When Jingliu said the words "stayed up all night," Zero quickly realized where he had given himself away.
The reason was nothing else but that message he had casually replied to Jingliu with.
Based on that message, Jingliu deduced the truth that Zero had stayed up all night. He wasn't surprised by this at all.
As for the shower… Zero had only dried his hair until it was half-dry. That Jingliu could tell was perfectly normal.
What Zero couldn't figure out was how Jingliu had seen that he'd been drinking. And why she was angry about it.
Her line of thinking was really scattered… even he couldn't keep up with Jingliu's train of thought anymore.
Just as he was about to say something to muddle through it, Jingliu seemed to think of something. She frowned slightly and suddenly said, "Back when you and I were sparring, you stayed up all night for seven days in a row just to wait for me, didn't you?"
Zero was left speechless by that line. For a moment, he didn't know what to say.
The way Jingliu dug up old accounts was truly unexpected.
Zero kept his expression steady. As he reached out to take the takeout from Jingliu's hands, he weighed his words, trying to gloss things over.
Unexpectedly, Jingliu didn't play by the rules. She stayed silent, not giving Zero any chance to explain. With one hand holding the takeout and the other grabbing him, she led him toward the inner room.
When they reached the dining room, Jingliu set the takeout on the table and pulled Zero down to sit.
With a cold face, she looked straight at Zero. After looking for a while, she was the first to give in and spoke up.
"You and I agreed that no matter what happened in the future, you would tell me right away."
"So does that mean what we agreed on before doesn't count anymore?"
Zero replied with a smile. "...How could that be?"
Jingliu let out a sigh.
"Forget it. What we agreed on was the future. You staying up seven nights in a row was in the past… it doesn't really count as breaking our agreement."
Jingliu irritably pinched Zero's palm.
Who would have thought that her lover was actually someone who followed agreements so strictly?
The agreement was about the future, never bringing up things from the past.
Jingliu's tone was full of helplessness. "You really are… how did I not notice this before?"
Zero turned his head to look at Jingliu, his tone oddly playful. "Is it still in time to notice now?"
Jingliu replied casually, "In time for what?"
She didn't dwell on Zero's words, her gaze falling on his hair instead.
Jingliu raised her other hand and touched the half-dry ends of Zero's hair, then got up to find a towel.
She carefully controlled her strength, deliberately slowing her movements, wiping upward little by little from the tips of his hair. After drying the hair in front, she lifted her hand to the back of Zero's neck and swept the other side of his hair over.
At this moment, Jingliu noticed that Zero was staring at her without blinking.
They met each other's gaze for an instant. Then Jingliu turned her head and looked at the still-unopened takeout, softly urging Zero, "Hurry up and eat."
Zero withdrew his gaze and did as told, opening the takeout packaging.
"I ordered a lot. Do you want something sweet, or something savory?"
Jingliu replied casually, "Sweet."
She continued wiping his hair with the towel. As she did, Zero picked up a piece of pastry with his chopsticks and held it to her lips.
Jingliu slowed the movement of her hands and took a bite of the pastry.
Zero fed her several more times in a row, only stopping once she put the towel down.
Jingliu picked up her chopsticks and said, "I don't often see you with your hair down."
When her lover was in front of others, he only ever showed a proper, composed side.
Only at certain moments would he reveal another side.
Zero casually picked up a piece of meat for Jingliu.
"Having it down is really hot… I've actually always wanted to cut my hair short."
If it weren't for the fact that everyone on the Xianzhou kept long hair… if short hair weren't too unconventional and didn't fit the image of an ordinary person… Zero would have cut it long ago.
Jingliu swallowed the pastry and replied, "Keep it. By the way, how much did you actually drink last night?"
Zero first nodded, agreeing to Jingliu's suggestion.
He couldn't think of suitable wording, so he told the truth. "I only drank a little red wine."
Jingliu was still uneasy and warned him, "Showering after drinking, at best you catch a chill, at worst you could go into shock or die suddenly. Don't do that again next time."
She added, "And don't just fall asleep right away either."
Hearing this, Zero finally understood why Jingliu had been angry.
Before, his self-healing ability had just been a bit poor, and she'd taken him to see Dan Feng. Then, from Chanzhen and the others, she'd learned that he had habits of staying up late and not eating properly. This time, she discovered that he'd stayed up all night, drank, and then taken a shower…
Staying up all night, drinking, he could give up either of those. But showering was the one thing he couldn't separate or give up.
It was one of the few ways he relaxed and relieved stress.
Zero said, "...Being covered in the smell of alcohol feels awful."
Jingliu frowned. "No matter how awful it feels, you still can't take a shower."
Her lover had a blood clotting disorder. His constitution was worse than that of other Xianzhou people. On top of that, from elders like Chan Zhen and Daiyang, she'd learned that he had quite a few prior offenses…
Zero himself didn't care much about his physical condition, so Jingliu had no choice but to put in more effort and keep a closer eye on him.
After thinking it over again and again, she suggested, "If it's really unbearable, then use a hot towel and wipe yourself down."
Looking at Jingliu, who was racking her brains to think of solutions for him, Zero had no reason to refuse this kindness. He smiled softly and nodded.
Hearing this, Jingliu finally relaxed a little.
She put down her chopsticks, turned sideways, and urged, "Hold out your hand."
Zero didn't understand why, but he held out his left hand.
Jingliu raised her hand and lightly tapped the back of it. "Your right hand."
Zero had no choice but to switch to his right hand.
Jingliu said again, "Close your eyes."
Zero cooperated fully and closed his eyes.
These past half a month, Jingliu seemed to have been staying with Yingxing at the Artisanship Commission.
A guess quickly formed in his mind, and he smiled as he said, "Did you prepare some kind of surprise for me?"
With his eyes closed, his other senses seemed to become sharper.
Zero clearly felt that the tip of his right index finger seemed to touch something, cool to the touch.
Perhaps because he had been drinking, it took Zero quite a while to realize that Jingliu had put a ring on his finger.
He opened his eyes and met Jingliu's gaze.
Jingliu knew very well that the value of this gift she was giving… was probably not even a fraction of the value of any random gift he'd given her.
She had mentioned those expensive pieces of jewelry to Zero before, but had never managed to ask their prices.
A swordmaster with nothing to her name really couldn't think of what gift to return, nor could she produce an amount of credit equal to those gifts. Left with no choice, she went to Dan Feng. After getting her friend's advice, she decided to put more thought into the gift itself.
Zero had given her many rings, so… she would return the gesture with a ring.
Jingliu hadn't originally believed the sayings circulating on the Xianzhou, things like red strings warding off evil, jade and gourds being protective charms, cinnabar bringing peace and safety.
If such things really could protect people, then why did people still leave this world so early?
But Zero believed in these things. He had even told her that wearing rings on the middle fingers of both hands had the meaning of attracting wealth.
So Jingliu started searching all over the star network, learning quite a few sayings related to rings.
For example, wearing a ring on the right thumb had the meaning of praying for blessings and longevity. Wearing one on the right index finger had the meaning of changing one's luck and health…
Before she could decide how many rings to give, she saw two more rules.
First, you can't wear them with a gap.
When wearing rings, you can't leave one finger empty between two rings, or it will affect your fortune.
Second, you can't wear too many rings on one hand at the same time.
Considering that Zero had already bought two rings in advance, she had no choice but to settle for the next best thing and only give this one ring.
Jingliu said softly, "Wearing a ring on the right index finger has the meaning of changing your luck and health."
May this ring bring good luck to her lover who never draws a two when playing cards and always finds desserts sold out when he wants them.
May it truly, as those people say, bring health to her lover who has a blood clotting disorder and extremely poor self-healing ability.
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