This time, Hua Yan didn’t smell a heavy scent of blood, but she felt that Lu Chengsha’s injuries were much worse than before in the underground palace.
He leaned against the stone wall, eyes closed, channeling his inner energy to heal his wounds, without even sitting outside.
Hua Yan didn’t dare to disturb him. She rummaged through her medicine pouch, found some medicine for internal injuries, and handed it to Lu Chengsha.
Lu Chengsha took it and swallowed, then remained still.
Hua Yan continued to cook her rock sugar pear water, occasionally glancing at Lu Chengsha.
She always felt that practicing martial arts shouldn’t be like this. The other disciples of Tingjian Manor all had a regular routine: getting up early to practice in the training grounds, receiving guidance from their martial uncles, and occasionally sparring. She saw Lu Chengzhao and Lu Chengyang doing the same. Even though Hua Yan tried to comfort herself that perhaps Great Hero Lu was exceptionally gifted and different from them, she still felt disheartened.
His grandfather was too ruthless!
Hua Yan had just taken a look outside. The mountaintop was a scene of devastation, as if after an avalanche.
She suspected that Lu Chengsha’s internal organs were in a similar state. However, whenever she wanted to check, Lu Chengsha refused to let her, not even allowing her to remove his clothes. He was extraordinarily stingy, even lying to her, saying he was fine.
Thinking about this, she glanced at Lu Chengsha again.
Lu Chengsha’s face was pale, as if even the last trace of blood had been drained. Although his complexion hadn’t been rosy these past few days, today it was the worst.
Hua Yan pouted, feeling a bit of pity.
The rock sugar pear water was ready. She cooled it a bit and tasted it, finding it not sweet at all. She had specially used morning snow water to make it.
Seeing that Lu Chengsha wouldn’t stop for a while, Hua Yan decided to sneak back to Tingjian Manor.
The manor was orderly and bustling as usual, contrasting sharply with the solitude of Lu Chengsha on the mountaintop. No one knew, and no one cared, whether he was always alone, healing his wounds on the mountaintop.
In an instant, Hua Yan was overwhelmed with an impulse.
She wanted to burn down the entire manor.
Of course, such thoughts quickly faded. She was just imagining it.
Good people don’t kill and set fires.
Hua Yan slipped into the kitchen of Tingjian Manor again. It was far from mealtime, and the kitchen was empty. Hua Yan grabbed a chicken from the poultry pen in the courtyard, killed it, plucked its feathers, drained its blood, and then, by feeling, added some seasonings and ginger, throwing it all into a pot to stew.
Her father’s health was poor. Her mother had tried many elixirs and remedies, but none could save him.
In the end, her father smiled and comforted her mother, saying, “Life and death are destined. To live a life without regrets is enough. Though I, Zhou, did not achieve fame or bring great benefit to the people, I have a loving wife, a clever daughter, and live without want. This life is enough.”
Her mother, who had never shed a tear and always lived fearlessly, couldn’t help but hold her father’s hand and cry like a little girl at that moment.
After that, her mother’s hands, once used only for killing, were now used to slaughter various poultry and livestock. She even pulled Hua Yan along to make various nourishing soups for her father, tirelessly and without complaint, even making Buddha Jumps Over the Wall once.
Now, Hua Yan could barely remember, relying on her instincts to recall.
After all, it’s nourishing soup, it should be good for the body.
She felt truly distressed but couldn’t curse Lu Chengsha or his grandfather in front of him.
As she stewed the soup, time passed. Hua Yan, carrying the pot, returned to the mountain to continue stewing. To her surprise, Lu Chengsha was still sitting there healing his wounds. She had gone down the mountain and come back, yet Lu Chengsha remained motionless.
It wasn’t until Hua Yan started feeling drowsy that Lu Chengsha slowly came out of his healing state.
He glanced at the sky, dazed, and asked, “How long has it been?”
Hua Yan rubbed her eyes and said, “I don’t know… Ah, the chicken soup should be ready! You’ve suffered internal injuries and need nourishment. Come and taste it!”
Lu Chengsha watched as Hua Yan fumbled to find a bowl and serve him the soup, feeling a bit at a loss.
The charcoal stove was still burning, so the soup was naturally hot. Hua Yan even put a tender, cooked chicken leg in his bowl, her expression a mix of pride and excitement as she urged him to taste it.
Hua Yan looked at him eagerly. “Is it good?”
Lu Chengsha held the bowl and spoon, looking at the girl’s face so close to his, feeling an even stronger sense of unease.
He hesitated to take a spoonful.
It felt like a dream, but such scenes didn’t even appear in his dreams.
Hua Yan urged, “Drink it quickly, or it won’t taste good when it cools! Uh… Is it too hot? Should I blow on it for you?”
Lu Chengsha seemed to wake up suddenly. He finally took a spoonful and put it in his mouth.
He wanted to tell Hua Yan that he’d suffered countless such injuries since he was young, that it wasn’t serious, and he didn’t need to nourish himself. A few days of rest would suffice. But as the words reached his lips, he couldn’t bring himself to say them.
Lu Chengsha quickly drank half the bowl of soup and said, “It’s good.” After a pause, he added, “Did you make this?”
Hua Yan was startled. “How did you know? Great Hero Lu, you’re amazing!”
With that, she served herself a bowl.
The taste was light, not rich enough. She had stewed it for so long, yet it was far inferior to what her mother used to make.
Hua Yan’s head drooped immediately, and she muttered softly, “Is it because it doesn’t taste good that you could tell right away it was me who made it…”
Lu Chengsha quickly shook his head. “No,” he tried to explain, “it’s different from before.”
Hua Yan became increasingly dejected. “…Of course, it’s different. The chefs from your kitchen made it before; it was definitely much better.”
At this point, Lu Chengsha found it really hard to explain.
He genuinely thought this soup was better than any he’d had before.
So, he said, “I’ll drink it all.”
Then Hua Yan watched as he took the pot from the stove, blew on it gently, and, as if drinking fine wine, gulped down the entire pot of soup in one go.
Hua Yan was stunned and reached out to stop him. “Don’t burn yourself!” But Lu Chengsha was too quick. She hurriedly added, “…Stick out your tongue and let me see!”
Seeing that Lu Chengsha was indeed fine, she felt relieved and couldn’t help but laugh.
Who proves the soup tastes good by drinking it all at once?
Great Hero Lu was so silly.
But his silliness was quite endearing, making Hua Yan laugh out loud, clutching her stomach as she fell to the side.
Lu Chengsha didn’t understand why she was laughing, but seeing her happy made him feel peaceful as well.
When Hua Yan finally stopped laughing, she heard Lu Chengsha ask, “What do you want?”
Hua Yan blinked, puzzled as to why he suddenly asked this. “I don’t really want anything.”
However, Lu Chengsha seemed a bit troubled. “Nothing?”
Hua Yan thought for a moment. “Maybe the ninth volume of ‘The Heroic Chronicles’. I wonder when the bookstore will release it. The writer is so slow…”
Lu Chengsha was taken aback. “What’s that?”
Hua Yan was surprised. “You’ve never read popular tales? ‘The Heroic Chronicles’ is very famous. Every bookstore and stall has it displayed in the most prominent spot. I thought everyone knew about it!”
Lu Chengsha genuinely didn’t know.
Hua Yan immediately pulled out a book. “I only have the eighth volume here, haven’t finished it yet. But each volume can stand alone. It’s about Hero Shang roaming the martial world. It’s really interesting! My father loves it too!”
Lu Chengsha was confused.
Hua Yan generously shoved the book into his hands. “I’ll give this one to you. You can read it whenever you want! I’ll just buy another one for myself later!”
At this moment, Lu Chengsha felt rather troubled.
He had intended to ask Hua Yan what she wanted, but in the end, she gave him something instead.
After finishing the soup, his complexion looked better than before.
Hua Yan thought for a moment, then dug out a few jars of wine she had buried in the snow a few days ago, taking one and warming it on the charcoal stove.
Due to her family’s poor tolerance for alcohol, she herself did not drink.
Her mother, however, loved it very much. Whenever her old ailments flared up, she would drink a few jars and tell Hua Yan that the pain would go away after drinking. She even tried to entice Hua Yan to drink with her, saying that a holy maiden of the demon sect should know how to drink!
Unfortunately, when Hua Yan drank, she would get as drunk as her father and act wildly.
Her father, when drunk, would get poetically inspired, as if possessed by the spirit of a poetic immortal, holding a wine jar and declaring he wanted to go to the moon to drink with Chang’e. This would anger her mother, who would grab him by the collar and demand, “Tell me honestly, who is Chang’e?”
Hua Yan, on the other hand, due to her martial skills, was more destructive when drunk. When she woke up, she would see the place in complete disarray, with miscellaneous items like headscarves and belts in her hands from who knows where. Her father would hold his head in embarrassment, her mother would be indifferent, Yu Ye would go around appeasing people, Xie Yingxian would laugh almost to the point of actually turning into a fox, and Qi Xiusi would silently direct people to clean up the mess.
After that, Hua Yan stopped drinking.
However, Great Hero Lu should be fine. Drinking some wine can warm him up, and at least his complexion won’t look so terrible.
Hua Yan handed the warmed wine to Lu Chengsha.
Without even asking, Lu Chengsha opened the jar and took a swig. After one sip, he realized something was off and turned to Hua Yan. “What is this?”
“It’s wine. Haven’t you had it before?” Hua Yan asked.
Lu Chengsha replied, “No.”
Hua Yan then realized he might truly have never tried anything. No wonder when she asked him if he had any likes or hobbies from his childhood, he thought for a long time and still shook his head. His past seemed to consist only of eating, sleeping, and practicing swordsmanship.
Having never experienced much, how could he have preferences?
She pondered for a moment and said, “Great Hero Lu, of all the things I’ve taken you to do before, is there anything you particularly liked?”
Lu Chengsha tilted his head back, drank the wine in one go, and placed the jar aside.
Upon hearing her question, he recalled the definitions Hua Yan had explained to him and said, “I liked all of them.”
Hua Yan found this answer too vague. “Be more specific!”
Lu Chengsha, unable to be more specific, thought for a while and added, “I liked doing every single thing with you.”
Hua Yan blinked and, for some reason, felt her face flush.
She poked the charcoal in the stove with a pine branch. The fire burned vigorously, crackling loudly, and the dancing flames cast flickering shadows on the stone wall, mirroring the fluctuations of Hua Yan’s heartbeat.
To cover her embarrassment, she placed another jar of wine on the stove to warm.
Suddenly, the two of them fell into silence.
Lu Chengsha, unsure why she had suddenly gone quiet, thought he might have said something wrong.
So, he asked, “What about you? What do you like?”
This was a topic Hua Yan could usually talk about at length, but now she abruptly changed the subject. “How was the wine just now? Do you feel a bit better after drinking it?”
Lu Chengsha’s face was already slightly flushed from the wine.
He thought for a moment and said, “…I think so.”
Though the taste was peculiar, it did warm his body slightly, making him feel cozy and a bit light-headed.
“Then, have another jar!” Hua Yan said enthusiastically.
Moments later, she handed the second warmed jar of wine to Lu Chengsha.
Lu Chengsha drank the second jar of wine in one go, just like before.
When it came to the third jar, he began to feel dizzy. Even though he tried to use his internal energy to suppress it, he couldn’t stop his mind from becoming scattered.
Seeing him blinking continuously, Hua Yan realized what was happening and reassured him, “Great Hero Lu, I think you’re getting a bit drunk. For your first time drinking, getting drunk after three jars isn’t bad at all!”
Lu Chengsha’s speech was already slightly slurred. “Drunk?”
Hua Yan nodded. “It’s a normal reaction to drinking too much alcohol. But don’t worry, sleep it off and you’ll be fine!”
Great Hero Lu handled his alcohol well, she thought. Even drunk, he didn’t react excessively.
As she was thinking this, Lu Chengsha suddenly reached out and grabbed her arm.
What?
Hua Yan was startled. Was Great Hero Lu going to hit her?
Before she could think further, Lu Chengsha pulled her towards him forcefully.
Hua Yan stumbled and practically fell into Lu Chengsha’s arms. Her front pressed tightly against his shoulder, her chest against his.
At this moment, Lu Chengsha released her arm but tightened his grip around her back, holding her so tightly it was hard to breathe.
Hua Yan was stunned.
The tips of Lu Chengsha’s hair brushed against her cheek, tickling slightly, and she could feel his hot breath mixed with a hint of alcohol against her ear.
Her chest was a bit uncomfortable from being squeezed, but the sound of their heartbeats was clear and distinct.
Whether it was hers or Lu Chengsha’s.
Hua Yan stayed frozen for a while before she remembered to struggle.
But Lu Chengsha was incredibly strong. She couldn’t break free and could only shout in his ear, “Great Hero Lu, Great Hero Lu?”
However, Lu Chengsha didn’t respond.
Before long, she heard the sound of even breathing near her ear.
He had fallen asleep.
Hua Yan was dumbfounded.
Wanting to sleep after getting drunk was normal, but Great Hero Lu had never had a habit of needing to hug something while sleeping before!
And hugging her like this, sitting and sleeping—wasn’t it uncomfortable?
She slightly turned her head, then quickly turned it back.
She felt the distance was too close; any closer, and her lips would brush against Lu Chengsha’s face.
Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Lu Chengsha’s thick, dark eyelashes, obediently covering his eyelids, dense like a small fan.
Hua Yan felt a headache coming on!
In her entire life, only her mother had held her like this, but the feeling was completely different. Maybe it was the alcohol, but Lu Chengsha’s body was unusually warm, and his cool pine scent became more pronounced. With her struggles proving futile, Hua Yan could only feel her own face turning red.
What should she do?
She thought, blushing.
After a while, Hua Yan realized that Lu Chengsha was truly in a deep sleep.
In the past few days, Lu Chengsha always went to bed later and woke up earlier than she did. Hua Yan sometimes wondered if he ever slept at all.
Now, this was the first time she had seen him sleep so soundly in front of her.
Hua Yan sighed and finally decided to give in.
It was rare for Great Hero Lu to have a good sleep.
She could only sacrifice herself a little.
Hua Yan carefully moved her legs, found a slightly more comfortable position in Lu Chengsha’s embrace, leaned against his shoulder, and even rubbed her chin a bit before falling asleep herself.
Behind them, the flames of the charcoal stove flickered, casting a warm red glow.
Lu Chengsha’s embrace was even warmer than the fire.
When the sky brightened, Lu Chengsha woke from his slumber, feeling as though he hadn’t slept this well in a long time.
Still groggy, he saw a small head resting on his shoulder.
Then he realized he was tightly hugging something in his arms.
Lu Chengsha was stunned.