Chapter Twenty

“Young Master Xu, you rest for a while, I’ll go find some food.” Zhang Meng handed the water-filled funnel to Xu Lu Cha, and turned to leave. Xu Lu Cha quickly grabbed her sleeve.

Zhang Meng looked down at his hand in surprise. Xu Lu Cha’s slender fingers quickly let go, and he spoke softly, “I’m not hungry.”

It was now noon, with the sun hanging fiercely in the sky. They had been traveling for over two hours, during which they hadn’t eaten much. Even if he wasn’t hungry, Zhang Meng was. After all, he hadn’t exerted much effort during the journey, while Zhang Meng bore the heavy responsibility of being a human crutch.

Zhang Meng said, “Don’t worry, I won’t go far. I’ll be back soon.”

Xu Lu Cha wanted to say something, but Zhang Meng had already turned and left. Xu Lu Cha’s beautiful eyes focused, and he quickly stood up, limping after her.

He absolutely would not allow her to leave him for a step. Even if she had promised not to abandon him, he wouldn’t completely trust her. The human heart is the most changeable thing.

Hearing a sound behind her, Zhang Meng looked back and indeed saw Xu Lu Cha silently following her. Although he tried not to put weight on his injured foot while walking, every time that foot touched the ground, he frowned and bit his lip in pain.

He looked quite pitiful.

Zhang Meng sighed, turned back and put his arm over her shoulder, supporting him as they walked towards the small stream.

“Young Master Xu, just sit on this rock and wait for me. I’m going to catch some fish.”

Zhang Meng set him down, pointing to a spot by the stream: “I’ll catch fish right there, and come back to roast them for you to eat.”

Xu Lu Cha let go of her sleeve and nodded slightly.

Zhang Meng turned, took off her shoes and socks, rolled up her pant legs, and went into the water.

Her calves were long and well-proportioned, her skin fine and white with a faint pink tinge. Xu Lu Cha was slightly stunned and quickly averted his gaze. Before long, he fixed his gaze on her again.

She had a tall, slender figure with a narrow waist, full chest, and long legs. Her waterfall-like long hair was loosely tied at the back of her head, rising and falling with her movements. Her neck was long and fair, her face gentle and beautiful. Occasionally she would purse her lips in a smile, bright and warm.

His heart suddenly beat a few times faster. He suddenly felt that person was somewhat captivating.

Before long, Zhang Meng came up with two palm-sized fish still struggling and flapping their tails, skewered on a sharp tree branch. She had hunted with Yang Qing for ten years and caught fish for ten years, so catching fish didn’t take much effort for her.

Zhang Meng gutted and cleaned the two fish. Then she set up a frame with tree branches for roasting the fish, and went to gather some easily flammable firewood.

Xu Lu Cha’s gaze never left her, whether she was catching fish, killing fish, or gathering wood and lighting a fire to roast the fish. Zhang Meng wanted to ignore it, but his gaze was too strong to disregard, so she had to look up and ask puzzledly, “Young Master Xu, why do you keep looking at me? It’s making me uncomfortable.”

Meeting Zhang Meng’s bright eyes, Xu Lu Cha quickly averted his gaze. He turned his back to her, his voice carrying a hint of embarrassment and annoyance: “Don’t flatter yourself. I’m not interested in you.”

Zhang Meng felt somewhat wronged: “I just wanted to ask Young Master Xu if there was something strange on my face? I didn’t think about it that way.”

Xu Lu Cha clenched his fist, not knowing why he suddenly wanted to take off his shoe and throw it at her face. He turned his back to her, unwilling to pay her any attention.

Seeing that he seemed to be annoyed, Zhang Meng didn’t speak to provoke him further, and instead quietly roasted the fish. Her fish-roasting skills were quite good, roasting the fish to a golden color, with the fish meat inside white and tender, giving off a fragrant aroma.

She stood up and walked in front of Xu Lu Cha, handing him the roasted fish: “Young Master Xu, please eat.”

Xu Lu Cha took the roasted fish, and Zhang Meng went back to continue roasting the fish that wasn’t yet cooked.

Xu Lu Cha looked back at Zhang Meng, his beautiful eyes showing a slight ripple.

To him, she was just a nodding acquaintance, not worth mentioning. Why did she have to go to such lengths for him? Clearly, her injuries were worse than his, yet she found food and drink for him, and whatever she found, she always gave to him first, only eating herself after he had finished.

A few days ago, he had wanted to torment her to death, so why could she still be so kind to him without bearing grudges? Was her kindness to him sincere, or did she have some ulterior motive?

Zhang Meng saw that Xu Lu Cha hadn’t eaten the roasted fish and was staring at her again, so she hurriedly urged him: “The roasted fish should be eaten while it’s hot, otherwise it will cool down and become fishy, and won’t taste good.”

Such clear and bright eyes, without any impurities. Xu Lu Cha lowered his head to avoid her gaze and lightly bit into the roasted fish.

She was really selfless, or perhaps foolish. Even knowing what kind of person he was, she could still treat him like this. Wasn’t she afraid that after they got out, he would turn on her and find people to deal with her again? After all, she had seen him in such a sorry state, and given his personality, he wouldn’t be grateful to her.

Zhang Meng took the roasted fish off the wooden frame, blew on it a few times, and took a small bite. The flavorless roasted fish was quite difficult to eat. She ate a few bites, feeling that the wild fruits were more palatable, so she stood up, intending to go pick some wild fruits. When she was catching fish earlier, she had seen some bright red wild fruits not far away.

“Where are you going again?”

A faint voice came from behind. Zhang Meng paused, then turned back to Xu Lu Cha and reluctantly said, “I’m going to scoop some water for you to drink.”

The roasted fish might be a bit unpalatable, but she could bear with it. She was afraid that if she said she was going to pick wild fruits, Xu Lu Cha would follow her again. Not only would he suffer, but she would too. It was better to save some energy, as they still had to continue their journey later.

“Young Master Xu, the water is here. Drink when you’re thirsty.” Zhang Meng scooped clear spring water with newly picked leaves and placed it beside Xu Lu Cha.

Xu Lu Cha nodded slightly. He looked up at Zhang Meng’s back, the glaring bloodstains on her light-colored clothes making him feel a bit uncomfortable. He even saw new blood seeping out. But he still didn’t say anything.

······

“Young Master Xu? Is there really nothing on my face? Or are there leaves in my hair or something?”

Zhang Meng supported Xu Lu Cha as they traveled. She kept feeling a very strong gaze fixed on her, and she couldn’t bear it anymore. She raised her head and indeed saw Xu Lu Cha looking at her intently with his head lowered.

She and Xu Lu Cha made eye contact for a moment, and Xu Lu Cha quickly averted his gaze, but Zhang Meng didn’t intend to let him off. She asked somewhat anxiously, “Did I get smudged by charcoal on my face? I haven’t turned into a black face, have I?”

As she spoke, she hurriedly set Xu Lu Cha down, preparing to run to the stream to check her reflection.

Xu Lu Cha quickly grabbed her sleeve. He didn’t look at her and spoke with some irritation, “There’s nothing wrong with your face. Your hair is fine too.”

Zhang Meng looked at him puzzledly: “Really? Then why do you keep looking at me?”

“Who wants to look at you? You’re not money.” Xu Lu Cha let go of her sleeve.

Zhang Meng felt utterly baffled. Xu Lu Cha’s anger seemed to come out of nowhere, and she didn’t know how to comfort him.

Perhaps it was just an illusion. Xu Lu Cha wasn’t staring at her. They were very close. He was tall, so he was just lowering his head to look at the road, and his gaze happened to pass over her face.

Zhang Meng helped Xu Lu Cha up again and continued to support him as they traveled. That strong, present gaze was gone. Zhang Meng occasionally looked up at him and saw that he had turned his face to the side, his eyes looking outward, seemingly unwilling to look at her at all.

Zhang Meng cleared her throat: “Young Master Xu, I was wrong earlier. I misunderstood you. You should stop looking outside and lower your head to watch the road, lest you fall.”

Just as Zhang Meng finished speaking, Xu Lu Cha seemed to step into a hole and fell forward. Zhang Meng hurriedly pulled him back, but it aggravated the wound on her back. A sharp pain shot through her, and her hand lost strength. She fell down along with Xu Lu Cha.

Although Xu Lu Cha served as a cushion, she was still stunned by the fall. She got up and sat to the side, asking anxiously, “Young Master Xu, are you alright? Did you bump anything?”

Xu Lu Cha turned over, lying on his back on the ground, his face slightly red. He propped himself up with one hand, sat up, and glared at Zhang Meng with his watery beautiful eyes.

Seeing that Xu Lu Cha seemed to be fine, Zhang Meng helped him up: “It’s good that Young Master Xu is alright. You really should watch the road when walking.”

······

Although Zhang Meng had lived in the mountains for ten years, when she lived with Yang Qing, she had never gone down the mountain. Therefore, she wasn’t very familiar with the foothills. She had thought that following the stream for a day would lead them out of this valley. However, when the sun set, she still hadn’t seen a way out.

Zhang Meng crouched by the stream, washing the fish she had just gutted. Xu Lu Cha sat on a rock, holding a wooden stick, gently poking at the fire.

Zhang Meng skewered the fish on sharpened tree branches and walked to the opposite side of Xu Lu Cha, placing the fish on the roasting rack.

“Young Master Xu, let’s rest here tonight and continue our journey tomorrow.”

Xu Lu Cha nodded absent-mindedly. He poked at the fire for a while, then couldn’t help but glance at Zhang Meng sitting opposite him.

In the firelight, her face appeared even more delicate and gentle. Her lips were slightly parted. Her eyes were bright, as if all the stars in the sky were contained within them.

His gaze moved downward, fixing on her full chest. He thought of how earlier in the day, her chest had pressed against his back, unbelievably soft.

He had previously only found women’s chests disgusting, but now he realized that he didn’t actually loathe them as much as he had imagined.

He looked up again, glancing at the person opposite him. Just then, that person raised her head to look at him. Their eyes met, and he could see her beautiful features more clearly, especially those beautiful eyes. Those eyes were dark and bright, seeming to possess a kind of magic that held his gaze captive.

“Ahem, Young Master Xu, is something wrong?” Zhang Meng looked behind herself and asked, “Or is there something behind me?”

Xu Lu Cha averted his gaze: “It’s nothing.”

Zhang Meng looked at him puzzledly. Seeing that he seemed a bit uncomfortable, she didn’t press him further. She turned the roasting fish and casually chatted: “I feel like Young Master Xu has become a bit strange, as if you’ve become a different person, becoming so quiet.”

Xu Lu Cha looked up at her and spoke: “I’m not a talkative person to begin with. Since you already know my true nature, I won’t pretend in front of you anymore.”

Zhang Meng was stunned for a moment, then smiled, her eyes curving: “Then Young Master Xu’s true personality is quite cute.”

Although he was often silent or inexplicably angry with her, she still felt that compared to his previous fragile and melancholic self, it was more comfortable interacting with him now. Because with his previous self, she felt she couldn’t tell when he was happy or angry, as if he was always wearing a mask.

Xu Lu Cha’s beautiful eyes stared at Zhang Meng for a while, and he unconsciously asked, “Cute?”

Zhang Meng nodded: “I quite like Young Master Xu this way.”

······

Deep in the night.

Xu Lu Cha lay on his side, his head resting on his arm, staring intently at the sleeping figure not far away.

Never before had a woman treated him so wholeheartedly and devotedly.

Even Chen Cheng, who claimed to love him desperately, had no actions beyond a few sour and mushy verbal expressions of love, and often accepted his financial support. As for Qian Mu, Qin Long and others, they either coveted his body or his small schemes. Even when they were kind to him, it was with a condescending attitude of bestowing favors. And other women of some reputation, even if they professed to admire him, only knew how to buy him gifts. They might indeed have been sincere towards him, but it made him feel contempt and disgust.

Yet he didn’t feel disgusted by that person’s kindness towards him.

☆、