GBROTAH CH68

Chapter 68: A Matter of Convenience

The fans on the ceiling whirred, and a subtle restlessness filled the examination hall.

This was the last exam of the semester for their major. Many students had already packed their things, ready to leave campus with their suitcases as soon as this class was over.

The closer it got to the end of the exam, the stronger this hidden restlessness became. No one was still working on their papers; everyone kept glancing at the clock on the wall, waiting for the bell to ring.

Xie Yuanxing did one last check of the paper in his hand, distractedly twirling the pen between his fingers.

Pen twirling was a habitual action of Shen Bianye’s. Shen Bianye could twirl anything in his hands, even flipping his phone a couple of times. His well-defined fingers moved with a smooth, nimble grace that was a pleasure to watch.

Having watched him for a long time, Xie Yuanxing had unconsciously picked up the habit.

He wasn’t very skilled at it. The pen clattered onto the desk with a clear sound, startling him out of his reverie.

Xie Yuanxing subconsciously glanced at the teacher on the podium, then placed the pen obediently on the desk and didn’t touch it again.

The exquisite watch on his wrist was beautiful, its hands gently ticking away the time.

There were still ten minutes until the end of the exam, but Xie Yuanxing’s mind had already flown outside. He and Shen Bianye had made plans to go to a new restaurant near their home that he had seen online.

Their home in Z City.

When the bell signaling the end of the exam rang, a sudden commotion broke out in the classroom.

Xie Yuanxing thought it was just the usual end-of-exam stir, but then he noticed everyone’s gaze was directed towards the doorway.

Following everyone else’s line of sight, Xie Yuanxing looked towards the door in confusion. A tall figure stood outside. His hair was slightly pushed back, revealing sharp, handsome features. He had broad shoulders and a narrow waist, and in his hand, he held a cup of grape cheese tea with jelly.

Standing there, he looked just like a male model or a celebrity, dressed as a youthful university student, here to shoot some kind of milk tea commercial.

His appearance alone was striking enough, and combined with his minor fame and the subtle buzz in the classroom, the feeling became even stronger.

The teacher at the podium had to go outside and ask him to step aside.

Xie Yuanxing wasn’t too far from the door and could vaguely hear some of their conversation.

Teacher: “Young man, you’re standing here and disrupting the exam discipline.”

Shen Bianye followed him good-naturedly, a hint of injustice in his voice. “Sir, I believe that was the bell signaling the end of the exam.”

He had waited until the bell rang before appearing at the door. He just wanted to get a glimpse of what his Xingxing baby looked like in the exam hall. Being asked to leave after standing there for less than half a minute left Shen Bianye feeling a bit exasperated.

The voices became muffled after that, and Xie Yuanxing couldn’t hear clearly anymore.

It was probably just something along the lines of how even though the bell had rung, no one could leave until all the papers were collected, and as long as they hadn’t left, exam discipline had to be maintained.

Xie Yuanxing recognized the teacher invigilating this exam. He was a small, elderly man who lived by the rules. Xie Yuanxing could imitate his tone of voice almost perfectly in his head.

The corners of Xie Yuanxing’s lips curled up slightly, and he couldn’t help but let out a silly little laugh.

He sat in his seat, his eyes following the teacher. He waited eagerly until the teacher reached him to collect his paper, then turned his head slightly to watch the teacher collect papers from the students behind him.

Once the last exam paper was collected, everyone in the classroom moved in unison.

Xie Yuanxing usually waited slowly at the back until most people had left before getting up, but this time, his movements were also quick. Like a sparrow flapping its wings, he eagerly flew out the door.

He walked out of the examination hall but didn’t see Shen Bianye outside. Xie Yuanxing looked around in confusion, picked up his black backpack from the drawer outside, and only saw the figure standing by the flowerbed after he walked out of the academic building.

Shen Bianye was on the phone, his expression not looking good, but he still noticed Xie Yuanxing coming out immediately.

He handed the cup of grape tea to Xie Yuanxing, took his other hand, and unconsciously rubbed the small, prominent bone on Xie Yuanxing’s wrist, his movements revealing a subtle agitation.

“Which hospital? I’m coming over now.”

Xie Yuanxing immediately looked at him, his eyes questioning.

Shen Bianye hung up the phone, his face still grim. His handsome features were clouded with a somber expression, and his brows were tightly furrowed. “Baby, I have to go to the hospital. You…”

“I’ll go with you,” Xie Yuanxing quickly interjected.

He thought something was wrong with Shen Bianye’s pheromones again, but when they arrived, he found out it was Zhou Chao who was in trouble.

By the time Shen Bianye learned about it, it was already quite late. There was no one else in the hospital room.

Zhou Chao had a cast on his leg and bandages wrapped around his body. Lying on the hospital bed, he greeted them weakly as they walked in. “Yo, you’re here.”

“You didn’t have to get all styled up and wear perfume just to come see me.”

Shen Bianye sneered, “Styled up for you?”

“The cast is on your leg, not your face. You’re still as thick-skinned as ever.”

His anger was partly directed at Zhou Chao. It wasn’t because Zhou Chao had ruined his plans for the day; Shen Bianye wasn’t that heartless.

Rather, “You’ve got some nerve. Getting beaten up like this and not telling me. You could have dodged it, made a phone call before it happened. Would I not have saved you?”

Zhou Chao gave a bitter smile and hesitated to speak.

Shen Bianye frowned. “Do I hesitate when I order you around? What are you hesitating for?”

Xie Yuanxing pursed his lips. “Zhou Chao, I’ll go get you a glass of water.”

There was already water on the cabinet next to Zhou Chao’s bed. When he said this, everyone knew he was just finding an excuse to leave so that Zhou Chao could speak freely if there was something he didn’t want to say in front of him.

But Zhou Chao stopped him. “No need, there’s water here.”

He pointed at the cup of water, but the movement pulled at his wound, and he sucked in a sharp breath, hissing in pain.

He looked quite miserable, but Shen Bianye’s face was dark. “Can you talk now? Stop hissing like a snake. Who did this? I’ll have them join you in the bed next to you.”

Zhou Chao chuckled humorlessly. “My dad.”

Shen Bianye paused for a moment, then said darkly, “It’s fine. I can help you beat him up too.”

As someone who would report his own father for using illegal drugs, beating up someone else’s dad was a simple matter of convenience.

Zhou Chao’s father was not a good person and had done plenty of immoral things. A beating would absolutely not be an injustice.

Zhou Chao: “Thanks.”

Shen Bianye: “You’re welcome.”

Xie Yuanxing, standing to the side: …

He silently steered the conversation back to a normal track. “Your dad… why did he hit you?”

Zhou Chao was silent for a moment. With a broken leg, lying on the hospital bed, his long, narrow eyes lacked their usual shrewdness as he looked down in silence. “It’s nothing much. He just found out about me and Lu Qiang.”

Shen Bianye frowned. “So what if he found out? Weren’t you two not serious anyway?”

Although Shen Bianye didn’t quite agree with this approach to relationships, as long as it wasn’t serious, they could just break it off, and their families would almost never pursue the matter.

Wealthy families looked glamorous on the surface, but there was no telling how much dirt was hidden behind the scenes. Zhou Chao’s situation didn’t warrant such a severe beating at all.

Zhou Chao looked at Shen Bianye, his eyes flickering. “Not really. We wanted to see if we could make it to the end.”

He often didn’t understand Shen Bianye. People who knew they didn’t have long to live would often indulge in wild pleasures and debauchery. Shen Bianye’s family background was more than enough to support an incredibly extravagant and hedonistic lifestyle.

But Shen Bianye didn’t. Instead, he achieved a level of devotion that most people couldn’t.

Having watched from the sidelines for so long, he also wanted to try and see what that kind of feeling was. Perhaps it was the look on Shen Bianye’s face that day, when he had almost proudly shown him the childishly cute outlet light that Xie Yuanxing had stuck in the corner, that had touched him. It had made him, on a whim, say no when his family ordered them to break up.

What Zhou Chao hadn’t expected was that Lu Qiang also held on.

They didn’t have a strange illness like Shen Bianye’s, but they were still not valued at home. Their family backgrounds were not as prominent as Shen Bianye’s, and even their names were so ordinary, yet in each other’s eyes, they could shine.

Shen Bianye was a bit surprised to hear this, but he still reached out and patted Zhou Chao’s shoulder. “What about Lu Qiang?”

Zhou Chao gave a bitter smile. “He was sent abroad by his family.”

He looked at Shen Bianye, let out a slow breath, and after a moment of struggle in his eyes, he finally spoke. “Do you still have any money? Can you lend me some more?”

“I’ve started a new company, and it’s at a critical stage. My family won’t provide any more funding. I want to keep it going on my own.”

“If I can make it successful, I’ll have the confidence to bring him back.” If he worked hard, maybe he could see some hope.

Shen Bianye: “I have some spare cash on hand. Count it as my investment. I’ll transfer it to your account later.”

Zhou Chao nodded. “Alright, thanks a lot.”

Shen Bianye clicked his tongue but said nothing. Seeing that they had finished their discussion, Xie Yuanxing hesitated for a moment before speaking. “Is anyone bringing you dinner tonight? Otherwise, I can go buy some pork ribs to make a stew and bring it over for you later.”

Zhou Chao was taken aback and couldn’t help but smile as he stared at Xie Yuanxing. He inexplicably felt that the “wifely” aura around Xie Yuanxing had grown even stronger.

The next second, Shen Bianye’s cold face blocked his view, and he mouthed silently, “Stop staring at my wife.”

Then he turned his head and pulled Xie Yuanxing away. “Baby, he has money to hire a caregiver. He won’t starve.”

“What pork rib soup? If he really wants to eat it, his bone is already broken. He can just pull it out and chew on it himself.”

Xie Yuanxing turned his head to look at the receding hospital room, his dark eyes widening slightly. “Isn’t it bad to just leave him here like this?”

Shen Bianye reached out and touched the corner of Xie Yuanxing’s eye, his fingertip rubbing over the tear mole. “Baby, don’t care about other people.”

Don’t look at other people, and don’t let them occupy your thoughts.

They are not important, and they are not good enough.

Only he would get excited by Xie Yuanxing’s gaze.

Xie Yuanxing was helpless. “He’s your friend. He’s so seriously injured, we should at least show some concern.”

Without even a second of hesitation, Shen Bianye said, “I don’t have any friends, baby.”

Xie Yuanxing: …

For a moment, he had a mischievous urge to make Shen Bianye say it again, secretly record it, and play it for Zhou Chao on his sickbed later.

Xie Yuanxing smiled silently, cast aside the fleeting thought, and didn’t mention taking care of Zhou Chao again.

To Xie Yuanxing, Zhou Chao was just Shen Bianye’s friend. If Shen Bianye didn’t want him to pay attention to others, then even with Zhou Chao lying in a hospital room, it wasn’t really important to Xie Yuanxing.

He put the matter out of his mind, not expecting that there would be a small follow-up to it later, which he would hear from Shen Bianye’s father.