Chapter 3000: Willful Taming 17

A black off-road vehicle sped through the heavy rain, its windshield wipers frantically swinging, barely clearing a blurry field of view.

Jin Chen leaned against the back seat, holding Chenshu wrapped in a clean blanket; the blanket quickly soaked through with the cold, wet clothes and blood seeping from Chenshu's wounds, staining it in dark and light patches. The cabin filled with a lingering faint smell of blood and damp rain, making it hard to breathe.

Perhaps because the vehicle wasn't running smoothly in the storm, or because the unsettling smells around them, or simply because his body and mind were pushed to the limit, even unconscious Chenshu slept extremely restlessly.

He curled up in Jin Chen's arms, his body twitching unconsciously now and then, brows furrowed, eyes darting under his lids, muffled painful murmurs escaping his throat. Each larger jolt jolted him awake, his eyelashes trembling as he peeled open a slit; once he saw it was Jin Chen holding him, his tense body relaxed a fraction, then quickly gave out and he closed his eyes again, sinking into painful stupor.

This repeated over and over.

Chenshu's mind remained constantly tense, devoid of any sense of safety.

He was running a high fever.

Jin Chen's usually expressionless face finally changed as he lowered his head again to check the person in his arms; he raised his hand and pressed the back of it to Chenshu's forehead, feeling scorching heat, a temperature startlingly high.

With multiple external wounds, having lain in that dirty, dilapidated abandoned factory under the rain for so long, the wounds were likely infected, so a high fever was to be expected.

But… seeing him like this was truly agonizing.

Chenshu shuddered slightly at the cool touch of Jin Chen's hand on his back, and once again struggled awake from his stupor.

He blinked open his eyes, his pupils taking a moment to focus; his gaze was filled with lingering panic and an overwhelming fear of being abandoned, like he recognized Jin Chen, Chenshu turned his head and rubbed his scorching cheek against the palm Jin Chen had placed on his forehead.

Jin Chen stared at those eyes, made unusually misty by fever and tears, then twitched the corner of his mouth and forced Chenshu's face to the side; it was pallid, bloodless, with faint blue veins visible beneath the skin.

"I haven't done anything yet, and I'm already like this?"

Chenshu's throat tightened, as if an invisible rope were wound around his neck, making breathing difficult; the dizziness from his fever and the pain of his wounds all over his body intertwined, clouding his consciousness yet making him unusually sensitive to Jin Chen's words.

"It hurts…" he gasped lowly, his voice hoarse to the point of being almost inaudible.

Chenshu lifted his face, his fever‑glossy, watery eyes fixed on Jin Chen's lips like a child who had done wrong begging for forgiveness; he clumsily tried to move closer, seeking a kiss, or some proof that he hadn't been utterly rejected.

Jin Chen tilted his head to avoid it, pressing his hand against the sweaty back of Chenshu's head and pushing him back into his embrace, blocking that pleading gaze.

Chenshu's nose struck Jin Chen's collarbone, making him groan in pain; from above his head came Jin Chen's words, almost devoid of warmth.

"You don't have the right to do that now."

No right to demand a kiss, no right to act spoiled, no right to beg for forgiveness.

In a daze, Chenshu felt his sharp wounds intensify many times over; the resentment and bitterness that threatened to drown him surged to his eyes, his throat constricting with painful tightness.

He fought back the tears threatening to spill, lightly rubbing his forehead against Jin Chen's chest; the last vestige of his strength drained, his fingers slipped from Jin Chen's collar, his eyelids too heavy to lift.

The vehicle continued through the storm for a long while, passing most of Yucheng, and finally onto the mountain road leading to Half Mountain Villa.

The rain eased a little, but the sky remained grimly overcast.

Jin Chen pulled out his phone and dialed: "Bring your team to Half Mountain Villa; the patient has external wounds infected and a high fever."

After hanging up, he lowered his gaze to the unconscious person in his arms; adjusting his position, Chenshu let out a pained groan even in his stupor, his brows knitting tighter.

Jin Chen's motion paused, then he slowly lowered his eyes, his fingertip lightly stroking Chenshu's brow; the skin was scorching, the blood vessels beneath throbbing faintly.

A few seconds later, he lowered his head and pressed a light kiss to Chenshu's brow.

——

Half Mountain Villa Medical Room.

Chenshu was transferred to a large bed laid with sterile sheets; Doctor Liu began quickly checking his vital signs and wounds, his brows furrowing tighter and tighter.

"Multiple soft‑tissue contusions, a deep knife wound on the left arm needing debridement and suturing, blunt‑force injuries of varying degrees on the back, abdomen, and flanks, the infected wounds causing the high fever…"

As Doctor Liu spoke, the pressure mounted; he silently moved away from the icy‑cold Jin Chen, whose expression could frighten anyone to death.

Jin Chen took off his rain‑soaked, stained coat, leaving only his shirt and trousers, and sat silently on the single sofa by the window, watching.

The medical team began work; two nurses carefully cut away Chenshu's clothing, and when an alcohol swab touched a deeper laceration on his waist and abdomen, the previously unconscious man's body jerked violently.

In the next instant, before anyone could react, Chenshu seized the nurse's wrist holding the tweezers in a crushing grip, his strength astonishing; the nurse cried out in pain from the fright.

Chenshu's eyes slit open, unfocused, radiating only cold vigilance and killing intent.

This was purely an instinctive reaction.