Blinded by Lust chapter 15

Since Wu Bie had been scammed several times before, to be on the safe side, he now carried very little cash with him when going to sea. Most of his money was in foreign currency, and he didn’t have much in his online bank account. The bulk of his funds was in a bank account he couldn’t remember, not linked to a mobile bank, and the card was kept at home.

Even so, Chen Xian was still a bit worried, “I’m just worried that even that little bit of money Wu Bie has will be scammed away.”

Shen Jixue shrugged. Losing money to learn a lesson was the best thing for someone like Wu Bie. “There’s nothing we can do. He’s an adult. You can’t have the captain take all his money away. Anyway, he’s on the ship. His basic needs are covered. Even if that money is scammed, he won’t end up on the streets. Being scammed is good, so he won’t mess around online and end up being scammed again.”

For someone like Wu Bie, a straightforward and tough guy, not having money was the most frustrating thing. Without money, he couldn’t move an inch because his masculinity didn’t allow him to lower his pride to spend a woman’s money.

“Enough,” Shen Jixue frowned, clearly displeased. “I was supposed to watch a movie with you, but after one call from Wu Bie, I don’t even know where the movie is at now.”

However, Chen Xian still felt uneasy after thinking it over, so he got up to head to Wu Bie’s house. “I’ll go to the bank and check if he’s moved any money from his account.”

Shen Jixue’s face was quite gloomy; even from such a distance, Wu Bie managed to cause trouble for him.

…

When Wu Bie woke up, he had already received a message from Zhanyan on his phone. The first one was a “Good morning,” followed by a message saying she would have a full-body check-up that day.

“I just woke up. Message me when you’re back.” The chat screen hadn’t changed at all, so Wu Bie guessed Zhanyan was still busy. He slipped his phone into his pocket, jumped out of bed, changed his clothes, and started washing up.

He hadn’t eaten anything last night, so after washing up, he was starving. He slipped on his slippers and went out to find food.

The minty toothpaste met the sea breeze coming towards him; Wu Bie took a deep breath, feeling refreshed from his nose to his head.

It wasn’t early anymore, and there were only two cold eggs in the kitchen. Wu Bie looked around but didn’t see Chef Zhang. Feeling annoyed, he scratched his head—waking up late meant no breakfast.

Just as he was debating whether to make do with those two eggs, a cautious male voice sounded behind him, “Wu Ge?”

Wu Bie turned around to see Tan Yi. He quickly waved him over. “Where’s Chef Zhang? Is there anything to eat?”

“Since we’re leaving tonight, Mr. Zhang went out to buy ingredients. I didn’t go with him.” Tan Yi walked around Wu Bie and took out some minced meat and prepared dough from the freezer. “We had buns for breakfast. There are still ingredients left, so I’ll make some for you now.”

Upon hearing there were buns, Wu Bie was in a great mood. He plopped down at the dining table, cracked open an egg to fill his stomach, and casually chatted with Tan Yi. “Thanks a lot.”

“No problem, it’s part of my job.”

Tan Yi’s voice was a bit reserved. Wu Bie instinctively looked up and saw Tan Yi standing at the counter with his back to him.

The apron strap was tightly tied around his back, outlining his waist. Tan Yi was already slim, and this made his figure look even more delicate.

Wu Bie finished peeling the egg and shoved the whole thing into his mouth, asking indistinctly, “Why didn’t you go with him?”

“When I was eating breakfast, I didn’t see you, so I guessed you hadn’t woken up yet. If both Mr. Zhang and I had gone, you wouldn’t have had anything to eat, so I didn’t go with him.”

As Tan Yi spoke, his hands didn’t stop making buns. He just kept his head down, his fair neck seeming to have turned a bit red.

After stuffing two eggs into his mouth, Wu Bie started to feel choked. He hadn’t really paid much attention to Tan Yi’s reaction. He looked everywhere for water, and after gulping down the eggs, he casually said, “Thanks.”

Tan Yi glanced at Wu Bie’s movements from the corner of his eye. Seeing that Wu Bie didn’t have any special reaction, he just focused on making buns diligently. His hands moved quickly, and soon a steamer full of buns was ready to go.

After a brief exchange, Wu Bie didn’t say much to Tan Yi. He figured he’d just wait and not waste Tan Yi’s time. “How long do they need to steam? I’ll keep an eye on them; you can go do your thing.”

“I don’t have anything to do right now. I was just upstairs watching the sailors paint, and no one was talking to me, so I came down.”

For Wu Bie, not talking was harder than anything else. Since Tan Yi said that, it would be rude to ask him to leave, so he had to find something to talk about.

“What made you decide to work on a ship?”

Tan Yi fiddled with the edge of the counter. “I feel free on the sea, and… I can save money.”

That was honest. Wu Bie continued, “You also speak foreign languages. Why not get a certification and work your way up on a ship? Starting as a sailor and gradually moving up. It’s not that being a cook is bad, but a cook will always be a cook. Even if you master it, you’re still just a cook, and the salary won’t go up.”

Tan Yi turned around, a blush on his pale cheeks. “I’m not as strong as the others, and I’d only slow them down with manual labor.”

That’s true. A cook was still a skilled job, whereas a basic sailor was purely labor-intensive. With Tan Yi’s frail appearance, he probably couldn’t carry heavy loads or do physically demanding tasks.

“I was just on deck watching those big guys work, and they all thought I was getting in the way.” Tan Yi pursed his lips, blinking pitifully.

For some reason, Tan Yi gave Wu Bie a strange feeling. Tan Yi spoke little, had no friends on the ship, and spoke softly. If Wu Bie had to describe it, Tan Yi seemed a bit effeminate. With a personality like that, he’d likely be excluded on the ship.

It’s not just the burly sailors; even Wu Bie himself wasn’t too fond of interacting with guys like that—too delicate and not soft. If Tan Yi hadn’t helped him before and didn’t have any other faults besides being a bit off-putting, he probably wouldn’t have talked to him.

Seeing that Tan Yi looked quite young, Wu Bie, being more experienced, wanted to comfort him with a few words. But then his phone rang in his pocket. He saw that it was a message from Zhanyan.

“Ge, I’m back.”

“My attending doctor confirmed my recovery plan, so it took a bit longer.”

With someone else around, Wu Bie couldn’t make a voice call, so he had to type a reply to Zhanyan. “That’s good. Make sure you cooperate with the treatment.”

Zhanyan seemed quite down. “But I can’t even stand up. I just fell down.”

“Did you hurt yourself?”

Zhanyan sent a photo, and Wu Bie enlarged it, carefully examining the pale arm in the picture but finding nothing wrong. He knew Zhanyan was being coquettish with him, so he replied with a white lie, “It looks a bit red. How could you be so careless?”

“It’s not too bad; it doesn’t hurt much.”

“They had to draw blood for the tests. I’ve been hungry all morning.”

Wu Bie felt heartbroken. “Really? You haven’t eaten yet? Order some takeout.”

“The caregiver is here, eating right now.”

Wu Bie nearly transferred all the remaining money in his WeChat account to Zhanyan. “I’m about to have breakfast too.”

“Why so late? Is it only morning over there?”

Wasn’t it because they had been chatting sweetly until late last night, causing him to wake up late this morning?

Tan Yi waited for a long time, expecting Wu Bie to say something after checking his phone, but he kept his head down, holding his phone, with a more and more indulgent smile on his face.

Was it a message from someone special? A partner? But Wu Bie is single, isn’t he?

Seeing that the buns were ready, Tan Yi served them up and placed them in front of Wu Bie. Wu Bie gave him a perfunctory “thanks” with a grin.

Feeling a bit disappointed, Tan Yi was about to go about his own business when Wu Bie suddenly called out to him.

“Hey, Tan Yi, do you have a clean glass jar?”

Tan Yi wasn’t sure what Wu Bie wanted to do, but since he asked, he was eager to fulfill his wish.

“Will a jar for canned food work? If you want, I can wash it clean and bring it to you.”

Wu Bie winced, grabbing his cheek. “Is it wet? Will it have any smell?”

“I’ll wash it a few more times and dry it for you. Do you need it urgently?”

They had to leave that night. Although they were going to another port in Cherbourg, that port was farther from the beach, and the sand here was much better.

“Why don’t you give me the jar? I’ll wash it myself.”

It sounded urgent, so Tan Yi quickly responded, “I’ll do it for you right now.”

With that, Tan Yi hurried back to his room, emptied the remaining half of the canned food, and repeatedly washed the glass jar until there was no smell left. Not only did he wipe it dry with paper, but he also blew it with a hairdryer for a long time. After ensuring it was completely dry, he rushed back to the kitchen without stopping.

Wu Bie had just finished eating the buns. When he saw the glass jar in Tan Yi’s hand, his eyes lit up. “Thanks!”

“Wu Ge, what do you need the jar for?” Tan Yi asked instinctively, following Wu Bie’s steps.

Wu Bie got off the ship, and Tan Yi followed him onto the beach. Wu Bie found a clean, shaded spot, sat down, and scooped up two handfuls of sand to put into the glass jar.

“What are you doing with this?”

Wu Bie grabbed a handful of sand and waved Tan Yi over to take a look. “Look, there are stars in the sand of Cherbourg Beach.”

The sun was scorching, and Wu Bie’s body temperature was high. As Tan Yi got a little closer, he could feel Wu Bie’s warm breath. It was as if he was enchanted, moving closer to Wu Bie’s hand. The veins on Wu Bie’s forearm were bulging, giving off a powerful, almost sensual feeling.

Thump thump, thump thump—it was the sound of a heartbeat.

“You see it, right?” Wu Bie’s voice carried a bit of excitement and pride, and his smile was particularly bright.

Tan Yi didn’t see the stars, but the sun was so dazzling that his vision blurred, and he could only nod clumsily.

Wu Bie thought just sand was too plain, so he wanted to find a few pretty shells to put in.

Tan Yi seemed to be drawn in by something and couldn’t help but stay close to Wu Bie’s side.

“Wu Ge, let me help you find what you’re looking for.”

Wu Bie didn’t trust anyone else’s taste, since he was the one who knew Zhanyan the best. “It’s okay, I’ll find it myself.”

He initially thought the stars in the sand weren’t a big deal, but if it could make Zhanyan happy, that would be quite something.