Night Fire Lingering

Moon stars are rare.

In the quiet night, all I could hear were the sounds of wind and water, flowing water, and the breathing of two people.

Wen Yan stared at Gu Yanci for a long time, her breath catching in her throat.

The man watched her with great patience, without urging her or questioning her.

Wen Yan's eyelashes trembled slightly with unease: "Gu Yanci, you..."

Her mind was in turmoil; she knew what she wanted to say and what she wanted to ask.

However, with all the words piling up on her lips, the sheer volume made it all seem like a jumbled mess, impossible to make sense of.

"Ahem! Ahem!"

Just then, Gu Yanci suddenly started coughing.

Wen Yan was about to help him up when she touched a warm hand.

is blood!

Wen Yan leaned closer for a closer look and realized that Gu Yanci was coughing up blood!

As they jumped from the cabin, Gu Yanci shielded Wen Yan in his arms, using his body to block the impact of the water. After Wen Yan lost consciousness, it was Gu Yanci who brought her ashore; the ordeal was unimaginable for Wen Yan.

"You...you mustn't speak!" All the thoughts in her mind vanished in an instant, and Wen Yan's face was filled with terror. "Gu...Gu Yanci..."

“…Don’t cry.” Gu Yanci managed to utter two words.

He raised his hand tremblingly, trying to wipe away Wen Yan's tears.

Wen Yan realized what was happening, wiped her eyes to remove her tears, and then touched his body, saying, "I...I contacted Zhou Qi, I—"

Wen Yan touched him all over, but couldn't find the phone.

The phone has been swept away by the river and its whereabouts are unknown.

Her own phone had already been lost by Zheng Wenguang immediately.

After a while, Gu Yanci stopped coughing up blood and said to Wen Yan, "After dawn, walk along the river."

He had specifically looked at the topographic map before going into the mountains. This place should not be far from the foot of the mountain. If he could see the country road ahead of the river, he would be able to meet people soon if he was lucky.

"how about you?"

“Zhizhi, we don’t have cell phones, waiting for rescue is the least efficient way.” Gu Yanci spoke slowly and steadily, as if he wasn’t the one who coughed up blood just now, but if there were light, you could see that his face was as pale as paper.

"And what about you?" Wen Yan asked again, her face pale and her voice stiff.

“Zhou Qi is at the foot of the mountain. Bring him to me.”

"What if I encounter an accident on the way? I might just die there—"

"Wen Yan!" Gu Yanci interrupted her ominous words sharply.

A deathly silence descended once more.

Neither of them spoke in a good tone.

Two seconds later, Gu Yanci pulled a folding Swiss Army knife from his pocket, shoved it into Wen Yan's hand, and ordered, "Stop fooling around, we'll leave at dawn."

In late autumn, damp clothes make you shiver incessantly.

Wen Yan didn't feel cold, only annoyed.

Stop messing around.

Is she making a scene?

Wen Yan gritted her teeth and glared at him.

However, the man was adamant that she should leave.

Gu Yanci had exhausted himself on the journey. He tried to open his eyes, wanting to see Wen Yan a little longer, but his eyelids grew heavier and heavier, and his consciousness gradually blurred.

Until consciousness completely disappears.

Will his Zhizhi hate him?

But he's kind-hearted and easily bullied. After today, he probably won't hate me anymore, right?

……

When Gu Yanci opened his eyes again, the moon had already moved to the west, and the reddish-yellow hues of the sunrise were already faintly visible.

Its daybreak.

He subconsciously looked around.

There was no woman in sight.

Gu Yanci gave a self-deprecating laugh, feeling empty inside.

Wen Yan clearly listened to him and left as soon as it was light, without delaying at all.

However, this also proves that she doesn't care about him.

He didn't even know when she left.

Gu Yanci felt increasingly intense pain in his internal organs, unsure whether it was due to the severity of his injuries or his psychological state.

The pale light on the horizon turned into complete brightness.

I don’t know how long it took.

"sand--"

"sand--"

The sound of footsteps crunching on fallen leaves could be heard again from not far away.

Gu Yanci suddenly looked up, and a delicate voice came from the dense forest.

Wen Yan walked over, carrying a bunch of things in her arms, wrapped in her clothes.

Her hair was in good condition; after being wet, it dried naturally and now lay obediently over her shoulders. However, her face was smeared with mud and dried blood, making her look somewhat disheveled.

She...didn't leave?!

An uncontrollable surge of joy erupted in Gu Yanci's eyes.

His voice had become weak: "Why are you back again?"

When Gu Yanci woke up, the man's face turned pale, while Wen Yan remained expressionless, as if someone owed her millions.

She emptied everything she had in her clothes onto the ground; it was grass and wild fruit.

Wen Yan ignored him, washed the wild fruit in the water, and turned around to glare at Gu Yanci.

She stared at him for a few seconds, then threw the wild fruit in her hand at him. The fruit landed precisely beside his hand: "Wait for me to bring Zhou Qi to find you? To find your corpse? Hurry up and eat!"

By the time she finds Zhou Qi and brings him in, the round trip will take an unknown amount of time. Gu Yanci's injuries are severe; without food and water, he will quickly deplete his energy, and his inability to move may also attract attacks from wild animals in the mountains.

Gu Yanci held the wild fruit, somewhat lost in thought.

His heart felt full, and he stared intently at Wen Yan.

Wen Yan took out the Swiss Army knife that Gu Yanci had given her, and without hesitation, she slashed open the man's right trouser leg with a "rip" sound!

The gunshot wound five centimeters above her knee was exposed, and the bleeding was much slower because of the bandage that Wen Yan had urgently wrapped around it a few hours earlier.

Wen Yan removed the bandage from her other hand, crushed some herbs, applied them to Gu Yanci's gunshot wound, and then bandaged it again. The wound almost stopped bleeding.

"You even know herbs?" Gu Yanci was surprised.

Wen Yan felt hot all over, her legs were weak, and she was still angry. She didn't want to talk to him, so she didn't.

She mustered her strength, walked to the side, and began picking up red and yellow fallen leaves to work on.

Soon, a huge "S" was laid out on the grass.

She wore a cobalt blue coat when she went out, and took it off, placing it next to the "S".

"SOS" is an internationally recognized emergency signal, and the blue color stands out prominently next to the red and yellow, making it easy for rescue teams to spot.

Gu Yanci was slightly shocked when he saw Wen Yan's series of actions.

He knew Wen Yan was smart, but he didn't know she knew so much. Under these circumstances, she never even considered sitting idly by and waiting for her death.

He always said she was spoiled.

Because he can indulge her whims and spoil her, making her so that other men can't handle her whims.

However, she can also stand on her own and remain calm and composed when he is not around.

"Buzzing—"

Something flew past the heavens and then returned.

The propeller's hurricane caused the surrounding trees to flutter and tumble wildly.

Wen Yan looked up and saw the helicopter slowly descending.