Last time I was held too, maybe the clothes I wore back then weren’t as thick, and the temperature wasn’t as scorching as it is now.
After walking a long distance, An Hao felt tired even just being carried. She looked up at Qin Jian and saw his jaw clenched tightly, his thin lips pressed together, a line of sweat slowly sliding down his cheek.
"Are you tired?" An Hao said, feeling embarrassed, "Am I very heavy?"
"Are you doubting my strength or overestimating your own weight?" Qin Jian looked down at An Hao and said indifferently, "Back when I did field surveys, I traveled through mountains and valleys with a pack. I had to walk a lot in one night, compared to that, this is nothing."
"I know." An Hao felt a pang of heartache for Qin Jian and blurted out, "But weren’t you younger back then?"
Suddenly, Qin Jian stopped and stared at the little woman in his arms, "Are you saying you dislike that I’m older than you?"
Seeing his complexion didn’t seem too good, An Hao hastily waved her hands, "No, no!"
Qin Jian silently watched her for a few seconds, then said in a low voice, "You’ll have the chance to see just how good my stamina is!"
"Huh?" Why did that sound so strange?
"Any questions?" he continued to ask.
An Hao quickly shook her head, "None."
The air fell into silence once again.
Following behind, Tian Niu thought Qin Jian had been walking for quite a while, so he hurried a few steps to catch up and asked, "Qin Jian, are you tired? Do you want me to take over for a while?"
"No need," Qin Jian decisively refused.
Only then did An Hao notice that his collar was soaked with sweat.
She wanted him to stop and rest, but remembering their recent conversation, she feared he might take it the wrong way. So, she took the initiative to say, "I’m tired, let’s stop for a bit."
"Alright." This time he agreed readily and found a flat rock to set her down upon.
Afterward, he undid the top two buttons of his shirt, shook out the soaked collar, and the warm breeze began to pour in, the feeling of heat dissipation reducing by quite a bit.
An Hao’s gaze inadvertently fell on his neck, where she saw his collarbones slightly exposed and the faint hint of sweat beads on his neck, looking very... very beautiful...
A man’s collarbones could actually be beautiful...
"What are you looking at?" Qin Jian’s voice suddenly broke in.
An Hao snapped back to reality, realizing she had unconsciously thought so much about him...
Seeing his teasing gaze, An Hao felt her cheeks grow slightly warm. She looked away, saying somewhat unnaturally, "You’ve sweated a lot..."
"Hmm." Qin Jian looked at her, responding indifferently with a hum.
"Oh, right." An Hao remembered the handkerchief in her pocket and hastened to pull it out for Qin Jian, "Wipe your sweat."
Upon seeing the handkerchief, the corners of Qin Jian’s lips inadvertently lifted.
That handkerchief was still the one he had before—blue and white stripes, washed by her so clean and neatly folded, and it still carried the fresh scent of laundry detergent.
"This is still your original handkerchief... Since you’ve sweated, I’ll take this chance to give it back to you," An Hao said softly.
Qin Jian didn’t take the handkerchief, but instead sat down next to An Hao and said, "You wipe it for me. My hands are dirty!"
An Hao: "..." Well, that was a good excuse to avoid taking back the handkerchief.
Qin Jian thought An Hao would be displeased, but upon hearing his words, she took the handkerchief without hesitation and started to gently wipe the sweat off his face.
Her movements were tender, the handkerchief gently brushing over his face, and the sleeve carried a pleasant fragrance, sending Qin Jian into a daze.
He felt a strong urge to clutch her hand tightly in his.