On the letter, one line was written: “To my master, Liao Qingran, at the Ancient Magnolia Courtyard outside Yangzhou’s West Gate.”
Signed, “Your disciple, Zi Ye.”
Staring at the address, Huo Zhan Bai frowned slightly. That stubborn woman had repeatedly instructed him to open the pouch in Yangzhou, and it turned out all she wanted was for him to deliver this letter to her master? How strange… Could this letter be more important than delivering medicine to Mo’er?
After some hesitation, he made up his mind. If that stubborn woman had been so adamant, there must be a reason. If he didn’t deliver the letter, something serious might happen.
"I’m leaving now," he told Xia Qian Yu. "Once things in Lin’an are settled, I’ll come find you all for a drink."
Before Xia Qian Yu could respond, Huo Zhan Bai let out a whistle, called for his snow falcon, and leaped out of the window.
* * *
The Ancient Magnolia Courtyard was located on the western outskirts of the city. Built during the Tang Dynasty to house relics of the Buddha, it was named for a five-hundred-year-old magnolia tree within its walls. However, after the chaos of war in the previous dynasty, both the magnolia tree and the Buddha’s stupa had been destroyed by fire, leaving the place abandoned and in ruins, with no monks residing there anymore.
Huo Zhan Bai stood in the overgrown, desolate courtyard, a look of surprise on his face.
Could it be that Xue Zi Ye’s master, the long-lost "Healing Hand of the Gods," Liao Qingran, was hiding out here?
The early spring wind was still biting cold as he circled the courtyard, seeing no signs of life. Just as he hesitated, his snow falcon flew back from the rear of the courtyard, letting out a sharp cry. He turned toward the sound and froze in shock.
—Beyond the courtyard wall, the charred ancient magnolia tree stood, its branches dotted with buds!
Who could have the power to bring a dead tree back to life?
His heart skipped a beat as his gaze moved beyond the wall—there, not far from the ancient tree, stood a neat and delicate small building, with gentle smoke rising from its chimney.
Is that the place? He couldn’t contain his excitement and walked over to knock on the door.
"How long does it take to buy diapers for A-Bao in town? Have you been sneaking off to some place again?" came a woman's voice from inside, full of complaints as she approached the door. "Just wait until I—"
Her words cut off abruptly as she opened the door.
The woman, cradling a young child, looked at the white-robed man standing at the door in surprise. "Who are you looking for, sir? My husband’s not home."
"I’m here to see the ‘Healing Hand of the Gods.’" Huo Zhan Bai greeted her respectfully in the manner of a disciple—even though this woman, who seemed no older than thirty, wore simple clothes and a jade hairpin, and looked only a few years older than himself, he dared not show the slightest disrespect, knowing she was Xue Zi Ye's master.
"There’s no ‘Healing Hand of the Gods’ here." The woman’s face turned cold, and she moved to shut the door. "The temple has long been destroyed, and the gods have all perished. You’ve come to the wrong place."
"Lady Liao." Huo Zhan Bai quickly extended his arm to hold the door open. "Your disciple sent me with a letter for you."
The woman in simple attire hesitated for a moment, and then her gaze fell on the purple jade hairpin and the letter Huo Zhan Bai held out to her.
She paused, then finally sighed and opened the door. "Oh... Eight years have passed... and it has finally come?"
After inviting Huo Zhan Bai inside, she looked at the hairpin for a long moment before nodding slightly. "Yes, this is the token I left for Zi Ye when I departed the Medicine Valley. So, she’s finally decided to use it?"
She glanced at Huo Zhan Bai. "Did you come from Medicine Valley? How is Zi Ye’s health these days?"
Huo Zhan Bai hesitated, but eventually decided to tell the truth. "Not very well... She’s becoming increasingly sensitive to the cold."
"Sigh... This is my fault as her teacher," Liao Qingran lowered her head, gently patting the child who had fallen asleep in her arms. "Zi Ye was only eighteen when I left her in charge of Medicine Valley. But I promised her that if she ever encountered a challenge she couldn’t overcome, I would help her once."
"Once?" Huo Zhan Bai asked in surprise.
Liao Qingran smiled. "Yes, only once. I don’t want her thinking, ‘It’s fine if I can’t figure it out—Master will fix it anyway.’" She picked up the hairpin, a bitter smile on her lips. "That girl has always been smart and strong-willed. She hasn’t used this token in eight years, so I assumed her medical skills had already become peerless and she no longer needed help. But now, she’s had to use this hairpin after all?"
Listening from the side, Huo Zhan Bai felt a sudden jolt in his heart.
What does this mean? Did Xue Zi Ye send him with the hairpin to find Liao Qingran in Yangzhou just to…
Liao Qingran handed the child to a maid behind her and began to open the letter. "Could it be that foolish girl still hasn’t given up after eight years, and wants me to help her revive the man frozen beneath the ice? I told her long ago that it’s impossible—" She stopped abruptly, staring at the letter before glancing sharply at Huo Zhan Bai.
"Lady Liao, what is it?" Huo Zhan Bai asked nervously.
Liao Qingran turned and walked further into the house. "Come in and sit down, and I’ll explain."
Rare and precious medicinal ingredients tumbled out from a small pouch onto the table—The Seven-Leaf Bright Lingzhi from the sacred lake of the Moon-Worshiping Sect, the Azure Luan Flower from the White Cloud Palace of Bicheng Mountain in the East Sea, the Dragon’s Tongue from the cliffs of Dongting Jun Mountain, and the Snow Poppy from Western Kunlun. With each item that emerged, Huo Zhan Bai's face grew paler.
"What... what is this!" He couldn’t contain his shock and leapt to his feet.
These were the very ingredients Xue Zi Ye had taken to refine medicine! Why were they all still here, completely untouched?
"Zi Ye wasn’t able to create the true antidote," Liao Qingran’s expression remained calm as she placed the letter on the table, watching as Huo Zhan Bai’s face changed dramatically. "Young Master Huo, the formula she originally gave you, the one with the five medicinal ingredients—it was fake."
"F-fake?" Huo Zhan Bai stammered, completely dumbfounded.
"Yes." Liao Qingran gestured to the rare items on the table. "Each of these ingredients is incredibly powerful and unique, but their properties conflict. They can’t work together harmoniously in any formula. Zi Ye only gave you that impossible prescription because she couldn’t bear to see you in despair."
Huo Zhan Bai stood frozen, his hand gripping his sword, trembling slightly.
"Zi Ye described Mo’er’s illness in detail in the letter. It’s truly a rare condition. She did her best and managed to refine a single pill that will extend Mo’er’s life by three months," Liao Qingran nodded slightly, her voice heavy with compassion. "Please, don’t blame her—"
"Impossible!" Huo Zhan Bai shouted, staring at the rare ingredients on the table. "Impossible! I… I spent eight years…!"
He couldn’t suppress the fury building in his chest. "Are you telling me she deceived me? She... lied to me?!"
Liao Qingran sighed. "Zi Ye’s heart is too soft. She should have told you from the beginning: Mo’er’s condition is incurable."
"Impossible! She wouldn’t lie to me… I’m going to ask her myself." Huo Zhan Bai’s face had gone pale as he rummaged desperately through the rare herbs on the table. "Look, the Dragon Blood Pearl is already gone! The medicine should have been made!"
“Huo Gongzi,” Liao Qingran sighed, “there’s no need for you to return and see my disciple because—”
She turned slightly, gazing at the ancient magnolia tree outside that had miraculously come back to life, and said each word slowly:
“From today onward, I will take over the treatment of Xu Mo’s illness.”
Huo Zhan Bai stood frozen, his emotions vacillating between sudden joy and sorrow.
“Don’t blame Zi Ye. She has already poured her heart and soul into this,” Liao Qingran turned to look at him, holding the purple jade hairpin with a sigh. “Do you know? This was the only token I gave her. I had always thought she would use it to ask me to help revive that frozen corpse beneath the ice… She’s been too fixated on the past.”
She looked intently at the white-robed swordsman who had come to her, then suddenly smiled. “But in the end, she used it to save the life of a child who had nothing to do with her.”
Hearing those words, the layers of anger and shock within Huo Zhan Bai’s heart began to dissipate.
“Then... does Lady Liao have confidence in the treatment?” he asked hesitantly.
“I’m fifty percent confident,” Liao Qingran nodded.
Huo Zhan Bai let out a breath, feeling as if a heavy stone had been lifted from his heart.
“Mo’er’s condition is critical. I’ll start packing right away,” Liao Qingran began gathering the items on the table and instructed her maid to prepare the medicine pouch and clothes. “Once my husband returns, I’ll speak with him, and then we can head to Lin’an tonight.”
“Understood.” Huo Zhan Bai bowed respectfully. “Thank you, Lady Liao.”
As they started preparing, the sound of the door opening echoed from the entrance. Someone rushed in, their voice carrying a note of caution: “Xiao Qing, I saw unfamiliar footprints in the courtyard—who’s here?”
“It’s fine, Feng Xing,” Liao Qingran replied casually. “A friend of my disciple has come to visit.”
The moment the voice reached his ears, Huo Zhan Bai felt an odd sense of familiarity. Instinctively, he turned to look and found himself face-to-face with the newcomer. Both of them shouted in shock.
“Old Fifth?!”
“Old Seventh?!”
Huo Zhan Bai stood there in stunned silence. The tall, graceful man before him held a pack of diapers in his left hand and a new beaded hairpin in his right. His waist, once adorned with a sword that never left his side, now bore only a money pouch. Even if a bolt of lightning had struck him, Huo Zhan Bai couldn’t have imagined that the renowned “Jade Tree Sword” Wei Feng Xing, one of the Eight Swords, once admired throughout the martial world, would now look like this!
Inside the house, the baby, startled by their loud exclamations, began to cry.
“You two know each other?” Liao Qingran looked between them, her surprise evident. But she had no time for further explanation and cast Wei Feng Xing a sharp look. “What are you standing around for? Go change A-Bao’s diaper! Do you want our son to cry himself hoarse?”
Wei Feng Xing snapped out of his daze and quickly slipped into the inner room.
Moments later, the baby’s cries quieted down.
Huo Zhan Bai continued to stand there, dumbfounded, staring into the room. Wei Feng Xing’s hands expertly and smoothly changed the baby’s diaper, with a skill that could easily rival his once flawless “Jade Tree Swordsmanship.”
“So…” Huo Zhan Bai stammered as he turned to look at Liao Qingran, his words faltering, “you’re… my Fifth Sister-in-law?”
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