Villainous Junior Chapter 11
Translated by Sylver (ko-fi)
Chapter 11: Applying Medicine
Fu Yan's temple throbbed with veins as he was irritated by these two. Finally, he laughed in extreme anger. "Good, since you're so eager to be whipped, you can both go receive punishment!"
In the end, Meng Chen was punished with ten lashes. After all, the crime of "trespassing into forbidden areas" wasn't that serious, and with a group of people pleading for him, Fu Yan ended up giving a light punishment despite his initial anger. In comparison, Xue Lang suffered much more, receiving a solid thirty lashes. Due to his low cultivation level and lack of protective true qi, he had to be carried back in the end.
He was carried back by two fellow disciples who had joined Taixuan Sect at the same time as him. One of them sighed and said, "Xue Lang, have you lost your mind? It wasn't easy for us to enter Taixuan Sect, and in less than a month, you almost got kicked out! You should learn your lesson!"
The other one also said, "Exactly. If Senior Brother Meng Chen hadn't pleaded for you today, I think Elder Fu would have really expelled you. Also, I really can't understand what you were thinking. Senior Brother Meng Chen personally invited you to join Tianji Peak and accompanied you during the new disciple trials. He's been so good to you, yet you still wanted to frame him out of jealousy! You need to have a conscience. You should really reflect on your actions!"
The two disciples left a bottle of medicine before departing.
Xue Lang lay face down on the bed, not touching the medicine bottle, even though his back was a mess of blood and flesh. He seemed not to feel the pain, his insides filled only with bewildered confusion and anxiety.
That person had also taken ten lashes.
How was he now? Was he in pain? Was anyone taking care of him?
Xue Lang was restless and finally couldn't hold back anymore. He struggled to get up, but as he moved, he hesitated again.
It was he who had caused the other person to end up in such a state. How could the other person be willing to see him again? Perhaps from now on, he would only be treated as a stranger.
Xue Lang lay back down, slowly burying his face in the pillow.
This was for the best.
This was truly for the best…
With a "creak", someone pushed open the door and entered. Xue Lang thought it was the two fellow disciples returning, until he heard a familiar voice tinged with reproach. "Why haven't you applied the medicine yet?"
Xue Lang suddenly raised his head from the pillow. The movement was too large and unexpectedly pulled at the whip wounds on his back, causing him to draw in a sharp breath of pain. Seeing this, Meng Chen's expression darkened further. He frowned and stopped Xue Lang's movement. "Lie still and don't move!"
Xue Lang stared at him unblinkingly, his throat parched. After a long while, he managed to produce a hoarse sound. "...Why did you come?"
"What do you think?" Since entering the room, the frown on Meng Chen's brow hadn't relaxed. This seemed to be the only time Xue Lang had seen an expression resembling anger on his face since they met. "With injuries like this, why didn't you call for me earlier? Where's the paper crane I gave you for communication? Did you throw it away?"
"I didn't throw it away!" Xue Lang immediately replied instinctively, then suddenly fell silent. After a moment, he couldn't help but ask, "What about you? Are you...alright?"
"I'm fine." Meng Chen sat down on the edge of the bed, taking out a bottle of Purple Gold Blood Coagulation Pills from his robe. Seeing that he moved freely, not seeming to be seriously injured, Xue Lang's anxious heart relaxed slightly. He turned his head to hide the emotions on his face. "Don't misunderstand. I just thought you looked weak and frail. If ten lashes left you crawling, it would bring shame to Tianji Peak."
Still putting on a tough act at this time. Meng Chen felt both amused and exasperated. He wasn't in the mood to humor him. He took out two pills from the bottle and ground them into powder, then went to lift Xue Lang's upper garment.
Xue Lang immediately tried to leap up like a carp. "What are you—"
"Lie still!" Seeing the bloodstains on the single layer garment growing larger, Meng Chen couldn't bear it anymore. He reached out and pressed several of Xue Lang's major acupoints, causing him to stiffen and lie motionless on the bed, unable to move.
Meng Chen initially wanted to lift Xue Lang's clothes to apply medicine, but he saw that the single garment had already stuck to the blurred flesh and blood. Moving it would likely tear the wounds even more severely. He had no choice but to find a pair of scissors and carefully cut open the clothes first.
Xue Lang couldn't move or dodge, and he was so anxious that sweat broke out on his forehead. He strained his neck and shouted. "Surnamed Meng, I'm telling you! If you dare touch me again, I, I will never forgive you!!"
Meng Chen couldn't be bothered to respond. After cutting and discarding the clothes, he took a clean cloth, dampened it with clear water, and gently dabbed away the blood. Then he sprinkled the medicine powder on the wounds. The Purple Gold Blood Coagulation Pills were excellent for stopping bleeding, much more valuable than the ordinary medicine the two disciples had brought earlier, and the effect was obvious. The bleeding from the wounds stopped quickly.
Meng Chen looked carefully and found that the whip marks on Xue Lang's back were crisscrossed, with some extending down along his waist. So he reached out to undo Xue Lang's belt.
Xue Lang's voice was now almost terrified. "What are you doing!!!!"
"Stop yelling." Meng Chen's ears hurt from his barking. He said helplessly, "Don't you feel pain down there too? There are also wounds there."
"I don't need your help!!!" Sensing the other's movements, Xue Lang's voice went off-key, "Don't you—"
It was too late. Meng Chen mercilessly pulled down his pants, revealing his buttocks which also bore bloody whip marks.
Xue Lang looked like he had been thoroughly cooked, his face completely red as he tightly closed his eyes, seemingly wishing he could just faint on the spot.
"What are you embarrassed about?" Seeing his strong reaction, Meng Chen was quite puzzled. "It's not like I'm taking advantage of you."
Xue Lang blushed even more intensely. He seemed to have finally given up struggling and closed his eyes in resignation. Meng Chen finished treating his wounds, helped him pull up his pants, and then released his acupoints. He instructed. "Don't move around these few days. Rest well in bed. I'll come regularly to apply medicine for you. Remember?"
Xue Lang didn't move. His voice was muffled in the pillow, barely audible. "...Why are you treating me like this?"
"I've said I hate you... and I even framed and falsely accused you...What's wrong with you? Why are you still so nice to me?"
Meng Chen was quiet for a moment, then asked, "Then why did you suddenly confess to the elders that you framed me?"
"I just—" Xue Lang's voice was indistinct, "I just suddenly felt that this method was too despicable, and I didn't want to use it anymore... Don't overthink it!"
"Oh." Meng Chen nodded. "I'm also just taking care of a fellow disciple, don't overthink it either."
Xue Lang fell silent.
"Alright, you rest now," Meng Chen said. "I'll come back later."
As he turned to leave, Xue Lang finally raised his head from the pillow and hesitantly asked, "The wounds on your back... are they really okay?"
Meng Chen's brow finally relaxed slightly, and he raised the corner of his mouth slightly as he said, "I have Nascent Soul true qi protecting my body. It's just some red marks, they'll fade in two days." He understood the anxiety and concern hidden deep in the young man's eyes, and after thinking for a moment, he said, "If you're not at ease, want me to show you?"
Xue Lang: "...No need!!!!"
"—What are you howling about?" A clear voice suddenly interjected, filled with strong disapproval. "You took dozens of lashes, yet you're still so energetic?"
Hearing this voice, both Xue Lang and Meng Chen's expressions changed slightly. Meng Chen turned to look and saw Yin Chi and Pei Yuze entering together. Upon seeing him, Yin Chi immediately ran over and asked anxiously, "Senior Brother, why did you come here? Have your wounds been treated? Are they very painful?"
Pei Yuze glanced at Xue Lang lying on the bed and said to Meng Chen. "We went to bring you medicine earlier and found you weren't there, so we came to check on Junior Brother Xue. We didn't expect you to be here too."
Yin Chi let out a cold laugh, not hiding his feelings at all. "I'm not here to see him. It's one thing to bring trouble on himself, but he dared to implicate Senior Brother. Thirty lashes are too few. If you ask me, a hundred lashes would be best!"
The young man's words were full of hatred and killing intent. If there weren't others present, he might have actually acted on his words.
Meng Chen warned in a low voice, "Yin Chi."
"Senior Brother!" Yin Chi suddenly exploded, "How can you still protect him? Hasn't he hurt you badly enough!? In my opinion, you shouldn't have pleaded for him today at all. He doesn't deserve to stay on Tianji Peak—"
"I brought Xue Lang here," Meng Chen calmly interrupted. "I've already sent a message to Master, and Xue Lang is also a disciple approved by Master. To expel him in less than a month, whose face would that be slapping?"
He rarely used such a tone to say such serious words. Yin Chi was momentarily choked, and although he understood the reasoning, he found it hard to accept, remaining frozen in place. It was Pei Yuze who gently broke the tense atmosphere. "Your Senior Brother must have his reasons for choosing to bring him in. Moreover, Xue Lang is also your junior brother. Yin Chi, you really need to work on that temper of yours."
Yin Chi let out a cold sneer, still looking unsatisfied, but he didn't want to anger Meng Chen further, so he finally stopped talking.
"We arrived a step too late. We didn't expect you'd already treated Junior Brother Xue's wounds," Pei Yuze smiled and said gently. "But don't forget you're injured too. Let's go back first and let me take a look at you."
Meng Chen's lips tightened imperceptibly, but he still said nothing. He glanced at Xue Lang, about to leave with Pei and Yin.
Xue Lang, who had been silent all this time, suddenly cried out as if rising from the dead. "Ouch!!!"
Meng Chen immediately turned back. Yin Chi was startled by him and shuddered, gritting his teeth in anger. "Are you crazy!?"
"Ouch, my stomach hurts—" Xue Lang hissed, frowning in pain, "I need to go to the latrine. Senior Brothers, can someone help me up?"
For a moment, no one responded. Xue Lang looked even more pained. "I can't hold it much longer—help me up, please. My wounds hurt, I really can't move!"
Pei Yuze glanced at the person writhing on the bed and said, "Yin Chi, go help your junior brother."
Yin Chi said in disbelief. "Me? I won't go!"
"If you don't go," Pei Yuze glanced at him lightly, "should your Senior Brother Meng go instead?"
Yin Chi's face turned ashen. After standing stiffly for a moment, he angrily walked over, grabbed Xue Lang's arm, and yanked him up from the bed.
Meng Chen's expression changed slightly, his body moving as if wanting to step forward, but he still restrained himself, silently watching as Xue Lang was roughly dragged out by Yin Chi.
Pei Yuze stood to the side, quietly observing Meng Chen's expression. He smiled lightly and said, "It seems Ah Chen is particularly attentive to Junior Brother Xue."
Meng Chen: "He's someone I brought in on behalf of Master. Of course I have to be responsible for him."
"That's true," Pei Yuze smiled. "I remember you were like this when Yin Chi first joined too. You took care of him day and night, even personally feeding him. No wonder he likes to stick to you so much. Be careful, or Xue Lang might become a second Yin Chi."
Meng Chen shook his head. "Senior Brother is joking. Does Xue Lang look like the clingy type to you?"
Pei Yuze was about to say something more when they suddenly heard a particularly loud noise from the courtyard outside, mixed with Yin Chi's furious cursing. "You just wait!!!"
Meng Chen was startled and immediately walked outside, only to see Xue Lang leisurely strolling back in alone, while Yin Chi had disappeared from sight.
"What happened?" Meng Chen, disregarding everything else, went forward to support him and asked, "What was that noise just now?"
"Ah, this is quite embarrassing to say," Xue Lang sniffled and said, "My injuries are severe and I couldn't stand steady. When I was relieving myself, I lost my aim and accidentally...wet Senior Brother Yin's boots."
Meng Chen: "..."
Pei Yuze: "..."
