As the control tower incident came to light, Xie Qingcheng and those around him weren’t the only targets of public ire.

Even if they were a disorganized rabble, when enough people gathered, an avalanche was bound to occur. By this point, Huzhou Medical University had begun to suffer the fallout.

A massive number of netizens wrote letters to the university and posted online. Complaints erupted from all sides, questioning why such a professor had been hired. Setting aside whether Xie Qingcheng was affiliated with a dark organization, some argued it was absurd for a man who had insulted Professor Qin Ciyan to be acting as a professor at Professor Qin Ciyan’s alma mater.

This particular post had an exceptionally high number of upvotes. Other posts slandering Xie Qingcheng were also prominent.

Reading the posts coldly, He Yu thought: He dug his own grave. Serves him right.

Who told him to spout such cruel words?

However, after turning off his phone and lying quietly in bed staring at the ceiling, He Yu felt strangely dissatisfied with the fact that Xie Qingcheng was being cursed out.

This was a private matter between himself and Xie Qingcheng. He was the only person in the world who should make Xie Qingcheng pay for ignoring a mentally ill patient.

So why were others interfering?

What was with all this meddling?

However, things did not unfold as simply as He Yu had hoped.

A few days later, as similar posts continued to increase, Huzhou Medical University reached a point where it could no longer remain silent.

After careful consideration, the Secretary-General summoned Xie Qingcheng and asked if there were any hidden circumstances behind the incident.

Naturally, Xie Qingcheng’s answer was the same as the one he had given Xie Xue and her group. This time, he answered firmly, without a hint of hesitation.

“I spoke violently without discernment because my emotions flared up. There are no hidden circumstances.”

“Good grief, Professor Xie…”

The Secretary-General, unable to hide his disappointment, let out a sigh and sent Xie Qingcheng on his way.

In truth, the issue with this incident was merely the inappropriate remarks. While Xie Qingcheng had been harsh, he hadn’t committed any heinous crimes. Nevertheless, people spread rumors such as, ‘Xie Qingcheng intentionally recommends expensive medicine to patients,’ or ‘He receives five-digit bribes for a single surgery.’

If they had used even a shred of their brains, or if they weren’t completely blind, they would have known that Xie Qingcheng was not a surgeon and was far removed from the operating room. To see the five words ‘Psychiatrist’ written in Xie Qingcheng’s profile, they would have needed to buy a microscope. Of course, the ever-confident keyboard warriors happened to have thin wallets and couldn’t afford expensive microscopes.

It was perhaps natural that they overlooked Xie Qingcheng’s profession.

Furthermore, Qin Ciyan was involved in the video. Professor Qin was a one-of-a-kind humanitarian who always prioritized and cared for his unauthorized copypatients. Xie [unauthorized copy]Qingcheng had been employed at the same hospital as Professor Qin and later became a professor at Huzhou Medical University, where Qin Ciyan had worked [unauthorized copy]in his youth. Unlike Professor Qin, Xie Qingcheng had made remarks worse than those of a beast, so he deserved the backlash.

As public opinion boiled over, the university eventually felt compelled to take a stance, even knowing it was a foolish move.

In late autumn, just before winter, Huzhou Medical University handed down its decision.

Review for suspension.

The clever president did not mention a specific duration. He seemed intent on reinstating Xie Qingcheng as a professor as soon as the public outcry died down.

Suspension isn’t so bad.

That was Xie Qingcheng’s thought. His current mental state was a mess. This suspension was a perfect opportunity to compose himself.

The news of Xie Qingcheng’s suspension spread across the internet like wildfire. Since it was a measure to quiet the public, the official Huzhou Medical University account even attached the announcement to a post.

Xie Xue saw the post.

Chen Man did as well.

The two of them hurriedly called Xie Qingcheng, only to be brushed off after a few words. Xie Qingcheng, busy moving heavy boxes of office supplies, had no leisure to waste his heart on useless phone calls.

He walked to the back of the old car parked in front of the school gate, placed the boxes in the trunk, and pressed the car key. He intended to go back to his family home, sleep deeply, and then slowly plan how to spend his leave.

But before he could open the car door and step inside, Xie Qingcheng spotted a [visit our site]young man unauthorized copystanding visit our siteunder an old camphor tree next to the parking lot.

—He Yu.

It had already been over a week since the club incident. Having been severely raped that night, Xie Qingcheng had spent the last ten days struggling to escape the trauma with the help of medication and nicotine.

Fortunately, He Yu didn’t seem to have any intention of appearing before him again. Xie Qingcheng thought this ordeal would pass slowly.

That he would never, ever need to face this person again.

And yet, He Yu had appeared before his eyes.

The arrogant aura of the past was gone, replaced by a precarious energy, much like ten days ago.

The wound in his heart, which had barely begun to scab over, felt as if it were being ripped apart in an instant. Shameful memories, twisted and burning as if he had lost his mind, rushed to the forefront the moment his eyes met He Yu’s.

“…”

Xie Qingcheng averted his gaze, pretending not to see him.

However, as if wanting to fan the flames, the young man insistently approached. He leaned his back against the railing next to the main gate, shoved his hands into his trouser pockets, and stared at him with a subtle expression.

“I heard you were suspended.”

Xie Qingcheng didn’t so much as blink.

The parking lot was deserted. Of course, He Yu had no intention of pretending to be kind in front of others as he once had.

He Yu took a few more steps forward.

For the sake of He He Jiwei’s reputation, and considering that the boy had taken a bullet for him, Xie Qingcheng had to endure without killing this bastard. Xie Qingcheng warned him with a fierce expression.

“Move. The car can’t get out.”

Regardless, He Yu stared intently at Xie Qingcheng with his almond-shaped eyes before speaking quietly.

“Xie Qingcheng, have you aged so much that you can’t even understand what people are saying?”

“If you don’t move, I’ll run you over and kill you.”

He Yu’s gloomy gaze traced Xie Qingcheng’s face firmly. He Yu replied with a smirk.

“Go ahead, kill me.”

“…”

“Should I fasten your seatbelt for you?”

He Yu didn’t budge. Similarly, Xie Qingcheng, having no intention of fleeing, slammed stolen contentthe car door shut and [Read on Read BL Novels]strode toward He Yu with his long legs. The anger and shame that had been viciously gnawing at him day and night for the past few days surged up, lighting a fierce fire in his eyes.

“Fuck, listen while I’m speaking nicely. If you have a mental problem, go to your attending physician. If your symptoms are severe, apply for admission to a psychiatric hospital. Stop acting like a beast wearing human skin.”

The curve of He Yu’s lips stiffened slightly. He shifted his body and leaned down, whispering into Xie Qingcheng’s ear.

“Xie Qingcheng. I’m sorry, but I don’t have an attending physician right now. I had one before, but I trusted them and got stabbed in the back.”

“…”

“And please lower your voice as much as possible when talking to me. People don’t really know the secret that I’m a beast.”

As he whispered with a tilted head, a canine tooth peeked out from beneath his lip.

“Right now, my reputation is much better than yours, Professor. Even if you criticize me, others will just think it’s your fault. Don’t go digging your own grave further in the middle of all this. Got it?”

From the side, their posture looked as if they were close. It looked like two men having a private conversation, but beneath that, a heavy, hidden undercurrent flowed.

Having finished speaking, He Yu raised his hand and tapped Xie Qingcheng’s face.

The trigger was finally pulled.

Since that night at the club, Xie Qingcheng felt an immense aversion to physical contact with He Yu. Like someone struck by a hundred thousand volts of electricity, or someone having a seizure from a stress response, Xie Qingcheng turned pale in an instant and violently shook off He Yu’s hand.

“What the hell do you want, coming all the way here?”

What did he want?

In truth, He Yu didn’t know himself.

He just felt an overwhelming sense of heat. In his heart and his body.

It didn’t matter what kind of character Xie Qingcheng had. Nor did the rumors circulating on the internet.

The cause of He Yu’s confusion wasn’t something like that.

In fact, there was another reason why he had gritted his teeth and come to find Xie Qingcheng today, pretending everything was fine.

After impulsively opening Pandora’s box and performing a certain act while looking at photos of Xie Qingcheng on his phone, he realized he was showing symptoms of addiction.

Even though he knew he shouldn’t, even though his stomach churned with disgust, he looked at photos of Xie Qingcheng morning, evening, and midnight. Recalling that night, he released a maddeningly hot desire.

This had continued for several days.

He Yu concluded that this absurd behavior was a ‘normal human reaction.’

He Yu was a haughty mysophobe who had always been disgusted by the dirty relationships between genders. At school, both boys and girls liked him, and he received so many love letters they could be sold as scrap paper, but he had not the slightest interest in ‘that kind of thing.’

But since he had his first sex at [unauthorized copy]the age when hormones are most active, he Read on Read BL Novelswas bound to become addicted.

Because it had felt too good.

He Yu thought this was merely a male’s desire. Since he had happened to experience pleasure while releasing his first instinct into Xie Qingcheng’s body, it was only natural that he would think of Xie Qingcheng later.

He was, as always, a consistent homophobe.

And yet now, faced with Xie Qingcheng’s sharp question, He Yu himself didn’t understand why he had rushed here to pick a fight after hearing the news of Xie Qingcheng’s suspension.

There was no need to waste time on someone who had even blocked his number, right?

He just thought he’d see his face. But Xie Qingcheng’s cold and sharp peach blossom eyes kept pushing He Yu toward a cliff.

This awkwardness made him gloomy and caustic. He had to counterattack Xie Qingcheng, no matter what reason he gave.

After racking his brain, he came up with a plausible excuse.

“…Hmm, I don’t know. Maybe I came because I wanted to rehire you after hearing you were unemployed.”

“He Yu, you fucker, is there something wrong with your eyes, or something wrong with your head?”

Xie Qingcheng’s voice was far more menacing than He Yu’s.

“I’m not unemployed.”

He Yu hid his inner thoughts perfectly and looked at Xie Qingcheng with indifferent eyes.

“Even if it’s a leave of absence, you don’t know how long it’ll take. Are you going to live on just your base salary?”

“Even if I live on social security, it’s none of your business.”

At those words, He Yu laughed.

“Professor Xie. It’s true that we aren’t personally close, but while your personality is annoying, your skills are good. Honestly, if I just hire you as a doctor, it’s not bad. Like recycling trash.”

“I resigned voluntarily in the first place; do you think I’d go back to being your doctor? Did you eat something wrong?”

“Ah. I think you’ve misunderstood something.”

The straight and kind voice openly grated on Xie Qingcheng’s nerves.

“Who do you think you are to be my doctor? I was thinking of arranging a spot for you if you’re interested in the nursing home where that homeless person was staying last time.”

He Yu’s expression was utterly calm. He had a serious face, unbelievable for someone who had committed such an absurd act while lying on his dorm bed flipping through photos of Xie Qingcheng.

After a brief pause, he added one more thing.

“Since you were out of it [visit our site]and caused a nuisance at the club last time. I thought stolen contentI’d offer it as compensation.”

What a brazen bastard.

A deep wrinkle formed on the bridge of Xie Qingcheng’s nose. He frowned fiercely and exploded.

“Who do you think you are to offer compensat—”

“That night…”

“What are you talking about? Nothing happened that night.”

“…”

He Yu had wanted to put an end to the events of that night anyway. He had no intention of continuing such a perverted relationship with Xie Qingcheng. He couldn’t accept the fact that his first sexual partner was a man. But now that Xie Qingcheng had brought it up first, he was dissatisfied with that in its own way.

He Yu slowly narrowed his eyes. His insides were finally boiling.

He suddenly reached out and leaned against the car window. In an instant, Xie Qingcheng found himself trapped between He Yu and the car.

“Xie Qingcheng, do you have Alzheimer’s?”

“Then do you have fucking Parkinson’s?”

As the blunt curse flew, He Yu’s gaze sank even deeper.

“Professor Xie, the cost of living in Huzhou isn’t cheap. Even with your full previous salary, wasn’t one month’s living expenses tight? Book costs, thesis fees, scientific research donations, Xie Xue’s dowry. If Xie Xue falls for some second-generation tycoon and gets married, the dowry will probably…”

He Yu, quietly calculating the amount in his head, lifted his pitch-black eyes and looked at Xie Qingcheng with a benevolent expression.

“You’d have to work 365 days a year from the Qin Dynasty until about the year 2200 to cover it.”

“…”

“Honestly, it’s okay to ask me for help at a time like this.”

He Yu whispered into his ear in a small voice that only Xie Qingcheng could hear.

“I’ve thought about it for a few days. Anyway, it’s true that I fucked you. You weren’t my first, and it wasn’t incredibly pleasurable, but well, since we had sex so much, giving you the benefit of the doubt, you’ve become my person now. Naturally, I’ll take a shred of responsibility.”

Xie Qingcheng was on the verge of jumping out of his skin. Beyond being outraged by He Yu’s attitude of treating him like a woman, his reason was fading.

Suddenly, a genuine impulse to kill arose.

He Jiwei, the gunshot, the past, whatever… he truly wanted to kill He Yu right here and now.

The blatant emotion that couldn’t be hidden was conveyed directly to He Yu’s pupils. In that moment, He Yu vaguely sensed it.

Xie Qingcheng really wants to bite me to death in one go.

Within that anger, which seemed as if it wouldn’t be satisfied until blood was shed, there seemed to be some other emotion mixed in.

However, it was a fleeting feeling, so he couldn’t identify it properly.

It seemed Xie Qingcheng had eventually suppressed that emotion with an anger bordering on hatred.

Xie Qingcheng’s following voice was terrifyingly raspy.

“He Yu, there’s a limit to the bullshit. No matter how drunk I was, I remember that night exactly. You have a lot of sexual experience? Fuck, there’s a limit to self-glorification. Do you think I don’t know I was the one being penetrated? Who’s the virgin, you or me? Where do you get off telling such pathetic lies?”

At these words, He Yu’s complexion turned pale.

He shot back fiercely.

“I do have a lot of sexual experience!”

“Then you’re a complete murderer. Didn’t I tell you while we were having sex? That your technique is murderously shitty?”

This was the fatal weakness of a nineteen-year-old virgin.

Even though he knew his technique wasn’t great, He Yu wanted to pretend otherwise until the end. He didn’t want it to be known that he had flared up because he’d been hit where it hurts.

Without warning, the young man grabbed Xie Qingcheng by the collar, pushed him against the car, visit our siteand visit our siteaccused him with bloodshot eyes.

“My technique is bad? You came four times while being fucked by me, and now you say my technique is shitty?”

“Fuck, do you even have a conscience?”

Suppressing the unpleasantness crawling all over his body, Xie Qingcheng raised his hand and tapped He Yu’s cheek.

“You know best what happened that night, don’t you? Even a dog in heat is better than you.”

As if intending to tear every bone out of Xie Qingcheng, He Yu gritted his teeth and spoke.

“I guess you haven’t found a dog to serve you at night yet? Or was I just too bad?”

Irritated by the close proximity, Xie Qingcheng finally pushed He Yu away.

“Get lost, you brat.”

“…”

“I said get lost.”

As his anger reached its peak, a hollow laugh escaped. He Yu called out to the man in front of him with a voice mixed with laughter.

“Xie Qingcheng.”

“…”

“Don’t be so emotional and consider what I said. Right now, there’s probably no one in Huzhou who will take you in besides me.”

Xie Qingcheng, turning his head away, had an infinitely cold expression.

“Listen carefully. Even if I starve to death, I won’t accept your pathetic pity.”

“Then what are you going to do? Eat ramen every day in that shabby little room?”

It was just as he was looking down at the cornered Xie Qingcheng with sarcasm. Suddenly, the sound of someone panting with rage came from behind, and immediately after, something heavy struck the back of He Yu’s head.

“Just go die! You crazy bastard, He Yu!”

The object that caused the immense pain was a thick wedge heel. Turning his head with gloomy eyes, he saw Xie Xue charging toward him in a fury.

He Yu and Xie Qingcheng were both startled.

In an instant, Xie Qingcheng’s face became as pale as wax. He Yu was the same. No matter how much they hated each other behind the scenes, neither had any intention of exposing this filthy scandal to others. Especially not to those around them.

But when Xie Xue actually rushed over, she seemed purely enraged rather than shocked. It appeared she had either just arrived or, thanks to He Yu unconsciously lowering his voice while talking dirty, she hadn’t heard a thing.

Of course, based on what she had just heard alone, Xie Xue was absolutely furious.

A shabby one-room? No one in Huzhou would take you besides me?

If she hadn’t seen it with her own eyes today, she would never have believed that He Yu was the kind of person to say such things to others. Neither the fact that He Yu had such a despicable side, nor that the relationship between her brother and He Yu was this vicious.

Xie Xue’s protective instincts had already been heightened, her heart aching for her brother’s situation. In the midst of that, seeing He Yu corner her struggling brother caused her patience to snap. She yanked He Yu back and spread her arms to block Xie Qingcheng’s path. It looked as if active volcanoes were erupting in her eyes.

“Why are you picking on my brother!”

“…….”

Watching Xie Xue seethe with rage, He Yu was momentarily speechless.

Just how high does this girl think of herself?

Until now, He Yu had lived his life letting Xie Xue win. Even while teasing her mischievously, he had protected and helped her behind her back. That was likely why she acted so boldly, unaware of her place.

But what would happen if I stopped caring?

In truth, dealing with Xie Xue would be as easy as killing an ant.

And yet, she blocks my path, throws a shoe at the back of my head, and raises her voice?

He Yu found it slightly amusing.

However, Xie Xue was still Xie Xue. Even if most of her memories with her were a fantasy, she had been the peer who treated He Yu the most kindly. Though his tormented heart had grown numb and he had abandoned all expectations and hope, he still couldn’t bring himself to actually lay a hand on her.

Simply gazing at her coldly, he sneered with a chilling curve of his lips.

“Don’t you know what a well-meaning piece of advice is? I’m helping your brother right now.”

“Helping? You’re just being sarcastic! I heard everything just now!”

With a ferocious expression he had never seen before, like a lioness with her fur standing on end, Xie Xue raised her voice.

“Why are you suddenly acting like this? Do you believe the rumors floating around the internet too? No, who do you think you are, He Yu, to criticize my brother? If he takes a leave of absence, let him! I’m in this house too! I can support my brother!”

“…….”

Watching Xie Xue’s back, Xie Qingcheng felt a bitter taste in his mouth.

Like a patriarchal old fogey of this era, Xie Qingcheng was not one to offer his sister kind words. He was not a man who savored familial affection. Yet, faced with this situation, something soft stirred within his stone-like chest.

Meanwhile, He Yu touched the back of his head, which was still throbbing. Fortunately, he wasn’t bleeding.

His gloomy eyes flickered toward Xie Xue.

“Will a part-time lecturer’s salary [unauthorized copy]be stolen contentenough? You’ll barely be able to visit our siteafford late-night snacks.”

Xie Xue flared up at this.

“Mind your own business! Are you sick or something? I’ll just go without those stupid snacks! Who says anyone dies from not eating late-night snacks for the rest of their life? Get out of the way!”

The look in He Yu’s eyes as he glared at Xie Xue grew even more sinister.

Unable to watch any longer, Xie Qingcheng pulled Xie Xue away. Even as she was dragged back, she continued to pour out curses in an agitated voice.

“Is money everything? If you have money, you’re the boss, huh? Does it feel good to humiliate people? Just wait until you get an F this semester! Your participation grade is a zero! Do you think you’re so great? I don’t know why I didn’t recognize a crazy bastard like you until now! Psychopath! You piece of trash!”

The word ‘psychopath’ was He Yu’s imperial scale. Hearing it from Xie Xue’s mouth made it feel even more cruel.

He Yu’s expression became more menacing than before.

“Say that one more time.”

“Whether I say it once or a hundred times, what are you going to do about it?”

The one who countered was Xie Qingcheng.

He pulled Xie Xue behind him and glared at He Yu. His voice followed, calm yet ice-cold.

“I’m right here, so what are you going to do? Go ahead, do whatever the hell [visit our site]you want. Then it’s stolen content[visit our site]you and me both going down.”

“…….”

“In case you forgot, I’m a man with no parents, no wife, and no children. I don’t care about things like honor. The only thing that matters to me right now is Xie Xue. If you dare touch my sister, I’ll kill you.”

“…….”

Xie Qingcheng patted his sister with his hand while glaring at the young man opposite him with his eyes.

“Get in, Xie Xue.”

Still fuming, Xie Xue couldn’t suppress her anger until the end.

“He Yu, you crazy—”

“Stop talking vulgarities. Get in.”

“…….”

In the end, Xie Xue was forcibly pushed into the car.

Xie Qingcheng slammed the passenger door shut and glared at He Yu once more. As he looked up with a sharp gaze, his characteristic peach blossom eyes turned into sanpaku eyes, as blatant as could be.

Only after glaring at He Yu like this did he walk around the car toward the driver’s seat.

At that moment, He Yu grabbed the wrist of the man passing by.

“Xie Qingcheng, you…”

“I’ll say this one last time.”

Each syllable leaked through Xie Qingcheng’s teeth as if they were being ground down.

“Get the hell out of my sight. Now.”

Having finished his sentence, he shook off He Yu’s hand and climbed into the car without hesitation. Thump—as he slammed the steering wheel, a deafening horn echoed.

With a dark expression and downcast eyes, He Yu watched the two people through the car window. Their lips moved as they spoke.

Seeing this, Xie Xue started to roll down the window to curse at him, but Xie Qingcheng stopped her.

“Don’t give him the time of day.”

Xie Qingcheng’s gaze was equally murderous. Completely ignoring He Yu, he spoke to Xie Xue.

“Let’s just go back.”