The fresh blood on Song Yihuan's hands threw her into a panic. She quickly reached out and felt Ji Lingchuan's body to make sure he hadn't broken any bones. He had only suffered some minor skin wounds, which made her heave a sigh of relief.
She looked up in the direction they had fallen from. The cliff was incredibly high, with clouds and mist swirling around it, making it hard to tell what was real.
It was a great blessing that they had survived the fall from up there. He had held her tightly in his arms, taking most of the impact himself so that she remained unscathed.
Looking at the man with his eyes tightly shut in front of her, Song Yihuan's eyes welled up with tears. She grasped his shoulders again and shook him. "Ji Lingchuan? Wake up quickly!"
In this desolate place, she no longer addressed him as the young master but called out his name desperately. There was a sob in her voice, but the man still didn't show the slightest sign of movement.
Just then, there came a rustling sound from all around. Her encounter with the giant snake on the cliff just now made Song Yihuan instantly alert. She picked up a branch from the ground and stood in front of Ji Lingchuan, warily looking around.
She didn't know any martial arts, and Ji Lingchuan was unconscious. In their current situation, if the snake followed them relentlessly, the two of them would probably end up in its belly.
The rustling sound stopped for a moment and then started again, moving towards where Song Yihuan and Ji Lingchuan were. Song Yihuan held her breath and tightened her grip on the branch.
The next moment, a small, round head pushed aside the branches and popped out, locking eyes with Song Yihuan.
Song Yihuan let out a sigh of relief and lowered her trembling hands.
It was just a mountain rabbit.
Ji Lingchuan was injured and they couldn't afford to delay. After Song Yihuan made sure there were no fierce beasts around, she wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes and began to search for hemostatic herbs everywhere.
Previously, in order to study her younger brother's illness, she had read a lot of medical books in the imperial academy's library, including a pharmacopoeia, so she recognized many herbs.
She remembered that hemostatic herbs usually grew by the stream. The lush growth of weeds and trees here indicated that there should be a water source nearby.
Sure enough, as she had expected, after walking a short distance forward, she heard the gurgling sound of a stream. She quickened her pace, pushed aside the branches in front of her, and sure enough, saw a small stream.
She searched along the stream for a while, dug up several hemostatic herbs, and picked a few fruits to satisfy her hunger before turning around and hurrying back.
She returned to the original place smoothly along the way she had come. Seeing Ji Lingchuan still lying quietly there, she let out a sigh of relief.
She stepped forward quickly and with some effort, turned the man's heavy body over. She saw wounds on his back and the back of his head. He was wearing a dark - brown robe today, and the blood oozing from the wounds had soaked the robe and turned it black.
Song Yihuan felt a sharp pain in her heart, as if someone was pinching it.
Without hesitation, she untied the man's belt and stripped off his robe, revealing his strong body. His honey - colored, powerful body was now covered with scratches of various sizes.
Song Yihuan tore off a piece of the hem of her skirt and carefully wiped the blood around the wounds clean. Then she put the hemostatic herbs into her mouth, chewed them finely, and dripped the juice of the hemostatic herbs onto the man's wounds.
The hemostatic herbs were extremely bitter, so bitter that her tongue went numb. But seeing the blood on Ji Lingchuan's wounds slowly stop oozing, she was overjoyed. She didn't dare to delay and kept chewing the hemostatic herbs and stopping the bleeding for the man again and again.
It wasn't until all the wounds had stopped bleeding that Song Yihuan felt at ease.
The hem of her skirt was torn beyond recognition. The cloth embroidered with apricot blossoms had now become bandages wrapped around Ji Lingchuan's body. After doing all this, Song Yihuan was sweating all over. The cold wind at the bottom of the cliff made her shiver when it blew over.
She put the man's clothes back on him. Then she returned to the stream, filled some stream water with leaves, and moistened Ji Lingchuan's lips to replenish his strength.
She kept at it like this. After an unknown amount of time, the silent man with his eyes closed coughed suddenly and slowly opened his eyes.
Song Yihuan was overjoyed. She put down what was in her hand and moved closer to him, calling out, "Ji Lingchuan, how are you? Do you still recognize me?"
Ji Lingchuan rolled his eyes and looked in the direction of the sound. A beautiful and charming face came into view. Song Yihuan's face was full of relief and joy. Her deer - like eyes were moistened with tears, and his figure was clearly reflected in her dark pupils.
As his rationality gradually returned, Ji Lingchuan remembered everything that had happened to them. He moved his lips and asked, "Are you hurt?"
His voice was hoarse and weak. Hearing that his first words after waking up were to inquire about her safety, Song Yihuan couldn't hold back her tears any longer. She shook her head and said, "I'm fine. But you've suffered a lot of injuries. Fortunately, they're just skin wounds and didn't hurt your bones. Otherwise, I would never forgive myself."
Ji Lingchuan moved his hand. Seeing that he wanted to sit up, Song Yihuan quickly stepped forward to help him.
Seeing that there were many pieces missing from the apricot - blossom skirt on her body, Ji Lingchuan raised his hand and touched his chest, then guessed what she had done while he was unconscious.
She was really very smart. Even in this desperate situation, she hadn't lost her composure and knew to treat his wounds first.
But seeing her tears keep flowing, he rarely cracked a joke. "Why are you crying? These minor injuries aren't going to kill me. I've suffered more serious injuries on the battlefield. I was on my last breath at that time, but I still managed to pull through."
When she was treating his wounds just now, she had indeed seen many healed scars on his body.
Wiping the tears from her face, Song Yihuan stubbornly said, "I'm not crying. It's just that some dust got into my eyes."
Ji Lingchuan smiled and didn't tease her anymore. Instead, he looked around. Frowning, he said, "It's getting dark soon. The moisture here is increasing. It will start to rain soon. We must leave here as soon as possible and find a place to take shelter from the rain and spend the night."
Song Yihuan didn't object. Seeing Ji Lingchuan struggling to stand up, she quickly stepped forward to support him.
Ji Lingchuan staggered a bit when he stood up. Fortunately, Song Yihuan was by his side to support his body. At this moment, they couldn't care about the taboos between men and women and their different social statuses. Song Yihuan took the initiative to put his arm on her shoulder and supported him with her weak strength.
Ji Lingchuan looked down at the girl beside him. Song Yihuan's body was extremely petite compared to his, but it seemed to be full of energy.
This was a girl who would never admit defeat even when in a desperate situation. There was tenderness in Ji Lingchuan's eyes.
Just as they took a step forward, Ji Lingchuan stepped on something. Looking down, he found it was the jade bow that Song Yihuan had obtained.
Carrying the bow and arrows on his back, the two of them supported each other and walked unsteadily towards the upper reaches of the stream. Finally, before it got completely dark, they found a cave where they could take shelter.
Because of their previous experience, when they were about to enter the cave to take shelter, Song Yihuan threw a few stones into it. After making sure there was no movement inside, she supported Ji Lingchuan and hid inside.
Sure enough, after they had taken shelter in the cave, it started to rain patter outside.