Chapter 44

When Wang Haining found them, the two were leaning against each other in silence. Seeing Wang Haining, Kong Xiyan tried to stand, but the pain in her twisted leg made her falter. Just as she was about to brace herself against the dirt, Chi Wanzhao smoothly supported her by the waist, letting her lean against her.

Chen Junshan and a few villagers pulled them up, and since Kong Xiyan's leg made walking difficult, Chi Wanzhao supported her the whole way down.

The path down the mountain was uneven, and they moved slowly, reaching the village entrance after eleven at night. Kong Xiyan felt guilty and thanked the villagers. Chen Junshan scratched his head honestly and said, "As long as Teacher Kong is safe."

"Yeah, it's good that Teacher Kong is back. We were so worried all evening."

"Exactly. Xiaopang kept muttering about it for ages. Who knows if he's asleep by now."

Kong Xiyan's cheeks flushed slightly as she awkwardly said goodbye to everyone, then Chi Wanzhao helped her back home.

At home, Yanyan was sitting on the table. Hearing a sound at the door, she pricked up her ears, then, spotting Chi Wanzhao and Kong Xiyan, jumped off the table and circled around them. Chi Wanzhao shot her a cold glance, then calmly helped Kong Xiyan sit down.

Wang Haining brought the still-drying sheets and quilt cover back inside. The sheets were dry, but the quilt cover wasn't quite there yet. She placed it over two stools to air out. Seeing her busy, Kong Xiyan felt a pang of guilt and lowered her head. "Haining, I'm sorry for making you worry."

Wang Haining looked up at her, then at Chi Wanzhao, who was sitting aside with a cold expression while pouring tea. "Don't say sorry to me."

"You should apologize to President Chi."

"You don't know how terrible her face looked when she found out you'd gone up the mountain. She even—"

"Clatter!"

Chi Wanzhao's teacup dropped onto the floor. Fortunately, it was porcelain and didn't break, but water splashed everywhere, leaving a large wet patch.

She picked up the cup, stood, and said calmly, "I'll go boil some water."

Wang Haining stared at her back for a moment, then added, "I'll go help out."

Kong Xiyan tried to stand, but Wang Haining quickly said, "You stay right here and don't go anywhere."

"Okay."

Before leaving, Wang Haining noticed her massaging her calf—probably pain from the sprain. She averted her gaze and went into the kitchen.

Chi Wanzhao was fumbling with the fire, her movements stiff. Wang Haining guessed she'd probably never seen this kind of giant wok in her life, let alone learned how to light a fire with matches. Walking over, she said, "Let me do it."

Chi Wanzhao stepped aside slightly. After Wang Haining got the fire going, she added two chunks of firewood, and the flames leapt up immediately. Soon, a warm, bright glow bathed them both.

It had been several years since they'd stood this close.

But Chi Wanzhao never liked being close to others anyway.

Back when they used to talk, they'd always kept at least an arm's length apart. Even when they happened to bump into each other on the road and walked home together, Chi Wanzhao would keep a little distance.

It wasn't deliberate.

Wang Haining had observed that.

Chi Wanzhao was like that with everyone.

The only time they'd ever been truly close was when Wang Haining's mother had fallen ill, and Chi Wanzhao had comforted her.

In the blink of an eye, years had passed.

After lighting the fire, Wang Haining got busy in the kitchen. Everyone had skipped dinner while searching for Xiyan, and now, returning late at night, cooking multiple dishes wasn't practical. Noodles would have to do.

There were two large woks, but Wang Haining worried Chi Wanzhao couldn't handle the firewood for both. She bent down to ask, "President Chi, do you know how to cook noodles?"

Chi Wanzhao looked up and gave a faint, "Mm."

Wang Haining swapped positions with her.

The kitchen had two big woks—one for boiling water, one for the noodles. Chi Wanzhao stood at the stove, frying eggs in the smaller of the two.

The crimson flames lit up Wang Haining's fair face. As she stuffed straw into the fire, she asked quietly, "President Chi, it seems you don't want Xiyan to know you like her?"

At least, based on tonight's events.

Chi Wanzhao clearly didn't like her saying that.

But Wang Haining didn't understand—Chi Wanzhao clearly liked Xiyan.

And yet the other day, Xiyan had told her they were just a contractual relationship.

It left her confused.

After Chi Wanzhao finished frying the eggs, she added some water to the smaller wok and set the noodles aside. As the water began to bubble, she finally spoke quietly, "I just don't want her to accept me out of guilt."

There were many ways she could make Kong Xiyan fall for her.

The one method she'd never use was guilt, just to keep her by her side.

What she wanted was something pure.

Nothing else.

Hearing this, Wang Haining furrowed her brow, lowered her head, stared at the jumping flames, and suddenly understood a little of what Chi Wanzhao meant.

When the water came to a boil, Chi Wanzhao dropped in the noodles, then turned to wash some greens. As the noodles rose to the surface, she pushed the greens in, watching the vivid green leaves swirl with the boiling water. She opened her mouth and said, "About the past... I'm sorry."

Wang Haining's hand that was feeding the fire paused for a moment, a flicker of surprise crossing her face before she regained a calm expression. "There were so many things in the past, I..."

"I mean about my father."

"I found out later that you didn't know at the time."

"I'm sorry."

Chi Wanzhao spoke softly while stirring the noodles with her chopsticks, her expression unchanged. Her bright eyes, usually sharp, now looked softer, the edges of her brows having lost their harshness.

Wang Haining paused, then said, "It's fine."

The voices in the kitchen were too low to reach the other room. Kong Xiyan was lying on the table, watching Yanyan. Meeting those blue eyes, she tapped the cat's pink nose and said, "Little thing, why did you go to Brother Shan's house?"

"Were you trying to steal fish?"

Yanyan let out a meow, then swung her long tail, swatting it across Kong Xiyan's face.

Kong Xiyan grumbled indignantly, "Look at you, so clean, and look at me, dusty all over. Not to mention..."

Not to mention Chi Wanzhao.

Thinking of her, she tilted her head toward the kitchen. Chi Wanzhao was cooking noodles, her slender wrist extended over the pot, occasionally stirring with chopsticks.

About ten minutes later, Chi Wanzhao brought out three bowls of noodles, with Wang Haining following behind.

Kong Xiyan tried to get up to take the bowls, but Chi Wanzhao caught the movement out of the corner of her eye and said calmly, "Stay seated."

She sat back down.

Wang Haining stood behind them, a flicker of something passing through her eyes, but she said nothing and went into the main room to eat.

After dinner, Kong Xiyan wanted to take a shower in the bathroom, but Chi Wanzhao told her to wait a moment.

Wang Haining understood Chi Wanzhao's intention. It was the dead of winter, late at night, the temperature low, and the bathroom freezing. Chi Wanzhao simply wanted to shower first to warm the place up a bit.

Staring at the empty bowl in front of her, Wang Haining said, "Xiyan, let President Chi go in first. It's really cold in there now. Once she's done, there'll be some heat left, and then you can go in."

Kong Xiyan immediately caught the kindness in that.

She hurriedly said to Chi Wanzhao, "Let me go first. I'm not afraid of cold. And I used to shower in the middle of the night all the time!"

Wang Haining added dryly, "Right, she took showers in the middle of the night and ended up with fevers the next day."

Kong Xiyan shot her a glare, baring her teeth. Chi Wanzhao helped her onto a stool, then walked into the room and came back with a set of pajamas. "No need, I'll go first."

"Me first!"

Kong Xiyan stood up, trying to squeeze ahead of Chi Wanzhao. Watching the two argue, Wang Haining said, "Alright, why don't you both go together? It'll be warmer."

The argument that had been heating up suddenly fizzled. Kong Xiyan's shoulders drooped, and she forced a smile. "N-never mind."

Chi Wanzhao brushed past her, the draft cold on her skin.

The light in the main room stayed on until past one in the morning. Chi Wanzhao sat at the table, feeding Yanyan a few bits of cat food. When Kong Xiyan walked out of the bathroom, she caught Chi Wanzhao's softened profile—her face relaxed, her lips curving into a faint smile.

The scene of the one human and one cat together was so heartwarming that Kong Xiyan stood at the doorway, forgetting to take another step.

Wang Haining came over, holding a basin, and followed her gaze. She asked quietly, "Pretty, isn't it?"

Kong Xiyan nodded. "Pretty."

Only after speaking did she snap back to reality. Seeing Wang Haining before her, she frowned. "What are you doing?"

Wang Haining smiled. "You should ask yourself what you're doing."

Kong Xiyan wanted to retort, but Wang Haining had already gone into the bathroom. Hearing the door click shut, Chi Wanzhao turned her head to glance at her, then looked away. Kong Xiyan felt a little awkward, so she adjusted her pajamas, walked over, and said, "President Chi, you're still up?"

Chi Wanzhao hummed in acknowledgment. "Waiting for you."

Kong Xiyan hesitated. "For me?"

"No need—tonight I'll share a room with Haining."

Chi Wanzhao stood up. Kong Xiyan felt a wave of pressure rush at her, and she stepped back, hearing Chi Wanzhao's light voice: "Better share a room with me."

"Last night, Miss Kong didn't get any rest taking care of me. Tonight, it's my turn to take care of you. It's only right."

Kong Xiyan bit her lip. "Really, no need. Haining will look after me too."

Chi Wanzhao smiled faintly. "Miss Wang might not have much energy to take care of you tonight."

Kong Xiyan hesitated for a few seconds, then asked, "Why?"

Chi Wanzhao didn't answer. She just helped Kong Xiyan up and slowly guided her back to their room. A bottle of medicinal wine sat on the nightstand. Chi Wanzhao helped her sit on the bed, then crouched down, rolled up her pant leg, and poured some of the liquid into her palm, applying it to Kong Xiyan's ankle.

The moment the liniment touched her skin, Kong Xiyan instinctively jerked her foot back. Chi Wanzhao caught her toes with one hand, holding her firmly in place.

Chi Wanzhao's fingertips were cool.

But Kong Xiyan felt as if the touch burned, the heat radiating from that point until her entire foot was on fire.

That warmth surged from the sole of her foot straight up to her head, her cheeks flushing crimson.

After applying the liniment, Chi Wanzhao helped her lie down and turned off the lamp. In the darkness, Kong Xiyan felt like something was off.

But she couldn't quite figure out what.

Next door, Wang Haining had finished showering and returned to her room. The moment she opened the door, she found Yanyan asleep on her bed, glaring at her with those big blue eyes, letting out a fierce meow.

Wang Haining's head began to ache.