Chapter 153 - 130: Theft and a Rune
By the time Fang Yue had brought Bai Li back to the entrance of Bai’s Clinic, he was just about to push the door open when he heard the faint sound of crying.
"That’s Cha crying! Let’s hurry inside and see what happened!"
At this, Bai Li’s voice grew noticeably anxious. She threw aside her bamboo cane and fumbled for the door.
However, perhaps because she was in such a hurry, she didn’t notice the steps and stumbled forward.
Fang Yue shook his head and immediately reached out to catch Bai Li.
Her slender hand, fair as jade, felt warm, soft, and fragrant in his grasp, making Fang Yue’s heart stir.
Bai Li was wearing a coarse linen dress today, but it did little to hide her fine figure. She was like a pear blossom about to bloom.
Fresh and elegant, serene as a poem.
He pulled her up, and she fell into his arms, bringing with her a light, soap-scented fragrance.
"Quick, let’s get inside and see." Being blind, Bai Li naturally couldn’t see the expression on Fang Yue’s face.
With her mind completely focused on the clinic, she also failed to notice their current, rather awkward position.
’This is an ancient era, after all,’ Fang Yue immediately thought, coming to his senses. ’It’s highly improper to be holding a young woman like this.’
He released his embrace at once but didn’t let go of her hand. This wasn’t to take advantage of her, but because he was afraid Bai Li would fall again.
’Yes, that’s right. I’m an upright gentleman, after all.’
This time, there were no mishaps. Fang Yue, still holding Bai Li’s hand, pushed open the door and saw a little girl with two pigtails crying in the courtyard.
"Sister Bai Li, some bad men came! They hurt Cheng, messed up the house, and stole a lot of things!"
Seeing Bai Li return, the girl named Cha immediately rushed over and grabbed her arm, her own face a mess of tears and snot.
"Don’t rush, speak slowly. What happened?"
Cha spoke between sobs:
"Just now, some men broke into the clinic and went straight into your room, Sister. They ransacked it! Brother Cheng tried to stop them and got beaten up. I was so scared I hid, and they didn’t find me..."
As the little girl spoke, she broke down into loud wails.
Immediately, Fang Yue led Bai Li and rushed into the house.
Sure enough, the inside had been completely turned upside down. Medicinal herbs were scattered on the floor, and books of all kinds had been thrown everywhere.
Shards of pottery and pieces of broken furniture littered the floor. The entire room was a complete mess.
In a corner of the room lay a boy of twelve or thirteen, his face bruised and swollen, with blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. He was clearly badly injured. Fang Yue recognized him; this was the Cheng that Cha had mentioned.
"Where is Cheng? Let me see him, quickly," Bai Li’s anxious voice rang out.
~~~~~~
「A quarter of an hour later.」
After treating Cheng’s injuries, Bai Li and Fang Yue began to tidy up the room.
Although Cheng’s injuries were not light, he hadn’t suffered any internal damage. He would recover after a period of rest.
"Thank goodness it was only whole herbs that were spilled. If the medicinal powders had been scattered, it would have been impossible to clean up."
Bai Li sat in the room, her hands fumbling for the medicinal herbs on the small table in front of her.
Each time she touched one, she would bring it to her delicate nose to smell it. Only after confirming its identity would she sort it into its proper jar.
Meanwhile, Fang Yue helped Bai Li organize things on the other side of the room.
He picked up the scattered books one by one, flipping through them casually. They were all medical texts, written by someone named Bai Zhu. ’Perhaps he’s one of Bai Li’s ancestors,’ he thought.
Most were medical books, detailing the guiding principles of herbology and the art of healing the sick.
When he got to the last one, he found it was not a medical text like the others, but more of a travelogue. Most of it recounted the experiences of Bai Zhu as he traveled the world.
He flipped to the very end, where there was only a single sentence.
"I climbed East Funiu Mountain and happened upon an Immortal Family. Only then did I learn that Immortal Daoist Techniques exist in this world. Alas, my immortal affinity was insufficient, and I was not permitted to enter their sect. A great, great regret."
Reading this, Fang Yue’s heart skipped a beat. ’Could it be that Immortals truly exist in this world?’
Originally, Fang Yue did not believe in Immortal Gods. However, the events of the last few years, especially the recent, bizarre ’drought’ in Shanyang Prefecture, had shaken his conviction.
Although he had searched for rumors or records on the subject afterward, he had unfortunately found nothing.
He turned another page.
It depicted a drawing of a Rune that looked like a Ghost Talisman.
Below the drawing, the function of this Spirit Talisman was written: Spirit Awakening Talisman, to test for immortal affinity.
"A Spirit Awakening Talisman? To test for immortal affinity?"
"Could it be that Immortals really do exist in this world?"
Reading this, even Fang Yue couldn’t help but mutter to himself.
"Oh, you found that book? My great-great-grandfather wrote it. That’s all from several hundred years ago. You can’t take it seriously."
Though she couldn’t see, Bai Li’s hearing was excellent. Even though Fang Yue had muttered in a low voice, she had heard him and commented casually.
That travelogue had been passed down in her family for many years, and naturally, there had been no shortage of people who wished to seek the path of immortality. However, whether on East Funiu Mountain or anywhere else, none of them ever encountered an Immortal again.
Many ancestors even tried to replicate that Rune to test if they had immortal affinity, but without exception, not a single one succeeded.
Who knew if the original Rune was a fake, making any copy naturally useless.
Or perhaps no one in the Bai Family ever possessed the so-called immortal affinity, which is why the test never worked.
After so many years, no one took that travelogue seriously anymore.
~~~~~~~
「Four hours later.」
They had mostly finished tidying the room. All that was left was the jumble of mixed-up medicinal herbs, a task only Bai Li could handle on her own.
"Thank you for your help, Young Master Fang. It’s getting late. Why don’t you stay for a meal before you go?"
Though Bai Li couldn’t see, her perception of time was clearly very sharp.
She once again invited Fang Yue to stay for dinner.
This time, her expression was very resolute. When she heard no reply from Fang Yue, she insisted again.
This time, Fang Yue did not refuse.
Of course, he couldn’t expect a fine meal here. With his appetite, he probably wouldn’t even be able to eat his fill.
Before long, Bai Li had the meal ready.
It was a bowl of vegetable and tofu soup, which seemed to have some medicinal herbs added to it, giving it a faint medicinal smell.
It wasn’t unpleasant, however. Instead, it carried a unique, fresh fragrance that whetted the appetite.
Fang Yue took a small sip. Although it looked plain and simple, the flavor was surprisingly good.
Soon, the entire bowl of soup was gone.
He had forgotten about the flatbread Bai Li had given him.
"There’s more in the pot. Let me get you another bowl," Bai Li said, quickly getting up when she saw that Fang Yue had finished his bowl in just a few gulps.
Fang Yue, of course, hastily declined, insisting that he was full.
He had peeked into the kitchen earlier. Although the pot wasn’t small, with seven or eight children to feed, there wouldn’t be much for each person.