Sleepwalking (1)
"Everyone, that's all. Thank you for your care recently. If you have the chance in the future, please come to my Qujiazhuang and I will give you a warm welcome. I will take my leave now and wish you all good luck!" Not long after leaving Liucheng, Qu Yi said goodbye to the three people.
The weapon-collecting conference was held at Wanqi Villa, which was right next to Yaowang Valley.
In the original book, Tang Xixu met Zhao Mingshang again at the weapon-collecting meeting.
The two met in their youth and their subsequent reunion is a testament to their mutual affection. If it weren't for the original novel's protagonist, Yuwen Xin, intervening, perhaps they could still be together, perhaps even have a happy ending.
If I had brought Tang Xixu and Zhao Mingshang together and let them live happily together, perhaps Tang Xixu's ending could have changed and he would not have died tragically.
Xu Ning thought quietly and planned secretly.
"Mr. Qu, good luck on your journey too." Xu Lian smiled and was very polite.
"If we walk faster, maybe we can catch up with this weapon-retrieval meeting." Xu Lian subconsciously hoped that Xu Ning would walk faster.
"I understand, Second Brother. Let's go then."
"Will Master Tangxi also be going?"
"Of course he came here specially to escort me."
"Oh, it seems he hasn't completely cleared the remaining poison from last time. How about letting him take a look?"
The young man followed silently behind, and when he heard this, his footsteps paused slightly, and his heart seemed to be warmed by something.
Every tree is in autumn colors, every mountain is bathed in the setting sun.
The first snow had already fallen in the northern part of Gansu. Although it was the reed month, Yaowang Valley was not cold at all.
The golden maple leaves are scattered all over the ground, and no one is cleaning them up. It feels like the end of autumn.
Although it didn't snow, the cool autumn wind still made Xu Ning's teeth chatter.
Arriving at the valley gate, Xu Lian took out a visiting card and handed it to the gatekeeper. "Please inform us that we are disciples of Xu Qiubai from Wangyue Tower and we are here to seek treatment."
"Wait a moment." The gatekeeper trotted inside.
Yaowang Valley is sandwiched between two mountains, and the valley gate is just an ordinary stone tablet.
Large tracts of medicinal fields came into view. About twenty miles away, a large waterwheel was turning.
"Everyone, follow me." The servant came back and led the three people in.
There are many ridges in the valley. On one side of the field there are white camellia flowers, and some little boys are picking them one by one.
Following the faint fragrance, the violet irises were almost in bloom, and many had withered. They were lucky, as the vanilla field was still there.
This place is picturesque with green mountains and clear waters, isolated from the world like a paradise, the best place for retirement, oh no, the best place for studying medicine.
In front of me was an old man with gray hair and a beard as thick as a broom. He was wearing a brown cloth and was busy fiddling with something.
"Master, the person has been brought here."
The old man looked up when he heard this, and his eyes lit up when he saw something. He smiled happily, "Oh, what a delicate little doll."
"Well, I'm Xu Lian, the second disciple of Xu Qiubai." Xu Lian looked hopeless.
"Oh, it's my nephew. Hey, that's little Ningning next to her?" The old man turned and saw Xu Ning.
"Hello, Grandpa Sun."
The original book mentioned that the master of Yaowang Valley, Sun Baoyi, was a descendant of the medical saint Sun Simiao, and Sun Baoyi and Master Xu Ning were sworn brothers, so it was appropriate for Sun Baoyi to call him nephew.
"You've grown up so quickly. When your master brought you to me for treatment, you were still in swaddling clothes."
"Don't call me grandpa. When have you ever seen such a young and handsome grandpa?" The old man was a little angry.
The person in front of me had gray hair and a white beard half a mile long, but his skin was completely wrinkle-free, as if he was just over forty.
As expected of a medical student, he knows how to take care of himself.
Xu Ning looked at the old man carefully and couldn't help but admire him.
"Well, hello, Valley Master?"
"Well... no, it's too distant."
"Old Sun?"
"This is good." Sun Baoyi's brows finally relaxed.
"You old man, you are always taking advantage of others." Tang Xixu, who was following behind, suddenly spoke.
"You little bastard! How dare you talk like that!" Sun Baoyi grabbed a piece of Polygonum multiflorum and threw it at Tang Xixu.
Fortunately, the boy reacted quickly and caught it with one hand.
"Okay, let's get down to business." The two of them stopped.
"Your master sent me a pigeon letter a month ago, and I have a general understanding of your situation. So, who will go first?"
"Brother, I believe you can do it!" Xu Ning was most afraid of seeing a doctor, and he thought Xu Lian's condition was even more serious. He had seen him several times on the road, vomiting blood after fighting.
"After all these years of seclusion, a lot of the toxins have been cleared. But since they have not been completely eradicated, you still look like a child." Sun Baoyi took his pulse and said while stroking his beard.
"For the next seven days, you will soak in the medicinal bath I specially prepared for you at midnight every day. Soak for two hours each time. Afterwards, I will give you acupuncture."
"Come on, it's your turn." The old man glanced at Xu Ning.
"So soon, I'm not even ready."
"What are you preparing for? Don't you still believe in me?" This was the first time in Sun Baoyi's life that he was questioned.
"……All right."
Tang Xixu, who was guarding outside the door at first, came into the room upon hearing the sound and stood aside with his chest half-folded.
The old man shook his head when he saw this.
The old man took Xu Ning's pulse on both hands, frowning and saying nothing.
"I didn't expect...you're in such good health? Have you stopped feeling short of breath recently?"
"Indeed, it should be rare this year." Xu Ning recalled the original owner's memory and found that there were indeed no such phenomena.
"My master has asked me to take these medicines over the years." Xu Ning took out the pills prepared by her master and showed them to Sun Baoyi.
Sun Baoyi sniffed it carefully. "Your master is really good to you. He added a lot of precious medicinal herbs to this, many of which are not available in the market. Especially this snow ginseng."
Snow ginseng grows in the northern part of Gansu. Only one plant grows every ten years or so, making it very rare.
"I remember that your Wangyue Tower was quite rich a few years ago. It turns out that it has fallen into poverty in recent years because of buying medicinal herbs for you." Tang Xixu couldn't help but sigh.
Xu Ning suddenly felt that time had stopped and was speechless for a moment.
When she was young, her parents were still alive, and her father did everything he could to let her go to a better school.
"Thanks to your master's blessing over the years, you are in good health and your heart pulse is stable. I will prescribe you a few more doses of medicine. Take them consistently for ten days or so, and also keep practicing the exercises you practice every day. Then you will be cured."
The daily exercises.
I can't remember my own set, so recently I've been practicing the one taught by Tang Xixu.
The three of them left, with Tang Xixu walking last. Just as he was crossing the threshold, the old man called out to him, "Wait a minute, kid."
"You were the one who taught that girl that sword technique, right?"
"You think too much, it's not like that." The boy said without even turning his head.
"Whether it's true or not is only clear to you. We bystanders can't see it clearly either."
"Everything is a dream in the end, so stop. Even the butterflies will be sad when the flowers wither tomorrow. Some things should be let go, and those that should be forgotten should be forgotten. Don't be hard on yourself." Pharmacist Sun said this while humming a tune with his hands behind his back.
Tang Xixu couldn't help but laugh at himself and shook his head.
These four seemingly light words are actually heavy.
The temperature dropped sharply at night, and the old valley master asked Xu Ning and Tang Xixu to go take a bath.
Xu Ning separated from them and soaked alone in the women's pool.
The soup is milky white and sprinkled with jasmine flowers.
The water was so warm that Xu Ning felt drowsy while washing. Then, as soon as she touched the wall, she actually fell asleep...
"Knock, knock, knock, Miss Xu comes out to take medicine."
A female disciple of Pharmacist Sun knocked for a long time, but no one responded.
"Master, Miss Xu is not in the room." Xiaoqin said with a frown.
"Oh no! Could this girl have fallen asleep in the hot spring? I shouldn't have added some calming incense to her." Valley Master Sun thought that they were tired from the long journey, and adding some calming incense would help them sleep well tonight.
"Go to the bathroom and grab some clothes."
"What's wrong?" Tang Xixu had a bad feeling when he saw people running so hurriedly, so he asked.
"Ms. Ning might have fallen asleep in the hot spring. I'll ask Xiaoqin to go check on her."
Tang Xixu turned around and chased Xiaoqin.
The old man flicked a stone, hitting Tang Xixu right in the knee. The young man stumbled and fell flat on his back.
"hiss."
"What are you, a foreigner, going over there for? Xiaoqin is very strong and can lift up Ning." Sun Baoyi looked at Tang Xixu with a joking expression.
"Who said I went to see her? I just wanted to go to the bathroom."
"Oh-oh, it seems you are anxious, otherwise why are you running so fast?" The old man caught the flash of nervousness in the young man's eyes.
Soon the girl was changed and carried out.
"Miss Xu? Miss Xu, wake up quickly and take your medicine." Xiaoqin put Xu Ning on the bed and patted her face.
Xu Ning opened his eyes reluctantly, still sleepy.
"Xu Ning, you are such a talent. You actually fell asleep in the hot spring. Don't you know that this can easily lead to death?" The young man looked angry and spoke in a bad mood.
If Xu Ning hadn't been soaking for too long and felt exhausted all over, she would have really wanted to say something back, but in the end she just rolled her eyes.
"Open your mouth and drink the medicine." Xiaoqin was busy with something, and Xu Ning had no strength, so Tang Xixu had to do it for him.
Although his tone was impatient, his hands were extremely gentle.
Each spoonful of medicine was only half a spoonful, as if because they were worried that Xu Ning would not be able to open her mouth and the medicine would leak out, so they deliberately filled it with less.
"Forget it, next time I'll drink it all in one breath." After finally finishing the bowl of medicine, the intermittent bitter taste lingered in Xu Ning's mouth for a long time.
"I thought you were afraid of hardship, but I didn't expect you to be so fierce."
"No, I want to swallow it all in one gulp because I'm afraid of the bitterness."
"Wouldn't that be more bitter?"
"No, no, no. If you drink it in one gulp, it will only taste bitter for a moment. But if you drink it intermittently because of the bitterness, the bitterness will permeate every corner of your mouth like miasma."
"What kind of nonsense are you talking about? I'll go see Xu Lian." The girl hung her head and talked incessantly, which made the boy laugh.
Tang Xixu cleaned up the dishes and blew out the candle before leaving. He saw Xu Ning lying quietly before leaving.
Although this cannon fodder villain has a bit of a mean tongue, he is a nice person, thoughtful and caring.
This person just looks a little cold, but he doesn't seem to be a bad person by nature.
Late at night, Xu Ning silently reviewed this man's performance over the past few days.
Midnight.
Pharmacist Sun prepared the medicine pool and let Xu Lian in.
The little boy undressed completely, closed his eyes, and calmed his mind, silently reciting the Heart Cleansing Technique. Xu Lian seemed to be cut off from the outside world, unable to hear a single sound.
The medicine in the bathtub seeps into the skin and meridians, gradually reaching the bone marrow and internal organs.
Xu Lian felt a little hot at first, as if a fire was burning him, then a little cold. What others couldn't see was that black venom was seeping out of Xu Lian's skin. The sweat on his forehead was all black.
Just after the Yin hour, Xu Lian stood up, and Pharmacist Sun followed him in to perform acupuncture.
"I have to lock your acupuncture points. You must not be distracted while I am giving you acupuncture. You must focus on it. It may feel a little burning, so you must bear it." Pharmacist Sun warned in advance.
"Boy, go guard the door. No one is allowed to disturb us here."
Tang Xixu had been standing outside the door for a long time, looking around to prevent any accidents from happening.
"Cock, cluck." Half an hour later, the roosters in the valley began to crow.
The inky black sky was splashed with orange-red paint, gradually turning red, blue, and brighter.
It's getting light.
Fortunately, it was a peaceful night without anyone disturbing us.
"Eh? Tang Xixu, why are you up so early? And did someone punch you twice? Why are your eyes so dark?"
Xu Ning got up, opened the door and stretched, then he saw Tang Xixu who was about to go back to the house next door.
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