Filthy

The black-faced bandit carried him back to the thatched hut and left on his own.

From where he sat looking out the window, he could see the firelight outside.

He knew those bandits were out burning, killing, and looting again; they called this hunting for food.

During these days, he had witnessed the ferocity and lawlessness of these people. If he wanted to run, he had to calm down and plan carefully. At least, he could not be as reckless as last time and arouse their suspicion.

His stomach was still very uncomfortable and bloated, probably because he had forced that half bowl of pumpkin into his belly.

It had been a long time since he had a grain of rice or a drop of water, and having eaten so much all at once today, he vomited everywhere by nightfall.

When he finished, there was finally nothing left to throw up, his mouth filled with bitter bile.

Wei Dansheng wiped his mouth and panted, leaning against the foot of the wall, trying to work his brain, thinking bit by bit about what he would do in the future.

Having crossed the boundary of life and death several times, he had made up his mind.

He did not want to die; he wanted to live. At least, he could not die in a place like this, thrown down the mountain to feed wild beasts, dying such an ugly death.

Breaking out in a cold sweat, Wei Dansheng pressed his aching stomach and slowly lay down.

Flies and mosquitoes buzzed everywhere, and looking up, he could see moldy straw.

He had grown accustomed to this environment.

He curled his body, his expression indifferent as if he himself had turned into a piece of moldy, rotting straw.

He slept and woke, woke and slept.

Not knowing how long had passed, he suddenly heard a few rustling sounds behind him.

Wei Dansheng instinctively turned his head, only to see a face illuminated by the dim candlelight by the window.

At night, unexpectedly facing such a face, anyone would be startled.

Wei Dansheng's face turned pale. It took him a moment to realize this was the bandit he had met during the day.

The bandit met his gaze, looking very startled, yet somewhat embarrassed, scratching his head as he walked in.

"I didn't mean to scare you." Setting down the candlestick in his hand, Xi Cui sat beside Wei Dansheng. "I just came to see if you were running away."

"I won't run away," Wei Dansheng said.

His voice was still a bit hoarse.

In front of Xi Cui's large and powerful body, he looked as fragile as a white dove, trembling like a white dove shaking on a banana tree.

The candlelight stretched Xi Cui's shadow very long, swaying and reflecting on the ground, enough to completely cover Wei Dansheng.

"Don't be afraid." Wei Dansheng's state made Xi Cui feel like she was bullying a child. She scratched her head and said, "As long as you don't run away, I won't bully you."

His hair was covered in a soft curve.

Xi Cui noticed his hair had not been washed for a long time and was very oily, with a lot of visible dandruff.

Even for a handsome male supporting character with a level-ten filter in a novel, not washing his hair made him look somewhat shocking. Moreover, the strange odor on him was very heavy; seeing him like this, Xi Cui felt uncomfortable.

"If you are good," Xi Cui said, "I will take you to bathe."

Wei Dansheng was startled.

Bathe?

Indeed, he had not bathed for a month. At first, he felt uncomfortable, but after staying in this filthy place for a long time, habit seemed to become second nature; in the end, he could not even smell what odor he had anymore.

The black-faced bandit patted his chest. "Trust me, I won't lie to you."

"Go to sleep. When you wake up tomorrow, I will take you to bathe."

He had no intention of leaving.

Wei Dansheng realized.

In truth, he did not really want him to stay here.

He was not used to being close to others. The Wei family valued etiquette; even family members were rarely close.

Right after Wei Dansheng was born, he was handed over to a wet nurse to be cared for. As for his mother's embrace, it was only a vague shadow of the past in his memory.

Most of the time, he stood half a step away from her; after paying his respects, he would go about his business.

It was not that he hated others approaching.

Just being near others made him feel uncomfortable.

But the temptation of getting to bathe was truly too great for him. Wei Dansheng had to deliberately ignore that abnormality, and after hearing his words, he lay down again.

See, a ten-year-old boy was indeed easy to deceive, Xi Cui thought.

He didn't ask anything, just obediently lay down.

Having been on Biao'er Mountain for a long time, the boy had learned a set of survival rules: when there was no need to ask, he would never open his mouth.

Xi Cui tidied up a bit, clearing a space for herself to lie down and sleep beside Wei Dansheng.

With someone beside her, Xi Cui felt much more at ease.

However, she did not expect Wei Dansheng to sleep so uncomfortably.

In the middle of the night, Xi Cui was awakened by the sound of sleep-talking beside her. She rubbed her eyes to look.

Wei Dansheng was trembling.

Xi Cui tried to wake him. Wei Dansheng seemed to be having a nightmare, his small body curled up and trembling violently.

Xi Cui was in trouble.

She had never been married, nor had she ever had children; encountering such a situation made her a bit flustered.

With no other choice, Xi Cui could only treat a dead horse as a living horse doctor, pulling Wei Dansheng into her arms, extending her large, hairy hand to pat his back bit by bit, while humming a low lullaby her mother used to soothe her to sleep when she was a child.

Her body was large enough to securely hold Wei Dansheng.

Her face while singing a lullaby was a bit terrifying; fortunately, Wei Dansheng could not see her right now.

Xi Cui sang over and over again. Whether it worked or not, the boy in her arms gradually stopped trembling, and Xi Cui, feeling sleepy, also fell asleep.

When she woke up, she faced the boy's pitch-black eyes, which had a hint of green, in her arms.

She was still holding Wei Dansheng.

Holding Wei Dansheng to sleep for a night in the hot summer made her body sweaty and sticky.

Xi Cui released him with a natural expression.

"Awake?"

"Since you're awake, I'll take you to bathe."

She had agreed with Wei Dansheng yesterday, and she had to keep her promise.

Xi Cui half-crouched, wanting to pick him up.

The boy turned his face away and softly spat out a single word: "Dirty."