Jimò Qiu lifted the flap of the tent.
The people inside instinctively turned to look.
Their eyes met.
Jimò Qiu silently lowered the flap, took a breath, then opened it again.
The scene before him hadn't changed, which was proof enough that he wasn't seeing things. Just as Jimò Qiu was wondering whether to step away for a while and give his elderly little brother some privacy, Gongxi Chou asked in confusion, "Big Brother, why aren't you coming in?"
His gaze dropped to the food box in Jimò Qiu's hand.
Gongxi Chou approached as usual.
"What did they make in the mess hall today?"
The reconstruction of Gao Country's old capital was still in full swing. There were also several small pockets of resistance outside, and the camp was short on manpower. Food supplies were limited, and if you arrived late, all that remained were cold scraps. The one upside was that the menu changed every day.
And the food was pretty good.
Jimò Qiu set down the food box and laid out the dishes one by one.
He'd already eaten in the mess hall; this portion was for Gongxi Chou.
"What happened to your face?"
A layer of snowy-white paste covered Gongxi Chou's face, leaving only his eyes and mouth exposed. When he'd just turned and met Jimò Qiu's gaze, Jimò Qiu had nearly failed to recognize him. It was quite a shock. Gongxi Chou spooned rice into his bowl, packing it down with every scoop.
Jimò Qiu asked, "Is anything bothering you?"
Or was his elderly little brother trying to learn how to put on makeup? Alas, that wasn't how you did it. He looked like a ghost.
"This is pearl powder Xu Wenshi sent over."
"Pearl powder?"
"He said it was either something called Jade Maiden Powder