Chapter 20 – A Missing Person (2)

Once he was washed, she rinsed him with clean water, dried him and dressed him in clean clothes, and carried him back to the bed. When he was settled, she told him that she would be gone until evening. There were buns in the drawer if he got hungry, and he didn’t need to worry about Ping An.

As usual, Shen Fei didn’t reply. He didn’t even acknowledge her with a glance, instead taking a book down from the shelf and resuming from where he had left off. Zhao Xi was used to it by now. She changed her shoes, took an umbrella, and left.

She hid in a tree in the valley, close enough to the cottage where she could see what was going on inside, but not so close that she would be seen by Shen Fei. What she hadn’t accounted for was being noticed by the bear. Ping An set his giant paws on the tree and began to shake it, like she was a beehive he was trying to bring down.

“Ping An.”

A voice, called from the house. It was hoarse, yet familiar. Zhao Xi was surprised to realize it belonged to Shen Fei and that he was calling for the bear.

Ping An heard him and paused. He looked confused about whether to listen to the man or continue shaking the tree. Eventually, he went over to the house, leaning on the frame of the window. Standing on his hind legs, the bear’s height almost blocked the entire window. Zhao Xi had to stand up in the tree to see inside the house.

Shen Fei lifted a corner of the quilt to reveal a bowl covered with a handkerchief. It was the meat and eggs Zhao Xi had made that morning. She’d given it to him before she left, not even noticing that he hid it.

He placed the bowl by the window, giving Ping An the go ahead to eat. Naturally, the bear pushed his snout into the bowl and began to devour the food. Shen Fei’s face was unusually gentle as he reached out and set a hand on the bear’s head, stroking the thick fur. The pair looked quite friendly, as if they’d done this many times before.

That’s why. No wonder Ping An accepted him so easily. He’s been feeding him all along.

Zhao Xi was the one who had told him that giving Ping An food could improve their relationship. She just hadn’t expected the man and bear to bond so quickly. When Ping An finished the contents of the bowl, he nosed into Shen Fei’s bed, looking for more. There wasn’t any to be found and the bear lowered his head. Shen Fei scratched Ping An’s chin, only for his hand to end up in the bear’s mouth.

It wasn’t a real bite, just a soft, familiar gesture. Like a cub tugging at its mother. When Zhao Xi was in the yard hanging up washing, Ping An would come along to mouth and nip at her ankles, too.

The bear was huge, so it took a lot of effort to get free of him, but Zhao Xi had discovered a small trick: flicking the bear’s forehead. To her surprise, Shen Fei knew the trick as well. He flicked Ping An’s forehead, and the bear fell down on its back with his legs in the air, too fat to get up.

Shen Fei leaned on the windowsill, his hair draped over his shoulder, his eyes crinkled into a line with his smile.

He smiled. He looks so handsome when he smiles.

He would rather hide the food she made him to feed it to Ping An and play with the bear than talk to her. Zhao Xi was forced to reflect on herself, on her behavior and actions. Did she irritate him by being too direct?

She could understand his reticence. She’d threatened him when they first met, and she stared boldly at his naked body every day. If she was in his shoes, she’d hate the person too. Maybe she should reduce her presence in his life to annoy him less. With time he might come to see the true Zhao Xi. She had a year, there was no need to rush things.

She thought she’d seen enough and was just getting ready to climb down the tree, when Shen Fei got up. He moved his legs little by little until he was sitting on the edge of the bed.

Zhao Xi stared. What is he doing?

She waited for him to make his next move. He shifted his legs off the bed, letting them dangle to the floor, almost as if he was going to stand up. Leaning one hand against the table, he pushed himself to his bare feet, and immediately fell down. Not surprising. He was still severely wounded, he had no feeling in his lower body, three broken ribs, and a broken arm. Only a month had passed since she found him, so there was no way he could recover so quickly.

But Shen Fei was persistent. He tried again and again, getting up, falling, and repeating the process. It seemed futile, but he eventually made it to the kitchen. Gripping the shelf on the wall, he hauled himself to the eaves, dripping with sweat from his exertions. He sat there for a while, then went through the same arduous processes to get back to the bed. He brushed the dust from his clothes before he lay back down.

So, that was where his mysterious wounds were coming from. Zhao Xi wasn’t sleepwalking and beating him, no one had molested him. It seemed as though Shen Fei was determined not to be an invalid and was trying to train himself, increase his strength, while she was away.

Relief surged through her. She’d been so worried, thinking that something terrible must have happened to him. Now that she knew the truth, she could finally tend to her business.

Early the next morning, Shen Fei woke to find a gift beside his bed. It as a triangular stand that he could hold on to while he was training.

The cooked dishes were on the table, and the water basin and towel were placed on the stool beside the bed, where he could research them easily. The water was still warm, still steaming lightly in the early morning chill.

Everything was prepared, the same as usual, but something was different about the scene.

Someone was missing.