Before they knew it, time flew by. Snowflakes began to fall from the sky. Standing in front of the French windows, Xia Shizhao held a hot water bottle and looked at the sky. He frowned uncomfortably, his face turning slightly pale.

The indoor temperature was already a bit stuffy, but I still felt a little chilly.

The longer it's delayed, the worse it gets. I feel like it won't be long before medication alone won't be enough.

Electronic voice notification: Mom is calling.

Xia Shizhao clicked to answer, and Mu Tong's gentle and worried eyes appeared in the air: "Zhaozhao, did you receive the warm jade that your mother gave you? Do you want your mother to come over and take care of you?"

"I received the warm jade, it's quite comfortable. You don't need to come and take care of me. You and Grandpa and Grandma can stay together. I'm fine, it's just an old ailment." Looking at her mother's concerned eyes, Xia Shizhao's eyes warmed with a smile.

"Sigh, isn't there any way to treat this?" Mu Tong's face was tinged with worry.

"Not for now," Xia Shizhao answered honestly. He heard a series of knocking sounds and subconsciously turned his head to look at the window.

The little white tiger appeared on the flower basket on her balcony, carrying a red stone in its mouth.

Covered in snow, shivering from the cold, and even looking somewhat weak.

Xia Shizhao frowned, walked to the window, and picked up the little white tiger, carrying it into the room.

Looking at the floating screen: "Mom, I'll get back to you later, I have something to do right now."

"Okay, take care and get some rest."

Mu Tong turned off the holographic projection.

Xia Shizhao looked at the little white tiger and said, "Where is your master? He'll freeze to death if you run out in the dead of winter."

Unlike usual, the little white tiger didn't act cute; it just stared at Xia Shizhao with its round eyes, nudging the stone it was holding in its mouth towards him.

Xia Shizhao squatted down and picked up the red stone.

A warm current spread from his palms to his limbs, and Xia Shizhao's uncomfortable body felt much better.

Fiery Stone?

ha?

They actually went and robbed it.

As expected of her.

The growth of Fire Grass mainly depends on Fire Stone. If Ye Qiuling takes one over, the Fire Grass in that area will probably stop growing.

The mermaid must not die of anger.

Xia Shizhao glanced at the barely alive white tiger cub, sighed, picked it up, and prepared to take it back.

With the Fiery Stone on his person, the cold wind outside had a much smaller effect on Xia Shizhao. He walked to Ye Qiuling's door and knocked.

The door opened by itself.

Ye Qiuling forgot, but she entered her information.

She was about to leave after putting down the white tiger cub at the door when the cub pounced and grabbed her ankle.

Xia Shizhao squatted down and patted the little white tiger's head. "Good boy, this is your home."

"Awooo!"

The little white tiger bit Xia Shizhao's trouser leg and dragged her upstairs.

Xia Shizhao didn't really want to meet Ye Qiuling.

But the little white tiger was so anxious that tears welled up in her eyes, and helplessly, she followed her upstairs.

They found Ye Qiuling curled up in a corner, motionless, with a sunflower-shaped pillow in her arms.

That thing hasn't been lost yet.

Xia Shizhao was a little surprised to see the familiar doll, but seeing that she was acting strangely and smelling a bloody odor, he crouched down next to her and tried to poke her. "Hey, you..."

Before she could finish speaking, she gasped in pain.

Xia Shizhao's outstretched hand was instantly gripped and held tightly by Ye Qiuling. Her cheeks flushed, her eyes fierce, like a wild beast whose territory had been invaded. But the moment she saw who it was, she released her grip, her voice sticky and honey-coated, muffled as she called out, "You've come..."

Xia Shizhao rubbed his wrist, but didn't reply. He rested his cool hand on her forehead.

Sure enough, she developed a fever.

In a cold voice: "Take out the cushion."

"don't want."

Seemingly afraid of being robbed, Ye Qiuling tucked the pillow away again.

As a result, the smell of blood in the air became even stronger.

The wound seems quite serious.

Xia Shizhao frowned. "Where are you injured?"

"waist."

"Stand up so I can see you."

"I can't stand up."

"Then remove the cushion."

"No," Ye Qiuling stubbornly refused.

Xia Shizhao looked at her quietly: "I don't have much patience. You'd better be obedient, or I'll ignore you."

A hint of grievance flashed in Ye Qiuling's dark eyes, "I'm hurt. You used to comfort me. It hurts so much~"

Seeing that the person seemed delirious and was being coquettish, Xia Shizhao patiently rubbed his temples, took a deep breath, and spoke in a coaxing tone like that of a child:

"Okay, you're really good, you're amazing, you managed to take the thing out of the merman's hand. So tell me where the wound is, let me see how serious it is, and then I'll give you a strawberry-flavored potion, and your favorite little cake."

With a combination of coaxing and cajoling, Ye Qiuling finally let go of the pillow.

Xia Shizhao carefully lifted her clothes and found a deep wound on her waist that exposed bone, while the other minor wounds did not seem so serious.

Looking at the wound, it appears to have been scraped by something very thin and sharp.

Fish tail?

I went home, got the first-aid kit, and sprinkled some hemostatic powder on her wound. I searched around her house and finally found the medical pod.

They just threw the person in.

What kind of medicine is it that you drink, and it even tastes like strawberry?

Don't they need to be idiots in the medical pod?

Xia Shizhao originally intended to leave, but after thinking about it, he decided to stay.

Medical pods are generally only used for ordinary wounds.

It's unclear whether the wounds inflicted by the merman can heal.

After waiting for half an hour, Xia Shizhao checked the medicine in the medical pod.

He then looked at the untouched wound.

I've accepted my fate.

Xia Shizhao opened the medical pod and collected the bloodstains and tissue from her wounds.

What else can I do but prepare the medicine and treat myself?

She couldn't let anyone die, after all, she had found the Firestone for herself, and if the Zerg attacked again, the hundreds of planets under her jurisdiction would be doomed without anyone to lead them.

After feeding Ye Qiuling a sip of water, Xia Shizhao activated her home's defense system to its maximum and hurriedly ran to his research lab.

Fortunately, I had prepared medicine for Ye Qiuling before, so it wasn't difficult to re-prepare the medicine.

The main problem is that analyzing merfolk artifacts is quite complicated.

It lasted for twenty hours.

The snow outside had piled up to knee-high.

Xia Shizhao yawned as he came out of the laboratory, carrying the medicine and hurrying towards Ye Qiuling's house.

As soon as I entered, I smelled the aroma of food.

I looked up.

Ye Qiuling, wearing a vest and with bandages around her waist, came out carrying fried rice. Her face was frighteningly pale, and she had some small, scattered wounds on her body, showing how dangerous the situation had been.

But her physical condition is really impressive; she can get up and cook now.

Xia Shizhao felt ashamed.

Seeing that the person seemed to have regained consciousness, Xia Shizhao placed the medicine on the table. "Drink it. It will help your wound heal faster."

"Hmm," Ye Qiuling glanced at the medicine, pursed her lips, and asked, "Do you want to eat?"

"No, I'll order takeout."

Xia Shizhao waved and left.

I don't care or concern myself.

It's like casually helping a stranger.

Ye Qiuling's eyes darkened, but she didn't make any rash moves.

Xia Shizhao was much happier when he got home.

The firestone in his pocket warmed his whole body, and the pain in his body almost disappeared.

Buy a punch and wear it on your wrist. Wear it for a year and then treat it with medication. The aftereffects should be gone by then.

Ding-dong.

Upon seeing that the contact person was Xia Shizhao, Ye Qiuling's eyes lit up, but the next second, her gaze dimmed again.

Xia Shizhao: "You didn't do anything to the merman, did you?"

He paused for a moment, then replied, "No, I went in disguise. They didn't know who I was. I snatched the Firestone and ran away."

"Oh, thanks."

Looking at the unusually distant message.

Ye Qiuling felt a slight bitter taste in her mouth, wondering if it was because the medicine was too bitter.

Reassured, Xia Shizhao lay down on the bed at home and fell into a comfortable sleep.

I'll find a way to return the stone a year later.