But her soft heart couldn't resist in the end. Sheng Chenjin helped her into the cave, and just as he was about to have her sit down, she quickly turned around.
"Sit here for a while, I'll go gather some firewood."
"But your foot..."
"My foot is just slightly swollen. It's better than your wound. You must be in pain with every step right now, so don't push yourself."
Sheng Chenjin had no retort. The pain from his wound was bearable before, but it seemed to be getting worse. Shi Xinxin's foot was only grazed when a rock rolled down and didn't have any serious issues.
She could still walk, hopping around the cave, picking up branches that looked like they could be burned. Sheng Chenjin sat on a rock and smiled faintly. He never imagined they would encounter something like this.
Shi Xinxin didn't know that Sheng Chenjin was smiling behind her. She only felt the conflict in her heart. Ever since that day, she had wanted to stay far away from Sheng Chenjin, preferably to the point of never seeing each other again.
But she never expected that at such a critical moment today, Sheng Chenjin would suddenly appear before her again, looking very concerned about her.
When he held her earlier, it made her heart flutter again. She knew clearly that her longing for Sheng Chenjin hadn't diminished; on the contrary, it had intensified over the past two days.
Before seeing Sheng Chenjin, it was manageable. She could distract herself with her heavy workload or remind herself of the environment she was in, an environment without Sheng Chenjin.
But now, in such a difficult time, when her life was at stake, the person who appeared by her side was precisely this man, a man whose relationship with her she couldn't even describe.
Heaven knew if he had appeared because of guilt. No matter what, seeing the large gash on his body, she would let bygones be bygones.
"Once we're rescued from the mountains, we'll go our separate ways. He'll walk his sunny road, and I'll walk my single-plank bridge," she muttered softly.
Suddenly, Shi Xinxin remembered the note she had left for Sheng Chenjin, asking him not to look for her. Was this considered him unilaterally breaking his promise?
Then could she not pay him back? At this thought, Shi Xinxin suddenly straightened up. Sheng Chenjin, watching her from behind, was startled. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing, nothing." Shi Xinxin turned back with an embarrassed smile. He had been staring at her the whole time!
"How could such a petty thought be discovered by Sheng Chenjin? This old fox, who knows how he'll scheme against me. Forget it, I'll just pay him back honestly."
Shi Xinxin sighed, looking at the pile of firewood in her hands, which was almost enough. She walked back to her original spot, but then remembered that Sheng Chenjin didn't usually smoke and was at a loss.
"I have the branches, but what do we do next?"
"That's easy. See if you have anything flammable on you," Sheng Chenjin replied with a relaxed demeanor. Shi Xinxin was a bit bewildered.
They hadn't even found a source of fire yet. What was the use of finding something flammable? Still, she obediently searched herself but only found a pack of tissues.
"This will be enough." Sheng Chenjin took the tissues and looked around, searching for a suitable spot to start a fire. Then, he picked up a few branches.
He spread the tissues out, laid them on top, and then took out his phone, turned on the flashlight, and took off his watch. He used the light from the flashlight and his watch to focus a beam onto the tissues.
Shi Xinxin came over and watched Sheng Chenjin's actions, her jaw almost dropping in surprise. "Did you participate in a wilderness survival training?"
Sheng Chenjin calmly replied, "No, it's common sense."
Shi Xinxin's face immediately darkened. Of course, she knew it was common sense, but she wasn't Sheng Chenjin. How would she know he happened to have a watch on him, and that his phone hadn't gotten wet?
Because the flashlight beam was easy to control, the paper soon caught fire, igniting the dry branches around it.
Seeing this, Shi Xinxin quickly added more branches. The fire gradually grew stronger. "Come and warm yourself by the fire," Sheng Chenjin urged.
However, Shi Xinxin was now worried about Sheng Chenjin's wound. Earlier, when he was starting the fire, her gaze inadvertently shifted to his waist.
The makeshift bandage hadn't helped much, and that small piece of cloth was now bright red. When Sheng Chenjin turned to ask Shi Xinxin to warm herself by the fire, he saw her looking at him with a pained expression.
Before he could react, Shi Xinxin got up and sat down beside him silently. She reached around from behind him to the front and untied the earphone cord.
Sheng Chenjin was surprised but also savored this moment. It was the first time Shi Xinxin had embraced him, though not in a true embrace, the action still held a sense of closeness.
He could feel her warmth and smell her unique fragrance. The moment the earphone cord was untied, Sheng Chenjin felt a slight relaxation in his body, and the wound didn't seem to hurt as much.
Shi Xinxin then realized that due to her carelessness, the earphone cord was tied just above the wound. And fearing it wouldn't hold, she had tightened it very forcefully.
As a result, for such a long time, this bandage had not only failed to stop the bleeding but had also increased Sheng Chenjin's pain.
Seeing her look of guilt, Sheng Chenjin quickly changed the subject. "Are you sure you want to watch me undress?"
"What's the big deal? Don't you often undress for other women?" Shi Xinxin retorted.
Sheng Chenjin smiled and shook his head. She had become increasingly sharp-tongued in just a few days. He stopped talking and lowered his head to unbutton his shirt, revealing his well-defined abs.
Shi Xinxin couldn't help but be amazed. The men around her didn't seem to have such a captivating physique. His dark skin made it hard for her to look away, and his well-defined abs showed the excellent habit of regular exercise.
Seeing Shi Xinxin's captivated gaze, Sheng Chenjin teased, "What? Are you regretting not seducing me back then?"
Shi Xinxin glared at him without hesitation and said, "Why would I regret not seducing a gigolo?" She hadn't brought up that word in such a long time, and now that she did, Sheng Chenjin was momentarily speechless.
This young lady, it seemed he shouldn't tease her. However, Sheng Chenjin showing off his good physique in front of her made Shi Xinxin feel somewhat embarrassed.