By the time the medicine had been applied and the bandages wrapped, it was already past one in the morning.
At some point, the torrential rain had lightened, leaving only the soft, steady patter of droplets outside the window.
As her tightly wound nerves finally relaxed, hunger swept through every one of Jiang Nuan’s senses.
She glanced at Ye Que, who was leaning against the sofa with his eyes closed, seemingly resting.
His left shoulder was wrapped tightly in gauze. His face was still pale, but his breathing had steadied considerably.
He had lost so much blood. He needed to replenish his strength, too.
“Wait here.” She stood up. “I’ll see if there’s anything in the kitchen to eat.”
Ye Que didn’t open his eyes. He gave a quiet hum in response.
Jiang Nuan walked into the kitchen and pulled open the refrigerator. The rush of cold air made her shiver.
The refrigerator was practically empty. There was only a carton of milk, a few eggs, and some bottled water.
She rummaged through the cabinets and found only half a packet of dried noodles.
“…The number-one bounty hunter lives like this?”
She muttered under her breath, set some water to boil, and dropped in the noodles along with two eggs.
While the noodles cooked, the orange cat named Jiangjiang somehow slipped into the kitchen. It crouched by her feet, gazing up at the stovetop with eager eyes.
Jiang Nuan glanced at the cat’s food bowl and cans beside the climbing tower. They were all empty.
“…You’re hungry too? Your appetite is better than your owner’s, at least.”
She took an egg from the refrigerator, boiled it in plain water, crushed it, and placed it in the cat’s bowl.
Jiangjiang swished its tail happily and buried its head in the food, purring with contentment.
Jiang Nuan carried the unappealing bowl of egg noodles back to the living room.
Ye Que’s main injuries were on his left shoulder and back. His left arm was almost impossible to move, and although his right hand still worked, he didn’t seem to have enough strength to lift it at the moment.
Jiang Nuan sat down beside him and lifted a strand of noodles, blowing on it to cool it.
She raised her hand. “Open your mouth.”
Ye Que looked at her.
His eyes, hazy with blood loss, glimmered with a layer of moisture beneath the warm light as they quietly rested on her face.
He said nothing. He merely lowered his head slightly and took the noodles from her lips.
Jiang Nuan picked up another bite, blew on it, and brought it to his mouth.
Again and again.
In the quiet room, the only sounds were the faint chewing and the soft patter of rain outside.
Just as she offered him another bite, Ye Que suddenly spoke.
“Why did you come to rescue me alone today?”
Jiang Nuan’s hand paused.
Her gaze fell to the egg floating in the bowl. She didn’t look up.
Then, as if nothing had happened, she picked up another strand of noodles. “Because we’re teammates.”
“Teammates?” His gaze settled on her, unblinking. “Shen Wu and Jiang Ce would have stabilized Qinian first. It would have made more sense for you to act with them.”
He paused, then lowered his eyes to the silver bracelet around her wrist.
“…You came alone.”
There was no accusation in his voice, nor much emotional fluctuation.
Jiang Nuan’s chopsticks froze in midair.
Why did he have to ask?
Why did he insist on making her answer a question even she herself couldn’t define?
Couldn’t they just leave it at being teammates?
“Because they’d both gone to stabilize Qinian, and I was the only one who was free.” She picked up another bite, trying to maintain the tone of a rational analysis. “You’re the core combatant of the team. Rescuing you served the squad’s interests best.”
“Is that so?”
After a few seconds of silence, Ye Que asked another question.
“If the one who’d been captured today was Jiang Ce…”
He paused.
“Would you have come alone for him, too?”
Jiang Nuan’s breathing stopped for an instant.
The tips of her chopsticks hovered over the rim of the bowl. Broth slid down the noodles and dripped back into the bowl.
Would she?
She didn’t know.
She only knew that when Shen Wu had said Ye Que was northwest of the ruins in the midst of the pouring rain, the question of whether to go hadn’t even had time to form in her mind.
“…I would.”
After a long moment, she gave him her answer.
“Jiang Ce is a teammate, too.”
That was the truth.
If it had been Jiang Ce, she probably would have gone as well.
It was just that… she would have hesitated a little longer.
She would have considered the options and thought through the plan more rationally.
But she had no intention of telling him about that difference.
Ye Que watched her silently for several seconds.
The light in his eyes dimmed before he lowered his gaze and asked no more questions.
He simply opened his mouth in silence and accepted the next bite of noodles she fed him.
The rest of the noodles were eaten in a long, drawn-out silence.
At some point, the rain outside stopped.
Only the blurred neon lights of the distant city remained. They seeped through the heavy curtains, casting a faint, dim glow into the room.
Jiang Nuan stood up, intending to go to the kitchen and wash the bowl.
A hand closed around her wrist.
She looked down. His fingers had curled around her wrist beside the silver bracelet.
“Jiang Nuan.”
Leaning against the sofa, he tilted his head back to look at her. The warm yellow light struck his pale face from the side, while his long lashes cast a small shadow beneath his eyes.
“Your coming to find me…”
His voice was very low, the end of each word almost dissolving into the damp air after the rain.
“That was good.”
“I’m very happy.”
His Adam’s apple bobbed lightly. “Don’t go.”
Jiang Nuan’s heart skipped a beat. She parted her lips, unsure whether she should say, “Your injuries need rest,” or, “I’m only going to wash the bowl.”
She tried to pull her hand free.
Almost at the same instant, his grip around her wrist suddenly tightened.
“Stay with me for a while.”
Jiang Nuan stood rooted to the spot, unable to move.
Outside the window, the rain had already stopped, leaving the world utterly silent.
The only things she could hear were their breathing—and the unreasonable warmth radiating from his palm.
