Chapter 37: Flirt and Run

“Aiya, it’s already dark!” Jiang Yue looked up and realized that the sky had completely turned dark. She had been so focused on her shouting earlier that she hadn’t noticed.

At that moment, it was a bit awkward. Jiang Yue’s words seemed to be just a way to make small talk.

“Let’s go inside!” Gu Ye said.

It was summer, and there were many mosquitoes. Jiang Yue could already hear the buzzing of mosquitoes starting to bombard her ears.

Gu Ye stood up, and Jiang Yue followed suit. They had been sitting close to each other, so when they suddenly got up at the same time, they inevitably bumped into each other.

Jiang Yue stumbled backward, and Gu Ye, quick as a flash, caught her slender waist. “Be careful!”

“Ah!” Jiang Yue cried out, instinctively reaching out to grab the fabric on Gu Ye’s chest.

Huh?

When Gu Ye saw Jiang Yue’s expression, and that she was staring at his chest, his handsome face immediately darkened. He pulled her hand away and shook it off, his teeth gritted in frustration. “Jiang Yue, are you even a woman?”

“Huh? Do you want to check?” Jiang Yue hadn’t expected that Gu Ye would let go of her so quickly. She almost lost her balance. She was deliberately teasing him and made a show of trying to unbutton her shirt.

Gu Ye’s forehead almost seemed ready to steam with anger. His strong, handsome face had turned completely dark. He snapped: “Jiang! Yue!”

Seeing that Gu Ye was about to explode, Jiang Yue quickly turned and slipped away.

Flirt and run—Jiang Yue didn’t hesitate even for a second.

Gu Ye was extremely frustrated, but there was nothing he could do about it.

He took a few deep breaths, just about to return to his room, when Jiang Yue’s voice came from her bedroom window. “Gu Ye, you need to put the bowls back in the cabinet, or else the bugs will crawl in at night, and you’ll have to wash them again tomorrow!”

The moment Gu Ye heard Jiang Yue calling him by name, his temples started throbbing.

But he knew she was right. Leaving bowls and chopsticks in the courtyard wasn’t a big deal, but the real concern was the rats.

Rats carried so many bacteria. If they contaminated the utensils or food, it could even lead to the plague, which was no joke!

Gu Ye, thinking of this, quickly picked up the bowls from the basin and took them to the kitchen. When he put them in the cabinet, he carefully checked both the inside and outside, making sure the cabinet wasn’t broken, and that there were no rat holes in the wall behind it. Only when he was sure did he feel at ease.

However, after Gu Ye checked, he still found a rat hole in the corner of the kitchen wall. Fortunately, the location was quite hidden, and it could only be discovered after moving the table.

Gu Ye decided not to tell Jiang Yue about it for now. He would secretly seal it up tomorrow by himself.

Jiang Yue was already terrified at the sight of cockroaches. He couldn’t even imagine what her reaction would be if she saw a rat.

Just as Gu Ye was putting the bowls back in place, he heard Jiang Yue calling him again.

“Gu Ye, Gu Ye! Help me bring the water!”

Jiang Yue had finished her bath and was asking Gu Ye to bring the bucket of water she had used to wash herself.

Gu Ye, with a serious face, walked into the room. He saw Jiang Yue once again wearing his shirt, the sleeves rolled up several times, exposing her fair and straight legs. Her hair was loose, the ends still damp, making her black, shiny hair look even more radiant. Her little face was as white as jade, and her skin was tender. Her lips were like flowers in the morning with dew on them. Even before he got close, Gu Ye could smell a pleasant fragrance.

Gu Ye glanced at her but immediately looked away. He couldn’t be bothered to mention Jiang Yue wearing his clothes again.

When Jiang Yue saw Gu Ye’s indifferent reaction, she smiled at him, but he remained aloof and arrogant. This made her unhappy.

If he couldn’t be bothered to look at her, she couldn’t be bothered to care about him either!

She grabbed a comb to brush her hair, turned her back to Gu Ye, and ignored him.

Gu Ye took the water bucket outside and poured it out. The water smelled fragrant, just like the scent on Jiang Yue, and it made Gu Ye feel even more irritated.

When Gu Ye returned after dumping the water, he saw that Jiang Yue had already gone back to her room. Her door was closed. He paused for a moment before heading back to his own room, grabbed some clothes, and prepared to take a shower.

As Gu Ye reached the wellside and was about to take off his shirt, he instinctively glanced toward Jiang Yue’s window. It had been the place where she had been secretly watching him last night, but tonight, the window was tightly shut, and the curtains were drawn.

Gu Ye couldn’t help but think: Had he been too harsh with her earlier?

Meanwhile, Jiang Yue was locked in her room, admiring the treasures she had salvaged from the junkyard earlier in the afternoon. She had picked out twelve scrolls, each one a famous painting from the Song and Yuan periods. As she looked at each one, she felt both joy and a little heartache.

These scrolls had been passed down for thousands of years and should have been well-preserved, but over the years, they had been displaced and eventually ended up in the junk pile at a recycling station. It was easy to imagine how badly they had been damaged.

Although Jiang Yue could recognize ancient paintings, she didn’t know how to restore them. And acquiring these priceless ancient paintings didn’t mean she could sit back and wait for them to appreciate over the decades; she also had to find ways to preserve them.

Jiang Yue pulled out a camphor wood box from under the bed, just the right size to hold the scrolls.

Camphor wood was insect-resistant, but she still needed to think of ways to protect them from moisture.

After placing the camphor wood box safely, Jiang Yue turned her attention to the two ancient books she had found. One was about health preservation, and the other was an ancient scientific text similar to Mengxi Bitan.

Once Jiang Yue started reading, she couldn’t stop.

When Gu Ye finished his shower and returned, he noticed that Jiang Yue’s room light was still on. What was she doing? It was so late, and she hadn’t gone to sleep yet?

The next morning, Gu Ye got up and first glanced over at the opposite room. Jiang Yue’s door was tightly shut, and it looked like she hadn’t woken up yet.

After returning from his run, Gu Ye noticed the stove in the kitchen was still cold. He furrowed his brows, thought for a moment, and then walked up to Jiang Yue’s door and knocked.

“Jiang Yue! Jiang Yue!”

Jiang Yue had been so engrossed in her books the previous night that she stayed up late. She was just getting a good sleep when Gu Ye’s loud knocking woke her up. She sprang out of bed, hurriedly opened the door, and snapped: “I heard you, I heard you! Why are you shouting so early in the morning?”

Gu Ye looked at Jiang Yue with her messy hair and fiery eyes, glaring at him as if he had disturbed her sleep to the point she wanted to bite him. He instinctively withdrew the hand he had used to knock and let it hang.

“It’s already this late, and you’re still sleeping?” he asked.

“Is it even six o’clock? You don’t sleep and expect no one else to sleep either?” Jiang Yue caught hold of Gu Ye’s large hand, looking at the military watch on his wrist, while yawning and rolling her eyes. It was only six o’clock, and he was already waking her up. When did Gu Ye become so inconsiderate?

“I need to go to the team later. Make breakfast for me!” Gu Ye said, grabbing her as she turned back toward the bed and pulling her back.

“Ahhh!” Jiang Yue frantically grabbed her hair. “Can’t you do it yourself? I want to sleep!”

“No, I have to write a report, I don’t have time!” Gu Ye continued, staring at her. As he watched her reaction, he secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Jiang Yue, feeling helpless, could only give in and reluctantly walked outside, muttering under her breath.

“You said you would make fried rice for me last night!” Gu Ye reminded her.

“I know, I know!” Jiang Yue was speechless. Was Gu Ye seriously treating her like a cook? Ugh, he was so annoying!