It felt better to be on solid ground, walking with her own two feet.
“Young Madam, I’ve brought water.”
Cai Qing, holding a water skin, trotted over and breathlessly handed it to Feng Jin.
“Young Madam, I searched for a long time to find this water. Everyone’s supply is running low, but the Young General said we’ll reach a town and find water once we get past this forest. Please bear with it for now.”
Even this little bit of water had been obtained after much pleading with Lu Shi and the efforts of over ten people to collect it. It was truly precious.
“It’s alright, you drink some first.”
She felt like she was dying of thirst. Knowing they were short on water, she had insisted on having some salty pickles with her meal earlier, truly wishing to leave someone parched.
Feng Jin took the water skin, took a few sips, and immediately passed it back to Cai Qing, “Drink up quickly. You searched for so long to find this little bit of water.”
If not for Cai Qing’s diligent search, they might not have even found this much water. She felt bad drinking so much. After two sips to quench her thirst, she hurried to give it back to Cai Qing.
“Young Madam, I’ve already drunk. I’m not thirsty. Please drink more.”
Cai Qing quickly refused. Although her throat felt dry and uncomfortable, she made no move to take the water skin.
“Alright, drink it quickly. We’ve finished all our water. You only found this much. Tell me where you got this water and drink it quickly!”
Feng Jin saw through Cai Qing’s lie at a glance and shoved the water skin into Cai Qing’s hand, forcing her to drink.
Cai Qing looked at the water skin in her hand, then at Feng Jin. Under duress, she drank two sips and then stopped, reluctant to drink more.
This was all the water they had, and they didn’t know when they would find more. It was better to save it.
“Don’t worry, with Young Madam here, you won’t be left thirsty. When we get through the forest, I’ll pick some fruits for you to eat.”
There should be some fruits in the forest to sustain them. They wouldn’t die of thirst.
“Fruits? What if they’re poisonous…” Cai Qing hesitated before asking.
“What are you thinking? With Young Madam here, she wouldn’t let you be poisoned by fruits.”
She was a miraculous doctor, how could she let her suffer food poisoning? If such a thing happened, all her years of medical practice would have been in vain.
Upon entering the forest, Feng Jin took a moment to get out of the carriage and soon returned with quite a few fruits.
“Young Madam, can this be eaten? It’s all black and dark.”
Cai Qing picked up a bunch of dark, black fruits. They really didn’t look very appetizing.
“Those are mulberries. They’re all edible, so don’t worry.”
She hadn’t expected to see mulberry trees here. She picked some and, after organizing another portion, Feng Jin lifted the carriage curtain, found Lu Shi, and handed him a bag, “Give this bag of fruits to your Young General. Keep this bag to share with the brothers.”
“Thank you, Young Madam.”
Lu Shi hadn’t expected anything for him. As he took the fruits, his gaze lingered, trying to catch a glimpse of Cai Qing in the carriage.
“Cai Qing is coaxing Da Bao,” Feng Jin replied casually, answering Lu Shi’s unspoken question.
His heart suddenly hit upon, Lu Shi awkwardly scratched the back of his head, a slight flush of embarrassment on his face. “Young Madam, I’ll be going now. If you need anything, just call for me.”
Feng Jin nodded with a smile. Lu Shi, who usually appeared quiet and reserved, was surprisingly quick to grasp things and had great potential. If things continued this way, a happy event wouldn’t be far off.
“Lu Shi is quite perceptive, good…” Feng Jin, back inside the carriage, couldn’t help but praise Lu Shi.
As expected, Cai Qing, who was holding Da Bao, felt a blush involuntarily creep onto her cheeks.
“Yi… yi… hong…”
Da Bao, who could babble a few words, pointed at Cai Qing and said.
“Indeed, why is her face so red? Could Miss Cai Qing be ill?”
Granny Zhang, who was closest to Cai Qing, looked at Cai Qing’s face upon hearing the sound, her tone slightly excited, as if she wanted everyone to know about it.
Cai Qing’s face turned even redder. She wished she could dig a hole and bury herself right then and there.
“Perhaps it’s too hot in the carriage. You should go out for some fresh air.”
Feng Jin’s kind reminder, however, helped Cai Qing out of her predicament.
“I’ll go out for some fresh air right away,” Cai Qing said eagerly, as if she had found a lifeline. She handed the Da Bao she was holding to Granny Zhang and hurried out of the carriage.
As soon as she stepped out, she bumped straight into Lu Shi. Now she was truly in a bind, unable to advance or retreat.
Cai Qing stood there, a little awkwardly. For a moment, she forgot that the carriage was still moving. With a jolt, she lost her balance and, as she swayed, about to fall, she suddenly found herself in a firm, warm embrace.
After a moment of daze, Cai Qing suddenly came to her senses, her gaze fixed blankly on the person in front of her.
Her mind buzzed, unable to even process basic thoughts.
“Are… are you alright…” Lu Shi asked awkwardly after a moment of hesitation.
Cai Qing came to her senses and lowered her head in embarrassment, “Could you… could you put me down first?”
“Alright!”
Lu Shi, with slightly clumsy hands, gently placed Cai Qing on the ground. Then he realized their movements had been a bit too intimate and quickly explained, “That… just now… just now…”
“Thank you for what happened just now…”
Cai Qing quickly interrupted Lu Shi.
“It’s nothing… as long as you’re alright…” Lu Shi murmured, his eyes downcast.
After a brief pause, as if remembering something, his voice involuntarily raised, “You mustn’t stand outside the carriage again. The carriage was still moving, and if I hadn’t caught you, you might have fallen and it would have been disastrous.”
“I understand,” Cai Qing said quickly. If Lu Shi hadn’t suddenly appeared before her just now, she wouldn’t have been so stunned and forgotten to sit down.
If one were to be strict, Lu Shi also bore some responsibility for what happened just now. Of course, these were thoughts she dared to voice only in her heart. She absolutely would not dare to say them to Lu Shi’s face.
“I’ll go back and take care of the young master now.”
With a casual remark, Cai Qing hurried forward, only to realize that they had fallen a significant distance behind the convoy.
“Oh no, this is bad. How did we get so far behind?”
Judging the distance, even if she ran with all her might, it would be difficult to catch up. This was truly a predicament.
“I’ll give you a ride on horseback to catch up. We’ll be there soon.”