After Marrying the Aloof Beauty, I Totally Fell for Her - Chapter 22

Chapter 22: Embarrassing? Then So Be It

They had spent quite a bit of time at Yun Kong Temple, and by the time the two of them resumed their hike up the mountain, there were already fewer tourists on the path.

Although An Ning had been deliberately controlling their pace, by the time they approached the summit, Mu Yan’s physical strength had inevitably reached its limit.

Her long, slender eyebrows were furrowed tightly, her delicate legs trembling uncontrollably, yet she still refused An Ning’s suggestion to call staff to help them down. She stubbornly forced herself to keep up with An Ning’s pace.

An Ning wasn’t tired herself, but in her mind, she’d already cursed the length of the mountain path countless times.

The northern mountains were steep, so the stairs were also built high. And when someone is utterly exhausted, it’s easy for accidents to happen.

“Thud!”

“Teacher Mu!”

The trekking pole slipped on a patch of moss with a sharp skid, and most of Mu Yan’s body weight had been resting on it—inevitably, she fell.

Luckily, An Ning had been watching her closely. The moment she fell, strong arms instantly caught her.

Even so, Mu Yan’s knee still hit the stone steps hard, sending a wave of sharp pain through her.

“Teacher Mu!” An Ning was alarmed, quickly helping Mu Yan to sit down on the steps. Without a second thought, she rolled up Mu Yan’s pant leg and saw a frighteningly dark bruise forming on her pale knee.

She only glanced at it before her eyes welled up with heat. Tears nearly fell. In her heart, she regretted everything—from inviting Mu Yan to go hiking, to ever thinking about a so-called compatible marriage.

If she hadn’t met her, Mu-laoshi would never have had to go through something like this.

“It’s fine, just a bruise,” Mu Yan said as she saw the girl staring silently at her injured knee, her little tuft of hair drooping dejectedly, as if her whole being had lost energy. Mu Yan could only silently blame her own lack of physical training that led to such an embarrassing moment, as she carefully rolled her pant leg back down.

She truly didn’t think it was a big deal. As long as An Ning wasn’t upset, a bruise was just a bruise—it hadn’t even bled.

An Ning stayed silent, head bowed. After a long moment, her voice trembled as she said, “I’ll carry you up.”

“No need.” Mu Yan refused without hesitation. No matter how strong An Ning was, carrying an adult up a mountain was by no means easy.

Besides, she wasn’t a primary school kid. Just a hundred and fifty steps left—how hard could it be, even after a fall?

Her thoughts were cut off the moment An Ning lifted her head.

The girl’s normally smiling eyes were brimming with unshed tears, yet her face was tense, refusing to let them fall—as if she were clenching her teeth in defiance as she forced out her words:

“You just said that jade figurine wasn’t something you needed, didn’t you?”

Even now, she couldn’t say a harsh word. Faced with someone as stubborn and unreasonable as Mu Yan, her anger could only manifest in one way.

Tears.

“Can’t you just take better care of yourself?”

Her thoughts drifted back to a moment years ago—An Ning had looked at her in the exact same way and asked her that exact same question.

As if her pain caused An Ning even more pain.

Don’t be like this, Ningning…

Your world is full of light, filled with sunshine, flowers, and soft grassy fields. Why chase after a patch of rainclouds?

So she didn’t give in.

But she didn’t gain anything good in the end either.

So many years had passed, and it felt like she was back at the beginning again.

Entangled with An Ning. Making her angry.

No growth whatsoever.

Why couldn’t she just be like a normal person and get along with her happily?

Mu Yan silently gave in. She let An Ning help her up, took the backpack from her, and lay on the girl’s back like a docile little lamb.

Embarrassing? So be it. I’ve embarrassed myself enough today already. As long as An Ning isn’t angry…

It was a bit hard—but manageable.

Actually, she was far too light.

An Ning walked silently forward. She could feel the person on her back resting her face against her collar, her breath brushing against the fabric with every step she took.

That faint, intoxicating scent along with the soft, slender body on her back felt like it was wrapping her up completely.

But in that moment, she had no time to think about anything else. Her eyes stayed fixed on the stone steps ahead, trying to keep her pace steady and smooth.

They were indeed just a step away from the summit. Even with Mu Yan on her back, ten minutes later, An Ning rounded the final bend and her view opened wide.

At the stone-paved summit plaza, a few scattered tourists were resting. In the distance, mountains shrouded in mist looked like an immortal realm.

“Teacher Mu, we’re here.” An Ning found a stone bench for Mu Yan to sit on, then hurried off to ask staff for something to treat the injury. When she returned, she found Mu Yan still watching her from afar. As she approached, the woman’s obsidian-like eyes fell on her face again.

She was probably checking her expression.

An Ning, belatedly realizing how embarrassing she’d been, felt a bit awkward. After all, she was already twenty—not exactly the type to cry easily even if she wasn’t the tough type.

Yet somehow, around Teacher Mu, she always got overly emotional.

She probably thinks I’m childish.

An Ning handed over the medicine. “Teacher Mu, apply a little.”

“Mm.”

Mu Yan took the medicated oil and, right in front of An Ning, carefully rolled up her pants and then casually poured a bit into her hand—then slapped it directly onto her bruised knee.

An Ning jolted in alarm, but Mu Yan’s face remained emotionless, even preparing to smack it again.

Doesn’t she feel pain!?

On reflex, An Ning grabbed her raised wrist.

“?”

The woman glanced over with a confused look.

Now that her earlier flare of emotion had cooled, An Ning timidly let go of her hand. “Teacher Mu, that’s not how you apply it…”

She then saw Mu Yan silently lower her hand, holding the oil in one hand and reaching into her pocket for her phone with the other.

Is she about to Google it…?

An Ning couldn’t help but laugh and asked gently, “Do you want… me to do it for you?”

Silence. Another long stretch of silence.

Mu Yan’s fingers hovered over her phone, brows slightly furrowed as if deep in thought.

An Ning began to feel her own suggestion may have overstepped a line.

“Uh, you can do it yourself too,” she stammered. “I—I can teach you…”

Before she finished, a bottle of medicine was pressed into her hand.

“Huh?”

She looked up in confusion only to see the woman had already turned her head, staring unwaveringly at the distant mountains as if a real immortal might appear.

So… that’s a yes?

An Ning couldn’t quite say what she was feeling.

Because once again, the rebellious thought surfaced: Teacher Mu is too cute.

She placed one hand on the woman’s small knee and carefully rubbed the oil in with the other.

The knee flinched at her touch, and An Ning quickly comforted her, “It might hurt a little—just bear with it.”

She completely forgot the scene just moments ago where Teacher Mu expressionlessly slapped her own bruised leg.

After a while, Mu Yan finally muttered a low, “Mm.”

That counted as admitting it hurt.

Whether it was because her own hands were too warm or Mu Yan’s body was too cool, An Ning could clearly feel a chill at first, which only slowly faded as she rubbed.

Tourists passed by, glancing curiously, yet An Ning didn’t care. She half-knelt there, seriously massaging Mu Yan’s knee for twenty minutes.

And apart from that one initial flinch, Mu Yan didn’t move or speak, letting her do whatever she wanted. Her cooperation made An Ning feel a bit unsettled.

Once she was sure the swelling had gone down, An Ning stopped.

“Mu-laoshi, it’s done.”

Only then did Mu Yan turn back—not looking at her, she simply rolled down her pant leg and smoothed it neatly.

An Ning went to return the medicine, and when she came back, Mu Yan was still sitting there—not admiring the view or checking her phone, just staring in An Ning’s direction.

When she got close, Mu Yan turned her face toward the pine trees near the plaza.

Is she mad again?

An Ning felt a little anxious and instinctively softened her tone. “Teacher Mu, do you want to go look at the view? We did climb all the way up.”

“Mm.”

Another muffled reply. The woman stood up and followed her to the edge of the plaza.

She had to admit—Yun Kong Mountain deserved its status as a national tourist attraction. The view was spectacular. An Ning had worried Mu Yan wouldn’t be in the mood to enjoy it, but the moment they reached the edge and looked out—verdant peaks rising, white mist rolling like snow, mountains stretching endlessly into the horizon—it really did feel like paradise.

“Wow…” she breathed, gazing out in awe.

When she snapped out of it and turned to share her thoughts, she found herself sinking into a pair of deep, serene eyes.

Mu Yan probably didn’t expect her to turn so suddenly, and for once, didn’t avoid her gaze.

More beautiful than the mountains, the woman simply stood there quietly looking at her. All the coldness in her eyes had vanished, replaced with a calm gentleness that made people willingly drown in it.

The green mountains lost their color, and the swirling mist became mere decoration. An Ning was stunned, until Mu Yan abruptly turned her head and broke the spell. She blurted out the thought in her heart:

“Teacher Mu, can I take a picture of you?”

It was the first time she felt that someone beside the scenery wasn’t a disturbance, but the scenery’s greatest honor.

“Mm.”

Mu Yan didn’t refuse. So for the first time, An Ning’s phone captured someone so beautiful that it felt wrong not to make her photo the wallpaper.

They stayed at the summit for a while. After taking in the view, they joined the crowd heading toward the cable cars.

“Teacher Mu, wait here a sec. I’ll go buy tickets.” An Ning was about to queue up when a voice called out behind her.

“Hm?” She turned around, puzzled.

The woman lowered her gaze, hesitated for a moment, then finally asked—

“…You’re not angry anymore?”