Chapter 41 [VIP]

Chapter Summary: Moved.

"That's good then." Xie Xuan nodded in response, then scooped a spoonful of porridge and held it to Yu Jing's lips. Yu Jing assumed he was asking because he felt guilty for aggravating her wound last night, and didn't take it to heart.

After feeding Yu Jing the porridge, Xie Xuan picked up his own bowl. Too lazy to move, he sat down on the edge of the bed to drink. He drank slowly, and Yu Jing stared at him, somewhat lost in thought. He was wearing Sun Jun's clothes—dusty, coarse cloth garments, unattractive and even unkempt. His hair was also a bit messy, probably because he hadn't had time to take care of it these past two days while caring for her. Yet, ironically, this only accentuated his incomparably handsome face.

There were actually a few fine scratches on his face. Yu Jing stared at those scratches and frowned. It would be such a pity if the Heavenly Lord had such a handsome face and was left with scars.

Xie Xuan was drinking his porridge when he noticed that Yu Jing was unusually quiet. As soon as he looked up, he saw Yu Jing staring at him, and he felt a little uncomfortable, even his movements as he drank his porridge became cautious.

"Thank you, Xuan." Yu Jing finally couldn't help but speak.

With porridge in his mouth, Xie Xuan mumbled an indistinct "Mmm."

"After you finish your porridge, bring the medicine for your injuries," Yu Jing then instructed.

"Okay." Xie Xuan thought Yu Jing wanted to apply the medicine, so he quickly agreed. He drank very quickly, finishing the bowl of porridge in no time. Xie Xuan got up, stacked the used bowl and chopsticks together, placed them on the table, and went to get the medicine for his wounds.

While Xie Xuan was getting the medicine, Yu Jing leaned forward and glanced around the room. Besides the essential bed, table, and chairs, there was nothing else there, and naturally, no bronze mirror. Xie Xuan turned around and saw Yu Jing looking as if she were searching for something.

"What is it that Madam is looking for?" Xie Xuan asked, walking to Yu Jing's side. Although he was the one who addressed her, his heart trembled as soon as he uttered the word "Madam."

"It's nothing," Yu Jing replied, gently leaning back against the bed.

Xie Xuan took the medicine and walked to Yu Jing's side.

Yu Jing looked at him, gesturing for him to open it. Xie Xuan understood and opened the medicine container, still unaware of Yu Jing's intentions. Xie Xuan was standing some distance away, without a mirror, and his injury was on his face. Yu Jing extended her left hand and beckoned to Xie Xuan.

Xie Xuan moved closer, looking puzzled. He was close enough, but not close enough. Yu Jing couldn't move, so he waved again. Xie Xuan obediently leaned slightly towards Yu Jing, only to see her reach out and wipe the opened medicine in his hand. The next second, he felt a chill on his face. Xie Xuan's breath hitched. He looked at Yu Jing; she was carefully applying the medicine to him. The two weren't particularly close, but Xie Xuan could feel Yu Jing's breath. His gaze fell, landing lightly on her lips.

She was injured and bleeding heavily. Her lips weren't particularly red, just a pale red. Perhaps because she had just drunk porridge, they were very moist and looked soft…

Xie Xuan's Adam's apple bobbed, his breathing became heavier, his eyelids lowered, and his gaze became averted. Yu Jing was focused on applying the ointment, completely unaware of Xie Xuan's gaze.

After applying the medicine to Xie Xuan, Xie Xuan quickly got up and put the cap back on the medicine. Yu Jing watched him, and for some reason, he couldn't get the cap on after two tries. Yu Jing couldn't help but ask, "Is it difficult to do?"

"No...no." Xie Xuan awkwardly replied, remembering what he had been thinking. As he did so, he finally put the lid back on. "I'll take the bowls and chopsticks over first."

"Okay." Yu Jing replied, puzzled, watching Xie Xuan hurriedly leave.

Xie Xuan went out and happened to run into Sun Jun returning with the medicine. Sun Jun came in, saw Xie Xuan, raised his hand and waved the medicine, saying, "I've brought the medicine back."

"Thank you, Brother Sun." Xie Xuan and Sun Jun walked together into the small kitchen. Li Yun was wiping the mud off the mushrooms with a cotton towel. When he saw them come in, he said to Sun Jun, "You're back."

"Hmm." Sun Jun handed the medicine to Xie Xuan and casually asked, "Where did you get these mushrooms?"

"Aunt Pang just brought these over. She said she and Shuang'er went up the mountain to pick mushrooms this morning. She also said that it had just rained in the spring, and many mushrooms had sprouted on the mountain." Li Yun said while continuing her work, "I was thinking that we should get up early tomorrow and pick some mushrooms to exchange for some money."

Sun Jun was washing his hands with water when he heard this and said, "There are more wild pheasants than mushrooms. You go up the mountain to pick mushrooms tomorrow, and I'll go see if there are any wild pheasants and we'll catch some."

Xie Xuan was preparing to brew the medicine and had just lit the fire when he heard Sun Jun say this. An idea struck him, and he said, "Brother Sun, I'll go with you tomorrow."

Sun Jun glanced sideways at Xie Xuan, who looked rather thin, chuckled, and asked, "With your delicate skin, can you handle this?"

His tone was concerned, without a trace of disdain. Xie Xuan, who was leading troops on the frontier, had never heard such words before, so he smiled and said, "Yes, my father loves hunting, and he takes me hunting every winter. Brother Sun, you can rest assured."

Upon hearing this, Sun Jun raised an eyebrow in disbelief, then smiled and said, "Then you shall come with me tomorrow."

"good."

Yu Jing lay on the couch, her wound still aching, but she spent most of her days there with nothing else to do. After sleeping for a while, she didn't want to sleep anymore, but felt utterly bored.

The room was quiet, and Yu Jing sighed softly.

"Squeak!" Hearing the door open, Yu Jing felt a surge of joy. Turning her head to look at the doorway, she saw Xie Xuan bringing in the medicine.

Upon seeing the medicine, Yu Jing's brows furrowed, not for any other reason than that the medicine was truly too bitter. Xie Xuan noticed Yu Jing's lowered gaze and glanced down at the medicine in her hand, a slight smile playing on his lips. She wasn't even afraid of death, yet she was afraid of bitter medicine.

Yu Jing let out a breath and said, "Bring the medicine over."

Xie Xuan walked to Yu Jing's side and saw that Yu Jing was about to reach out to take the medicine. He freed one hand and raised it, saying, "It's still a little hot right now. Let it cool down for a while."

"Okay," Yu Jing replied.

Xie Xuan suddenly remembered the fake name that Li Yun and Sun Jun had given Yu Jing, and said, "Yesterday, my elder brother and elder sister asked me about your name, so I took it upon myself to choose one at random. I hope Madam will not blame me."

“Of course not,” Yu Jing replied, then asked curiously, “What did you retrieve?”

“Guiyi, Sheng Guiyi,” Xie Xuan replied.

"It sounds nice." Yu Jing didn't know why he would give her such a pseudonym, but it did sound alright.

Hearing Yu Jing say this, Xie Xuanjue's heart began to race uncontrollably. Even though she hadn't said anything else.

"By the way, my elder brother plans to go hunting in the mountains tomorrow to earn some money. I'm thinking of going with him, is that alright?" Xie Xuan wanted to ask Yu Jing's opinion, since Yu Jing was still injured and needed someone to take care of her. If she didn't want him to go, he wouldn't go.

They are currently staying at someone else's house, inconveniencing them with their food and lodging. It would be good if Xie Xuan could go hunting in the mountains and earn some money. Yu Jing thought for a moment and replied, "Why not?"

“But…” Yu Jing changed the subject, and Xie Xuan looked at her nervously, “Be very careful, don’t get hurt.”

Xie Xuan looked at Yu Jing and felt a piece of his heart collapse, becoming incredibly soft-hearted. He solemnly replied, "Okay."

The medicine had been cooling for a while. Xie Xuan reached out and touched the rim of the bowl, feeling that it wasn't so hot anymore. He picked up the bowl and asked, "Want to try it?"

Yu Jing picked up the bowl, took a small sip, then held her breath and drank the medicine in one gulp. She frowned and put the bowl down. Xie Xuan knew that Yu Jing disliked bitterness, so he offered her some crushed maltose. Yu Jing reached out and pinched some into her mouth, and the bitterness slowly dissipated.

Xie Xuan glanced at the crumbs of maltose on the oil paper; this was all the maltose Li Yun had given him. Sun Jun had brought a lot of medicine today, and this amount of maltose was simply not enough. After thinking for a moment, he had an idea.

As night fell, Li Yun cooked noodles with the mushrooms that Aunt Pang had brought. Before Xie Xuan even entered the house, Yu Jing could already smell the aroma and was extremely tempted.

A short while later, Xie Xuan brought in the noodles. Yu Jing, who was sitting on the bed, couldn't wait to see Xie Xuan come in and peeked over.

Xie Xuan went to Yu Jing's side and fed her noodles. The mushrooms were really delicious! Yu Jing had read a miscellaneous article in Heaven before, which mentioned the deliciousness of mushrooms. Now that she had the chance to taste them, she naturally couldn't let it pass by.

"Is it delicious?" Xie Xuan asked, seeing that Yu Jing was enjoying it.

"Yes, of course, you should try some too," Yu Jing replied, speaking to Xie Xuan. Seeing her excited expression, Xie Xuan felt inexplicably pleased as well.

"Please go ahead and have some, Madam," Xie Xuan replied.

After finishing his noodles, Xie Xuan, as usual, took the bowls and chopsticks and went out. When he got to the kitchen, Li Yun and Sun Jun had just finished their noodles. Li Yun was washing the dishes when she saw Xie Xuan come in. She quickly said, "I heated up some water in that pot over there. Take a basin of it and let your wife wash up. She can't move around easily. I've already put the change of clothes on the chair."

As Li Yun spoke, he continued washing the dishes, nodding his head toward the chair to indicate where the items were.

Xie Xuan was visibly taken aback when he heard her words.

Seeing Xie Xuan's stunned expression, Li Yun added, "She can't move easily, and women should be kept clean. All those clothes are clean, some are new and unworn."

Li Yun's words seemed to have a hidden meaning, and even Xie Xuan, who was slow to grasp it, understood, feeling her face suddenly flush. Since Li Yun had said so, it would be unreasonable to still ask her to go. Besides, it wouldn't be right to trouble Li Yun every time.

Xie Xuan, carrying the clothes, returned to the house somewhat bewildered. Yu Jing heard the noise and, recognizing Xie Xuan, called out, "Xie Xuan."

"Mm," Xie Xuan replied, holding the clothes.

"What's wrong?" Yu Jing asked, seeing Xie Xuan's hesitant expression.

"My older sister brought over a change of clothes and said... said I should..." Xie Xuan's face turned bright red as he spoke. Through the dim candlelight, Yu Jing saw Xie Xuan standing there with the clothes in his hand, looking completely at a loss.

She immediately understood, and turned around somewhat awkwardly, clearing her throat. After a while, Yu Jing finally spoke, "Put your clothes down and go fetch some water."

She could only ask Xie Xuan to fetch water first. Her injury was on her right chest, and her other hand wasn't completely immobile. She didn't know how long she'd have to stay here; she'd made an excuse not to wash herself today, but sooner or later she'd have to. At worst, she could have Xie Xuan wring out a cotton towel and hand it to her later. Putting everything else aside, Yu Jing had complete faith in Xie Xuan's character.