Ch5 - Let’s get certificate

Special thanks to Petra for proofreading.

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Huo Yu didn’t speak. He stared at Xia Wan, whose eyes were filled with anticipation.

Xia Wan waited for Huo Yu to say something, but when there was no response he tried to deflect. “Leave it. It doesn’t hurt that much. And thank you.”

“Thank you for what?” Huo Yu sighed when he realized what Xia Wan mean. “I didn’t help you yet.” 

“But you took me in,” Xia Wan said sincerely.

Huo Yu’s expression seemed to ease a little when he thought that the offer had not yet been rescinded. After a while, he made very light, “Hmm.”

Xia Wan heaved a sigh of relief. He felt much lighter as if a ton of pressure had lifted from his fragile shoulders. He slowly moved to the corner of the sofa and started to dry his wet hair.

Through the humming of the blow dryer, there was a slight clink of porcelain in the kitchen, and when he looked over curiously he saw that Huo Yu was laying out food on the table. He didn’t know if it was a psychological effect, but the aroma on the tip of his nose suddenly grew stronger, reminding him of how hungry he was. He stared at the various dishes, swallowing his saliva subconsciously, and then started drying his hair faster.

Huo Yu couldn’t help but look in Xia Wan’s direction when he heard the sound of the hair dryer suddenly increasing. Xia Wan was half lying and half sitting on the cozy sofa, and the way he was moving made his wide sleeve slip down his wrist, revealing a white arm for all to see. Huo Yu stared at the skinny, not-too-pale arm before he turned away. His mouth twitched, and inexplicably, all of his turmoil and unhappiness too were blown away by the buzzing hair dryer.

The sound quickly stopped, and Xia Wan jumped off the sofa and walked toward the kitchen. “Can we eat now?” He sat opposite Huo Yu. With both of his hands, he unwrapped the foil and looked down at the food in the bowl.

“You’re very happy. ” Huo Yu commented. He didn’t understand why Xia Wan would be so excited to eat; three meals a day was just routine to him.

“Mm-hmm,” Xia Wan responded very lightly, lowering his head to drink the soup. After taking a sip, he looked up with a smile. “It’s so fresh.” His eyes were full of unhidden joy. 

Magnificent. Huo Yu was captivated by Xia Wan’s happy smile. He couldn’t help but express his opinions for the first time to someone. And the compliment came from the heart.

Huo Yu observed him for a moment, and Xia Wan’s expression made him think that his aunt’s cooking must have improved a lot in the last few years. He was a little curious, so he couldn’t help but take a sip. For today’s dinner, his aunt had prepared pork belly and chicken soup. Although it was delicious, it was not as amazing as Xia Wan was making it out to be. Huo Yu took two more sips and put his spoon down. When he looked up again, he saw Xia Wan savoring the dish, as if… as if he had never eaten anything more delicious in his life.

His eating style was very unique. He chewed very quickly, his rosy lips opening and closing quickly, making his cheeks bulge like a small hamster protecting his food.

Kacha Kacha… 

“Is it that tasty?” Huo Yu couldn’t help being a little puzzled, yet his eyes didn’t move an inch from the hamster-like cheeks.

“Yes.” Xia Wan was holding a piece of celery between his teeth, and he nodded frantically without hesitation. “This is the second-best meal I’ve ever eaten.”

Before transmigrating, he was often ill. There are many things that sick people need to avoid, especially in their diet, so throughout his childhood he rarely had the chance to enjoy food. If he ate something he shouldn’t, it would just deteriorate his gastrointestinal function more, so for as long as he could remember his meals were always different from the rest of his family’s. He’d never eaten a normal meal in his entire life; the only flavors he was familiar with were bland and tasteless, and for the longest time, he assumed that that was what all food tasted like, but then his elder brother secretly snuck some of his shares for him to taste, out of pity. It was a portion of braised pork, and the first truly delicious food Xia Wan ever tasted. He ate so much of it he made himself sick, and before long he was back in the hospital. From then on, his scared brother never dared leave him anything more to eat.

We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.

Xia Wan got greedy after that and, having had a taste of something better, unable to tolerate his water-like diet any further, he pitched many fits. In the end, his family had no choice but to eat out all their food at restaurants and leave no leftovers at home. Forget snacks – he couldn’t even think about them, let alone lay eyes on them. During the few times he mingled with other children, he got to see them eating potato chips, lollipops, candied haws, biscuits, and chocolate, but he never got to taste a single bite. His siblings never dared eat such things in front of him. Even so, when they came home he could still smell the sugar on them. 

…

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Huo Yu didn’t know this, and felt that his tone was oddly exaggerated, but when he thought about how poor and pitiful Xia Wan had been he quietly pushed more food his way: “Eat more.”

“Thank you,” Xia Wan said vaguely, rolling his eyes, aware of what Huo Yu was thinking. In any case, the meal had been the most satisfying in his entire life, overcoming even the irreplaceable memory of braised pork from his childhood. After all, he’d only had a few pieces – not nearly enough to truly satisfy his appetite. After he put down his bowl and chopsticks, he rubbed his stomach lightly, and his entire body relaxed, content, and happy. It wasn’t until Huo Yu put down his utensils that he woke up suddenly from his daydream. He’d forgotten to bring up his business, and now, looking at the time, it was too late to mention it. Xia Wan pursed his lips and asked softly, “Can I still have breakfast at your house tomorrow?” 

Huo Yu had already pulled out his chair and was about to clean up when Xia Wan spoke. He couldn’t help but pause for a moment. “Sure,” he said. Although his tone was indifferent, he wasn’t refusing.

Xia Wan perked up, and he hurriedly reached out and intercepted Huo Yu’s hand on the tableware. “I’ll clean it.”

Huo Yu paused and silently pulled away his hand. Xia Wan’s fingers weren’t as cold as they had been in the hotel. Now, they were warm and soft.

Xia Wan carefully placed the two soup bowls on the corner of the table and turned around to clear the plates. Something collided with his elbow, and behind him the two soup bowls he’d just cleared clattered to the ground in broken pieces. 

Xia Wan: “…”

“This is the first time I’ve ever dropped dishes while washing them,” Xia Wan said softly.

He was telling the truth. Technically, this was also his first time washing dishes. The idea of ​​working a few jobs after leaving the Xia family became, suddenly, increasingly unrealistic. Xia Wan frowned slightly and felt that it was more important to establish a good relationship with Huo Yu. He pursed his lips and focused on dealing with the remaining bowls and dishes as if facing a great enemy.

Some of the soup had splattered Huo Yu’s feet, leaving oil stains on his slippers. He frowned in disgust and raised his eyes disdainfully. But seeing Xia Wan’s worried look, he somehow felt like he was making too much of a fuss. It didn’t matter if his slippers were dirty; they could be replaced. 

Xia Wan cleaned the spilled food and broken china in silence and had only managed a single fragmented plate before his phone started vibrating on the corner of the table.

Jingle~ clang~

Xia Wan was unprepared and scared himself by dropping the dinner plate a second time. Fortunately, he didn’t splash oil all over Huo Yu’s feet again, and the whole thing made more noise than anything.

“Amitabha,” he chanted, invoking the Buddha’s name with his hands together after letting go of his chest. Huo Yu looked at him coldly, and after a while, he tilted his head and smiled. 

“Are you okay?” he asked, implying: Do you need help?

“Of course.”

Xia Wan pursed his lips stubbornly. For the sake of his future, he had to practice this kind of housework. This was his first opportunity. Seeing his serious face, Huo Yu chuckled. He looked around at Xia Wan’s phone, with Huo Lin’s name flashing on the screen. Probably he’d just finished arguing with Qiu Qi, and only now had found the time to talk. Huo Yu’s eyes sank slightly. “Don’t you want to answer the phone?”

Xia Wan was busy protecting his precious dishes like they were his children. Hearing the question, he looked at the screen too. He frowned when he saw that it was that cheapster Huo Lin, and ruthlessly pressed the button to decline. 

Seeing him act so indifferently, the corner of Huo Yu’s mouth ticked imperceptibly. “Good night,” he said, turning to go.

“Good night.” Xia Wan replied dully.

Huo Yu climbed the stairs as the noise of clinking continued until he was at the entrance of the stairs. He put his hand on the guardrail, turned his head, and glanced back. Xia Wan was pressing his hand to the small of his back, frowning, as if he were very uncomfortable. Does it hurt? Huo Yu wondered, slightly puzzled, but after a moment of hesitation, he turned back up the stairs.

That night, Xia Wan didn’t sleep well. He washed the dishes till they shined, and though it was an easy and uncomplicated task it still took him more than an hour just for those few plates. Once he was done he felt amazing, and just as he was about to return to his room he saw that the snack rack in the kitchen was full. The temptation was great, especially now that he wasn’t sick, and based on what he knew of Huo Yu’s character he didn’t seem like someone who liked to eat snacks. Yet – one should never judge a book by its cover. Xia Wan mentally scolded himself and dithered for a while about whether he could take one bag of snacks. Especially the small potato chips. They looked delicious. But in the end, Xia Wan withdrew his stray fingers with difficulty and recalled the lessons of his childhood. He could only eat them after asking Huo Yu’s permission in the morning. 

Xia Wan wrapped himself up in the blanket which was there on the sofa. Although he’d tried to reason with himself, logic is one thing and instinct another. The whole night in his dreams, Xia Wan helped his roommates wash dishes and then frantically chased potato chips around in the air. His sleeping position was very poor, too. This was Huo Yu’s first thought after going downstairs in the early morning. He gazed at the blanket which had been kicked off, and then at Xia Wan who was hunched over like a shrimp, with his round butt pointing out, pitifully nestled in a corner of the sofa. Huo Yu paused for a moment, and finally walked forward and lifted the clothes on Xia Wan’s back. His pale skin was now covered in scattered dark bruises like someone had beaten him very badly. It looked especially shocking.

Huo Yu inspected it for a moment, then picked up the blanket and placed it on Xia Wan. After thinking about it, he bent down and tucked the corners in. Seemingly aware of the warmth, Xia Wan snorted comfortably, then pulled the blanket up, and the whole person went in with his head, leaving only a few hairs sticking out.

Even sleep-deprived, he was still woken by the smell of delicious food. He slowly opened his eyes and saw a tall figure in the morning light busy at the dining table.

“Morning.” He sat up and greeted Huo Yu with a hoarse voice. 

“Did I wake you?” Huo Yu’s voice was distant, and his expression couldn’t be seen clearly in the light and shadow.

“No.” Xia Wan shook his head and saw a set of clothes on the table, which looked to be his size when he unfolded them. They seemed new, yet also not.

Seeing Xia Wan’s doubts, Huo Yu walked over with the light at his back. “Those are my teenage clothes.”

Xia Wan: “…” 

Who are you insulting? Anyway, I’m 179 cm tall…

Seeing that he was unhappy, Huo Yu hooked the corner of his mouth and said, “I made this for you.”

Xia Wan then noticed that Huo Yu was holding a dark brown bottle that looked a bit like medicinal oil.

“Oh.” He turned around obediently, put his forehead on the back of the sofa, bent his thin white neck, and sat down obediently with his back to Huo Yu. His posture made his butt stick out prominently. 

Huo Yu paused for a moment, wanting Xia Wan to sit up, but then thought about it and said nothing. He poured the medicinal oil into the palm of his hand and rubbed it evenly, before half-kneeling on one leg and covering Xia Wan’s injury. The posture was too intimate, like hugging Xia Wan from behind. For a while, except for Xia Wan’s occasional whimpers, the room was quiet.

“Say when it hurts.” Huo Yu said, but the strength in his hands did not decrease at all.

When Xia Wan heard him, he turned his head around, snow-white teeth biting his rosy lips tightly and eyes wet like he couldn’t bear it. His gaze was fixed on Huo Yu’s face for a moment before he turned away calmly.

“Just rub it.” Huo Yu’s palm was steady and hot, and Xia Wan felt that the wound was numb and itchy after a while, relieving his initial pain by a lot. 

“Okay.” Huo Yu retracted his hand and stood up straight. “Change your clothes and then come eat.”

“Oh.” Xia Wan knelt for a while still, his legs numb, before he turned around slowly and raised his hand to unbutton his borrowed pajamas.

“Go to the bathroom to change!” Compared with his previous gentleness, Huo Yu’s tone was suddenly very cold. Xia Wan was so frightened that his hands trembled, and the comfort of being taken care of disappeared instantly.

How is his reaction so extreme? Xia Wan thought but still carried his clothes into the bathroom obediently. When he came out, Huo Yu was already sitting at the dining table, looking intently at a tablet. 

There were fried dough sticks and soy milk on the table, as well as a plate of stove buns and two plates of side dishes, which was the most common home breakfast.

“I’m afraid it would affect your rest,” Huo Yu put down the tablet and said, ” So I didn’t let my aunt come over to cook.”

“Oh.” Xia Wan’s tone was a little regretful, but his eyes were full of excitement. He grabbed a fritter at random, and when he took the first bite, he couldn’t help but exclaim, “Delicious.” His expression was almost the same as when he’d had last night’s pork belly and chicken soup.

Huo Yu: “…” 

Yesterday’s pork belly and chicken were expensive, so it was understandable that Xia Wan might have savored it as much as he did. But this was fritters and soy milk. Huo Yu slowly took a bite, and after confirming that it was nothing special, he endured and kept silent.

“By the way,” Xia Wan said, his cheeks bulging. “Thank you.”

“Thank you, again?” Huo Yu asked quietly, without raising his eyelids.

“Thank you for breakfast, and I would like to help you too….” As he was about to bring up the deal, the phone beside him vibrated again, with Huo Lin’s name displayed on the screen. 

Huo Yu looked at the name, and the finger wearing the sliver-gray ring tapped the surface of the dining table lightly. What with yesterday’s and now today’s events, he could easily surmise that Huo Lin was still very attached to Xia Wan. Seeing Xia Wan decline the call again, he couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow.

“Then, how are you going to thank me?”

“If there is a chance,” Xia Wan looked at him seriously and said, “I will help you too.”

“What can you help me with?” Huo Yu asked with a half-smile. In terms of life experience, status, and even wealth, there was very little Xia Wan could give him. 

But Xia Wan knew where he could lend a hand. There was a lot he could do – in the future, Huo Yu would face some difficult situations, and Xia Wan knew all of them. In the original plot, Huo Peixue would force Huo Yu to marry. Thinking about it, Xia Wan said: “In the future, your family could make you go on a blind date. If you don’t like it, I can play as your lover for free and help you block rotten peach blossoms.”

(Translator note:- Rotten peach blossom is having romance luck but not the kind of romance you wanted.)

“What if my family doesn’t arrange a blind date for me?” Huo Yu asked vaguely.

“They will,” Xia Wan vowed and continued his nonsense. “I heard Huo Lin mention it.” 

Indeed, Huo Peixue would never let Huo Yu’s marriage go unchecked, and he would need a façade to settle the issue once and for all. Xia Wan was indeed very suitable for this.

“In that case,” Huo Yu looked at Xia Wan with a slight smile in his eyes, “Why don’t we go and get the certificate after dinner, this way the matter will be closed once and for all?”

Xia Wan was caught off-guard as he was taking a bite of a bun when saw blood at the tip of his tongue. His eyes turned red in pain, smarting with tears.