"Cough!" Niley choked a little at those words and looked at Liam, clearly speechless. "You needed to take off your clothes for treatment before?"
Liam paused, his face turning slightly red.
"No, it's just that some treatments involved soaking in herbal baths."
While the two were talking, the other three — Mier, Xing, and Han — also walked out.
Niley glanced at Mier, who was pretending to be busy on the side. "Mier, help me find a cloth I can use to cover his eyes."
Then she sat down opposite Liam, lifted her chin slightly to gesture for him to put his hand on the table, and started releasing a small amount of her wood-type power from her fingertips.
The energy flowed from Liam's wrist and slowly spread throughout his entire body.
When Mier came back with a strip of cloth, Niley motioned for him to cover Liam's eyes.
Though Mier didn't understand why, he still did it.
Liam, on the other hand, was a little shocked inside.
Just now, when Niley told him he had only three months left to live, it felt like his entire future went dark. He was still young and never thought he'd already reached the end of his life. Nearly twenty years, all filled with hardship.
Then Niley said boldly that she could try to cure this fatal illness. He had only laughed bitterly, thinking she was just another trickster like those traveling priests who cheated people for silver.
So he had long given up on his broken body.
But the moment Niley touched his wrist, he felt an overwhelming warmth spread through him. His cold hands and feet gradually became warm.
When he first entered the room, he did notice that it was warmer than outside, yet he still kept coughing and felt cold like always.
But now, his limbs were actually warming up.
So when Mier looked at him with the cloth, he nodded.
Maybe… this time he really had a chance to live.
Once Liam's eyes were covered, Niley fully released her power.
Mier stared intently at Liam's wrist as Niley took his pulse, then looked up at Niley again, his eyes filled with hope.
But in the next second, he was nearly blinded by a flash of green light.
The green light came from where Niley and Liam were touching. It slowly entered Liam's body, wrapping around him completely. Mier could even see several thin green threads linking between them.
His eyes widened in disbelief.
No wonder his wife had asked the others to leave. He wanted to leave too!
He didn't want to know too much — it didn't seem like a good idea.
But why didn't his wife avoid him?
Could it really be like she said — that he was hers?
As Mier was lost in thought, the green light began to fade. Niley picked up a cup of water and handed it to Liam. "You can take off the cloth now."
Mier quickly removed the cloth and looked at Liam with concern. "How do you feel?"
"Drink some water first," Niley said as she passed the cup to Liam.
He took it and sipped slowly.
Then he looked at Mier, who was staring at him with worry, and gave a small smile. "I really do feel much better."
"Really?!"
Mier turned excitedly to Niley. "Thank you, wife."
Hearing Mier's excited voice, the others outside knocked and came in, asking about Liam's condition right away.
Niley gave them space and went back to her rattan chair to rest.
Liam's condition wasn't that complicated, but it wasn't simple either. One use of her power wouldn't fix it completely. That's why she also used spiritual spring water from her space to help strengthen his body.
She even added some to their daily meals — her little husband still needed to build up his health.
As she thought about this, her eyelids grew heavier. Looking at the figure in front of her, she smiled without realizing it. So, this is how her little husband looks when he's happy… it's nice.
After confirming Liam really was doing much better, the others remembered Niley.
They saw her sitting on the chair, eyes shut, brows furrowed — looking very uneasy.
Mier's heart skipped. He rushed forward to check on her.
Xing was about to move too, but stopped suddenly. "Is she exhausted?"
He started looking around for the medicine Niley had used on Liam, but there wasn't any.
Thinking back to when Niley told them all to leave, maybe she had some special treatment method. But clearly, it took a heavy toll on her.
Hearing that, Mier looked more worried. He saw sweat forming on her forehead and took a handkerchief from his pocket to wipe it away.
Then he turned to Xing. "Big brother, can you carry her to the bed? It's not comfortable sleeping in this chair."
Xing picked her up and realized how small and light she was — and couldn't help feeling a bit protective.
He moved carefully, afraid to wake her, but the moment he looked down at her, she suddenly opened her eyes. They were sharp and full of alertness, staring at him.
But when she saw it was him, her body relaxed and she gently leaned into him.
Xing felt conflicted.
That gaze… he had only seen it in assassins who killed without hesitation. But his own wife…
He didn't think too deeply. Mier was already urging him to hurry up.
Once Niley was settled on the bed, Mier quickly pulled the blanket over her before Xing could.
Then he looked at Xing, and casually reminded him, "Wife said there's a room next door. Since everyone's free now, maybe go clean it up for tonight."
Xing glanced at Mier and noticed the wariness in his eyes. He nodded.
Since it was about arranging their living situation, Lei and Xing also went to help.
Only Mier and Liam were left in the room.
Mier sat at the bedside, staring at Niley, guilt and heartache occasionally flashing across his eyes.
Liam quietly drank his water. After hearing Mier sigh over and over, he gently reminded, "Second Brother, didn't you say the contract had all five of our names on it?"
So, she's not just your wife.
Mier's eyes dimmed. He knew what Liam meant — it was about how he just argued with their eldest brother.
But he couldn't help it.
The moment their older brothers returned, they started paying attention to Niley. The wife he thought was his alone… he couldn't stand it.
But… hadn't he already agreed back then?
If not, he wouldn't have said anything when the village chief wrote all five names.
He let out a bitter smile. "Liam, you sure know how to hit where it hurts."
"I'm just being honest. Besides, you'll have to get used to them being around sooner or later."