Caiyu was heart - broken about her own actions...
Song Yinghuai curled his fingertips. Remembering the look Caiyu had given him just now, his heart ached inexplicably.
His eyes were as black as this endless night, with no end in sight.
He didn't mean to hide things from Caiyu on purpose. He just knew the girl's personality well.
If she knew what he was doing for the Lan family, she would surely interfere and meddle without hesitation. After all, the Lan family's affairs were what she cared about most.
But how could her straightforward personality work together with Lu Baiwei, a woman who was so scheming?
Putting these two women together would only make things more complicated for him.
Just like now, he only asked her to serve Lu Baiwei for a few days, and Aunt Mei and Qingqing almost caused a murder case, which affected their relationship.
Didn't he see that Aunt Mei was trying to pick a fight?
He just had to weigh the pros and cons due to the situation...
Based on his understanding of Caiyu, even if she knew she should weigh the pros and cons, she would surely find a way to take revenge, and things would eventually get out of control.
Song Yinghuai was in a complete mess. Finally, he let out a sigh and reluctantly said, "I'll explain it to her slowly after things are settled."
He just hoped that she could be more patient and wait a little longer.
The mountain forest was quiet, with dots of firelight.
Sheng Jiangli's tall figure cast a long shadow on the ground in the light of the torches.
Qingqing and Caiyu were both following behind him.
These two girls, who usually talked a lot, were surprisingly silent, making the mountain forest seem even more eerie and quiet.
Sheng Jiangli walked for a long time. Finally, he couldn't help but stop and turn around. "You two, stop looking like you're about to die, okay? If anyone is going to die, it'll be me first. My back is still bleeding. Can you tell a joke to distract me?"
Caiyu and Qingqing glanced at each other and said in unison, "Not in the mood."
The two girls looked at him full of resentment.
This man refused to bandage his wound or take medicine no matter what. He insisted on sending Qingqing down the mountain overnight.
Now he was whining about being dead or alive or in pain.
Serves him right for being in pain!
Sheng Jiangli got angry. "It's just going down the mountain and waiting. How far is the capital from here? It's only a day's journey. Why are you throwing a tantrum..."
"But I want to stay with you every day!" Qingqing pouted in anger.
Sheng Jiangli was shocked. He quickly glanced at Caiyu and then said, "Hey, don't talk nonsense. I don't want to see you, you little brat, every day!"
He winked at Caiyu and smiled. "After I send you little brat away, I'll focus on roasting meat for Sister Caiyu every day."
Qingqing said, "I roasted the meat with Suobude every night. You just came to eat."
"... You little brat, didn't I hunt those pheasants and hares?"
Sheng Jiangli argued for a few words and felt that his back didn't hurt as much. After a pause, his voice softened again. "You little brat, go back to the Prince Yan's Mansion and stay there obediently after you go down the mountain. Don't try to sneak back up the mountain. We'll surely put an end to this plague as soon as possible with His Highness the Prince Yan."
Qingqing pouted.
How did he know that she wanted to sneak back up the mountain?
He was really like a worm in her stomach.
Caiyu saw that although Sheng Jiangli was joking, his face was getting paler. She knew that his wound on the back was serious. She had to force herself to say, "Stop arguing. Qingqing, go down the mountain quickly and wait for our good news in the mansion!"
Qingqing also saw that Sheng Jiangli's face looked bad. She had to look at Sheng Jiangli reluctantly.
Sheng Jiangli held the torch, illuminating the little girl's pupils.
Her pupils, just washed by tears, were clear and transparent, reflecting his figure in them. Like clear spring water, they were full of joy, sincerity, and an indescribable affection, which made his heart flutter suddenly.
The man's Adam's apple rolled up and down. He averted his gaze and urged uneasily, "Aren't you leaving yet?"
This was the last checkpoint between the mountain and the village.
Once you passed this checkpoint, the mountain and the village were separated.
Qingqing nodded. Her eyes seemed to be covered with a layer of mist again, looking aggrieved and sad. "Brother Sheng, take good care of yourself. Remember to protect yourself when you're taking care of the patients..."
"Alright, alright, I know." Sheng Jiangli felt that stars were starting to appear in front of his eyes. He urged her to leave quickly.
Qingqing lowered her eyes, showing her undisguised disappointment. Finally, she suddenly turned around and trotted away into the distance.
Sheng Jiangli stared at her disappearing back. Pain flashed in his usually amorous eyes. His tall body suddenly swayed.
He hoped that this girl would be more obedient after going down the mountain. As long as she didn't ruin everyone's plans, he could act as if he knew nothing.
Caiyu was startled. She reached out to support him. "Brother A Li!"
As soon as she touched him, she was shocked by his high body temperature. "You're running a fever!"
She immediately panicked. "Is it the wound that's causing the fever or have you caught the plague? What should we do now?"
They were just at the last checkpoint on the halfway up the mountain, far from any village or settlement. There were only a few soldiers patrolling the checkpoint.
Sheng Jiangli leaned on Caiyu and whispered, "Don't panic. It should be because the wound wasn't treated and I was exposed to the mountain wind."
"So I offered to treat your wound, but you refused. You just had to rush to send Qingqing down the mountain!" Caiyu shouted anxiously.
Sheng Jiangli buried his head in Caiyu's neck. Listening to her anxious and angry voice, he felt extremely warm - hearted.
A low, muffled laugh trembled from the man's chest. "Are you worried about me?"
Caiyu was stunned. Tears almost welled up in her eyes. Her voice was on the verge of crying. "Nonsense... How can I not be worried?"
Now that Qingqing was sent away, he was the only person she could rely on on the mountain.
He was also one of the few relatives she could rely on in the world.
Hearing Caiyu's voice on the verge of crying, Sheng Jiangli didn't dare to tease her anymore. He nestled on her shoulder and shook his head. "There's a temporary barracks not far from here. Just help me go there and rest for a while."
The so - called temporary barracks was just a wooden cabin temporarily built by hunters who came to Qixia Mountain to hunt. It was temporarily requisitioned for the soldiers guarding the checkpoint to take a break.
When Caiyu and Sheng Jiangli arrived, the soldiers had to make room and all hid outside.
After all, the wooden cabin was so small. Although Caiyu was dressed as a man, how could Sheng Jiangli let those stinky men share the same room with Caiyu?
So, the soldiers were driven away to patrol, leaving only Caiyu and Sheng Jiangli.
They originally only planned to rest for a while, but unexpectedly, Sheng Jiangli fell asleep as soon as he lay down.
Maybe it was because he had been working non - stop these days. He had been directing the fight against the plague during the day and secretly hunting and roasting meat at night. He was extremely short of sleep.
Watching this big man curled up uncomfortably on the narrow and shabby straw bed, Caiyu was both angry and heart - broken.
How could he be so good at taking care of her but so careless when it came to taking care of himself?
Looking at the man's tired face, Caiyu was in a daze again.
If Sheng Jiangli was like this, was Song Yinghuai the same?
Fighting the plague was as hard as going to war. Everyone was working so hard.
Once people were stretched too thin, there were bound to be many things they couldn't take care of.
She just hoped that Song Yinghuai could hold on!
But since Sheng Jiangli was asleep, she couldn't just wake him up and go back up the mountain.
Caiyu sighed and then lit a torch and went out.
There was an advantage to being on the mountain. You could easily find some common herbs everywhere.
Caiyu searched carefully near the wooden cabin by the moonlight, looking for herbs that could reduce inflammation and relieve pain.
Before she knew it, she had walked far away from the wooden cabin. Following the stream upstream, she came to a pond.
There was a small waterfall above the pond. The water rushed down from the mountain peak and formed a pond in the mountain stream.
Caiyu was both tired and thirsty from searching. She stuck the torch on the ground, walked closer to the pond, and squatted down to get some water to drink.
As soon as she squatted down, she remembered that this water source might be contaminated by the plague. Reluctantly, she was stuck there, looking longingly at the clear water, feeling even more thirsty.
Just then, several black shadows like falling rocks rushed down along the waterfall and fell into the pond in front of her, making several "plop" sounds.
Caiyu was startled by the noise. She looked in the direction of the sound and squinted her eyes.
After those "falling rocks" entered the water, they didn't sink. Instead, they rolled and swam in the water...