Captured By The Cold Detective (BL)-Chapter 493: Visit A-Mu
During the next two days, aside from making arrangements for Xia Weisheng’s funeral, He Juan practically lived in the hospital to accompany his brother.
He Xie’s temperature kept fluctuating and his sleep would often be plagued by distressing nightmares. He Juan couldn’t bring himself to leave the younger man when he was in such a vulnerable state. He could see how much Xia Weisheng meant to his brother, and to be completely honest, he was afraid that He Xie would harbor some... foolish thoughts, with him on the brink of emotional collapse.
But fortunately, the notion of seeking vengeance for Xia Weisheng seemed to grant He Xie the energy to keep going, and He Juan was not such a saint not to take advantage of this as much as he could, even if it meant bearing the weight of guilt each time he faced his brother.
He personally took care of every aspect about Xia Weisheng’s funeral, starting from selecting the funeral home, choosing the coffin, overseeing the ceremonial details, and so on. He could have delegated these tasks to his subordinates, but he ended up doing everything himself. He Juan couldn’t pinpoint the exact reason either. Perhaps it was the remorse over Xia Weisheng’s untimely death and doing this was his attempt to offer a sincere apology to the man who was gone too soon.
It was on the third day, when he was buying breakfast in the hospital cafeteria, that he received surprising news.
"A–Mu is here too?"
Chen Youzhi, who was seated across from him and savoring his warm porridge, nodded in confirmation. "Yes, he’s been a patient in this hospital for almost a month now. I didn’t mention it before because I thought it’s not the right time. Would you like to pay him a visit?"
He Juan’s thoughts drifted back to the bold and daring omega. The last time they met was when Marius and him were infiltrating Twilight Haven in order to seek information from a bartender named ’Jay’. A–Mu had offered his assistance on such a short notice, but He Juan had ended up abandoning the mission because Mu Yuze suddenly entered his manifestation period. He Juan knew he owed A–Mu a lot for everything he had done, but the thought of visiting the man kept being pushed to the back of his mind due to the recent turmoil. When he thought about it now, a growing sense of guilt gnawed on his conscience.
He Xie was still asleep at a time like this, so it should be okay for He Juan to make a brief visit, right? Thinking of that, he asked Chen Youzhi, "Which room is he in? Can you ask whether he’s receiving visitors right now?"
In his memory, A–Mu had always been cheerful, fearless, and did not hesitate to express himself. He was extremely unrestrained for an Omega.
Truth to be told, He Juan had no idea what to expect when he stepped into the hospital room, but it was certainly not... this. Not the extremely thin, pale and haggard A–Mu.
Gone was the flamboyant man he remembered. Gaunt and pallid, his curly hair had been shaved bare and replaced by a woolen hat, and the hospital gown further accentuated his diminished frame. At the moment, he was a far cry from the dazzling man whom He Juan encountered in Twilight Haven. It was now that the grim reality sank fully into He Juan’s mind: A–Mu was truly sick.
Even then, the glimmer in his eyes remained unchanged as they regarded He Juan from head to toe, "Oh? This is the first time I’ve ever seen you in anything other than formal suits. Now that I’m dying, you are finally willing to come and see me, huh?"
Why did that sentence make him sound like a scummy husband? The corner of He Juan’s lips twitched as he walked in and placed the fruit basket he had bought on the table. He knew that A–Mu was only saying it as a jest to lighten the atmosphere, but He Juan still couldn’t help but feel a twinge of guilt. "You are not going to die," he said as he pulled a seat over and sat down."I know," A–Mu rolled his eyes in an exaggerated manner. "I will fight this damn tumor and survive. Just watch me."
That declaration brought a faint smile to He Juan’s lips, and he uttered morosely, "Sorry, it took me so long to—"
"Stop!" A–Mu interrupted him in a loud voice, catching He Juan off guard. "Stop it right there and do me a favor. Don’t finish that sentence. I..." he pinched his brows and let out an exasperated groan, as if what he was about to say next was going to cost him a pound of flesh. Nonetheless, he still resigned to his fate and raised his gaze to meet He Juan with a helpless look on his face. "I don’t need your pity or sympathy, XIU. Who do you think I am? After you ditched me last time, do you think I would still harbor one-sided feelings for you? Please, I have moved on, okay? So if you’re here because of guilt or whatnot, then I’d trouble you to leave." He asserted each word firmly.
He Juan could only stare at him in surprise, having not seen this coming. But knowing A–Mu, this was just something he would say, wasn’t it? He Juan suppressed a smile and responded, "I’m not sorry for not reciprocating your feelings. But as a friend, it’s only right for me to visit you when you’re not well so... I’m sorry that it took me this long, A–Mu."
A–Mu froze and blinked a few times. Without a warning, the rims of his eyes promptly reddened, though he quickly averted his gaze so that He Juan would not notice it. His voice wavered ever so slightly as he grumbled, "G–Geez, can you not be such a gentleman? Stop making my heart flutter, will you?!"
But how could He Juan not notice it? He merely lowered his gaze, smiled and chose not to comment. Then he remarked out of nowhere, "Actually, I admire you very much."
That sentence effectively diverted A–Mu’s attention, and he snapped to He Juan in shock. "You? Admire me?" He Juan could practically see the words rolling on his face. A rich and powerful superior Alpha like you admire a sick and poor Omega like me?
He Juan couldn’t help but laugh softly, though it was tinged with a hint of melancholy. "You’re courageous and will not hesitate to speak your mind, and I admire that about you... so much." His gaze dropped to the floor, a wistful smile curving his lips. Compared to A–Mu, he was such a pathetic coward. He still did not dare to come clean to He Xie, nor did he dare to reveal the depth of his desire to Mu Yuze, preferring to keep up the façade of a mature and composed gentleman instead.
Shocked, A–Mu stared at him for a while with his jaws agape before he abruptly burst out into uncontrollable laughter. He laughed so hard that he had to clutch his stomach, his whole body shaking in mirth. Tears squeezed out of his eyes as he managed to gasp between chuckles, "Oh my God... I never thought I would hear this kind of sentence coming from you, of all people. I can die without regret now!"
He Juan cast him a helpless look, "I might have just praised you, but you’d better watch your words, young man."
A–Mu’s laughter continued to ripple through the room, looking as if he had his fill of the funny joke for the next five years. Once his laughter finally subsided, he wiped the tears on the corner of his eyes and grinned at He Juan, "Wanna know the secret to it, XIU?"
He Juan raised a brow and gave him a gesture to go ahead.
With a conspiratorial air, A–Mu leaned closer to him and lowered his voice as though whispering a secret. But even amidst the playfulness, He Juan could glimpse a tinge of sadness in his eyes. "It’s because I don’t know when my time will come. I could close my eyes tonight and never wake up in the morning. So why would I still care about what people thought of me? If I don’t follow my heart’s desires now, I’ll regret it even in the afterlife, won’t I?"
Those words struck a chord within He Juan, reminding him of He Xie and Xia Weisheng, and he found himself nodding in agreement. "En, you’re right..."
Sensing that the atmosphere was getting low, He Juan was about to speak up when the door suddenly slid open, and a teenager stumbled in, "Teacher, I’ve bought you—oh, you have a guest! Sorry, there— wait, wait, wait!" He did a double-take and scanned He Juan from head to toe, his eyes widening as wide as saucers. "Y–You’re XIU? You’re XIU, right?! Oh my gosh, Teacher, you know XIU?!"
He Juan was alerted at once. How did this person recognize him? He scrutinized the teenager closer, and was certain that he’d never see him before. Judging from the sheer awe and unbridled joy on the teenager’s face, he did not seem to harbor any malicious intention. Instead, he looked as if... he was meeting his idol for the first time...
A–Mu voiced the question in the room out loud, "You know him? How? But I never mentioned him to you before." His brows furrowed, sensing the severity of the situation.
"Oh, oh!" The teenager clasped a hand over his mouth, though the excitement in his face remained evident. "I’m sorry, I... I’m not a suspicious person at all! Trust me! You might not remember this, XIU, but a few years ago, you rescued me from the omega traffickers. Even though I am an Alpha, I’ve always been weak and scrawny, and those bad guys mistook me as an Omega and kidnapped me! Thank God you showed up in time, or who knows where I’d be by now!"
"Wait a damn minute, A–Yu..." A–Mu was clearly taken aback. "So the hero you’ve been telling me about all this time is XIU?!"
"That’s right!" The teenager admitted unabashedly, but then he became shy when he met He Juan’s stunned eyes. "I–I have been your fan since that day, and I know how you have been rescuing Omegas all over the country. You’re just so cool and powerful! And oh, three years ago, I met a young Alpha around my age who seemed like she needed your help desperately. So I kind of... pointed her in your direction? I wonder if she ever managed to find you?"
He Juan struggled to process the whirlwind of information that had come out of the teenager’s mouth. Three years ago, a young Alpha who needed his help, and this A–Yu person...
A flood of memories surged through his mind, causing his eyes to widen in astonishment. Three years ago, he had often wondered how Ye Qiu had managed to locate him and pass along an SOS note. When he had asked her about it, she mentioned someone named ’A–Yu’ who had directed her. He Juan never had the chance to ask her further about who this person was, and later, it had slipped off his mind entirely. And now three years later, this ’A–Yu’ finally showed himself in front of him, and he turned out to be A–Mu’s disciple? What kind of unbelievable coincidence was this?!
Still grappling with shock and disbelief, He Juan couldn’t help but confirm, "A–Yu, the person whom you helped... is that Ye Qiu?"
A–Yu’s eyes immediately lit up with excitement. "Yes, yes, yes! So she really managed to find you! Thank goodness, she seemed like she was in a dire need of help back then, and I had a feeling that you wouldn’t turn her away. I’m so glad that everything works out fine, and oh!" He suddenly remembered something important and slapped his forehead. "Look at me! I forgot to introduce myself properly!"
He broke into a grin, revealing his sweet and gummy smile. "My name is Kang Guanyu, but feel free to call me A–Yu like Teacher and everyone else! It’s an honor to meet you again, XIU."
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A/N: *screech* who have guessed that Kang Guanyu knew about HJ’s identity all along in volume 1?!! Because he did!! To everyone who always think he’s sus, that’s because he is HJ’s number one fanboy, after MY of course!! >< gosh I feel so relieved after writing this Chapter!! it’s advisable to read volume 1 again after I finish with volume 2 because I sprinkle a lot of foreshadowing there. Psstt KG is lowkey *pissed* that Tak Jung-Hwa mistook his idol for another person ^^ and to you who guessed that he’s an Alpha, congratulations for getting it right!
