noffsinger Chapter 330 Affection Arises, Dedicated Care
Chapter 330 Affection Arises, Dedicated Care
She kept her head down the whole time, and whenever her fingertips occasionally touched his skin, it felt like touching scalding water.
Afu kept his eyes closed the entire time.
His eyelids would tremble slightly at every movement Princess Qiulan made.
Her ears were so red they looked like they were about to bleed, and she didn't dare open her eyes at all.
After Princess Qiulan helped him put on his trousers, she reached for his shirt to put on him, but her gaze fell on the wound on his chest and shoulder.
The wound was so gruesome that it made her heart clench, and her eyes instantly welled up with tears.
She couldn't help but reach out and gently brush her fingertips along the edge of his wound, her movements as delicate as if she were afraid of breaking a piece of jade.
Afu felt a cool fingertip touching the wound on his chest.
He slowly opened his eyes and instantly met Princess Qiulan's gaze.
The air at the scene seemed to freeze.
He noticed that Princess Qiulan's eyes were red and tears were welling up in them, and he assumed that what happened last night had hurt her.
Ah Fu's voice was weak and intermittent.
"Princess Qiulan, I'm so sorry, it's all...it's all my fault..."
Before he could finish speaking, Princess Qiulan reached out and gently covered his mouth.
"Zichao, you don't need to apologize."
Although she said this, there was still a barely perceptible sob in her voice.
"I know what happened last night wasn't your fault."
She lowered her eyes, her long eyelashes glistening with tiny teardrops.
"Last night, I couldn't control the burning sensation inside me, which is why I ended up like this."
She slowly released her hand, her fingertips trembling slightly as they touched the edge of Afu's wound once more.
The flesh there was turned inside out, a horrifying sight.
Tears finally streamed down her face, dripping onto Afu's clothes and leaving a small, dark stain.
"You risked your life to save me, so I'm the one who should be apologizing."
"No..." Afu was about to argue when she was gently interrupted.
"You're injured, so don't talk so much and just rest."
Princess Qiulan gently helped him put on his shirt, tying the ties with care, as if afraid of aggravating his wound.
After everything was settled, she said to Afu, "You rest for a while, I'll go outside and get some water."
Before Afu could respond, she stood up.
Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through her lower body, causing her to sway and nearly fall over.
Her cheeks immediately flushed red, and she understood what the pain meant.
After what happened last night, she has transformed from a girl into a woman.
Princess Qiulan is actually twenty-four years old, three years older than Afu.
Princess Qiulan didn't get married because Liu Xinhao doted on her too much.
Liu Xinhao had already begun arranging various husbands for her when she was eighteen years old.
Princess Qiulan had absolutely no intention of getting married.
Liu Xinhao tried to coax and deceive her, but in the end, he still couldn't do anything about it.
As this girl gets older, I wanted to arrange a match for her last year.
But man proposes, God disposes; the earth dragon turned over, causing a plague to break out.
Princess Qiulan's choice of husband can only be postponed for the time being.
Then, his own eldest son, the eldest prince Liu Yao, actually poisoned him.
Princess Qiulan bit her lip, enduring the discomfort, bent down to pick up the broken pottery jar that had been placed aside the night before, and turned to walk towards the door.
His back view carried a hint of haste, as if he was trying his best to hide his physical discomfort, as well as an indescribable shyness and panic.
The morning sunlight slanted across the open space in front of the door.
The air outside was filled with the fresh scent of dewy grass, so crisp and refreshing that it sent a shiver down my spine.
Princess Qiulan held the broken pottery jar in her hand, her fingertips tracing the rough surface of the pottery as if touching Afu's wound.
The wound on his skin was gruesome and terrifying, with the flesh turned outwards.
The thought of it made her heart clench as if something were gripping it.
She walked slowly along the ridge of the field. The soil under her feet was damp and soft, covered with morning dew, and she stepped on it silently.
The sound of the stream not far away was crisp and clear, as if it were whispering something.
She knelt down by the stream and immersed the earthenware pot in the water. The cool water washed over her fingertips, calming her chaotic thoughts slightly.
Her image was reflected in the water; her cheeks were still flushed, and although the tear tracks in her eyes had faded somewhat, they were still clearly visible.
She gazed at her reflection in the water, sighed softly, and felt a lump in her throat.
Last night's surge of heat finally overwhelmed her reason, leading her to do such an outrageous thing.
Looking back now, I feel my cheeks are still burning, and even my ears feel like they're on fire.
She didn't blame Afu, and even had a vague understanding deep down that if Afu hadn't been seriously injured and unable to resist, things might not have come to this.
But precisely because of this, she was even less able to face him honestly.
One is a princess in distress, and the other is a young hero who risked his life to protect her. They were already worlds apart, and now they are entangled in this relationship. They don't know how to proceed.
"No, I can't let my mind wander like this." She shook her head vigorously, trying to dispel the chaotic thoughts in her mind.
"It's too late to regret now. Since... since I'm already his, I should just accept it."
But the thought was quickly suppressed by another kind of fear.
She is currently being hunted down by her own brother, the emperor, and carries the imperial seal, which is crucial to the fate of the dynasty, making every step she takes feel like walking on thin ice.
If she were to really be tied to Afu, given her brother’s ruthlessness, he would inevitably be implicated, which would harm him.
She squatted by the stream, staring blankly ahead.
Before I knew it, half an hour had passed.
"Zichao is still so badly injured, I can't just leave him like this," she murmured to herself, as if trying to convince herself.
"Even if we want to leave, we have to wait until he recovers."
He got so badly injured saving me; if I just leave him like this, he definitely won't survive.
These words seemed to be her way of encouraging herself.
She took a deep breath, filled the earthenware pot with water, and turned to walk back to the hut with it in her arms.
Although his steps were still somewhat hesitant, they were much more determined than when he came.
Ah Fu's injuries this time were too severe. The knife wounds on his chest and shoulders were so deep that the bone was visible. In addition, the hot current in his body kept surging, and he would break out in a cold sweat with pain if he moved even slightly.
Princess Qiulan cleaned his wounds and changed his dressings every day.
She picked some herbs nearby and brought them back for Afu to check on the distribution.
Then I crushed it and applied it to him, taking good care of him.
The two stayed there for a month before Afu was able to move around with difficulty, but his face was still as pale as paper.
Fortunately, the pursuers sent by Liu Yao seemed to have taken a wrong turn and searched along several other mountain paths, but they never found this hidden field.
This month turned out to be a rare period of peace for the two on their escape, allowing them to narrowly escape disaster.