At that moment, he suddenly began trembling violently, his teeth chattering uncontrollably. The intense shaking aggravated his wounds, making his suffering increasingly unbearable, evoking a sensation of being trapped between life and death where neither escape nor relief seemed possible. He nearly gritted his teeth to dust. Xianglan leaned over him, holding him tightly while murmuring softly in his ear, though he couldn’t make out her words. Soon, the trembling gradually subsided, but before long, another wave of convulsions seized him. Clenching his jaw, he endured it, feeling utterly drained and helpless. Only Xianglan, cradling him in her arms, rubbing his face and hands, breathing warm puffs of air, and reciting phrases like "Amitabha Buddha" and "Guanyin Bodhisattva" as if chanting scriptures for him, offered any solace. Straining to listen, he grasped at the faint vitality in her voice. After several such episodes, he was completely exhausted, yet his innate toughness remained—he refused to utter even a groan.
At some point, he finally managed to speak, his voice hoarse and broken, as he comforted her: "No... it's nothing serious... Back when I fought in Liaodong... after freezing stiff, once my body warmed up again, I’d get these chills..."
He seemed to hear Xianglan let out a relieved sigh, choking out the words, "Bodhisattva be praised." Summoning all his strength, he pulled her down to lie beside him. She was too exhausted to resist, only hearing Lin Jinlou’s raspy voice say, "What’s done is done—no use dwelling on it. Life and death are fated." After a pause, he added, "Rest awhile. You’ve endured much hardship today. I..." He squeezed her shoulder but couldn’t continue, instead shifting painfully to wrap her in the cloak covering him. Xianglan carefully arranged the clothing over them both and draped a thin blanket over their faces. Just then, Lin Jinlou’s hand covered her ears as he whispered, "Sleep. I’ll keep watch for an hour, then you can take over." Xianglan mumbled an acknowledgment and fell asleep the moment she closed her eyes.
Lin Jinlou pulled the blanket from his face and lay on his back, gazing at the sky. The reeds above swayed gently, and the moon at the horizon flickered in and out of view. With the sounds of battle absent from his ears, this small reed marsh felt like the entire world. His body ached too much for sleep, so he decided to let Xianglan rest properly. He glanced down at the woman nestled against his side, her head tucked under his arm. Proud of his discernment and experience with people, he found himself unable to see through this Xianglan. In the Lin family mansion, he had worn down her sharpness and pride bit by bit, like taming a hawk. She had gradually quieted from her once-defiant stance, yet an unyielding stubbornness remained deep within her. Over time, even that stubbornness seemed to dissolve, as if she could swallow any suffering or humiliation. But in her silence, she had transformed differently from before—her defiance and pride vanished, replaced by a composed and resilient grace. On this stormy, freezing night of repeated crises, it was she who had single-handedly sustained half his life, proving braver and more tenacious than any man.
Lin Jinlou lay there with his eyes open, staring at the sky, lost in thought, though no one could tell what occupied his mind.
As dawn tinged the horizon with pale light, Lin Jinlou woke Xianglan. She sat up, rubbing her eyes vigorously, then untied the Brocade Pouch from her waist. Opening it, she retrieved a crumbled piece of pastry and nudged Lin Jinlou, saying, "Eldest Master, have something to eat before sleeping again." She held the pastry to his lips. Lin Jinlou, eyes closed, took a bite and chewed extremely slowly, as if forcing down the nausea to swallow it. Weakly, he muttered, "Damn it, it’s dry and hard, cloyingly sweet—worse than stale steamed buns."Xianglan said, "It's so cold, eating something sweet would be better. Have a few more bites."
Lin Jinlou frowned and took another bite, swallowing slowly before opening his eyes. "Where did this pastry come from? You should have some too..." He froze when he saw Xianglan's face, reaching out to gently touch her cheek. "Does it hurt?"
Xianglan was taken aback. She touched her face and only then realized it had swollen. The touch sent needle-like pain shooting through her, and she suddenly remembered being struck by the tall, thin man last night. In her panic and the freezing cold, half her face had lost all sensation. She shook her head. "It doesn't hurt."
Just as Lin Jinlou was about to speak, he suddenly raised his crossbow, his eyes fixed intently on the reed marsh beside them. From within the reeds emerged Zhao Yuechan's face. Her hair was disheveled, she was wrapped in a cloak, and she looked utterly wretched and miserable, a far cry from her former heavily made-up, charming appearance. Yet she could not conceal her stunningly beautiful face, though her eyes were red and swollen, her expression icy, her lips pale from the cold, exuding an indescribable despair.
Lin Jinlou was startled, furrowing his brows in surprise. "Zhao Yuechan?"
Zhao Yuechan said quietly, "It's me." After a pause, she added, "Fate plays cruel tricks. I never thought I'd meet an old acquaintance here. I recognized you both last night."
Lin Jinlou asked Xianglan, "Why is she here?"
Xianglan whispered, "Last night, someone robbed their carriage and horses. Her brother died, and she..." She glanced at Zhao Yuechan and trailed off vaguely.
Zhao Yuechan suddenly let out a sharp laugh. "I'm doing just fine! Just fine!" She laughed a few times but couldn't hide her sobs, then suddenly began crying and cursing simultaneously. "What am I afraid of! What am I afraid of! At worst, it's just like I've been with men for nothing... Pah! Beasts, all of them!... Those who bullied me, those who owe me, I'll make them pay a hundred, a thousand times over! Pah! Beasts! May they be cut to pieces, die without a burial place! Die without a burial place!" She cried and cursed, occasionally breaking into giggles, her weeping growing increasingly violent.
Lin Jinlou seemed to understand. After a long silence, he said calmly, "You know very well how Furong died. This is your retribution."
Zhao Yuechan shuddered all over, tears streaming down her face. She rocked back and forth with laughter, like a madwoman, and asked Lin Jinlou, "Are you satisfied now?"
Lin Jinlou didn't respond, retracting the crossbow in his hand and turning his face away, ignoring her.
Zhao Yuechan covered her face with her hands. Her crying eventually turned into muffled sobs, her body trembling, the sound of her weeping intermittent and barely audible.
Xianglan sighed. She loathed Zhao Yuechan to the core and had never thought of revenge. Upon seeing her again, she only wanted to stay far away. But now, witnessing her in this state, Xianglan felt a softness in her heart, finding Zhao Yuechan both detestable and pitiable, a tragic figure.
After crying for a while, Zhao Yuechan suddenly wiped her face and stared at the pastry in Xianglan's hand, her voice hoarse. "Could you... give me something to eat... I..."
Without hesitation, Xianglan took a piece of pastry from the Brocade Pouch and handed it to her. Lin Jinlou frowned. The situation was still unclear, and they didn't know how long they would be trapped here. Every bite of food was as precious as pearls. By then, Xianglan had already lowered her head and fed the remaining half of the pastry to Lin Jinlou. Lin Jinlou stared at Xianglan's face and ultimately said nothing, but gently squeezed her hand.Zhao Yuechan held the pastry for a long while without speaking, as if murmuring some words of gratitude, but her voice was too faint—it swirled briefly in the northwest wind before vanishing entirely.
Lin Jinlou ate the pastry and, unable to stay awake any longer, sank into a deep sleep. Xianglan reapplied the medicinal ointment to his wounds, noting that while the gashes on his shoulders had stopped bleeding, the arrow wound on his chest remained severe and deeply troubling.
Zhao Yuechan sat with her back turned to them just a few steps away, the silence between them stretching unbroken.
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