A Touch Of Irony

Xu Jiyu did have an idea, but he didn't say it was a good one.

The chilly frost of the night air pricks at his skin, and he involuntarily shivers. He just wants to catch some fish from the river for dinner, so he sheds his robe, folds it, and rolls up the hems of his pants.

"Alright, since its really come to this, my skills are a bit rusty… but here goes nothing!"

Xu Jiyu steps into the river, a sharpened stick in his hand. The cold water of the river slowly numbs his feet, but he doesn't mind it too much. He stares intently into the water, clumsily wading through the shallows, prowling for a meal. He holds his makeshift spear at arm's length, taking aim at a particular silhouette gliding through the current. He stands as still as a statue, zeroing in on his target before cleanly piercing through the flesh of the fish.

"Aha, got you!" Xu Jiyu declares triumphantly. Two years without practice, and he still has an excellent aim.

The youth proceeds to continue catching fish until he's unable to fit any more on his spear. All in a night's work—Liu Jian will be speechless when he sees the freshly caught dinner!

"He won't dare talk down on me anymore. Someone who is 'weak' surely can't catch this much in one night. He might even bow down to me and call me 'Fishing Master.' Hahaha!" As Xu Jiyu showers himself with praises, he wipes the sweat off of his forehead and lets out a breath. His feet are currently so cold, he can't even feel them anymore.

The youth decides that it's time to return to the cave and have a hearty feast. Gingerly holding his fish-laden spear above his head so as not to drop any of his hard-earned catch, he begins to trudge through the current. However, he wasn't quite expecting his numbed feet to be so uncooperative. Suddenly he lurches forward, and feels a torrent of bone-chilling water immersing him from head to toe.

"Ah—!" A pained shout lances through the silence of the forest as his head bursts back through the surface, and he holds his ankle with his vacant hand under the water. He quickly bites his bottom lip, stifling his urge to swear.

Now soaked, he attempts to continue making his way out of the river but only manages to lurch forward again, almost repeating his previous fall. He tosses his spear on the riverbank before crawling out of the shallows. He realizes that he's unable to put pressure on his ankle—it must have been twisted from his fall earlier.

Xu Jiyu groans, "...This isn't actually happening, right?"

He can feel the overwhelming surge of anger, disappointment, and frustration welling up within him. Perhaps he wasn't lucky after all, not after this incident. But instead of wallowing in self-pity, he grits his teeth and sorts through the firewood he collected earlier.

Selecting two particularly sturdy-looking pieces, he places one on each side of his injured ankle and uses the sash of his robe to tie them into place, gingerly wrapping the fabric around the two sticks and his ankle. He knots the sash, forcing his ankle straight and eliciting a slight wince. He is now able to limp. However, as a result of having used his sash to tie off his makeshift splint, his robe is left open, exposing his wet, slender body and smooth, pale skin to the air.

"That should do it," he says, breathing heavily as his hand slicks back his wet bangs. Then, he begins to stand up, testing the splint's sturdiness. Once he deems that it will stay intact, a lengthy sigh escapes his lips.

"Ha… well, time to get back," Xu Jiyu takes a moment to steady his breathing before carefully bending over to grab his firewood and spearful of fish. He grimaces, feeling a jolt of pain shoot through his lower leg with every step he takes. The extra weight of the sticks and fish don't help, but he refuses to return empty-handed. He's not that weak—this kind of injury won't hinder his journey at all!

He's been able to survive for this long on his own after all, there's no way he wouldn't be able to take a little bit of pain. He'll prove to Liu Jian that he wasn't as weak as he believed him to be!

His courage bolstered, he limps back to the cave.

---

When Xu Jiyu returns to the cave with a noticeable injury, Liu Jian is already waiting for him at the entrance with a steady fire already burning from within the depths of the cavern.

Xu Jiyu makes a face. "What, you already got a fire started? You could've told me so I wouldn't have to waste time collecting these!" He gestures to the sticks stuffed under one arm with a nod of his head.

Liu Jian stares at him, expressionless. Instead of commenting, he briskly walks over to the youth and roughly grabs the hem of Jiyu's robe, making him drop all of his firewood. He swiftly pulls him inside without much concern for his ankle.

"Ow, ow! Liu Jian, that hurts! Can't you treat injured people more gently?" Xu Jiyu nearly shouts from the pain.

"Sit," Liu Jian orders, and his tone conveys his seriousness.

Xu Jiyu complies, sitting down with confusion written on his face. He feels as if there was a sudden shift of atmosphere.

Despite this, he sets a rock on each side of the fire. Placing each end of the spear on the rocks, the fish-laden spear becomes a primitive spit. He leaves the fish to cook over the crackling fire and turns to face Liu Jian.

After a few moments of silence with Liu Jian watching his every move with inquisitive eyes, the handsome man speaks up.

"...You."

"What is it?" Xu Jiyu asks, feeling slightly uncomfortable from the stare he's been receiving from Liu Jian ever since he stepped foot into the cave. He makes a point to avoid eye contact, looking away. However, the gaze on his wet body and damp hair does not retreat for even a second.

"...Why are you so weak?" Liu Jian questions, his eyebrows furrowing as he glances at Xu Jiyu's ankle. "Just by playing around in the river, you are already reduced to this state."

Xu Jiyu feels the anger he had felt earlier arise again, and he pointedly fixes a glare on Liu Jian. "I wasn't playing around in the river! I caught us dinner, shouldn't you be thankful?"

Liu Jian narrows his eyes. "I did not ask you to catch dinner and play with fish. You said you were going to collect firewood. But instead you come back with soggy sticks that will no longer burn correctly, and an injury that will make you more of a burden than you already are. What was the point of doing something like this?"

At this point, Xu Jiyu's mask breaks. His expression morphs into one of fury, and his nails dig into his skin, creating crescent marks in his palm of his hand. "F*ck your mother and her mother too, ah! I was hungry, okay?! I had to share half of my steamed bun with you, when I could've eaten the entire thing by myself! Did you know, steamed buns are my favorite delicacy? Yet you did not even utter a word of gratitude, not even once! If I had known you were such a cold-blooded bastard, then I wouldn't have asked you to be my partner. If we are truly partners, you would be helping me instead of berating me for every little thing that I do! Can't you be thankful, even just a little bit? Can't you understand I'm not as amazing as you, as good-looking as you, as powerful as you? Damn it!"

The last two words echo within the cavern, stunning Liu Jian into a momentary silence, expression full of surprise. Only Xu Jiyu's heavy breathing can be heard afterwards, after yelling his heart out.

An awkward silence fills the air.

Xu Jiyu: "....."

Liu Jian: "....."

A crow caws in the distance.

...Why is this scene so familiar, ah?!

A feeling of dread crawls up Xu Jiyu's spine. He was originally planning on hugging Liu Jian's majestic t.h.i.g.hs, but… how can he possibly do that now?! As his mind is racing many li per second, trying to come up with an explanation for his sudden outburst, Liu Jian finally speaks up.

"...I did not know."

Xu Jiyu snaps back to reality. "... Huh?"

Liu Jian continues, voice soft, "I… did not know. About the feeling of 'gratitude', and that my words hurt you."

The youth is genuinely shocked to hear such sincere words coming from his usually cold partner. Could it be that this entire time, his partner just didn't know how to express his feelings?

Bullsh*t!

"What do you mean you don't know what gratitude is? Did you grow up under a rock?" Xu Jiyu couldn't believe such an atrocious excuse. Since he has already exposed his true nature, he might as well speak his mind. "Anyone would be hurt if you kept belittling them, don't you at least know this much?"

"I do not understand what you're trying to say. Teach me," Liu Jian commands, imperiously.

Xu Jiyu wonders for a brief moment if he just heard correctly. He stares, disbelief in his expression, "What."

It wasn't a question, but a statement.

"I don't understand anything, so teach me." Liu Jian repeats seriously, locking eyes with him from over the flames.

"Well," Xu Jiyu sits up straight, annoyance apparent in his tone, "... First lesson: when asking someone for a favor, ask politely instead of blatantly ordering them around."

"Po… li... tely…?" Liu Jian reiterates, sounding the word out.

Xu Jiyu facepalms. "Are you serious right now? Is this a joke? If it is, please stop, because this is not funny."

Liu Jian's look of confusion only deepens. "... Define 'joke'."

Xu Jiyu groans, "I want to go home."