Each Other

each other

Although Ming Shu still had not regained the ability to move, the impact from the mental world had already faded.

The white little fox sleeping on the ground had a six-pointed star faintly emerging between its brows.

Its body had also shrunk to about the size of a kitten.

The pressure it had originally radiated had vanished as well. Ming Shu could not sense any demonic-spirit power or aura from it.

They remained locked in this stalemate until evening, when Zhao Siqi returned alone. Lü E was still outside tidying things up.

It was only when Zhao Siqi passed through the courtyard that she noticed Ming Shu standing there blankly, completely motionless. Even when she called out to him, he did not respond.

Only then did she realize something was wrong and hurry over to check on him.

After half a day of effort, Ming Shu was finally able to blink normally. He had already spent a long time with his eyes closed, resting his mind.

"Are you all right?" Zhao Siqi gently touched Ming Shu's arm and shoulder, wanting to support him, but found his body stiff and rigid.

He must have been hit by some kind of spell.

She went out and told Lü E to notify Ren Yuan, asking him to have Chong Li return as quickly as possible.

She had noticed the fluffy white little fox on the ground long ago, but had not connected it with the demon fox that had stirred up the winds and clouds.

She had not even picked it up. Only when Ming Shu gestured with his eyes for her to take the demon fox along did she casually scoop it up.

When the several patrol squads returned, she brought Zhao Dun and Zhao Chuan—the two people she trusted most—and had them carry Ming Shu back to his room and lay him flat so he could rest at ease.

Then she strengthened the internal sentries and guards, waiting for Chong Li to return.

Everyone had been busy in different places during the day, and indeed no one had paid attention to the Village Lord meditating atop the arrow tower.

Everyone was already used to Ming Shu's habit of going up there to look at the scenery.

These past few days, everyone's nerves had been stretched taut, and they had been living in a state of panic, all afraid that the demon fox would suddenly appear and hurt them.

Little Zhao and Ren Yuan split into two groups and rode north into Langya Prefecture to look for Chong Li.

By the time Chong Li received the news, it was already the following morning. Ren Yuan told her that something had gone wrong with Ming Shu's cultivation, causing him to fall from the arrow tower, and that he was currently unconscious.

Such a report only left Chong Li stunned for a few seconds. She soon understood that it was false news. The real reason was inconvenient to tell Ren Yuan, and she estimated that she would only learn it after meeting Little Zhao.

Half believing and half doubting, the two of them hurried back on horseback.

During that time, Ming Shu only napped for an hour before waking again and communicating with Zhao Siqi through his eyes.

Zhao Siqi was clever as well. She wrote down some everyday words commonly used to communicate with Ming Shu, then waited for him to choose by blinking, piecing together a few simple sentences to converse with him.

Because they lacked the necessary keywords, Ming Shu could not tell her that the white little creature sleeping beside him on the quilt was the demon fox being hunted.

He chose the simplest words and assembled them into a sentence assuring her that he was safe.

Since he could not open his mouth or eat, he could only slowly have a few drops of water dripped into it with difficulty, easing his thirst.

With his current strength as a second-tier spellcaster, going hungry for several days would not be a problem. Still, he was in the midst of growing, so taking in proper nourishment was important.

Zhao Siqi still had several life-saving pills given to her by her mother hidden at the bottom of her trunk. It was not yet urgent, however, so she had not taken them out.

She had already prepared them, though.

After being busy for most of the night, Lü E finally went to rest for a while, leaving Zhao Siqi to watch Ming Shu herself.

Thinking about it, this was the first time since the two had married that Ming Shu had entered the bedroom.

On ordinary days, Ming Shu slept by himself in the study. Sometimes, when he was especially busy, he stayed overnight wherever he happened to be.

The room was filled with Zhao Siqi's scent. Ming Shu had never slept on this bed before. This was his first time!

Should he thank the demon fox for that?

Ming Shu's thoughts ran wild. Zhao Siqi waited for a long while, and when he showed no further sign of choosing words, she finally lowered her hand.

Ming Shu's thoughts wandered to the possibility of setting up several backup sets of encrypted translations. Some key confidential information could be transmitted through cipher text.

If they had ready-made, commonly used codes, they could simply use them here. Guessing riddles through gestures was truly difficult.

The two of them had grown up in completely different environments, and much of their previous knowledge did not overlap. During the time they had lived together, they had not had many opportunities to cultivate a tacit understanding together.

On one hand, Ming Shu had deliberately kept his distance. Although the two of them were not very old, neither were they particularly young; among many poor households, there were already people of their age who had married and had children.

On the other hand, each of them had a mountain of affairs to handle. Building a new lineage involved countless threads and an endless number of troublesome matters.

Thus, deep into the night, the two of them quietly gazed at each other's faces.

Both possessed second-tier cultivation. Although they had been busy during the day, they were not overly tired at night. Their eyes remained bright as they cast their troubles aside and carefully looked at each other.

Before they knew it, both of them smiled. Zhao Siqi could lift the corners of her mouth, while Zhang Mingshu could only maintain his rigid expression. Yet the smile in his eyes had already overflowed.

Although Ming Shu had not explained the exact situation clearly, he had judged that there was no danger now. Since he said there was no danger, there should truly be no problem. Only then did Zhao Siqi set aside her anxious unease.

Suddenly, her cheeks grew slightly warm. She lowered her head and gently kissed Ming Shu's rigid face.

Ming Shu felt the magical power within his body begin to run wild.

His fingers could not help trembling.

"I was really worried about you!" Zhao Siqi said softly.

Even Ming Shu's breathing had become irregular.

At that very moment, he finally felt a sense of mission in building his career and developing his lineage: to protect his family, the people in his household, and the person before him!

She truly did not mind that he had nothing. She had traveled thousands of miles to come here and feared no dangerous enemies. Surely she had not done all that merely because her father had said he had faith in him.

He believed that if his performance at their first meeting had failed to satisfy her, she certainly would not have stayed.

Zhao Dun might have been someone arranged by Zhao Wuxu, but Zhao Chuan, who came from the intelligence network of hidden agents, was certainly obeying her mother's orders.

She had more than enough capital to leave directly if she found him unsuitable.

As for why Zhao Wuxu had chosen her to come here, one reason was that he valued her tenacious character, and another was that she lacked the temper of an Aristocratic Clan young lady.

Her first impression of Ming Shu would not become fixed too easily.

That was what gave Ming Shu the chance to show himself gradually and face himself squarely.

Afterward, whether it was his response to the pirates and his leading from the front, or his handling of people and affairs in daily life, as well as development and construction, everything slowly won him Zhao Siqi's approval.

They had said upon first meeting that they would treat each other honestly, but Zhao Siqi had never once mentioned what treasures were still stored in her trunk.

Ming Shu had secrets of his own as well, so he had no intention of probing into hers. Each of them had their own boundaries and bottom lines.

Although the two exchanged few words that night, their feelings for each other deepened.

Ming Shu felt care and love that he had not experienced in a long time, while Zhao Siqi saw a brave young man who remained calm in the face of danger and possessed immense potential.