The rain kept falling outside, soft but steady. It tapped against the roof and windows, filling the quiet room with its sound. Lin Xu was standing near the door, her clothes still wet, her hair dripping down her shoulders.
Mo Ying looked at her, his face dark and serious. He could see how cold she was, but she still stood there trying to act calm.
A maid ca in, holding a clean set of clothes. She bowed. "General, here are the clothes you asked for."
Mo Ying nodded. "Good. Go prepare a warm bath for her."
Lin Xu shook her head. "That’s not needed. I’m fine."
Mo Ying turned to her. "Fine?" His voice was sharp. "You walked here in the rain. Look at yourself."
"I said I’m fine," she repeated softly, brushing her hair back. But right after saying that, she sneezed, then coughed.
Mo Ying crossed his arms, raising an eyebrow. "Oh yes, very fine," he said, half-smiling.
Lin Xu looked away, a little embarrassed.
"You’re too stubborn," he said, walking closer. "Sit by the fire before you freeze."
She sighed but listened. The fire was warm, and after a while, she started to feel better. Mo Ying stood nearby, watching her quietly.
"You’ll stay here tonight," he said suddenly.
Lin Xu looked up quickly. "That’s not needed. I can go back—"
"No," he said firmly. "You’re not walking out into that rain again. You’ll stay here."
She frowned a little. "Are you ordering now?"
Mo Ying gave her a small smirk. "Would you rather I beg?"
Lin Xu blinked, then looked away so he wouldn’t see her smile. "You don’t seem like the type who begs," she said softly.
He chuckled. "You’d be surprised what I’d do for sothing I care about."
His words made her heart skip. For a mont, she didn’t know what to say.
The maid ca back and bowed. "General, the bath is ready."
Mo Ying nodded. "Good. Leave us."
Lin Xu stood up, pretending to act strong. "I told you, I don’t need—" But she sneezed again before finishing.
Mo Ying laughed quietly. "Still don’t need it?"
Lin Xu gave him a look. "Fine," she muttered. "I’ll take the bath. But only because you insisted."
"Of course," he teased. "Not because you’re shaking like a leaf."
She rolled her eyes and went into the bath chamber.
Mo Ying watched her go, then sat back by the fire. The sound of the rain and the soft splash of water filled the room. He stared into the flas for a long ti, his thoughts heavy but calm. Lin Xu had a way of making his heart restless, sothing he wasn’t used to.
Lin Xu stepped into the bathroom. The warm water stead up around her. The maid bowed at the door. "My lady, shall I assist you?"
Lin Xu shook her head. "I can manage myself."
She began to loosen the wet hanfu, pulling the heavy cloth over her shoulders. Just then she heard the latch of the door move. Thinking it was the maid coming back, she frowned and called out, annoyed, "If you’re coming in, hurry—"
Before she could finish, a hand tightened around her waist, cold and firm. Lin Xu froze, then turned quickly.
Mo Ying stood there, his outer robe gone. He wore only a thin white undergarnt, beads of water on his hair and shoulders. He smiled, one corner of his mouth lifting. His hands cupped her face, warm against her skin.
Lin Xu’s brow knit. "What are you doing here?" she asked, voice low and sharp.
He leaned a fraction closer and pretended to cough once. "I caught a cold too," he said, sounding a little weak on purpose. "Thought I’d take a bath."
His fake cough made Lin Xu blink, then a small laugh slipped out of her. The sound surprised her, it was light, not the tight laugh she’d expected.
Mo Ying’s smile widened as if the laugh was a prize. For a mont the steam and the firelight made the room soft around them.
Lin Xu pushed at his chest and then, half in play and half annoyed, she swung her foot and kicked his leg. "Whatever you’re thinking," she told him, "it’s not going to happen."
He pretended to stagger, rubbing his shin with a mock frown. "Good to know," he said, voice low. "I didn’t plan on anything. Just company in the rain is enough."
She rolled her eyes and turned back to the water, pulling the rest of the hanfu off slowly. "Then leave," she said, though her voice was softer than before. "You’ll make slip."
Mo Ying hesitated, his eyes straying to her soft skin. She was right in front of him, completely naked, yet he couldn’t do anything.
Lin Xu, aware of what she was doing, just smirked. "You can’t lay a single hand on until you marry , Mo Ying. And until you complete your part of the deal, you can’t marry ... five days, you have just five days." She smiled and turned her back at him as Mo Ying just sighed in defeat.
"You are tempting a lot, Lin Xu, but I like it. It makes want you more. But I want to ask you a question, I’m pretty sure it’s not only n with desires. I’m sure deep down you want so bad, and you’re holding yourself back," he said, his grin getting wider.
Got it! Here’s a rewrite with sharp, teasing dialogue, keeping it clean, and showing both of them as clever and quick-witted instead of cliched:
Lin Xu finished bathing and changed into a fresh white hanfu. Her hair was still a little damp, and her skin glowed slightly from the warmth of the bath. She stepped back into the main room quietly.
Mo Ying was sitting at the table, flipping through so papers. The mont he saw her, his chest tightened. She looked calm, simple, yet sohow impossible to ignore.
He set the papers down and raised an eyebrow. "Finally decided to show up, or were you planning to stay in that bath all night?"
Lin Xu smirked. "I could ask you the sa thing. Sitting there looking bored isn’t exactly leadership, you know."
He chuckled. "Bored? I was reading. Not that I expected you to notice anything beyond yourself."
"Oh, don’t flatter yourself," she said, rolling her eyes. "I noticed. I noticed how desperate you looked just now."
"Desperate?" Mo Ying leaned back, pretending to be offended. "Careful, or I might start thinking you enjoy teasing too much."
"I do," Lin Xu admitted casually. "But unlike you, I don’t cry about it afterward."
He laughed, but there was a sharp edge to it. "Cry? That’s rich coming from soone who sneezed three tis in the rain and still refuses a bath."
Lin Xu narrowed her eyes. "I don’t need pity from you. And if I wanted advice from you, I’d hire a servant. Oh wait... I did."
Mo Ying shook his head, smiling. "You’re impossible. Always have been. Why am I still bothering to talk to you?"
Lin Xu tilted her head, teasing. "Maybe because you like being reminded how smart and beautiful I am. Don’t lie, General."
He leaned forward, narrowing his eyes. "Smart? Maybe. Beautiful? You’re exaggerating. And don’t forget, I’ve survived three years of San Na’s sches. I’m not falling for your tricks either."
Lin Xu laughed, low and sharp. "Tricks? ? I wouldn’t dare. I’m far too clever to let soone like you catch off guard."
Mo Ying smirked. "We’ll see about that. You keep thinking you’re the only one with plans, but I’ve learned a few things in the last three years too."
Lin Xu stepped closer, tilting her chin up. "Just make sure one of those plans isn’t letting you boss around. I don’t do bossing. Not even from you."
He shrugged, mock offense on his face. "Fine. But don’t think I won’t enjoy proving you wrong when the ti cos."
She grinned. "Good luck. You’ll need it."
Lin Xu poured herself a cup of tea and sat across from Mo Ying. The rain still whispered against the windows, soft and endless.
She watched him for a mont, her tone quieter than before. "You never talk about the war," she said. "What was it really like?"
He froze for a heartbeat, then set his cup down slowly. His eyes drifted toward the fire. "You really want to know?"
"I asked, didn’t I?"
He gave a small nod. "It was... worse than I ever imagined." His voice was calm, but there was a shadow beneath it. "Every day was the sa mud, smoke, and blood. The air stank of it. n laughed one night and didn’t wake up the next morning. I lost count of how many I buried."
Lin Xu’s chest tightened. She had seen death before, but hearing it from him from the man who’d always acted strong was different.
Mo Ying gave a low, bitter laugh. "There were tis I thought about just staying down when I fell. Sotis I wondered if coming back even mattered. But... sothing kept going."
Lin Xu looked at him carefully. "What was it?"
He hesitated, then stood. The movent was quiet, deliberate. He walked to the cabinet by the wall, opened a drawer, and reached inside.
When he turned around, there was sothing small in his hand, a glint of green catching the firelight.
Lin Xu’s breath caught.
He placed it gently on the table between them, a jade-green earring’
Her eyes widened. "That’s... mine."
Mo Ying nodded once. "I found it on your cabinet." He paused, his voice softening. "I didn’t even know why I picked it up at first. But when I saw it, I rembered you standing there the day I left so i took it."
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