The man paid no mind, pinching her mouth shut as before.
"If you don't open, I'll bite you!"
His deep, magnetic voice held a hint of teasing, his hot breath fanning her face.
He drew closer, and Xue Niang closed her eyes, certain he would do it!
Resigned, she loosened her clenched teeth and opened her mouth. His finger, coated with ointment, followed immediately. The ointment was cool, and as his finger circled the base of her tongue, the pain made her shiver involuntarily.
"There, here's the medicine. You can apply it yourself from now on."
Suddenly, Xue Niang's body was free. She was so angry that her eyes welled up with tears, and she reached out to hit him.
Her forward arm met empty air; the man had already nimbly taken the low table and left.
This was truly too much!
This man knew martial arts. She was utterly powerless against him. So, should she leave or not?
Her entire body had been seen and touched by him, and he had even put on her undergarments. She had been with human traffickers for so long without being taken advantage of, yet on her first day here, she had been stripped bare by him, not just once! She had lost all semblance of dignity!
She hated him so much her teeth ached, and she vented her frustration by pounding the quilt beneath her.
In the simple kitchen, Xiao Shan washed his hands. His ears twitched; the little woman was furious and throwing a tantrum.
Those beautiful eyes must be brimming with tears, and her whole body bristling like a porcupine with its quills raised.
"Tch—" He couldn't help but chuckle.
Having this little thing around the house was quite interesting.
More importantly, he didn't feel any aversion. This little one possessed some kind of magic. Even with her scarred body, he found himself captivated.
How many dancers had swayed before him in the past, all with snow-white skin and flower-like beauty? Why hadn't he found them attractive then?
Perhaps it was because she was his own?
He had bought her, washed her, and fed her. He had even given her a name.
Yes, that was it. One's own possessions, no matter how flawed, were still one's own. She had to be nurtured well.
By the afternoon, a problem indeed arose.
Xue Niang first developed a stomach ache. By the time Xiao Shan rushed to town to fetch a doctor, she had already started to run a fever.
The doctor, upon feeling her pulse, was alarmed. Without even collecting his consultation fee, he fled.
In essence, Xue Niang's body had long been weak despite its outward appearance. Years of mistreatment had damaged her health, and the sudden nourishment had only accelerated her decline.
She was like a large furnace, burning fiercely on the outside, but already turned to ash within. Once the outer flames died down, all that remained would be cold, dead ash, beyond recovery.
The only method now was to find a doctor with exceptional medical skills to rekindle the ashes while there was still some warmth.
However, the doctor they had summoned was incapable of this. As for whether such a skilled doctor existed in town, he dared not recommend anyone, fearing he would cause trouble for others.
After all, in his opinion, this person was truly beyond saving.
Xiao Shan looked at the woman who had been arguing with him that morning, now lying weakly and unaware in a deep sleep. His heart felt both angry and heavy.
Having just recovered from the fever, her face was deathly pale, and even the black markings on her left cheek had faded considerably.
"Don't worry, since I bought you, I won't let you die. It would be such a loss if you died, half a tael of silver!"
Xiao Shan tucked the quilt around her, took out all the silver from a worn-out cabinet, and stuffed it into his embrace without counting, then left.
Shenshui Lane in the south of the city was dark and damp. Occasionally, children played, and old women slowly drew water.
An inconspicuous medical clinic saw a sparse scattering of poor patients. Xiao Shan stared intently for a moment before striding in.
A young boy was dispensing medicine to a patient.
"There, drink three doses of this, and you should be fine."
The patient left with the medicine, leaving only the tall and sturdy Xiao Shan in the small shop.
"Uh, this patient, are you feeling unwell?"
He didn't look sick. He was more than a head taller than the boy, imposing and mighty, truly intimidating, especially those eyes that were so piercing and made one tremble with fear.
Could he be here to cause trouble? Did the young lady misdiagnose someone?
"I'm looking for Qu Linglong!"
What? The young boy, with his fair complexion and rosy lips, showed a flicker of fear, which he quickly concealed. He forced a dry smile, "Sir, you've come to the wrong door, haven't you? What Qu Linglong?"
Xiao Shan's cold gaze fixed on him, and he enunciated each word: "Qu Linglong, daughter of the Imperial Physician's Court Supervisor. Tell her to come with me to save someone!"
"You, you are..."
The boy's face turned pale. Hearing about saving someone, he steadied himself, not daring to delay, and quickly ran into the inner room.
Qu Linglong, eighteen years of age, had been in Lin'an County for over a month. Dressed as a man, her delicate face was etched with distress, and her expression was somewhat haggard.
Upon hearing the message from her personal maid, disguised as a young boy, her first thought was that she had been discovered. Although the clinic was small, she had made ample preparations. As soon as she arrived, she had opened a back door, just in case she was discovered and needed to escape.
"Young Lady, he said he needs you to save someone! Don't run yet!"
Xiao Shan concentrated, hearing the movement in the inner room. Hearing that the person was about to flee, he called out loudly, "An old acquaintance has come to visit. Miss Qu, please come out and meet me."
This voice sounded a little familiar?
Her curiosity piqued, Qu Linglong got off the couch, casually tucked her hair into her cap, and then went out.
When she saw the tall, imposing figure standing in the center of the small shop, she trembled violently, unable to believe her eyes.
"Xiao... You, you aren't dead?"
"We are both people who faked our deaths. Miss Qu, please don't waste time. Hurry and come with me to save someone. My... woman is in critical condition."
His woman?
The fact that a dead man was standing alive before her was shocking enough. Now, this cold-hearted, unfeeling man actually had a woman?
As they walked on the road, Qu Linglong still felt as if she were dreaming.
The Divine Might General, rumored to have been assassinated by enemy forces, had appeared in a remote county, and coincidentally met her, who had faked her death? What kind of fate was this?
Perhaps she had been watched since she arrived here?
"General Xiao, you won't reveal my whereabouts here, will you?"
"There is no general here, only a hunter named Xiao Shan. Miss Qu and I share the same sentiment. If not for this emergency, I, Xiao Shan, would never have had any dealings with Miss Qu. And one more thing, if one day Miss Qu is discovered, please do not implicate me. I would be eternally grateful."
"Ahaha! Then I can rest assured." Qu Linglong was no longer worried, and in fact, felt quite pleased.
After all, in this unfamiliar county, she had gained a friend, and this friend was incredibly powerful. She wouldn't be afraid of being bullied in the future.
"Then I'll call you Brother Xiao! Brother Xiao, may I ask, your woman, um, what's her situation? She's not a... village girl, is she?"
She was so curious, she felt like she was dying of curiosity.
A man who was like an iron tree blooming!
What kind of woman could she be? She remembered that the prefect of the border city had acquired an exotic beauty. Her bosom, her hips, her waist, the way she swayed had made everyone present hot-blooded. A single flirtatious glance could steal one's soul. Even she, a woman, had almost gotten a nosebleed, yet that beauty had sat on General Xiao's lap, only to be thrown to the ground by him.
What had he said then?
"Full of vulgar scent, unbearable."