Chapter 114 Nobles 12

Silently, he raised his head, his chest rising and falling slowly, the white mist from his breath swirling between them. He looked deeply at the smiling young man before him, his dry palm suddenly covering his five fingers, and with a slight effort, Lu Xuejin pulled him up from the snow.

"Can you still walk?"

He nodded silently with a smile.

Then, just like that, he naturally took the silent man's hand, turned around, and walked straight through the deathly silent crowd without looking to either side.

Wherever she went, the once menacing hunters retreated as if Moses parted the sea, lowering their heads and not daring to look Lu Xuejin in the eye. They didn't even dare to breathe, let alone make a move.

Lu Chen was the last to arrive, and it took him a long time to recover from his silence.

He shrugged and smiled helplessly. "Since the president is here in person, there's nothing we can do. Let's go back."

The snow forest was vast and boundless. Logically, the teams should have scattered and maintained a safe distance. However, due to Pei Wei's plan, it had become a gathering place for hunters who preyed on the special recruits. Pairs of greedy and ruthless eyes gleamed in the darkness, appearing and disappearing among the swirling snowflakes and shadows of the trees, like a pack of beasts hunting.

They thought that given Lu Xuejin's personality, she wouldn't show favoritism towards the special admissions student in a setting like the winter hunt. Unexpectedly, Lu Xuejin went out of her way to travel through the snowfield at night and specially pulled him up from the snow.

Walking through the crowd under everyone's watchful eyes was like retrieving a lost pet.

Many people's eyes were drawn to the two people's clasped hands, their dark skin and snow-white skin blending together in a very intimate gesture.

In the past, they could either not find Lu Xuejin's whereabouts or could only catch a glimpse of his faint shadow through layers of crowds when he appeared. No matter how good his temper was, he was someone they longed to admire but could never reach, like a cold moon hanging high in the sky.

Pei Wei was the only one who would relentlessly pursue her despite all the difficulties.

Now, however, someone has plucked the moonlight they gazed at from afar and placed it in their palm.

I'm so envious.

I'm so jealous.

The ferocious beasts, ravenous and impatient, sharpened their claws and teeth, suppressing their fierce killing intent, and obediently watched the two depart.

Lu Xuejin's team camp was located in the central-western part of the camp. From a distance, one could see the bright firelight and four tightly pitched tents. Two iron pots hung on the campfire, one simmering meat soup and the other warming sweet soup. The steam was so thick it made one's eyes water.

This configuration is something that basic supply packs and supply crates can't provide.

The black-haired youth sat by the fire, a bow and arrow lying at his feet. As if oblivious to the cold, he opened his collar wide, revealing a black bodysuit and firm, muscular body. His hands, encased in matching gloves, deftly handled his prey. Hearing a sound, he slowly raised his head, the firelight exploding in his dark eyes.

Gu Xihe lazily drew out the last syllable: "Welcome home."

His tone was strange, as if Lu Xuejin were his spouse coming home from get off work.

Silently squinting, he caught sight of two other figures out of the corner of his eye. One was the student council vice president, who was almost his equal in power, and the other was an unfamiliar face, staring coldly at him.

Lu Xuejin loosened her fingers and gestured with her chin toward the campfire. "Go have a bowl of soup to warm yourself up."

Before the silence could elicit any response, Gu Xihe deftly ladled out some soup, smiling as he said, "Welcome to the team, newcomer. Or perhaps, this is your prey, young master?"

On the way back, most of the camps along the way had people tied up. The first night's hunt had already determined the initial situation, but being captured did not mean a change in status. The prey could seize any opportunity to attack the camp and turn the hunters into their prey. Therefore, the following days were mostly a reversal between the strong and the weak, and consolidating the fruits of victory was far more difficult than imagined.

Lu Xuejin's camp was empty, and the only person who looked like prey was the junior he had brought back from his nighttime trek across the snowfield.

Lu Xuejin glanced at Gu Xihe and said, "What do you think?"

The young man raised his hand in a gesture of surrender, his palm glowing red in the firelight.

"Of course I think that's our new teammate. After all, we're far fewer in number than other teams."

He stood up and handed the bowl to Momo in a friendly manner. Their similarly colored pupils met across the flames. Gu Xihe's expression suddenly turned cold. He stopped joking with Lu Xuejin and returned to his tent without saying a word.

The vice president frowned.

He wasn't sure if it was just his imagination, but he felt that Gu Xihe's gait was a bit strange and stiff.

Silently, she returned to Lu Xuejin's side with the warm bowl in her hands, smelling the sweet aroma as she presented it to him. "Senior, you should have some too."

“Now you’re calling me senior…” Lu Xuejin curled her lips into a meaningful smile, her fingers pushing the bowl inwards until it touched his chest, before slowly stopping. “Alright, drink up, get some rest tonight.”

He tilted his head, looked at the vice president, and asked, "Are there no more tents?"

The person next to the vice president answered first: "We only brought four this time."

After painstakingly eliminating the rest of the contestants, leaving only two uncontrollable individuals, a special admission student suddenly appeared.

Just now, you came back hand in hand, didn't you?

The half of his face hidden in the shadows had a gloomy look in his eyes, while the other half, exposed to the firelight, suddenly smiled. "I'll go find someone to borrow one."

"No need," Lu Xuejin said calmly. "He's sleeping here with me."

In an instant, the camp became eerily quiet, with only the crackling sound of burning firewood.

Lu Xuejin ignored them and went straight into the tent on the left.

Gu Xihe was leaning against his sleeping bag, his expression indifferent, lost in thought. Hearing the noise, he looked up, his gaze sweeping over Lu Xuejin's retreating figure as she searched for her sleeping bag, a playful expression appearing on his face.

"Wow, this is the first time I've seen our young master Lu take such good care of an outsider," he whistled lightly, then reiterated a question with a half-smile, "Young master, are you really in love with this commoner because you're protecting him like this?"

Found it.

Lu Xuejin straightened up, slowly turned around, and the light shone directly on his flawless white face.

Gu Xihe squinted. Lu Xuejin looked absolutely stunning from this angle. If a superstitious fool saw her, he would probably immediately kneel down and pray, tears welling up in his eyes, thinking he had seen an angel descended from heaven.

Angel smiled and said, "It's only natural for a senior to take care of a junior, and for a superior to take care of a subordinate. Xi Liu, please look after him while I'm away."

"Fine, fine." Gu Xihe sighed, "Who told me to be the young master's most loyal servant?"

The other tent was as warm as springtime, with a thick carpet, bright lights illuminating the space, and a small heater continuously radiating warmth. The air was filled with Lu Xuejin's unique scent.

Lu Xuejin tossed the sleeping bag to Mo Chen and knelt down, holding a mirror that shone brightly, reflecting a pair of lake-blue eyes. Under the bright light, the golden light in the irises was clearly visible, complementing the hair that draped over his shoulders.

He raised his hand and used his fingers as a comb, slowly combing from the top of his head to the ends, meticulously tidying his hair that had been slightly disheveled by the wind.

From the perspective of silence, Lu Xuejin's profile resembles undulating mountains, bathed in the morning light, and the shadow cast on the tent is also beautiful.

Silently, it was speculated that someone would try to discern what was happening inside by observing the shadows cast on the tent.

"Thank you, senior." Mo moved a little closer and thanked him, his voice slightly hoarse, as if from relief. He chuckled self-deprecatingly, "If you hadn't happened to be passing by, I probably would have been a coffin tonight."

"Isn't he sleeping in a coffin right now?" Dong Yao said.

Systems with low levels of socialization do not understand that this is a form of self-deprecating humor that shows intimacy.

Lu Xuejin put down the mirror and gave the silent, smiling eyes a look: "It was nothing."

The wind and snow drowned out the sounds of pursuit and running from the outside world. The lights were turned off, and for a moment only the slivers of moonlight shone through the gaps in the tent. The night was incredibly quiet.

Silence traced the patterns of the tent above his head again and again, and at this moment, he could clearly hear the soft breathing of the person next to him.

His left hand silently emerged from the sleeping bag, slowly groping its way until it touched the cool strands of hair, then slid down—Lu Xuejin's arm was exposed like his, so she easily found his right hand.

Silently, he gently hooked that finger.

He knew that Lu Xuejin was not asleep, and he also knew that Lu Xuejin was pretending to be a sleeping person.

"Good night," he said silently.

The next morning, he got up early and took over the task of serving Lu Xuejin's daily needs with remarkable ease—this was originally Gu Xihe's job, as the Gu family was second only to the Lu family, and he was the only one among those present qualified. However, Gu Xihe turned a deaf ear to such blatant and presumptuous behavior.

He remained still, making it difficult for others to confront Shen Mo.

Silently and skillfully, he prepared warm water, cleaned towels, and placed breakfast items on the small table, doing all this with a natural and unhurried demeanor, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

People from other teams nearby saw this from afar and cast disdainful and envious glances, muttering curses under their breath.

"Pah! Lackey!"

"What incredible luck! The president actually picked me up."

“…Pei Wei, that good-for-nothing!”

"Are those people dead, leaving these lowly commoners to fawn over them?"

These comments did nothing to disturb the silence. He lifted the tent flap and saw Lu Xuejin sitting on her sleeping bag, head slightly lowered, blinking blankly. He resisted the urge to call her "wife" and handed her a hot towel.

Lu Xuejin gripped the towel and carefully wiped her face. Then, in silence, she brought in breakfast. She had toasted the bread until it was hot and soft, and also cooked an extra bowl of sweet soup.

Lu Xuejin took a bite of bread, then complained that her long hair was inconvenient, so she simply held the bread in her mouth to tie her hair up.

The area where it was bitten sank slightly, the fluffy bread being held between soft lips. Lu Xuejin raised her arms slightly, with a feline languor and elegance, her slender white fingers inserting into her hair, applying a little force to pull the smooth, silky hair back and gather it into a bunch.

This movement caused him to tilt his head back slightly, revealing a smooth jawline and neck line, with the curve of his Adam's apple appearing particularly clear in the light.

The morning light favored him, leaping across his trembling eyelashes, flowing over his straight nose, and finally converging in his clear, bright lake-blue eyes, made even more luminous by tilting his head back.

A few stray hairs escaped from her fingers and playfully fell down. Silently, she knelt down on one knee, picked them up, and gently pressed her thumb down, allowing Lu Xuejin to grasp them again.

Dong Yao: [……]

Seeing this, the vice president couldn't help but glare at Gu Xihe: "Are you just going to let him do this?"

The black-haired youth slowly wiped his bow and arrows, as if he hadn't seen or heard anything.

Silent's days in Lu Xuejin's team were quite comfortable. He didn't need to search for supply boxes, evade hunters, or take the initiative. The five of them were as carefree and leisurely as if they were on a winter outing in the camp. Not only did no one dare to mess with him anymore, but he could even share the supplies and resources that others brought him.

On the contrary, Pei Wei's team, which had been arrogant before, became unusually popular. They were hunted by several teams in succession, and everyone except Pei Wei was captured, leaving them disheveled and in a sorry state.

"You finally decided to teach that kid a lesson." Gu Xihe said, his mouth full of Pocky sticks. "I thought you had some feelings for him since you were so lenient with him before. After all, we grew up together."

Lu Xuejin said softly, "He should also learn to be quiet."

Gu Xihe chuckled a few times but didn't say anything more.

After losing his teammates, Pei Wei's face grew darker day by day. He lingered near the camp, looking restless, his cold eyes fixed on Lu Xuejin with a sinister gaze.

Several times he tried to break in, but was shot back by Gu Xihe's arrows. Seeing that he was still not giving up, Lu Xuejin also took the opportunity to playfully shoot an arrow.

After that arrow, Pei Wei suddenly fell silent.

When the winter hunt ended, several squads that had been nearby walked up behind Lu Xuejin. They, along with the squads they had captured, were all Lu Xuejin's prey.

"Did you have fun?" Lu Xuejin asked with a smile.

He turned his head in silence, not answering but asking the same question in return: "Did you have fun?"

Lu Xuejin jumped off the snowdrift and slowly walked onto the helicopter.