Chapter 223 Vest

Before they knew it, it was the thirteenth day of the second lunar month, and Xiao Qi still hadn't returned. This time, Madam Chen couldn't sit still any longer and kept wanting to go out and look for him, but she didn't know where to look.

In her anxiety, Chen developed blisters on her lips, couldn't eat or sleep, and the oil lamp didn't go out until midnight.

Lin Yuesha put down her needlework and yawned.

She was anxious because her stepbrother had disappeared without a trace. She even considered going to the cabin to look for Pockmarked Face to see if she could find any clues.

It was the pockmarked woman who sent the message to her stepbrother. She has been home for several days now, but the two of them have not shown up.

Pockmarked Face is a formidable figure; even Granny Wu from Sishui City is one of his spies, so he must be of extraordinary status.

Lin Yuesha wasn't worried about the pockmarked face; she could easily find a job as a musician in Sishui City, just like in her own backyard—even Blue Eyes was fooled. Her concern was for Xiao Qi; he wasn't very capable, was rather dim-witted, and prone to attracting unwanted romantic attention.

As she was thinking this, she was about to blow out the lamp when she suddenly heard a noise in the courtyard.

Lin Yuesha pushed open the door and went out, then paused and said, "Big brother, you're back?"

Chen and Xiao Chenggui had already gone to sleep. Having not rested well these past few days, Lin Yuesha did not intend to wake her parents and deliberately kept her voice down.

"Yes, I'm back."

Xiao Qi was exhausted because he had to rest for a while before returning home due to his injury.

"You smell of blood. Are you injured?"

Lin Yuesha sniffed. As a chef, she was very sensitive to smells. She could smell it as soon as she got close to Xiao Qi. In the bloody smell, there was also a hint of herbal fragrance.

When his arm was touched, Xiao Qi frowned slightly, realizing that his little sister had seen through him again.

"Brother, come in first. I have some excellent medicine for wounds here."

While her mother, Madam Chen, was still asleep, Lin Yuesha had many questions to answer and took the opportunity to coordinate her statements with her stepbrother.

"Little sister, it's just a minor injury, I'm fine."

Xiao Qi refused, but Lin Yuesha persisted; she was practically ready to strip him naked.

An injury to the arm may not seem serious, but if it becomes inflamed and infected, it could be fatal.

Lin Yuesha persisted, so Xiao Qi had no choice but to take off his outer robe, revealing his left shoulder.

Although the wound was not deep, it was poisonous. He had been trying to detoxify it until bright red blood flowed out, at which point he was considered to be recovering.

In his eagerness to appear in public, he aggravated his wound, and the gauze became soaked with blood.

"You still say this is a minor injury!"

The wound was deep, with the flesh turned outwards, and it hadn't healed yet. Just looking at it made Lin Yuesha feel pain for Xiao Qi.

She filled a basin with warm water, gently wiped the edges of the wound, and then applied a layer of ointment.

The blue eyes had no other use, but the ointment they gave her was very effective; the wound on her chest healed in just over ten days.

Lin Yuesha's fingertips were icy cold as she applied the ointment to the wound, but Xiao Qi felt it was burning hot. He tried to move, but Lin Yuesha stopped him.

"Brother, don't move. We can't waste this medicine."

Lin Yuesha frowned, her expression very serious.

"Brother, tell Father and Mother, when we were on the mountain, did someone send you a message?"

After applying the medicine and changing to a new gauze, Lin Yuesha asked.

"He has a pockmarked face."

Xiao Qi revealed his true identity and honestly replied, "If Mother finds out you're in danger, things will get really bad, so I agreed to help him lie."

Xiao Qi pretended not to know, "So you've been on the mountain all this time?"

"Brother, that's what I wanted to ask you too. Where have you been hiding all this time?"

The barbarians had already retreated to Sishui City, and the town had returned to peace. However, Xiao Qi was slow to come out, and when he finally returned home, he was injured.

Could it be true, as my mother said, that I was taken aback by a barbarian woman and kidnapped to Sishui City?

Xiao Qi: "..."

At the time, Xiao Qi was only thinking about fooling Chen Shi, but he didn't consider that his lies would be exposed, which gave him a headache.

"Brother Yun arranged for me to stay on a mountain, where there are wild animals."

Unable to think of an excuse, Xiao Qi pushed all the questions onto the pockmarked face, since this persona might not have another chance to be seen in the future.

He felt embarrassed because he had given his younger sister a bad impression.

"Little sister, you still haven't told me, what is your relationship with Brother Yun, and why is he taking care of us?"

Xiao Qi stared intently into Lin Yuesha's eyes with a stern face, making Lin Yuesha inexplicably feel guilty.

What kind of relationship is this? It's hard to explain!

"He is a grown man, while you are a young woman who has not yet reached marriageable age. If a man and a woman alone in a room together, and your reputation is ruined, how will you ever get married?"

Xiao Qi pulled Lin Yuesha out and pretended to lecture her.

“This time, I will keep it from your mother and only say that it was just the two of us on the mountain for a few days.”

Xiao Qi emphasized the lies the two had fabricated, and Lin Yuesha quickly nodded obediently, agreeing with him.

Regardless, the pockmarked man is a good person and should not be slandered.

As for how much her elder brother actually knew, Xiao Qi didn't mention it, and she didn't say either.

"If Brother Yun hadn't been there, I would have been knocked down by the crowd."

The idea of ​​a lone man and woman being alone in a room was just a matter of expediency; they needed to find a secluded place to hide. Besides, Lin Yuesha had a very good time in the cabin during those days.

Her pockmarked face was her savior, and she shouldn't be criticized.

"Brother, they saved my life, isn't it a bit inappropriate for you to say that?"

Whenever Xiao Qi expresses dissatisfaction with the pockmarked face, Lin Yuesha inevitably jumps up and speaks up for him.

"Yes, yes, it's my fault."

Xiao Qi couldn't argue with Lin Yuesha, so he had to surrender. Why was he arguing with his own alias?

"Little sister, it was Brother Yun who sent you down the mountain, why didn't he send me a message?"

Xiao Qi said that he had been hiding in the mountain these days, waiting for a message. He dared not come down the mountain until he received one.

After waiting and waiting, when he arrived at the village at the foot of the mountain, he heard that the town had returned to order. He endured for a few more days before finally going down the mountain.

He dared not go home during the day and had to travel in the dark, worried that if Lin Yuesha was not there, he would come back first and give himself away.

"Brother, you've suffered so much."

Her stepbrother is always so thoughtful; he's a good person! Even though he was injured, he still thought about helping her cover up the lie, which deeply moved Lin Yuesha.

I'm hungry.

Xiao Qi ignored the question and touched his stomach.

"What do you want to eat? I'll make it."

There were still many ginseng roots at home. Lin Yuesha boiled water for Xiao Qi. She saw that this was how Hongtao took care of the bearded man. Ginseng water is good for strengthening the body and nourishing the vital energy.

"It's too late, don't disturb your parents' rest. Just eat whatever's in the kitchen."

Xiao Qi said casually, "There doesn't seem to be any progress on making pulled noodles."

"Then let's make a bowl of pulled noodles. Luckily, I have some meat sauce at home."

Pulling noodles is easy, and Lin Yuesha quickly cooked a large pot of soup noodles in a quarter of an hour.

The soup noodles included bean sprouts, a spoonful of minced meat sauce, and a spicy and fragrant chili oil.

"tasty."

Xiao Qi took a bite, nodded repeatedly, and devoured the large bowl of noodles in a flash. Life away from home was not as good as being at home; at least he couldn't eat his younger sister's cooking.