Chapter 10: Hubby~ Sugoi*
(*Sugoi: You’re amazing.)
“Hubby, sugoi~”
The hospital room instantly fell silent. The only sound was the faint rustling of clothes.
Shao Siheng, who had been getting up from the sofa, stumbled and nearly lost his balance.
The young nurses nearby flushed bright red. Their gazes darted away, but they couldn’t suppress their thirst for gossip, exchanging meaningful looks with one another.
Qin Zelin, who had his back to the hospital bed as he hung up the coats, went rigid.
He slowly turned around, his voice strained. “What did you just say?”
Surrounded by the rich aroma of meat, Cen Miao swallowed helplessly and patiently repeated himself.
“Hubby, sugoi~”
Qin Zelin: “…”
The room remained deathly silent for three seconds.
Everyone’s gazes drifted toward Qin Zelin, whether intentionally or not. Only Qin Jianye remained oblivious. Hearing Cen Miao call him “Hubby,” he assumed the newlyweds had a wonderful relationship and beamed happily.
“Miaomiao is amazing. What foreign phrase did you just say? Grandpa didn’t quite catch it.”
“Su—”
Cen Miao had barely uttered a syllable when Qin Zelin abruptly reached out and covered his mouth.
“? Mmph…”
“He left his phone in the car. I’ll take him to get it.”
Qin Zelin practically forced the words through clenched teeth.
Ignoring Cen Miao’s protesting gaze, he half dragged, half pulled him swiftly out of the hospital room.
Cen Miao: “…”
His meat…
“What’s wrong with him? Why wouldn’t he let Miaomiao speak?” Qin Jianye frowned, his voice filled with obvious dissatisfaction. “Did any of you hear what Miaomiao said?”
Shao Siheng silently looked away.
“…I didn’t hear clearly.”
The others stared straight ahead and immediately echoed him in unison.
“Haha… Neither did we.”
In the corridor, Qin Zelin released Cen Miao and looked down at the culprit with a frown.
“What… What kind of nonsense have you been watching?”
Cen Miao: “…!”
Had Qin Zelin watched that big sister’s video too?
Cen Miao picked nervously at the seam of his pants.
“You… watched her too?”
“……………???”
Qin Zelin gritted his teeth. “I don’t watch that.”
“I understand that you’re young and curious, but you’re only a sophomore. You should focus on your studies. Don’t secretly watch that sort of nonsense, and especially don’t imitate… the things they say.”
Cen Miao: “…”
He wasn’t allowed to watch it secretly?
“Oh, don’t be angry. Next time, I’ll… ask you to watch it with me!”
Qin Zelin’s expression cracked for a moment. His brows rose slightly, and beneath his shock was a trace of displeasure he didn’t even notice himself.
“You’ve watched those kinds of videos with someone else before??”
Who?
Chengcheng?
Or that so-called senior?
“No. This afternoon was my first time,” Cen Miao said, shaking his head.
Qin Zelin: “…”
He was really telling him so bluntly that he had secretly watched that in his room this afternoon?
No wonder he had eaten so much at lunch and burned through it all so quickly afterward…
“You’re not allowed to watch it again.” Qin Zelin cleared his throat before adding, “And you’re definitely not allowed to watch it with anyone else.”
“I know, Hubby. Let’s hurry back. The meat… Grandpa is waiting for us.” Cen Miao dragged out the words and tilted his face up with an obedient smile.
Qin Zelin lowered his gaze, his Adam’s apple bobbing several times.
“…You’re not allowed to say what you said earlier again either.”
“Mm-hmm!”
Cen Miao nodded anxiously and grabbed Qin Zelin’s sleeve.
“Let’s… go back, Hubby.”
If they didn’t hurry, all the meat would be gone!
“Go inside.”
Qin Zelin opened the door.
After they returned, everyone else tactfully carried away half of the roasted lamb and left. Qin Zelin stood by the door and glanced at Shao Siheng, who understood immediately and rose to his feet.
“How is Grandpa doing?” The two stood side by side near the corridor window.
Hearing the concern faintly threaded through Qin Zelin’s voice, Shao Siheng felt a rare pang of guilt for deceiving his friend.
“He’s doing very well. His condition is extremely stable. You… don’t need to worry too much.”
In fact, one could even say he was bursting with energy…
He was healthier than some fragile young people…
Just then, the phone in Shao Siheng’s pocket rang. He glanced at it before answering.
A while later, he smiled faintly, his voice carrying a hint of indulgence.
“Okay, I got it. I’ll bring it over later.”
“Qin Zexi?” Qin Zelin asked.
“Mm. He insisted on having those milk-skin candied hawthorns that have been popular lately. He wants me to bring some over after work.”
Qin Zelin: “…You spoil him too much. You act more like his cousin than I do.”
Shao Siheng smiled without replying.
Seeing his reaction, Qin Zelin cast him a slightly suspicious glance. His sharp gaze seemed capable of seeing through everything.
Just as Shao Siheng thought his years-long secret crush was about to be exposed, Qin Zelin spoke.
“Does that brat have some kind of dirt on you? You wait on him all day like a hired hand serving a young master.”
Shao Siheng choked.
“…”
Had all of this man’s emotional intelligence been exchanged for raw intellect?
His IQ was heavy as a mountain, while his EQ was light as a feather.
Thin as a cicada’s wing.
One poke and it would tear.
Now he finally understood why that young master remained oblivious, calling him “Brother” all day long. It clearly ran in the family.
They were all hopeless when it came to love.
Then Shao Siheng suddenly remembered the way Qin Zelin had unconsciously taken care of Cen Miao in the hospital room. A subtle look crossed his face.
He glanced down at Qin Zelin’s lower body and teased, “Mm. Of course I can’t compare to your sugoi performance. I can only be a hired hand.”
“……..”
“Don’t let Grandpa eat anything this greasy again,” Qin Zelin said, smoothly changing the subject.
“Grandpa ordered it for everyone because he thought they were working hard.”
The moment Shao Siheng finished speaking, he saw Qin Zelin give him a look that plainly said, Do you really expect me to believe that?
“…Fine. I understand.”
Inside the hospital room, Qin Jianye saw the two of them return one after the other and hurriedly said, “Ah, I thought everyone had been working hard, so I specially ordered it for them. I didn’t expect Miaomiao to like it so much too.”
Qin Zelin gave a quiet scoff and glanced toward the sofa.
All he could see was the back of Cen Miao’s head as he engaged in a fierce tug-of-war with a stubborn tendon still attached to the bone.
Behind him, Shao Siheng raised a fist to his mouth. While coughing, he frantically signaled Qin Jianye with his eyes.
Unfortunately, it was like winking at a blind man.
Qin Jianye was completely immersed in his own performance.
He neither heard Qin Zelin’s scoff nor noticed that Shao Siheng’s eyes were nearly going crooked from all the signaling. The old man continued muttering theatrically.
“Oh, right, Little Zhang. Did you order my nutritious meal? I can’t eat anything this greasy. I need something light—the kind I eat every day.”
Shao Siheng’s fist froze against his lips.
Then he raised a hand, awkwardly adjusted his glasses, and gave up.
He was on his own.
More than an hour later, Qin Zelin checked the time. Since he still had an international video conference that evening, he decided to take Cen Miao home.
“I’ll take him back first. I still haven’t been able to reach Mom, Dad, or my brother. I don’t know if they’ve gone somewhere with poor reception again.”
“Why contact them? I’m perfectly healthy. I won’t die anytime soon,” Qin Jianye said, a trace of guilt in his voice.
Qin Zelin stared silently at the man in the hospital bed. Only after a moment did he nod and retrieve Cen Miao’s coat for him.
Shao Siheng: “…”
Qin Zelin called him a hired hand, but what did that make Qin Zelin?
An overprotective father?
Qin Jianye glanced toward the coffee table at the small amount of roasted lamb remaining.
He watched Qin Zelin, whose hand was already on the doorknob and who was just about to leave, with eager anticipation.
He had barely begun celebrating inwardly when Qin Zelin suddenly turned back.
“?”
