I'm alive?

Liu Yiwan finally came to her senses and hurriedly followed the old doctor out to get medicine. Qin Jiujiu sat by the bed and wiped Tang Feng's forehead with a handkerchief. Just as the doctor had said, Tang Feng's complexion was not good, and his whole body was cold. It did seem like he had insufficient blood and qi, and his breathing was weak. Qin Jiujiu called Qin Liuliu over, her voice trembling and sounding like she was about to cry, "Tell me, how... how did your brother get like this? He was fine this morning. I asked you to go with him, didn't I tell you not to cause trouble for your brother, right?!" Qin Jiujiu slapped Qin Liuliu on the back, "If your brother is alright, that's fine, but if something happened to him, let's see what you say then." As soon as she finished speaking, tears streamed down Qin Jiujiu's cheeks.

"Sister... I... I didn't know brother... brother would be like this." Qin Liuli wiped the tears from her face with her sleeve. At this moment, Tang Feng suddenly coughed. Qin Jiujiu wiped her tears, then quickly helped Tang Feng up and patted his chest. "Xiao Feng? Xiao Feng! Are you feeling unwell, Xiao Feng!"

Tang Feng slowly opened his eyes and said softly, "I don't feel unwell, just a headache." Qin Jiujiu saw that Tang Feng's complexion had eased somewhat, but she still didn't dare to relax. She poured a glass of water from the table and then let Tang Feng lean against her, saying, "Here, drink some water, slowly." After drinking the water, Tang Feng felt more awake. His head was still throbbing with an indescribable pain. Tang Feng propped himself up in bed and asked, "Sister Jiu... what happened to me?"

"What happened? What could have happened? You scared us to death! When you were carried back, your face was deathly pale, and your breathing was so weak!" Qin Jiujiu said with a hint of reproach, "Did Liu Liu cause you any trouble? I told him a long time ago not to come along, not to come along. Now look what's happened, such a big incident. If anything really happens to you, I! How am I supposed to explain this to my godfather?"

Tang Feng wasn't really pondering Qin Jiujiu's words; he was preoccupied with his own experience. He clearly remembered returning to his previous state, and he was absolutely certain it wasn't a dream; he had truly returned. The aches and pains throughout his body and the sounds of the medical equipment around him felt incredibly real. Tang Feng heard Uncle Li talking to the doctor, and then... he seemed to hear the equipment beeping loudly, followed by the doctor coming in and calling his name. When Tang Feng opened his eyes again, he was back in his previous state. He rubbed his throbbing head and said, "Sister, I... I want to sleep a little longer."

Upon hearing this, Qin Jiujiu quickly got up and said, "Okay, let me help you lie down and rest a bit more! Liu Liu is such a clueless child, don't take him with you when you go to the pawnshop in the future."

Tang Feng looked at Qin Liuliu, whose eyes were red, by the bedside and knew that Qin Jiujiu must have been talking about him. Tang Feng patted Qin Liuliu's head and said, "It has nothing to do with Liuliu. I just suddenly became like this, but I'm fine now! Don't talk about him anymore."

"What do you mean 'nothing'! We called a doctor, and do you know what he said? Insufficient qi and blood, weak breathing! You looked terrible!" Qin Jiujiu tucked the blanket around Tang Feng. "Alright, alright, just spoil Liu Liu! I don't blame him. You rest well, and if you're not feeling well, tell your sister, okay? I'll go make you some medicine." After saying that, Qin Jiujiu took Qin Liuliu out.

Tang Feng lay on the bed, trying to recall Qin Jiujiu's words. The doctor said he had insufficient qi and blood, and weak breathing—weren't those symptoms of oxygen deficiency? In other words, because he had traveled back in time, his body was experiencing respiratory failure due to the absence of a soul. And when he was about to return to the modern world, his soul had left, which explained the loud alarms from the medical equipment around him.

In other words, he was still alive in the modern world! Tang Feng was quite happy to think of this; at least he wouldn't wake up to find himself lying in an urn of ashes. Tang Feng fell asleep shortly after lying down on the bed, and when he woke up again it was already evening. During that time, his father came by once. Perhaps Qin Jiujiu had described things too much to his father, because Tang Feng saw that his father's eyes were a little red when he looked at him. Caught off guard, he quickly said, "Dad, I'm fine! Look, I'm perfectly alright!"

Master Tang didn't say anything else, only instructing Tang Feng to rest well. Qin Jiujiu sat by the bed, feeding Tang Feng medicine spoonful by spoonful, her face somewhat displeased. "These past few days you've been sick, the whole mansion has practically been tearing the roof off. Why haven't I seen Zhou Ziliang come to see you?" Hearing Qin Jiujiu's anger, Tang Feng didn't dare to directly contradict her, so he asked indirectly, "Did you tell Ziliang about this, sister?"

"No, not at all! I didn't have time. You almost scared me to death the other day."

"How could he possibly know I'm sick? Send someone to report to him now, I promise he'll come right away." Tang Feng smiled, then tugged at Qin Jiujiu's sleeve and shook it playfully. "Sister, my dear sister, Ziliang is really good, please don't make things difficult for him anymore. My tantrum about resisting the marriage at the manor before... was because I lost my memory after falling from my horse. Please don't hold it against me." Qin Jiujiu tapped Tang Feng's forehead hard. "You! You! You're just going to indulge him like this! I won't care about anything that happens to you two in the future!"

"Sister, I won't be going to the pawnshop for the next few days. I want to rest at home for a while. Please don't tell anyone. I... you know my father is incapable of allowing me to associate with the Crown Prince and his faction, but these days, forming cliques and engaging in corrupt practices is too rampant, and it's hard for me to avoid getting involved. So... so I want to find some peace and quiet."

Qin Jiujiu nodded, holding the medicine bowl in her hands. "I know that. You did the right thing. The farther those people are from us, the better." Then Qin Jiujiu lowered her voice, "I heard that when the current emperor rebelled, he fought against his own cousin! To put it bluntly, the victor is king and the loser is a bandit. How many people died in that battle? They were all loyal and devoted, swearing to follow him to the death. But how many of the old ministers who fought alongside the emperor had a good end? They say they were corrupt, arrogant, and unreasonable, but as long as the emperor is clear-headed, he knows who deserved to die and who didn't."

Tang Feng didn't respond to Qin Jiujiu's words. Instead, he closed his eyes to rest for a while before saying, "Sister... I want something sweet. I've been taking medicine every day lately, and my mouth tastes awfully bitter." Hearing this, Qin Jiujiu felt extremely distressed. "Then wait here, I'll go outside to Liufuji and buy you some sweet buns. Tell me, what's wrong with you? Several doctors have come, but none of them can figure out the cause."

"Sister, don't worry. I feel fine except for a headache, so don't worry!" Tang Feng knew perfectly well why he was like this, but he couldn't explain it. He couldn't say, "Sister, I'm from another time. This is because I just traveled back in time." If he said that, Qin Jiujiu would probably figure out the cause of his illness and think there was something wrong with his brain! Qin Jiujiu gave him a few perfunctory replies, then took the medicine bowl away and told Tang Feng that she was going to buy him some snacks and that he should rest well.

No sooner had Qin Jiujiu left than Tang Feng heard a knock on the door. "Who is it?"

"Little brother, it's me." Zhang Mobai opened the door and poked his head out. "I heard you were sick, so I came to see you." After saying that, he walked to Tang Feng's bedside and sat down, taking out a box of pastries from behind his back. "Look what I brought you, pine nut and osmanthus cake, from Liufuji."

"Your timing is perfect. Sister Jiu just went out, saying she was going to Liufuji to buy sweet buns," Tang Feng smiled, then opened the oil paper, and a strong scent of osmanthus wafted out. "How did you know I was sick? It wasn't that big mouth of Liu Yiwan again!"

"There was quite a commotion at your residence the other day, it would be hard not to know! I asked your servants, what happened to you? Why did you suddenly faint?" Zhang Mobai frowned, but Tang Feng didn't care at all. "How should I know? Anyway, it's nothing serious. Besides, if even the doctor can't find anything, how would I know? Anyway, don't worry about it."

"Does Brother Ziliang know?"

"How could I let him know? If he knew, would I still be lying here all alone?" Tang Feng picked up a piece of pine nut and osmanthus cake and then asked, "You won't tell him, right?"

"Why don't you tell him! It's one thing if he doesn't know, but how upset he would be if he found out?"

"I don't want him to worry. Besides, he wasn't there when I needed him! I'll tell him when everything's alright; it's just making trouble for no reason." Just as Tang Feng was speaking, Qin Jiujiu came in. "Xiao Feng, who's here? It's so lively! Oh, isn't this Mo Bai? What brings you here?"

"Hey, I heard a rumor a few days ago that the young man was sick, so I came to check on him!"

"Mo Bai is so sensible. Okay, you guys chat, I'll go cook." Seeing Qin Jiu Jiu leave, Zhang Mo Bai pulled Tang Feng and said, "Little brother, do you still remember what you asked me to do a few days ago?"

"Did I ask you to do this?"

"Yes! Didn't you say you wanted to marry Ziliang? I found you a matchmaker, and she was supposed to bring her to meet you a few days ago, but then you got sick, didn't you?"

"What? Cough cough cough!" Upon hearing this, Tang Feng choked on the osmanthus cake he hadn't swallowed. Zhang Mobai quickly patted Tang Feng's back. "I told you I found a matchmaker for you. I've never been married before, how would I know the process? You can just ask the matchmaker when the time comes."

Actually, Tang Feng wasn't startled by the fact that he had something to hide behind. He completely forgot he had a covering. Tang Feng felt that his journey back in time was definitely not a coincidence; it was because of the bell. But...

The reason I can go back now is less because of the bell and more because the bell is merely a medium. The main reason is definitely that I woke up in the modern world, which is why my soul returned through the bell. And my return is because my modern self has fallen into a deep coma again. So... isn't my modern body now a time bomb?! If one day I'm cured and wake up in the modern world, won't I be unable to return forever?

Tang Feng suddenly felt a surge of fear. If... he were to return like this, what would happen to his body? Would that crybaby young master return and continue living, or would his body simply perish? If so... what would happen to Zhou Ziliang?