Their migration route was indeed heading toward higher ground.
Xiyi effortlessly lifted the entire bathtub with one hand while holding her with the other, his steps steady and relaxed.
If not for the obvious wounds on his chest and back, she might have thought he was completely unharmed.
Due to the issue with the snake carcass, they moved slightly faster than the previous day. However, because of the morning incident, neither of them had eaten. They hurried along until the sun began to set, when the faint outline of a river appeared in a sparser part of the forest.
Xiyi stopped there.
Sha Yi also felt exhausted and sat down on a rock to rest.
After trekking for most of the day under the scorching heat, she had pushed herself to her limits. For a modern person who was both starving and barefoot, this was nothing short of a miracle.
Noticing her fatigue, Xiyi set down their belongings, gently rubbed her ankles, and pulled the drowsy rongmo from the bathtub, placing it by her feet. Then, pointing toward the forest they had come from, he said something.
Sha Yi understood that he meant to go hunting and nodded in response.
He quickly disappeared into the woods.
Glancing at the rongmo, Sha Yi suddenly remembered she still had an unopened bag of potato chips.
She hadn’t felt hungry on the way, so she had completely forgotten about it. Now that she had stopped to rest, her stomach growled fiercely. If she was this hungry, Xiyi must be even worse off.
Sha Yi felt a pang of guilt but could do nothing about it. Xiyi was already busy hunting, so she decided to wait until he returned to give him the chips.
For now, if she could gather some firewood and start a fire, they might be able to eat sooner and continue their journey. After all, this forest made her extremely uneasy.
She arranged several stones into a small fire pit, then gathered plenty of dry branches and grass. Fortunately, after a full day of scorching sun, the wood was dry enough to ignite easily.
By the time the fire was burning steadily, Xiyi returned with a leaf-wrapped bundle of washed fruits and another of prepared meat.
It was the same rabbit-like creature as before. Sha Yi assumed these animals were easier to catch, had good meat, and were abundant.
When Xiyi saw the fire, though he had witnessed it before and even understood it to some extent, he couldn’t hide his astonishment. Only when he heard her stomach growling did he quickly hand her the leaf-wrapped fruits and motion for her to sit back on the rock while he took over tending the fire.
Sha Yi obeyed, eating two or three fruits in quick succession. Her stomach, which had been protesting for hours, finally settled a little.
By the fire, Xiyi carefully skewered pieces of rabbit meat onto several branches, then found two thicker forked sticks to prop on either side of the fire. He laid the skewered meat across them.
As he adjusted the flames, Sha Yi grabbed the bag of chips from the bathtub and sat beside him.
He seemed delighted by her gesture, glancing at her repeatedly as he worked. The firelight made his hazel eyes gleam even brighter.
Sha Yi found it amusing but said nothing, simply feeding him fruits and chips. He didn’t refuse—every time she offered, he opened his mouth obediently.
He ate quickly. Once the chips were gone, several fruits remained. Thinking they still had roasted meat to eat later, Sha Yi stopped feeding him and instead brushed the crumbs from his stubble, then wiped the corner of his mouth.
But as soon as she finished these small gestures, she regretted it—Xiyi was staring at her again, unblinking.
Flustered, Sha Yi tried to stand up, but Xiyi’s long arm shot out, his large hand gripping her waist. A powerful force yanked her sideways before she could even gasp, sending her tumbling down.
She felt like she had crashed down, but strangely, she didn’t feel any pain. Instead, Xiyi, whose chest her elbow had landed on, let out a sharp hiss—likely because she had hit his wound.
Realizing this, Sha Yi instinctively tried to scramble up, but Xiyi, ignoring the pain, tightened his grip around her waist. In the process, he nearly kicked over the roasting rabbit meat.
Sha Yi was speechless.
Xiyi’s usual behavior made him seem like someone who had grown up starved for affection, and his occasional shocking actions gave the impression he had never seen a woman before. Honestly, he seemed like the type who would prioritize women over his own life!
But Xiyi remained oblivious to her wild thoughts—and to the fact that his near-miss with the meat had annoyed her. Still clutching her despite his wounds, he refused to let go.
Sha Yi lost her temper. She jabbed his chest wound hard, and when he loosened his grip in pain, she slipped out of his arms.
The move left Xiyi stunned. He sat frozen for a long moment before straightening up with a wounded expression. After a few glances confirmed she wasn’t paying him any attention—instead heading toward the bathtub—he turned back to the fire with a sullen huff.
Sha Yi was actually searching the bathtub for clothes. When she had slipped out of his arms earlier, she noticed his back wound had partially reopened, likely from catching the rabbit and gathering fruits. In this weather, with injuries on his chest and back, she worried they might fester if not properly bandaged, risking infection.
After some rummaging, she settled on her pure cotton nightgown. However, she hadn’t washed it since wearing it in the modern world, so it needed cleaning before being used as a bandage.
There was a water source nearby. Though the afternoon sun wasn’t as intense, it would still dry a garment quickly. Considering everything, washing the clothes was feasible. Plus, after sweating all day, she longed to freshen up. The animal hide was unbearably hot—she’d much rather change into her own clothes.
With that in mind, she glanced discreetly at Xiyi. He was still tending the fire, looking rather dejected.
Sha Yi quickly fished out the only set of underwear from the bathtub, grabbed a short skirt, and tiptoed away quietly.
When she reached the water, she realized it wasn’t a lake at all—just a massive pit left by a fallen giant tree. It was deeper and wider than two bathtubs combined. Thanks to yesterday’s rain and its shaded location, the water level remained high, and it was remarkably clear and clean.
Relieved, Sha Yi set aside the padded bra and swiftly scrubbed the rest of her clothes before hanging them on a tree. Then she untied the animal hide and washed herself briskly in the tree pit. Finally, she leaned against the edge to dress.
Just then, she heard Xiyi calling her—he sounded frantic.
Sha Yi didn’t respond, speeding up instead. But she had only managed to put on the underwear when Xiyi appeared before her.
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