"Miss Tan, you're awake."
His voice was hoarse and faint. After a moment, Tan Xiuying turned her head and noticed the man writhing in discomfort.
"Master Zhu, what happened last night?"
"What do you mean, Miss Tan?"
Tan Xiuying frowned. "How can we share the same bed? Didn't I sleep in the chair last night?"
"I apologize for my impudence, Miss Tan. I couldn't bear to see you sleeping on the chair, especially after the rain. You were sleeping so soundly, like a baby, and I didn't want to disturb you. So, I decided to put you on the bed."
Tan Xiuying frowned and gave the man an exasperated look. "Please don't take advantage of me, Master Zhu. Shouldn't it be obvious that there should be some space between us as man and woman?"
Zhu Longwei laughed and said, "Don't worry, Miss Xiuying. Nothing happened last night. Didn't I tell you I wouldn't misbehave with you? You have my word for it."
He got to his feet awkwardly and mumbled something. He needed an exit from the situation, both with the girl and the emotions he was feeling. He then got out of bed and excused himself to go to the bathroom.
"Master Zhu, I'm going to get some food." Tan Xiuying blushed and felt relieved that there was a reason to go and avoid him.
She left the pavilion at once, hastening to the main house to see the landlady there. The middle-aged lady came up to her beaming. She was holding a tray of steaming buns and two bowls of bubbling wonton soup.
"Good morning. Young Master, I've prepared breakfast for you. Please enjoy."
"Thank you, Madam."
Remembering her disguise as a man, Tan Xiuying spoke as hoarse as possible, then bowed respectfully to her. She took the tray and headed back towards the pavilion.
After enjoying the steamed buns dipped into wonton soup, Tan Xiuying was in a better mood as they continued on their journey.
Halfway through their journey, the rain fell again. Raindrops in the peas size hit their faces and stung their skins.
"Let's take shelter under the tree over there!" Zhu Longwei suggested, squinting his eyes as he pointed at the tree ahead. There were no shelters in the surroundings, only trees and bushes.
"Master Zhu, are you out of your mind? Taking shelter under a tree during the rain? Do you want to be struck by lightning?"
Right after Tan Xiuying had just scolded him, the sky trembled with faint rumbles of thunder.
They looked at each other and shuddered.
Gritting his teeth, Zhu Longwei took off his outer cloak.
"What're you doing, Master Zhu?" Tan Xiuying asked.
Zhu Longwei lifted his outer cloak over their heads to cover them both, then he laughed. "This way we won't get soaked."
As Tan Xiuying watched him fight the chill to keep her safe, she was overcome with emotion. Despite the fact that more than half of his outer cloak was covering her head and his upper body was drenched in rain, he still managed to smile brightly.
This ancient person was adorable despite his obvious lack of modern knowledge and annoyance. Aside from that, he didn't constantly lash out at Tan Xiuying for scolding him. What a gentlemanly manner.
"Let's run!" Zhu Longwei inched closer to her and they ran under the pouring rain with their heads touching each other.
Luckily for them, the spring rains fell and subsided quickly, leaving behind arcs of rainbows across the beautiful blue sky.
Their main purpose for now was to find a place somewhere to make up the bonfire so they could dry up their clothes for a while. They would get sick if they continued to wear their drenched clothes.
While walking along the river, they found a resting place in the plain which was shaded by large rocks and trees. Underneath there was a stream of clear river water.
While Zhu Longwei was preparing bonfire, Tan Xiuying slowly made her way to a part of the river with somewhat calmer flow. It was only then that she saw her real reflection in the water.
Vaguely she saw a face of beautiful young girl about 16 years old, sharp nose and red lips. She was grateful that heaven had blessed her with a reinbody that possessed such beauty.
After drying them up for a while, they continued their journey through a forest with dense trees until they entered the gate of Wucheng. This city was no different from the previous Wu cities with a variety of activities and people. They stopped by for lunch and explored the city briefly, then prepared to continue their journey.
Since the roads between the places they had to go were plain, they decided to rent a horse-drawn carriage with a coachman, spending as much as 500 copper coins.
"Master Zhu, I can't believe we're about to part ways. It seems I owe you a lot on this trip. I promise to make up for it later if fate brings us together."
"Don't worry about it, Miss Tan. I'm very pleased to help you."
They remained silent the whole way.
Zhu Longwei closed his eyes for a moment, listening to the rhythmic footsteps of the horseshoes. Considering their immediate separation, for some reason he felt his heart suddenly agitated. He remembered an ancient poem:
"With the wall surrounding the Eastern Han territory, through the mist that unites the five rivers, we bid each other a suffocating goodbye. Two people go in opposite directions. Although the friendship remains and heaven remains our place, why should linger at the crossroads, by wiping away tears like a broken hearted child?"
After what seemed like an eternity, he finally opened his eyes and stared at Tan Xiuying, who was still resting. She had exquisite curves from her forehead to her eyes to her nose to her lips and chin, and he couldn't help but steal a peek.
Tan Xiuying seemed to open her eyes wide as she realized Zhu Longwei was staring at her like an idiot donkey. "What's wrong, Master Zhu?"
He reached out his hand pretending to fix the cushion on her chair, hoping the diversion would distract him from any shame. "It looks like you have a hard time just chilling out. Please allow me to fix this."