24 Saying One Thing and Meaning Another

"Chen… Xu…"

Vaguely, Chen Xu could hear a voice coming from an unknown distance.

Who's calling me?

He arduously tried to distinguish the source of the voice, but the darkness around him was like the tide pressing down him, rendering him breathless. His subconscious was telling him that this voice was very important to him.

"Chen… Xu…"

The voice spoke again, but it had grown weaker. It was moving away.

Struck by anxiety, he forcefully blinked and finally opened his eyes.

Puff.

His fingers grazed his wound. The stinging pain from his forehead sprinkled some stars in his vision.

It took a while before he got himself together. He could finally perceive the sight before him. It was a field of dark clouds.

The snow had already ceased. The sky was a little dim, but it hadn't completely darkened.

The time he had been unconscious for couldn't have been that long.

However, he was in a dire state. Half of his body was buried in snow, and his limbs had already numbed from the cold. Fortunately, he had come to early. If it had been another hour or two, he would have frozen to death.

"Chen… Xu…"

From far away, a faint voice was carried in on the wind. Amidst the noise of the whirling winds, the voice was intermittent and unclear.

It was Luo Xiyun's voice.

An incomprehensible emotion swelled up within Chen Xu's heart as he yearned to respond.

"I—" As he opened his mouth, it felt like his throat was glued shut. His voice was hoarse. He screamed a few times out of desperation, but his voice couldn't get through at all.

This wouldn't do. His voice was too low. She would never hear him.

What to do?

His heart was churning anxiously. Suddenly, he remembered that there was an alarm in his pocket. It was an anti-pervert alarm meant for women. The pockets of the winter jacket he was wearing were filled with various miscellaneous items. He would bring all of these with him every time he went out just in case.

By this time, he had slightly recovered his stamina, and his hands weren't that numb anymore. He onerously lifted his right hand, bit his glove to pull it off, and took the alarm out of his pocket.

This extremely simple action depleted all his remaining strength and blackened his vision.

He gritted his teeth as he held on to his consciousness. He bit the switch of the alarm and yanked it.

"Bonk—"

The sharp and crisp sound of the alarm blared. At close range, Chen Xu felt that his eardrums were being pierced. For him, it was uncomfortable and terrible. He exhausted the last of his energy to toss the alarm in his hand a little further.

After doing that, all he had left was the strength to pant. His head was drowsy. With the shrill sound of the alarm, he struggled to not pass out.

After a while, he faintly heard the sound of a car's engine and involuntary let out a sigh of relief. He couldn't hold onto consciousness any longer. He slowly shut his eyes. At the very end, he saw a blurry figure running towards him.

Finally, he passed out.

......

"Mmm."

After an unknown period of time, Chen Xu regained consciousness. He opened his eyes and gazed at the ceiling above him.

"Where am I?"

He felt an excruciating headache. Just as he was about to move, he felt soreness and debility all over his body.

These feelings of discomfort awakened his memories.

"Did Luo Xiyun bring me back?"

He glanced down at the quilt covering his body and finally learned where he was. This was Luo Xiyun's room, and he was lying on her bed.

For a moment, an indescribable emotion surged within his heart.

She must've been driven crazy that he hadn't returned for a whole night.

She had driven around aimlessly looking for him. Only God knows how long she had spent searching for him.

Much earlier on when she was trapped in a typhoon, Chen Xu had gone around looking for her in the same manner. He was well aware of the feeling—a mix of fear, worry, and anxiety that overpowered all five of his senses.

There was a creak. The sound of the door opening severed his train of thought.

Luo Xiyun walked in with a bowl. As she reached the bed and discovered that he was awake, an expression of awe and felicity sprung upon her face, "You're awake…"

"Water…" Chen Xu said with a hoarse voice.

Luo Xiyun quickly put aside the bowl in her hand, poured a glass of water, sat next to the bed, held him up with a hand, and brought the cup to his mouth.

Chen Xu half-leaned into her arms and gulped down the cup of water.

"Do you want more?" she asked.

Chen Xu nodded, and she went to pour another glass.

After drinking two glasses of water, Chen Xu finally regained some strength and sat on the bedside.

"I cooked porridge. Do want some?" Luo Xiyun asked as she picked up the bowl she had brought in.

"Yeah." Chen Xu looked at her face and let her feed porridge into his mouth spoon after spoon. His heart throbbed. He had never felt such tenderness from his previous girlfriend. 

After finishing a bowl of porridge, Luo Xiyun asked, "You want more?"

Chen Xu suddenly asked, "Did you not rest these two days?"

"What?"

Luo Xiyun was somewhat at a loss. She took a step backward and said, "Y-you… Don't get me wrong, I'm taking care of you because you are injured, not because of anything else."

Chen Xu gazed at her eyes and said, "Having gone through the gates of hell, it has gotten through to me. Now, our fate is tied together, and neither one can leave the other. So, why must we be angry at each other? We should spend the rest of our days together lovingly instead…"

"Stop imagining things," Luo Xiyun's chest was thumping wildly as she interrupted. "Let me tell you, even if you die, I will survive just fine. Next time, do not touch me casually, or else I… I'll not go easy on you."

Upon finishing, she took the bowl and left the room.

Chen Xu said dismissively, "This kind of threat does not deter me at all."

That was what he said, but there was still a hint of dismay in his face. Even now, was she still unwilling to accept him?

He laid there while his mind wandered off. Gradually, he fell asleep.

...

When Chen Xu woke up again, he felt much more recovered. As he was thinking of getting up, he felt a person beside him. He turned around and saw Luo Xiyun sitting beside the bed. She was asleep with her head lying on the edge of the bed and a hand pressed against his body.

He felt a little ridiculous. So much for the ruthless speech earlier on. Now, she had fallen asleep beside him.

She said one thing and meant another.

He reached out his hand, brushed the hair that had fallen across her face out of the way, and gazed at her.

The more he looked at her, the prettier she became.

Thinking about what she had said earlier, he was still a little angry. He whispered, "You can never escape my palm."

"Hmph…"

Luo Xiyun's long eyelashes quivered. She woke up and lifted her head. Seeing him looking at her with blazing eyes, she rubbed her own eyes and said, "You're awake."

Suddenly, as if she remembered something, she looked at the time and, startled, said, "Gosh, why have I been asleep for so long?" As she talked, she left in a hurry.

Chen Xu grew a little curious. He pushed back the quilt, hopped off the bed, and followed her outside. Seeing her go to work in the kitchen, he couldn't help himself and began laughing.