Li Mei instinctively said, "Who, who among you tipped off Lu Xiao?"
Chu Shi Ling and Mu Sen shook their heads quickly, and at the same time, they cast a subtle glance at Shen Qi, who was strolling leisurely behind Lu Zhi.
"Brother, sit down quickly." Lu Zhi hurriedly stopped Lu Chengxuan from getting up, staring at the skin near the wound on his shoulder. It was a faint dark purple, clearly indicating slow healing from a poisoned wound.
"I'm fine. How can you go on a mission without getting injured and bleeding?" Lu Chengxuan sat down, "Why did you come back?"
Lu Zhi frowned, his tone of voice making him feel something was wrong. "Hearing your tone, I felt something was off. Since the academy has given us a holiday anyway, I just came back to take a look. You were indeed hiding something from me."
Upon hearing this, Lu Chengxuan's eyes lit up with a smile, and he stroked his chin. "Well, I didn't expect my brother to understand me so well. Could this be telepathy between brothers?"
Lu Zhi blinked and smiled. "Changing the subject won't work. This wound was clearly not caused by an Nightmare Beast. Why are you hiding it from me? Am I not your family? Are you not afraid of me getting angry when I find out because you're afraid I'll worry? If I hadn't noticed something was wrong and come back, what would happen to me if something really happened to you?"
Facing Lu Zhi's bombardment of 'gentle smiles', Lu Chengxuan subconsciously signaled Li Mei.
"Well, Xiao Lu, I'll get you a glass of water. Captain Shen, please sit first." Li Mei turned and ran away without any hesitation.
Lu Chengxuan turned to look at Chu Shi Ling.
"Sorry, I'm taking a call." Chu Shi Ling took out his black screen phone. "What did you say? The signal is bad here..." As he spoke, he walked outside.
Lu Chengxuan: ...
"Brother, have you thought of an excuse to fool me?" Lu Zhi placed his hands on his knees, sitting very obediently with a smile. "If you haven't thought of one, I can wait. I'm not in a hurry. I have a lot of time. The academy gave us a week's holiday, and I'm staying at the guild tonight, not going back."
Shen Qi sat on the sofa opposite Lu Zhi, his left leg crossed over his right. He propped his chin with one hand, a faint curve on the corner of his mouth, and watched the amusing scene before him.
"Captain Shen, have some tea." After placing the tea down, Li Mei, ignoring Lu Chengxuan's gaze, quickly ran away again.
The burly Mu Sen looked at Lu Zhi's smile and inexplicably felt scared, so he also quickly slipped away.
Thus, only three people were left in the entire hall. Shen, who enjoyed stirring up trouble, fanned the flames by saying, "Judging by this attitude, this isn't the first time your brother has done this."
Lu Chengxuan's eyes flickered.
Shen Qi leisurely picked up his teacup and took a sip.
"Brother," Lu Zhi suddenly lowered his head dejectedly, "Do you think I'm too weak and can't help, dragging you down?"
"No!" Lu Chengxuan immediately denied it, sighed, and rubbed his hair. "This is just a small friction between guilds. I was injured because I was careless. Li Mei has already prepared the medicine for me and I've taken it. The toxin will be cleared soon. Look, the wound is already starting to heal."
Lu Zhi stared at him intently, trying to find any trace of lying or concealment on his face. "Really?"
Lu Chengxuan impatiently reached out and ruffled Lu Zhi's hair. "Alright, I'm fine. Will you stay for lunch before leaving?"
Lu Zhi nodded, picked up the gauze from the table, "Brother, let me bandage it for you?"
Lu Chengxuan readily agreed, his eyes subtly assessing Lu Zhi's complexion. He noticed that Lu Zhi actually had dark circles under his eyes and didn't seem to be in good spirits. He immediately frowned and said, "Are you not recovered yet? Why do you look a bit pale?"
Lu Zhi tied a bow, then ah-ed, "I drank too much last night. I woke up with a headache this morning."
Upon hearing this, Lu Chengxuan glared sharply at Shen Qi, "Did he get you drunk?"
Shen Qi's eyes were deep, and he said meaningfully, "In the heat of passion, it's hard to restrain oneself. A little drunk is endlessly memorable."
Lu Chengxuan's expression darkened, and he gritted his teeth, "Shen—Qi."
Lu Zhi didn't understand why his brother was suddenly angry. "Brother, I'm an adult. If I drink a few more times, I won't get drunk so easily."
Lu Chengxuan thought of his younger brother, this small green pine tree, before it could grow into a towering tree, being uprooted by Shen Qi, this shameless lumberjack, and he was so angry he wanted to fight him for three hundred rounds!
"Head, the private room at the restaurant is booked. Shall we go now?" Li Mei interrupted the subtle atmosphere between the three.
"You haven't eaten breakfast yet, are you hungry?" Shen Qi deliberately walked to Lu Zhi's side, raised his hand, and naturally rubbed his stomach. "You drank alcohol last night, so you must have vomited this morning. Shall I make you a cup of honey tea to help?"
Shen Qi's gentle and considerate actions perfectly embodied the ideal twenty-four filial good boyfriend that women needed.
Lu Zhi felt that Shen Qi's words were strange. Could it be that after accidentally speaking his mind after drinking last night and calling him Shen Fenggou (Shen Mad Dog), he was deliberately trying to scare him now?
"No need." Lu Zhi refused very vigilantly. "My stomach doesn't feel uncomfortable, I'm just a bit hungry. Brother, let's go eat first."
"Let's go." Lu Chengxuan expressionlessly pulled Lu Zhi's wrist, completely ignoring Shen Qi's presence.
As Li Mei passed by Shen Qi, she couldn't help but explain Lu Chengxuan's targeted behavior, "Captain Shen, please understand. It's normal for the Guild Leader to dote on his brother who he has regained, after all, he is the Guild Leader's only family member. Moreover, given your relationship, it's understandable that he's so protective."
Shen Qi said "oh" faintly, not sure if he had heard her, and stepped out of the guild hall.
After Lu Zhi and the others had a simple lunch, Yan Shao contacted him, saying that the flight tickets to Buye Island were booked for tomorrow and to remember to pack his luggage.
"Buye Island?"
On the way back, Lu Chengxuan heard Lu Zhi's conversation with Yan Shao and said, "I remember Buye Island, isn't it one of the Thirteen Sacred Islands?"
Lu Zhi was startled. He really didn't know that.
Lu Chengxuan stopped the car outside the school gate and said, "Have fun and be safe."
Lu Zhi closed the car door, "Got it, brother. Drive back slowly."
Lu Chengxuan called Lu Zhi to a halt again and handed him a new black card. "I gave you the wrong card last time. This one has no limit. Feel free to use it boldly. Don't borrow from others."
The latter sentence was clearly directed at Shen Qi.
Lu Zhi also understood Lu Chengxuan's implied meaning. He felt it was a bit childish, yet also very heartwarming. He smiled and said, "Got it, brother. I'm going back."
Lu Chengxuan nodded. Seeing Lu Zhi enter the school gate, he then drove away.
Then, Lu Zhi and Shen Qi were left alone.
Following this, Lu Zhi's guilty eyes darted around. "I, I'll go back to the dorm to pack my clothes. I have a flight tomorrow..."
Before he could take three steps, Shen Qi hooked his neck from behind and his chin was forcefully clamped. He was forced to tilt his head back, and his lips softened as he passively accepted Shen Qi's assault.
The leaves in the afternoon rustled in the wind.
In a daze, Lu Zhi heard Shen Qi say, "Shen Fenggou? Hmm?"
Lu Zhi: ...
Aren't your biting actions just like a dog's now?