Li Miaomiao came out of the kitchen, changed the water in the bucket containing the intestines and other offal once more, then washed her face and feet before entering the room.
Xiao Xian lay motionless on the bed. She only glanced at him before blowing out the tung oil lamp and climbing into bed.
She had been exhausted from going to the market that day and soon fell asleep.
Li Miaomiao had always been a light sleeper. In the middle of the night, a faint, fragmented sound of labored breathing startled her awake. There were only two people on the bed—herself and Xiao Xian—so it was obvious where the sound was coming from.
Rubbing her eyes, her voice thick with drowsiness, she asked, “What’s wrong with you?”
Xiao Xian did not answer. Only the suppressed, beast-like groans slipping from his throat betrayed his pain.
Seeing that he wouldn’t speak, Li Miaomiao quickly got out of bed and lit the oil lamp. The moment the light flared up, she froze in shock.
Xiao Xian lay there, his face pale as snow, covered in dense beads of sweat. His long hands pressed tightly against his legs, the veins on the backs of his hands standing out clearly.
Having never encountered such a situation before, Li Miaomiao felt at a loss.
Seeing him clutching his legs, she didn’t need to think to guess that his leg ailment had flared up. She hurriedly used her sleeve to wipe the sweat from his face.
Taking a deep breath to steady herself, she asked, “What should I do to help you?”
His brows were tightly furrowed, and the warmth once in his dark eyes was gone. Like a wolf driven into a corner, he stared at her fiercely.
Through clenched teeth, he said word by word, “None of your business.”
The violent aura radiating from him made it seem as though this was his true nature. After spending several days together, Li Miaomiao already knew he wasn’t as harmless as he appeared.
Suppressing her anger, she reached to lift his pant leg—only to have her hand slapped away.
Her calf struck the tea table, and a sharp, needle-like pain shot through her body. She was already sensitive to pain; this blow made her eyes redden instantly.
Xiao Xian closed his eyes again. Aside from an occasional muffled groan, he lay rigid on the bed like a puppet.
Clearly, he intended to endure it on his own.
Seeing this, anger surged straight to Li Miaomiao’s head. She adjusted her breathing, strode over, and grabbed his hand.
She wasn’t made of clay to be pushed around.
Her voice, crisp and no longer gentle, rang out: “You’re obviously in pain yet you insist on toughing it out. Flesh is connected to bone and sinew—pain can kill! If you keep forcing yourself like this, you might lose your chance to stand again. If it gets worse, it could even cost you your life.”
Xiao Xian’s lips were bloodless. He paid no mind to her words and said coldly, “Then let me die.”
Those words nearly made Li Miaomiao explode. She had died once before; no one treasured the chance to live more than she did. She understood better than anyone how easy death was—and how hard it was to live.
“You want to die? Fine, I’ll grant your wish.”
With one hand, she seized his wrist; with the other, she reached toward his lower body.
That action made Xiao Xian snap his eyes open. He stared at where her hand rested, his face dark as storm clouds.
Through gritted teeth, he demanded, “What are you doing?”
He struggled to wrench his hands free, but Li Miaomiao was in a fury. She was already strong, and with him weakened by pain, she managed to subdue him.
Gripping his wrists tightly so he couldn’t break free, she began untying his waistband with her other hand.
Hearing his furious question, she snorted. “Don’t you want to die? I’ve grown this old and never tasted what a man is like. I’ve heard it’s best to take advantage of someone when they’re weak. I’ll give it a try before you die.”
She left no room for dignity, trampling his pride into the dirt.
From falling from a high position to seeing his entire household executed, even when others insulted him, he had always dealt with them in his own way.
Since being exiled, he had never suffered such humiliation.
And now, this crude woman before him dared to disgrace him while he was in the throes of his injury!
His cold, harsh shout burst out: “Li Miaomiao, you’re courting death!”
Hearing his icy voice, she did feel a flicker of fear—but she was already committed. There was no turning back.
If she retreated now, it would be even harder to persuade him next time his leg flared up.
“That’s right. I am courting death.”
Tilting her head to look at his usually refined yet now frost-cold face, she sneered and said word by word, “Even if I die, I’m going to sleep with you.”
In the next instant, Xiao Xian, enraged, tore one hand free and lunged to grab her throat.
The last time he had gripped her waist, she had personally experienced how strong he was. If he grabbed her neck, that would be disastrous.
In a flash, she tried to seize his hand but missed.
As his large hand reached toward her, she grabbed at him in retaliation. Xiao Xian was furious enough to want to kill her—he had never seen such a shameless woman.
As they struggled, her hand suddenly caught hold of something.
Instantly, Xiao Xian’s ears flushed red.
The air froze. An awkward tension filled the small room.
There was a sudden twitch, startling Li Miaomiao into releasing her grip at once. Her hands dropped to her sides, clutching the hem of her clothes helplessly.
Turning her gaze to the man as cold as ice, she forced an awkward smile.
“I’m sorry. I… I didn’t mean to.”
She had only wanted to force him to tell her how to treat his leg. Though she couldn’t summon a doctor in the middle of the night, at least there might be something to ease his pain.
But he seemed bent on dying, refusing all reason—so she had fought fire with fire.
And things had gone wrong.
If it had been anyone else, Xiao Xian would have killed them already. He looked at the woman who seemed like a child admitting her mistake and said only one word.
“Get out.”
The woman pursed her lips and replied with a single word as well.
“Oh.”
Getting out was impossible. If he didn’t tell her what to do, she wasn’t leaving.
Seeing her standing stiffly by the bed, Xiao Xian closed his eyes, choosing to pretend he couldn’t see her.
Watching him feign sleep again, Li Miaomiao grew annoyed. She sat on the edge of the bed, staring at his legs, reaching out her hand and pulling it back repeatedly.
After several attempts, she finally withdrew her hand and simply kept staring.
She didn’t believe that under her burning gaze, he could keep ignoring her.
And indeed, she succeeded. His long eyelashes trembled incessantly, and the hand that had tried to choke her twitched as though wanting to move again.
Seeing the hand resting on his leg trembling, Li Miaomiao puffed out her cheeks, then pressed her lips together.
A trace of pity rose in her heart. His leg must hurt terribly for his hand to shake like that.
The longer she stared, the less embarrassed she felt. She looked openly, confidently, fearlessly.
Someone, however, couldn’t endure it any longer.
Didn’t she want to help him?
He refused to believe that once she saw the ruined legs hidden beneath the cloth, she would remain as persistent as she was now.
“Use boiled water for a hot compress. It can relieve the leg pain.”
A hot compress?
Just thinking about it made Li Miaomiao wince in sympathy.
She frowned, coughed lightly, and said, “Then wait here. I’ll boil some water.”
After boiling the water and ladling it into a bucket, she added a few scoops of cold water into the pot, afraid it wouldn’t be enough, and kept it warm over a small fire.
Then she pulled a cloth from the wooden rack, tossed it into the bucket, and carried the bucket back into the room.