"Stelle, are you there?" Xiangling rubbed his somewhat sore eyes and pushed aside the trees blocking his path.
Stelle had said he was going to wash up, so he had waited at the campsite, but even when he was on the verge of losing consciousness from sleepiness, Stelle still hadn't returned.
He looked up at the moon again and realized a long time had passed. Stelle still hadn't returned after such a long time, which instantly made him lose all his sleepiness. He was a little afraid that Stelle might have encountered some danger.
Although he had said before that Jueyun Karst was the territory of Adepti, generally speaking, there wouldn't be any fierce monsters there.
However, it was possible that Stelle might have been attacked by monsters like Slime or Hilichurl if he had been careless for a moment.
So Xiangling quickly set off and searched all the way there.
Along the way, he didn't see any signs of a struggle, which eased Xiangling's worries a little. At least Stelle hadn't failed to return because he was attacked.
Soon, after passing through layers of jungle, Xiangling finally arrived at the small stream where they had washed up.
"Stelle..." Xiangling was about to call out again, but his attention was quickly drawn to the clothes left on the ground.
These were Stelle's clothes; Xiangling couldn't be mistaken.
He quickly walked forward, and then he saw a scene that would be unforgettable for his entire life.
Stelle was soaking in the clear stream, his eyes tightly closed.
This small stream was very shallow, at most only reaching Stelle's chest, and because the environment in Jueyun Karst was very good and few people came there, it hadn't been heavily polluted.
The stream was crystal clear, and Xiangling could see everything underwater.
"Ah!!" Xiangling was stunned for a moment, then let out a soft gasp and quickly turned his body away.
"I-I'm so sorry! I, I didn't know you were bathing..." Xiangling's face was beet red, his voice trembling. He even covered his eyes with both hands.
In reality, Xiangling had been to bathhouses more than once and had even bathed with his good friends like Hu Tao. Logically, he shouldn't have been shy at all. Everyone was a girl; as long as they didn't get too close, bathing together was perfectly normal.
But facing Stelle, Xiangling didn't know what was wrong with him. He had no composure or calmness whatsoever, as if he had seen his beloved completely naked in front of him.
That inexplicable shyness completely occupied Xiangling's entire mind.
However, why would Stelle bathe at this time?
Xiangling knew that some people had a habit of bathing every day, but the environment here was still a bit simple. Although it was sparsely populated, it was still the wilderness after all.
They were returning to Liyue Harbor tomorrow. Even if Stelle wanted to bathe, waiting until tomorrow morning wouldn't be a problem.
He had made him so worried, and he had even come specifically to check, causing such a huge misunderstanding.
"...Stelle?" Xiangling didn't receive a reply from Stelle for a long time, so he called out Stelle's name again, somewhat confused.
However, this time too, Stelle did not give any answer.
Xiangling couldn't help but turn his head and slightly parted the hands covering his eyes.
Stelle's eyes were still tightly closed, and his brows were slightly furrowed.
Stelle looked very uncomfortable.
"Stelle, are you, are you alright?" Xiangling couldn't help but raise his voice a little, and he carefully walked to the side of the stream.
"Xiang...ling..." Stelle's eyes finally slowly opened. He called out Xiangling's name, his consciousness somewhat hazy.
He had overestimated himself, or perhaps underestimated the effect of that ingredient on his body.
After soaking in this stream for a long time, his physical condition did not improve at all. Instead, that impulse grew stronger and stronger. Stelle almost couldn't resist and nearly went to find Xiangling naked.
Finally, he relied on his strong willpower to sit still in the stream, thinking that perhaps after a while, this feeling would disappear, but he didn't expect Xiangling to come looking for him.
"Stelle, you, what exactly is..." Xiangling then noticed that Stelle's cheeks were incredibly red, and his skin was covered in a large patch of pink.
His shyness instantly vanished, replaced by deep worry.
"Could it be because of what we ate today?"
This possibility flashed through Xiangling's mind, because Stelle's body had never had any problems before.
During this time, only the new dish he made could have caused Stelle to be in this state.
It's just that those ingredients were clearly normal. Even if there were any side effects, at most it should only be diarrhea. Such a strange situation shouldn't have occurred...
"Stelle, wait for me." Xiangling shook his head and didn't think any further. He quickly kicked off his shoes, but his outer clothing was really inconvenient to take off, so he had to wear it for now.
Then he jumped directly into the water.
No matter what, he should first get Stelle out of the water, otherwise, if he kept soaking in such a stream, Stelle might catch a cold.
"No, don't..." Stelle squinted his eyes. In his line of sight, Xiangling was wading through the stream towards him.
He deeply knew that Xiangling was like a lamb entering a wolf's den.
If he really came in front of him, Stelle couldn't guarantee what would happen next.
However, unfortunately, Xiangling couldn't hear Stelle's soft murmuring. Even if he heard it, he probably wouldn't do as Stelle said.
"Stelle, let's go up first." Xiangling finally reached Stelle's side. He reached out and grabbed one of Stelle's arms.
At this moment, Xiangling realized that Stelle's hand was terrifyingly hot. Even in this cool stream, it was the same; it seemed that his body temperature had not decreased at all due to the water.
"How could this be..." Xiangling grew even more worried. He wasn't a doctor, at most he only knew how to make a few medicinal dishes. He had no way to deal with Stelle's current strange symptoms.
But going back to Liyue Harbor now was basically impossible. Not to mention how difficult the road would be after dark, once they left Jueyun Karst, in places not protected by Adepti, with so many monsters at night, the danger level was self-evident.
He tried to pull Stelle up first, but found that his strength was completely insufficient in the water. Stelle's body seemed to be embedded next to the small stream.
"Stelle, can you, can you get up?" Xiangling had no choice but to say this to Stelle.
Hearing Xiangling's voice so close, Stelle's eyes finally opened completely.
This time, there was no confusion in his eyes, only countless desires.
"Xiangling, I'm sorry."
"Eh? Wh-what...!?!" Xiangling was still wondering why Stelle was apologizing to him. The next second, he completely lost the ability to speak.
Because Stelle had already embraced him with both hands, and at the same time, his mouth pressed against Xiangling's lips.
It was very fast; Xiangling didn't react at all.
Stelle's strength was also great; he was completely unable to break free.
What would happen next, the current Xiangling had no way of knowing.
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