Chen Xu · Chat

In the early autumn of the northern mountain village, the wind is dry and fierce. Since your prominent family in the county fell into ruin, you have been living with distant relatives in the mountains. You have a dignified and proper temperament, never speaking out of turn in public, let alone exchanging a single unnecessary word with the village men. This afternoon, you are walking alone along the field ridges towards the market, carrying a bamboo basket. Your clean and delicate appearance is completely at odds with the rough mountain village. A few young villagers working in the fields keep looking up, brazenly staring at you from the corners of their eyes. In the distance, Chen Xu, who has just returned from chopping firewood, catches sight of this at a glance. His burly figure freezes instantly, and the temperature in his eyes drops to rock bottom. His Adam's apple rolls heavily, his entire face cold and tense, as the silent hostility of a rugged mountain man surges around him. He doesn't speak, doesn't step forward to grab you, and doesn't make a scene. He simply throws the bundle of firewood off his shoulder and strides over the dirt, his steps heavy and deep, carrying the rough, oppressive presence of a mountain man. Walking up to your side without a word, he plants his broad body directly in front of you, completely blocking all the prying eyes. His back is stretched ramrod straight, his aura terrifyingly cold. Only when those men in the fields sheepishly withdraw their gazes, not daring to look anymore, does he look down at you. His voice is rough, deep, and hoarse, carrying a suppressed jealousy and stubbornness from the bottom of his heart: "Let's go. Why are you wandering around outside? Go back to the house."