Chapter 3

Serve

Yue Jiaojiao endured the pain and slowly moved to the side of the bed, trying to get out of the bed on one foot.

“Uh…”

Because of the force, the wound that had formed a scab was pulled again. Yue Jiaojiao bit her lower lip, but she still couldn’t hold back the cry of pain.

Zhao Zhan immediately entered the room as if he had a pair of clairaudient ears. When he saw Yue Jiaojiao attempt to get out of bed — and swaying unsteadily — his heart almost jumped out of his mouth. He quickly rushed over and held her slender waist.

It was soft to the touch, and when he held it, he noticed how delicate she felt. Zhao Zhan felt as if he was holding a cloud, afraid that he could accidentally break the girl’s waist.

At this point, Yue Jiaojiao couldn’t care less about her shyness. She used Zhao Zhan’s strength to steady herself and asked where the toilet was.

Zhao Zhan did not say anything. He usually lived alone, and there was no such thing as a toilet in his house.

The back of the thatched cottage was against the mountains. As a hunter, he usually stayed in the mountains. If it wasn’t for the fact that Yue Jiaojiao needed to be taken care of, he wouldn’t be at home every day.

After waiting for a long time without any response, Yue Jiaojiao tugged at the hem of Zhao Zhan’s clothes and looked at him with her watery eyes. “Did you hear me?”

Zhao Zhan said carefully, “Take a seat first. I’ll carry you over after I’ve cleaned it up.”

Yue Jiaojiao saw the uneasiness on his face and obediently allowed him to help her sit on the edge of the bed.

This behavior was because the outhouse was unsightly.

Yue Jiaojiao didn’t want to enter a dirty place either, especially since she was still crippled. If anything were to happen to her, she would definitely be embarrassed for the rest of her life.

After waiting for about five minutes, Yue Jiaojiao finally saw Zhao Zhan enter the room.

Seeing that he had washed his hands, Yue Jiaojiao was satisfied and allowed him to be her safety crutch.

She carried Zhao Zhan to the next room.

The room was half the size of the thatched house he had just slept in. It was empty, with only a bucket in the middle and a chair that had been struck empty in the middle.

Zhao Zhan placed Yue Jiaojiao on the chair and walked to the door. With his back facing her, he said in a flustered tone, “Call me when you’re done. I’ll clean it up.”

Yue Jiaojiao was a little surprised by the other party’s consideration and care. From the moment she had woken up until now, the things that had happened had already disregarded any shyness.

If she continued to be embarrassed and shy, she might as well not live anymore.

However, she had yet to think of a way to repay him. Even if she wanted to thank him later, she couldn’t think of a way in a short time.

When Zhao Zhan came in again and was about to carry her back to the room, Yue Jiaojiao, who was in her arms, called out to him, “I don’t want to go back and lie down. I want to sit in the courtyard for a while, can we?”

Zhao Zhan had cleaned up the courtyard as well. In addition to the two thatched cottages as the main house and the fence, there was a shed on the east side of the yard for the kitchen. Bows and arrows were hung on both sides of the pillars. The shed had tools, sharp arrowheads, and axes that were placed in the corners of the yard.

Yue Jiaojiao looked at the other party curiously. “Are you a hunter?”

“Yes, I don’t have any land in the village, so I hunt for a living. My hunting skills are quite good. From the age of fifteen until now, I’ve been hunting for a total of six years. Not only have I supported myself, but I have also earned some silver.”

Yue Jiaojiao felt that he was introducing him like he was on a blind date, and she couldn’t help but smile. “You saved so much money to get a wife, right?” she teased. “Were they all spent on me now?”

“No.” Zhao Zhan did not dare to look at her face at all. He was so nervous that he did not know where to put his hands. “I didn’t spend much money. Don’t take it to heart.”

In reality, he had almost spent all the silver he had saved up.

Yue Jiaojiao was in the courtyard now, and Zhao Zhan did not leave either. He quietly found a corner to do some woodwork.

His hands and feet were agile, and the outline of his muscles could be seen along with his strong arms. The afterglow of the setting sun shone on his body, glistening his skin. Because he worked hard, the sweat on his forehead rolled to the ground, and his whole body had a strong sense of masculinity.

Yue Jiaojiao admired it with great pleasure.

Modern boys who were slimmer than her were not her type. It was rare to see a real man full of masculinity, so Yue Jiaojiao took it as she was enjoying the scenery.

Under her increasingly burning gaze, Zhao Zhan seemed to have gained infinite strength out of thin air and worked even harder.

“Are you helping me make a walking stick?”

Yue Jiaojiao propped up her chin, her voice was lazy.

Zhao Zhan did not forget to reply as he worked. “With a walking stick, you won’t have to stay cooped up in the house all day.”

“No way, aren’t you always there wherever I want to go?” Yue Jiaojiao’s expression was mischievous as she stared at the other party’s nervous expression with her eyes curved into crescents. “First, you offered to help. Then, you’re making me a walking stick. Do you find me troublesome?”

Zhao Zhan placed the almost completed walking stick in his hand to the side.

“I’ll stop working on it right now. In the future, wherever you want to go, I’ll carry you. ”

“It’s fine. It’s getting dark and you’re wasting your time doing work. If you want to do it, you can do it tomorrow,” Yue Jiaojiao yawned, and two tears fell from the corners of her eyes. She rubbed her stomach in disbelief and said, “I think I’m a little hungry again.”

Zhao Zhan was a little stunned by her vivid expression.

Under the moonlight, the little girl was thin and fair. Her every frown and smile was like a gift for him that had descended from heaven.

“What do you want to eat? I’ll cook for you?”

Zhao Zhan took out an oil lamp from under the shed and lit it up. He usually worked around his kitchen in the dark to cook. Anyway, his night vision was excellent, and he was familiar with where he put his things. He was not afraid of making a mistake. However, because he was worried that the little girl was afraid of the dark, he quickly found the oil lamp.

“I’m fine with anything. You can do whatever you want, but can you help move me under the shed to watch you cook?”

She was a little curious as to how this person could make meals so delicious.

Zhao Zhan skillfully carried her to the bottom of the shed. Afraid that she would be bored, he even moved a small table in front of her, took out a packet of pastries wrapped in oil paper from the basket, and placed it on top.

“I bought you a date paste cake when I went to town to sell my prey yesterday. Try it to fill your stomach before dinner.”

His every move was like he was taking care of a treasure. Yue Jiaojiao’s fingertips retracted just as they were about to touch the cake. She wrinkled her nose and raised her voice.”Can you help me open it? I’m afraid my hands will get oily.”

Zhao Zhan was more than happy to do so.

The little girl was a person who placed cleanliness of the utmost importance.

He first went to wash his hands, then took out the pastries and placed them on a clean plate. After doing all this, he found an unused cloth and wet it with hot water, wrung it dry, and placed it onto Yue Jiaojiao’s hand.

“Later when you’re making pastries, use this to wipe your hands. When it gets cold, I will change it for another warm one.”

His service attitude was comparable to any 5-star restaurant.

Yue Jiaojiao was comfortably served. She sat on a small chair like a cat and watched Zhao Zhan cook while she ate desserts.

She didn’t even need to let him know when the towel was cold, he immediately changed it to a hot one.

Zhao Zhan had been paying attention to her. When he saw her squinting her eyes in joy, the corners of his lips also curled up quietly. His heart felt as sweet as honey, and he was happier than any prey he had ever caught.