Chapter 160

"They're not chasing us anymore, let's stop and rest for a bit..."

Fan Xiaoxiao felt like her stomach was about to churn. They had been running since they escaped, and it was already past midnight. If they kept running, she didn't know if the horse could handle it, but she, Fan Xiaoxiao, definitely couldn't keep going.

Seeing that she was hunched over and sounded very weak, Gu Chongtai pulled the horse to slow down.

"Old man!"

"Whoa!"

The Ghost Doctor slowly tightened the reins, and just as he and Bai Chaoyan's horse were about to stop, he leaped and bounded through the woods to catch up with the horse that hadn't stopped.

With some difficulty, Fan Xiaoxiao dismounted with Gu Zhongtai's help. As soon as she landed, she felt a sharp pain on the inside of her thighs, and her legs felt like they were floating on cotton.

Bai Chaoyan, who was in front, slid down little by little, looking rather strange. Fan Xiaoxiao glanced at her several times, and finally exclaimed in surprise when she saw that the other woman's eyes were tightly closed.

"She seems to have fainted!"

Gu Zhongtai gave an "oh" and tilted his head, unmoved.

Fan Xiaoxiao, somewhat speechless, repeated, "She's going to fall off her horse! What if she gets hurt? Go catch her, boss!"

She didn't finish her sentence. If she fell off the horse and became mentally impaired, would Boss Gu still need to go to Tianshan to get the antidote?

Gu Zhongtai clicked his tongue, his expression reluctant. But seeing Fan Xiaoxiao's determined look and her trembling legs, he reluctantly went over and helped Bai Chaoyan up before she completely fell.

"Whoosh!!!"

"Whoa!!!"

When the Ghost Doctor returned on the horse that had run away, Fan Xiaoxiao and the others found a dry cave.

However, Fan Xiaoxiao and Gu Chongtai both sat in front of the cave and did not go in, while Bai Chaoyan had them lean against the cave entrance. Seeing the Ghost Doctor return, both of them turned to look at him.

The Ghost Doctor was somewhat puzzled. After tying up the horse, he frowned and looked at the two men, saying, "What are you all sitting there like idiots for? Why aren't you starting a fire? I'm starving! What are you looking at me for? Do you expect me to come back before you can even start a fire?"

Fan Xiaoxiao sighed, drawing out her words: "Yes! Gu Zhongtai ran out of tinder earlier, so he was waiting for you to come back and start a fire!"

"Besides, you're the only one who's still alive and well now, Grandpa. Look at me, I sprained my ankle, and that woman is in even worse shape than me, her leg went straight through, and she's unconscious right now! Gu Zhongtai is a little better, but he's still frail. Do you think we wouldn't wait for you to come back?"

Gu Zhongtai, who appeared "gentle and weak," glanced at Fan Xiaoxiao and saw that she had a calm expression. Then, he turned to look at the Ghost Doctor with a cold face.

"..."

The Ghost Doctor stared speechlessly at their expressions, then gave up after a long pause. Resigned, he went into the woods to gather firewood, returning with a stack in no time.

Next came starting a fire and finding water. After running around for almost half an hour, the Ghost Doctor finally sat down again.

"Oh, at least I can finally take a break now."

Fan Xiaoxiao found some clean branches and roasted wolf meat into jerky. After hearing the Ghost Doctor's sigh, she remembered that Bai Chaoyan was still unconscious.

"Grandpa, could you take a look at that woman? What's wrong with her? She hasn't woken up yet."

"I just sat down..."

Fan Xiaoxiao waved the meat in her hand, and the Ghost Doctor's mutterings stopped. Resigned, she walked to Bai Chaoyan's side and grabbed Bai Chaoyan's wrist, only to find that the person was burning hot.

"..."

"The best healer in the world?"

Gu Zhongtai revealed a somewhat mocking smile. He had noticed that Bai Chaoyan was feverish when he went to help her up, but the Ghost Doctor was probably too busy driving the horse to notice anything amiss. It was only after the girl reminded him that he realized something was wrong with Bai Chaoyan.

"You...you don't know anything! This is called internal poisoning manifesting externally! It'll be fine in a bit!"

The Ghost Doctor was humiliated, and his face flushed with shame. However, he still stubbornly insisted that he was not wrong. After saying this, he immediately found some herbs, changed Bai Chaoyan's medicine, and then personally brewed the medicine for her.

"Grandpa, she's unconscious, how could you feed her medicine?"

Fan Xiaoxiao kept turning the dried meat over in her hands, wondering how the Ghost Doctor would manage to get the medicine down her throat.

"Ha, what's so difficult about that?"

The Ghost Doctor looked somewhat smug. He set the boiled medicine aside to cool, then turned around and took out a funnel from his backpack.

Fan Xiaoxiao's face stiffened, thinking to herself, "Could it be what she's thinking?"

As it turned out, the Ghost Doctor was indeed the Ghost Doctor. Things unfolded exactly as Fan Xiaoxiao had predicted. Once the medicine had cooled slightly, the Ghost Doctor picked up the funnel and poured it directly into Bai Chaoyan's mouth. While doing so, he said to Fan Xiaoxiao, "Hey! Kid! Don't underestimate this trick of mine! Not everyone can do this!"

Fan Xiaoxiao couldn't bear to look at the scene, thinking, "Isn't the old doctor talking nonsense? If an ordinary person tried to do this, they'd probably choke to death if no one believed him. It's only because he's practiced medicine for many years and has some experience that most people wouldn't do something like this."

However, the Ghost Doctor's medicine was quite effective. A short while after Bai Chaoyan drank the medicine, Fan Xiaoxiao heard her cough suddenly, and then she groggily woke up.

"water……"

Fan Xiaoxiao handed over the cooled water she had prepared, and Bai Chaoyan drank several sips before she recovered.

Fan Xiaoxiao noticed that although her complexion was still a bit pale, her eyes were clear, indicating that she was obviously alright.

Then, a thought flashed through her mind, her face hardened, and she asked in a chilling voice, "Awake? Now that you're awake, you can tell us who you really are, right? And why are so many people chasing after you?"

According to the original novel's female protagonist character, Bai Chaoyan is an intelligent person with a resolute and kind personality, possessing the unique innocence and pride of a noblewoman. She was saved by Fan Xiaoxiao today, so she will appropriately reveal some things. Furthermore, having witnessed the Ghost Doctor's abilities, she will certainly not easily abandon her journey with them.

Sure enough, after staring at the fire for a moment, Bai Chaoyan said blankly, "I...I'm the daughter of a civil official. My father offended some powerful people, so they want to capture me to threaten him..."

Fan Xiaoxiao raised an eyebrow, not at all surprised by her response. But that wasn't the answer she wanted; what she wanted was...

"Why didn't you say so earlier! Now you're making us risk our lives with you!?"

"I..." Bai Chaoyan bit her lip, unsure how to respond to Fan Xiaoxiao's words.

"This deal isn't worth it!" Fan Xiaoxiao glared angrily at Bai Chaoyan, her eyes wide open, seemingly genuinely furious.

Bai Chaoyan opened her mouth, then closed it again. After hesitating two or three times, she sighed helplessly and said, "Then what do you want? I already said that as long as we can get to Tianshan, I will definitely fulfill all your conditions."

"Words are no proof!" Fan Xiaoxiao feigned complete disbelief in Bai Chaoyan, saying in a harsh voice, "What if we risked our lives to get to Tianshan for you, only to turn our backs on you!"

Bai Chaoyan choked slightly, a hint of anger flashing across her face. When had she, the daughter of the esteemed Bai Xiang, ever been questioned like this! She immediately pulled out her token and handed it to Fan Xiaoxiao, saying, "This jade pendant is proof! A daughter of the Bai family keeps her word! Just take this jade pendant and come with me to Tianshan! I will fulfill any request you can make! The sun and moon are my witnesses! Heaven and earth are my testimonies!"

Fan Xiaoxiao raised the corners of her lips slightly—this was what she truly wanted.

(End of this chapter)