Chapter 9#
Offerings to the Homophobic Straight Man: Crematorium 9#
Shen Youli walked softly back into the ward. The sunset outside was just right, casting a soft golden light over Qiao Qing’s quiet sleeping face.
He stood by the bed for a long time—so long that he almost forgot the passage of time.
It wasn’t until the phone in his pocket vibrated that he regained his senses.
It was a call from the department; there was an emergency consultation he needed to attend.
After hanging up, Shen Youli looked at the still-sleeping Qiao Qing. After thinking for a moment, he found a pen and paper to leave a note:
[I have an urgent matter and need to step out. Dinner has been ordered and will be delivered at six. I should be back before then. Call me anytime if anything happens.]
[Shen Youli]
He placed the note in the most conspicuous spot on the bedside table and adjusted the IV flow rate before leaving quietly.
Qiao Qing slept very deeply this time. When he woke up, the lights of the city were already coming on outside the window.
He blinked blankly, for a moment dazed and unsure of where he was. It wasn’t until a faint pain came from his left hand that he fully woke up.
The ward was very quiet, with no sign of Shen Youli.
For some reason, Qiao Qing felt a vague sense of loss.
He propped himself up on his arm to sit up, and his gaze accidentally swept over the bedside table, where he saw the note.
The handwriting was strong and powerful, not at all as flippant as the man himself.
“Quite meticulous.”
Qiao Qing muttered softly, but the corners of his mouth unconsciously turned up.
At that moment, there was a soft knock on the door.
“Come in.”
The door opened, but it wasn’t the delivery person standing there—it was Lin Jinbai.
He was still carrying that thermos, and his face looked even worse than in the afternoon, his eyes filled with suppressed fury.
“Where is he?”
Lin Jinbai looked around the empty ward, his tone dark.
“Where is that caregiver of yours?”
The smile on Qiao Qing’s face vanished instantly, replaced by deep fatigue.
“Lin Jinbai, what are you doing here again?”
“What am I doing here?”
Lin Jinbai sneered and strode to the bedside, slamming the thermos down on the table.
“If I hadn’t come, would you have been led around by the nose by that person of unknown origin?”
Qiao Qing frowned: “What nonsense are you talking about?”
“Nonsense?”
Lin Jinbai took out his phone, opened a photo, and practically shoved the screen into Qiao Qing’s face.
“See for yourself!”
The photo was taken in a hospital corridor. In the image, Shen Youli was talking to a doctor in a white coat.
Due to the angle, they appeared to be standing very close.
“I had someone look into it,” Lin Jinbai said with certainty.
“He’s not a caregiver at all! He’s a doctor at this hospital! A deputy chief physician of Cardiac Surgery. For a doctor to disguise himself as a caregiver to get close to you—Qiao Qing, don’t you find that suspicious?”
Qiao Qing was stunned, staring blankly at Shen Youli’s profile in the photo.
A doctor?
He was actually a doctor?
No wonder his movements were so professional; no wonder he was so familiar with the hospital…
But why?
Why would he disguise himself as a caregiver to take care of him?
Seeing Qiao Qing’s stunned expression, Lin Jinbai thought he was being convinced and softened his tone slightly:
“Qingqing, I know you’re angry with me, but you can’t just trust someone with ulterior motives because you’re spiteful towards me.”
“He definitely has a goal in getting close to you. Maybe he’s eyeing your status, or…”
“Enough.” Qiao Qing suddenly interrupted him.
He looked up, his gaze so calm it made Lin Jinbai panic: “Lin Jinbai, have you finished?”
“I…”
“First of all, regardless of who Shen Youli is, he has indeed been taking care of me wholeheartedly these past two days. Secondly,”
Qiao Qing paused, saying each word clearly.
“Even if he does have ulterior motives, so what? Compared to someone who clearly doesn’t like me yet has kept me on a string for over a decade, I think he is at least honest.”
“If you really don’t like me, don’t come looking for me anymore, and don’t give me hope anymore.”
The words were like a slap across Lin Jinbai’s face.
His face instantly turned pale, his lips trembling, but he couldn’t say a single word in rebuttal.
Qiao Qing no longer looked at him and pressed the call button.
Soon, a nurse entered: “Mr. Qiao, is there anything you need?”
“Please help me escort this gentleman out,” Qiao Qing said, pointing to the stiffly standing Lin Jinbai, his tone distant.
“I need rest and don’t wish to be disturbed.”
The nurse looked at Lin Jinbai with some hesitation.
Lin Jinbai stared at Qiao Qing, pain, resentment, and disbelief swirling in his eyes.
He couldn’t believe that Qiao Qing would treat him this way for someone he had known for less than two days.
“Qiao Qing, you’ll regret this.”
He squeezed those words through his teeth.
Qiao Qing had already closed his eyes, no longer looking at him.
In the end, under the apologetic gaze of the nurse, Lin Jinbai left the ward in a daze.
The moment the door closed, Qiao Qing slowly opened his eyes.
He picked up the note that had been pinned under the thermos, looking at the forceful handwriting, his eyes complex.
Shen Youli…
Who exactly are you?
And why did you appear in my life in this way?
When Shen Youli finished his consultation and returned to the ward, night had already fallen outside.
The city’s neon lights shone through the window, casting colorful shadows on the smooth floor.
He was carrying high-end Japanese delivery that had just arrived, the packaging exquisite and clearly chosen with care.
“You’re awake? Good timing, let’s eat.”
He walked to the bedside as if nothing had happened, habitually setting up the small table and opening the food boxes one by one. The aroma of food instantly filled the room.
He picked up his chopsticks, grabbed a piece of tender grilled eel, and naturally tried to bring it to Qiao Qing’s lips.
Qiao Qing didn’t open his mouth submissively as before.
He slightly tilted his head away and looked directly at Shen Youli. His peach-blossom eyes, which held a trace of fatigue, were now full of confusion.
He got straight to the point, his voice still a bit hoarse from sleep.
“You’re not a caregiver. You’re a doctor at this hospital?”
The air seemed to freeze for a moment.
Shen Youli’s hand holding the chopsticks stopped in mid-air. He looked up, meeting Qiao Qing’s inquisitive gaze.
After a brief moment of surprise, his face didn’t show the panic of being caught; instead, he seemed to let out a sigh of relief.
He withdrew the chopsticks, placed the piece of eel on the plate in front of him, and then nodded frankly.
“Mm.”
He responded, his voice deep and steady.
“Yes, I am a doctor at this hospital.”
He admitted it cleanly and decisively, without a shred of hesitation or explanation, as if it were just a trivial matter.
Having said that, he picked up a piece of tamagoyaki and brought it to Qiao Qing’s lips again, his movements still composed.
“Eat first. It’s not good for your stomach if it gets cold.”
Qiao Qing was caught somewhat off guard by his frank attitude and subconsciously opened his mouth to take the slightly sweet tamagoyaki.
He chewed mechanically, his eyes still fixed on Shen Youli.
After swallowing the food, he immediately pressed on, his brow furrowed:
“Then why did you pretend to be a caregiver to deceive me?”
This was what he couldn’t understand most—why would a promising cardiac surgeon go to such trouble to pretend to be his caregiver?
Shen Youli looked at his eyes, which were slightly widened in confusion. Those beautiful eyes looked exceptionally clear under the lights.
He put down his chopsticks and leaned forward slightly, closing the distance between them.
The soft ward lights cast a faint shadow over his deep features, making his expression look exceptionally serious.
He looked directly into Qiao Qing’s eyes, and his thin lips moved, speaking words that were startling:
“Because I have a crush on you.”
“…”
Qiao Qing froze instantly, his pupils dilating as if he were hearing a fairy tale.
His mouth was slightly open, and those peach-blossom eyes that were usually a bit melancholy were now wide with disbelief.
It was as if he were saying, “Are you pulling some kind of international joke?”
Shen Youli seemed very satisfied with his nearly petrified state of shock.
He unhurriedly picked up the water cup nearby, handed it to Qiao Qing, and then calmly added a follow-up.
His tone was as flat as if he were talking about the nice weather today, but the content was like a depth charge:
“I’ve had a crush on you for over a decade. Since you were in high school, I’ve had a crush on you.”