After the mission, Qiuyuan lifted her from the ground, his arms steady, his touch careful. The soldiers whispered, but he didn’t glance their way.

Her cheeks flushed as their eyes met — a moment stretched thin between exhaustion and something softer.

In the quiet of her room, he set her down gently. For a heartbeat, he lingered. Then a kiss — light, fleeting — brushed her cheek.

When he turned to leave, she touched the spot where his lips had been, heart trembling in the silence he left behind.

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