"You..."
Ye Qing's face turned visibly pale under A Jiu's gaze, her lips losing all color.
Soon, a hint of tenderness returned to her despairing eyes: "I'm Ye Qing, have you forgotten everything?"
A Jiu saw the longing and humility in Ye Qing's eyes, which was so out of place with her noble demeanor and snow-white robes.
Even A Jiu was touched by that expectant gaze, as if she and Tuoba Yan had shared unforgettable memories.
A Jiu turned to leave. This was not a suitable place for him. Besides, even if Tuoba Yan were a ghost, he must have had a family before he died. A Jiu knew nothing about him. Staying here would not only make her unable to contribute to the conversation but also make her extremely awkward.
"Little Jiu, wait." Tuoba Yan chased after her without a moment's delay.
A Jiu's scalp tingled. Don't follow me, don't follow me! She didn't want to cause trouble. She was only here to get treatment.
A Jiu quickened her pace and ran back to the military camp.
Grandma A had returned at some point and was already sitting there.
"Little Jiu, I really don't know this wo... Oh, Grandma is here too." Tuoba Yan quickly retracted his unfinished sentence.
"You don't need to say anything. I don't know anything anyway." A Jiu was exhausted today and sat down, taking a big gulp of water.
Seeing Grandma Wang sitting as if asleep, Tuoba Yan cautiously sat down and lowered his voice:
"This is truly strange, Little Jiu. If I were that Prince of Nanming's son, wouldn't I have everything I wanted? Like grain, gold, silks, and satins?"
Tuoba Yan counted on his fingers, as if counting money: "Then wouldn't I give it all to you?"
A Jiu was initially uninterested but was drawn into the contemplation by Little Yan Yan's words:
"That's true. But what's really going on? You see how sad Miss Ye Qing is. If you really aren't Nanming Jun, you shouldn't have followed me just now. You should have clarified things there, to spare her from suffering every day."
Tuoba Yan leaned back on his hands: "I did explain. She didn't listen."
As soon as he finished speaking, Tuoba Yan looked at A Jiu intently: "Little Jiu, are you truly oblivious, or are you pretending to be?"
"Oblivious to what?" A Jiu's eyes widened.
"It's... that special feeling I have for you. Do you have it?" Tuoba Yan organized his thoughts. In truth, he couldn't explain it clearly either, it was all based on his feelings.
"Yes, it's very special. You take good care of me. You're the person who treats me best, apart from my parents and family."
A Jiu spoke directly.
Tuoba Yan scratched his ear, feeling that it wasn't quite like this, definitely not so simple: "It's that feeling of wanting to be together forever, just us, with no third person between us."
A Jiu had never experienced love in her past or present life, but with such explicit words, even if she didn't understand, she could tell.
Her heart skipped a beat. Her gaze became unfocused, not knowing where to look. For a moment, she couldn't utter a single word.
"Um... right, why did you suddenly come to the military camp?" A Jiu decided it was best to change the subject. It felt like the air was running out.
"The commander sent us. He said there's a plague here, and we'll be going to war tomorrow, so reinforcements are needed."
Tuoba Yan spoke absentmindedly. Compared to the war, the question he had just asked was far more important to him, someone who was about to go home.
"Aren't you going home soon?" A Jiu frowned. After being up all night, she had almost forgotten about Tuoba Yan's killing spree a few days ago.
" Tomorrow night." Tuoba Yan occasionally looked up at A Jiu, hoping to catch something on her face.
"Oh, then tomorrow, shall I escort you?" A Jiu still wanted to see him off. Perhaps it was due to his care over the past while, and the fact that Tuoba Yan wouldn't be returning.
"No need!" Tuoba Yan objected very quickly.
"..." He had just asked such an explicit question, why was he so quick to refuse her escorting him?
Seeing disappointment on Little Jiu's face, Tuoba Yan quickly said with renewed spirits: "It's not that I don't want you to escort me, it's that I have a gift for you, and this gift is too big for me to carry."
This didn't seem to conflict.