Chapter 7: No Need To Treat Me Like An Invalid

In the afternoon, when Ling Qun called Chen Yuchuan to ask him out for drinks, he refused.

“I’m not going. Drinking too much would turn us into useless wastes. I’ve accompanied you to drink for an entire week. I think it’s time to take a break .”

“You really won’t come?” Ling Qun owned a bar and loved to hang out. Chen Yuchuan hadn’t gone often before, but now, after going there for a week, Ling Qun would call him every day and invite him out.

Ling Qun added, “Bo Xue, they’re all here.”

“You can all drink together, then. I’m not coming.” Chen Yuchuan didn’t say anything more. He hung up the phone, turned around, found boxing gloves from the second bedroom, and went out.

His heart was still heavy, and he had to let it out.

He and Lu Yang had lived together for many years, and they would often quarrel over trivial things. Although they fought frequently, they made it a point not to fight at home. His small living room wasn’t large enough for two long-legged and long-armed gentlemen to fight in.

Instead, they fought in a boxing gym. Lu Yang had a friend who had opened a boxing gym, and so the two of them got a lifetime membership.

No matter who had angered whom, or whenever they encountered a conflict that could not be easily resolved, they would go to the boxing gym to settle it. Whoever wins would be in the right.

Lu Yang had been practicing boxing and sanda since he was a teenager, and so later, he taught Chen Yuchuan in a little bit of sparring.

In Chen Yuchuan’s eyes, Lu Yang looked like a social elite when he wore a suit. But the moment he took off his suit and wore only a sleeveless vest and boxing gloves, he became so handsome that he could enthrall Chen Yuchuan into stupidity.

The first time they went to the boxing gym was because Chen Yuchuan had fought with others and had lost.

He had already forgotten the reason for the fight. He only remembered that it was three against one and he had suffered a lot in the end.

Lu Yang was on a business trip that day and so he had told Chen Yuchuan that he would not return that night. Chen Yuchuan had lost his cell phone during the fight so he had to use the office phone to call Lu Yang. He was too lazy to go back home and so he slept in the office lounge.

But when he opened the door the next morning, he saw Lu Yang, still out of breath, standing at the door of the office with red eyes, ready to kick the door down.

Only then did Chen Yuchuan know that Lu Yang had been looking for him all night. Lu Yang had called his office several times, but he was so tired that he hadn’t heard the phone ringing. Since he didn’t answer the phone, Lu Yang thought he wasn’t in the office and had checked many other places instead. He also called the police.

Lu Yang wanted to beat him that day, but seeing his bruised face, he pulled his arm and asked him who did it.

When Chen Yuchuan lied to Lu Yang that he had accidentally fallen on the street, Lu Yang grabbed him by the collar, dragged him down to the street, and asked him if he should drop him again on it.

Chen Yuchuan seriously considered letting him drop him on the street. But in the end, he threw himself on Lu Yang and clung to him as he admitted his mistake. He finally confessed that he had gotten into a fight, and it was three against one.

Lu Yang grabbed him by the collar again and dragged him to the boxing gym.

At that time, Lu Yang had taken off his suit jacket, changed into a sleeveless black sweatshirt, and put on boxing gloves with his arm muscles exposed. Chen Yuchuan was immediately stunned senseless and he grabbed Lu Yang’s arm and said, “Husband, I’m not fighting you.”

Lu Yang looked at the bruises on his face, and his anger dimmed. He told him, “We’re not fighting. I’m just teaching you boxing. We’re not going home until you can beat me.”

As a result, Chen Yuchuan was beaten up by Lu Yang that day. It was clear that Lu Yang had let him win the last round, and when they got back home that evening, he had even tossed him all night.

Later, the boxing gym became one of the places, aside from the bedroom, where they most frequently went to resolve their conflicts.

After fighting it out, no matter what the issue was, they would let it pass and would no longer talk about it, regardless of who was right and who was wrong.

This was their tacit understanding.

But Chen Yuchuan knew very well that, except for the first time they met, if Lu Yang really wanted to beat him, he could. Because, if Lu Yang really wanted to make a real move, he wasn’t his opponent at all.

However, he and Lu Yang hadn’t gone to the boxing gym in a long time. He calculated that it had been half a year since they last went.

When Chen Yuchuan arrived at the boxing gym, the front desk staff saw him and greeted him in a familiar way. “Brother Chuan, long time no see.”

“Long time no see, Xiao Yang.”

Chen Yuchuan raised his chin in greeting to Xiao Yang. He still remembered this staff member. He had heard the others called this clean-looking boy in his 20s by the name “Xiao Yang.” Therefore, since he didn’t know this child’s name, he also opted to call him “Xiao Yang” as well.

After saying hello, Chen Yuchuan took out the card from his pocket and put it on the counter, “Please help me to swipe it.”

“Okay, Brother Chuan, wait a moment.” Xiao Yang took his card, and while swiping it, he asked, “Has Brother Chuan been very busy recently? Why did you come today?”

Chen Yuchuan had boxing gloves hanging from his neck. With his arms resting on the counter, he leaned the upper half of his body forward lazily and said, “I’m not too busy. In fact, I’m quite free. It’s been too boring these past few days, so I came here to play for a bit.”

“It’s good to play and relax. Just punch and vent.” Xiao Yang finished swiping his card for him and handed him the key to the locker in the lounge. He said, “I heard Brother Yang say you’ve been very busy recently. By the way, why didn’t you come with Brother Yang today?”

“Lu Yang?” Chen Yuchuan immediately straightened. “Has he been here recently?”

Xiao Yang was taken aback by this question. He scratched his head, looked at the serious expression on Chen Yuchuan’s face, thought he had said something wrong, and hesitated, not knowing how to respond.

Chen Yuchuan asked again, “Have Lu Yang been here previously?”

After hesitating, Xiao Yang said, “Brother Yang often comes by himself. I also asked him why you didn’t come with him, and he said that you’ve been very busy lately. He’s here today, right in the innermost arena, fighting with Brother He…”

Before Xiao Yang had even finished speaking, Chen Yuchuan picked up the card and the key on the counter table, and strode away. He quickly entered the lounge, changed his clothes, put away his mobile phone, and walked to the innermost ring, wearing boxing gloves.

But he stopped before he reached the innermost arena. He stood frozen at the corner of a large pillar, and from a distance, he could see Lu Yang in the middle of punching someone in the boxing ring.

Lu Yang was wearing a sleeveless sweatshirt and had bare feet. Except for the bandages on his wrists and ankles, he wasn’t wearing any other protective gears. He raised his fists in front of his eyes, his body jumping and moving to attack.

Chen Yuchuan knew Lu Yang’s opponent. His name was He Jun, and he was a professional boxer who had won many awards.

Chen Yuchuan stood beside the pillar, and his hands in the boxing gloves tightened unconsciously as his gaze landed on Lu Yang’s left leg. After watching for a while, his eyes moved up and stopped at Lu Yang’s chest again.

Hearing the muffled sound of fists hitting body in the arena, Chen Yuchuan came back to his senses. When he was about to walk over, he realized that the two people on the stage were not really competing, but were simply practicing a few moves against each other.

Lu Yang and He Jun should have been practicing for quite some time. Lu Yang’s hair was soaked with sweat, and his clothes were clinging to his body, vaguely tracing the outlines of strong muscles.

Someone came and called out to He Jun. He Jun said a few words to the person, took off his gloves, turned his head, and told Lu Yang, “Brother Yang, I have something to do so I’ll go back first. We can make an appointment for another day.”

Lu Yang nodded to him, and they both raised their hands to say goodbye.

As Lu Yang was about to take off his gloves and step down, he turned around and saw Chen Yuchuan wearing boxing gloves and standing next to the pillar.

They looked at each other for a while.

Lu Yang looked away first. Taking off his gloves, he began to walk toward the ropes. Chen Yuchuan ran over. Lifting the rope fence, he lifted his leg and jumped onto the stage, blocking Lu Yang.

Chen Yuchuan hooked his lips and said, “Mr. Lu, what a coincidence. Now that we’ve seen each other, it’s impossible to leave without a fight. It’s been a long time since I’ve played, and my hands are a little itchy. How about we have a round?”

“I don’t have time today. Perhaps we can do it another day.” Lu Yang stepped to the side and tried to bypass Chen Yuchuan.

But the moment he moved a step, Chen Yuchuan also raised his leg and followed a step, blocking him. “No time? You have no time, but you still always come by yourself?”

As he spoke, the corners of Chen Yuchuan’s mouth lifted into a grin, but his eyes were not smiling. They were like cold water, making everyone who looked at him feel a biting chill.

Lu Yang no longer tried to go around him. He knew that if he didn’t fight Chen Yuchuan today, he wouldn’t be able to leave.

Since he couldn’t walk away, then he had no choice but to fight. Lu Yang put his gloves back on and stepped back to the center of the boxing ring. He knocked his boxing gloves against Chen Yuchuan’s and said, “Come on then. You haven’t practiced in a long time, are you sure you’ll be okay?”

Chen Yuchuan rubbed the corner of his mouth with his glove and snorted coldly. He adjusted his posture, stepped strategically in front of Lu Yang, and launched an attack.

Lu Yang easily blocked Chen Yuchuan’s punch. While Chen Yuchuan attacked, Lu Yang defended.

Lu Yang was the one who had taught Chen Yuchuan how to box. Of course, he knew where Chen Yuchuan’s strengths and weaknesses were. After a few minutes, he gradually shifted from defense to offense.

Chen Yuchuan saw that Lu Yang was fighting seriously. He took a deep breath, resumed his defensive posture, and began to watch Lu Yang’s movements.

He hadn’t fought in a long time, and so it took a while for him to ease back into the flow of it. Therefore, he fell behind and was soon suppressed by Lu Yang.

A few minutes later, Lu Yang made a wrong judgment and landed a wrong punch.

Chen Yuchuan took advantage of this opportunity, raised his leg, and directly kicked Lu Yang’s chest.

Lu Yang fell back two steps but didn’t fall.

However, Chen Yuchuan no longer attacked. He stopped in a panicked daze.

Seeing that he’d stopped, Lu Yang raised his hand at Chen Yuchuan and shouted loudly, “That’s it? Come again…”

But Chen Yuchuan’s eyes were still fixed on Lu Yang’s chest. His offense gradually weakened and his defense became a thorough mess.

It didn’t take long at all for Lu Yang to suppress him. Lu Yang’s elbow pressed into Chen Yuchuan’s back, while most of his body weight held him down.

Chen Yuchuan lay on the ground, panting heavily. Sweat dropped into his eyes, bitter and painful. He blinked and struggled a few times.

But Lu Yang pressed down so hard on him that he couldn’t move at all. Knowing that he’d lost, his face flushed red and he turned his head to look at Lu Yang.

Beads of sweat from Lu Yang’s hair fell onto his forehead, slid across the bridge of his nose, and landed onto Chen Yuchuan’s neck.

Chen Yuchuan’s neck shrank back, immediately followed by the rise of old flames in his eyes.

Lu Yang was still pressing down on Chen Yuchuan. He gazed at the blush spreading over the side of Chen Yuchuan’s neck, leaned in closer until his lips grazed against his earlobe, and he said in a voice that only they could hear, “Chen Yuchuan, it’s only a little injury. You really don’t have to treat me like an invalid. Even if you resist, I can still hold you down, whether it’s in bed or in the boxing ring. So are you going to continue or not?”