Yu Jian's eyes squinted as he slowly opened them. His face feels stuffy and hot while his head feels like it's about to explode from the pounding headache. Strange? There seems to be something soft, yet heavy on top of him. He slowly looked down and nearly fainted once more.

Xin Rui's warm breathing fanned his bare chest, while one of her hands rested on his shoulder. From this angle, he could see her black lashes extending out like tiny wings. She was in nothing but her undergarments.

Yu Jian stared at her sleeping face with warm cheeks. He had never noticed that she has a small beauty mark near her eyebrow. With pursed lips, he quickly averted his eyes. Before, he would not act so flustered. After finding some interest in her, he could hardly stop his noisy heart.

"You strange woman..." he whispered inaudibly, voice deeper than normal, "At least, you are safe."

With the gentlest hands, he slowly slipped out from her grasp before gazing at the cave they reside in.

He couldn't recall the events that happened last night very well. He only remembers that Xin Rui pulled him into a cave before everything became blurry. However, he heard bits of Rui's complaints. Something like cold roasted chicken? Or was it mushrooms?

His shadow followed him as he walked towards his air-dried clothes and dressed himself. The small fire was flickering with its last breath, hanging by the thread before it extinguished into a whispering smoke. He swiftly packed everything into that old basket and adjusted it comfortably on his back. Clearing his throat quietly, he struggled to keep his coughs confined and muffled.

Walking back to the sleeping beauty, Yu Jian picked up her robes—making her lightly shiver from the sudden lack of warmth—and dusted off the debris. Without waking her up, he slipped it on her slim body and carried her in his arms.

However, it did not go unnoticed by him that she had...grown a little, as a woman. When he first saw her, he was almost convinced that she was just a pretty boy.

The warm and bright rays of the sun stirred her awake, and she found herself embraced by Yu Jian as he wordlessly walked through the forest. She jolted, catching his attention. "Yu Jian! You're awake—wait, this situation isn't right." Rui's eyes shifted right to left as she was still in the state of confusion, "Quickly, put me down! You're still ill, why are you carrying me? You could've woken me up..."

It took a little while before Yu Jian actually set her down, letting her feet touch the soil. When she balanced herself, she suddenly came close to him and touched his warm forehead. "You look better than yesterday. I'm no doctor but you shouldn't exert anymore energy." Rui scolded lightly as she examined him with worry, making Yu Jian shy away from her intensive stare.

"I'm fine—" he coughed hoarsely, "—just a little sick."

"Do you even hear yourself? "Just a little sick." " she mocked while blabbering with her hands.

"Later, I will find a doctor. And as for you,"—she lightly poked the tip of his nose and pursed her lips—"you're staying in bed while I'm out."

He furrowed his eyebrows before taking a step back, "It's dangerous. And costs too much."

Rui patted his broad shoulder, "Don't worry. I know the town doctor and he owes me a favor."

His scrutinizing gaze made her break out into sweat. She cleared her throat before she hurriedly took the basket off his back, "Let me carry this for you. You need to conserve your energy to walk."

The two fought over the basket before Xin Rui yanked it out of his hands and ran away with it. She laughed inelegantly as she ran, with a hint of mischief in her tone, "Yahahaha! I can say that I'm stronger now!"

It wasn't long before they arrived at their small broken-down shelter. Rui practically threw him onto the bed, boiled some hot water, and threatened him not to follow her before she left. Shortly often, she brought home an elderly man who carried a medicine box. He diagnosed Yu Jian and prescribed some herbal medication for him to drink.

Rui walked the doctor out and whispered quietly, "Doctor, how much do I have to pay you?"

"A few silver coins."

Rui raised her eyebrows. So expensive? She looked at her belongings and her eyes paused at the gold hairpin with a pink flower. She lightly frowned before she pulled out a simple silver hairpin instead, "Here."

The elderly paused while his gaze landed on hers, signaling that her hairpin did not meet the quota. Perhaps, she was being a bit stingy. She pulled out another silver hairpin, "Is this enough?"

"Yes, enough."

She thanked the old man before offering to escort him back to the town. In the shadows, Yu Jian sat by the window with a darkened look. His eyes watched her figure slowly fade away into the distance as she walked with the doctor. "Liar."

After Yu Jian recovered from his cold, he gave her a light scolding and told her not to disappear like that anymore.

Rui pouted and said with a sullen face, "You were the one that fell ill so why am I being scolded?"

His eye twitched and he pinched her cheek, "This woman."

Yu Jian sighed helplessly and stared at the pouting maiden. He felt the nagging strings pull his heart into an endless pit, making him soften up. He bent down a little bit to gently grab her wrist, "Come, I'll teach you something new. Consider this as a form of gratitude for taking care of me."

Her once dimmed eyes now shimmered with excitement, "Really? What is it? Are we going to defeat tigers today? Also, I want roasted chickens with that offer."

His refined laugh softly echoed while he shook his head, making her heart tremor lightly. His next words shot her down, "I'd feed you to the tigers as the bait first."

Once they were in the forest, Yu Jian blew a sharp, unique whistle. It was a complicated pattern that made Rui contort her face. At first, nothing happened and she felt the awkward silent mull over.

Suddenly, a beautiful white dove flew by and landed on Yu Jian's shoulder. Its small head tilted to the side, seeming very adorable. It immediately took Rui's heart away from Yu Jian and smitten her to pieces. "This is Tingting. It seems like she's just a regular bird but she's a special messenger that only responds to a specific call. Tingting has been with me for several years now. My family pass this down to every—" Yu Jian halted his words, realizing that he spoke too much.

"Your family?" Rui innocently questioned as she gently petted Tingting's head. 

He did not finish his sentence, but he changed the topic instead, "I'll teach you how to call for Tingting. Should you ever need me, you can call for her and she'll return back to me."

"But I'm always with you. However, I still want to know how to call for her. She's so cute!" Because Rui busied herself with Tingting, she missed the lonely look in Yu Jian's eyes.

"How long would it be before you leave me?" he faintly said under his breath.

"What did you say?"

"Pucker your lips and press your tongue against the top your teeth."

And so, Xin Rui spent the entire day with Yu Jian, learning how to whistle. After a very, very long time, Rui was finally able to produce some sort of sound.

Tingting's head tilted in confusion before bobbing its head to peck at some seeds. Rui put her hands on her hips and gave a very long suspire, "My mouth is so dry. I feel like I'm going to blow my tongue out instead. Why is this so hard?"

Yu Jian did not look any better. Eyes empty of life and voice as deadpanned as possible, he agreed, "Indeed, why is this so hard?"

"I'll just take the roasted chicken," Rui breathlessly said as she waved her hand, signaling that she needed a break. Yu Jian cracked a small smile, "You'll get it one day."

He quietly thought to himself, "Since they're no longer here, teaching her this should be okay..."

In his town, a common tradition among the families includes secret techniques. Only the direct descendants of the family lineage (including the main wife) would learn of such secret. That is why, in a sense, it can be considered a proposal when the male offers to teach the technique to a female.

So many subtle moves, ah. When has he became this reckless and desperate? Yu Jian shook his head disapprovingly. It doesn't matter. She'll never find out anyway.

(๑･̑◡･̑๑)