(It’s so frustrating, tears couldn’t stop falling as I wrote this part.)
The blood on the deer carcass had all frozen, hard and unyielding in the mouth, making it neither vomitable nor chewable. It tasted both like blood and snow, with various bizarre flavors that all rushed into Su Ziceng’s brain in an instant.
Her stomach churned fiercely as if trying to throw up all the snow water she had previously drunk.
Vomiting takes strength, "hold it in," was the only thought in Su Ziceng’s mind. She took several deep breaths before managing to suppress the nausea.
With renewed determination, Su Ziceng forced herself to gulp down a few chunks of deer meat. As warmth returned to her body, so did her confidence. She had to survive. The thought of survival made her limbs agile once more.
Just like before, Su Ziceng bit off some deer meat. This time, she didn’t swallow it, but rather tore off a piece with her incisors. She bent down again, biting off another chunk from the dead deer. Her teeth felt numb from the ice, and her cheeks ached from exertion.
On her way back, Su Ziceng wrapped the deer meat in her sleeve and crawled back along the same path. The round trip took her over two hours.
Pello was already lying in the shelter; that loud sound earlier had been him collapsing as his body failed him.
After crawling back into the snow shelter, Su Ziceng unwrapped her sleeve and picked up a piece of deer meat, ready to stuff it into Pello’s mouth.
But his scorching lips were tightly shut, and no matter how hard Su Ziceng tried, she couldn’t force it open. The heat from his lips lingered on her fingertips, its burning sensation causing her even more panic.
She put down the deer meat, gently patting Pello’s cheek with her palm, "Pello, open your mouth, you need to eat."
Pello seemed to regain some awareness, grabbing Su Ziceng’s hand with his and pressing it against his cheek, still repeating, "Ziceng, don’t be afraid, I’m here."
Tears fell on his cheeks. Pello’s eyelashes fluttered as he felt Su Ziceng’s tears, but he was too weak to do anything. The fever was ravaging his consciousness, draining his life force as well.
His hands fell limply again, and Su Ziceng wrapped her arms tightly around Pello’s neck, pulling him close for warmth. Nᴇw ɴovel chaptᴇrs are published on NoveI(F)ire.net
She stuffed the deer meat into her own mouth and chewed it like gum before she approached Pello’s lips.
Su Ziceng’s lips were numb with cold, while Pello’s were burning hot. As their lips touched, Pello’s eyes opened, seeing her tear-filled, blurry eyes. The pain in his heart was more intense than when he had been shot by the Hunter, even worse.
A warm liquid poured into his mouth, the chewed meat was fed into Pello’s mouth.
"Promise me you’ll survive," Su Ziceng’s weeping merged with the life-restoring warmth as it went down Pello’s throat.
For several days, Pello was in and out of consciousness. When his fever finally subsided and he could open his eyes to see clearly, all he saw was Su Ziceng sitting numbly beside the deer carcass, her fingers scraping the white, meat-stripped bones.
Pello staggered out of the snow shelter. In these few days, Su Ziceng had lost a lot of weight, and the strip of cloth that protected her face from the snow glare was gone.
Her petite frame looked very small and helpless against the expanse of white snow.
Clenching his fists, Pello took off his coat and walked over to Su Ziceng, "Ziceng, we can leave now."
The snow had gradually started to melt. Hearing Pello’s voice, Su Ziceng’s face twisted for an instant, as if she wanted to cry but also wanted to laugh. In the end, she decided to smile.
A smiling Su Ziceng was much prettier than a crying one. She wanted to show Pello her best side.
The accumulation of snow at the mouth of Shanyin had indeed lessened. Pello carried Su Ziceng and walked out of the hollow, standing on the ridge and scanning the surroundings; the uneven snow hillocks, and the holiday resort hidden in the shadow of Shanyin.
Olson, I originally just wanted you to die a quick death, but now I’ve changed my mind. I’m going to make your death extremely miserable.
The Su Ziceng in his arms had already fallen asleep. Looking at the deep crawl marks on the snow, Pello’s heart had turned as cold as ice stones.