Fu Tingyu had seen many similar wounds, which was why he thought it looked like one. The longer he stared at Qin Shu’s leg, the more he felt his heart leaden—his suspicion was confirmed. Only piercing bullets could have caused such circular wounds.
He raised his pitch-black eyes and looked at the person beside him in deep slumber. As her eyes were closed, her sleeping face was serene. Her cheeks were dyed in scarlet, charming like an angel.
At the thought of a muzzle being pointed at her, he felt his body turn cold. His breath seemed to have stopped. No one could understand better than he did—the pain of being hit by a bullet. He would have ignored it, but it would be too much for her.
He clenched his fists and stared at Qin Shu for quite some time before he withdrew his gaze to look at the wound in front of him. As he gradually relaxed his fists, he picked up a piece of cotton wool and placed it on the wound. Then, he took out a new gauze from the medical kit and wrapped it around the wound.
He tucked her leg back into bed, and he started cleaning up, putting the kit back in the cabinet. After everything was done, he walked over and sat down as he removed his slippers before lying beside Qin Shu. He pulled her into an embrace.
It was as if the sleeping girl had known she was being cuddled, clinging onto his warmth in the familiar embrace. In her subconscious, she moved closer until she could feel the movement of his chest and his constant beating heart.
Fu Tingyu looked down at her as he tightened his arms, afraid that she might suddenly disappear. As he switched off the lamp and the quiet bedroom plunged into darkness, his eyes were cold and impenetrable.
Being asleep, Qin Shu felt the inexplicable chill behind her. With her instinct, she pulled the quilt around her tight.
***
On the morning next, the first thing Qin Shu saw when she opened her eyes was Fu Tingyu’s lips. She was dazed.
“Are you awake?”
She heard his magnetic voice from above—it was a little raspy, a typical morning voice. Qin Shu lifted her head and looked at him bleary-eyed. “Why are you still in bed?”
Fu Tingyu had his eyes locked on her. She had just woken up, and she looked a little confused. “I need to ask you something.”
Qin Shu rubbed her eyes, “What is it?”
“Why did you lie?” His voice was almost trembling, but he managed to suppress his anger. She had lied to him countless times, but he had never been as furious as he was now.
Hearing that, she was suddenly awake. Her eyes widened, “What’s wrong?” She could not retort even if it sounded like an interrogation—she was guilty of lying.
Staring at her puzzled face, he muttered, “It was a gunshot wound. Why did you lie that you fell?”
Qin Shu was shocked. He had not suspected anything yesterday. What changed his mind? He sounded so determined that it did not seem like he was trying to trick her into confessing.
Qin Shu mumbled, “I was afraid that you would be worried…”
Before Qin Shu could finish her sentence, Fu Tingyu interrupted, “You’re afraid that I’d be worried? Is that why you had to lie and hide the fact that someone tried to hurt you? Then what am I to you? Was I always dispensable?”
His last few words came out almost in a whisper, and she could read self-mockery in it. He had not lost control over his emotions up until now. It was not only that he was being lied to, and more importantly, he also resented himself for not being able to protect her when she was in danger. Did he mean anything to her at all?
Seeing the hurt in his eyes, Qin Shu’s heart was aching too. She stretched out her arms and wrapped them around his lean waist. She shook her head and explained, “It’s not what you think. Please don’t overthink this, okay? No one is more important than you are.”
Fu Tingyu had his gaze locked into hers. His soft, dark hair was falling around his face. He felt her arms around him tightened. Was he important to her? He wondered. She did not even bother to tell him when she got in trouble, and he yet was important?
“Then why did you not tell me first?” He could not help but ask.
Qin Shu was about to reveal it when she heard him said, “The first thing you thought of was how to hide it from me, am I right?”
He was right. The first thing that came into Qin Shu’s mind was that she did not want him to know about this. But not in that way. She cared deeply for him, and that was why she would not want him to know. He was not dispensable.
Fu Tingyu took her silence as an admission of guilt, and he chuckled ruefully, “Then why did you say that I am the most important person to you?”
His hollow laugh was agonizing for Qin Shu. “That was an accident. I didn’t want you to feel bothered. It wasn’t because you weren’t important…”
Looking at her fair face, he gently stroke her and murmured, “Babe, were you scared?”
She had nothing else on her mind other than saving Gu Yan. She had only felt the fear after the adrenaline rush was over.
Qin Shu did not answer his question directly but was anxious to explain, “I didn’t tell because I was afraid that you’d be worried, I swear. It’s not because you’re not important.”
His fingers had just wandered to her beautiful brows. “Babe, do you know how I feel when I think of someone pointing a gun at you, and yet I know of nothing? When you were in danger and injured, I had no clue about it. Do you understand how I feel right now?”
The thought of it was even more terrifying than to have witnessed it.
Qin Shu hurriedly nodded, “I know.”
Fu Tingyu laughed softly, “How would you know?”
If it was not for the fact that he loved her deeply, how could she have felt that kind of fear? It tore him to the bone, and it hurt whenever he thought about it. He took one glance at her. Did she ever love him? He thought. They had been getting along, like real lovers and couple. It was what he had been longing for.
He pursed his lips, threw back the quilt, got off the bed, and marched into the bathroom.
Qin Shu watched his back as he left without saying a word. It was as if he had lost his patience. Anyone who had been lied to would have been angry—and he deserved to be angry.
But, how did he know that she had been shot? Did he not stopped doubting yesterday?
Qin Shu threw back the quilt to get out of bed, but she realized it when she saw the bandage on her leg. The dressing was new, and the method differed from Gu Yan’s. Needless to say, it was Fu Tingyu. Thus, it was why he knew she was lying about her injury.
A gunshot wound was distinctive. Even when a few days had gone by, it was easy to identify one when someone saw it. Qin Shu had planned to change it as soon as she woke up. If she had known, she would have done it last night.
As she put on her slippers and got out of bed, she made her way to the bathroom.
Fu Tingyu had just finished washing up and was on his way out, and she stopped at the door.
