The Slender Waist-Chapter 247 - 174: Falling into the Abyss (Double Update)

Chapter 247: Chapter 174: Falling into the Abyss (Double Update)

Feng Yun beckoned to him.

"Come and warm up," she said.

As Pei Jue approached, the cold air hit her face, making her sneeze involuntarily...

The wet clothes were uncomfortable against her skin, so she tugged at them and moved closer to the fire.

Pei Jue sat down and turned his back to her, the very picture of a gentleman.

All around was a chilling silence.

Feng Yun looked at his broad back, feeling this silence was the greatest insult to her status as "the most beautiful woman of the eight provinces in Xuzhou."

She slowly undressed her middle garment and found a thin, translucent scarf from her bundle, which wasn’t very warm.

But after roasting it over the fire, it dried quickly.

One layer of scarf could fend off a layer of cold.

She draped it over herself and immediately felt more comfortable and secure.

"General, you can turn around now," she said.

She hugged her arms around herself, satisfied with the coverage the scarf provided, oblivious to the peril of its semi-transparent allure...

The man’s dark eyes drooped downwards, landing on her.

She was too pale, her skin like jade, with the warm glow of the fire making her lightly flushed cheeks seem glazed. Her enticing eyes and fragrant beauty caught Pei Jue’s attention, his Adam’s apple subtly moved as he watched her, his pupils shifting uncertainly...

Feng Yun noticed his gaze and reined in her expression with a faint smile.

"I was just thinking back to when the horse got spooked. You could have easily got away unscathed, General, so why didn’t you do just that?" she asked.

If Pei Jue had not cared about her lying there asleep, he could have easily jumped out of the carriage without a doubt.

But he didn’t leave; he fell with the carriage, protecting her as they crashed.

She genuinely wanted to thank him properly.

Pei Jue, however, did not seek any accolades.

He simply said, "I was asleep."

Feng Yun thought about it and nodded, deciding not to press the issue, instead she leaned down and blew on her knee after lifting her trouser leg.

The movement drew attention to her fair, eye-catching skin, and Pei Jue looked away.

Feng Yun found it a bit funny.

Compared to their previous brushes with impropriety, the current state of affairs between them could be considered quite proper.

"My knee hurts," she said.

Pei Jue looked down at her.

Her exposed skin was dazzlingly white, but her knee was visibly swollen.

It seemed she had hurt it accidentally during the fall.

Seeing her face twisted in pain, Pei Jue pulled her leg towards him, placed it on his own knee, rubbed his palms together to warm them and had just placed them on her knee, not yet applying pressure...

"It hurts, it hurts, it hurts..."

Feng Yun cried out incessantly, unable to bear it, shaking her head.

"Stop touching it," she said. "The bone should be fine, it’s bound to hurt for a while, just leave it be."

She tried to pull her foot back, but Pei Jue held it firmly in place, not letting her move.

Her stockings had been removed earlier, and her water-soaked skin was pale pink and cold even by the fire.

Pei Jue gently rubbed it a couple of times, and Feng Yun shrieked in pain, "Ah!"

Pei Jue frowned and applied the ointment to her swollen knee.

"Endure it."

She was not tolerant of pain and her face contorted with the sensation. Seeing the man’s back scarred and fierce, she felt she was being too delicate and bit her lower lip to keep quiet.

Pei Jue looked up.

"Why aren’t you crying out anymore?"

Feng Yun: "Didn’t you tell me to endure it?"

Pei Jue was taken aback, "It’s okay to cry out if it hurts."

Feng Yun grimaced, "It wasn’t that painful to begin with."

If he hadn’t massaged it.

Her expression accused him as if suspecting Pei Jue was seeking some sort of revenge...

But Pei Jue’s brow furrowed as if he couldn’t bear to see her act so delicately, and suddenly, he changed the subject.

"When did you learn to imitate my handwriting?"

The abrupt change caught Feng Yun off guard, and she was suddenly reminded of that issue.

At the time, it was a quick decision to deploy troops, and now she was in a position where explanations were inadequate.

"It’s a natural talent," she said confidently, glancing at him and speaking with ease, "The Grand Tutor once praised me as a prodigy in my youth. Imitating your handwriting is nothing; if I want to, I can replicate anyone’s..."

She didn’t notice that while she was talking, Pei Jue had finished applying medicine on her knee and placed her leg back down.

He seemed to have no intention of pursuing the matter further.

"That’s it."

Feng Yun looked at her knee, which now appeared even more swollen, cast a reproachful glance at him, gathered the scarf over her shoulders, and bowed her head to disentangle her wet hair...

The two sat in silence, the stillness around them devoid of any sound.

Only the fire, from time to time, made a soft crackling noise as the branches burst.

Feng Yun was getting hungry.

Pei Jue took some food from her carriage, warmed it over the fire, and handed it to her.

The waterlogged jerky was soft and sticky; she ate two pieces and then refused any more.

Pei Jue then took it and silently began to eat.

Feng Yun sneezed again...

At first, she just felt a chill and boredom while waiting, her nose a bit itchy, nothing more.

But gradually, she realized something was wrong with her body.