Chapter 9: Touching the Belly?

Sha Yi struggled a few times to no avail, growing increasingly frustrated. Unable to hold back, she muttered under her breath, “You brute! Do you even realize how much it hurts when you use so much force?”

The man clearly didn’t understand her words, pausing only briefly when she spoke. Once she finished, he rested his chin against her neck again, nuzzling her restlessly.

The sensation made Sha Yi squirm, but she couldn’t break free. All she could do was let out a soft “Ow.”

Almost as soon as the sound escaped her lips, the man instantly released her and abruptly sat up, looking down at her with visible concern.

Too flustered to face him directly, Sha Yi rolled over, turning her back to him.

After sitting in silence for a while, the man eventually lay back down. A long stretch of quiet passed before he, too, turned over.

A strong arm reached out again, pulling her back into his embrace—this time with much gentler force, half cautious, half tender.

Sha Yi didn’t resist. At this point, she couldn’t be bothered to care anymore. It was just sleeping in his arms for one night, after all.

But the man had other ideas. Pressed tightly against her back, his rough hand began sliding slowly down her waist.

Sha Yi stiffened, her hair standing on end as she instinctively grabbed his wrist.

The sensation of her soft, delicate skin sent a shiver through him, nearly making him abandon his intentions. After steadying himself, he took a deep breath and continued downward with a firmness she couldn’t stop.

Panic surged through Sha Yi. What on earth was he trying to do?

Fortunately, his hand stopped at her lower abdomen. He simply explored the area, the heat of his touch seeping through the thin animal hide, making Sha Yi increasingly uncomfortable.

Just as her patience was about to wear thin, the man suddenly pressed lightly against her stomach. Sha Yi’s lips twitched, her irritation instantly replaced by a suffocating frustration that nearly made her choke.

Was he studying her anatomy?!

She fumed inwardly, but the man wasn’t done. He flattened his palm and pressed down several more times, each press growing firmer.

Sha Yi felt like she was being bruised internally.

With hands that large and strong, she was convinced a few more presses would make her period arrive early.

Enraged, she smacked his hand away, sat up abruptly, and kicked him.

The man didn’t make a sound. Surprised, Sha Yi glanced down and found his brown eyes unusually bright, completely unfazed by her retaliation. Instead, he gazed at her with an almost intoxicated satisfaction.

Grumbling, Sha Yi reluctantly lay back down—only to find that he had already positioned an arm beneath her neck. The moment she settled, he immediately pulled her close, holding her gently.

At a loss for words, Sha Yi retaliated by draping a leg over him. Unfortunately, her petty revenge backfired, earning only a muffled chuckle from him.

The man seemed endlessly tolerant of her temper, as if her tantrums were nothing more than harmless fluff.

After a moment’s thought, Sha Yi tugged the small animal hide covering her and draped some of it over him. But the gesture only resulted in his arm sliding down to her waist, pulling her even tighter against him.

Too exhausted to argue, Sha Yi gave up. She was utterly drained.

…

When she awoke, daylight had already broken, and the massive stone blocking the cave entrance had been moved aside.

The man was nowhere to be seen.

Stepping outside, she spotted him at the foot of a small hill, fiddling with something. Just as she was about to call out, he noticed her.

He waved her over.

As she approached, he handed her a bundle of fruit wrapped in leaves. Sha Yi accepted it and sat on a rock to eat.

The weather looked grim—overcast, as if a light rain had passed. The air was thick with humidity, the heat unrelenting, carrying a stifling heaviness reminiscent of modern autumn fog or the prelude to a thunderstorm.

After eating a few wild fruits, Sha Yi finally noticed what the man was doing: he was attempting to start a fire by drilling wood. Beside him lay a pile of ashes and a large leaf holding several pieces of raw meat—likely rabbit, similar to what they’d eaten the night before.

Clearly, he intended to roast the meat, but the fire refused to ignite.

Sha Yi recalled from nature documentaries that ancient people used friction-based fire-starting methods, but because it was so labor-intensive, they often preserved embers from natural wildfires.

The previous night, after she’d bathed, he’d already had the rabbit roasted—meaning he must have kept a fire going. His current struggle suggested he hadn’t managed to preserve the embers properly.

Glancing at the ashes, Sha Yi felt a pang of guilt.

Her antics the night before had kept him busy—tending to her, gathering herbs for her wounds, and even injuring himself in the process. He’d had no time to tend to the fire.

Now, with no strong sunlight for solar ignition and the air saturated with moisture, even the driest wood would be damp. Friction fire-starting was nearly impossible under these conditions.

She watched as he worked tirelessly, the branch beneath his hands slowly wearing down, producing only the faintest wisps of smoke.

With everything so damp, there was no chance of ignition.

She was powerless to help.

The man persisted, but Sha Yi, still seated on the rock, knew it was futile. Without preserved embers, sunlight, or a forest fire, he’d never succeed.

She walked over and stopped him. He looked puzzled, but she didn’t bother explaining—language barriers made it pointless. In this weather, resting was the only sensible option.

Sweat dripped from his brow from the effort. Heart aching, Sha Yi cupped his face and gently wiped it clean. Delighted, he immediately forgot about the fire, wrapping his arms around her waist instead.

Sha Yi froze.

Apparently, the maternal tenderness inherited from her mother had become a weapon in this wild man’s hands!

This near-two-meter-tall savage couldn’t keep his hands to himself whenever she showed him kindness. She couldn’t decide whether it was her own excessive softness or his deep-seated loneliness and need for affection.

Trapped in his “clutches,” Sha Yi had no choice but to humor him. She twisted awkwardly to grab the remaining wild fruits from the rock and offered them to him.

Still holding her waist, he made no move to take them, as if embracing her was sustenance enough.

Resigned, Sha Yi fed him the fruit herself. This time, he obeyed, opening his mouth whenever she brought a piece to his lips.

But before she could finish, the skies opened without warning, unleashing a sudden downpour.