Chapter 390: Try Not To Set Her On Fire
I narrowed my eyes at Lingyun before looking back at the stairs. "Do you want me to ask Chenghai to carry you?"
Chenghai glanced over the boxes stacked in his arms, then tilted his head toward the top of the pile. "Put him up here."
Lingyun immediately straightened, although the sudden movement made his mouth tighten around a breath. "Suddenly, I feel much better."
"Miraculous," I deadpanned.
Zhenlan moved closer to my chair while Lingyun continued pretending that none of his bones had been recently rearranged. His gaze dropped to my ankle before returning to my face, and although he did not reach for me, he positioned himself close enough to catch me if I put too much weight on the limb.
It wasn’t like I didn’t already have a slight limp thanks to the Devourer... at this point in time, it might just be easier to cut the entire leg off and learn to move without it.
Then again... if I cut off the leg, then I would have all that much more of an excuse to spend the rest of my days lying on the couch watching dramas.
Yeah, I really wasn’t seeing that much of a downside. Why did I leave my home again?
Right the Devourer. That cocksucker really needed to be killed. Then I could spend the rest of my days on the couch.
At this point, I was going to have to start making a list of the things I needed to do before I could sit on my ass for the rest of my very, very long life.
"Can you manage the stairs?" Zhenlan asked, pulling me from my thoughts.
"Yup," I replied, nodding my head. Even if I had to rip off my leg and beat him with it, I was making it up those stairs.
Of course, Yuche had to have a wordless say in the matter.
His hand settled beneath my elbow before I could even push myself up to my feet. He didn’t point out that I leaned against him through the first step, and I didn’t point out that he had expected me to.
The fact that my hand might have stroked his rock solid chest while I played the weak damsel was completely a coincidence.
What could I say? I was a complicated creature.
The market worker led us away from the public stalls and toward a narrow stairwell built against the side of the warehouse. The noise faded as we climbed, leaving behind the shouting merchants, arguing customers, and the scrape of crates being dragged across concrete.
Two guards waited at the upper landing, opening the secured door before Yuche had to ask. Hell, they were so scared of the Dragon Head that they even lowered their eyes as we passed.
The private room was better than I expected.
A heavy table occupied the center, surrounded by several chairs that almost matched. A narrow couch had been pushed against one concrete wall, and thick curtains covered the only interior window.
From here, it was easy to see that there was no view of the market floor and no obvious way for anyone outside to watch us.
All that much better in my books.
A second door stood open at the back of the room, connecting it to a small examination area. The healer who had treated my ankle was already setting out bandages, bottles, and several metal instruments that looked sharp enough to create more patients than they helped.
Lingyun followed my gaze as it drifted over the room before his attention settled on the couch.
Hope appeared on his face for approximately one second. Then he looked through the open doorway at the healer arranging her instruments and seemed to realize the couch had not been prepared for him.
When he turned back toward me, I raised one hand and pointed at the examination room.
His shoulders sagged in immediate disappointment. The movement was careful enough to confirm that even sulking hurt his ribs.
"You’re abandoning me," he complained as he slid one arm around my waist and held on as if I might escape before he received medical attention.
"I’m going into the next room," I told him. I pressed my palm lightly against his chest, but he refused to move and leaned closer instead.
Lingyun lowered his voice into a wounded murmur. "That is still separation."
"You’ll survive," I assured him as I rolled my eyes.
His fingers curled more firmly into my shirt while he glanced toward the couch again. "I could survive over there."
"The healer is over there." I pointed through the doorway once more. "That is where you’re going."
Lingyun looked between the healer and me, clearly searching for a weakness he could exploit. "What if she hurts me?"
"You survived whatever happened before," I reminded him. I caught the front of his clean shirt and gave him a careful pull toward the examination room. "I’m sure you can survive a bandage."
The smile on his face flickered.
For one brief second, the playful warmth disappeared, leaving something cold and sharp behind his eyes. Whatever had happened before had not been a simple disagreement between shoppers, and Lingyun had not wandered into trouble by accident.
Then the expression vanished beneath his usual bright smile so quickly that someone who did not know him might have missed it.
"Barely," he said as he leaned down and pressed his cheek into my palm.
Yuche’s hand paused against my back.
He had seen it too.
Neither of them spoke, and I had no interest in dragging the truth out of them while Lingyun stood crooked and pretended his ribs were decorative. Whatever silent male conversation had passed between them could remain their problem until it became inconvenient enough to become mine.
Lingyun bent carefully and kissed my cheek. "Don’t absorb all of them without me."
"I’m not letting you watch."
His expression collapsed into exaggerated heartbreak, and he tightened his arm around me as though I had announced a permanent separation rather than a closed door.
"You’re injured because you went shopping badly," I reminded him. "Go get fixed."
"I went shopping very successfully."
"You came back with broken ribs."
"I also came back with presents."
"That doesn’t help if we have to spend the presents on getting you fixed up," I snapped back.
The healer cleared her throat from the other room. "I need to examine him before the swelling becomes worse."
Lingyun looked toward her with immediate suspicion.
I patted his cheek. "Try not to set the healer on fire."
"No promises."
"Lingyun."
"Fine. I promise not to set her on fire unless she deserves it."