CHAPTER 266: CHAPTER 263: RESTLESS MINDS AND WANDERING HEARTS (EXTRA RELEASE)

After the incident just now, the atmosphere in the cave suddenly turned strange.

Under the dim candlelight, Lin Wanwan let out a light breath and said earnestly, "Cousin, we are cousins! Besides, I’m a medical worker. In the eyes of a medic, patients are indifferent to gender, age, appearance, or status. You’re a grown man, are you really so embarrassed?"

Xiao Chong: "..."

Lin Wanwan looked up and earnestly at Xiao Chong, saying, "Cousin, your left hand can’t exert force now, can it? I’ve seen you keeping it bent. If we don’t handle it, what will you do tomorrow?"

Xiao Chong smiled wryly, "Since cousin has said so, how can I be unappreciative? I’ll trouble you then."

After saying that, he sat down on the ground, returning to his leisurely appearance.

Lin Wanwan approached Xiao Chong and started to remove his clothing.

The first time she stripped him down, she was only concerned about his wound, with no mischievous thoughts in her mind, so it didn’t feel awkward.

But now, in undressing him again, she couldn’t help but feel a bit self-conscious. Underneath his outer garment was a plain white cross-collared inner shirt, the ties of which she had just torn off.

Lin Wanwan’s pretty face turned slightly red, realizing belatedly her previous recklessness—sometimes when she gets anxious, she can’t control her strength.

Then she undid his inner shirt, revealing the muscular body beneath, glossy from years of training, along with several abrasions.

Being so close, the unique scent belonging to a man filled her nostrils, making Lin Wanwan’s heart race.

Xiao Chong kept his gaze focused on the unknown depths, completely avoiding eye contact with Lin Wanwan, like a little lamb giving up resistance.

Lin Wanwan steadied herself, pulling Xiao Chong’s clothing completely open, making the real injury immediately apparent.

Xiao Chong’s left arm joint was swollen and prominent, unlike a normal joint. Obviously, it was dislocated.

The "Barefoot Doctor Manual" contains knowledge about bone setting. Old Master Sun had guided Lin Wanwan through several cases, so she could barely be considered experienced.

At this moment, she could only give it a try. If she didn’t fix Xiao Chong’s arm, how could this half-useless arm climb out of the cave?

Lin Wanwan could grit her teeth even in childbirth, so there were no psychological barriers in bone setting.

She silently recalled the human skeleton and bone diagrams, her hands gently pulling and releasing, pulling and releasing again, until Xiao Chong’s arm joint was restored to its original state.

It went so smoothly that Lin Wanwan almost couldn’t believe it. She felt around Xiao Chong’s shoulder for a moment before daring to confirm.

"It’s... it’s done."

Lin Wanwan withdrew her hand, and Xiao Chong immediately pulled up his collar, cleared his throat, and exhaled secretly, saying, "Thank you, indeed it doesn’t hurt anymore. Cousin, your medical skills are excellent, I admire you."

Lin Wanwan then noticed the few drops of cold sweat on Xiao Chong’s forehead. Thinking about how he had endured without making a sound during the bone setting, she couldn’t help but admire him.

"Cousin, you’re too kind."

For some reason, recalling Xiao Chong’s restrained little expression with his furrowed brows, Lin Wanwan’s mind conjured up a scene where she transformed into a female warrior and Xiao Chong became a handsome, weak man at her mercy.

Oh dear! The image is too beautiful, I dare not think about it anymore.

"Why is cousin smiling?" After putting on his clothes, Xiao Chong resumed his composed demeanor, as if the rigid and tense person just now wasn’t him.

Lin Wanwan put away her smile, looked at Xiao Chong through the candlelight, and countered, "Thinking about cousin actually hiding an illness out of fear of treatment, it’s quite amusing."

Xiao Chong touched his nose and shook his head, laughing.

"This cave is really small. Oh, it’s going to be a rough night." Lin Wanwan sighed. All she had on her was a cloth bag filled with dirty medical waste and a barefoot doctor’s kit, and sleeping was going to be a huge problem tonight.

Suddenly, Lin Wanwan thought of something: "Cousin, this bag smells quite strong. It shouldn’t attract any strange things, right?"

Xiao Chong reached into his bosom, took out a bag of powder, and sprinkled it at the cave entrance, saying, "This is insect repellent powder. Common poisonous insects and snakes will retreat when they smell this. As for large wild animals, there’s no need to worry. Given this cave’s location, even if they smell it, they can’t climb in, not to mention there’s also a fire."

Lin Wanwan thought it made sense and nodded, "Cousin, you’re right."

In the following time, they occasionally exchanged a few words, but mostly remained silent.

Lin Wanwan wasn’t good at starting conversations, and clearly so was Xiao Chong.

They both sat in the cave with their own thoughts, quietly watching the candlelight.

As the night unknowingly deepened, it was still a little chilly at night in May, especially on the mountain. But in the cave, the two who were awake, one with blushing cheeks and the other with red ears, evidently didn’t feel cold anymore.

It was supposed to be a cave for three people, but since one was unconscious, an ambiguous atmosphere formed between the single man and woman.

Initially, because there was so much to do—rescuing, bone setting, and observing the environment—there was no time to think much.

Now that it was quiet, coupled with the fragrant scent of the candles under the night sky, both of them gradually felt their heartbeats become irregular.

Lin Wanwan began to regret placing Hua Nong in the corner of the cave; now, Xiao Chong was not far from her side, and with the cave being so small, it was impossible to avoid.

Lin Wanwan stared at the scented candles, feeling more and more suffocated, especially the two that contained eucalyptus essential oil.

She dared not look at Xiao Chong’s face now; the feeling of being alone with a man at night was really nerve-racking, inexplicably conjuring many romantic images in her mind.

At the age of budding emotions, being vaguely drawn to the opposite sex seemed like the most normal thing.

Lin Wanwan had previously thought she could never fall in love with anyone, planning to remain unmarried in life. The saying "stay single and childless for peace" was trending now.

But here and now, facing him, Lin Wanwan’s views were somewhat shaken.

Finally, she reached out and blew out two of the scented candles, leaving only the mosquito-repellent ones: "Leaving two mosquito-repelling ones should be enough, the scent feels a bit strong."

Xiao Chong naturally had no objections. In fact, he was feeling dizzy from the scent, very restless inside.

Looking at a beauty under the lamp, she just became more beautiful the more he looked, especially in such a confined space, as if all the world’s moral restraints were gone.

His nose was filled with the unique fragrance of a young woman, far exceeding the scented candles.

His mind was also filled with many indecent thoughts, recalling Lin Wanwan’s actions of undressing him earlier, making him feel even hotter.

Just when Xiao Chong was about to say something to break the charming silence, his stomach let out a loud "grumble" first.

Though it was impolite and ungraceful, Xiao Chong instead felt a sense of relief.

Lin Wanwan finally found a light topic, unable to resist saying cheerfully, "Cousin, your stomach is growling."

Xiao Chong said lightly, "Ah, yes, I’m sorry, cousin. To quickly bring the medic to save someone, I didn’t even have dinner."