Exclusive Model for the Top Painter Chapter 73

Loving Patience

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After staying up all night at the art gallery, it was impossible to clean up in time due to the limitations of the venue.

The venue's staff didn't come to work until after ten o'clock the next morning, and after returning to the hotel and taking a shower, Liang Jin had a high fever.

Ji Xiuyuan was so distressed that he hired a private doctor to come and treat him.

Foreign doctors usually do not use medication for colds and fevers, but suggest that patients recover naturally through their own immunity.

Although Ji Xiuyuan respected their medical practices, he could not bear to see Liang Jin suffer. Stubbornly relying on his unique negotiation skills and ability to pay money that no one can refuse, he persuaded the doctor to prescribe fever-reducing medication.

After feeding Liang Jin the medicine, Ji Xiuyuan took a soft wet towel dipped in a little rubbing alcohol and meticulously wiped his body to help dissipate the heat and cool him down.

Liang Jin slept through the night, and when he opened his eyes again, he was woken up by hunger.

Ji Xiuyuan was sitting at the side working, and Liang Jin said, "Ji Shen, I'm hungry."

Ji Xiuyuan reached out and touched his forehead, his temperature had already dropped a lot, "Okay, I'll go and cook some congee for you."

While he was cooking the congee, Liang Jin got out of bed in a daze, took a hot bath, and suddenly felt his mind clearing up quite a bit.

Wearing a bathrobe and sitting at the dining table, Liang Jin couldn't help but swallow his saliva as he smelled the fragrance of the congee.

After the fresh mung bean and winter melon congee was served on the table, Liang Jin's eyes seemed like they were glued to it. Ji Xiuyuan laughed softly and rubbed his hair, "It's still a bit hot, let it cool down for a while."

"But I'm so hungry."

Ji Xiuyuan scooped a small spoonful of congee with a spoon and gently blew on it, "Then drink a little first."

Liang Jin bit down on the spoon and drank the congee, then eventually licked his lips with an unfulfilled desire.

Ji Xiuyuan's eyes were deep: "Is it good?"

"Mhmm, I'll drink it myself."

"No, I'll feed you."

"I'm not a kid."

"Be obedient." Ji Xiuyuan scooped up another spoonful of congee and delivered it to his lips, "Xiao Jin, you have to lick it clean."

Liang Jin felt that there was something wrong with him, "Is the rice here very valuable? Why do I have to lick it clean?"

"In order to support the environmental causes, you can't waste food."

"Oh."

Not knowing whether it was because he had a fever and his brain wasn't working too well, or if it was out of respect for public welfare itself, Liang Jin didn't notice Ji Xiuyuan's ruse at all. Every time he drank the congee he fed him, he really licked the spoon carefully.

It wasn't until Ji Xiuyuan's gaze on him grew hotter and hotter that he realised: what environmental protection, he simply wanted to see him lick the spoon!

However, at this time, the bowl of congee has almost been completed.

Liang Jin mentally calculated how to win a point back and smiled: "Ji Shen, the congee is finished, I'm going to brush my teeth! You go take a bath as well! You have to tell me a bedtime story later!"

After the two of them finished washing up and were lying against the bed, Liang Jin said in his arms, "I don't want to listen to fairy tales tonight, I want to listen to something really powerful."

Ji Xiuyuan then wanted to tell him the story of the Scottish Uprising, but Liang Jin interrupted, "Not this kind of powerful, the kind that will be blocked if it's posted on Weibo."

He took the initiative to wrap his arms around Ji Xiuyuan's neck and kissed his chin, "Our knowledgeable Yuan Yuan, you must have read many such wonderful stories."

Ji Xiuyuan wanted to kiss him, but Liang Jin covered his lips and said, "No kissing, I have a fever, it will spread to you!" And then he wrapped his arms around his waist and nuzzled into his arms, "Ji Shen, your body is so cool."

Because of the fever, Liang Jin's body temperature was still higher than normal. At this moment, his entire body was plastered on Ji Xiuyuan's, and his paws were restlessly groping around.

Seeing Ji Xiuyuan being aroused but helpless, Liang Jin was in a rather pleasant mood.

But his pleasure didn't last long. Under his death-defying behaviour, Ji Xiuyuan's body temperature also quickly rose, and Liang Jin said, "Ji Shen, calm down! Why are you hotter than me right now!"

"Xiao Jin, what do you think?"

"A calm heart is naturally cool, I'll turn the air conditioner down a little more."

Liang Jin poked his head out of his arms and reached out to grab the air conditioner remote control.

Ji Xiuyuan squeezed his waist, his voice a little hoarse: "Xiao Jin, stop moving around."

Liang Jin clearly felt the change in that part of his body. He immediately stopped fidgeting and obediently lay back under the quilt, "Okay, sleep sleep."

Ji Xiuyuan gently wrapped his arms around him, "Do you feel better now?"

"Are you referring to the fever?"

"Mhmm."

"After drinking the congee and taking a shower, it's much better! I think it's almost gone."

Ji Xiuyuan blamed himself, "I'm sorry."

"Yuan Yuan, what are you apologising for?"

"It's my fault that you got a fever."

"What nonsense are you saying, isn't it normal to catch a cold and have a fever once in a while?"

"It's me who didn't think things through, in that situation, I shouldn't have..."

"Wow, no way, you could bear it in that situation?"

"Xiao Jin, the last thing I would ever want to see is you getting hurt."

"You can bear it, but I can't." Liang Jin kissed him on the lips, "It's not like you're the only one who enjoys this kind of pleasure, I also enjoy it, okay? So there's no right or wrong, don't feel guilty anymore."

Ji Xiuyuan lowered his head and kissed the top of his hair, "I love you."

"Mhmm, let's go to bed early."

"Xiao Jin, you sleep first, I'm going to take a shower."

As Ji Xiuyuan was about to lift the covers and get out of bed, Liang Jin hugged him and said, "Yuan Yuan, are you feeling that uncomfortable?"

"It's okay, I'll be fine in a moment."

"Liar, you obviously really miss it."

"Xiao Jin, you're still sick."

"I'm okay."

Ji Xiuyuan compassionately cupped his face and kissed his cheeks, "Don't be so capricious, I will be distressed."

"But I will also be distressed."

Ji Xiuyuan looked at him silently, with a deep restrained affection within his eyes.

Liang Jin said, "My heart is the same as yours, I don't want you to have the slightest bit of pain. The feeling of repressing desire is torturous, isn't it? Facing me, you don't need to repress yourself at all. Ji Shen, I can do it, I want you."

Ji Xiuyuan violently pressed him down on the bed, and his passionate kisses spread from his eyebrows to his neck.

Liang Jin wrapped his arms tightly around him, his breathing becoming chaotic and spilling out a few soft whimpers.

Ji Xiuyuan teased him, "Xiao Jin, you're so fast today."

Liang Jin blushed red, "That's because I'm sick!"

"I'm very relieved."

"What's reassuring about that?"

"If you continue like this, no girl will like you in the future, and I will have no worries."

"What nonsense are you thinking about! That's impossible! I'm still very young now! I'm strong, okay?"

"Mhmm, everything you said is right."

"You're so perfunctory!"

Ji Xiuyuan bit his earlobe, "Alright, let's sleep."

"Wait, you still haven't?"

"I'm going to take a shower."

"No way!" Liang Jin said, "You're already like this, can a shower solve it?"

"Xiao Jin, I don't want to cause you to have a fever again."

"Then we can do it another way." Liang Jin undid his bathrobe and buried his head between his legs...

Ji Xiuyuan took a deep breath, "Xiao Jin, you'll feel uncomfortable like this."

Liang Jin raised his head slightly, "Since you can do it for me, I can also do it for you."

In the silence of the night, between the scorching entanglement of body temperatures, the fluids and sweat melted together in one place, filling the room with love and affection.

———

Two days later, Liang Jin's body was completely healed. The two set out on a journey to collect material for their paintings, visiting museums, art galleries, churches and monuments in Madrid.

A museum on the subject of the evolution of marriage customs chronicled the world's first gay couple to register their marriage.

It was a young Spanish couple, Elisa and Marcela.

Their story began in a small town in northern Spain in 1898, when Marcela, a first-grader at a convent school, met her senior sister, Elisa.

They become the light of each other's lives in the ascetic and cold atmosphere of the gloomy convent.

They brushed each other's hair on rainy days, talked in their rooms, frolicked on the beach, chatted, ran and laughed holding hands.

Love grew, and their affection intensified.

In those days, Spanish society was hostile towards love between people of the same sex. Legally, it was even punishable by imprisonment.

After their love affair was exposed, they were tortured and battered, and their families, religious and secular, used every means to keep them apart.

In the face of such a harsh social environment, they did not give in, instead, the love in their hearts became stronger.

In June of 1901, Elisa stole her deceased cousin's identity, forged documents, changed her name, cut off her long hair and dressed in men's clothes. Fooling the priest and the government, she married Marcela in the Church of Saint George in La Coruña.

It was the first government-registered same-sex marriage in the history of the world, although it had to be achieved by deception.

However, the good times didn't last long, as the lie wasn't kept hidden for long and was soon exposed.

In order to be together, the women braved prison and exile, and went through a number of hardships to finally achieve a long-lasting relationship.

To this day, Elisa and Marcela's marriage has not been annulled.

Same-sex love shouldn't be touted at the altar, they should never be subjected to so much criticism and suffering.

It was just an act of love, and it should receive the respect and outcome that all love deserved.

After listening to Ji Xiuyuan's introduction of the girls, Liang Jin was overwhelmed with emotion: "Ji Shen, it really is a lucky thing to be able to live in this current era. If we were in the past, wouldn't we have been arrested as well?"

"It depends on the specific time and country. Ancient Greece encouraged male lust, and in the pre-Roman period, they inherited the afterglow of ancient Greece and carried it forward; but in mediaeval Europe, it would have been punishable by imprisonment or death."

"Oh, it seems like China has always been quite tolerant? In 'Dream of the Red Chamber', there's a clip of Jia Baoyu and his best buddies letting loose at school."

"Xiao Jin, when you read masterpieces, do you only pay attention to these things?"

"How else would anyone watch them? I still admire them so much, rebelling against the whole society with their own power in those times, and actually having a happy ending."

"Xiao Jin, if it were you, would you give up?"

"Giving up is impossible. I would kidnap you and run away with you."

"Aren't you going to ask my opinion?"

"No need to ask, just knock you out and take you away."

"Xiao Jin, are you willing?"

"A small leak will sink a great ship, if you want to catch a wolf, you must not be afraid of running away."

"In fact, all you need to do is kiss me, wherever you want to elope to, I'll accompany you."

‿︵‿︵ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ・❉・ ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ‿︵‿︵

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Translator Notes

Please feel free to comment any mistakes I made so I can improve and do better as I go through the book.

Translated: September 20, 2023