Chapter 62 says that Yi Numei is still as beautiful as ever.

The burning logs that crashed down overlapped with the charred logs of the Deng residence in my memory.

The smile that Guo Tu raised before his death intertwined with Deng Zhao's smile in his dream and Xu Ta's resolute expression under the moon.

The raging fire at the Guo residence before her, the billowing toxic smoke, the surging heat, and the constant crackling of exploding wood—all these elements, like a nightmare, held her rooted to the spot.

Deng Jie lost her footing and collapsed to the ground, supporting herself with her arms. That familiar feeling of disgust surged up from her stomach again, still stuck in her chest, preventing her from vomiting anything.

But the guards had already escorted Guo Jia away, and at this moment, she was all alone.

As the toxic fumes choked her throat and the flames drew near, the thought of "survive" that Guo Jia had once told her echoed in her mind, and it was this thought that spurred her to turn around.

She wants to live and go back.

Guo Jia was still waiting for her.

She stumbled to her feet, staggered out of the Guo residence, mustered her strength, mounted her horse, and rode back to camp through the chaotic streets.

As she stumbled into the military camp, her tense nerves relaxed, and she fell off her horse, vomiting up all the bitterness she had been holding back all the way. The soldiers left behind were so frightened that they rushed forward to check on her and urgently called for Hua Tuo.

Before Hua Tuo could even settle Guo Jia down, he rushed over and ordered the soldiers to carry her into the tent as well. The couple lay down on opposite sides of the tent.

"How is Fengxiao..." Deng Jie turned his head with difficulty, looking at Hua Tuo's back as he helped Guo Jia with first aid.

"It's an old ailment, as you know, it just needs some more rest," Hua Tuo said softly, turning his head slightly.

Guo Jia, feeling nauseous from being forced to drink Hua Tuo's medicine, opened his eyes to meet Deng Jie's weak and concerned gaze. He swallowed back a bitter smile.

"I'm fine... but what about you..." she said, then coughed violently again.

"Alright, alright, let's talk about private matters later. Now, both of you, close your eyes and rest!" Hua Tuo frowned and pressed Guo Jia back down on the mat.

Deng Jie couldn't bear to watch, nor did he want to mention Guo Tu's matter again, so he turned his face to the other side and silently shed tears.

Taking advantage of Hua Tuo's departure, Guo Jia reached out and grasped Deng Jie's fingers, suppressing a cough as he whispered, "It was my fault for letting you go..."

Deng Jie simply squeezed his hand back tightly.

As the chill of early spring fades, tiny flower buds quietly peek out from the branches of the pear tree at home.

Hua Tuo remembered that there was a hot spring in their backyard, so he carefully prepared a medicinal bath prescription.

When Deng Jiezong arrived, he invited him to have a meal.

Hua Tuo, taking advantage of the warm bond between master and disciple, reminisced about the past at the medical clinic and thought of his family far away.

"At this time of year, my wife should be taking care of the medicinal herb garden with our daughter and son-in-law... I wonder if the pear trees in the clinic are still lush and green..." He looked out at the backyard through the doors and windows of the study.

Guo Jia thought of Hua Tuo, who had never returned to his hometown since being recruited and moved to Ye City with Cao Cao. Feeling a little reluctant to part with him, he took out a pen and ink from his study. "Let me write this for you. Ask someone to send a letter home to your teacher's wife and also send some local products, would that be alright?"

Deng Jie snatched the pen from him, saying, "You stay put and let me do it."

Seeing this, Hua Tuo felt a warmth rise in his heart and chuckled happily, "Good, good. It's good that you two are here."

In the blink of an eye, the warm spring of March has brought forth a garden full of fragrance. The pear trees were the first to bloom, and almost overnight, the pure white flowers clustered on the branches, layer upon layer, like piled snow, like condensed clouds.

When Hua Tuo visited that day, he saw the pear blossoms in full bloom and held a reply from his wife at home in his hand, feeling quite pleased.

Before parting, he pulled Deng Jie aside and pointed to the flowers in the backyard, saying, "When the pear blossoms are in full bloom, the autumn harvest is expected. When the pears are ripe, I will teach you how to make pear syrup, which will be good for nourishing Fengxiao's lungs and lungs."

Deng Jie, however, began to whine to him somewhat reluctantly: "Why didn't you teach me back in the medical hut? Autumn is too long, I'm afraid I'll forget. Master, please teach me today, so that when the fruit ripens, I won't have to trouble you anymore!"

“In the past, you were busy and I was busy, while only Fengxiao was idle at home. How could that be the same?” Hua Tuo chuckled helplessly as she pulled him to sit down at the table. “Alright, alright, I’ll tell you the prescription first.”

After seeing Hua Tuo off, Deng Jie excitedly went to the backyard to find Guo Jia, clutching the prescription. He found Guo Jia sitting by the bluestone, lost in thought, so he sat down next to him and waited.

"Master is gone?"

Seeing her pure smile, and remembering how pale she had been lying beside him in the tent that day, he couldn't help but feel guilty. He pulled her into his arms and said, "I won't be foolish again. I look forward to you coming with me to the army."

Deng Jie was caught off guard by his sudden remark. He pushed him away and looked up, saying, "Don't worry about it. If it's my turn to go, I'll go; if it's not my turn, I won't go!"

“I’m not the same person I used to be…” she said, gazing at Guo Jia’s features, raising her hand to gently stroke the corner of his eye, and chuckled softly, “Look, you are too. Fengxiao is starting to get wrinkles…”

For some reason, a pang of sadness struck me, and I touched the corner of my eye. "I must feel the same way."

Guo Jia took her hand and met her gaze: "Beauty fades and the world changes. But the mutual support between us has never changed. And for me, you have never changed either."

As he spoke, he intertwined their fingers, lifted them up, and smiled at her: "Back then, we were penniless and didn't recognize sachets and silver bells as tokens, so we made promises to each other. Do you remember?"

Guo Jia was referring to the time when the two fell in love in the fourth year of the Chuping era.

Their engagement in front of their families came first, but their private declaration of love came later.

They always addressed each other as "Sir" and "Miss" in the medical hut, which led Chen Xuan to believe that Deng Zhao, a merchant, wanted to use his sister's marriage to a poor but noble family in order to change his status as a nobleman. He thought that Deng Zhao was always trying to poach Deng Zhao's sister.

That day, Deng Jie was squatting by the edge of the field, turning over and drying pine needles, when Chen Xuan, carrying a medicine basket on his back, came over and asked, "Junior sister, do you think this Panax notoginseng is the right one? I can't quite tell its roots from those of Panax notoginseng vine..."

"Sixth Brother is playing dumb again." Deng Jie didn't even look up. "Yesterday you were teaching Fifth Brother how to prepare Panax notoginseng paste."

Chen Xuan reached out and flipped through the pine needles, saying, "Then I'll help you flip them!"

Before he could finish speaking, the medicine basket was suddenly picked up.

Guo Jia was reading a book by the field when he saw Chen Xuan arrive again. He tapped his knuckles against the medicine basket with an annoyed tone and said, "Brother Chen, since you have some free time, why don't you teach me how to identify the herbs?"

Chen Xuan didn't even glance at Guo Jia, tossing his medicine basket around and saying, "Mr. Guo, you should study the Six Secret Teachings! Otherwise you'll get tainted by filth and feel nauseous." He then smiled at Deng Jie, "A dignified man is not as good as our junior sister!"

Deng Jie glanced at the two men, turned his head and sneered, then shook his head and continued working.

Guo Jia reluctantly put away the bamboo slips, grabbed a shovel from the bamboo fence, and was about to help Deng Jie: "Although I am not very talented, I can still do physical labor. There is no need for Brother Chen to come here all the time!"

Deng Jie pushed the shovel away with disdain: "Don't make things worse!"

Chen Xuan was also unhappy. He stood up, but he was not as tall as Guo Jia. He stood on tiptoe and said to Guo Jia, "Did you hear that? Junior sister thinks you are in the way! Don't do things you can't do, and you don't rush to do things you can do either."

Guo Jia pointed to his chest and said stiffly, "Brother Yuanming entrusted Miss Deng to me before he left. I cannot let Miss Deng be disturbed by irrelevant people."

Chen Xuan burst out laughing: "Mr. Guo, that's a wonderful way to address her as 'Miss Deng'!" He deliberately put the medicine basket on the ground and pointed at Guo Jia, saying, "Your Miss Deng is my junior sister, we're like brother and sister!"

Upon hearing this, Deng Jie frowned slightly, but did not want to pay him any attention.

Seeing that Deng Jie didn't react, Chen Xuan happily continued, "Now that Brother Yuanming isn't here, you're the outsider!"

Guo Jia choked, then immediately patted Deng Jie on the shoulder and pulled her up. Startled, Deng Jie lost her balance, still clutching several pine needles in her hand. She heard Guo Jia staring at her and calling out, "Jie...Miss...A-Jie!"

Deng Jie was stunned for a moment, blinking his eyes full of doubt. Guo Jia saw this and grinned mischievously, shouting, "Say it!"

The air seemed to freeze for a moment.

Chen Xuan asked blankly, "What? Yue Yi? I'm Bai Qi!"

“The poem ‘Jing Nu’ says, ‘Praising the beauty of Yi Nu.’” Guo Jia raised an eyebrow. “This was a nickname personally bestowed by the old lady. Brother Chen, you haven’t even read the entire Book of Songs?”

He didn't dare loosen his grip on Deng Jie's shoulder; the tension made him tighten his grip even more. "Some people, you know, don't even know a girl's name..."

Deng Jie's ears turned bright red, and she threw all the pine nuts in her hand at Guo Jia: "Guo Fengxiao, who gave you permission to call me that!" A young lady's nickname should only be used by her husband. The two of them are engaged, but they are not yet married.

Embarrassed, Deng Jie grabbed her skirt and ran away.

"Ouch!" Guo Jia cried out in pain as he was hit in the face with dirt, spitting it out.

Chen Xuan laughed so hard he clutched his stomach: "Trying to steal a chicken but losing the rice instead! I'll go gather night-blooming jasmine for my master!"

As Chen Xuan's figure receded into the distance, Guo Jia smiled, took out a piece of locust flower cake from his sleeve, and walked lightly in the direction Deng Jie had run.

Reeds rustle along the riverbank, pear blossoms flutter down from the trees.

Deng Jie was venting his anger by grabbing at the grass stems on the ground.

He sat down close to her and handed her a locust flower cake, saying, "I apologize."

Deng Jie gave a soft hum, reached out and took it, took a small bite, and the sweet fragrance melted on his tongue, which calmed his anger a bit.

Seeing her slightly puffed-out cheeks, Guo Jia's heart softened, and he called out again, "Say it well."

Startled, Deng Jie choked again, wiping the crumbs from his mouth as he said, "Why are you still yelling like that!"

Seeing the blush on her cheeks, Guo Jia couldn't help but smile. "Looking at you like this, I'm reminded of the time when we were drinking tea around the table. When the old lady mentioned your nickname, you choked on your own tea and even wet my sleeve."

As Guo Jia spoke, he reached out to wipe her face. This time, Deng Jie didn't dodge. She waited for him to finish wiping her face before replying shyly, "You still remember this 'grudge'? It's one thing to deliberately anger Sixth Brother before, but please don't tease me in private."

Guo Jia moved closer, seeking her gaze, and said, "I've wanted to call you that for a while... but I felt safe and didn't dare to say it. That Chen Lingde keeps circling around you, and it's getting on my nerves. But what he said isn't without reason, 'It's just an engagement, not a wedding'..."

Deng Jie chuckled, "You actually got provoked by him? Aren't you always someone who doesn't care about what others think?"

“I don’t care what others think, but I only care about you… Although he didn’t say it, I could tell he must come from a noble family.” Guo Jia’s eyes dimmed.

"You have way too little faith in me." Deng Jie, seeing his aggrieved expression, suppressed her smile and reached out to stroke his cheek. "Fengxiao..."

The way he addressed Deng Jie without the affectionate "sir," and the gentle touch on his cheek, made Guo Jia's eyes light up and his heart skip a beat. He met Deng Jie's gaze and said happily, "How about we address each other like that from now on? That way, others will know we're a couple!"

Deng Jie chuckled. What "others"? He meant Chen Xuan.

"Okay." Deng Jie affectionately stroked his cheek and took his hand. "Then... is it settled?"

She revealed a malicious smile and spread her palms upwards.

Guo Jia was taken aback and asked, "What does this mean?"

Deng Jie shook his head and wagged his finger: "Isn't this a token of love? Shouldn't there be some kind of keepsake?"

Guo Jia picked up the cloud-patterned sachet at his waist: "Isn't this...?"

Deng Jie snorted and shook his head: "We agreed not to." But he couldn't hide the mischievousness in his eyes, as if he was deliberately trying to make him laugh.

He had no choice but to look at himself again, and all he found were the jade pendant with two dragons that Deng Zhao had given him and the medicine pouch that Deng Jie had made by hand. He looked up at Deng Jie, who immediately said, "You took all of these!"

Guo Jiabian smiled, and with a triumphant air, placed his hand on hers: "Then let's bet on this. Guo Fengxiao of Yingchuan has no stable property, only a bellyful of schemes and a half-dead illness. How about it?"

Deng Jie gripped his long, slender fingers tightly and smiled, "Alright!"

Guo Jia followed suit, extending his other hand: "Then where is your token of love?"

Deng Jie was taken aback for a moment, then slapped his hand on the wall: "Deng Shuoyi of Nanyang, though he has wealth, has not a single penny of it to me. He only has medicine jars covering the walls, which he uses to hang himself from the sick. What do you think, Fengxiao?"

Guo Jia, as if he had anticipated this, happily pulled her into his arms: "A match made in heaven!"

A gentle breeze blows, and pear blossoms drift in the wind.

Guo Jia casually picked up a perfectly intact flower and tucked it behind her ear, saying, "So beautiful..."

The distance was so close it was almost unsettling; the two of them couldn't help but lean closer to each other.

Now, Guo Jia held her hand just the same way, and picked up a perfect pear blossom from the bluestone, tucking it into her hair. "Still so beautiful."

But then a butterfly fluttered down and landed on the flower in her hair.

"Look, it says so too." Guo Jia's fingertips glided across the surface, and the butterfly gracefully flew away. Guo Jia's heart stirred slightly, and he pointed to the seven-stringed zither under the pavilion: "The butterfly dances so lightly, how about Yi dances a tune as well? I believe my zither skills have improved again, so let's try playing together again?"

Deng Jie was pulled up by him and shyly agreed.

With flowing robes and fluttering petals, amidst the harmonious sounds of the zither, a moment of tranquility is stolen from the chaos of war.