Chapter 85
At the dinner table, Lin Yi told the group about the school obtaining the written permission. Xue Ya was genuinely happy for her, and even Cang Xie, who was usually shy and not good with words, took the initiative to toast her with a glass of wine.
Lin Yi finished her drink with a smile, then glanced furtively at the person beside her, the one she most wanted to share her joy with and who most wanted to see happy for her, but he remained silent.
Lin Yi was somewhat puzzled. Did Xie Chengnan actually not approve of him doing this?
Lin Yi thought about it and realized it wasn't impossible. When preparing for the school, she and Xie Chengnan were having a cold war, and she hadn't asked his opinion beforehand. Although Xie Chengnan seemed to make decisions casually, he wouldn't interfere with her choices, and even if he found out later and had his own opinions, he wouldn't voice them.
The air around Xie Chengnan seemed to have been created by a barrier between him and the other three, and he simply ate his food in silence.
He seemed not to notice Lin Yichao's repeated glances.
When they had almost finished eating, he put down his chopsticks and solemnly warned Lin Yi that regardless of whether Princess Changning was responsible for the incident, he should not try to repay or please her, and should stay as far away from this princess as possible.
Lin nodded. She listened to advice, especially Xie Chengnan's.
The meal wasn't as enjoyable as he had expected. Before heading home, Xie Chengnan announced that he might be busy for a while.
His words were vague, only telling Lin Yi and the others that he had taken on a minor official position, the location of which was kept secret, his position was kept secret, and what he did was kept secret as well. But judging from the ease and cheerfulness in his expression, it seemed to be a rare and desirable job.
His mouth was as tight as if it were locked. If it weren't for the fact that the era was different, Lin Yi would have suspected that he had joined the Secret Service and become a core member.
"Is it for Gu Shuan's sake?" Lin Yi asked softly.
This time, Xie Chengnan didn't try to get away with his usual jokes, so Lin Yi knew that his worst fears had come true.
Xie Chengnan composed himself. "It's not like I'm doing anything for him, we just have some connections."
Lin nodded, but couldn't help asking, "Why?"
Xie Chengnan was taken aback: "What? Why?"
"Don't you dislike him? Why are you helping him?"
Xie Chengnan was a little annoyed; this woman could be really difficult to deal with at times.
"Mutual benefit, an exchange of equal value," Xie Chengnan said. He didn't say anything more.
Lin Yi bit her lip, pondering whether she should be honest with Xie Chengnan.
Her true identity was like a time bomb, standing in the way of their inevitable meeting. Lin Yi could not possibly stand by and watch Xie Chengnan suffer the same fate as the cloaked man.
Since they first met, Xie Chengnan had his suspicions, and Lin Yi knew that.
She just wasn't sure how far her suspicions went, but she figured they certainly wouldn't connect it to time travel to another world or characters in a book.
Perhaps she could have put it more tactfully, perhaps using more palatable terms like precognitive dreams or amnesia…
"Tap tap—"
Xie Chengnan withdrew his knuckles from the table and said softly, "What are you thinking about? You were so engrossed that you didn't even hear me calling you."
Lin Yi twitched the corner of his mouth and apologized, "I was daydreaming."
Her answer was irrelevant. Xie Chengnan glanced down at her without changing his expression.
Lin Yi had been constantly worried and couldn't get enough rest, and now he had dark circles under his eyes, like two clouds of worry.
Xie Chengnan found it too irritating and rubbed his thumb against it. The skin under his eyelids was smooth and delicate, making his slightly rough fingertip linger.
Lin Yi looked up at him in surprise, but did not look away.
This made Xie Chengnan very happy, and he quickly forgot about what he had been paying attention to earlier.
In the following days, just as Xie Chengnan had said, he quickly became busy, leaving early and returning late every day. Often, Lin Yi would have already taken a nap before he returned, and when Lin Yi woke up in the morning, he would already be gone.
This made Lin Yi wonder if he had never come back at all.
But the slightly disheveled bedding beside her told her otherwise. Xie Chengnan had also briefly returned that night and stayed there.
Since Princess Chun'an came to stay at the mansion, the two moved in together to avoid suspicion. They lay in the same bed at night, doing nothing, and after the initial awkwardness of the first few days, they got along peacefully.
After Chun'an moved away, the two began a cold war and tacitly returned to their previous state of living in separate rooms.
But after they reconciled, Xie Chengnan moved back in very consciously and naturally.
Lin Yi didn't say anything more and tacitly allowed him to approach. Perhaps it would be more accurate to say that she passively accepted it, because Xie Chengnan was never actually lying on this bed while she was awake.
Lin Yi didn't know why he would come back quietly every day and lie down beside her for a short while. She presumptuously interpreted this as him wanting to squeeze out a little time from his busy day to be with her, even if they didn't do anything.
That night, Lin Yi went to bed at 9 PM as usual. Just as he was drifting off to sleep, he felt the window move slightly.
Perhaps it was the night breeze, Lin Yi thought, not giving it any other thought.
But not long after, a body carrying the scent of night dew suddenly approached.
Lin instantly regained her senses. The person behind her exuded a chill and restrainedly wrapped their hand gently around her waist.
Feeling the body tense beneath his hand, Xie Chengnan spoke, his voice tired and hoarse: "Did I wake you?"
Lin Yi turned around and buried her head in his chest. "No."
She hadn't spoken to Xie Chengnan for several days.
The man was right in front of her, almost within reach. Lin Yi couldn't help but bury her face in his shoulder and take a deep breath. She smelled his scent mixed with cooking fumes and a barely perceptible whiff of blood.
[Piercing wound, minor burn, with foreign body residue and risk of infection. Staphylococcal septic tank treatment and wound dressing should be performed...]
Golden Finger dutifully demonstrated the symptoms and treatment methods to her.
Before the system could finish displaying its message, Lin Yi abruptly pulled back the covers and asked, "Are you injured!"
Xie Chengnan was too tired and was almost asleep. His voice was a little slurred: "No... go to sleep."
Lin Yi could not believe it and insisted on lighting the lamp.
She pulled open Xie Chengnan's clothes at the chest, brought the candle closer, and saw specks of blood seeping through his snow-white undergarment.
"That's what you mean by 'nothing'."
Her voice sounded somewhat cold, and Xie Chengnan had no choice but to sit up as well, knowing that she wouldn't give up until she saw the wound with her own eyes tonight.
“A band of bandits has actually managed to infiltrate Mingzhou City. They dare to run rampant even in the capital. Now that I'm a government official, I have to make a show of it and give them a little chase…”
Xie Chengnan raised his chin so that Lin Yi could see more clearly.
"They used all sorts of underhanded tricks, and we were caught off guard and fell for it. We've already been bandaged up."
The wound had indeed been treated, but the person who did it was quite careless. Perhaps due to time constraints, the bandage was wrapped haphazardly, and the knot at the end wasn't even tied; the cloth scraps were just stuffed into a haphazard ball.
Lin Yi unwrapped the bandages, revealing the gruesome wound beneath. Even though he had learned of the symptoms from the system beforehand, seeing the festering, charred wound still brought tears to Lin Yi's eyes.
Seeing her like this, Xie Chengnan comforted her, "It did hurt a bit at first, but it's all better now, and you don't feel anything."
Xie Chengnan changed his clothes before returning because the skin around the wound was torn and the skin burned by the flames had formed a ring of ugly and hideous scabs.
If his skin and flesh were in such a state, how horribly damaged must his clothes have been? Lin Yi couldn't bear to look, but the lingering smell of gunpowder made her almost able to imagine the scene.
Soaring flames and arrows came rushing towards him. Xie Chengnan slashed at many of them, but one arrow was faster than the others. Carrying a stream of fire, it shot in rapidly and bit deeply into the flesh of his chest...
Lin could only be thankful that it was on the right.
Although she was emotionally agitated, her movements were steady. Even so, Xie Chengnan broke out in a cold sweat from the pain, his lips tightly pressed together, turning white.
Lin Yi did not expose his lie that he was not in pain.
After a while, he said, "The wound is on the front."
"Huh?" Xie Chengnan didn't understand.
Lin Yi didn't explain immediately. It wasn't until she cleaned the pus and blood from the wound, disinfected, cleaned, applied medicine, and re-bandaged it with clean gauze that she said, "The wound is on the front, so you're facing the enemy head-on. I know you're not just putting on an act."
Xie Chengnan awkwardly touched his nose. Those were just words of comfort and perfunctory response, but she had actually taken them to heart.
However, Xie Chengnan was genuinely curious, "So, what do you think I am like outside?"
Lin Yi thought for a moment, then shook his head: "I don't know, I've never seen it."
Xie Chengnan asked again, "You haven't seen it, so how can you be sure I won't desert?"
"You can't. If you could, I wouldn't have to worry."
Lin Yi's answer was irrelevant, but it was also a veiled way of telling Xie Chengnan that she was worried about him.
Although Xie Chengnan usually seems unreliable, often holding a beautiful woman in his arms while listening to music and drinking wine, as if he has no taboos, he is actually very innocent and his heart will flutter at a word of concern from someone he cares about.
He couldn't help but ask with a hint of smugness, "How worried are you?"
Xie Chengnan didn't tell Lin Yi the truth. The people who caused the disturbance and injured him in Mingzhou City were not bandits, but secret agents. In order to capture them, he had been working non-stop for three days and two nights, only able to briefly escape to Lin Yi's side during the darkest night. He had barely slept for three nights and was injured, so his voice sounded low and hoarse.
Yet he possessed an indescribable charm. As he spoke, he slightly tilted his head to look at Lin Yi, his burning breath almost touching hers.
Lin Yi felt his breath, and the panic and unease in her heart caused by his injury calmed down a little.
She looked at Xie Chengnan earnestly and said, "I'm so worried. I'm worried to death."
This was the first time Xie Chengnan had heard her speak such direct yet tender words, and his heart was gripped tightly.
The snow-white gauze had been wrapped around Xie Chengnan's injured body again, with only one knot remaining. Lin Yi gently wrapped it around Xie Chengnan's waist and tied a small, delicate bow behind his back.
She didn't withdraw her hand quickly, so the circling motion looked just like an embrace.
Xie Chengnan gently rested his head on her shoulder and neck. Not sensing Lin Yi's retreat, he tightened his arms around her.
It really turned into a mutual, tacitly agreed-upon embrace.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com