Zheng Chuan's house had many weapons such as knives and arrows. Xu Zifan found a handy, sharp dagger and quickly skinned the tiger. Although the tiger skin was damaged in several places by their slashing and shooting, it probably wouldn't fetch much money, but it was still a good item compared to other furs, and could be worth several dozen taels of silver.
Afterwards, Xu Zifan bled and removed the bones, finishing off the tiger while Zheng Chuan bathed and applied medicine. When Zheng Chuan came out, he saw basins of things on the ground, stopped in surprise, and asked incredulously, "You did all this? How do you know how to do this?"
Xu Zifan chuckled, fetched water to wash his hands, and said, "I aspire to be a doctor, so my skills must be up to par, and I need to be adept at using a knife. However, I don't know how to tan fur, so you'll have to process the tiger's skin yourself." He straightened up, shook the water droplets off his hands, and then, remembering that Zheng Chuan was injured and couldn't make any big movements or exert any force, he changed his words, "Tell me how to do it, and I'll do it."
Zheng Chuan was used to treating his injuries and enduring pain alone, so being treated like a patient made him a little uncomfortable. "No need, I can manage. We killed this tiger together, so we'll split it. What do you want?"
Xu Zifan shook his head. "I don't want it. You're so badly injured. Sell these to make more money to help yourself. I didn't do anything. You killed the tiger. Don't worry about it." He walked towards Zheng Chuan and said, "Come on, let me take your pulse."
Zheng Chuan's wound was indeed very painful, and she felt a little dizzy. In the past, she was afraid of being discovered to be a woman and dared not see a doctor. Now that Xu Zifan had discovered that she was a woman and knew medicine, it seemed that it would be fine to let him treat her. It was already dark, so they definitely couldn't see each other in the courtyard. Zheng Chuan pursed her lips and led Xu Zifan into the house in a generous manner, where they lit an oil lamp.
She was dressed in men's everyday clothes and moved quite like a man, but as she walked past Xu Zifan, he noticed she was a head shorter than him. When the oil lamp was lit, he could clearly see her exquisite features and fair skin, resembling her appearance only about six-tenths as she did in men's clothing. Only then did he truly realize that she was indeed a woman. This feeling was so wondrous, a feeling that completely overturned his understanding.
[Zheng Chuan's information has been updated again; her health monitoring results are now displayed.]
Shao Hua's voice snapped Xu Zifan out of his reverie. He glanced at Zheng Chuan's profile on the screen: female, 18 years old, 170cm tall, 52kg. There was also a photo of Zheng Chuan with her true appearance restored, and Shao Hua had even dressed her in women's clothing and styled her hair like a young girl—the visual effect was striking; at first glance, she looked exactly like "Zheng Chuan's" sister!
Xu Zifan approached Zheng Chuan, subtly turning off the screen, and asked her to sit at the table to take her pulse. Zheng Chuan's internal organs had suffered a severe impact, resulting in some internal injuries, but nothing serious; a few days of rest and some medication would suffice. External injuries mainly required frequent dressing changes to prevent the wounds from reopening. Xu Zifan explained the precautions to her, wrote down a prescription, and said, "I found some good medicinal herbs in the mountains this time, and I plan to take them to town to sell. I'll pick up your herbs tomorrow while I'm at it; you should stay home and not go out."
Zheng Chuan said, "I can go by myself."
Xu Zifan thought for a moment and said, "Even without today's incident, we should still be friends who can help each other carry things, right? It's just picking up medicine on the way, it's not troublesome, you don't need to be so polite."
The sudden discovery of the woman's disguise as a man completely shattered the harmonious and tacit atmosphere between them, seemingly reverting them to a distant and polite distance, even their conversations were filled with awkwardness. Yet, when they remained silent, a subtle ambiguity lingered between them, making both of them somewhat uncomfortable.
Xu Zifan glanced at Zheng Chuan and felt that things couldn't continue like this; he was being too indecisive, which wasn't like him. It was one thing for the girl to feel uncomfortable, but why should he? The more he acted this way, the more awkward Zheng Chuan would feel. It was better to let things take their course. As for taking responsibility, he had already said it once; he knew it in his heart. Whether Zheng Chuan wanted him to take responsibility or not depended on Zheng Chuan's opinion.
While writing down the dietary restrictions, Xu Zifan adjusted his mood. When he looked up again, he was back to his usual self. He handed the list to Zheng Chuan and instructed him, "You must follow the doctor's advice and take good care of your injury. Otherwise, it will have a great impact on your future, and it will be a loss."
Holding the list, Zheng Chuan asked, "When can I go hunting again?"
"Hunting... judging from how your wound is healing, it'll take at least a month," Xu Zifan said in surprise. "You've hunted a lot of game these past few years, you're not short of money, are you? Your health is important, don't rush into hunting."
Zheng Chuan paused for a moment, then nodded. "I understand, thank you."
Xu Zifan started packing the first-aid kit and asked, "Do you have any food at home? I told my mother you had a minor injury, so I came to take a look at it. Can I have dinner here before I go back?"
"Sure, we have some pheasants we killed yesterday. Would you like some?" Zheng Chuan got up and walked outside.
Xu Zifan quickly followed up, "Let's make some chicken soup, but I don't know how. Do you?"
"meeting."
"Then you can give me some pointers. Make it light and add some medicinal herbs; it'll be good for your health. Also, make some porridge; I know how to do that."
The two walked to the kitchen and lit the oil lamp. Then, with Zheng Chuan's guidance, Xu Zifan found the ingredients and seasonings and began to prepare dinner. While Xu Zifan was cooking, Zheng Chuan sat on a small stool at the kitchen door, looking at his profile illuminated by the firelight with a strange feeling.
When she was little, her master used to cook in this kitchen. Later, she learned how to cook and started cooking there herself. Then her master passed away, and she was the only one in the house, in every room. Now, Xu Zifan is here, busy preparing their dinner. This feeling of having another person is really strange.
She felt a little bit like her territory had been invaded, but she didn't seem to mind; instead, she felt a sense of warmth.
For the first time in so many years, someone cared for her while she was injured, told her not to hunt, and even cooked for her. Her gaze fell on the pot as Xu Zifan added herbs and seasonings. She thought his cooking skills weren't great, and the chicken soup probably wouldn't taste very good. However, seeing how earnest Xu Zifan was, whether it tasted good or not didn't matter anymore; what mattered was his sincerity. If he could really keep it a secret, then he was truly, truly a good person.
Xu Zifan started simmering the chicken soup and cooking the porridge, wiped his hands and breathed a sigh of relief, "Alright, we can eat it once it's cooked. Are you tired? Why don't you go inside and rest for a bit, I'll tidy up the yard."
Zheng Chuan stood up and shook his head. "No need. I'll pack it up tomorrow. You take the tiger bones and the other medicinal parts. Without you, I would surely die today. Don't refuse anymore. You said we're friends."
Xu Zifan chuckled and said, "It's rare for you to say such a long thing. I understand. This is quite eye-catching, so I'll leave it here. You know my family situation; things aren't very harmonious. I'll buy some things tomorrow to sort things out."
"Okay." Zheng Chuan didn't know what to say after that; she rarely spoke. If Xu Zifan hadn't acted so naturally, she probably wouldn't have said a word to him.
It was still a bit chilly at night, and Xu Zifan, worried that Zheng Chuan might catch a cold, said she was a little cold and went inside with her to rest. This time, since there was nothing to do, Xu Zifan glanced around the room and noticed a half-finished dress on the soft couch by the window—a beautiful women's dress.
Xu Zifan instantly recalled the day he met Zheng Chuan at the cloth shop. Zheng Chuan kept looking at Xiao Lian, and then he told Zheng Chuan that he could just wear his undergarments at home by himself. Zheng Chuan then suddenly left, and it seemed that he bought some more things later.
Zheng Chuan noticed him looking at the dress she had made and quickly went over to get a blanket to cover it. Xu Zifan felt that being too discreet was not a good idea, so she asked, "Did you buy this at another fabric shop the other day? When do you plan to wear it?"
Zheng Chuan pursed his lips. "Yes, I'll wear it from now on."
"So, you plan to wear underwear again and become a woman in the future?" Xu Zifan suddenly realized that what he had said the other day about wearing underwear at home and being able to bathe freely was practically flirting with a young woman. He coughed a few times and changed the subject, saying, "Um, is 'Zheng Chuan' your real name? Or is it an alias?"