Who am I? Where am I?
What are the two senior sisters doing?
Ji Xing stared blankly at the two people on the bed who were almost embracing each other, looking as though they were whispering intimately.
Her mind was in complete chaos.
She could not help but recall everything that had led to this moment.
At first, she had only been unable to sleep and was walking along the corridor to clear her mind.
Ever since Su Senior Sister went to rescue her when she was trapped on the mountain, she had not been able to sleep well these past few days.
Every night she sat alone at the end of the second-floor corridor.
From there the window faced the distant mountain directly.
She would stare at that mountain for the entire night.
Near afternoon, Su Senior Sister had been carried back by Xia Senior Sister, covered in wounds and looking as though she had been bathed in blood.
The junior sisters like them had grown up in the sect’s mountains and had never seen such a sight before.
They were all startled.
Although Xia Liu said Su Zhan was not seriously hurt, the sight of that bloody, mangled appearance still made people worry.
Especially for Ji Xing… Su Zhan’s danger was directly related to her.
Now that Su Zhan had ended up like this, she had been anxious and uneasy the whole time, wanting to make up for it.
Without realizing it, she had wandered to the second-floor tea room.
This tea room had been borrowed by Xia Liu from the innkeeper to brew medicinal soup.
At the moment the tea room was still brightly lit.
“Senior Sister?”
Ji Xing knocked lightly on the door.
She had not expected it to be only half-closed.
With a gentle push it opened.
The tea room was filled with the bitter smell of medicine. Xia Liu was squatting on a small stool, yawning while stirring the paste in the medicine pot.
“Why did you come here? Not watching the moon tonight?”
Xia Liu rubbed the corner of her eye and looked up at Ji Xing.
“I… wanted to see Su Senior Sister…” Ji Xing mumbled.
After settling Su Zhan, Xia Liu had specifically instructed the junior sisters not to disturb Su Zhan’s rest.
“If it’s only to ease your mind, then there’s no need. Su Senior Sister is fine and won’t blame you. It’s only natural for a senior sister to protect her junior sisters.”
That was how Xia Liu had replied.
She could naturally guess Ji Xing’s thoughts.
After all, she had seen Ji Xing’s behavior these past few days.
The girl was not completely heartless, at most just an ignorant child.
Because she had done something wrong, she felt guilty and blamed herself.
Xia Liu could understand, but she would not comfort Ji Xing either.
The girl needed to learn a lesson.
Yet after she said this, Ji Xing still stood at the door, lips pressed tightly together, looking timid.
She seemed to want to come in and help with something but did not dare approach.
So this was why she did not want to bring children along.
Xia Liu felt helpless.
Her hands paused.
She stood up, found a porcelain bottle, and poured the ointment inside.
“I’m a bit sleepy and need some tea to refresh myself.”
Xia Liu did not turn around as she spoke faintly.
“Later when I go change the medicine in the room, just bring the tea over for me.”
Ji Xing did not respond, but Xia Liu heard the faint, slightly lighter footsteps enter the room. She paid no more attention.
She stuffed the filled porcelain bottle into her robes, fetched a basin of water, and turned to leave.
***
What followed was the scene from just now.
The moment Ji Xing pushed open the door while carrying the tea, she saw Xia Liu hugging Su Zhan from behind.
Both hands were wrapped around her waist, arms pressed tightly against her sides, fingertips lightly pinching a piece of plain white gauze.
Her lips were close to Su Zhan’s ear, slightly parted as if about to bite down. Su Zhan offered no resistance.
Her eyes were closed in an expression of endurance.
She suppressed any sound, and the tips of her ears were flushed red.
Changing medicine?
But why did it look like she was being bullied…
She froze on the spot, unsure whether she should interrupt.
Her hands failed to hold steady, and the teacup immediately shattered on the ground.
Xia Liu’s face was full of displeasure at having her business interrupted.
She turned her head and stared at Ji Xing with a dark expression, eyes slightly narrowed.
The usually cold Su Zhan was biting her lower lip.
She glanced at Ji Xing and quickly turned her head away, as though she had been caught doing something.
For some reason she looked rather endearing.
“S-Sorry, Senior Sister! I didn’t do it on purpose!”
Ji Xing snapped back to her senses and hurriedly apologized.
“…Ah, it’s fine. I already knew you were careless. Just be more careful next time.”
Xia Liu felt helpless. After all, no amount of scolding would help.
The tea would not return to its original state because of anger, and there was no point in getting angry at herself so late at night.
“Clean it up later. Come over and help me for now.”
She waved at Ji Xing and continued unwrapping the gauze around Su Zhan’s waist.
The thinner the gauze became, the more blood seeped out.
It needed to be wiped clean quickly before applying medicine. With Ji Xing here to help, she could relax a little.
“Help…?”
Is Xia Senior Sister feeling that Su Senior Sister is too weak from illness, so bullying her isn’t satisfying enough, and wants another person to join in?
Ji Xing’s thoughts had gone astray because of the earlier scene.
Her face was filled with conflict as she spoke in a small voice.
“Su Senior Sister still has injuries. She can’t handle being tossed around…”
“If Senior Sister wants it… then just toss me around instead…”
“…You’re actually quite loyal… But I’m telling you to bring the towel over. What nonsense are you thinking!”
Xia Liu rolled her eyes at her and said irritably. “You think about all kinds of random things every day.”
“Oh, oh…”
Ji Xing nodded repeatedly. She leaned closer and secretly glanced at the bed.
She discovered that Xia Liu’s hands were indeed behaving properly.
They had not gone downward, nor had they gone downward.
Su Zhan’s undergarment trousers were also properly worn. She immediately let out a sigh of relief.
She awkwardly soaked the towel, wrung it dry, and walked to the bedside.
By now Xia Liu had already removed all the gauze from Su Zhan’s waist.
Blood and grime clung to Su Zhan’s skin. Ji Xing felt a pang in her heart at the sight.
“Be gentler with your movements. I’ll go get the medicine.”
Xia Liu gave a reminder, stood up from the bed, and went to fetch the porcelain bottle on the table.
She poured the medicinal paste into her palm and slowly rubbed it to warm it.
That place should have been smooth as jade. Ji Xing thought to herself.
She nodded in response and pressed her lips together. She gently laid the towel over Su Zhan’s skin.
She was often punished by Elder Liu for being lazy and had several times sneaked out of class and injured herself.
Therefore she was quite skilled at handling wounds. However, those minor scrapes and bruises were nothing compared to Su Zhan’s injuries…
“It’s because my entire body has no strength that I had to trouble Junior Sister to help. I’ve made you misunderstand instead.”
Su Zhan noticed the girl’s low mood and could not help but speak to comfort her.
“Thank you both for still taking care of me so late.”
“It’s not hard at all… Senior Sister got injured because of me. It’s only right that I take care of Senior Sister…”
Ji Xing bit her lower lip. “It’s my fault… for making Senior Sister get hurt.”
“Mm. Don’t be so reckless next time… It’s also my fault.I only thought about not wanting you all to feel uneasy after hearing those messages and didn’t consider things thoroughly.”
Su Zhan sighed.
She had thought about it herself and felt that this incident could actually have been avoided.
In the end, these injuries were her own doing.
Fortunately, the final result was not bad.
“Why is Senior Sister still blaming herself… It was clearly me…”
Ji Xing did not want to hear Su Zhan apologize. It only made her feel more guilty.
“Alright.” Su Zhan smiled at the girl. “Lean closer to me.”
Ji Xing blinked, somewhat confused, but obediently did as told. She sat on the bed, moving a little closer to Su Zhan.
Su Zhan suddenly leaned her body forward.
Ji Xing was startled and quickly reached out to pull Su Zhan into her arms so she could lean against her.
Su Zhan took the opportunity to rest her head on Ji Xing’s shoulder and spoke softly.
“Since you already know your mistake, this matter is over. There’s no need to mention it again.”
“Senior Sister’s hands hurt right now and can’t comfort you. Consider it a debt for now. When Senior Sister is better, how about I pat your head then?”