Hu Zhongyi's eyes lit out, and he said eagerly, "Interested! Extremely interested! I humbly ask for your guidance, sir!"
Ye Qingyun nodded, then let his gaze fall upon Xia Shuangzhu.
Xia Shuangzhu sat there in a daze, still unable to process what had happened. Only moments ago, she had looked down upon this young man as a nobody; yet now, he was a master of traditional Chinese medicine whom even Master Hu was begging to take as a mentor. This massive contrast left her struggling to accept reality.
Ye Qingyun turned to her and said, "Miss, the situation was urgent just now, so please forgive my offense. When I drew blood from five inches below your navel, it was because you are a virgin. A virgin's blood can expel cold "
Xia Shuangzhu snapped back to her senses, her face flushing crimson. With a voice no louder than a mosquito's buzz, she replied, "Sir, it... it's fine. I... I understand."
Beside them, Hu Zhongyi had already pulled out a notebook, frantically jotting down Ye Qingyun's words: *A virgin's blood can expel coldness.* This was a brand-new piece of knowledge.
With the pupillary techniques Ye Qingyun cultivated, a single glance was all it took to tell that Xia Shuangzhu was a virgin.
"Elder, these are the medicinal herbs I need to purchase. Could you please prepare them for me?" Ye Qingyun produced a slip of white paper containing the traditional remedies required to cure his mother's eyes.
Hu Zhongyi took the paper and scanned it for a moment. Then, a troubled expression crossed his face as he told Ye Qingyun, "Sir, we do have most of these—the abalone shell, climbing fern spore, night-luminescent sand... those we have in stock. As for the Wuxuan Root, forgive this old man's ignorance, but I have never even heard of it."
Ye Qingyun frowned slightly, though he was not too surprised. The formula he was using was an ancient one, and its ingredients were exceedingly rare nowadays; it was only natural that they could not be found easily. He had merely come here to try his luck.
After a moment of thought, Ye Qingyun asked, "Elder, do you have any idea where the Wuxuan Root might be purchased?"
"To be honest with you, my Rinde Hall is the largest traditional Chinese medicine shop in Jiangning City, and our inventory is quite comprehensive. If you cannot even buy the Wuxuan Root here, I doubt it exists anywhere on the open market." Hu Zhongyi explained.
Ye Qingyun nodded, his brows furrowed tightly.
Hu Zhongyi continued, "Sir, I can help you ask around the neighboring provinces and cities for any news regarding the Wuxuan Root. The moment I get any word, I will notify you immediately."
"Thank you," Ye Qingyun said.
"It is only my duty," Hu Zhongyi replied. Since Ye Qingyun was going to teach him the Thirteen Ghost-Gate Needles, he had to make a good impression.
With that, Hu Zhongyi packed up the rest of the herbs Ye Qingyun needed, and the two exchanged contact information.
Carrying the medicine, Ye Qingyun left Rinde Hall. It was already getting late, and he still needed to deliver the money to Ye Qianwen. Teaching Hu Zhongyi the Thirteen Ghost-Gate Needles would simply have to wait.
Stepping out of the shop, Ye Qingyun sent a message to Gao Qiang, instructing him to investigate any leads on the Wuxuan Root.
***
In the suburbs of Jiangning City, inside a modest little bungalow, Xie Meilan was half-reclining on her bed while Ye Qianwen fed her medicine.
Coughing twice, Xie Meilan murmured, "Qianqian, Mom really saw Yun'er this afternoon. He's back."
"Mom, I've told you already, you were just dreaming, it wasn't real. That man hasn't been back in five years, he's definitely dead. Stop dwelling on it. Come on, drink your medicine."
"No matter what, Yun'er is your brother. How can you curse him like that?" Xie Meilan's face showed displeasure.
*I have no such brother,* Ye Qianwen thought to herself.
Yes, she had deliberately concealed the fact that Ye Qingyun had returned. Even though Xie Meilan had indeed met face-to-face with him that afternoon, she had just woken up from a nap at the time and her mind was still groggy, making it difficult for her to distinguish between reality and a dream.
Taking advantage of this, Ye Qianwen had lied and told her mother it was all a dream.
And now, it seemed Xie Meilan had believed her, convincing herself that she had only dreamt of her son—who had gone missing five years ago—because she missed him so much. Xie Meilan had dreamed of him before, though never quite so vividly.
Anxious to steer her mother away from this topic, Ye Qianwen quickly changed the subject. "Mom, I'm getting a promotion and a raise next month. Besides, I've managed to scrape together the one hundred thousand yuan we owe on the loan, so I can pay it off tomorrow."
"Qianqian, you've really suffered so much. With this illness of mine, I can't help you at all—I'm just dragging you down." Xie Meilan's heart was a tangle of conflicting emotions.
"Mom, don't say things like that. I'll work hard so you can live a good life."
"My child, I have no other wishes in this life. I only hope you can find an honest, steady job, marry an honest, steady man, and live a peaceful, grounded life."
Catching sight of her own pale turquoise hair tips and brightly colored manicure, Ye Qianwen took a deep breath and said with fierce determination, "Mom, I will."
After Xie Meilan fell asleep, Ye Qianwen opened the front door, sat down on a stone stool outside, and looked up at the stars. Every day at this hour, her heart would find a sense of absolute peace.
Yet for some reason, tonight she felt a restless agitation.
"I actually caught myself expecting that man to really bring the one hundred thousand yuan..." Ye Qianwen shook her head, casting aside such an unrealistic thought.
It was already this late, and she hadn't even caught a glimpse of him. One hundred thousand yuan—why, ordinary city workers couldn't even earn that much in a whole year. How could anyone just pull it out like pocket change?
She gazed at the stars a little longer, deliberately lingering outside tonight. Just as she was about to get up and return to her room to sleep, a voice suddenly sounded by her ear.
"Qianqian, you still love looking at the stars just as much as before."
Hearing that familiar yet unfamiliar voice, Ye Qianwen froze.
Standing before her in the glow of the streetlamp was a figure.
It was Ye Qingyun.
He was carrying a black plastic bag in his hand. Walking up to her with long strides, he handed the bag over and said, "There is one hundred and fifty thousand here—the one hundred thousand I promised you, plus another fifty thousand. I know this fifty thousand is nowhere near enough to compensate you and Mom for the past five years. But it's a token of my sincerity, and hopefully it can improve your lives a little."
With that, Ye Qingyun placed the money before her and turned to leave.
Ye Qianwen watched his retreating figure, stretched long by the streetlamp. Then she looked down at the bundle of money at her feet and a smile touched her lips—a very faint smile, but a truly beautiful one. She could not remember how many years it had been since she had smiled like this.
At that moment, she felt an unprecedented sense of relief.
She opened the black bag. Inside were bundles of cash, neatly stacked, exactly fifteen bundles in all.
Ye Qianwen hurried back inside the house and pulled the door shut behind her with a heavy thud.
***
It wasn't that Ye Qingyun didn't want to say more to Ye Qianwen. Rather, he understood that until he cured Xie Meilan's eyes, empty words were useless; taking action was what truly mattered.
At that moment, he was seated in the back of a luxury black sedan, with Gao Qiang acting as his chauffeur, heading toward his accommodations for the night: Yunyuan Villa.
Naturally, all of this had been arranged by Gao Qiang.