It had just rained, and mist swirled around the center of the lake, creating a white, hazy expanse that obscured clear vision.

In the water pavilion, Pei Xueqing only saw Shen Yuance’s mud-covered state clearly when he came near. She quickly pulled him inside and urgently examined his forearm, asking what had happened and how he could have fallen.

“I was riding a bit fast, who knew the road would be so slippery after the rain… What do they call it, a horse losing its footing?”

“You could have taken your time, why the rush?” Pei Xueqing led him to the beauty chair with furrowed brows, having him sit down properly.

Shen Yuance looked up at her: “I was thinking it’s the last time, I couldn’t keep Miss Pei waiting long.”

“What’s wrong with me waiting for you? It doesn’t take any effort for me to sit here and wait. Look at you—” Blood had begun to seep out from the edges of the scab that had just firmly formed, winding down his forearm. Pei Xueqing quickly retrieved medicine from her box to clean his wound. “Bear with the pain.”

“Why does it look like you’re the one bearing the pain?” Shen Yuance seemed to be observing her expression.

Only then did she notice that she had unconsciously bitten her lower lip.

“Of course I’m in pain; seeing you fall like this hurts me too.” Pei Xueqing held his wrist with one hand while using a cotton swab to wipe the blood from the scab on his forearm. She couldn’t help but bend down to blow gently on the wound. Suddenly, she felt his arm stiffen, and the person who always sat carelessly slowly straightened his posture.

She hadn’t thought much of it at first, but now realized she had been overly intimate with him and immediately released his hand.

Shen Yuance rubbed his robe with an unnatural expression: “It doesn’t hurt much, just that it will trouble you to… take care of me a while longer.”

Pei Xueqing also secretly rubbed her palm: “It’s my fault for choosing a rainy day, causing you to suffer again.”

“It’s not so bad. When I recover, you won’t have any more patients to treat. If I heal slower, you can practice your skills on me more.”

“What kind of talk is that? What doctor wishes for their patient to heal slowly?”

“Then are you hoping I recover quickly so that afterward this beautiful place will be yours alone?”

Pei Xueqing was caught off guard by his question. Looking into those black pupils gazing directly at her, she wasn’t sure if he was hinting at something, and felt inexplicably nervous.

“…Of course, I hope you recover quickly.” She hurriedly lowered her eyes and continued treating his wound, carefully examining the edges of the scab. “Fortunately, it’s not serious. It should recover in just a few days.”

“This isn’t serious? Just a few days to recover?” Shen Yuance asked in surprise.

Pei Xueqing was taken aback by his tone: “You don’t want to be injured for longer, do you?”

Shen Yuance crossed his legs and looked around the pavilion: “I find this place brings me luck. Every time I return from here, my gambling fortunes are especially good. Being injured a few more days might bring even more blessings from misfortune.”

During this period, he had softened considerably in her presence, but whenever he wanted to hide something, he would revert to that unruly, slick manner that acknowledged no relations.

A sudden suspicion rose in Pei Xueqing’s heart. She looked down at the mud stains on his robe and blinked inquiringly: “When you fell from your horse, besides your arm, were you injured anywhere else?”

“Even if I were, it wouldn’t be appropriate for you to examine.”

“In a healer’s eyes, there’s no distinction between men and women. If you’re injured, I can help apply medicine to all your wounds.”

“I’m not injured elsewhere.” Shen Yuance glanced away.

When people fall, they often instinctively protect themselves by using their hands to brace against the ground. But avoiding harm is also the body’s instinct. He had been injured for some time, and during this period, his movements should have adapted to avoid his vulnerable injured arm. If there were any other part of his body he could have used for support, he wouldn’t have relied on the injured arm. Even if he had to use the injured arm, he would have instinctively used his palm or elbow to bear the force. How could he have injured his forearm again so precisely?

Pei Xueqing looked at his eyes, which had moved away perhaps from guilt, and a suspicion gradually formed, making her heart pound.

But then she thought this suspicion was too absurd and silently suppressed this strange feeling.

Like encountering a burning hot coal that one dares not touch easily, she stopped her wild thoughts and ultimately did not voice her doubts.

That day, after treating his wound, Shen Yuance sat in the pavilion for half a day more. Before leaving, he asked when he should come again. She gave him a date as usual.

What she had thought would be the last visit was not the last. Though she wished for his wound to heal quickly, she inexplicably felt relieved.

The next time he came, Shen Yuance brought a military book. After she examined his wound and opened her medical book, he also sat across from her and began reading.

“What made you suddenly decide to bring a military book here to read?” she asked curiously.

“I’d be idle anyway. You’re reading your medical book every day, and I’m just making jokes here. Wouldn’t that make me seem unworthy of Miss Pei?”

Unworthy? It felt as if a soft feather had gently tickled her heart, making it float. She looked at him hesitantly: “How would you be unworthy…?”

“Then—am I worthy?” Shen Yuance’s eyes held a probing meaning.

Pei Xueqing’s gaze flickered under his stare, and she changed the subject: “Reading military books is a good thing. Just read in peace here.”

Shen Yuance let her divert the conversation: “Actually, my father says reading too many military books can make one overthink and be too cautious during actual combat, resulting in restraint. Military strategies then tend toward gentleness and conservatism. But I’m in Chang’an with no opportunity for actual combat. These books are the closest I can get to the battlefield.”

She saw a hint of unfulfilled ambition in his eyes and tried to comfort him: “The army needs cautious, conservative people to balance those who are reckless and aggressive. How could reading be a waste of effort?”

“My father said something similar. He initially didn’t support my immersion in military books, but later, for some reason, he said it was fine for me to be gentle and conservative, as it would complement someone else. I don’t know who he was referring to, perhaps some deputy general.”

“Living in silk and jade, not having to suffer at the border—am I being a bit ungrateful?” As he spoke, Shen Yuance seemed less bothered by the constraints of being a hostage in the capital. “If I were suffering beatings and training at the border like in my dreams, I might not have any aspirations to secure the nation.”

Pei Xueqing smiled: “So everything has two sides. The present isn’t so bad either.”

He nodded at her words and lowered his head to read.

The young man who was rumored to be idle was extremely focused when reading military strategies. When engrossed, he wouldn’t even notice her glancing at him. He would occasionally furrow his brows in deep thought or suddenly have a revelation, his face revealing whatever was in his mind.

Pei Xueqing discovered that while he might still conceal parts of himself from her, he was truly honest when facing military books.

A son of a military family with aspirations for the battlefield, yet confined to this square city, had given all his sincerity to these books that brought him closest to the battlefield.

Like her annotating medical books, he also wrote notes in his military texts, recording his thoughts and insights, though his handwriting was truly as ugly as chicken scratches.

He said his energy was limited. Having to deal with gambling houses and the academy teachers daily, he couldn’t expend effort on unimportant things. As long as the characters were legible, that was enough.

They shared the same inkstone, mostly reading their own books, occasionally looking up when tired to stretch their necks. When their eyes met, they would exchange a few casual words.

After several more such meetings, Shen Yuance’s injury truly could not be “prolonged” any further.

His wound had long since healed and no longer needed her to change the bandages. As a healer, she had nothing to do except take a glance. At first, he would always ask “when next time” before leaving, and she would go along with it, giving a date. But now the scab he had formed was almost falling off. This pretense was becoming increasingly thin, too thin to continue with the charade.

That day, as they each read their books in the pavilion, they suddenly heard rumbling thunder in the distance. Seeing the sky about to rain, she looked at the gathering dark clouds and said: “It’s going to rain soon. You might get wet riding your horse. You should head back earlier.”

Shen Yuance followed her gaze to look outside the window and asked: “When is the next time to check my wound?”

Amidst the rumbling thunder, she knew this accidental relationship had reached its inevitable end.

Even if they dragged it out, his scab would eventually fall off.

Pei Xueqing was silent for a moment, looking at his arm through his sleeve: “Your wound doesn’t need my examination anymore.”

Shen Yuance made a sound of acknowledgment, closing his military book, appearing disinterested.

“Be careful on your way back. Don’t fall like last time,” she said, putting on a serious face. “I don’t want to treat your wound again.”

“Oh.”

“If you want to—” Pei Xueqing mustered her courage and took a deep breath, “just read books instead.”

“What?” Shen Yuance looked up.

Pei Xueqing smiled: “No more wound checks, but we can continue reading books. Every time, I’ve set the date. When would you like to come here to read next time?”

Shen Yuance stared at her for a while: “I can decide?”

Pei Xueqing nodded.

“Tomorrow,” Shen Yuance blurted out. “Tomorrow I want to read books.”