"It's so hot..."
Standing beneath the tree's shade, Ning Chu fanned himself with the promotional handbill while yawning from time to time.
Street promotions really wasn't a good way to make money.
His social skills were average, and he was by no means outgoing or shameless; if it weren't for Wen Yang's protagonist halo, perhaps today's part-time job wouldn't have been possible.
Ning Chu had already found his niche...as support!
"Wen Yang! Why don't we take a break?"
"Sure."
Stretching lazily, Wen Yang returned to the shade of the tree and sat down casually, accepting the ice water Ning Chu handed him. He gulped half the bottle in one go.
"You're not doing any more after this?" Ning Chu passed him another pack of tissues. "I'm not great at these kinds of things either. I'm just getting in your way."
He would never feel guilty about being a burden. The main issue was that the sun was extremely fierce, and temperatures over the past few days had approached forty degrees Celsius. With no wind blowing, even sitting under the tree made his head spin.
It was hotter than their training camp!
Wen Yang wiped away his forehead's sweat and turned to look at Ning Chu, hesitant. "Then, why don't you go back? The street promotions are quite lucrative."
Ning Chu didn't respond.
How could he agree to something like that?!
He let out a soft sigh. "Forget it, I'll stay with you then; at least we won't be so bored together."
Still, staying indoors blasting AC while gaming felt more comfortable than anything else.
Rubbing his temples, he heard Wen Yang tentatively ask, "I do have an indoor job with air conditioning, which also pays well—would you like to try it?"
"I'm not really short on money..."
"If you go, I'll definitely tag along too."
Indoors where they could keep the succubus at bay... Even if the work inside was inferior compared to their current situation, it wouldn't be worse than enduring forty degrees outside all day, right?
"Sure! What kind of work is it?"
"You're in?" Wen Yang's eyes lit up momentarily before quickly darkening again. He nodded calmly and said, "Waiter, I'll take you over tomorrow. They're desperately short-staffed for their event, so the pay will be negotiated upon arrival."
"Waiter? That's something I can handle."
Ning Chu didn't notice anything strange and smiled brightly, having worked as a waiter before and possessing some experience.
Perhaps it would be quite busy, but at least he could still enjoy the air conditioning while working indoors. During non-peak hours, he could even take a break to rest by sitting down and playing with his phone.
Upon recalling this, he was certain there were no related plotlines about waiters in the story.
"Then I'll book a shift directly with the boss tomorrow morning—just walk right in?"
"Yes."
Ning Chu nodded, wanting to get up and buy another bottle of water, only to feel dizzy and kneel on the ground instead.
Wen Yang stared dumbly at the little bottom facing him, then hurriedly stood and helped Ning Chu up. "What's wrong?"
"I think... I might be suffering from heatstroke."
He supported Ning Chu, scanning their surroundings for a nearby pharmacy across the street. "Let's go inside to rest, grab some medicine, and drink some water."
"Mm-hmm."
His limbs felt heavy, his chest tight, and his face scalded with fever.
Ning Chu's gaze was hazy; his eyes were half-lidded as he leaned heavily on Wen Yang, panting. Suddenly, he felt his feet leave the ground.
The sensation of losing balance instantly sobered him up, and his eyes widened as he realized Wen Yang had picked him up bridal-style.
"Sss!"
I've been carried bridal-style by Prince Wen Yang?!
Before he could protest, Wen Yang began to sprint, violently jolting Ning Chu so much that he instinctively wrapped his arms around Wen Yang's neck and buried his face against his chest.
Damn it! Why is he running so fast?!
"Stop! Stop! Slow down! Slow down! Ah!" Ning Chu's brain went blank with fright, his eyes squeezed shut, and screams spilled from his mouth uncontrollably.
Apart from when he was still an infant, this was the first time someone had ever run while holding him tightly against their chest.
It was terrifying!
In what seemed like just a moment, once Wen Yang gently lowered him back onto his feet, he trembled as he slowly opened his eyes.
They had arrived at the apothecary.
On the verge of tears, Ning Chu stared up anxiously at Wen Yang, lips quivering. "That's so scary…" he whispered, "You scared me half to death..."
Seeing his pitiful state, Wen Yang's anxious expression eased slightly, and he gently reassured him, "I was also worried."
Heatstroke might not be anything serious, but there is a chance that Ning Chu would get a heart attack, which is something far more serious.
Ning Chu let out a breath, then suddenly realized that his hands were still tightly clutching Wen Yang's collar. He quickly let go, scooting closer to the bench seat as if nothing had happened, pulling himself away from Wen Yang.
The doctor arrived at the store. "What happened?"
"He may have a heat stroke."
"Drink some Huohang Zhengqi water." The doctor opened the glass door to increase ventilation, pointing the fan inside toward Ning Chu. "Rest for a while; it's easy to get heat exhaustion under this weather, so buy a few more bottles for backup."
"Okay."
Wen Yang finally breathed a sigh of relief and happily followed the doctor to pick up medicine.
Meanwhile, Ning Chu's expression remained dark.
Heat exhaustion symptoms made him dizzy, but even more unsettling was the fact that he'd once again been so intimately close with Wen Yang.
A princess carry... He seriously suspected that before he could even change into a girl, he would first become Wen Yang's girlfriend.
Before any plot line could develop, he'd need to make an appointment at the hospital's colorectal department.
"Ning Chu, take your medicine."
"Mm... Ugh! It tastes gross!"
"How could medicine be tasty?" Wen Yang wanted to laugh at Ning Chu's pitiful state. "You know to bring water for me, so why didn't you prepare a bottle for yourself?"
"I wasn't particularly thirsty..."
"Ah! Then finish this half bottle first."
With his mouth filled with the strange taste of the Hésheng Zhenqi Pill, Ning Chu took the water and gulped it down, finally feeling the foul smell in his mouth wash away.
But then he froze, realizing another problem: Had Wen Yang already drunk from this bottle?! It might still have traces of saliva—ick...
"You wouldn't think about something like secondhand smooches, would you?" Seeing him spacing out, Wen Yang teased him playfully while standing before him.
"Only straight men think that way." After taking his medicine, Ning Chu felt slightly more energized and retorted smoothly, "Looks like your head's a bit crooked too?"
Wen Yang fell silent.
Ning Chu's expression grew even more stunned.
Hey, hey, hey! Talk to me! Can't we just communicate normally?!
"Judging by appearance alone, clearly you're the one who's a little crooked."
Only then did Ning Chu let out a sigh of relief. Good thing Wen Yang continued teasing him; otherwise, he really would suspect that the man had developed an interest in him. This was illogical! After all, Wen Yang had plenty of pretty young women pursuing him. How could a mere man hope to compete against those bewitching charms?
"Rest up first; I'll continue outside." Wen Yang stood straight and looked at the streets outside the medicine shop. "I'll be right outside."
He had already learned to take the initiative to stay within Ning Chu's line of sight.
It's all to avoid having to make Ning Chu look like he did back at the amusement park, teary-eyed and anxious as he searched for him everywhere.
"Okay."