Chapter 26

Qing Wu lowered her voice and explained, “The rain will wash away the marks I left behind. If this goes on too long, Han Yue won’t be able to find us.”

She had left numerous signs along the way, making it easy for the people sent after her to track them down.

Qing Wu pretended to be relaxed and swung his arm from side to side. “Are you really planning to stay here for several nights?”

Pei Muci’s ears were ringing so loudly that he could not take in a word she said. He only held on to her stubbornly.

His voice sounded as though it had been scraped raw by gravel.

“Don’t go.”

He could not explain the sour, swollen feeling surging through his chest, but he knew that at this moment, he did not want her to leave.

Heaven and earth seemed to have merged into one. The sudden downpour threw every creature in the mountains into turmoil. The cries of beasts rose and fell, mingled with the shrill calls of birds whose species could not be made out.

And there were pursuers who might turn back to search for them at any moment.

From those two brief words, Qing Wu unexpectedly heard a helplessness entirely at odds with Pei Muci’s usual bearing.

“I’m not afraid of any of this.” Qing Wu gathered the clothes she had taken off and piled them on the ground. She placed the flint beside him. “If you truly can’t hold out, burn my clothes to keep warm.”

Pei Muci said nothing. He stared fixedly at her. That barely audible “I’m afraid” was swallowed by the surging tide of emotion and the sob he never managed to voice.

He sat there in silence, his clothing thin and his trembling lashes concealing all his panic. His entire being seemed as fragile as a glass bead, as though he might shatter at the slightest touch.

As if sensing something, Qing Wu turned back to look for him.

The world before her was a blur of darkness. She could not see his expression, only hear his faint breathing.

“What are you afraid of?” she called louder, her words ringing with conviction. “I’ll come back. I won’t leave you behind.”

The fear in Pei Muci’s eyes trembled violently at her words. A gentle warmth seemed to seep across his palm, soothing every trace of unease.

His knuckles had gone white from gripping her too tightly. His thumb lingered over the back of her hand, rubbing it several times before gradually easing his hold.

Qing Wu supported his chin with the web of her thumb and lightly scratched him twice, soothing him as one might coax a cat.

“Don’t be afraid. I’ll take you out of here.”

Her fingertips were smooth and neatly trimmed. They brushed over his throat like a goose feather, leaving behind a tingling sensation that weakened his legs.

Pei Muci’s breath caught. Something deep inside him was suddenly stirred.

“Then I’ll wait for you, Your Highness.”

——

Qing Wu was gone for more than half an hour. By the time she returned, the rain outside showed no sign of stopping.

She took the neatly folded outer robe and sat at the cave entrance, wiping the wet ends of her hair while gazing obliquely at one spot.

Pei Muci’s eyes were half-closed as he rested in a crevice between the rocks.

His sleep was uneasy. His brows were drawn together, while his thick lashes concealed the gray-blue exhaustion beneath his eyes.

The rain grew heavier, and the temperature seemed to drop several degrees. Cold wind carrying grains of ice slashed across their faces like knives.

With her hair hanging loose over one shoulder, Qing Wu picked up a stick that still held a few sparks and blew on it in rhythm with the flames.

The dim yellow firelight flickered, illuminating the plain robe spread open across Pei Muci’s chest. It resembled the warm glow of dusk filtering through a window lattice, gradually coating him in a dreamlike radiance as time passed.

Qing Wu propped up her chin and quietly watched him.

After a while, the exhaustion brought on by the strain of the day began to overwhelm her. Her eyelids drooped, and her head bobbed like a chick pecking at grain.

The fire and the ash on the cave wall gave off a choking smell. In her hazy sleep, she spread out her hand over the cold ground and groped around as though searching for something.

At some point, the fire went out. Wisps of green smoke drifted upward with the wind, making the cave almost impossible to see through.

Qing Wu did not know whether she was dreaming. A trace of panic rose in her heart, and instinctively she reached out for Pei Muci.

Anxiousness made her movements frantic. Like someone trapped in a nightmare, she searched for a long time, yet could not find him.

It was as though she had suddenly fallen into a bottomless black hole. The abrupt sensation of weightlessness made her kick out sharply. She jolted upright, her eyes still retaining the wariness of a fox.

Thank goodness.

Pei Muci was still beside her, maintaining the same posture he had held before she fell asleep.

The furrow between his brows seemed to have eased. His features were sharply defined, as though carved by a blade, yet lacked any oppressive harshness. One glance at him was enough to make a person feel as though they were basking in a spring breeze.

Qing Wu pressed the back of her hand to his forehead.

He was no longer as hot.

She let out a sigh of relief and straightened his collar before reluctantly turning her face away, lest she be bewitched by his features.

Pei Muci had awakened the moment a hand touched his forehead, but only opened his eyes after a long while. Qing Wu was crouched on a stone block, gazing at him with bright eyes.

“Your fever has gone down.”

“I have caused Your Highness to worry.” Pei Muci’s voice was low and hoarse, carrying the lingering, languid softness of someone not yet fully awake.

Qing Wu had been thoroughly frightened by the way he had looked during the onset of the poison. Still uneasy, she reached up to touch the spot behind his ear.

It was cool.

She remembered that although his head had burned like a fever after the poison took hold, the rest of his body had remained cold. She wanted to check whether his temperature had fully returned to normal.

Her delicate hand slid downward. The thin layer of his undershirt seemed almost nonexistent, and the skin beneath her palm was taut with restrained strength.

Qing Wu’s thoughts turned, and she secretly stole a glance at him—only to meet his eyes.

A subtle atmosphere drifted through the air. Qing Wu’s gaze wandered without focus, like a fawn darting its eyes in all directions after a hunter had discovered its trail.

“I’m checking whether you’ve recovered.”

Her words sounded guilty, but her hand did not stop. It even began exploring the curve of his waist.

How could anyone ever give up beauty? Qing Wu inwardly condemned her earlier attempt at abandoning worldly desire, yet the corners of her lips rose helplessly.

“Checking?” Pei Muci lifted a brow.

Qing Wu could not stop herself from breaking into a delighted grin. “Touching.”

The corner of Pei Muci’s eye twitched. His usually calm, placid expression began to show faint signs of strain.

The gentle touch continued downward. When Pei Muci raised his eyes, he saw the heated light flashing in Qing Wu’s gaze.

She had no intention of stopping.

With a helpless sigh, Pei Muci seized her hand.

“You can’t touch any farther.”

“Why?” Qing Wu gave him a suspicious look, sounding disappointed.

She extended one finger and poked his waist. “Are you ticklish?”

The muscles beneath her fingertip were firm and taut, barely yielding at all.

Pei Muci pressed his lips together and gave a slight shudder, as though struggling fiercely to endure something.

Seeing that he had recovered and no longer bore the sickly pallor of the poison’s attack, Qing Wu finally felt the stone in her heart fall away. Her mood relaxed considerably, and she deliberately pinched his waist to tease him.

Pei Muci was afraid of hurting her and did not dare retaliate, carefully restraining his strength.

Qing Wu knew his nature well. Encouraged, she became even bolder, as though demanding a little compensation for the hardship she had endured during the first half of the night.

She made such a commotion that Pei Muci caught both her wrists in one hand, pinching them between the base of his thumb and his palm.

He seemed not to be using much strength, yet Qing Wu could not break free no matter how hard she struggled. She was like a small beast that had wandered into a trap, baring its claws and fangs without possessing the slightest power to intimidate.

Leaning against the stone wall, Pei Muci looked at her with an air as clear and pure as snow, his expression seeming almost amused.

“Let go!” She stopped where she was and ground her teeth.

Though she said this, Qing Wu knew he would not obey so readily. She continued to exert all her strength, determined to pit herself against him.

When Pei Muci saw her face flush with the effort, he released his hold.

The sudden loss of resistance made Qing Wu lurch. She slipped downward before she could steady herself.

Pei Muci caught her beneath him, and the two of them froze at the same time.

A short, muffled groan escaped his chest, trailing into a long, low note.

Qing Wu trembled violently in response. An electric current seemed to shoot from her toes all the way to the back of her head.

It felt as though the wheel of a carriage had rolled over a stone in her heart. With a jolt, she tried to push herself upright from his lap.

His legs and body were covered in injuries. More importantly, she was worried that Pei Muci might still be uncomfortable with such closeness.

Before leaving that afternoon, she had already decided to use the method of gently warming a frog in water until it willingly remained in the palace. Now that matters had progressed this far, how could she abandon all her efforts?

What harm was there in enduring a little?

She could not make herself seem too impatient!

With that thought, she gripped his shoulder and struggled to rise.

Heaven knew how much of her patience it had taken to make that decision.

Just as she was about to escape that tender refuge, an irresistible force pressed her back down.

Pei Muci bent one knee, allowing her to sit down while leaning against his thigh.

Qing Wu felt as though her entire body had been set aflame. She was burning hot, yet soft and limp as if she might melt into water, and she nearly sprang back up.

She lowered her head. The view before her was so dazzling and chaotic that she did not know where to rest her eyes.

Pei Muci’s collar had fallen open, though it was impossible to say who had pulled it loose.

At such close range, his eyes were no longer as cold as before, yet neither did they reveal any other emotion. In their deep darkness, they reflected her slightly astonished face.

At the bottom of those unfathomable eyes, in a place no one could perceive, a tender gleam flickered past like a meteor crossing a silent sky.

He tilted his head slightly and quietly looked at her.

Pei Muci’s sudden movement had thrown Qing Wu off balance, but she quickly regained her composure. Instead of pressing herself against him as he had expected, she lowered her waist and supported herself over him in an even more provocative pose.

“What are you looking at?” She leaned close to the tip of his nose. “Do you think I’m beautiful?”

Her breath brushed across his lips, filling the cramped space with an intoxicating, heart-stirring intimacy.

Pei Muci watched her as her red lips opened and closed. He seemed to ponder seriously before pausing and nodding.

Qing Wu had not expected him to consider her offhand question so carefully, only to give such a simple answer. Her expression grew faintly sorrowful, and her voice took on a hint of grievance.

“Then why don’t you like me?”

She had treated him so well. Why was he still unwilling to remain by her side?

Pei Muci seemed to have been struck by a thunderbolt and abruptly raised his head.

A delicate pink, like the blush spread across the skin of a tender peach, colored the area around Qing Wu’s eyes. Moisture shimmered at their corners, yet there were no tears in them.

Pei Muci knew perfectly well that she was not someone who cried easily, yet when their eyes met, he still turned his gaze away.

A succession of bitter sensations surged through his throat, stinging until the back of his head went numb.

It was not that he did not like her.

He simply did not dare.

From childhood to adulthood, the word “like” had never appeared in his life.

Everyone he had wanted to draw close to, no matter how desperately he tried to please them, had eventually left him.

He did not answer or offer any needless explanation. He merely lifted her wrist and rubbed the back of her hand again and again with his fingertip.

It was impossible to tell what sort of circumstances had trained a woman with skin so smooth and delicate in the martial arts.

After asking her question, Qing Wu fell silent as well, but she did not evade the subject.

As though she knew what Pei Muci was thinking, she said abruptly, “I won’t.”

Pei Muci smiled lightly, as if he had not heard her.

“I mean it.” Qing Wu turned his face toward her and emphasized each word. “I will not leave you.”

His Adam’s apple moved. He raised his eyes, letting his gaze rest on the bridge of Qing Wu’s nose before cautiously sliding lower and settling on her parted red lips.