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Capítulo 122

"So, are we going to sit here all night?" Yue Ruzheng moved closer to his side, but unprepared for the sharp spikes protruding from them. She leaned back slightly and tentatively asked, "Can you take this...weapon off?"

Lian Junchu hesitated before saying, "Okay." He paused, then added in a very low voice, "But I can't take it off myself."

"Shall I help you take it down?" Yue Ruzheng leaned close to his shoulder and asked cautiously.

Lian Junchu turned around, facing her face, seemingly wanting to say something, but ultimately remained silent. Yue Ruzheng waited for a moment, and seeing that he neither agreed nor disagreed, she reached out and fumbled to untie the belt of his brocade robe.

Perhaps one should be grateful for the deep darkness, and even more so for the unlit hut. As Yue Ruzheng undressed him, she could only sense his slight trembling and a hint of tension and resistance. After removing the brocade robe, Yue Ruzheng touched the iron weapon on his arm with her fingertips. Lian Junchu leaned back slightly and said, "Don't touch it."

"How do I take it off?" Yue Ruzheng touched the iron object upwards and found that this hard, cold layer seemed to extend all the way to his shoulder.

He paused, then bent down, lifting his foot as if fumbling for something at his waist. After a long while, he finally unbuttoned his shirt. Yue Ruzheng sat beside him, watching as he managed to lift his leg to his shoulder, tucking it between his legs and carefully pulling down his short sleeve. Even during their intimate time together, Yue Ruzheng had never witnessed him put on or take off his clothes. Though she couldn't see clearly now, she could sense the seemingly indifferent yet helpless emotion in his slow, laborious movements as he performed these ordinary tasks.

But she didn't try to help him; she just watched quietly. Lian Junchu swayed, and the inner garment under his brocade robe fell off, leaving him wearing only his innermost single garment. He sat down next to Yue Ruzheng and suddenly said, "Wait a moment, don't be afraid."

Yue Ruzheng hesitated for a moment, then looked at him somewhat awkwardly. He continued what he had been doing, pulling his shirt off his shoulders.

Only then did Yue Ruzheng notice the silver chains binding him. She had always been amazed at how the pair of short swords seemed to be attached to his arms, able to fly through the air with their gleaming silver chains, but she never imagined that such a sight lay behind these seemingly magical weapons.

He was like a prisoner trapped in chains, unable to break free.

Yue Ruzheng's breath hitched, a sharp pain shooting through her heart. She trembled as she reached out and grasped the silver chain at his chest, her voice suddenly choked with emotion: "You do this all year round?"

"Almost all of them." Lian Junchu's voice sounded tired. He lowered his head, and Yue Ruzheng's breath brushed against him, carrying a warm scent.

"Little Tang..." Yue Ruzheng couldn't say anything else. Her body went limp, and she hugged his waist, resting her head on his chest.

Lian Junchu took a few deep breaths and whispered, "The button is at the back, with two brass rings and a pointed tip. Press it down to remove the silver chain."

Yue Ruzheng hugged him, reached her hands from under his arms to his back, and groped around for a long time before finally finding the mechanism he mentioned. However, she had never seen anything like it before. After several attempts, she finally managed to open the gap, and holding the chains, she nervously removed them from Lian Junchu's body.

The silver chains hung below his arms, but the iron spike remained unmoved. Yue Ruzheng tried to remove it for him, but he dodged, saying, "You don't know how; you'll get hurt."

So Yue Ruzheng watched him bend over and lift his foot again, but this time it took much longer than taking off his clothes. The iron awl seemed to be firmly embedded in his arm. He held his breath, gripped the end of the awl, frowned, and pulled it down little by little. His waist was bent like a bow, and his movements were very small, not daring to be reckless in the slightest.

Yue Ruzheng couldn't bear to watch him for a while and almost wanted to forcibly remove that hateful iron object for him, but looking at him, she could only suppress her inner impulse.

Only after he finally pulled out the iron spikes from both sides did Yue Ruzheng let out a deep breath. He turned around, lifted his leg, and gently placed the string of strangely shaped weapons on the bedside table. Yue Ruzheng took the clothes he had taken off, intending to put them on him, but he shook his head and said, "Wait a moment."

"What's wrong?" She paused, taken aback.

Lian Junchu, with her back to her, seemed somewhat flustered as she said, "I'm covered in sweat."

Even though she was dressed, Yue Ruzheng felt the room was cold and damp. She paused for a moment, then reached out and touched his back, which was indeed covered in sweat.

"But you'll catch a cold like this." Yue Ruzheng thought for a moment, then leaned forward, enduring the pain in her palm, and opened the chest, taking out an old garment to gently wipe the sweat from his body. She touched his back again with her fingertips, feeling how cold it was.

"You're so cold, put on some clothes." She picked up the clothes on the bed and draped them over his shoulders.

Lian Junchu sat back down and said to her, "It's alright, I've been feeling cold all along."

Yue Ruzheng was stunned. At this moment, Lian Junchu no longer had those silver chains on her body, nor did she have those chilling iron weapons.

A white shirt was draped over his shoulders. Yue Ruzheng sat in front of him, looking down at the place where he had been bound. She reached out and touched it, and could feel the indentations.

Yue Ruzheng's heart suddenly sank deeply. Unable to use her right hand, she leaned on his shoulder, wrapping her arms around his back. Lian Junchu's body remained cool for a long time, but within that slightly chilled body beat a steady, rhythmic heart.

"Does it hurt?" She tried to get closer to him, stroking the marks on his back.

Lian Junchu was silent for a moment, then whispered, "It doesn't hurt anymore."

She gazed at him intently, then turned her face close to his. Her long eyelashes brushed against Lian Junchu's face, causing him to hold his breath for a moment.

"Give me a hug," Yue Ruzheng whispered.

Lian Junchu pursed his lips, hesitated for a moment, then bent down and rested his head on her shoulder, stretching out his legs and gently wrapping them around her waist. Ignoring the pain in her hands, Yue Ruzheng hugged him tightly.

"I don't want you to leave," she said sadly.

Lian Junchu's breathing visibly paused for a moment. He didn't say anything, but simply pressed his body tightly against her chest.

He was only wearing a thin shirt, and Yue Ruzheng could feel him trembling slightly as she held him, but he never uttered a sound. She took his outer garment and draped it over his shoulders, and Lian Junchu then bent his knees and braced them against his chest, as if trying to keep a little warmth.

Yue Ruzheng couldn't help but touch his ankle; it was ice-cold. She picked up an old garment lying to the side and wrapped it tightly around his foot, asking, "Is this better?"

Lian Junchu nodded slightly. Yue Ruzheng suddenly jumped out of bed, sat up, and asked, "What's wrong?"

Seeing that he also seemed a little nervous, Yue Ruzheng pursed her lips and asked, "Are you really not hungry?" Without waiting for his reply, she ran off on her own.

She retrieved the long-cold pastries from the kitchen, sat back on the bed, placed the paper package beside him, and said, "Xiao Tang, today is New Year's Eve. But this is all we have."

He looked down at the pastries and said calmly, "It's nothing, this is enough."

Night had fallen, and firecrackers occasionally crackled from the foot of the mountain, making the town undoubtedly bustling with activity. Inside the small house, however, he and she were still eating their cold pastries slowly, just as they had done years ago. He held the paper package between his knees, head bowed, and silently took a bite. Yue Ruzheng noticed a few strands of hair falling across his forehead and reached out to brush them away.

Lian Junchu turned his head to look at her. She picked up the pastries from the paper package, knelt down in front of him, and called out, "Xiao Tang."

"Hmm?" He subconsciously looked up at her.

Outside, fine snow was falling, and there was no moonlight. Inside, it was pitch black, and Yue Ruzheng could only vaguely make out his outline. But even this hazy appearance stirred a warm feeling in her heart. She took a bite herself and then offered the pastry to his lips.

Lian Junchu seemed to take little hesitation and silently bit down.

Yue Ruzheng smiled, then hugged his bent legs, pressing her cheek against his knees.

"I just suddenly wanted to call you that," she said softly.

Night had fallen. Yue Ruzheng lay beside Lian Junchu on the empty bed. Although the bleeding from the wound on her palm had stopped, it still throbbed faintly. Lian Junchu had his eyes closed, breathing quietly. She didn't know if he was asleep. After their long journey, Yue Ruzheng knew he was actually very tired, yet he always maintained a nonchalant demeanor.