"No, brother is worried about you," Aisen said, his voice growing more anxious. "A man and a woman alone in a cave, and your clothes were still dry when I found you..."
He didn't believe she'd dried them naturally.
Ai Qi still ignored him.
Aisen became frantic, his mind racing with wild speculations. "Did something happen between you two? Are you too embarrassed to say?"
This wouldn't do!
His sister was still a maiden!
"Tell me clearly, Aisen, did something happen between you two? Was it voluntary, or did he force you?"
"Ah, what nonsense are you talking about!" Ai Qi's entire face flushed with embarrassment.
"Could it be..."
Seeing her mortified expression, Aisen's heart skipped a beat.
Fu Jingshu!
He gritted his teeth and stood up. "I'm going to confront him and demand an explanation!"
What explanation?
Ai Qi was stunned. By the time she realized something was wrong and stood up to grab him, her brother had already stormed off.
This was bad!
Aisen rushed up to Fu Jingshu and bombarded him with questions. "Fu Jingshu! How could you do such a shameless thing?!"
Shen Qingqing, who was feeding Fu Jingshu soup, glanced at him unhurriedly and responded with a sharp retort. "Did you forget to take your medicine?"
Aisen's face darkened. He gritted his teeth and said, "That's what I should be asking you! You're feeding him soup, you have no idea what he did to my sister!"
Fu Jingshu's lips moved, but before he could speak, more soup was fed to him.
After finishing the last spoonful, Shen Qingqing put the bowl aside and finally looked at the furious Aisen.
"What evidence do you have?"
Aisen froze, then retorted indignantly, "What evidence do I need? Isn't my sister the best witness?"
"She told you this?"
Shen Qingqing let out a laugh with an ambiguous meaning.
Aisen didn't understand the meaning of her laughter at first, but he quickly realized that his sister had a history of lying.
In that instant, a hint of doubt surfaced in his heart.
However, he chose to believe his sister.
"Impossible, my sister would never lie to me again!"
Shen Qingqing chuckled softly. "Whether she's lying or not, you'd best ask her yourself. Aisen, have I been smiling at you too much lately, making you think I'm a good-tempered person?"
Quite the opposite, her mood at the moment was beyond terrible.
Aisen suddenly remembered this woman's capabilities and instinctively took a step back. Realizing he looked cowardly, he cleared his throat. "Regardless, I'm here today to get justice for my sister. You saved her, but taking advantage of her is wrong!"
"Taking advantage?"
Shen Qingqing narrowed her eyes slightly, a cold glint flashing deep within them.
Just then, Ai Qi grabbed Aisen's arm. "Brother, stop making a scene!"
"Who's making a scene? I'm standing up for you!"
Ai Qi said anxiously, "What justice are you doing for me? It's nothing that happened! You ran off without waiting for me to finish speaking, causing this misunderstanding. I'm so embarrassed!"
"...Misunderstanding?"
Ai Qi squeezed her brother's wrist tightly. "He is my savior. Other than that, he didn't do anything to me. You've misunderstood!"
In that moment, Aisen couldn't describe his embarrassment. If there were a crack in the ground, he would have vanished into it instantly.
This silly girl!
He raised his hand and gently patted the back of Ai Qi's head. "Then why didn't you say so earlier? If you had, I wouldn't have..."
...caused such a false alarm!
Ai Qi shot him a look. "Did you give me a chance to explain? You ran off before I could even finish!"
"Alright, if you want to argue, go back to where you came from. Don't disturb others here."
Shen Qingqing's voice was cold.
The siblings felt awkward and didn't dare to stay any longer. They turned and fled.
Suddenly, Shen Qingqing's hand was held.
She looked up and met a pair of deep eyes filled with complex emotions.
"I didn't do anything."
Shen Qingqing curved her lips. "If you didn't do anything, why would you need to explain?"
Fu Jingshu pursed his lips. "I was worried you'd overthink it."
"Don't worry, I'm not that petty." Shen Qingqing withdrew her hand, helped him lie down, and leaned over him, looking down at him.
That face, so handsome it was breathtaking, was a sight she could never tire of.
"Now close your eyes and get some good sleep."
Fu Jingshu was already quite sleepy, but looking at her, he couldn't bring himself to close his eyes. Now, hearing her gentle words, the suppressed sleepiness surged back.
He fell asleep.
Shen Qingqing took out her silver needles and proceeded with the final detoxification.
An hour later, Fu Jingshu slowly opened his eyes. Seeing Shen Qingqing so close, his stern features instantly softened.
"You're awake."
Shen Qingqing sat beside him, hugging her knees, her eyes filled with a gentle smile. "How do you feel? Is your body much more comfortable?"
Fu Jingshu felt it, and it was true. When he was poisoned, his blood flow was blocked, and every movement felt stiff and difficult.
Even though he had taken the antidote pill, it only suppressed the poison temporarily.
He thought of something and grabbed Shen Qingqing's slender wrist.
"How did you detoxify me?"
"Don't worry, I used acupuncture." Shen Qingqing knew what he was concerned about. On the way, she had no choice but to resort to mouth-sucking the poisoned blood.
The antidote pill he had taken earlier could neutralize all poisons, but it wasn't specific.
After returning, she had the silver needles and a targeted antidote developed by the old man.
This amount of poison was no match for her.
Fu Jingshu pulled her into his arms, holding her wrist, and whispered in her ear, "I'm sorry."
"Hmm? Why are you apologizing?"
Shen Qingqing looked at him leisurely, genuinely not understanding his meaning. Fu Jingshu hugged her and gently swayed her.
"I shouldn't have disregarded my own safety."
Shen Qingqing huffed, "So you admit it."
He was indeed angry.
Fu Jingshu tightened his embrace and placed a kiss on her soft cheek. "It won't happen again. I'll be careful."
"Really?"
Shen Qingqing looked at him skeptically. She didn't believe him.
Fu Jingshu's lips curved upwards, his voice deep and magnetic. "Really. I'm not angry anymore, okay?"
Shen Qingqing's earlobes tingled. She couldn't stay angry, but she still felt a little awkward. She playfully pinched him.
Fu Jingshu gasped, "Ouch... that hurt..."
"Keep pretending, I didn't even use much force!"
Shen Qingqing glared at him.
He chuckled softly, supporting the back of her head with one hand, his fingers tangling in her hair. "As long as you're well, nothing else matters..."
His voice disappeared into the kiss that followed.
A passionate, lingering embrace.
Not far away, Ai Qi stood frozen, clutching the man's jacket in her arms, unable to take a single step.
After standing there for an unknown amount of time, she slowly turned to leave.
As she turned, she saw Pei Ji.
"What are you doing?"
Pei Ji asked.