He turned around, gazed down at her, his eyes no longer as aggressive as before, but still with a trace of coldness, "Still refusing to speak?"
Her reply was silence.
He stared at Lu Tong, and after a long ti, he said, "Fine, if you don’t want to talk, let it be. Anyway, I already know."
Lu Tong: "You!"
He lifted the colorful ribbon in his hand.
Lu Tong beca furious and tried to snatch it back only to grab at air.
"I didn’t understand your thoughts before, but now that I do, I won’t let go." He wound the ribbon around his fingertips, silently gazing at her for a long while, and then said deliberately, "Lu Tong, no matter what excuses you co up with, I won’t believe them anymore."
Lu Tong’s head ached terribly.
Pei Yunng was notoriously persistent. When they had sparred before, he was like a shadow she couldn’t shake off. He was adept at finding hidden mistakes and vulnerabilities, and would relentlessly press against her weakest spots. In the past, it had been him accommodating her, but now, as soon as they engaged, she revealed her hand, and he pursued her relentlessly, leaving her totally defenseless.
After a long pause, Lu Tong forced out a sentence, "Presumptuous."
"Doctor Lu." Pei Yunng didn’t take offense, his black eyes calm and deep as the snowy night on Luoi Peak, cool yet soft and gentle.
"Teaching soone to be affectionate," he said, "was sothing you taught . So, how about you teach how to stay together with soone?"
Stay together.
Although his tone was harsh, his words were so tempting that Lu Tong’s heart skipped a beat. She could only stare at him hard, trying to speak bravely, "Who wants to stay with you?"
"You will admit it eventually."
She was angry and stiff, standing in place, feeling as if she was split into two. One part of her, hidden in the dark, was touched by this clear, ardently sincere affection, secretly delighted by this mutual attraction. Yet another part of her, perched even higher, coldly observed everything, scoffing at the hopeless, ultimately fruitless end.
A chill from the ground rose through her feet. In her hurry to leave the bed earlier, Lu Tong hadn’t put on shoes. The snowy night on Luoi Peak was bitterly cold, and now the chill slowly crept up.
As they stood in deadlock, her vision blurred, and she suddenly felt lighter. Astonished, Lu Tong looked up to find Pei Yunng had swooped her up in his arms.
His movents were swift, his embrace soft, holding her with ease, making it seem effortless.
"You..."
"How long do you plan to stand?" he said, walking toward the bed with her in his arms, "Catching a cold might not be curable."
He set her down on the bed, and Lu Tong sat up, watching him warily.
Pei Yunng sneered, "What do you think I’m going to do?"
Lu Tong: "Stay away from ."
Pei Yunng did nothing, but that was enough to keep her on edge. She was afraid of succumbing to the allure of his deep gaze, having never realized she was soone unable to resist temptation.
Pei Yunng looked down, handing her a cotton handkerchief, "Aren’t you going to wipe your sweat?"
At his remark, Lu Tong realized she had ant to take a handkerchief from the dicine box.
She snatched the handkerchief and began to wipe the sweat from her forehead.
She had just had a nightmare, followed by his close pursuit, as though she had been through a fierce battle. Her heart felt heavy and adrift, and now, she noticed she was drenched in sweat.
The sweat from her forehead traced a path down her face to her neck and shoulders. She continued to wipe down, and where her collar had loosened, her skin was pearly white like jade, resembling transparent, snow-white petals under the lamp, faintly glowing.
Pei Yunng’s eyes followed the movent, his expression shifting slightly before he suddenly turned away.
Unaware, Lu Tong only noticed him turning his back abruptly. She quickly wiped off the sweat, clutching the handkerchief in her palm, and said, "I’m going to sleep now."
He turned back, smiling at her, "Do you think you can sleep now?"
Truth be told, after the ups and downs of the night, she indeed couldn’t sleep.
Thinking back on what had just happened, she felt ashad and angry at having her thoughts discovered.
"I can sleep," she said through clenched teeth, "you needn’t worry."
With that, she lay down, dressed and with her back to him, just as she had before.
Pei Yunng watched her, the candlelight reflecting in his clear eyes, not as brilliantly bright as before but as tranquil as a deep pool.
Monts later, he pushed the oil lamp inward and also lay down by the bed, just like before.
Snow like flying sand and the sound of the wind outside contrasted with the flickering lamp inside, illuminating the plum shadows outside the window, silent and cold in the wintry air.
Lu Tong, with her back to him, heard his voice.
"After the epidemic in Su Nan ends, you won’t stay at the dical Officer Institute, right?"
Lu Tong was taken aback.
She had joined the dical Officer Institute to get close to the Qi Family. Now that she had taken her revenge, there was no point in staying any longer. She didn’t really like the institute; life within the Imperial City was not free, and sotis, the more she saw, the more disillusioned she beca.
Pei Yunng spoke nonchalantly, "If you don’t want to stay at the dical Officer Institute, it wouldn’t be bad to resu your clinic on West Street. Or... if you don’t want to stay in Shengjing, you could return to Su Nan, or perhaps to Changwu County, and practice dicine or do sothing else. Either way, it would be a fine path. I’ll accompany you."
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