Snowlyme

Home/ The Selfish Gene/ Chapter 24 (Part 2)

“First…let me go.” After a moment of stalemate, I still reluctantly compromised for the sake of the overall situation.

Just like friction caused by the wood rubbing against wood can light a fire, friction due to skin rubbing against skin can bring about an astonishing heat.

His scorching breath on my neck, his arms around my waist, that feeling is still vivid in my mind.

When I’m with women, I especially hate it when they touch my cigarette scars, but since they’re all on the back, there were not many such opportunities. But once I turned my back to Ji Chenfeng, it meant exposing my scars in front of him.

I originally thought that the light was dim and he shouldn’t be able to see it, but who knew, he not only saw the scars but even touched them.

After he finished, he put his entire weight on my back. Normally, I would easily be able to support this much weight, but after two rounds, I was also a little exhausted, so I fell onto the bed along with his strength.

Through the shirt, a powerful and even noisy heartbeat was transmitted, beating like a drum on my back.

I can’t remember how long it’s been since I’ve been this close to someone, but this feeling wasn’t bad, it’s just that it was… so hot…hot and heavy.

“I can’t breathe….” My face was buried in the soft quilt, and I let go of the sheets I had been gripping tightly, too lazy to gather any strength.

The weight on my body became much lighter in the next second, and Ji Chenfeng rubbed the back of my ear, saying in a satisfied and joyful voice: “Sorry.”

After speaking, he rolled over and lay down next to me.

Without the weight of the large polar bear on my back, my breathing became smoother. What’s even more amazing was that I actually became sleepy, not knowing whether it was under the influence of alcohol or due to physical exhaustion.

Lying on my stomach, my eyelids became heavy, but I could still feel Ji Chenfeng’s palm caressing my skin like a small animal, a little itchy, a little annoying.

“How did this come about?” His fingertips gently rubbed the cigarette scars on my waist and buttocks—the first one, the second one, and the third… it was as if, just by touching, he had perfectly memorized the position of each of them.

“This…” The drowsiness softened my voice that should have sounded angry, also washing away the unhappiness of someone mentioning my pain point, “It was made by a bad woman, a very very bad woman…”

After that, my memory was just a blur of vague dreams. I remember being chased by a tiger for a long time. After a while, I was so tired that I couldn’t run anymore, and then I was thrown down by a huge beast who then brutally bit off my legs.

Watching horror movies and becoming the protagonist of one of them are not the same thing at all. Although I have been having all kinds of bizarre dreams because of my insomnia, such nightmares are still rare. I hope it won’t happen again.

Rubbing the shower gel on my back, my fingers felt some strange sensations. There seemed to be some swelling in several places, feeling a little pain when pressed.

Twisting my body, I grabbed my buttocks and looked carefully, revealing the clear deep red tooth marks. I checked several places in a row, and it was the same.

Washing the foam off my body, I went to the mirror, took a bath towel to wipe off the water on my body, and turned my back.

Sure enough, the places with cigarette scars on my body were covered with bite marks. Although I hate these scars, it is not difficult to get rid of them with current medical technology. However, the mere thought of being touched by strangers and the rich imaginations they might have, stopped me from doing that.

I never thought that it would be possible to cover them up in this way. It almost seems like an imprint solely belonging to Ji Chenfeng.

Even though I was a bit surprised, I didn’t feel very angry. It would make sense for me to blow up at the moment when it really happened, but now that it is already the next morning, it feels pointless to be angry.

Putting on my clothes, I walked out of the bathroom. The dining table was already filled with a rich breakfast, but Ji Chenfeng was neither at the dining table nor in the bedroom.

Did he go outside?

The air outside the bubble house was much colder. As soon as I walked out of the bubble house, I couldn’t help but shiver because of the huge temperature difference.

Soon I found Ji Chenfeng, standing in the bushes beside the platform, holding something in his hand, he didn’t notice my arrival.

“Doctor Ji?” I walked over to him, “Did you catch something?” Seeing the fluffy, red lump in his hand, I thought he had caught something.

Ji Chenfeng turned around and carefully handed over the thing in his hand.

“It wasn’t caught.”

I took a closer look and it turned out to be a bird.

“It’s a red-headed biting cuckoo that must’ve been born this summer, that’s why its flying skills are still very immature. It probably bumped into our bubble house by accident. Fortunately, I checked and found that its neck and wings are fine, and it only seems a bit confused and scared because of the fall.”

The little bird with bright red feathers and a long tail, crouching in his palm, blinked its pitch-black eyes and kept tilting its head to look at me curiously, as if it hadn’t realized what the giant creature standing in front of it was. It indeed looked a bit stupid.

“It looks quite unique.” I commented.

Perhaps because it has gotten enough rest, the bird started flapping its wings.

“This family of birds is good at climbing, but not very good at flying, so they will not migrate, and stay in the land where they were born for the rest of their lives.” While speaking, Ji Chenfeng walked away from the path of the bubble house, and under the huge canopy, he naturally extended his hand with his palm spread out and waited quietly.

With my hands in my trouser pockets, I thought of the bird release scene I saw on TV before and asked, “Do you just have to wait, don’t you need to throw it to help it fly?”

The wind blew through the treetops, causing the position of the sunlight to constantly change, and when it fell on Ji Chenfeng, there was an illusion that the sunlight was caressing him.

“That would cause even more damage to the birds.” He said, “They can fly by themselves.”

Just as his words fell, the red bird fluttered away in an instant. Although it was not good at flying, it disappeared in the forest in a blink of an eye.

Ji Chenfeng squinted his eyes and looked in the direction where the bird disappeared, making sure that it would not fall again for no reason. He then turned around and came back to my side.

“Where is it going?” I asked casually.

I didn’t want to get a clear scientific answer and was just looking for a topic to discuss with Ji Chenfeng.

Ji Chenfeng thought for a while and said, “Maybe it will go home.”

Go home?

“Does the concept of home exist for the birds?”

“Tired birds return to their nests and people return to their homes. The nests where birds return to when they are tired, the branches where they perch, the caves where they rest, are all their homes. Trees, mountains, rivers, and streams can also be their homes. This land embraces everything and loves every creature. The bird is its child, and it is the home of the bird.” He paused and concluded in a very serious tone, “So, the little bird must have a home.”

Is heaven and earth home…

I thought the birds, like me, were always looking for the next branch to land on, but it turned out that they had a home. Then is it only me who doesn’t have a….

“Doctor Ji really likes small animals.” I lightly touched the wound on his face. After washing his head yesterday, the band-aid on his face was also scrapped. Fortunately, after one night, the striking red colour has disappeared, and the remaining redness and swelling should also be healed in two days.

It may still be a little painful, as I saw him frown uncontrollably. I thought he was going to avoid it, but the next second, he rubbed his face against my palm even more.

“Occasionally… I also like humans.” When he said the last four words, just like the little bird just now, he raised his eyelids and looked at me with an innocent and ambiguous tone.

With each intimate act, Ji Chenfeng became even more attached to me. Although sometimes he still appears too cold and dull because of his defence mechanism, as long as you grasp the rules and see through the surface of his heart, you will find that he is actually quite thoughtful.

After admiring his docile appearance for a while, I took my hand away from his face and instead held his hand.

“Let’s go eat breakfast, it’s a bit cold outside.” Then, I pulled him to the bubble house.

On the second day after returning from the bubble house, the hotel suite I stayed in welcomed its first guest—Director of Ji Chenfeng’s hospital, Wu Rong.

“It’s just a little token of respect, I hope you like it.” Sitting opposite, Dean Wu slowly pushed a box of high-end snacks towards me.

I glanced at him and said lightly, “You’re welcome.”

“Actually, I should have come to visit you after the puppy in our hospital accidentally bit you, but I was on a business trip at that time, so I was delayed.” Dean Wu said with a smile, “This time you have helped us again, so it is an apology and a thank you.”

I really don’t know him well, and we looked at each other after a few words, and the atmosphere became awkward.

“Then I won’t bother you…” Dean Wu smiled dryly, making a gesture to get up.

“Dean Wu.” I called to stop him.

Dean Wu paused and sat down again.

“You can speak.”

With my arms crossed, I stared at him for a long time until the smile on his face gradually became difficult to maintain and the doubts in his eyes became even more intense.

I said slowly: “If the doctor does not perform well during the internship, you can choose not to hire him, right?”

“Uh… that’s right.”

“How is Ji Chenfeng’s performance?”

“Dr. Ji is very professional, and he is very patient with small animals. Guests at the pet hospital also think very highly of him.” 

Dean Wu seemed to have misunderstood something, “Don’t worry. Anesthesia accidents are things that no one wants to happen. Dr. Ji tried his best to save the kitten, and he is the one who feels the most uncomfortable about it besides the pet owner. I have been practicing medicine for so many years, so I understand all this. I will not have any deviation in my personal evaluation of him because of an unintentional accident.”

Dean Wu smiled and said, “I’ve already planned to shorten his internship period and hire him in advance.”

I nodded and asked: “Dean Wu, do you like money?”

He was obviously taken aback, and the doubts that had just subsided reappeared on his face.

“……What do you mean?”

“How much money does it take to bribe Dean Wu to do something that is neither illegal nor too difficult?”

At his age, he is running a hospital that requires constant contact with people, so he quickly realised that there was something in my words.

He hissed and said, “Smart people don’t talk in riddles, you should just tell me directly what you want me to do.”

This is why I like talking to smart people, it can save a lot of unnecessary words.

“Then I’ll just say it directly. How much will it cost for Dr. Ji to fail the internship?”

Dean Wu blinked, looking rather shocked. He may never have imagined that I would make such a strange request.

Indeed, as a friend, you really shouldn’t play tricks behind your friend’s back like this. But… I am not Ji Chenfeng’s friend.

“Let’s make an offer.” I smiled at him for the first time since he came here.

After Dean Wu left, I walked to the huge french window and dialed Yan Shanhua’s number.

After a few rings, Yan Shanhua picked it up, and it took her a long time to say “Hello”.

Facing her fearful voice, I turned a deaf ear and briefly explained the reason for calling her.

“Do you want to make it up to me?” A blurred reflection of me appeared on the clean glass, my complexion was excessively pale due to the years of insomnia, and my long and narrow eyes were lifeless except for their coldness. This is a…to put it nicely, is rebellious, and to put it poorly, a face that is always on the verge of anger.

“No matter what reason you use, tell Ji Chenfeng that you need money, a lot of money, and let him come to me.”

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