33: Warm hands on the abdomen, and the defenses collapse.

Wang Fugui's large hand, still stained with traces of blood, hung in mid-air, trembling slightly. The area of the lower abdomen beneath his palm rose and fell with her painful breathing, separated only by a thin layer of thermal underwear. It was a forbidden zone he had never stepped into, nor even thought of.

My mother! If she wakes up and sees this, she'll probably grab a pair of scissors and stab me!

But the heat radiating from his palm, intense enough to cook an egg, urged him on. Saving a life was more important! Three thousand eight hundred yuan was still waiting for him!

He gritted his teeth, steeled his heart, and hesitated no longer. First, he clumsily and quickly wiped his hand on his pant leg, as if that could clean away the sweat and blood. Then, holding his breath, that fan-sized hand, carrying a sense of resolve, gently and tentatively covered her.

There was no softness like he had imagined, only a thin layer of fabric, and beneath it, flesh tightened by pain. But that incredible heat passed through the cotton cloth without any hindrance.

"Mmm~"

A faint, nasal hum escaped from under the quilt. The sound was so soft it could practically melt into water, completely different from her usual prickly demeanor. Her body, which had been curled into a ball and shivering constantly, visibly relaxed the moment that heat invaded.

It worked!

A heavy stone lifted from Wang Fugui's heart. He didn't dare move, his entire body frozen like a statue. Only the beads of sweat on his forehead popped out one by one, sliding down the rugged lines of his face and dripping onto his own sturdy arm.

The room was terrifyingly quiet, with only the interlaced sounds of their breathing—one light, one heavy. Wang Fugui's ears were burning fiercely; he could clearly hear the drum-like 'thump-thump-thump' of his heart inside his chest. He felt as if his palm wasn't pressed against a stomach, but against a red-hot iron, so hot that even he could barely stand it.

This Silly... no, this Girl, her body is way too cold. My body temperature probably feels like a furnace to her.

His mind was a mess. One moment, it was the image of his mother back in the village brewing brown sugar water; the next, it was the tear-filled eyes Lin Xiaocao had when she bit him; and then it was that three thousand eight hundred yuan floating before his eyes.

Time passed minute by minute. That continuous stream of heat, like a gentle large hand, was slowly and firmly smoothing out the blunt knife that was wreaking havoc in her abdomen. That sharp, twisting pain was being replaced by a warm, tingling sensation.

Lin Xiaocao's long eyelashes fluttered a few times, and she slowly opened her eyes.

The intense pain receded, and her consciousness returned. The first thing she saw was a face right in front of her, magnified. It was Wang Fugui's face. His eyes, which were always bright, were now filled with tension and focus, along with a hint of panic she couldn't quite understand. A drop of sweat hung from the tip of his nose, and his mouth was slightly agape, looking like a fool facing a formidable enemy.

Lowering her gaze, she saw his rough, large hand, stained with blood, firmly pressed against her lower abdomen.

A powerful heat, leaving her nowhere to hide, was continuously surging from that palm into her limbs and bones, dispelling the long-entrenched cold and pain.

Was he... warming her stomach?

Lin Xiaocao's head buzzed, and her mind went blank. Shame, anger, embarrassment... none of the expected emotions appeared. She just stared at him blankly, looking at this man who had stumbled upon all her secrets.

The air seemed to freeze, becoming thick and scalding, mixed with the sweetness of brown sugar and the unique, reassuring musk scent on Wang Fugui's body.

He found out. He knows everything now.

She thought she would be afraid, that she would scream and push him away. But strangely, she didn't. The heart that had always been hanging in suspense finally settled at this moment when the secret was revealed. Her long-standing facade of strength, that prickly armor, shattered inch by inch before his overbearing yet clumsy tenderness.

Wang Fugui also realized she was awake. His muscles instantly tensed even more, and the wound on his arm began to throb again. It was all over! The charge of being a hooligan was now set in stone!

His Adam's apple bobbed. He wanted to pull his hand back like a lightning bolt and stammer out a few words of explanation.

The two of them just stared at each other, one lying down, the other leaning over, in a posture that was both strange and intimate.

Ultimately, Wang Fugui was the first to give in. He couldn't withstand the silence and, in a muffled, honest voice, squeezed out a sentence to break the suffocating quiet.

"Feeling better? My hand is hot."

He attributed his behavior to the simplest and most primitive reason: my hand is hot, I can warm you, so I did it. There wasn't a hint of flirtatious intent, only the most basic instinct to make her feel better.

It was this clumsy, almost foolish sentence that completely crushed Lin Xiaocao's final line of psychological defense.

All the grievances, all the panic, all the pain found an outlet at this moment. Her eyes grew hot, mist gathered quickly, and scalding tears slid down the corners of her eyes, disappearing into the stray hairs at her temples.

She didn't answer, nor did she push him away.

Under Wang Fugui's startled gaze, Lin Xiaocao slowly raised her small, still somewhat cold hand and gently, yet exceptionally firmly, covered his wrist where it rested on her abdomen.

Her fingers were slender, and her strength was so small it could be ignored, but this action caused Wang Fugui's arm—which could carry two hundred pounds of cement—to instantly freeze, unable to move.

She held him, not letting him go.

Wang Fugui's brain crashed again. What... what did this mean? She's not hitting me? Not scolding me? Even... even holding my hand? A Girl's thoughts are harder to understand than the most complex German machine tool in the factory!

He didn't dare pull his hand away, nor did he dare apply more pressure. He could only maintain that leaning posture, letting her small hand rest on his wrist. The contact with her delicate skin brought a sensation a thousand times stronger than touching her through her clothes earlier. A strange current surged from his wrist, heading straight for the top of his head.

This night passed exceptionally slowly.

Wang Fugui stayed in that awkward position, one hand acting as a heater and the other propped on the floor mat, looking exactly like a 'Wife-watching stone.' He didn't dare sleep, fearing he might crush her if he fell asleep, or that moving his hand would let the pain return to her.

Lin Xiaocao's breathing gradually became steady and long; she had clearly fallen into a deep sleep. Tear stains still hung on her small face, but the furrow between her brows had smoothed out.

Using the faint moonlight filtering through the gap in the curtains, Wang Fugui scrutinized her so brazenly for the first time.

Why hadn't he noticed before? This Silly's eyebrows were so beautiful, curved as if they were painted on. Her eyelashes were long and thick, casting a small shadow under her eyelids. Her nose was small and pert, and her mouth... her mouth was also tiny, slightly pouting as she slept, looking very soft.

How was this a half-grown boy? This was clearly a beautiful Girl!

No wonder her waist was so thin, no wonder she smelled so good, no wonder she never bathed or peed with everyone else... all the mysteries now had answers.

Wang Fugui felt both annoyed and lucky. Annoyed that he was so stupid he hadn't noticed for so long. Lucky that he hadn't truly treated her like a brother, putting his arm around her shoulders or saying crude things... he didn't even dare think about it.

Unknowingly, the horizon began to turn the color of a fish's belly.

Wang Fugui felt like his neck and waist were about to break, and his arm was so numb he had lost all sensation. He moved his stiff body, wanting to change positions, but the person in his arms let out a soft moan, seemingly disturbed. He immediately didn't dare move again.

In a daze, he eventually fell asleep.

When he woke up again, he was 'watched' awake by a focused gaze.

Wang Fugui, sporting two huge dark circles under his eyes, snapped his eyes open. At first glance, he met a pair of clear, watery eyes.

Lin Xiaocao had woken up at some point and was lying on her side, staring at him without blinking.

The morning light was dim, casting a faint golden glow over her soft face. In those eyes, there was no longer the usual evasion, stubbornness, or vigilance. In its place was a complex, indefinable emotion that Wang Fugui had never seen before.

There was inquiry, there was dependence, and even... a trace of a seemingly non-existent flirtatiousness that made his heart leap.