Chapter 43

The one trying to cling to her wasn’t the snake.

Hè Tíng’s voice was filled with tenderness as he reassured her, “I’ll take the snake outside, then come back and stay with you. Don’t be scared.”

“Mm!” Lù Bái Wēi responded shyly, rubbing against his chest like a small, timid creature.

As Hè Tíng carried the snake out with the stick, Lù Bái Wēi’s thoughts raced. She hadn’t expected things to go so smoothly—Hè Tíng had seen her fear of the snake and had offered, on his own, to stay with her.

What now?

She heard the sound of him propping the stick in the corner outside, the door locking securely behind him, and his footsteps drawing closer to the bed. Her palms and soles started to sweat.

Thankfully, Hè Tíng seemed genuinely worried about her being frightened. He lay down quietly beside her, his presence steady and reassuring.

The room was silent, save for the faint sounds of their breathing and heartbeats, both unusually loud in the stillness. The atmosphere grew heavy, charged with an unspoken tension that neither of them dared acknowledge.

To break the silence, Lù Bái Wēi cleared her throat softly and said, “Hè Tíng, I’ve been learning how to check pulses with Dr. Shěn at the county hospital. How about I practice on you?”

Hè Tíng was doing his best to suppress the urge to hold her, and her sudden suggestion caught him off guard. Lying in the dark, his lips curved into a slow, handsome smile.

“Alright,” he replied, his voice deep and hoarse.

Lù Bái Wēi hesitated for a moment before inching her hand closer to his. Her delicate fingers finally wrapped around his calloused, wide palm, guiding it upward.

His pulse beat strongly beneath her fingertips, the rhythmic thrum so WeiWeid that it seemed to amplify her own wildly pounding heart. Her chest felt like it might burst as her nerves heightened, and she realized both their palms were damp with sweat from the shared tension.

Unsure of what to do next, she simply held his wrist, feeling her courage falter.

Hè Tíng, ever the patient hunter, decided to tease her just a little more.

“Wēi Wēi, is there something wrong with my pulse?”

“No!” she replied quickly.

*Who’s really here to check your pulse anyway?*

Her cheeks flushed, and her voice carried a hint of exasperation mixed with girlish shyness. “There’s nothing wrong at all!”

Lù Bái Wēi was slightly annoyed by him, her tone carrying a hint of playful scolding. “There’s nothing wrong.”

“There is,” Hè Tíng replied.

It was as though something was about to break free. In the darkness, his voice turned hoarse and dangerously low.

“Wēi Wēi, my internal fire is burning strong.”

“What? What did you say?” Lù Bái Wēi thought she must have misheard, her heart pounding wildly.

“Your husband has an excessive fire,” he repeated with a teasing drawl. “Wēi Wēi, help me put it out…”

Before she could react, Hè Tíng suddenly pulled her toward him. His strength caught her off guard, and with a startled cry, she fell onto his chest.

—

She didn’t know when she had fallen asleep. Through fleeting moments of light sleep, she faintly heard the sound of a rooster crowing outside.

When Lù Bái Wēi stirred, her body felt as if it had been run over by a cart, aching all over as though it had fallen apart.

However, just as she was about to drift back into a deeper sleep, the suffocating warmth of his presence loomed again.

Enough already!

Lù Bái Wēi regretted provoking him. If she had known he approached everything with an insatiable hunger, she wouldn’t have pretended to be afraid of a snake. Nor would she have brought up learning to check pulses, insisting on practicing on him in the dark.

Now she was reaping what she had sown. Not only had she checked his pulse, but she’d also ended up putting out his “fire.”

Annoyed and exhausted, she pushed against his face in protest, but the owner of that face clung to her like a snake.

Their strength was mismatched, and Lù Bái Wēi had no way to fend him off. Just as Hè Tíng, having tasted sweetness, was about to push his luck further, a loud knocking came from the outer room.

Bang, bang, bang!

Who would come knocking this early?

The sky outside was already bright, though the room was still dim. It wasn’t yet time for the team to start work.

“I’ll go see who’s at the door,” Hè Tíng said.

From the moment they had signed their marriage certificate to now, their relationship had deepened significantly. Before leaving, Hè Tíng leaned in to place a gentle kiss on her face.

Hè Tíng brushed his face against Lù Bái Wēi’s cheek gently. 

Knowing he had been too intense and left her exhausted, he gestured for her to stay put and went to answer the door himself. 

“Is my little uncle really living here?” 

“Uncle Tang, you’re not lying, are you?” 

Outside, a child’s voice sounded, one that seemed oddly familiar. 

When Hè Tíng opened the door, he came face-to-face with a man with a resolute expression. The man wore a military uniform and carried a small girl on his shoulder. The child was fast asleep, her cheeks flushed. 

Because her face was turned to the side, Hè Tíng only caught a glimpse of her profile. There was something familiar about the little girl, but he didn’t dwell on it. 

Before he could ask, a boy of about five years old peeked out from behind the man. His wide-eyed gaze landed on Hè Tíng, his face a mixture of shock and disbelief. 

“Little Uncle?” 

That’s when Hè Tíng finally connected the dots about why the little girl in the man’s arms seemed familiar. 

Seeing his nephew Hè Yúnqí here, even someone as composed as Hè Tíng was stunned. 

“Yúnqí, how did you find this place?” 

“Little Uncle, it really is you!” 

“We finally found you!” 

The boy threw himself at Hè Tíng’s legs, hugging them tightly as if afraid he might disappear again. 

The initial excitement on the boy’s face quickly faded. His lips began to quiver, and his eyes brimmed with tears that were about to spill over. 

“Waaaah! Mom and Dad are gone, and my little sister is sick…” 

The boy’s crying struck a nerve. 

Snapping out of his daze, Hè Tíng immediately sensed something serious had happened back home. 

As if slipping into the dynamic they once shared back in the capital, Hè Tíng commanded firmly, “Stop crying! Swallow those tears and talk properly.” 

“Little Uncle…” 

While the two were talking, the little girl, who had been sleeping on the man’s shoulder, woke up. 

When her eyes landed on Hè Tíng, her face lit up with joy. In a soft, sweet voice, she called out to him, “Little Uncle!” 

The man holding the girl, Táng Jǐngchuān, finally couldn’t hold back anymore. 

“Let’s go inside to talk. The child is still sick.” 

Táng Jǐngchuān, holding the little girl, couldn’t hold back anymore. “Let’s go inside and talk. The child is still sick.” 

Hearing someone call out “Little Uncle” and the sound of a child crying, Lù Bái Wēi had a vague sense of what might be happening. 

Despite her body feeling like it had been run over and aching all over, she propped herself up and got dressed. 

Sure enough, when she stepped out of the inner room, she was greeted by an unexpected sight. 

“Second Uncle, it’s really you?” 

Lù Bái Wēi was pleasantly surprised. “I saw you at the county hospital entrance yesterday! I thought I was mistaken.” 

“Yes, I was originally planning to head back to Xiàngyáng Brigade yesterday,” Táng Jǐngchuān said warmly, greeting his niece while explaining why he had been at the hospital. 

“Rán Rán had a high fever and was very ill. We had no choice but to stay the night at the county guesthouse.” 

Hè Tíng had already taken his niece Hè Yúnrán from Táng Jǐngchuān’s arms and was holding her while talking with him. 

As Táng Jǐngchuān explained, his gaze fell on the little girl now in Hè Tíng’s arms. 

Hè Tíng knew that Lù Bái Wēi’s second uncle had served in the same military unit as his brother. 

But he hadn’t expected that the person entrusted by his brother and sister-in-law to bring his nephew and niece to Xiàngyáng Brigade would turn out to be Táng Jǐngchuān—his wife’s very own second uncle. 

Feeling grateful to Táng Jǐngchuān for making the trip, Hè Tíng smoothly followed Lù Bái Wēi’s lead and addressed him as “Uncle.” 

“My family’s matters have troubled you to make this journey, Uncle.” 

As soon as Lù Bái Wēi appeared, Hè Yúnqí’s wide eyes turned to her, full of curiosity. 

Beyond curiosity, there was a hint of caution in his gaze. 

At five years old, Hè Yúnqí was old enough to understand some of what was happening. The upheaval at home affected him more deeply than it did his three-year-old sister. 

Having left the shelter of his parents, he had already endured both cold indifference and outright hostility. These experiences had made him especially sensitive. 

His expression suggested he was worried that his new aunt might not like him.