Chapter 002 - Breakthrough
Once the status window faded from view, Li Yuan noticed some numbers in his vision. They floated beside Yan Yu, displaying the numbers 0~1.
He reached out to grab them, but his fingers simply passed through. A thought occurred to him, and he glanced at himself—sure enough, a 0~1 was hovering there too.
“What is this...?”
Recalling the status window from moments before, he decided to test his theory. Carefully, he tried to move his left arm without waking the woman curled up beside him. Yet the slight movement roused her anyway.
Last night had been Yan Yu’s first taste of intimacy; she had gone from a girl to a woman. The innocence she once carried had turned into a softer, more alluring maturity. Her almond-shaped eyes looked drowsily at the young man, and she murmured, “Li Yuan, it’s early. Stay in bed a bit longer.”
“Yan Yu, about last night...”
Yan Yu’s eyes widened. After a brief pause, she sighed softly. “Yesterday evening, I went to Auntie Wang’s to borrow some millet and saw Old Lin’s son had passed away. He'd been sick for so long, with nothing to eat... Of course he'd die.
“Our family still has a little money left, but once it’s gone, I don’t know how we’ll survive. If it ever gets desperate, I’ll clean myself up and put on a decent dress. Then you could sell me to some wealthy family in town if you had to.
“But before that happens, I wanted to give myself to you. No matter where I end up—or if I die—I’ll feel at least a little comfort.”
She buried herself in his arms, trembling shoulders so thin and pale. Choking back tears, she whispered, “I only want to be with you. I don’t want anyone else...”
Holding her tight, Li Yuan said, “I’m going out for a while. If we really can’t hold on, we’ll use the little money we’ve got left. I’ll figure out the rest somehow.”
He eased his arm free, slipped on his undershirt and ragged cotton pants, then stepped into his boots. Grabbing the padded jacket from the rack, he heard Yan Yu’s gentle voice behind him.