The old man led Su Qingcai and Bai Hua onto an unknown path. The group wandered through the winding mountain gorge, eventually arriving at a place they had never seen before. Towering mountains rose on both sides, shrouded in mist, obscuring their interiors.
"This is the entrance to Medicine King Valley."
The old man pointed to the valley, his eyes fixed on Su Xiaoning, who was being held in Su Qingcai's arms.
Su Qingcai was so excited that he didn't notice the old man's strange look. Just as he was about to walk into the valley, the old man suddenly stopped him.
"Why are you in such a hurry? It's easy to get lost in Medicine King Valley. Without a guide, you could easily get lost inside."
Upon hearing this, Su Qingcai hurriedly said, "Then please be our guide."
“Being a guide isn’t out of the question, but I’m tired now. Let’s rest for a bit first,” the old man said, sitting down by the roadside.
Seeing his leisurely pace, Su Qingcai grew increasingly anxious, but they could only rely on the old man and sit with him by the roadside. Su Qingcai carefully put Su Xiaoning down and stayed by her side, his eyes filled with endless longing.
The old man half-closed his eyes, seemingly taking a nap, but in reality he was closely watching Su Qingcai and Bai Hua's actions.
Bai Hua was far away, but Su Qingcai's eyes never left Su Xiaoning. Suddenly, Su Xiaoning's body started to feel hot again. Su Qingcai took out the medicine bottle and saw that it was empty. He hurriedly went to Bai Hua to ask for more medicine.
Taking advantage of the moment, the old man suddenly stood up, rushed to Su Xiaoning in one stride, and hoisted her onto his shoulder.
"what you up to!"
The incident happened suddenly. Su Qingcai shouted angrily and rushed forward to try to hide Su Xiaoning before he could even take Bai Hua's medicine bottle.
The old man was very agile. He chuckled and said proudly, "Thank you for sending me such a good prospect. I will save her, so you don't need to look for her anymore!"
After saying that, he suddenly sprinkled out a handful of powder. Thinking of the deaths of those men in black, Bai Hua was shocked and quickly pulled Su Qingcai aside, covering her mouth and nose tightly.
The two dared not breathe. After the medicinal powder dissipated, they hurriedly looked towards the valley entrance, only to find it empty. There was no sign of the old man or Su Xiaoning.
Su Qingcai trembled violently and punched a nearby tree, regret and hatred intertwining in his heart.
"I never imagined he had such ill intentions... It's all my fault, I shouldn't have trusted him so easily!"
Bai Hua was speechless, blaming himself for trusting the old man so much. But now was not the time to grieve. He advised, "Stop talking. It's no use blaming anyone now. Let's hurry and go find them. He shouldn't have gone far yet."
"Okay." Su Qingcai clenched his fists, mustered his spirits, and walked into the valley with Bai Hua.
The Valley of Medicine Kings was shrouded in mist, a vast expanse of white where nothing could be seen except for sparse trees that appeared and disappeared in the fog. Occasionally, a few hoarse bird calls could be heard, making it look particularly eerie.
Su Qingcai and Bai Hua were completely disoriented. Forget about finding the old man; they were so confused and disoriented that they kept going around in circles, always ending up back where they started. Just as the old man had said, they were lost in Medicine King Valley.
...
Su Xiaoning continued to drift along in her own world, but her consciousness gradually became clearer. She seemed to hear chaotic sounds, and felt someone holding her tightly. Finally, it felt as if someone was carrying her on their shoulder, bumping along the way...
"don't want!"
Su Xiaoning screamed and woke up with a start.
She sat up in bed, still shaken, clutching her chest. When she saw the scene before her, she was completely dumbfounded.
Before her stood an unfamiliar bamboo hut, impeccably clean with only a few furnishings. An empty medicine bowl sat on the bedside table, seemingly meant for Su Xiaoning. There was no one else in the hut besides her.
What's going on? Where am I? What happened?
Ignoring her dizzy head, Su Xiaoning got out of bed and ran outside.
As soon as you push open the wooden door, you see an old man sitting on a bamboo chair outside, smoking a pipe, while a cute little white dog is rubbing against him at his feet.
Upon seeing someone, Su Xiaoning instinctively asked, "Where is Su Qingcai?"
Hearing the noise, the old man glanced at Su Xiaoning, but quickly looked away without answering her question.
Su Xiaoning's throat tightened as she recalled everything she had experienced in her dream. Realizing that the old man had seemingly abducted her and wouldn't tell her where Su Qingcai was, she changed her question: "Where is this?"
"Medicine King Valley," the old man replied succinctly, taking a lazy puff of his cigarette.
Medicine King Valley? In that instant, the rumors she had read in ancient books flashed through Su Xiaoning's mind.
Legend has it that there is a sacred place in Yunding Mountain Gorge called Medicine King Valley, where there is an old man with a crane-like appearance who has superb medical skills and is the best in the world.
Could it be... that this old woman is the Crane Elder? Is she saved?
Su Xiaoning's heart pounded. Suppressing her excitement, she cautiously asked, "Excuse me, are you the Crane Elder?"
"Why are you all so fixated on a title?" The old man glanced at Su Xiaoning with a half-smile, without giving a direct answer. "What difference does it make whether it is or isn't? There's no need to ask."
"But I feel it's very important to me." Su Xiaoning's eyes dimmed as she recalled the meticulous care she had vaguely felt in her dreams during this time, as well as Su Qingcai's nagging.
He wanted to save her so badly, how could she easily give up on herself?
Su Xiaoning approached the old man and said sincerely, "I know you are the Crane Elder. I'm begging you, please help me. I don't know what kind of trick I've fallen for, but you can bring me back to my senses and you can definitely cure me completely. I don't ask for anything else, I just want to be an ordinary person, please."
She stood with her head down in front of the old man. The little white dog at the old man's feet glanced at her curiously, then suddenly ran over on its short legs and rolled around at her feet, looking very fond of her.
The old man glanced at the little dog rolling into a snowball at Su Xiaoning's feet and suddenly said, "Little Pearl likes the mushrooms that are a specialty of the bamboo forest over there."
He pointed to the bamboo forest hidden in the mist in the distance, seemingly implying something.
Little Pearl? That must be the dog's name.
Su Xiaoning understood the old man's meaning and quickly said, "I understand, I'll go pick mushrooms for Little Pearl right away!"
After saying that, Su Xiaoning went back to the bamboo house to get a basket, and dragged her sick body to the bamboo forest.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
