Because of his martial arts training, Wu Hua reacted with agility and rushed forward at the sight. However, the rain had made the ground slippery, and his foot slid, making him half a beat too late as he arrived. Seeing that Li Yaqian was about to fall, Wu Hua made a desperate grab with one arm, catching her just as she was about to hit the ground and using his arm strength to hoist her up.
Li Yaqian's cheeks turned crimson in a flash.
Intent only on saving her, Wu Hua hadn't thought much of it at the moment.
Li Yaqian began to struggle. Fearing she would fall again, he instinctively tightened his grip around her and said anxiously, "Sister Yaqian, don't thrash around! If you keep moving, I won't be able to hold you!"
Hearing this, Li Yaqian immediately snapped back to reality. Though her heart was still fluttering in panic, she blurted out urgently, "Wu Hua, let go of me right now!"
Reminded by Li Yaqian, Wu Hua hastily pulled his hands back. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to!"
That withdrawal was too forceful, causing Li Yaqian to tilt sideways again. Wu Hua hurriedly steadied her a second time, this time firmly grabbing her by both shoulders.
Having suffered one shock after another, Li Yaqian suddenly threw a childish tantrum. Looking at Wu Hua's panicked expression, she let out a heavy "Hmph!" and shouted loudly, "Wu Hua! I think you did that on purpose, absolutely on purpose!"
At Li Yaqian's shout, Wu Hua was startled, but the shock cleared his head.
Li Yaqian's demeanor was clearly a mix of shyness and a child's temper, not genuine anger at him.
In a situation like this, as long as he appeased her and restored her emotional balance, the matter would be easy to handle.
So, putting on an aggrieved look, Wu Hua said, "Sister Yaqian, I really didn't mean it! I just saw you were about to fall and rushed to catch you!"
Clutching Wu Hua's arm, Li Yaqian panted, "It's all your fault, all your fault! You did it on purpose!"
Wu Hua made a crying face and whimpered, "Sister Yaqian, you're doing me a terrible injustice! I'm even more wronged than Dou E!" With that, he covered his eyes with his hand and let out a theatrical, dry howl in a weird, exaggerated tone.
Amused by Wu Hua's expression, Li Yaqian let out a chuckle and punched him in the arm. "You little imp, where did you learn talk like that? We're still standing in the pouring rain, stop messing around and hurry up and walk me home!"
Wu Hua snapped to attention with a crisp *salute* and gave a military response, "Yes ma'am! Mission guaranteed!"
Seeing this, Li Yaqian immediately smiled happily, the pain in her foot seemingly forgotten for the moment.
Wu Hua picked up the two umbrellas from the ground, holding one for himself and giving the other to Li Yaqian, and supported her as they continued forward. But Li Yaqian's injured foot couldn't bear any weight at all, forcing her to hop along. After only a few steps, her foot hurt so badly that she refused to jump another inch no matter what.
Seeing this, Wu Hua tentatively suggested, "Sister Yaqian, how about I carry you back on my back?"
Hearing that Wu Hua wanted to carry her, Li Yaqian blushed again.
Although in her heart she thought of Wu Hua as a younger brother, Wu Hua was already a teenager and stood half a head taller than her. She had never had such "intimate" contact with a boy, and she hesitated for a moment.
Watching the rapidly changing expressions on Li Yaqian's face, Wu Hua knew full well what she was hesitating about, but the heavens weren't going to wait—the rain was coming down harder and harder.
Taking small, romantic steps in the rain was nice, but getting soaked to the bone in a heavy downpour was, to put it bluntly, just plain foolish!
Though that was what he thought, Wu Hua said aloud instead, "Sister Yaqian, what on earth are you mulling over in that head of yours? You're a medical student—don't tell me you're still hung up on that old-fashioned notion that men and women shouldn't have physical contact?"
Caught right in the bullseye of her thoughts, Li Yaqian was overcome with embarrassment for a moment and thought to herself: *You little brat, you think I'm scared of you? I'll let you carry me! This young lady weighs at least a hundred pounds—let's see how you beg for mercy when your back gives out!*
If Wu Hua had any idea what was going on in her scheming little mind, he probably would have been too shocked for words."What does a little kid like you know? Do you even know how to write the characters for 'men and women should not touch when handing things over'? You're just a half-filled bucket sloshing around—stop misusing words!" Having her shortcomings exposed by a boy several years younger, Li Yaqian couldn't save face and fought back defensively.
Seeing Li Yaqian pull out her "female privilege," Wu Hua could only shrug helplessly and choose to remain silent. He knew there was no reasoning with her right now.
Seeing that Wu Hua didn't make a peep, Li Yaqian was ecstatic inside, humming inwardly: *At least you've got some street smarts!*
She gave Wu Hua a pat on the shoulder. "Wu Hua, what are you spacing out for? Hurry up and squat down. You're so tall I can't climb up."
Wu Hua was stunned for a moment, and then his heart started pounding wildly. It seemed that no matter the time, a woman's mind was as unfathomable as the ocean floor.
He handed the umbrella to Li Yaqian, squatted down halfway, and assumed the posture of "come on, I'll carry you."
Li Yaqian stopped being coy and gently leaned onto Wu Hua's back.
A young woman's modesty made her try to keep some distance from Wu Hua. Holding the umbrella in one hand, her other hand didn't wrap tightly around his neck, but instead rested lightly on his shoulder, her upper body leaning slightly backward to avoid pressing against his back.
Wu Hua's hands hesitated, not daring to touch Li Yaqian's waist for fear of losing control of himself, yet without holding her waist, there was no way to carry her.
Steadying his nerves, he reached out to wrap his arms around her waist, straightened his back, and hoisted her up.
"Ah!" Li Yaqian cried out in surprise, completely unprepared for Wu Hua standing up so suddenly. The hand resting on his shoulder slipped, and her body tilted backward. In her panic, she instinctively tightened her arms around Wu Hua's neck to steady herself, yet she still inevitably began to slide down.
At this moment, his mature sense of reason kicked in. Without the panic of a youth, he exerted strength in both hands and heaved Li Yaqian's body upward.
With that, he took a large stride forward.
At first, Wu Hua found it relatively easy, but the farther he walked, the more strenuous it became. Even with his decent physical fitness, carrying someone while trudging along a muddy, rain-slicked road was a tremendous test.
By the time they reached the downstairs of her building, it was impossible to tell whether the moisture on Wu Hua's body was sweat or rain, steaming with heat.
There were still over two hundred meters from Wu Hua's house to Li Yaqian's house, and just thinking about that distance made his heart beat anxiously.
Usually, he could run there in no time, but now, carrying Li Yaqian, he wasn't confident.
He thought for a moment and suggested, "Sister Yaqian, your house is still far. I really can't carry you much further. Let's go to my place first. My house has liniment too, I'll put some on you, and after you rest a while, you can go back."
Li Yaqian had already sensed the heat and masculine aura radiating from Wu Hua, and she was actually rather enjoying herself on his back.
Hearing Wu Hua speak, she realized they had already reached the downstairs of his building. She didn't want Wu Hua to see her looking so soaked and wretched, but seeing how exhausted he was on her account, she hesitated.
Guessing Li Yaqian's concerns and unwilling to give up, Wu Hua added, "Sister Yaqian, you really should come to my place. My bathroom has hot water, and in your condition, you'd need to clean up first anyway once you get home, wouldn't you?"
Wu Hua's words were extremely tempting, and Li Yaqian was somewhat moved.
All girls love cleanliness, and being covered in mud and water made her miserable. Her home was an old-style single-story house; you walked straight into the kitchen, and the inner room was a large brick kang where the whole family squeezed together.
After she grew up, her father partitioned a small space by the kang for her, but for showers and using the toilet, she still had to go out to the public restroom.
If she went home now, her parents and younger brother Erbao would definitely be there, making bathing and changing clothes terribly inconvenient. Hearing that she could take a shower, Li Yaqian was tempted, but she still hesitated. "Wu Hua, I'd better go home. It won't look good if Uncle Wu and Auntie Li see me going to your place!"