In the Shanhuitang Hall.
Liu Yushu asked the maids here. They all said that they hadn't seen Nurse Lu since the day before yesterday. They had searched around but couldn't find her anywhere.
Liu Yushu's heart tightened. A sense of uneasiness welled up inside her, and her hands holding the teacup turned cold.
She was worried that Nurse Lu might have been secretly harmed by Concubine He!
The fragrance in her grandmother's room made her feel at ease. Her tense nerves relaxed, and suddenly she felt a bit sleepy. She had been worried these days and hadn't had a good night's sleep.
So she lay down on the couch and closed her eyes for a little rest.
Suddenly, a warm breath wafted across her cheek. The breath was quiet but extremely disordered, carrying a very strong smell. Liu Yushu had never smelled this kind of smell before, but she knew clearly in her heart that it wasn't a woman's breath. It must be a man, and he was very close to her.
Wu Qing's lips were right in front of her. Her lips were small, like cherries with dewdrops on them, making people want to take a bite.
Her heart was in a flutter, and her eyebrows couldn't help but frown. The breath in front of her suddenly moved far away and dissipated.
The man... left?
Liu Yushu took a deep breath and slowly opened her eyes bravely. There was a tall and thin figure standing behind the screen. She was startled at first, but then let out a sigh of relief when she saw clearly who it was.
She recognized this person. He was the master who had helped her.
Liu Yushu wasn't surprised at all that Wu Qing could come in.
Liu Yushu got up and slowly walked to his side. When she saw the medicine jar in his hand, she understood his intention and whispered, "Go and sit on the chair." Her voice was extremely gentle, and even the coldness in Wu Qing's eyes rippled a bit.
Wu Qing pursed his lips and said nothing. He went and sat on the chair. Liu Yushu moved another chair and sat behind him. She vaguely saw that the clothes on his back were stained with a faint red color, which showed that his injuries were extremely serious.
"Take off your clothes..." she said in a low voice, and couldn't help blushing.
Although she and he were innocent, with a young man and a young girl alone in a room, she couldn't help feeling nervous.
Wu Qing quickly took off his upper - body clothes. His back was exposed in front of her eyes, with large areas of wounds on it. She took a deep breath and gently cleaned the wounds bit by bit with a wet face towel. Worried about hurting him, her movements were extremely gentle and careful. She unscrewed the medicine jar, dug out the ointment with her soft and fair fingers like green onions, and then applied it bit by bit on the wounds where the flesh was separated.
Every time her fingers touched the wounds, she could clearly feel his back tremble slightly.
"Bear with it. It will be over soon." She thought he must be in great pain.
Wu Qing's tightly pursed lips moved. "I won't say thank you to you." His tone was extremely rejecting.
"..." Liu Yushu said nothing and continued applying the medicine. She never expected him to be grateful to her in the first place. She just wanted him to help her deal with those people in the mansion for the time being.
"I never say thank you, nor do I apologize, because I never do anything wrong, and I don't need others' help." Wu Qing said coldly. His heart was in turmoil because of the finger on his back.
Her fingers were so soft, like cotton gently brushing over the wounds. In the past, no matter how seriously he was injured, he always gritted his teeth and endured silently. His master never showed mercy when treating his injuries, and his junior sister disliked him. He had never felt what tenderness was like since he was a child.
It was funny to say that the first time he felt the taste of tenderness was from a timid little girl. But this taste was addictive after just one time.
Liu Yushu thought his words were funny and laughed in a low voice. She teased him, "But now you need me to apply medicine on your back, don't you?" After applying the medicine, she covered the medicine jar. The medicine inside was almost used up.
A look of embarrassment flashed across Wu Qing's eyes. He awkwardly put on his clothes. He was teased by her and couldn't find a word to retort. He didn't want to lose face in front of her, so he got up and was about to leave.
He was not good at words. He never bothered to argue if he could solve things with his fists.
Liu Yushu saw that he was unhappy and blocked his way. "Your injury is not healed yet. If you don't mind, you can recuperate here for the time being. I will come to check the wounds on your back every day." She raised her eyes, and her watery eyes met his. Her eyes were full of tenderness, which made Wu Qing hold his breath. He stared at her intently.
Wu Qing's fiery eyes scared her. She realized that her actions were a bit over - the - top. She thought that if she really angered him, her life would be in danger. So she silently stepped aside.
"I won't let you order me around." He snatched the medicine jar from her hand and jumped out of the window. Before leaving, he looked back at her. She was standing at the window looking at him with a sad expression, and there was a glimmer of emotion in his cold eyes.
Liu Yushu left after tidying up the face towel used to clean Wu Qing's wounds. She took some agarwood and returned to the Yuelianxuan Courtyard.
Inside the room, Zuitao was feeding her younger brother medicine.
"Did anyone come when I was away?" Liu Yushu walked over and asked in a low voice.
Zuitao hung her head low and replied sullenly, "No." Her voice was a bit hoarse. She got up and walked away with her back to Liu Yushu. Her head - down appearance was very furtive, as if she had something to hide.
"Stop." Liu Yushu chased after her, grabbed Zuitao's clothes, and ordered, "Look up and look at me."
Zuitao wriggled a few times and finally raised her head. As soon as her eyes met Liu Yushu's, tears welled up. She sobbed softly, "Miss, don't worry. This servant will definitely protect Young Master Yi and won't let anyone bully him."
Liu Yushu's eyes widened in surprise and then turned into anger. There were purple finger marks on Zuitao's two cheeks, and the corner of her mouth was also split. One could imagine how much suffering Zuitao had endured when she was away.
They even dared to beat her maid. Would they try to deal with her next time! This was clearly telling everyone in the mansion that she, the legitimate daughter of the Liu Mansion, was a soft - persimmon who could be bullied at will.
Liu Yushu angrily gritted her teeth, and her little hands tightly clenched into fists. "Who beat you? What exactly happened? You mustn't hide it from me." It was really going too far.
Seeing that Liu Yushu was so angry that her eyes were red, Zuitao knelt on the ground, grabbed Liu Yushu's hand, and comforted her while crying, "Miss, don't be in a hurry. Don't ruin your health because of this servant's matter. Don't worry. This servant has thick skin. A few beatings don't matter. This servant is just worried about you and Young Master Yi. Concubine He is really going too far." As she said this, Zuitao finally couldn't help but lie on the ground and cry bitterly.
It turned out that when she was away, the maid from Concubine He's courtyard led some people to force their way into the room. They were disrespectful to her in words. In fact, they were just deliberately looking for trouble to disgust her.
At night, her younger brother Liu Yanyi woke up. Seeing Liu Yushu looking so worried, he asked with concern, "Elder sister, has someone in the mansion bullied you?"
Liu Yushu gave a bright smile and shook her head. She didn't want her younger brother to get involved in the intrigues in the mansion, so no matter what happened, she never showed it in front of her younger brother.
"I saw a wild cat in the mansion today. It has a wild temper, but it's very good at catching mice." Liu Yushu's words had a hidden meaning.
Liu Yanyi smiled slightly. "Since it's a wild cat, it naturally has a wild nature. Elder sister should keep a distance from it so as not to be accidentally hurt by it."
Liu Yushu nodded. "This little wild cat has had a hard time too. I'll take some food to feed it tomorrow. I just don't know if it will come to eat."
The wild cat she was talking about was, of course, Wu Qing.
She wanted Wu Qing to protect her and her younger brother, but Wu Qing was cold - hearted and arrogant, which made her hard to figure out. Moreover, she didn't know if Wu Qing was still in the mansion.
After the siblings had rested. Outside the door, a male servant sneaked up to the door and squatted down, trying to eavesdrop on the conversation inside the room. Suddenly, a sharp dagger pierced the servant's throat, killing him with one blow.
Wu Qing's face was covered with a mask, only leaving a pair of sharp eyes.
He openly dragged the servant's body away without any scruples, as if telling others that this was his territory. Anyone who dared to touch a single hair on Liu Yushu's head would die!
The next day, Liu Yushu opened the door and went out. Looking down, she saw a few drops of black stains at the door of the house. Her heart skipped a beat. She wondered if something had happened last night?