197: Chapter 197 Rural Outhouses

"Sister Ruyan, you have to believe me, I can definitely do this."

Ye Yun knew his own body very well; he was already physically drained, and even standing up was difficult.

Earlier, he had indeed intended to ask Liu Ruyan to help him up.

But when the words reached his lips, hearing the tone of doubt from Liu Ruyan—daring to question if he could do it—

he gritted his teeth, pushed Liu Ruyan away, and forced his wobbling body to stand up.

Ye Yun's limping, unsteady gait, and trembling frame, yet still gritting his teeth and pretending he was fine, were all taken in by Liu Ruyan, causing her to sneer inwardly.

This guy was all talk and bluster; it was fine for him to sweet-talk girls, but now he was here showing off and acting all cocky.

It really proved the saying: gold on the outside, rot on the inside.

Liu Ruyan already looked down on Ye Yun immensely in her heart, yet her mouth was full of praise:

"Ye Yun, I didn't expect you to be so impressive. Based on your physical condition, I thought you wouldn't be able to walk for at least ten days or half a month."

"I never imagined that after only two days, you would already be able to walk."

"With a constitution as tough as yours, you're far more capable than that useless husband of mine who died ages ago."

Ye Yun originally felt like his entire body had been hollowed out, and with every step he took, he had to endure immense pain.

That heart-wrenching pain almost made him faint.

But with Liu Ruyan, a beauty, by his side, he dared not show the slightest sign of weakness, nor could he let Liu Ruyan realize he couldn't handle it.

Yet, just when Ye Yun felt he was about to collapse and fall to the ground at any moment,

Liu Ruyan's praise seemed to give Ye Yun motivation, and he felt strength flooding his entire body.

Since he had chosen to put on a show in front of Liu Ruyan, even if it meant crying tears of pain, he couldn't give up halfway.

If he let Liu Ruyan help him now, wouldn't that be telling her that everything he just did was a facade? Ye Yun couldn't afford to lose face like that.

Especially Liu Ruyan's last casual remark: that he was far stronger than her late husband.

These words, carrying a hint of sorrow and a hint of admiration, made Ye Yun's heart bloom with joy.

It seemed that as long as he kept up the effort, he would surely be able to have a beautiful, poignant love story with this young, beautiful widow.

It was precisely this thought that provided Ye Yun with the motivation to keep moving forward.

The outhouse wasn't very far from the room where Ye Yun was staying, just a few dozen steps away.

Yet this short distance was like a chasm to Ye Yun right now, bringing him endless pain.

Inadvertently, Ye Yun caught sight of the white bandage wrapped around his left foot, stained with quite a bit of blood and turned bright red.

This was caused by the wound reopening and the blood seeping out.

"Sister Ruyan, the latrine is stinky; it's not a good place to linger. You should go wait outside for me."

Ye Yun said, wiping the cold sweat from his forehead.

Seeing that the latrine was right in front of him, he didn't want his goddess waiting outside for him.

While looking at Liu Ruyan, he also gave her a reassuring look.

In front of this pretty widow Liu Ruyan, Ye Yun had to display enough gentlemanly demeanor and absolutely could not be looked down upon by her.

"Us country folk aren't as delicate as you city people. This little bit of stench doesn't affect us at all."

"Besides, I use this latrine every day, it's fine."

Although the foul stench coming from the latrine made even Liu Ruyan feel nauseous and want to vomit,

she was, after all, being paid to do a job, so how could she give up halfway?

Furthermore, Liu Ruyan was already fully in character, and she had her aura perfectly under control.

As for Ye Yun's kind intentions, they were politely declined by Liu Ruyan.

Seeing that Liu Ruyan still intended to stay, and even seemed like she wanted to stand guard outside the door, Ye Yun looked helpless.

The only reason he had said that earlier was to get Liu Ruyan to leave so he could find a random spot outside to take care of business.

After all, in this filthy place reeking of stench, with excrement all below, he, the dignified Lord of the Underworld Palace, was unwilling to take care of his life's necessities here.

But now, Liu Ruyan had already spoken to that extent, and she was unwilling to leave.

If he kept dwelling on this topic, wouldn't it be telling her that he had ulterior motives?

To win a girl's affection, her first impression was particularly important.

Ye Yun did not want these small matters to affect his towering image in Liu Ruyan's heart, nor did he want to delay his subsequent series of strategies.

"Thank you for your concern, Sister Ruyan, please wait here for a moment."

Ye Yun knew very well that this trip to the outhouse was unavoidable.

Even if the King of Heaven himself came, he couldn't stop him now.

After a bitter laugh, Ye Yun cast aside the disgust in his heart, pretended to be nonchalant, and limped into the outhouse.

"The Monk is really something. Although this Ye Yun is useless except for his smooth talk, he doesn't look too bad."

"I haven't even had a proper taste of this fresh meat yet, and he actually wants to throw him into an outhouse to take a bath."

"If this guy stays in there too long, will he start growing maggots from the stench?"

"Although I'm sick, I don't want to submit myself to someone who takes baths in an outhouse; I'm afraid I'd feel nauseous halfway through."

Watching the limping Ye Yun, pinching his nose with a sour expression, step into the outhouse, Liu Ruyan couldn't help but complain inwardly.

The outhouse was just a simple structure of mud bricks and thatch, leaking air from all sides. A gentle breeze blew in, and that foul stench almost made Liu Ruyan lose her composure on the spot.

She held a towel, tightly covering her mouth and nose, terrified of being knocked unconscious by the stench.

The lighting inside the latrine was extremely dim, surrounded by mud bricks, with only a wooden door and a few empty brick openings for ventilation.

The roof of the latrine was just a crossbeam, plus a few wooden planks and straw to seal it.

Ye Yun scanned the simple outhouse before him; two wooden planks formed a footrest, and between the planks, a small wooden board was placed at an angle.

It was likely used to prevent feces from falling too quickly into the pit, which would cause the excrement liquid inside to splash out and land on him.

He took difficult steps, finally reached the inside of the outhouse, hurriedly took off his pants, and began to relieve himself.