The night passed without dreams.
When she opened her eyes again, Xie Chi was looming by her bedside. She didn't know how long he had been watching her.
"You ran a fever last night. Why didn't you take any medicine?"
His voice was raspy. Jiang Ciyou paused for a moment; she had taken painkillers the night before, so she hadn't felt the fever at all.
But in Xie Chi's eyes, her dazed expression only confirmed his suspicion—that she was acting out for attention.
A trace of impatience flashed through his gaze. He stood up, his tone turning instantly glacial. "Jiang Ciyou, Zhishao and I are engaged."
Jiang Ciyou looked back at him calmly. "Congratulations, Shifu."
Xie Chi still didn't seem at ease. He frowned, about to speak, when Wen Zhishao's voice drifted up from downstairs.
He lowered his voice, his tone as cold as ice. "She isn't like you. She is pure and kind-hearted. I hope you will learn from Zhishao—learn how to dedicate yourself to the mission, body and soul."
His expression shifted instantly. After issuing that hurried warning to Jiang Ciyou, he headed downstairs. Jiang Ciyou threw on a jacket and followed him out.
"Have you eaten?" Xie Chi took Wen Zhishao's luggage, and the two of them exchanged salutes with practiced precision.
Wen Zhishao nodded, her eyes curving into a smile. "I ate. I've brought all my things over. Where will I be staying?"
Xie Chi came back to the present, glanced at Jiang Ciyou, and said in an understated tone, "Ciyou, pack your belongings. You're moving to the guest room."
"No need, really, no need!" Wen Zhishao refused repeatedly. "I can just stay in the guest room! Just let..."
"No." Before she could finish, Xie Chi interrupted her. He spoke with an irrefutable tone. "My decision is final. Do not make me repeat myself."
"As for Jiang Ciyou, she is twenty-two years old now. Sooner or later, she was bound to leave this place."
As his words fell, Jiang Ciyou lowered her lashes to hide her eyes.
Years ago, when Xie Chi brought her back from the battlefield, deep down, she had harbored a bone-deep belief that she would eventually be cast aside.
She dared not say what she wanted to eat, nor dared she tell Xie Chi that nightmares kept her awake every single night.
It was Xie Chi who discovered it first.
He had taken the initiative to convert the equipment room next to his into her bedroom, deliberately thinning the adjoining wall. Whenever she tossed and turned in the night, he would appear, hold her, and say over and over:
"Don't be afraid. This will always be your home."
Jiang Ciyou's lips curled in self-mockery.
Now, this was Wen Zhishao and Xie Chi's home. She had no reason to overstay her welcome.
When she looked up again, she had wiped all emotion from her eyes.
"Shifu is right. Sister Zhishao, wait a moment, I'll pack my things immediately."
Many items in the room were treasures she had secretly pilfered over the years.
Training logs, spent casings, scraps of camouflage fabric...
Jiang Ciyou looked over them one by one, her eyes stinging with unshed tears. Before she left, she would dispose of them cleanly—severing her last lingering attachment to Xie Chi.
For the next few days, Jiang Ciyou left early and returned late to attend the Doctors Without Borders training. When she returned to the base, she locked herself in her room, avoiding Xie Chi as much as possible.
But no matter how hard she tried to avoid him, she was still a member of the team and eventually had to step onto the training grounds.
Every time she walked through the gates, she would see the team members looking at the couple with envy.
"Fate really smiled on them, letting Zhishao and Captain Xie find each other."
"They really are a match made in heaven! Even the sun seems to shine brighter just for them!"
"Ciyou, come here!" An older sister in the team grabbed her arm without explanation and pulled her to the center of the training ground. "Hurry and thank fate for arranging such a wonderful family member for you."
Over there, Xie Chi was whispering to Wen Zhishao: "Just don't forget next time."
Wen Zhishao had accidentally broken a piece of training equipment, but there was not a trace of blame in Xie Chi's eyes... The way he looked at her was always filled with respect.
Never like the way he looked at Ciyou—as if he were looking at a burden.
Jiang Ciyou forced the corners of her mouth up, turned around, and headed back to the dormitory. A moment later, Xie Chi's voice came from outside the door.
His tone was icy and certain. "Jiang Ciyou is different from you. She is selfish by nature. She will use any means to achieve her goals and never considers the team. You don't need to concern yourself with her feelings."
Jiang Ciyou paused. She put on her headphones and continued packing her luggage.
This morning, she had received a text message confirming she had passed the interview for Doctors Without Borders. Soon, she would be deployed to the field for assessment.
After dinner, she dragged the box hidden under her bed out to the backyard, intending to burn it.
Just as she reached the backyard, she received a call from her senior. Hearing his voice, Jiang Ciyou's eyes curved into a genuine smile.
"Mn, I've already passed the interview. My bags are packed, and I can leave anytime."
"Don't worry, my Shifu won't care what I do..."
Before she could finish her sentence, her gaze landed on a dark corner, and her pupils constricted instantly.
Almost immediately, she hung up the phone. Her smile froze as she called out, "Shifu."
Standing in the shadows, Xie Chi stepped forward, closing the distance between them.
"Where are you going? And why didn't you tell me?"
His tone was calm, as if asking a casual question, yet the look in his eyes was bone-chillingly cold.