Mu Dai rushed over joyfully and threw herself into Luo Ren’s arms.

Luo Ren hesitated for a moment, looking down at her.

Mu Dai looked back at him. There were many things she wanted to say. Compared to when they were back home, Luo Ren was somewhat different now – darker, thinner, with a rebellious aura, his whole body radiating toughness, not gentle at all.

But no matter what, she was extremely happy, resting her head against his chest, her arms circling around him.

She heard Luo Ren say: “I must be dreaming.”

Dreams aren’t just chaos – some people solve problems in dreams, some compose poetry in dreams, and some deduce that they’re dreaming while in the dream.

He smiled slightly, seeming to sigh as well, his arms tightening around her waist, pulling her body against his. His hands slipped under the hem of her shirt, gripping the fabric. Before Mu Dai could react, he seemed to be helping her undress, pulling upward with a swift motion, but not actually removing it – when he had pulled it halfway up, he suddenly twisted it in a circle, exposing only her mouth and nose while covering her eyes and binding her arms inside.

Mu Dai’s vision went dark, her body instantly laid down, her spine touching the cold ground, causing her to arch slightly. Her waist suddenly loosened as Luo Ren undid her pants button and pulled downward, then with another twist, Mu Dai panicked and struggled wildly. The more frantic she became, the more chaotic it got – her arms couldn’t break free no matter what, and her legs seemed tied up, unable to escape.

Luo Ren’s weight pressed down on her. He kissed behind her ear, her neck, one hand pushing aside her bra, brazenly roaming across her chest.

Was Luo Ren treating her as some erotic dream? Mu Dai anxiously broke out in sweat on her forehead. Her body’s reactions kicked in, making her tremble and her lips go dry, but fortunately her consciousness remained clear. When Luo Ren kissed her lips, she steeled herself and bit down hard.

Taking advantage of his painful retreat, Mu Dai rolled over and sat up. Through her clothing, she vaguely saw his position, bent her arm and struck him hard with her elbow, then rolled away and stood up.

As soon as she stood, she stumbled from the pants that had been pulled down to her ankles. She staggered to steady herself, laboriously put her half-removed shirt back on, stepped out of her pants in a few motions, picked them up and threw them at Luo Ren: “Who told you to do that!”

She wasn’t averse to being intimate with him, but like this time, practically forced, with her eyes covered so she couldn’t even see, it made anger surge in her chest.

Luo Ren couldn’t hear her, but from her body language, he could tell she was angry. Looking down and seeing her pants wadded up in a ball at his feet, he bent down to pick them up for her.

The damp jungle wind blew over. She was barefoot with bare legs, standing there feeling rather chilly. Luo Ren came over, handed her the pants, smiled slightly, turned and went back to sit by the tree stump, propping up his gun. He nonchalantly blew on the gun barrel and took out deerskin cloth to clean it.

Mu Dai quickly straightened her clothes and walked over to kneel halfway in front of Luo Ren. He glanced at her with an expressionless face, but when Mu Dai tried to get closer to him, he quite rudely leaned back, tilted his head slightly, and held his gun horizontally between them.

He was being a bit temperamental – if you won’t let me touch, then I won’t touch, but don’t come provoke me either. Not serving you.

Mu Dai wanted to laugh, as if discovering another unknown side of him. Regardless of everything, she reached out and forcibly turned Luo Ren’s head to face her.

She said: “Some things I can do, but you can’t.”

Of course she couldn’t give in to him. If she did, it would just be a spring dream, and he would treat her as any random woman who entered his dream, using her to satisfy physical needs, then forgetting when he woke up.

That wouldn’t do. She was Mu Dai.

Mu Dai took Luo Ren’s hand.

Luo Ren seemed to find it amusing, so he let her.

Mu Dai pulled out the necklace from her clothes and guided Luo Ren’s hand to grasp the whistle with the pearl hanging from it.

Knowing he couldn’t hear her, she still spoke each word solemnly and seriously.

“Luo Xiaodao, I am your girlfriend.”

“Even if there are ten thousand possibilities, don’t fall in love with anyone else.”

“Not ‘don’t’ – ‘can’t.’ I’m not asking you, I’m commanding you.”

She said fiercely: “If you don’t find me, I won’t be polite to you. There’s no such thing as flirting with someone then going to find new lovers among ten thousand possibilities – no way.”

Luo Ren couldn’t hear, his brow slightly furrowed as his fingers rubbed against the whistle. This was a sailor’s whistle, with a clear, piercing sound that could penetrate the great winds and waves at sea. He remembered he had one, exactly the same, but didn’t remember ever hanging a pearl on it.

In the dark night, the lustrous pearl body had golden lines of light, like a woman’s gentle charm, with some familiar scent that definitely shouldn’t appear in the jungle, yet seemed familiar.

Mu Dai wrapped her arms around his neck and slowly leaned into his embrace. He couldn’t help but hold her.

Her body was slender yet soft and soothing. Quietly nestling against him, this embrace seemed specially made for her, fitting just right.

Mu Dai murmured: “Luo Xiaodao, you used to say you didn’t like hugging others because the chest and abdomen contain vital organs. If the person in your arms had ill intentions and stabbed you, that would be terrible.”

“Do you remember what I said then?”

She sighed softly, burying her head in Luo Ren’s neck.

His scent and his embrace were different from anyone else in the world. If it were her, even blindfolded without borrowing the slightest bit of light, she would still recognize him.

The person you love, the person you’re used to holding – your body, your sense of touch, your sense of smell should all have memories, reminding you that this one is different from all the countless others.

She guided Luo Ren’s hand to caress one side of her collarbone, where there was a knife scar, a tattoo, one that she had done – the initials of Luo Ren’s name.

Luo Ren’s hand stiffened for a moment. His fingertip slowly traced along the knife scar, then stopped, his burning palm slowly covering the wound.

Mu Dai looked gently into his eyes.

I can’t let you see my face, and I can’t let you hear my voice, but between lovers, the countless kinds of excitement and feelings aren’t only encompassed by sight and hearing, are they?

Luo Ren lowered his head and slowly kissed her lips.

Mu Dai closed her eyes.

His movements were very gentle, tender and slow, gradually deepening with inescapable force. The fine, moist breath of the jungle surrounded them. The wind blew, countless leaves rustling in unseen places, like the rise and fall of ocean tides, gentle sighs.

In a trance, she seemed to hear Luo Ren say: “My girl.”