"Although you may not understand what I'm saying now, I think it's necessary to explain. I'm not trying to take advantage of you. The situation is urgent, please forgive me." Xyliana's face flushed slightly as she spoke softly to the man on the bed.
She gently untied the branches and cloth strips binding his leg, then closed her eyes and reached toward his waist.
A pair of small hands searched beneath the man's body. After a while, she managed to treat the wound under him. She found a clean set of clothes from her wardrobe.
Xyliana blushed as she changed the man's clothes. Having lived twenty years, this was her first time being so close to a man. Recalling the moment when she caught a glimpse of his body while changing the dressing, a warm sensation flushed her cheeks.
"This man looks slender and delicate. I expected him to be weak, but his figure is actually quite good." Thinking about his fair skin and the warmth she had just touched, Xyliana's face turned red.
After realizing this, she shook her head and helplessly covered her cheeks, gently patting her forehead. "How can I be so powerless..." Seeing the bucket full of bloody water, Xyliana stood up and resignedly carried it to the kitchen to busy herself.
"After all this effort, when this little beggar wakes up, I'll definitely make him help me with some chores." While boiling water, she muttered quietly. She added a piece of firewood to the stove.
The wood crackled as it burned. Thinking of the countless wounds on the man's body and the painful expression when they first met... "Forget it, whatever happens, it's fate."
She added more firewood. The firelight illuminated her pale face, which revealed a gentle expression. The crackling fire and the boiling well water filled the small, exquisite kitchen with sound.
Inside the room, Xyliana mixed some freshly boiled water into a wooden basin filled with well water. She tested the temperature with her hand. Taking a clean cloth, she soaked it in the water.
The previous cloth was stained with blood and dirt and unusable. By candlelight, a pair of delicate white hands held the cloth, gently wiping the man's face. Because of treating the wounds, the herbal juice on her hands had already been washed off.
The warm, slightly damp cloth softly wiped the man's dirt-stained face. "This face is really dirty, but there aren't many wounds." Xyliana spoke softly as she wiped gently.
The water in the basin gradually turned murky again. By the candlelight near the window, a gentle and clear face slowly appeared. Xyliana was stunned and her hand stopped moving.
The man was incredibly beautiful. His skin was fair and delicate. His nose was tall and refined.
His full, moist lips were very enticing. His facial lines were smooth, neither overly feminine nor effeminate, but showed a handsome charm. His brows and eyes were extremely striking.
He had slightly upturned peach blossom eyes that should have been very captivating, but his handsome and gentle features balanced them with masculinity. His long, thick eyelashes trembled slightly, casting shadows in the candlelight.
One could imagine how mesmerizing his eyes would be when open. He exuded a calm, jade-like aura—a truly blessed appearance. Even in this land full of beautiful men, Xyliana had to admit.
This man had an otherworldly, peerless appearance. "Bright as morning light floating on water, calm as the gentle breeze brushing willow leaves." Perhaps nothing else could compare.
This person before her deserved to be called the most beautiful in the world. For a moment, Xyliana found herself unable to look away.
Night fell. A cool breeze blew through the window, bringing a chill that brought Xyliana back to her senses. She placed the cloth back into the basin to rinse.
Looking at the man's robe, which was torn short, contrasting with his perfect face and slender jade-like figure, it seemed somewhat comical and strange. "I should buy him some new clothes..." Xyliana thought.
She also recalled her dwindling supply of herbs and felt very troubled. Looking at the unconscious man... "I still need to gather some herbs from the mountain..."
After tidying everything, she picked up the basin and whispered. Unnoticed, the man's eyelashes trembled slightly on the bed.
He struggled to open his eyes. Through the haze, he saw the familiar figure often appearing in his dreams. "It's her... she saved me... she saved me again..."
His long, thick eyelashes fluttered. As her figure faded from his sight, his charming peach blossom eyes slowly closed in weakness. A single clear tear silently fell, tracing his fair skin and soaking the pillow in the shape of a beautiful flower.
He once thought it was only a dream. When the great dream ended, he forgot her face and name. It seemed as though everything about her was destined to be erased.
After all these years, he had imagined meeting her again countless times. Maybe it would be on a lively street, or by a beautiful river valley, or somewhere else. But he never imagined that when they met again, he would be in such a sorry state.
Trapped in a prison cart when he saw her, taken home by her like some pitiful stray. Even so, he had really waited for his moon. A faint smile slowly appeared at the corners of his lips.
A warm current surged through his chest, and that heart which had been quiet for so many years seemed to come alive again. The moon hung over the branches, and stars dotted the night sky. A shooting star slowly trailed across the horizon.
It was already late. Feeling tired, Xyliana yawned as she returned to her room. Lying on the bed, she stared at the canopy overhead.
Thinking of how much there still was to do tomorrow, she couldn't help frowning. "There's still so much to do tomorrow…" Sleep crept in.
Xyliana slowly closed her eyes. The sky was clear and cloudless. A crescent moon quietly hung on a branch.
Its bright light reflected on the well in the yard, scattering silver light across the ground. Morning came. Xyliana got herself ready and walked to the west wing.
The man lying on the bed had improved a little. After giving him some water, Xyliana packed some dry rations and carried her bamboo basket up toward Mount Qinghua. "Better hurry today."
Thinking of the person back at home, Xyliana made a note of it in her heart. The sun was blazing overhead. Xyliana carried several large bags of clothes and food back toward home.
"Not a single coin left after today's medicine." She looked at the packages in her hand and muttered softly. Luckily, in a few days the yamen would distribute this month's allowance.
By then, she would have a little more to spend. That thought gave her a bit of relief. Maybe in the whole of Yicheng, she was the only woman who depended on this allowance.
She looked up at the blue sky. The warm sunlight poured down. Life was not so bad except for the unconscious patient lying at home.
Just like that, a few days passed. Xyliana got up early to gather herbs from the mountains. At noon she cooked, and in the afternoon she sat in the yard to sort herbs, boiling medicine for the man at the same time.
Her days were regular enough. She just didn't know when the person in that room would finally wake up. Inside the wing room, Xyliana sat by the bed, washing the man's hair.
She changed the water three times, nearly using up most of her soap pods. She carefully wrung the wet hair dry with a cloth and changed the pillow towel. Only then did Xyliana take the dirty towel out to wash in the yard.
"This is the first time in my life I've had to take care of someone… sigh, forget it, saving someone should be done to the end." Under the shade of a tree, she washed the clothes while mumbling to herself. A breeze passed by, bringing a slight chill.
The leaves swayed, and the shadows on the ground moved with them. The sky was clear. It was truly perfect weather.
The days passed one by one. That noon, Xyliana returned to the courtyard with her basket, just like usual. She had gathered more herbs than usual today.
She thought of how the man's wounds had mostly healed, though there were still some serious ones that hadn't recovered. "Could it be that my prescription was wrong?" Xyliana murmured.
Lately, she had been trying to improve the medicine and even made some ointments to apply externally. It had been nearly half a month, but the man in the room still showed no signs of waking up. Xyliana began to grow anxious.
Her anger at those human traffickers surged again. "So many wounds... who knows how much torture he went through…" And that little beggar… how did he survive all of it…
Thinking about those dense, terrifying scars, Xyliana grew angrier. She had grown up in a peaceful era and had never seen anyone treated like that. Looking at the expensive scar-removal ointment in her hand, she felt a pinch in her heart.
She had only meant to heal the beggar's wounds. But somehow, whenever she looked at that stunningly beautiful face and the figure as graceful as jade, the hideous scars became even more unbearable to look at.
"Forget it, maybe I just can't stand seeing flaws on something so perfect." She whispered, as if to herself. She placed the herbs properly in the courtyard, then took the medicine in her hand and walked toward the west wing.
She lifted her foot and stepped inside. Xyliana froze in place. The room was quiet.
The bed was empty. The person who had always lain there, the one she had spent half a month nursing back to life, caring for carefully, was gone.