That Man Is a Little Wild - Chapter 8

The phone had already rung twice before Li Cang finally stirred.

He groaned, fumbling blindly across the sheets until he found it, swiping to answer with his eyes still closed. His voice came out hoarse and sleep heavy.
“…Hello.”

“How’s the taste of heartbreak?”

On the other end, Fan Yuanju’s voice was dripping with mock sympathy.
“Did you cry all night? That rasp sounds tragic. Want me to offer you a warm shoulder to cry on?”

“Get lost.” Li Cang cracked an eye open, glancing at the screen. “It’s barely ten. Who the hell calls at this hour? Goodbye.”

“Wait, wait, tonight the guys are throwing you a little welcome-back party. Usual spot.”

“Not in the mood.” Li Cang licked his dry lips. “And for the record, my throat isn’t hoarse from crying over love. It’s from something else entirely.”

There was a pause.
“…You’ve got to be kidding me,” Fan Yuanju exploded. “You actually slept with that idiot after breaking up?!”

Li Cang let out a rough laugh.
“Tell me who’s the crazy one here? Me, or him?”

“Unbelievable. You already found someone new?”

“Goodbye.”

He hung up before Fan Yuanju could start again. Then, with a sigh, he sank back into the pillow and dozed another half hour before dragging his sore body into the bathroom.

His lower back ached so badly he nearly lost his balance getting out of the tub. Every muscle complained.

On the coffee table sat a neatly arranged hotel breakfast, with a folded note pinned beneath the plate.

Li Cang took a bite of the fried egg, unfolded the note with one hand, and scanned it lazily.

Had to leave for something. Call me when you wake up.
A phone number is followed at the bottom.

He tossed the paper into the trash, finished breakfast, and tidied himself up before heading back to his own room to pack. His flight was later that day.

To his mild irritation, Hu Haoxuan was still in the hotel lobby, laptop propped on his knees like he was saving the world.

Li Cang ignored him, checked out both rooms, and turned to leave.

Hu Haoxuan closed his computer and strode over. His eyes flicked to the faint marks scattered along Li Cang’s neck, and he let out a sharp, mocking laugh.
“So this is what you’ve become? Or maybe you’ve always been like this—can’t go a day without a man touching you?”

“Yeah,” Li Cang shot back coolly. “Random guy, better than you. Almost wrecked me.”

Hu Haoxuan’s expression froze.

Li Cang slid on his sunglasses, gave a quiet snort, and walked straight out.

At the airport, just as he settled into his seat, his phone buzzed again. Fan Yuanju.

“Finally awake? Spill it. What happened?”

Li Cang leaned back. “What do you think?”

“Last night! The new guy!”

“Oh, that.” Li Cang rubbed his ear. Met him at a bar. Spent the night. He was… good.

A moment of silence, and then Fan Yuanju groaned, full of theatrical jealousy.
“Damn it! Some of us are starving while others drown in luxury!”

Li Cang chuckled, but the laugh tugged somewhere sore, and he winced.

“What happened?”

“Nothing.”

“Tell me more!”

Li Cang smirked. “Let’s just say walking’s been… challenging. Want the details?”

Fan Yuanju cursed and hung up.

Li Cang’s grin widened. When he looked up, a few women across the waiting area were staring at him with curious, almost scandalized eyes.

He paused.

“…”

Ugh.