Chapter 9: Where Are You Looking?

Lin Feng smiled and said, “The way to stop bleeding is simple—just press the hot embers from the fire onto the wound.”

“What?” Cheng Xiangyu let out a sharp scream, unable to imagine how much it would hurt to burn a wound with embers.

She shook her head and said, “No, you can’t do that. I’ve never heard that burning a wound could stop bleeding!”

Lin Feng replied, “That’s because you haven’t seen much! You watch TV, right? When people get injured outdoors without medicine, they use embers to stop the bleeding. In ancient times, there were even special cauterizing irons used to stop bleeding.”

He Tiantian chimed in, “That’s right, I’ve seen it on TV. Cheng Xiangyu, although it’s painful, you have to endure it if you want to survive.”

Cheng Xiangyu furrowed her delicate brows. “But won’t it leave a scar?”

Lin Feng was speechless. “At a time like this, you’re still worried about scars? Nothing is more important than surviving right now.”

He Tiantian nodded in agreement. Though she couldn’t bear to see Cheng Xiangyu burned by the embers, she wanted her to live—otherwise, her earlier risk to save her would have been in vain.

Cheng Xiangyu reluctantly agreed, “Alright, then do it.”

With that, she closed her eyes.

Lin Feng handed her a stick. “Bite this.”

But Cheng Xiangyu didn’t take it. Instead, she found another stick to hold between her teeth, closed her eyes again, and braced herself for the pain.

Lin Feng raked some embers aside but didn’t burn her wound immediately. Instead, he turned and went into the treehouse, returning with some medicinal herbs.

He Tiantian looked surprised.

Lin Feng quickly put a finger to his lips, signaling her to be quiet.

She understood but found it a bit exasperating. Lin Feng was so foolishly stubborn—he had a better way to treat the wound but chose to scare Cheng Xiangyu first, leaving a bad impression.

Good deeds often go unappreciated.

Lin Feng mashed the herbs into a paste. Judging the embers were no longer too hot, he took some and applied it to Cheng Xiangyu’s wound to disinfect it.

Then he spread the herb paste over her leg.

He took an unused sanitary pad, removed the cotton, and placed it over the wound, finally wrapping it tightly with a vine.

Throughout, Cheng Xiangyu clenched her teeth, expecting intense pain, but after a brief sharp sting, there was nothing more.

Now, the wound felt cool and no longer painful.

She opened her eyes and asked, “Is my wound treated?”

He Tiantian couldn’t help but laugh. “Yes, Lin Feng took care of it. And he only said he’d use embers to stop the bleeding to scare you. He had already gathered herbs to handle this kind of emergency.”

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“No wonder I didn’t feel much pain,” Cheng Xiangyu said, though she still scowled at Lin Feng. “You jerk, is scaring me fun for you?”

Yet inside, she was somewhat amazed. Lin Feng was not only skilled physically but also knew medicine—he was truly remarkable.

It seemed that some people weren’t poor because they lacked talent, but because their abilities had been buried and overlooked.

She resolved to give ordinary people more respect going forward.

Lin Feng explained, “I wasn’t trying to scare you for fun but to prepare you mentally. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have been able to bear the pain when I disinfected your wound.”

Honestly, he just wanted to scare her.

Cheng Xiangyu froze awkwardly.

Both she and He Tiantian couldn’t help but think that Lin Feng was such a considerate man, thinking of everything so thoroughly.

Lin Feng said, “Now, stretch out your other leg. I’ll help set your bone.”

“All right!” Cheng Xiangyu immediately extended her leg.

At that moment, her torn formal dress exposed all beneath the skirt, fully revealing her to Lin Feng.

Hmm…

Truly beautiful!

Lin Feng stared, speechless.

Seeing this, Cheng Xiangyu snorted, “Lin Feng, do you like what you see?”

“Very much!”

“Hmph…”

“Uh, no, I mean—”

“Jerk!”

“What’s wrong? Saying it’s beautiful is wrong, and saying it’s not is also wrong!”

“You…”

Lin Feng busied himself setting her bone while talking.

He finished quickly, but Cheng Xiangyu didn’t realize it.

She was about to hit him in frustration, but Lin Feng quickly asked, “Your sprained foot doesn’t hurt anymore, right?”

Only then did Cheng Xiangyu notice her foot no longer hurt—it was healed. Before, she could only be carried, but now she could be helped to walk.

Hmm?

She realized Lin Feng’s teasing was to distract her from the pain, making it easier to bear.

Her heart warmed, thinking Lin Feng was a good man.

She looked at him, wanting to thank him but couldn’t bring herself to speak. Just the thought that he had almost taken advantage of her earlier made her angry.

Lin Feng said, “Your foot should be fine now. He Tiantian, help her go rest.”

“All right!” He Tiantian gladly agreed, coming over to help Cheng Xiangyu lie down on the straw mat.

Cheng Xiangyu was surprised that Lin Feng did not take the chance to get closer to her or take advantage.

Could it be that he really wasn’t a scoundrel?

But earlier…

As she pondered this, suddenly a foul smell hit her nose. “Ugh, Lin Feng, what kind of herb is this? It stinks!”

She couldn’t imagine how miserable it would be to sleep on this grass tonight.

Lin Feng snorted. “Cheng Xiangyu, you don’t understand. These herbs repel mosquitoes and insects. Lying here will protect you from poisonous bites.”

“Besides, it’s not stinky. It’s a bitter fragrance. If you smell it long enough, it’s actually good for your health.”

“If you don’t like it, you can sleep somewhere else.”

Cheng Xiangyu rolled her eyes but stretched out comfortably and lay down.

Though reluctant, she had to admit the mat was soft and not uncomfortable, and the bitter fragrance was something she could get used to.

Lin Feng didn’t lie down beside her but told He Tiantian, “You sleep first. I’ll keep watch through the first half of the night, then you take over. As for her, she probably can’t stay awake.”

He Tiantian, used to staying up late, readily agreed, “Okay, I’ll watch the first half of the night.”

“Fine,” Lin Feng responded, then laid down beside Cheng Xiangyu.

He hadn’t expected to have two women staying with him tonight. The grass mat was small, and lying with two people was a bit cramped—even though Cheng Xiangyu was slender.

He tried to keep some distance but couldn’t avoid close contact altogether.