Substitute Toyokawa Shoko, you can become stronger by breathing

Fortunately, the heating in the apartment was on high.

"It's so cold! It feels like winter came so suddenly this year!"

Sanjiao Chuhua walked out of his room while yawning.

The girl walked to the kitchen in a daze, skillfully took out cereal and milk from the cupboard, and began to prepare breakfast for three people while greeting them in a muffled voice:

"Xiaoxiang, Mu, good morning..."

Jiujo Liansi's gaze passed Chuhua and went to the other end of the living room.

Wakaba Mu was sitting on the sofa, holding her guitar in her arms, but not playing it.

She just sat there quietly, having changed into Tsuki no Mori's school uniform: a dark blue uniform skirt, a meticulously crafted white shirt, and a neatly tied bow at the collar.

But today she did not go out to the balcony as usual to check on her precious cucumbers that had been carefully moved indoors.

She just sat there with her head slightly lowered, her green hair hanging down, covering most of her profile.

Kujo Renji's brows furrowed slightly.

After Chuhua prepared breakfast, he brought two other breakfasts, placed one on the empty seat next to Chuhua, and carried the other one himself and walked to Mu's side.

"Mu, time for breakfast."

He placed the plate of fried eggs and toast on the coffee table in front of the sofa.

Mu's body seemed to tremble slightly. She raised her head, and her eyes, which were always like spotless glass, were now covered with a thin layer of moisture, making her look at people seem a little distracted.

There was an abnormal, light blush on her cheeks.

"...Um."

She responded, her voice even softer than usual, with a slight rasp to it.

She stretched out her hand, wanting to take the glass of milk, but the moment her fingertips touched the wall of the glass, she retracted her hand as if she were scalded.

The girl's condition reminded Kujo Renji of something.

He sighed in his heart but didn't say it on his face.

"Chuhua..."

Without looking back, he ordered:

"Eat first, then go to school. Don't be late."

"Eh?"

Sanjiao Chuhua asked cautiously.

"Xiao Xiang... don't you want to eat with us?"

"I have something to do."

Lian Si sat down next to Mu, stretched out his hand, and touched Mu's forehead with a very natural movement.

The back of his hand gently touched the skin that was abnormally warm.

piping hot.

A heat far exceeding normal body temperature penetrated his skin and was clearly transmitted to his nerve endings.

Mu's body froze. She seemed unprepared for Lian Si's sudden, intimate gesture. Her long eyelashes trembled nervously, but she didn't shy away. She simply tilted her head back, letting the cool hand rest on her forehead. Her unfocused eyes reflected the serious face so close to her.

——As expected...I caught a cold.

He withdrew his hand, stood up, and took the thermometer from the shelf in the living room.

"Open your mouth." He disinfected the metal head of the thermometer and handed it to Mu's lips.

Mu obediently opened his mouth and took the cold thermometer into it.

She didn't say a word the entire time, just following Lian Si's figure with her moist eyes, unblinking. It was a complete and unreserved trust and commitment.

A few minutes later, Lian Si took out the thermometer.

"38.7 degrees." He looked at the mercury column and his voice became deeper. "Take a day off today and rest at home."

He turned to Chu Hua, who was still in a daze: "I'll buy Mu a day off. Eat quickly and then go to school."

"Ah... Yeah, okay."

Chuhua is like waking up from a dream.

After confirming that it wasn't her fault, she breathed a sigh of relief and asked:

"Xiaoxiang, how about I also..."

"Don't worry, I can take care of her by myself."

Although she was still a little worried, since Kujo Renji said so, she naturally would not go against the other party's ideas.

Only after she repeatedly reminded him to call her if he was too busy did Sanjiao Chuhua leave home reluctantly.

The entire apartment finally fell completely silent, with only the subtle hum of the heater making its way to the room.

Lian Si walked in front of Mu, half-knelt down, and made his eye level with her sitting on the sofa.

"Go lie down on the bed."

His tone softened unconsciously:

"Do you want to go back to your room, or...sleep in my bed?"

He had only subconsciously offered an option. After all, his room was bigger. Moreover, Mu was sick last night, and he didn't know if it was a viral cold. It would be better for Mu's room to have good ventilation.

However, after he said this, he realized the possible ambiguity in it.

Mu's cheeks seemed to get even redder.

She avoided Lian Si's gaze and buried her face in her arms. After a long while, a muffled, almost inaudible response came from her arms.

"...your."

Kujo Renji didn't ask any more questions, but just reached out and picked up Mu from the sofa.

Mu's body was very soft and almost weightless. All the strength in his body seemed to have been drained by the high fever. He could only lean weakly on him.

Lian Si placed her on his large double bed and covered her with a blanket.

The quilt was a soft duvet, carrying his cool, woody scent.

As soon as Mu Yi touched the pillow, she curled up into a ball and buried herself in the breath of "Lian Si", as if it was a place that could make her feel absolutely safe.

Looking at the small, bulging mass on the bed, Lian Si stood by the bed for a long time.

He began to think about a problem.

A question that he had been deliberately avoiding, but at this moment, was sharply placed before him by reality.

——What on earth are you doing?

In his previous life, Kujo Renji was a complete egoist.

His life creed only includes "value", "interest", "risk" and "return".

Emotion was the first thing he stripped away from himself, because it was the enemy of efficiency and the noise of rationality.

After coming to this world and occupying Toyokawa Shoko's body, his initial logic of action still followed this set of rules.

The reorganization of Ave Mujica was to establish initial trust with Toyokawa Shoko, and maintaining a relationship with Mujica was to utilize her talents.

Everything should be calculated and planned.

But now, he stood here, delaying all his scheduled schedules for a girl with a fever, and even... he was even thinking about what kind of hospital meal to make for her at noon that would be easier to eat.

This is illogical.

From the perspective of "maximizing benefits", what he should do most is to call Ishikawa and ask him to send a professional family doctor and nurse over, and then he can focus on dealing with other things.

Mu is an "asset", and her "maintenance" can be outsourced to more professional people.

But he didn't.

The moment the thought flashed through his mind, he rejected it without hesitation.

why?

He looked at the quiet, defenseless figure on the bed.

Mu knew his secret.

She is the one who knows that inside this body named "Toyokawa Shoko" is a completely unfamiliar soul named "Kujo Renji".

What she depends on is not this body, but the "him" underneath the body.

It's a bit troublesome...

After analyzing his own inner thoughts, Kujo Renji sighed subconsciously.

But it was not out of disgust, but rather a hint of helpless indulgence that he himself had not even noticed.

He turned and walked out of the room, first found the antipyretic and cold medicine in the medicine box, read the instructions carefully, then poured a cup of warm water of just the right temperature. Instead of waking Mu up immediately, he put the medicine and water on the bedside table and walked into the kitchen.

He opened the refrigerator and looked at the food inside.

The various snacks Chuhua bought, the meat and vegetables he purchased for daily meals, and... cucumbers of various shapes that took up an entire fresh-keeping drawer.

His eyes finally fell on a small bag of round japonica rice suitable for making porridge.

Let’s cook a bowl of porridge.

This thought came to my mind naturally.

Wash the rice, add water, and turn on the fire.

He even took out an egg and a small piece of ginger from the refrigerator, chopped the ginger into very fine pieces, and prepared to put them in the porridge when it was almost cooked to dispel the cold and warm the stomach.

The blue flame danced at the bottom of the pot, and the rice grains in the pot rolled, floated and sank in the water, slowly becoming soft and sticky.

Lian Si stared at the pot of porridge from which white steam gradually rose, and fell into deeper thought.

He admitted that he had a special sense of responsibility towards Mu.

This sense of responsibility comes partly from appreciation of her talent, but more seems to come from a more primitive emotion similar to "protective desire".

This girl, in her silent and almost clumsy way, completely revealed her softest and most vulnerable side to him.

Like a small animal that believed that he was the whole world, she stubbornly and quietly occupied his territory.

And he acquiesced to this occupation.

Even, without realizing it, you begin to enjoy the feeling of being needed.

This is so weird.

It was so strange that even he, who was used to being in control of everything, felt a little helpless...panic.

Because this feeling was not part of his plan.

"Knock knock."

Just as he was lost in thought, there was a slight knock on the door behind him.

It's peace.

She didn't know when she woke up. She was now wearing the loose pajamas that didn't fit him. She was standing barefoot at the bedroom door, holding onto the door frame. Her face was still pale, but her eyes were staring at him stubbornly.

Kujo Renji immediately turned off the fire and strode over.

"Why are you up? Didn't I tell you to lie down?"

Mu did not answer his question, but stretched out his other hand and gently grabbed the corner of his clothes.

Her palms were still incredibly hot.

"...Lian Si, what are you doing?"

She raised her head and asked softly.

Her voice was very nasal, making her sound like she was acting coquettishly.

"Cook porridge." Lian Si answered concisely, then bent down and picked her up without saying a word.

"!"

Mu exclaimed, and subconsciously hugged his neck. Her body was very light, and through the thin fabric, he could clearly feel the abnormal, scorching temperature of her body.