Chapter 310 Flowers and Plays: The Way of Medicine is also a Way, and since it is a Way, it is never fixed...
Lin Feiran still chose the left side. She stood in front of the door, pretending not to hear the muffled sounds coming from the dark room opposite.
This is the main house with flames burning brightly. Although there is an array below that blocks out the light, the unbearably hot temperature still emanates from it.
Lin Feiran knocked on the door, the sound sounding particularly muffled in the heat.
In just a few breaths, a clear figure approached from behind the door. It was Qi Chen. He only opened the door two inches wide, glanced at the two people outside, and said in a low voice, "I can only open it this wide. Come in if you want."
He lowered his voice, his face still pale, the intense glow behind him failing to redden him in the slightest.
Lin Feiran and Ru Xian walked in together. Looking around, they saw that there was no smoke in the room, only countless black stones hanging there. These stones and Fusang wood branches were of the same origin, both being extremely yang.
The gray stone surface cracked open, revealing a surge of yang energy flowing within, boiling and bubbling, producing a violent boiling sound.
Wildflowers, some named and some unnamed, were scattered throughout the room. Enveloped in spiritual energy, their fragrance was enhanced by the heat, creating an intoxicating aroma.
It was precisely because of the presence of these flowers that the heat wave in the room did not seem terrifying, but rather peaceful. Occasionally, a few pieces of black jade stone would burn completely, bursting open like a sudden flame, and then falling to the ground and disappearing into nothingness.
The heat emanating from this magical treasure was extremely domineering. Even a cultivator like Lin Feiran couldn't help but feel hot and flustered. She had already broken out in a light sweat after walking only a few steps inside.
Lin Feiran's gaze swept around. The room was very simple, with only a long couch under the window, a simple square table, and two stools.
She looked out the window and slowly approached. In just such a short time, the person on the bed had already fallen asleep.
Compared to the other patients with cold-related illnesses, Chenghua's condition was already quite good. Apart from the unavoidable scars, there were almost no signs of stone on her body. Although her eyes were closed, it was clear that her eyes were unharmed.
Ru Xian turned her head and glanced at Qi Chen, raising an eyebrow in acknowledgment. Qi Chen's face remained lifeless, his eyes filled with an indescribable weariness. He slumped onto the footstool as if utterly exhausted.
"Look if you want."
Ru Xian withdrew her gaze and placed her fingers on Cheng Hua's wrist pulse. After a few breaths, a look of surprise and astonishment appeared in her eyes. She then opened Cheng Hua's collar to check the pulse on her neck and observed her slightly bluish complexion.
Lin Feiran asked in confusion, "What's wrong? Is she not feeling well?"
"not good."
Qi Chen spoke up, saying, "The internal organs have mostly deteriorated. Only the heart is still intact. The meridians are stagnant and silent, the breath is difficult to flow, and the cold has retreated to the limbs. It is very gloomy and the vitality has dissipated. It is beyond saving."
Lin Feiran turned to look at the sleeping person, her heart growing even heavier.
At this point, Ru Xian looked at him in surprise: "Have you become a good doctor from being sick for so long?"
Qi Chen sat on the footstool, leaning wearily against the long couch. He looked up at the two of them, his gaze calm and composed, carrying a sense of knowing all along.
He said, “It’s not that I became a doctor from being sick for a long time. When I begged you to save her before, you diagnosed her in the same way. I begged you five times, but every time the result was the same, exactly the same.”
Ru Xian raised her eyebrows in surprise and said, "When did you ask me for help... Ah, I forgot, your Dao Master has the ability to be reborn. You've come to me so many times?"
Qi Chen did not deny it, and chuckled lightly with a cold expression: "Yes. It took quite a bit of effort to invite you the first time."
Lin Feiran frowned slightly as she looked at the exhausted man. After a moment of silence, she asked, "Do you know the relationship between cold-related illnesses and esoteric Buddhism?"
Qi Chen lowered his eyes, a small shadow falling over them: "This is the first time I've ever known this."
Ru Xian asked with some surprise, "How long have you been practicing Tantric Buddhism? How come you only noticed the unusual symptoms of your cold symptoms today?"
Qi Chen twirled the wildflowers between his fingers, his gaze falling on the brocade quilt, somewhat lost in thought: "We've come to this point after all, but you already know a lot of things, so there's no harm in telling you."
For people like us, entering esoteric Buddhism cannot be measured in time, but only in the number of times: the first time, the second time...
If we consider time as the factor, memories become confused.
This is my seventh time joining Tantric Buddhism.
He spoke much more tactfully than Zhang Chunhe, but he didn't react like Zhang Chunhe.
Lin Feiran quickly realized that he had lived two less lifetimes than Zhang Chunhe. So, there were differences in their rebirths after all.
At this point, Qi Chen's eyelashes fluttered slightly, and he looked up at the two of them again: "You've come today to ask about these things related to lightning, right? Unfortunately, I don't know much about it..."
Before he could speak, Lin Feiran said, "There's no need to speak for now. We already asked Fu Yin a lot of questions before we came... He has been forcibly recalled by Bi Sheng, and his situation is not optimistic. It's better if you don't say anything."
A hint of surprise flashed in Qi Chen's eyes, but it quickly turned into calm: "It's not surprising that he's willing to tell you. You probably helped his sister. As long as you can help Fu Xia, he'll do anything for you."
Forcibly recalling him must have triggered a curse. Each of us carries a different curse, so his return will likely be difficult, but it's still better than me. At least, Fuxia still has a future.
Is that so?
As if a hailstorm were to rise, one of the stools flew into his hand. He deftly moved the stool to the front of the couch, sat down, crossed his left leg, and placed his toes just touching the edge of the couch. He took out a few gold needles, looked down at them for a moment, and then inserted one of them into the top of Orange Blossom's head.
He said coldly, "You lot may seem loyal enough to die for, but you're not actually that loyal."
Qi Chen did not stop Ru Xian. He knew where Ru Xian was going to stab just by closing his eyes. He had seen this technique many times before.
"Profits come and go, but interests remain the most secure. What we want can only be given by the Tantric sect, so Bi Sheng doesn't need our surrender. We are willing to do anything until our wishes are fulfilled."
He looked up at Lin Feiran: "If it were in my previous lives, I would never have said these words today, no matter what."
Lin Feiran pondered for a moment, then understood what he meant: "So, your wish cannot be fulfilled?"
Qi Chen nodded, then shifted his gaze to Cheng Hua, watching Ru Xian, as he had anticipated, drop the needle step by step: "Because no matter what you do, it's useless."
It was both a description of the needles and an answer to her question.
The secrets buried deep in my heart for so many years, the resentment and pain suppressed for so many years, can finally be revealed today. But when the words reach my lips, I feel empty. There is so much I want to say, but I can't utter a single word.
I heard that Zhang Chunhe told them everything; I really don't know what he was thinking when he said it.
After a long silence, he finally knew how to start, and so he began to search for the past in such a long and repetitive memory.
"When I first met Orange Blossom, she wasn't a monk yet, she was just a performer."
At that time, the opera troupe was almost unable to survive. Many people had left, leaving only five or six. Every day, we would set up a crude stage on a street corner. There were always some people coming and going, but there was always a flower girl.
Half of the money she earns from selling flowers each day goes to the opera troupe.
However, the opera troupe still went out of business. The troupe leader and the others packed up their belongings and went their separate ways, but I remained in that small town.
He looked at the person on the bed and finally revealed a genuine smile.
"It wasn't for her. Actors have indentures. The troupe leader sold me to the building next door and recouped some of his investment."
I do enjoy opera, but that building wasn't a good place. I stayed there for three years, and she still came every day.
“When I don’t go out, she carries a flower basket on her head and goes around hawking her wares. She has a sweet tongue and will ask older brothers to buy a bunch or older sisters to buy a single flower. I can hear her laughter even when I’m inside.”
As soon as I came out, she squeezed in outside to listen to the opera. Out of the entire hall, she was the only one listening.
Three years later, when it was time for me to actually "go out," someone offered a high price. I was taken to a room and met her; she had paid the landlord to buy me.
Ru Xian glanced at him sideways, somewhat surprised, then looked away and continued stitching, a hint of curiosity aroused in her: "She took you home?"
Qi Chen raised his hand and grasped Cheng Hua's wrist, then chuckled: "No, she took me and my indenture with her when she left, then soaked the indenture in water and mixed it into the pot to make potting soil."
She told me, "You can go now; you can go anywhere to perform."
Lin Feiran was also somewhat surprised. Who would have thought that a cultivator of such high level would have such a past?
She hesitated and asked, "You didn't leave?"
"Who said that? I'm leaving." Qi Chen raised her eyebrows, a hint of color finally appearing on her beautiful face. "I took the potting soil with me."
“I went back to the street corner and painstakingly built an old stage. I still sang there every day, and she still went from street to street selling flowers. At first, many people came and she stood across the street to listen. Later, when she found out that I only sang, fewer and fewer people came and she went to the front of the stage again.”
Until one day, I finally saved up enough money to redeem her. I brought her up on stage and returned the money to her, but she didn't care. Instead, she pointed to the pot of soil on the stage and excitedly told me that something had sprouted in it. She said it was a balsam seedling.
As he spoke, his voice became somewhat hoarse, but he didn't stop.
“At that time, I was angry with her. I thought, she ate vegetarian food for a long, long time to redeem me, and she didn’t dare to turn on the light at night. I also ate vegetarian food for a long time to pay back the money. Sometimes I was so hungry that I didn’t even have the strength to sing. I saved up money to pay her back, but it was not as important as a flower seedling.”
...
But I can't bring myself to be angry with her.
As if a haze were lowering its eyes to insert the needle, the golden needle had already landed on the orange blossom's abdomen. At this moment, he nodded: "I do understand this feeling, so you two will definitely be together later."
Ru Xian curled her lips into a smile: "Because being together allows me to be angry with her."
"yes."
A few glimmers of light appeared in Qi Chen's eyes.
"Later, in that small town, we happened to meet an old cultivator who was traveling around. He liked orange blossoms very much and wanted to help her cultivate, but she didn't have a spiritual vein, while I did."
I don't want to learn it. Cultivators and mortals cannot transcend lifespan. I want to grow old with her.
We could have continued like this, until the day she suddenly fell ill. It was then that I learned that people like her, who migrated from the northern plains, suffer from a root cause of cold-related illnesses; some will develop the illness, while others won't.
“I went to find that cultivator, but he couldn’t cure the illness either. He told me that if I was willing to cultivate, I could find those spiritual flowers and herbs to cure her. So, I embarked on the path of cultivation.”
Ru Xian turned to look at him: "You looked for me back then?"
Qi Chen shook his head: "At that time, you had not yet become the Demon Lord, and there was no news of you in the world. During my cultivation journey, I sought out many famous medical cultivators, and even took Cheng Hua to the Langhuan Sect."
At that time, not many people suffered from cold-related illnesses. The Langhuan Sect thought it was a stubborn disease and studied it for a long time, but still could not cure it.
At first, I didn't lose heart and continued to take her to see doctors, but year after year, Chenghua's illness got worse and worse, and I couldn't find a single prescription. I was starting to lose heart.
Later, I heard rumors about you. The Demon Lord's medical skills are unparalleled. I wanted to find you, but I couldn't even enter the Demon Realm.
Ru Xian said, "That shouldn't be the case. If you're here for medical treatment, Xie Kanhua will definitely give you special treatment. He's done it many times."
Qi Chen took a deep breath, slowly exhaled, and returned to his cold and indifferent expression.
"Yes, I rushed to the Endless Sea with Orange Blossom. Looking at the boundless coastline, I was almost in despair when I encountered the patrolling boundary guardians."
I begged him for a long time, and he led me to the leak at the boundary gate. He used his pipa to drill a hole and pushed me inside. I thought everything had finally turned around, but I didn't see you. At that time, you were in seclusion.
Ru Xian paused, frowning in confusion: "Seclusion?"
Qi Chen nodded, even somewhat dazed: "There are rumors in the demon realm that you are preparing to break through to the Selfless Realm... At that time, no one will be able to see you. For some reason, the atmosphere in the demon capital is also very tense. I took Cheng Hua with me and dared not stay any longer. After waiting for several days, I left."
"I settled down with her in a town near the Endless Sea, planning to take her to the Demon Capital for medical treatment as soon as news of your completion of the seclusion came out."
But we didn't get to hear from you. About two or three months later, we only received news of your sudden death from the capital.
Lin Feiran looked at Qi Chen and slowly began to stroke his fingertips.
Ru Xian raised an eyebrow and glanced at Lin Feiran: "This is the second time I've heard this news."
People who should have died have been able to live to this day simply because of one more variable. Qi Chen shook his head slightly, feeling that fate was unpredictable.
“After that, Orange Blossom’s condition suddenly worsened. Almost overnight, I watched helplessly as ice pierced through her body, and her entire body gradually became covered in stone…”
I've tried everything, but nothing works.
At that time, I heard that there were other gods in Tantric Buddhism who could grant wishes. Of course, I didn't believe it, but I still went there. There, I met Bi Sheng.
She said that if I was willing to serve the Lord, I could have a chance to start over and save my wife.
I didn't believe her, so she took me to see the Daoist Master.
Qi Chen looked into the void, his gaze as if recalling: "I didn't actually see his true face, but he took me back to the past briefly... What happened after that is my incantation, which I cannot utter."
"I can only tell you about my relationship with Orange Blossom. I joined the Secret Sect and became one of the Nine Swords because of my high level of cultivation. At that time, there weren't actually nine people yet."
I did many things for them, and my achievements grew.
But the orange blossom still died...
Months later, amidst this bizarre lightning, I returned to the past, to the time when the opera troupe was leaving. I saw her standing below the stage, holding a flower basket, and putting the money she had sold into a money jar.
In my second life, I only needed a few words of guidance from that Taoist priest before I could cultivate on my own. After achieving some success, I began searching for news of you, but you were nowhere to be found. I could only wait near the Endless Sea.
"This time, not long after you ascended the throne, I took Orange Blossom to seek medical help. I did see you this time, but before I could even finish speaking, you threw me out of the Demon Capital."
Next time you come, you'll have subordinates, including Xun Feifei. With him blocking the door, I won't even be able to see you.
Knowing that you were destined to die suddenly, I dared not delay and tried every means to see you, hoping to diagnose Chenghua's illness before you died.
At this point, Ru Xian chuckled, it was unclear whether she was laughing at herself or at him: "Trying to see me, a dying man?"
Qi Chen nodded: "Yes, I searched for the finest medicinal herbs before I was able to see you, but you only spent a quarter of an hour examining her before giving her such a diagnosis. I was so angry that I cursed you for being all talk and no action..."
He paused for a moment, then Lin Feiran couldn't help but ask, "And then? He... he didn't..."
Ru Xian chuckled coldly and slapped Qi Chen across the air. However, he still had some sense of responsibility as a doctor. He glanced at the sleeping Cheng Hua, threw her into Qi Chen's arms, and uttered a rather elegant "get lost."
"...He didn't do anything. I left with Orange Blossom, but before I left, Ru Xian still told me a solution."
He said that in the far east, there grows withered branches of the Fusang tree; if you cut them and extract their golden marrow, it should alleviate this cold ailment. That's how I came up with a solution.
Lin Feiran was somewhat moved and looked at Ru Xian: "It seems that nothing has changed since you took office."
They're all such nice people.
Upon hearing her words, Ru Xian looked up, but Lin Feiran looked at him with some confusion, as if she didn't know what was wrong with what she said.
Ru Xie: "..."
Well, it's a good thing to think of him this way.
He looked away and continued to administer the acupuncture. Qi Chen saw where he was inserting the needles, her gaze suddenly paused, and she immediately reached out and grabbed his wrist.
“You wouldn’t have put a needle here before.”
Ru Xian didn't answer, but looked at her wrist, her brows already furrowed. Before she could speak, Lin Feiran immediately grabbed Qi Chen's wrist, pulled her away, and changed the subject.
"What's the meaning?"
Qi Chen was still looking at that spot: "I remember you can do a total of twenty-six needles, but none of them were placed here."
As he dropped the golden needles like hailstones, he withdrew his hand, took out a brocade handkerchief, and replied, "Just because I wouldn't have used this spot before doesn't mean I won't now."
Qi Chen was stunned for a moment: "What do you mean..."
As if wiping away, he leaned back in his chair, slowly wiping his wrist. He lowered his legs onto the footrest and looked down at Qi Chen: "I treated many patients in Luoyang before, and I thought about it after I returned. Although the dissipation of Qi is not a disease, it does not mean that there is no way to cure it."
"The way of medicine is also a way, and as a way, it has no fixed form."
He slightly raised his chin towards Chenghua: "She has been cared for by you with rare and precious herbs until now. Her condition is not good, but it is not bad either. I just checked and found that her physique has changed a bit. It's perfect for me to test my skills. If you are willing, I can give it a try, but I will not care about life or death."
Qi Chen had initially felt hopeful, but upon hearing that life and death were not at stake, he couldn't help but hesitate.
Since he entered the esoteric religion, he has been reborn seven times, trying to save Orange Blossom seven times, but in each life, it always begins with their first encounter and ends with his death.
He watched her perish in his arms time and time again. Although they could meet again after the lightning, the pain and resentment were not something that could be erased by seeing her again.
He was reborn several times, just so that Chenghua could live on, just so that she would never have to go through such torment and pain again. He sought out Ruxian five times and treated her five times, but each time the result was the same.
In this life, he had no expectations of Ru Xian, so he simply took Cheng Hua to seek refuge in the demon capital. He did not seek medical help from him and only wanted to live a peaceful and stable life.
But in this very life, he said that nothing is set in stone.
Qi Chen's gaze trembled as he slowly looked at Lin Feiran.
Bi Sheng always said that she was a damned variable, but now, it is precisely because of this variable that Ru Xian, who should have died suddenly, has survived, and the person who should have been in a high position has begun to treat mortals. The original dead end has begun to take a turn for the better.
"..."
He stood up, supported by the long couch, and looked at Chenghua's face in the bright sunlight.
"Give me some time, I will tell her everything and let her decide whether or not to agree to your proposal."
Ru Xian nodded, stood up from the chair, and replied, "Okay."
Qi Chen felt a little relieved. Then, remembering something, he looked at Lin Feiran, hesitated for a moment, and finally asked, "...There's another guest room across the street. Would you like to go take a look?"
Lin Feiran remained noncommittal, looking straight at him and saying, "That depends on the person in the room; whether they want me to go see them."
Qi Chen sighed: "...If it were you, how could he not agree?"
Author's Note: [Heart emoji]
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