Chapter 691: Chapter 234 Medicine Man_2
He turned around, gazed down at her, his eyes no longer as aggressive as before, but still with a trace of coldness, "Still refusing to speak?"
Her reply was silence.
He stared at Lu Tong, and after a long time, he said, "Fine, if you don’t want to talk, let it be. Anyway, I already know."
Lu Tong: "You!"
He lifted the colorful ribbon in his hand.
Lu Tong became furious and tried to snatch it back only to grab at air.
"I didn’t understand your thoughts before, but now that I do, I won’t let go." He wound the ribbon around his fingertips, silently gazing at her for a long while, and then said deliberately, "Lu Tong, no matter what excuses you come up with, I won’t believe them anymore."
Lu Tong’s head ached terribly.
Pei Yunmeng was notoriously persistent. When they had sparred before, he was like a shadow she couldn’t shake off. He was adept at finding hidden mistakes and vulnerabilities, and would relentlessly press against her weakest spots. In the past, it had been him accommodating her, but now, as soon as they engaged, she revealed her hand, and he pursued her relentlessly, leaving her totally defenseless.
After a long pause, Lu Tong forced out a sentence, "Presumptuous."
"Doctor Lu." Pei Yunmeng didn’t take offense, his black eyes calm and deep as the snowy night on Luomei Peak, cool yet soft and gentle.
"Teaching someone to be affectionate," he said, "was something you taught me. So, how about you teach me how to stay together with someone?"
Stay together.
Although his tone was harsh, his words were so tempting that Lu Tong’s heart skipped a beat. She could only stare at him hard, trying to speak bravely, "Who wants to stay with you?"
"You will admit it eventually."
She was angry and stiff, standing in place, feeling as if she was split into two. One part of her, hidden in the dark, was touched by this clear, ardently sincere affection, secretly delighted by this mutual attraction. Yet another part of her, perched even higher, coldly observed everything, scoffing at the hopeless, ultimately fruitless end.
A chill from the ground rose through her feet. In her hurry to leave the bed earlier, Lu Tong hadn’t put on shoes. The snowy night on Luomei Peak was bitterly cold, and now the chill slowly crept up.
As they stood in deadlock, her vision blurred, and she suddenly felt lighter. Astonished, Lu Tong looked up to find Pei Yunmeng had swooped her up in his arms.
His movements were swift, his embrace soft, holding her with ease, making it seem effortless.
"You..."
"How long do you plan to stand?" he said, walking toward the bed with her in his arms, "Catching a cold might not be curable."
He set her down on the bed, and Lu Tong sat up, watching him warily.
Pei Yunmeng sneered, "What do you think I’m going to do?"
Lu Tong: "Stay away from me."
Pei Yunmeng did nothing, but that was enough to keep her on edge. She was afraid of succumbing to the allure of his deep gaze, having never realized she was someone unable to resist temptation.
Pei Yunmeng looked down, handing her a cotton handkerchief, "Aren’t you going to wipe your sweat?"
At his remark, Lu Tong realized she had meant to take a handkerchief from the medicine box.
She snatched the handkerchief and began to wipe the sweat from her forehead.
She had just had a nightmare, followed by his close pursuit, as though she had been through a fierce battle. Her heart felt heavy and adrift, and now, she noticed she was drenched in sweat.
The sweat from her forehead traced a path down her face to her neck and shoulders. She continued to wipe down, and where her collar had loosened, her skin was pearly white like jade, resembling transparent, snow-white petals under the lamp, faintly glowing.
Pei Yunmeng’s eyes followed the movement, his expression shifting slightly before he suddenly turned away.
Unaware, Lu Tong only noticed him turning his back abruptly. She quickly wiped off the sweat, clutching the handkerchief in her palm, and said, "I’m going to sleep now."
He turned back, smiling at her, "Do you think you can sleep now?"
Truth be told, after the ups and downs of the night, she indeed couldn’t sleep.
Thinking back on what had just happened, she felt ashamed and angry at having her thoughts discovered.
"I can sleep," she said through clenched teeth, "you needn’t worry."
With that, she lay down, dressed and with her back to him, just as she had before.
Pei Yunmeng watched her, the candlelight reflecting in his clear eyes, not as brilliantly bright as before but as tranquil as a deep pool.
Moments later, he pushed the oil lamp inward and also lay down by the bed, just like before.
Snow like flying sand and the sound of the wind outside contrasted with the flickering lamp inside, illuminating the plum shadows outside the window, silent and cold in the wintry air.
Lu Tong, with her back to him, heard his voice.
"After the epidemic in Su Nan ends, you won’t stay at the Medical Officer Institute, right?"
Lu Tong was taken aback.
She had joined the Medical Officer Institute to get close to the Qi Family. Now that she had taken her revenge, there was no point in staying any longer. She didn’t really like the institute; life within the Imperial City was not free, and sometimes, the more she saw, the more disillusioned she became.
Pei Yunmeng spoke nonchalantly, "If you don’t want to stay at the Medical Officer Institute, it wouldn’t be bad to resume your clinic on West Street. Or... if you don’t want to stay in Shengjing, you could return to Su Nan, or perhaps to Changwu County, and practice medicine or do something else. Either way, it would be a fine path. I’ll accompany you."