Fang Guiren started getting worried when Jiu Xinyi still hasn't returned after twenty minutes. It's not that he's being overly panicked, it's just that she was alone in the woods at night time. Considering that she's also a lady, it was a good enough reason for him to get worried about her. Moreover, she didn't even mention the reason why she left abruptly.
"Perhaps she found me too meddlesome?"
"Maybe I should wait another five minutes and she'll be back?"
Five minutes have passed and Fang Guiren's anxiety still hasn't been resolved yet, in fact, it only got him even more worried about her. Trying his best to support himself, he eventually managed to get up on his own two feet. He followed Jiu Xinyi's direction into the woods and attentively looked for her in the dark forest.
A few meters away from him, he saw an opening leading to the river stream. Fang Guiren was drawn to the moonlight within that opening and as if on cue, his feet brought him to its direction. Even the thick bushes, leaves, and branches from the trees in the forest failed to cover up the light.
There, he saw a head emerging from the river stream. The woman slowly walked towards the riverside, her naked body basked under the moonlight as her ravishing dark raven hair shone brilliantly. She pulled back her damped hair backwards, revealing her exquisite face. Her deep blue eyes were cast downwards as she slowly ascended the river stream, exposing her impeccable body- it was none other than Jiu Xinyi.
Upon seeing her face, Fang Guiren's eyes did not dare to travel downwards, he immediately hid behind a big rock and swallowed a big lump stuck on his throat. His face red as a beet, down to his neck. Although he has already reached his coming of age, he still hasn't found a lady to marry yet. Fang Guiren was undeniably good looking and had a few ladies trying to vie for his attention. Regardless of that, Guiren remained single even though a young man like him is of marrying age already.
"What do you think you're doing?" Jiu Xinyi had already noticed someone's presence when she emerged back to the surface. She grabbed her robe and wore it in a swift and caught Fang Guiren hiding.
Fang Guiren jolted from his spot and met her intense stare, "I-I was wondering why it t-took you so long to go b-back." Fang Guiren stammered, he was too nervous to stare right back at her after what he saw.
"Apologies, I lost track of time." She answered, not pursuing the matter any longer. Her eyes scanned Fang Guiren all over and thought he might've needed to wash if he's planning to accompany her tomorrow.
"You need some help?" She offered.
"W-what do you mean h-help?" Poor Fang Guiren, still haven't recovered from the shock of almost seeing Jiu Xinyi bare naked that his line of thoughts wasn't even working fine.
Jiu Xinyi crossed her arms across her chest and looked at him incredulously, "Are you telling me you're riding my horse tomorrow looking like that?"
"Ohh... I'll change my clothes." Fang Guiren lost count of how many times he felt embarrassed throughout the night. Fortunately for him, he was wearing his spatial ring on his finger and had some emergency change of clothes stored in it.
Fang Guiren changed into a light blue robe, a little less eye-catching than the first one that he wore to avoid raising suspicion from others. He also thought that it might be a lot better to dress simply to stay low profile.
By the time he went back, Jiu Xinyi was already seated, drying her damped her.
She also noticed that despite him wearing simple clothing, it was still of high quality if you're going to observe it closely. Jiu Xinyi remembered the jade pendant that seemed to be a jinbu[1] that she picked up earlier when she saved him. 'Must be his?'
Living in a modern world, it was rare to see people dressed in traditional clothing. Moreover, seeing a finely crafted jade embellished with gold jinbu and engraved with an insignia, the person owning it must be of great importance. The person should be at least of royal blood or someone related with a powerful background.
"Fang Guiren." Jiu Xinyi called out to him.
"Yes!" He answered, startled.
"I assume this is yours?" Jiu Xinyi pulled out the jinbu from her spatial ring and casually tossed it at him.
His eyes widened at the sight of the familiar accessory thrown at him, luckily he caught it. He looked at the object in his hand and was shocked that Jiu Xinyi had it with her all this time. He thought he had lost it earlier when he fell off the cliff. "Yes, it is mine. My father gave it to me." His eyes had a hint of glint of tears in them. It reminded him of the tragedy that took place before he was pushed off of the cliff by his sibling.
"Who exactly are you?" She was curious who Fang Guiren really was, but with the look Fang Guiren was showing her she retracted her question and held back her curiosity. "Forget what I said. You must be hungry." Jiu Xinyi changed the topic instantly and reached out to hand him some food her maidservant Wanwan packed for her.
"I-I'm not really hung-" Fang Guiren was cut off midsentence when his stomach growled, making him blush in embarrassment once again. "P-perhaps I don't mind having a t-taste." He stammered, his face cocked in the opposite direction to avoid her eyes while reaching out to receive Jiu Xinyi's offer.
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[1] Jinbu - Yaopei (lit. "waist wear") is the general term for traditional Chinese waist ornaments, of which there are several types. Jinbu typically consists of one or more jades hanging in combination with beads and a decorative silk tassel (Liusu). (credits to ziseviolet)