Chapter 12 I'm Here to Bring You Medicine
"Chu Xiao?"
Shen You frowned slightly and subconsciously asked, "What are you doing getting on my carriage?"
In the girl's beautiful eyes, besides incomprehension and doubt, there was also a clear sense of resistance.
The curtains around the carriage were drawn, but the window lattices were open, allowing the warm sunlight to stream in through.
However, it failed to soften the man's cold and sharp features in the slightest.
Chu Xiao sat there with his long legs spread wide, completely at ease, as if this were his own carriage.
The carriage curtain fell behind Shen You, making the originally spacious carriage feel somewhat cramped with the addition of such a tall and long-legged person as him.
Chu Xiao raised his eyes, his gaze fixed on her, unwavering.
"I've come to bring you your medicine."
As he finished speaking, he opened his palm, revealing a small porcelain bottle.
Shen You was taken aback, then clenched his hand and hid it in his sleeve.
Just now on horseback, because she had to pull hard on the reins, both of her hands were rubbed raw, especially her palms, which showed signs of being broken.
He should have kept quiet, because once he said that, Shen You's attention was drawn to his hands.
Only now did she belatedly realize that a fine, dense pain, like needles and threads, was tugging at the nerves in her palm.
Shen You pursed her lips, about to refuse his medicine, when the wheels suddenly started rolling. Caught off guard, she was pulled forward.
The man's strong arms firmly supported her shoulders, while she instinctively gripped his brocade robe with both hands.
The posture was ambiguous, making it look as if he was holding her in his arms.
His unique, cool scent once again entered her nostrils, causing Shen You's eyelashes to tremble slightly, and she immediately distanced herself from him.
Thank you.
Chu Xiao's palms fell empty. He made a loose clenching motion with both hands and heard her say, "There's no need to send the medicine. Thank you for everything today, Duke."
She lifted the curtain and looked outside. "You can get off the train when there are fewer people up ahead."
Her words clearly implied that she wanted to get rid of him, but Chu Xiao didn't respond. Instead, he grabbed her wrist and pulled her in front of him.
"Chu Xiao!" Shen You lowered his voice, afraid that Green Ivy and the coachman outside would hear, but he couldn't hide the anger in his tone.
"Let me go."
The warmth of the man's palm was transmitted almost effortlessly through the thin summer fabric.
It almost warmed the small patch of skin on her wrist.
Shen You pursed her lips, trying to ignore the burning sensation spreading from the base of her ears.
Chu Xiao lowered his voice, "Let's apply the medicine first, okay?"
He took her hand, and seeing that she wouldn't cooperate, he pressed his thumb against a small vein on her wrist through the thin fabric of her sleeve, forcing her to open her closed fingers.
Shen You quickly replied, "I can do it myself."
Chu Xiao continued to look at her, remained silent for a few moments, and then placed the small porcelain bottle beside her.
The large hand that had been gripping her wrist finally loosened its hold.
Shen You quickly pulled her hand back, rotated her wrist, and tried to ignore the tingling sensation on her wrist.
The eldest daughter of the Marquis's family, she was pampered by Madam Shen since childhood, and every inch of her skin was delicate.
At this moment, his palm was completely red, and because of his fair skin, the red marks looked rather frightening.
Shen You picked up the porcelain bottle that he had placed aside, dipped it in a little ointment, and gently swirled it in his palm with his fingertips to allow the ointment to fully exert its effects.
For a moment, the carriage was filled with a faint scent of medicine.
This ointment is actually quite effective; it feels cool and comfortable to the touch, and Shen You's palms no longer feel as burning hot as before.
She placed the small porcelain bottle beside him, and with a slight glance up, she saw his gaze fall precisely on her hand.
Shen You pulled his sleeve to block his view and said aloofly, "Thank you for the medicine, Duke."
Chu Xiao pushed the porcelain bottle toward her, "Here's the medicine. Remember to apply it regularly for the next few days."
But Shen You didn't answer, saying, "No need."
"I will go to Baicaotang and ask Doctor Lin to prepare a bottle."
She kept her head down and didn't look at him when she said this.
Chu Xiao's eyes darkened, as if he was suppressing certain emotions. "This medicine is commonplace to me. There's no need for you to feel indebted to me because of it."
"Thank you," Ke Shenyou said, but still declined, "but it's not necessary."
Having made up her mind not to have any further entanglement with him, she wouldn't even accept a small bottle of ointment.
Upon hearing this, Chu Xiao's expression darkened, and a crack appeared in his usually stern face, as if he were feeling wronged or suppressing his emotions.
She moved a little further away and heard him say, "Didn't you want to thank me for helping you earlier? Accept this bottle of medicine, and that will be your thanks."
Shen You looked up and gave him a strange look.
Saving her and giving her medicine—what kind of gratitude is that?
She didn't understand what he wanted to do, but she didn't want to bother guessing anymore.
This way, they could avoid any interaction when giving a thank-you gift later. After thinking for a moment, Shen You finally reached out and took the small porcelain bottle.
"Thank you very much, Your Excellency."
As soon as he finished speaking, the carriage fell silent.
Only the clattering of horses' hooves could be heard from outside.
The curtains were occasionally lifted by the wind; we hadn't yet entered the bustling section of the road.
Shen You pursed her lips, took a breath, and said, "It's inconvenient for the Duke to ride in the same carriage as me. There aren't many people here, so perhaps..."
Please get off the bus?
She didn't finish her sentence, but Chu Xiao knew what she meant and made no move.
He slightly lifted his eyelids, his gaze sweeping over the fleeting street scene outside.
"It's still quite a distance from the Chu residence, so I left my horse at the horse farm."
Does that mean he has to walk back on foot?
Shen You blinked. "You're a strong and healthy man, can't you even walk this far?"
But when she lowered her eyes slightly, she saw the small porcelain bottle in her palm.
Then I heard him say, "Apply this ointment three times a day, and don't get it wet for half an hour after applying it."
He gave his instructions word by word, sounding very attentive, but Shen You clearly heard something else in his words.
I saved you and gave you ointment, are you really going to kick me off the bus right here?
Shen You raised her hand to lift the curtain and glanced outside again.
The carriage rumbled along, and in just a short while, it arrived at the East Market, where more and more people and pedestrians were appearing on both sides.
Turn the corner ahead and you'll reach Andefang.
She paused for a moment, but ultimately didn't bring up the matter of making him get out of the car again.
Silence fell again in the carriage, with only the occasional cries of street vendors breaking the stillness.
Shen You was still thinking about staying away from him in the future, and her lips unconsciously tightened.
The girl's features were both cool and charming, and her almond-shaped eyes, like clear springs, shone with a captivating light when illuminated by the sunlight streaming in.
However, her delicate eyebrows were slightly furrowed, and her expression was not relaxed.
Seeing this, Chu Xiao immediately knew what she was thinking.
The man, who had been casually resting his hands on his knees, clenched them into fists and said, "Chen You..."
"Miss, we've arrived."
But as soon as Chu Xiao called her name, he heard Green Ivy's voice from outside and immediately tried to lift the carriage curtain.
"Green Ivy!" Shen You exclaimed hurriedly, "I suddenly want to eat osmanthus cake from Qian Gao Ji. Go and buy some for me."
“Yes, young lady,” Green Ivy paused in her act of lifting the curtain, withdrew her hand, responded, and then turned to leave.
As the footsteps faded into the distance, Shen You dared not relax, for the coachman had already lowered the saddle and was waiting for her to disembark.
She looked at Chu Xiao, lowered her voice, and said in a somewhat fierce tone, "Don't let anyone find out."
After saying that, she lifted a small corner of the carriage curtain and stepped off the carriage, brushing against the door.
Behind her, the coachman had already retrieved the saddle stools and was about to drive the carriage to the back gate to park.
The sound of horses' hooves rang out. Just before stepping onto the steps, Shen You still couldn't rest easy and turned back for a final look.
A gentle breeze lifted the carriage curtain, but the figure was nowhere to be seen in the spacious carriage.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com