Ye Ran immediately stopped, a flicker of nervousness crossing her face.
“Senior brother, Senior Brother Meng— mmph…”
Before she could finish, Lu Li kissed her.
Though his movements were very gentle this time, merely brushing softly against her lips, Ye Ran was afraid of hurting him given his injury, so she didn’t dare struggle.
She could only let him explore her lips.
“Junior sister, I found a place. Let’s hurry—”
Meng Xuan came over quickly, but as he drew near, his words cut off midway. His expression froze.
Even though he already knew Lu Li and Ye Ran were living together, witnessing them kiss with his own eyes was still hard to accept.
A flash of anger appeared in Meng Xuan’s eyes—as if something that belonged to him had been taken away.
Lu Li saw every change in his expression clearly.
And instead of stopping, he lingered on Ye Ran’s lips for a moment longer, right in front of Meng Xuan, before finally pulling back.
“What were you saying, junior brother?”
Lu Li’s voice was still weak.
A flicker of smugness passed through Meng Xuan’s eyes. The moment Lu Li looked at him, he quickly composed himself and continued:
“To report, Senior Brother Lu, I found a cave not far from here and set up some simple formations around it. Why don’t you go there to heal?”
“Alright. Thank you for your hard work, junior brother.”
Lu Li leaned his body back against Ye Ran.
Now wasn’t the time for her to dwell on the fact that Lu Li had kissed her in front of Meng Xuan. Concerned about his injury, she quickly helped him up.
“Easy, senior brother.”
Meng Xuan stepped forward as well, supporting Lu Li from the other side.
Lu Li was truly badly injured this time. Even with two people supporting him, walking was still very difficult.
Fortunately, the cave wasn’t too far. With her and Meng Xuan’s help, they reached it in about fifteen minutes.
Outside the cave, numerous formations had already been set up, with a barrier beyond them—a tight, secure arrangement.
“Did junior brother set up all these formations?”
Lu Li stopped outside the barrier and turned to look at Meng Xuan.
The glance made a moment of panic surface on Meng Xuan’s face.
“Y-yes. I set them up.”
“These formations are quite advanced. I’m grateful for your hard work, junior brother.”
Lu Li looked away and continued walking with difficulty.
But Ye Ran felt there was an unspoken meaning behind his words.
She looked up at Lu Li—his expression was calm—then glanced at Meng Xuan, who seemed to breathe a sigh of relief.
Before Ye Ran could get a good look, Meng Xuan broke into a smile.
“It’s no trouble, as long as Senior Brother Lu can heal in peace.”
As they spoke, the three entered the cave.
The interior had clearly been tidied. The weeds had been cleared and spread to one side, providing a place for Lu Li to sit and heal.
A campfire had been lit in the center to ward off the chill.
Seeing all this, Ye Ran couldn’t help feeling a little puzzled.
When had Meng Xuan become so considerate and attentive?
She distinctly remembered that in the original story, he had never been this meticulous even with the female lead.
Had he changed?
“Junior sister, let’s help Senior Brother Lu sit down.”
Meng Xuan’s voice pulled her from her thoughts. Ye Ran quickly focused and helped Lu Li sit.
The walk seemed to have drained all of Lu Li’s strength. Now seated, even his breathing grew faint, as if he might fade at any moment.
“Senior Brother Lu, I have some healing medicine here. Let me tend to your wounds.”
Meng Xuan stepped forward again, producing a bottle of medicine.
Ye Ran was genuinely impressed by his string of thoughtful gestures.
It hadn’t even occurred to her to treat Lu Li’s wounds. She hadn’t expected Meng Xuan to think of it.
“Thank you, junior brother. But let junior sister apply the medicine. Though you’ve set up formations, the danger level here is still unknown. I’ll trouble you to stand guard outside.”
Just as Meng Xuan was about to open the ointment, Lu Li refused.
But Meng Xuan only hesitated for a moment before setting the ointment down.
“Yes, Senior Brother Lu. Rest assured, I’ll keep watch outside.”
With that, Meng Xuan turned to Ye Ran.
“Junior sister, this ointment was given to me by our master. It’s very effective. Just use this for Senior Brother Lu.”
“I understand. Don’t worry, Senior Brother Meng.”
Ye Ran nodded instinctively, but her gaze at Meng Xuan still held surprise.
She felt as if Meng Xuan had changed into a different person—his thoughtfulness was almost unbelievable.
“He’s long gone, and junior sister still can’t bear to look away?”
Soon, a sour voice came from behind Ye Ran.
She looked away and turned to Lu Li with resignation.
“I was just surprised.”
“What surprised you, junior sister?”
Lu Li’s voice was still very weak, but the expression on his face was somewhat playful, giving Ye Ran the feeling that he wasn’t actually that weakened.
“I’m surprised that Senior Brother Meng has suddenly become so considerate.”
“Has junior sister ever heard a saying?”
Lu Li picked up the bottle of ointment Meng Xuan had left. Only when Ye Ran looked at him curiously did he continue:
“Something that’s out of the ordinary must be suspicious.”
The moment he finished speaking, the bottle crumbled to ash in his hand.
Before Ye Ran could react, a clump of spiritual energy materialized in Lu Li’s palm, and an identical bottle appeared in his hand.
He handed it to Ye Ran. “I’ll have to trouble junior sister to apply the medicine.”
Now Ye Ran understood.
Lu Li hadn’t been seriously injured at all. His earlier behavior had all been an act—even when he had asked for a kiss, he was deliberately playing up his suffering.
Realizing this, Ye Ran felt a bit angry. But seeing the bottle in Lu Li’s hand, her eyes darted with an idea, and she smiled as she took it.
“Don’t worry, senior brother. I’ll apply it very carefully.”
With that, Ye Ran removed Lu Li’s robes and went behind him. Opening the bottle, she spread the ointment over his wound.
But her touch was heavy, especially near the wound itself—she had no sense of gentleness.
Soon, beads of sweat formed on Lu Li’s forehead. Only then was Ye Ran satisfied.
“How do you feel, senior brother? Is my pressure alright?”
“As long as junior sister is applying it, I like it however you do it.”
Lu Li was as shameless as ever.
But Ye Ran knew that even though Lu Li was pretending to be severely injured, the vine had actually struck him—it must have hurt.
So she didn’t go too far. After her little act of revenge, she applied the medicine seriously.
When she reached the wound itself, she barely used any pressure, even softening her breath.
“No need to be so cautious, junior sister. It doesn’t hurt.”
Soon, Lu Li’s amused voice came through.
“Is that so?”
Ye Ran suddenly pressed harder. Lu Li immediately fell silent, his body visibly tensing.
Now Ye Ran was satisfied. She set down the bottle and came around to wipe the sweat from his forehead.
“Senior brother is stubborn from head to toe—only his mouth is tough.”
“Then why doesn’t junior sister taste it and see just how tough it really is?”
As Ye Ran finished wiping and started to pull her hand away, Lu Li caught her wrist.
Injured, Lu Li was especially alluring to Ye Ran. His pale lips, parting and closing, seemed to tempt her to kiss them red.
“Why did you take that vine for me, senior brother?”
Ye Ran found herself asking the question.
What she really wanted to ask was, if he hadn’t been putting on an act for Meng Xuan, would he still have taken the hit for her?
But asking that felt too presumptuous.
Ever since childhood, aside from her grandmother, no one had ever protected her wholeheartedly.
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