Chapter 18

“The prince’s kiss…”

The girls standing nearby joked, teasing one another.

Su Pu draped an arm across Li Jichuan, shielding the back of his head.

A couple behind them kissed with such abandon they nearly stumbled toward Li Jichuan—but Su Pu was there to guard him.

The girls quietly apologized, while the boy looped an arm around her waist and steered her away.

Li Jichuan’s breath caught, his heart hollow with a strange sense of longing.

Once the couple left, Su Pu straightened up, quietly grateful that the darkness hid his flushed cheeks.

It also masked his irregular breathing.

In the dimness, he stood like a loyal knight, protecting Li Jichuan and his wheelchair, letting no one come near.

In truth, from the soccer game onwards, Su Pu had already felt some regret.

He shouldn’t have brought Li Jichuan here.

To a man who had lost both legs, to watch able-bodied people run freely, collide, and play across the field—he had been arrogant.

He hadn’t considered Li Jichuan’s feelings…

Su Pu’s heart ached. Seeing all those people, how hurt would Li Jichuan have felt?

Protecting him was already the smallest thing he could do.

A minute passed in a flash, and the lights on the field came back on.

The event ended, and Su Pu was about to push Li Jichuan away.

“Um, excuse me, what’s your major?”

Out of nowhere, two shy girls appeared, blocking them.

“We… we’ve been watching you for a while and wondered if we could add you on WeChat?”

Su Pu froze, not expecting to be approached here.

He let go of the wheelchair’s handle, ready to type an explanation.

But Li Jichuan spoke first.

“Sorry, we’re a couple…”

“Ah?” The girls’ eyes widened, scanning their faces back and forth.

“Really—we’re married.”

Li Jichuan said, tilting his head toward Su Pu.

Su Pu nodded blankly, confirming it.

“Oh my gosh, you guys got married in college!”

The girls exclaimed in awe.

“Well, I wish you a happy marriage and a long life together.”

Even their blessings were so sincere, their faces full of relief and comfort.

“Thank you,” Li Jichuan nodded at them.

Su Pu nodded blankly as well.

The two girls laughed and ran off.

Su Pu pushed the wheelchair forward.

It seemed like the first time Li Jichuan had publicly acknowledged their relationship…

Even agreeing to the outing that evening now felt surreal.

Had he genuinely wanted to come, or was it just to appease the family spy and reassure his grandfather?

Thoughts tumbled chaotically in Su Pu’s mind, gradually tangling into a ball that kept growing larger.

But what use was dwelling on them?

Li Jichuan had let him move into his apartment, shared half of his bed, and publicly acknowledged their relationship—wasn’t that recognition enough?

At the very least, Li Jichuan had come. At the very least, he had confirmed their bond…

So there was no reason to overthink, no reason to be the one taking a step back.

Li Jichuan had chosen him. He would protect Li Jichuan with all his strength. He would stay by Li Jichuan’s side.

No one wanted Li Jichuan? He did.

No one loved Li Jichuan? He loved him.

Striding forward, Su Pu pushed Li Jichuan’s wheelchair out of A University.

Even if the whole world disliked him, even if everyone misunderstood him, he would stand by this person, always accompany him, always defend him.

Li Jichuan might not know it, but Su Pu had liked him for a long time.

A very long time…

It was Su Pu’s first year at this prestigious high school.

He had transferred in the middle of his first year, unaware of the unspoken rules and entrenched customs of the school.

This school gathered all the children of aristocrats. Beyond academic performance, family background mattered.

A secret, illegitimate child like Su Pu, with a mysterious origin, naturally belonged at the very bottom of the social ladder.

A person everyone could step on without hesitation.

Back then, a game called “Hunt” was popular on campus. Each grade would select a target and, during the long break between classes, the entire grade would attempt to capture them.

Those chosen as prey had to hide at all costs, because being caught meant merciless torment. The “hunters” had the right to inflict any cruelty.

Unfortunately, Su Pu was one of the prey.

One seemingly ordinary yet life-or-death afternoon, cornered and out of options, he dashed to the rooftop of the classroom building—a place considered off-limits.

By chance, he stumbled into a classroom piled with clutter and encountered a senior.

When the hunters arrived, the senior dispelled them with just a few words, then pulled Su Pu out from under a desk.

“Are you all right?”

The senior asked.

Su Pu nodded and signed “Thank you.”

The senior didn’t understand sign language but accepted it graciously, sensing the meaning nonetheless.

True emotion doesn’t need words to be conveyed—it speaks for itself.

The senior seemed to understand his plight. After a moment’s thought, he asked a question:

“Do you have your phone with you?”

Su Pu shook his head.

One of the customs of Hunt was to confiscate the prey’s tools, preventing them from doing anything extreme.

“Ah, I see. That’s fine.”

Li Jichuan pulled out his phone, opened the voice recorder, and recorded a few clips for him:

“If you bully me again, I’ll report you to the school, the teachers, and even the media. I mean it!”

“Bullying me proves what? Nothing. It only proves you’re cowards picking on someone weaker…”

Su Pu listened, eyes widening.

Would this really help?

He hadn’t been without attempts at resistance. At first, he would charge forward stubbornly, but outnumbered, he ended up battered and bruised.

Li Jichuan had anticipated this.

So he recorded one last clip.

“You know Li Jichuan from senior year? That’s my boyfriend. We’re going to get married in the future. If you mess with me, he will find you and make you wish you were dead. Don’t believe me? Try it and see…”

After finishing the recording, Li Jichuan shook the phone and gave Su Pu a bright smile.

“Don’t worry. They won’t bother you again.”

“I have to head home. I still have tutoring later. I hope you stand tall soon and live the life you truly want.”

That evening, the sunset painted a brilliant golden-red behind Li Jichuan, as beautiful as an oil painting.

Su Pu was stunned by the beauty. When he finally came back to his senses, Li Jichuan had already left, leaving only the phone on the desk.

After that day, Su Pu noticed something strange: he seemed to vanish from the memories of those troublemakers. No one hunted him again.

Even stranger, the classmates who had bullied him all left school in the following months for various reasons.

Some were expelled for instigating trouble, some were asked to leave for repeated cheating, and a few were even taken away by the police.

On the day the police car drove away from the school gates, Su Pu stood by the third-floor classroom window the entire time, clutching Li Jichuan’s phone.

Soon, Li Jichuan finished the college entrance exam, and his stories became a mixture of truth and legend on campus.

Those voice recordings, however, Su Pu treasured for years. Even when he changed phones, he always imported the audio immediately.

He had lost count of how many times he had listened to them.

In sleepless nights, through a hopeless and long life, lonely and helpless existence, those recordings were what kept Su Pu alive—until the day he finally stood before Li Jichuan.

Perhaps, in Li Jichuan’s eyes, this marriage was nothing more than a reluctant, inevitable exchange.

But in Su Pu’s eyes, it was the redemption he had longed for, the echo he had never forgotten, a trap he willingly fell into and savored.

So even if Li Peirong had never given instructions, Su Pu would do everything he could to stay by Li Jichuan’s side—until he was no longer needed.

And now, having come to understand more about Li Jichuan, glimpsing the path he had walked without Su Pu knowing, it was even less possible for him to let Li Jichuan continue on alone.

Su Pu liked Li Jichuan. Liked him so much, so endlessly, all the way to the end of the universe.

Besides, Li Jichuan himself had said it.

“Really, we’re already married.”

And also:

“Li Jichuan is my boyfriend.”

“We’re going to get married in the future!”

He said it, and Su Pu believed him.

In the future, they would definitely get married!

And now, they were already married!

That night, back home, they each took a shower and lay side by side.

Su Pu held his stomach, the pain growing worse…

Probably the snack from earlier didn’t sit well with him.

But Li Jichuan seemed to sleep soundly, his head barely touching the pillow before his breathing evened out.

As he slept, his arm draped across Su Pu’s abdomen.

Baby, you can hug me anytime, but… maybe not right now—

Su Pu was inwardly miserable…

Yet Li Jichuan’s breathing was so steady, Su Pu couldn’t bear to disturb him.

So he indulged himself a little, shifting closer toward Li Jichuan, drifting off into a drowsy sleep.

In the middle of the night, Li Jichuan stirred him awake.

“Su Pu, Su Pu… feeling bad?”

He felt a salty dampness at his lips—probably cold sweat.

His body was hot and cold at once, and the stomach pain worsened…

Ugh… it hurts—

Su Pu’s eyes burned as he shed physiological tears.

“Drink some water…”

Li Jichuan poured a cup of warm water from the bedside dispenser and brought it to his lips.

“Drink slowly… it’s okay, it’s okay…”

His voice was soft, unreal, like a dream.

Su Pu leaned against Li Jichuan’s shoulder, sipping half the cup. The pain finally eased somewhat.

Li Jichuan carefully laid him back on the pillow, warming his hands.

“I’ll rub your stomach… my mom used to do this for me. Should… should help a bit.”

Through the pajamas, Li Jichuan’s palms pressed over Su Pu’s abdomen, moving in gentle circles.

After a while, he sighed helplessly.

“Su Pu… you’re way too thin.”

“You’re almost gone, you know.”

“From now on, eat more.”

Su Pu wanted to promise he would, but Li Jichuan’s touch was so gentle…

He felt as if he were lying in a soft, fluffy cloud.

Comfortable. Blissful.

Pfft—

Pffft—

Two awkward sounds completely shattered the tender, cozy atmosphere.

Thanks to Li Jichuan’s massage, the sounds eased his stomach pain considerably.

But after those two sounds… he felt like he might not survive the embarrassment.

Please… I beg you…

Who farts in front of their husband, the one they’ve secretly adored for years?!

Su Pu pulled the blanket over his head.

I’m dead for sure!