Chapter 135 Lost
Pei Zhi nodded and looked at her hand. Her hand was thin, and from handling medicine all year round, there were some thin calluses on the tips of her fingers, but she was very skillful, picking up the herbs effortlessly, quickly and accurately.
Pei Zhi couldn't help but pull her and gently hold her hand: "Call me when you're packing up the medicine box next time. Don't keep busy by yourself. You'll be too tired to straighten your back."
Ye Wanning's hand stiffened, and her face flushed slightly. She looked up and saw the tenderness in his eyes, which warmed her heart. "I'm not tired. Organizing the medicinal herbs is quite fun. It's just a way to pass the time."
"No matter how fun it is, you can't get tired." Pei Zhi took the perilla from her hand and picked some himself. "You sit down and rest for a while. I'll take care of the rest. It's no big deal."
The first snow of winter was heavy and sudden. When I woke up early in the morning, the entire general's mansion was covered in white. The rooftops, tree branches, and stone benches were all covered with a thick layer of silvery white, looking like they were coated with white sugar.
"Sister Wanning! Let's make a snow lion!" Little Bean ran over early in the morning, clutching a carrot in her hand, so excited she looked like she could fly.
"Okay!" Ye Wanning nodded with a smile. Just as she was about to go out, Pei Zhi brought over a large cloak and wrapped her up tightly: "Don't get cold, it's cold outside."
The three of them went into the yard, where Xiaodouzi had already started rolling a snowball. Ye Wanning bent over and tried to imitate him, but she was too weak, and after rolling for a long time, it was only the size of a fist.
"Let me help you." Pei Zhi walked over, took the snowball from her hand, and rolled it with both hands, making it much bigger. He was skilled, and in no time he had rolled two big snowballs, one for the body and one for the head.
"Get me a twig," Pei Zhi called out. Ye Wanning quickly broke off a thin twig from a nearby tree and handed it to him. He used the twig to draw eyes, a nose, and a mouth on the snow lion's head, and then used the twig as ears, sticking it on either side of the head.
“It’s still missing a decoration.” Pei Zhi thought for a moment, then turned and went into the house. A moment later, he came out with a red plum blossom. He put the red plum blossom on the snow lion’s neck and said to Ye Wanning with a smile, “This will make it look better, just like Madam.”
Ye Wanning blushed instantly and gently punched his chest: "You're just making fun of me."
“I’m not making fun of you, I’m telling the truth.” Pei Zhi took her hand and warmed it in his palm. “Look at this snow lion, it’s only beautiful with the red plum blossoms; just like me, life only has flavor with you.”
Little Bean clapped her hands and laughed, "The snow lion is beautiful! Sister Wan Ning is beautiful too! Brother Pei and Sister Wan Ning are a perfect match, just like the snow lion and the red plum!"
Ye Wanning blushed even more, quickly withdrew her hand, and turned to help Xiaodouzi build a small snowman. Pei Zhi couldn't help but laugh as he watched her back, picking up a snowball and gently hitting her on the back: "Want to make a snow tiger too? Just like the one you embroidered!"
The winter night wind made the windows creak, and although there was a charcoal fire burning inside, it was still a bit chilly. Ye Wanning finished her shower and crawled into bed, but shivered as soon as she touched the corner of the blanket—the blanket was too cold, and her hands were frozen stiff and couldn't warm up at all.
"What's wrong? Are you cold?" Pei Zhi came in and saw her huddled under the covers, her arms wrapped around her chest. He quickly lifted the covers and crawled in. As soon as he lay down, he grabbed her hands and pulled them into his arms, wrapping them tightly around her.
"Why are your hands so cold?" Pei Zhi frowned, rubbing her palms with his fingers to warm them up. "Tell me before you go to sleep next time, and I'll warm the blankets for you!"
Ye Wanning's hands were held in his arms, warm and ticklish. She could feel the warmth of his chest and his steady heartbeat, and she immediately felt at ease. She whispered, "It's okay, it'll warm up in a bit."
"No, from now on I'll warm your hands before bed every night, so you'll never get cold again." Pei Zhi tucked her hands deeper into his arms, then gently pulled her closer by the waist with his other arm. "Is this warm enough?"
Ye Wanning hummed in agreement, her face pressed against his collar, inhaling the sandalwood scent emanating from him. Pei Zhi's breath gently brushed against her cheek, warm and comforting, even making her ears turn red.
"Today at the military camp, Deputy General Zhang said that after the New Year, he would take you hunting in the back mountains," Pei Zhi said in a low voice, his fingers still twirling in her palm. "If you want to go, I'll take you too, and let you see what I, Pei, am capable of, okay? Maybe we can even catch a rabbit and stew it for you."
"Okay." Ye Wanning nodded with a smile, moved her hand in his arms, and squeezed his hand tightly. "But you have to be careful and don't hurt yourself."
"Don't be afraid, I won't let myself get hurt." Pei Zhi leaned down and kissed her hair. "Someone is waiting for me, how could I let myself get hurt? You're waiting for me."
As dawn broke, the back mountain was shrouded in a thin mist, obscuring even the trees around her. Ye Wanning quietly got up, picked up a small bamboo basket, and headed towards the back mountain—Pei Zhi had been suffering from headaches for the past few days, and she remembered that mint could be invigorating, so she wanted to pick some fresh mint to make mint tea.
The mountain path was covered in damp dew. Ye Wanning walked uphill, the refreshing scent of mint wafting towards her with the mist. Reaching a patch of mint, she squatted down and carefully pinched off the tips. Her fingertips were quickly coated with a thin layer of cool, green sap.
But as she continued picking, Ye Wanning panicked. She looked up and saw that the fog around her had thickened, and she could no longer distinguish the path she had come from. Even the pine trees around her looked exactly the same.
She tried walking in different directions, but the path became increasingly erratic. She hadn't picked much mint from her basket, and she'd already gotten lost.
"Wanning?" A familiar voice came from the mist at the edge of the cliff. Ye Wanning was overjoyed and quickly called out in the direction of the voice, "Pei Zhi! I'm here!"
A moment later, an oil-paper umbrella emerged from the fog, and Pei Zhi's figure gradually became clear. He saw Ye Wanning, walked over quickly, reached out and grasped her wrist, his fingertips brushing against the dew on the back of her hand, and frowned: "Why did you come alone without anyone with you? It's too dangerous in this fog."
Ye Wanning was a little embarrassed and looked down at the bamboo basket: "I wanted to pick some mint to make tea for you, but I didn't expect to get lost."
Pei Zhi didn't blame her. Instead, he tilted the umbrella towards her and gently pressed his other hand against her hair—where a small piece of grass was stuck. "Call me next time you pick mint. It's easy to slip and fall in this fog."
His fingers only lightly touched her scalp, yet it made her ears burn. Pei Zhi squatted beside her in the mint patch, teaching her how to pick the mint without damaging the roots: "Pinch the top two or three leaves, so they can grow back next time."
His hand occasionally brushed against hers. Neither of them spoke, only the sound of mint being snapped was clear in the mist. The morning dew quickly soaked their clothes. Ye Wanning noticed that Pei Zhi's umbrella was almost entirely covering her, while half of his own shoulder was wet from the mist. His clothes clung to his body, revealing the strong curves of his shoulders underneath.
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