Clothes

Two more days passed.

The injuries on Zhou Yan's legs had mostly healed, and walking no longer hurt.

After reaching Perfection in the Mountain-Breaking Fist, he practiced several sets every day and spent the rest of his time holding stances to temper his foundation.

The medicinal power of the Qi Gathering Pill had seeped into his flesh and bones, making the inner qi in his dantian far denser than it had been just after his breakthrough.

That morning, someone lightly knocked on the courtyard gate twice.

Zhou Yan stopped his fist practice and called, "Come in."

The door slowly opened a crack, and Sun Wenyao peeked half her body inside.

Zhou Yan almost failed to recognize her.

She had changed into a light blue-green dress. The material was not thick, but it fit her well, with a pale white sash tied around her waist.

Her hair was no longer tied up carelessly as it had been on the Mountain Road. It had been carefully combed into a bun at the back of her head, held in place by a silver hairpin.

She had lightly powdered her face, and her lips looked rosier than usual.

Compared to the Fourth Miss from the Mountain Road, whose face had been caked in mud and ash and whose dry lips had been peeling, she truly looked like a different person.

Only those eyes remained the same. When she looked at him, they still held a trace of avoidance.

Her walking was still somewhat unsteady. When she entered, she paused slightly, her body swaying before she found her balance.

She carried a light blue-green cloth bundle in her hand, the same color as her dress.

"Zhou Yan," she called softly.

Zhou Yan wiped the sweat from his face with a dry cloth. "What brings the Fourth Miss here?"

"I came to see you." Sun Wenyao entered the courtyard and walked to the stone table, her fingers repeatedly pinching the bundle.

Zhou Yan waited. When she said nothing, he sat down on a stone stool first. "Have a seat."

Sun Wenyao sat across from him and pushed the bundle toward him. "This... is for you."

Zhou Yan accepted it and opened it.

Inside was a neatly folded dark gray garment. The cloth was softer than ordinary coarse fabric, and it felt thick and sturdy to the touch.

When he lifted and shook it open, the stitching was not particularly fine. A few places along the shoulder seams were even crooked, as though they had been unstitched and sewn again, then unstitched once more.

Yet every seam had been pressed down firmly. The hem had been folded over three times, while the collar used two layers of cloth and had been sewn especially tightly.

"I saw that you usually dressed too plainly," Sun Wenyao said, staring at the patterns in the stone tabletop and not daring to look at him. "Last time in the mountains, your clothes were covered in blood and had holes in them. That one probably can't be cleaned anymore. I had nothing to do these past few days, so I... made one for you."

She tried to make it sound casual, but her voice grew softer the more she spoke, until the last few words were nearly inaudible.

Zhou Yan turned the garment over for a look. Both the cuffs and collar had been edged. "How long did this take?"

"Not long." After saying that, Sun Wenyao paused and lowered her head to look at her fingers. "Only seven or eight days."

Seven or eight days!

Her leg injury had not even healed yet. It seemed she had made it while recuperating in her room.

The courtyard fell quiet for two breaths.

"Oh, right, try it on and see whether it fits." Sun Wenyao suddenly stood and turned her back to him, facing the pomegranate tree.

"If it doesn't fit, I'll take it back and alter it."

She spoke quickly, and the back of her neck all the way to her ears turned red.

Zhou Yan put on the garment. The shoulders fit perfectly, the sleeves reached just to the base of his thumbs, and the waist was neither too tight nor too loose.

He moved his arms. The fabric neither pulled nor strained; he could even practice his fists in it.

"It fits quite well."

Sun Wenyao faced the pomegranate tree for two or three breaths before slowly turning back, her gaze hastily sweeping over him.

The corners of her lips lifted slightly, only for her to quickly press them together again. With her hands behind her back, she nervously clasped them together.

"That's good." She let out a breath of relief and sat upright.

Zhou Yan took off the garment, folded it neatly, and placed it back in the bundle. "Fourth Miss, you've gone to a lot of trouble."

"It was no trouble. You saved my life. It was only right!"

After saying that, Sun Wenyao no longer knew what to say. Her fingers twisted the pale white sash at her waist twice before letting go. She looked around the courtyard, her gaze passing over the edge of the well and then the pomegranate tree before finally landing on the bundle atop the table.

"Your courtyard... is very quiet."

Sun Wenyao looked up at him. Her lips moved as if she had a bellyful of words, yet when they reached her mouth, she did not know which to say first.

She lowered her head and fiddled with her cuff before finally speaking, her voice even softer than before.

"Those days on the mountain," she said, "were you afraid?"

"Not really," Zhou Yan said. "There wasn't time to be afraid."

"I was afraid," Sun Wenyao said. She paused, tracing a circle over her knee with one finger, and her voice dropped another degree.

"But knowing you were there, I wasn't so afraid."

After saying that, the base of her neck reddened as well.

Zhou Yan understood what she meant, but he did not dare respond.

In this world, strength reigned supreme. Right now, he was not even a Martial Adept.

He had only reached the Qi-Gathering Realm. How could he think about romance?

If that caused him to neglect his martial training, it would be more loss than gain.

"What are your plans for the future?" Sun Wenyao suddenly asked.

"First, I'll master my fist techniques," Zhou Yan said.

"And after that?"

"I haven't thought that far ahead. I'll take things one step at a time."

He was not brushing her off. He had died suddenly in his dormitory in his previous life, then spent two years as a farmer in Willow Village in this one. Zhou Yan had long become accustomed to not thinking too far ahead. He would do what was before him well, practice his fists well, and move forward step by step. He would deal with the rest when the time came.

Sun Wenyao nodded and asked no more. She released her cuff and laid both hands flat on her knees, sitting obediently.

After sitting for a while longer, she stood. "I should go."

Zhou Yan stood as well.

She walked to the courtyard gate with her back held very straight.

Her injured leg made her silhouette sway ever so slightly, and the silver hairpin at the back of her head trembled gently.

When she reached the gate, she stopped. With her back to Zhou Yan, one hand rested against the doorframe while the other hung at her side, clutching the corner of her skirt.

She stood still for two or three breaths.

"Zhou Yan."

"Yes?"

"What I said on the mountain before..." Her voice was so soft, as though the words would shatter if spoken too heavily. "It still counts."

Zhou Yan looked at her back and fell silent for two breaths.

"Fourth Miss," he said, "I'm honored by your regard. But right now, I only want to practice my fists well. I don't dare think of anything else. I don't want to hold you back."

Sun Wenyao's shoulders stiffened slightly, and the silver hairpin at the back of her head swayed.

She released her grip on her skirt, her fingers slowly opening.

"Alright. I understand," she said.

She hurried out. Her steps were quicker than when she had arrived, and she no longer limped. The silver hairpin in her bun shook twice before settling.

The courtyard gate gently closed behind her with a dull thud.

Zhou Yan stood in the courtyard for a while.

He picked up the bundle, folded the garment once more, placed it back inside, and set it beside his bed.

On the spot at the stone table where she had just sat lay a small pomegranate leaf, though he did not know when it had fallen from the tree.

At dusk, Sun Wenyue came.

"The old man has been in good spirits these past two days. He wants to invite you over the day after tomorrow," Sun Wenyue continued in a serious tone. "There's something I need to tell you. Something happened in several villages outside the city these past few days, and it's rather troublesome."

"What happened?" Zhou Yan frowned.

"There are demons!" Sun Wenyue said coldly.

"Demons?"

"Yes. About twenty miles south of here, four or five people have been injured. One hunter had his leg bitten clean off. By the time they carried him back, he was already done for, leaving a trail of blood the whole way." Sun Wenyue's expression was grim. "We're in the heartland of the country. Normally, demonic creatures only appear in the Northern Frontier or remote regions. It's truly strange to encounter demons this time!"

"What kind of demon?" Zhou Yan asked.

"We don't know yet. The surviving hunters said a black shadow flashed past, and they couldn't see it clearly. But the claw prints left on the ground were as large as a human face. It's no ordinary demon beast." Sun Wenyue stood up. "Several families in the city have sent people to investigate, and the city lord has gone as well."