His voice was hoarse as he called out, “Mosheng…”
Lu Mosheng could feel the intense heat surrounding her, enveloping her completely.
Just as the atmosphere grew more intimate, a knock sounded at the door.
“Brother Jiayan, you haven’t eaten lunch yet, so I brought you some food.”
Lu Mosheng pushed Song Jiayan away from her and straightened her gauzy dress.
Song Jiayan went to open the door. Bai Xing stood outside, holding an enamel basin filled with vegetables and steamed buns.
“Thank you for taking care of Jiayan during this time,” Lu Mosheng said from behind Song Jiayan.
Bai Xing turned her head and saw Lu Mosheng standing behind him. Her skin was so fair that it looked as delicate as powdered porcelain. Bai Xing couldn’t quite describe Lu Mosheng’s beauty. She only knew that Lu Mosheng was different from every other woman she had ever met.
She was so beautiful that she looked as though she had stepped straight out of a painting.
An inexplicable sense of disappointment welled up inside Bai Xing.
“It’s nothing,” she replied. “Brother Jiayan has helped my family a lot, too.”
Song Jiayan took the enamel basin from Bai Xing and handed her the money for the meal.
“There’s no need to bring me food anymore,” he told her.
Bai Xing immediately panicked.
“Why, Brother Jiayan? Is my cooking not good enough?”
Before Song Jiayan could answer, Lu Mosheng said coldly, “Of course, that’s not it. I’m here now, so I’ll be the one cooking for your Brother Jiayan from now on.”
Bai Xing bit her lower lip reluctantly.
“Th-then, Brother Jiayan, if you ever need anything in the future, just let me know.”
After saying that, she turned around and hurried away.
Lu Mosheng left the small hut’s door half-open, allowing a faint breeze to drift inside. She and Song Jiayan sat beside a small table in the hut.
Song Jiayan transferred most of the vegetables from the enamel basin into a clean bowl and placed it in front of Lu Mosheng.
“You must be starving after that long journey. Eat a little more.”
Looking at the vegetables in the basin, Lu Mosheng frowned.
Song Jiayan seemed to remember something and added, “It’s a little plain, but just make do for today. Tomorrow, I’ll go up the mountain and catch some wild game for you.”
Lu Mosheng looked at him in disbelief.
“Is this what you eat every day?”
The enamel basin contained nothing but wild greens, with barely a trace of oil. They looked as though they had been boiled in plain water.
Song Jiayan answered simply, “As long as it fills my stomach, that’s enough.”
Every month, Song Jiayan sent money home. Sometimes, he even bought Lu Mosheng Snowflake Cream, lipstick, and other cosmetics.
He had saved that money by scrimping and saving on his own meals, yet Zhao Xiuli and his younger sister always managed to pocket it for themselves.
Thinking about this, Lu Mosheng said, “Now that I’m here, you don’t need to send money home anymore.”
Song Jiayan gave a soft hum and nodded.
“Also, I mean it. From now on, I’ll cook for you.”
Song Jiayan paused at her words. Lu Mosheng knew what he was thinking: she couldn’t cook at all.
However, he didn’t ask any questions and simply replied, “All right.”
After finishing their meal, Lu Mosheng asked Song Jiayan to take her to see the land he had contracted.
Song Jiayan had planted a vast stretch of Scutellaria baicalensis, a medicinal herb commonly known as Chinese skullcap.
The herb was traditionally used to clear heat, dry dampness, purge fire, detoxify, stop bleeding, and help prevent miscarriage.
As far as the eye could see, the entire field was covered in Chinese skullcap plants. However, they all looked wilted and droopy, as though they were suffering from a lack of nutrients.
Song Jiayan’s farming efforts had not gone smoothly. Lu Mosheng remembered that he had spent a long time figuring out the proper techniques just to grow Chinese skullcap successfully.
After inspecting the field, Lu Mosheng returned to the small hut. She rummaged through the bag she had brought with her and took out a jade bangle her grandmother had left her.
She gently bit her fingertip and let a drop of blood fall onto the jade bangle.
In the next instant, a brilliant white light suddenly appeared before Lu Mosheng’s eyes.