The system's words struck Qi Huan like a bolt of lightning from a clear sky.
The corpse lying close by was caked with thick, black mud on its face, but its form was identical to Shu's.
She had promised to bring him jujube cakes, hadn't she?
It couldn't be Shu.
It couldn't be, she was so familiar with him.
She had originally only wanted to come and confirm it.
Yet the system's words "lying close by" shattered all her rationality and intuition.
The system had never been wrong.
Realizing this, Qi Huan felt as though all her strength had been drained away, and she collapsed back into the mud, two streams of silent tears rolling down her cheeks.
Her heart felt like it was being tightly gripped, needles piercing it densely, the pain almost suffocating her.
Tears fell like beads slipping off a broken string, endlessly cascading down, as she clenched her lips, refusing to let out a sob. Stumbling, she pulled herself up and staggered forward.
The system was about to explain when it was suddenly forced to shut down. It was only then that it realized that people who are extremely heartbroken can actually faint.
Fortunately, the person it had said was "lying close by" had already caught the host.
Holding her in his arms, Li Shuchen's expression was coldly frozen as he flew home with her.
With a kick, he flung open the courtyard gate, where Yan Wu and Yan Qinghe, who had been kneeling in the courtyard pondering their mistakes, quickly looked up with concern.
Half an hour earlier.
When Yan Wu and Yan Qinghe returned, Heizi limped up to greet them, but Qi Huan was nowhere to be seen.
The air still held a faint trace of a bloody scent, and they were worried when Li Shuchen returned carrying jujube cakes.
He had originally been gentle and light-hearted, but the moment he learned that Qi Huan was missing, the smile in his eyes instantly froze, his expression darkening like still water.
His gaze, as cold as tempered ice, shot towards the two of them, and Li Shuchen's voice was ominous: "How dare you leave her alone at home?"
Yan Wu immediately knelt down, admitting his mistake, and pulled the still stunned Yan Qinghe down to kneel as well.
Afterwards, they were left behind to wait for Qi Huan, or rather, for the "kidnappers" to send word. Li Shuchen took Heizi and Yan Jiu to pursue her.
Traces of dark red blood still remained in the cracks between the bluestone bricks of the courtyard, and they waited anxiously.
Fortunately, the Prince brought Miss Qi back.
Yan Wu breathed a sigh of relief and quickly got up, expertly going to mix warm water in the bathroom.
Yan Qinghe went to summon a doctor.
As for Yan Jiu, he picked up the hero who found Qi Huan - Heizi - and turned to find a veterinarian.
Inside the room, Li Shuchen removed Qi Huan's raincoat, only to find that her inner clothing was also stained with mud and water.
He called out to her, but she didn't wake up.
Seeing her flushed face, Li Shuchen felt her forehead, his palm feeling her burning fever.
At night with the cool, damp weather, and her clothes soaked, Qi Huan had caught a chill.
Li Shuchen called out to Yan Wu: "Go fetch that vegetable."
To bring it over and help change Qi Huan's clothes.
"Yes."
Yan Wu turned to find his junior apprentice, Qing Cai.
No matter how fast he moved, Li Shuchen still felt time passed too slowly.
His own robes had also been dampened from holding Qi Huan, the cool fabric clinging uncomfortably to his body.
Before Yan Wu returned, he called out to Qi Huan a few more times, but saw her brow furrow tightly, as if in extreme distress.
Li Shuchen's long, pale hand rested on her belt, and he said softly, "Qi Huan, if you don't wake up, I'll have to help you remove your clothes."
Qi Huan woke up.
The orange candlelight fell on Li Shuchen's face, making him look somewhat unreal.
Qi Huan pinched his waist, and when she didn't see him react in pain, she thought she must be dreaming.
But the feeling of her cold limbs and dizzy weakness didn't seem like a dream, so she pinched herself hard, instantly bringing tears to her eyes.
Coming back to her senses, she immediately hugged Li Shuchen tightly, feeling his slightly cool body temperature, and her taut nerves slowly relaxed.
"Qi Huan, since you're awake, go take a bath and change into clean clothes first."
But Qi Huan clung tightly to him, not wanting to let go for even a moment.
Stroking the back of her head, Li Shuchen's tone held a hint of helplessness: "Qi Huan, be good."
Seeing her still stubbornly hugging him, Li Shuchen simply picked her up and carried her to the bathroom.
"Will Qi Huan undress herself, or shall I help you undress?"
As he spoke, his slender fingers touched her belt.
Qi Huan quickly pushed him away, but then added reluctantly, "After bathing, I still want to hug you."
Only by embracing him, feeling his real body warmth, could she feel at ease.
The memory of that lifeless corpse lying cold on the ground would then fade from her mind.
Li Shuchen nodded, setting her down on the round stool beside the wooden tub, then turned and went out to wait.
Removing her damp clothes, Qi Huan stepped onto the stool to climb into the bath, but her sprained ankle caused her trailing leg to slip, and unable to steady herself, she fell into the tub.
Hearing the sound of her fall, Li Shuchen rushed in without a second thought and lifted her from the floor.
Then, with a downward glance, he quickly averted his gaze.
His cool palms pressed against the burning softness of her bare skin, and Li Shuchen swallowed hard, telling himself now was not the time.
Afterwards, his steps faltering slightly, he walked out into the courtyard, listening to his pounding heartbeat.
Inside, Qi Huan's face burned crimson red.
Lowering her gaze to admire her fair, delicate skin, she nodded in satisfaction.
But she still needed to eat more, putting some meat on the areas that should have more curves.
After dressing, she propped up her injured foot and hobbled out of the bathroom door, leaning against the wall.
After a while in the cool night air, Li Shuchen's expression had returned to normal, and he came over, scooping her up and carrying her to the heated bed platform.
His fingertips stopped an inch from her slightly swollen cheek.
A pang of pain hit Li Shuchen's heart as he asked, "What happened?"
"There was a thief in the house who beat me up. But I've already taken my revenge and used a 'treasure' to capture them."
"I'm sorry."
Li Shuchen's voice deepened, feeling he had failed to protect Qi Huan.
"There won't be a next time."
"Shu, you don't need to feel guilty, it had nothing to do with you. Besides, I can protect myself. From now on, I'll work harder to grow stronger as soon as possible."
Qi Huan's head felt a bit dizzy, and after a pause, she continued:
"I know that when you love someone, you can't help but want to protect her, to shelter her under your wing.
But I don't want to be a burden to you, I want to be an added bonus.
Although my abilities aren't strong enough yet, I'll continuously 'accumulate spiritual power' and become a more formidable little fairy, an equal match for you.
The path is long but by persevering, we will eventually encounter our better selves!
Gazing at her sparkling eyes, Li Shuchen gently kissed her fluttering lashes.
His eyes seemed to hold a pool of spring water, gentle and doting: "Okay, let's work hard together."
Hearing this, Qi Huan smiled with her eyes curved.
After speaking, she felt a little drowsy. Her bodily sensations told her that she was running a fever.
Earlier, she had already taken ibuprofen, and the instructions said that it was both a pain reliever and fever reducer.
Qi Huan settled back into bed and closed her eyes, softly saying: "Shu, your little fairy needs to sleep now."
"Sleep well."
Li Shuchen tucked the covers over her, and when the doctor arrived, he carefully noted the doctor's instructions for treating the sprain. He applied a cold wet towel to her injury and urged Yan Qinghe to go and brew some medicine.
*
After a few days of rest and recuperation, Qi Huan finally felt much better.
She had Li Shuchen move two armchairs into the courtyard so they could sit together under the eaves, basking in the warm afternoon sun.
Heizi nestled beside them, lazily grooming his fur.
While playing with Li Shuchen's long, slender fingers, Qi Huan said:
"Shu, that day at the logging camp, I saw a corpse wearing a long robe with wide sleeves, and his build was very similar to yours. I almost thought it was you."
Li Shuchen turned to look at her, a slight ripple in his eyes: "Those clothes were a gift from me."
