The Emperor and His Thief - Chapter 24

Lin Xiao sat beside the bed as he waited patiently for the young lady to wake up. Earlier, Long YinLian had told him to escort her to Senlin village once she wakes up so she can get help from the officials there. It has been a good three hours since then but there was no sign of her waking up.

“She didn’t accidentally die of shock from seeing Zan-er, right?” Lin Xiao wondered but he immediately threw those stupid thought away after confirming that she is still breathing. Another hour passed, and the sky was getting darker. Long YinLian had also returned from his bath with the three tigers in tow. Lin Xiao quickly went to the other’s side and supported him out of habit even though he knew Long YinLian can manage on his own.

“Xiao-er, is she still not up?” Long YinLian asked as he settled down on a wooden stool with Lin Xiao’s help.

“Not yet. She didn’t even twitch,” Lin Xiao answered. “I even finished making the stew for tonight’s dinner! Shizun, how about we eat dinner first?”

“Mmn… Alright. Let us eat dinner first,” Long YinLian agreed and Lin Xiao immediately went to work.

He prepared the bowl for Long YinLian and handed it over to the older male as careful as he could. “It’s still a bit hot. So, blow on them a bit before you eat them,” he warned Long YinLian. Only after making sure that Long YinLian is eating did Lin Xiao grab his own portion.

The three tigers already ate earlier so now they were only lazing around on the ground. Wang Zan would occasionally eye the figure sleeping on the bed in a curious manner. Wang Zan had wanted to go over but with one warning look from Lin Xiao, he stopped and went back to lay down on the ground.

Dinner didn’t last too long and they were both full after one bowl of stew. Lin Xiao was about to go and clean the dish when he heard a groan coming from the direction of the bed. Lin Xiao placed the dish back on the table and walked over to the side of the bed. “Awake yet?”

Not long after he said that, she finally opens her eyes. The first thing she saw was Lin Xiao and she immediately sat up straight and knelt on the bed. “Thank you for saving me! I am really indebted to you,” she said as she bowed to Lin Xiao. “The shock of the death of my family guards must have been too much because I had imagined you have a tiger beside you before passing out,” she said as she laughed in embarrassment. Then, she saw Wang Zan who had come over out of curiosity and her face went pale. “Oh… no…”

“Wait! Wait!! Don’t pass out!!” Lin Xiao quickly grabbed her by the shoulder and turned her body so that she’s facing him. “Listen, you don’t have to worry, alright? Wang Zan is very gentle. He won’t hurt you,” Lin Xiao said with a gentle voice, trying to assure the young lady as much as he could. It seemed to be working because Lin Xiao could see her cheek gaining a slight reddish color and he let out a relieved sigh.

“Anyway, my name is Lin Xiao. And this here is Wang Zan,” Lin Xiao introduced themselves. “Over there, you can see my shizun. Those two tigers over there is Wang Lan and Wang Fan. Don’t worry, they will not harm you,” Lin Xiao quickly added the last sentence when he noticed that her body was shaking. “I was supposed to send you to the village after you wake up but now it’s already dark and it is not safe to travel through the forest at night. Sister can rest here for tonight. I will escort you to the village tomorrow.”

“Alright. Umm… thank you…” the young lady looked at Lin Xiao who only gave her a smile in return. Her heart started to beat faster and she quickly looked away. “I… My name is Fei YuXing,” she shyly introduced herself.

“Alright, then Lin Xiao will call you sister Fei from now on.”

“Xiao-er, come here for a second,” Long YinLian called Lin Xiao over.

Lin Xiao glanced over at Long YinLian who is currently going through the items that Lin Xiao brought back earlier when he saved Fei YuXing. “Sister Fei, please excuse me for a bit. When I come back, I’ll also bring you something to eat,” Lin Xiao said to the young lady before he walked over to Long YinLian. Fei YuXing wanted to follow so she could also thank Long YinLian but when he saw the two other tigers, she decided to just stay quietly on the bed.

“Shizun, what is it?” Lin Xiao asked in a soft voice once he is seated beside Long YinLian.

He saw that Long YinLian held a wooden token in his hand, gently rubbing his thumb against its surface. “Xiao-er, you said you found this along with her belongings?”

“En. It looks important so I brought it along with the rest of her jewelry. I mean, with the red dress, it is already confirmed that she was sent over for marriage. Those jewelry must’ve been her dowry,” Lin Xiao explained.

“Is that so…” Long YinLian stopped the movement of his thumb and seemed to be pondering about something. After a while, he raised the token up to Lin Xiao for the other to take. “Xiao-er, I have only felt the surface but, can you tell me what you see?”

Lin Xiao blinked a few times before he looked over at the wooden token. “Well, there is only a single character carved into it and it says ‘Xia’,” the moment the word left Lin Xiao’s lips, Long YinLian stiffened. “Shizun, is there something wrong with it?” Lin Xiao asked when he saw Long YinLian’s reaction.

“Nothing…” Long YinLian shook his head. “Have you given the lady something to eat? She has woken up, right?”

“Ah, yes! She’s already up. If there is nothing else, Lin Xiao will go deliver the stew to sister Fei.”

“She is surnamed Fei?”

“En. She said her name is Fei YuXing.”

“I see. Alright, go on. Do not keep the guest waiting,” Long YinLian said as he stood up. “After you give her dinner, come meet me outside,” Long YinLian told Lin Xiao as he walked out of the cave.

Lin Xiao felt that there is something that Long YinLian is hiding. He wanted to ask, but he also felt that it is inappropriate. ‘Shizun will tell me when the time is right…’ he thought to himself as he went to scoop the stew for Fei YuXing. He returned to Fei YuXing with a bowl in his hand.

“Sister Fei, this is the stew I made. Hope the taste is to your liking,” Lin Xiao said as he handed the wooden bowl over to her.

Fei YuXing at first hesitated to take it but then, she quickly snapped out of it and hurriedly took the bowl. “Thank you, brother Lin,” she said with a smile. She knew that as a guest, she shouldn’t be picky. ‘So, what if I have to eat from a wooden bowl? I’m lucky enough to even eat. If brother Lin didn’t save me earlier…’ as the thought run across her mind, Fei YuXing shivered.

“What’s wrong? Are you feeling cold?” Lin Xiao looked at her worriedly. “Hold on,” he said as he went over to the corner of the cave. When he returned, Lin Xiao had a fur of an animal on his hands. “This is the pelt of a bear. It’s already tanned so they’re quite clean. You can use them as blanket,” Lin Xiao then placed the fur on the bed beside Fei YuXing. “I will be going out for a bit with my shizun. If you need anything, just call out. We won’t be far,” Lin Xiao said before he finally left her alone.

Fei YuXing first looked at the bowl of stew, then at the fur pelt on the bed. She didn’t know what to make of Lin Xiao’s kindness, but she could feel her heart was moved. Unfortunately, she had to throw such thoughts away. ‘Fei YuXing, you are already promised to someone else. Don’t bring dishonor to your family now…’ she reprimanded herself before finally eating the stew.

When the taste of the stew hit her mouth, her eyes widened, and the pace of her eating quickened. Before long, she finished her bowl and was feeling satisfied. “Brother Lin’s cooking really taste good… Any woman who marries him will be lucky, ah!”

A/N: I have no excuse… I totally forgot about this site x.x