Qiu Yunru carried this kid out of the dorms.
People stopped and stared in the halls as they stumbled out for running practice.
"It's that noble kid--is he sick?"
"He must be incredibly sick if Qiu-shidi is carrying him..."
Outside of the dorms, Qiu Yunru passed by the beginning of the usual running trail. Naturally, Fang Hai and the others were there, already stretching. Everyone had a different reaction to this sight of Qiu Yunru carrying his shidi.
Fu Jia giggled into her sleeve. "Oh!"
Lei Ruolan turned away, seeming irritated. "Gross."
Pan Fa was still sleeping.
"Qiu-shidi, what is the meaning of this?" Fang Hai hurried forward and looked at Li Chenyuan's face.
His first instinct was that this kid had to be pretending. Over the past weeks, it had become abundantly clear that this Li Chenyuan was full to the brim with manipulation, and would do anything to get a little closer to Qiu Yunru!
However, upon seeing Li Chenyuan's pale and sweaty face contorted in pain, Fang Hai's anger evaporated.
It was true that he couldn't stand this kid, but he was still a good shixiong!
"Let's get him to the infirmary," Fang Hai said quickly. "Fu-shimei, will you run the practice?"
"Got it!"
With that, Fang Hai and Qiu Yunru hurried off down the hill towards the infirmary. As they went, Li Chenyuan clutched at Qiu Yunru's robes, brow furrowing more deeply. He muttered something.
"Li-shidi! Li-shidi, can you hear me? What did you say?" Qiu Yunru leaned over him.
"Too many people..." Li Chenyuan croaked. "Too many..."
Bewildered, Qiu Yunru looked up at Fang Hai. "Li-shidi...there are only two of us here..."
Li Chenyuan's hand tightened on his robe, pulling him further down. He went on babbling and insisting: "Too many..."
Apologetically and awkwardly, Qiu Yunru bowed his head to Fang Hai.
"Fang-shixiong...it seemed Li-shidi is overwhelmed. How about I take him to the infirmary on my own? I will make sure to update you later."
Fang Hai was aghast, his face grey like ash.
This kid--he'd given him the benefit of the doubt, but even sick and weak, he was a scheming brat!
"Fine, fine!" Fang Hai snapped, running off. "Go!"
So Qiu Yunru lugged Li Chenyuan to the infirmary alone. Along the way, he kept checking his shidi's forehead and heart, feeling almost sick with worry.
If Li Chenyuan died now, would the game take away his opportunity to get a golden core entirely? Then, what was the point of all of this work? He might as well just go and die a second time, ah!
When they grew close to the infirmary, Li Chenyuan suddenly sat up in Qiu Yunru's arms causing Qu Yunru to almost topple over. Qiu Yunru gaped, adjusting his grip so that Li Chenyuan wouldn't spill over into the grass. His heart almost wilted with relief at seeing this kid's eyes open and alert!
Although, weren't they a little too alert for someone who had just woken up...?
"Li-shidi! You're awake! Thank Heaven! I thought--" He laid Li Chenyuan down and sat next to him, taking his pulse. It was steady and healthy. "How are you feeling?"
Li Chenyuan was quiet for a moment. His face was still flushed, so Qiu Yunru checked him for a fever, but all of his bodily functions seemed to be working all right.
"You don't have a fever..."
"I'm feeling much better," Li Chenyuan croaked. He turned his face away harshly. "I don't need the infirmary anymore."
"Wha--?" Qiu Yunru was baffled. Did this kid have the immune system of an ox? How had he recovered so quickly?!
He could only reason that this kid was lying and didn't want to go to the doctor. "Li-shidi, we really should still get you checked. Earlier, there was some demonic qi circling your head. I haven't come across something like that before or read about it, so it's best if we--"
Li Chenyuan's hand shot out and snatched Qiu Yunru's wrist in a bruising grip.
"Li-shidi...?"
When Li Chenyuan turned his face around, it was no longer flushed. Rather, it was as pale as snow, or a dead person's face. His black eyes were wide and panicked.
"Qiu-shixiong," He said. Usually, his voice was sharp and cold. It was the first time Qiu Yunru had heard him sound so...
Afraid.
"Qiu-shixiong," He said again. "You can't tell anyone about this."
"About...?"
Li Chenyuan gritted his teeth, seeming agitated. "My sickness. You can't tell anyone!"
Qiu Yunru's mind raced. What was the meaning of this? First off, however, he saw no reason to insist on telling anyone else before knowing more information.
"I...All right, all right--don't worry. This shixiong won't tell anyone. But why...? Is this a recurring illness...?"
Li Chenyuan turned his face away. His shoulders tensed, and his grip on Qiu Yunru's wrist tightened.
"Yes."
Here were this kid's customary one-word answers. Qiu Yunru sighed internally. He would have to draw out more information through careful wording.
After all, it was extremely important that he understand what was going on with this kid. If he had some sort of curse or terminal illness...
Not only would it be a tragedy, but most importantly, he might never get his damn golden core!
"What kind of illness is it?"
"..." Li Chenyuan was silent for a long moment, refusing to look at Qiu Yunru. "...I'm not sure. It runs in my family."
"I see." Qiu Yunru thought through all of the illnesses of this world he had read through in the Jade Clouds Sect's library. "Is it terminal?"
Li Chenyuan shook his head. "No."
"I see. A chronic illness. Does Li-shidi...know why there was demonic qi involved?"
Li Chenyuan stiffened, his already snow-white face turning ashen. "I think...it's a curse. My family offended a demon a long time ago, and every male head of the household has been plagued by this kind of illness. My uncle never had it and refused to tell me about it, but there is no cure."