Chapter 128 I will protect you with my life
Around 3 p.m., Parman returned with good news: Palon was ready and they should hurry over.
Qin Suisui's eyes suddenly lit up, and she walked faster than Parman.
Paman, who was a step behind, was initially surprised, but his eyes quickly dimmed.
Parong lived at the very back of the tribe, and it took them almost half an hour to walk there via the winding mountain road.
Just as he reached the door, Palon's voice came from inside: "Come in alone."
The three of them paused, and Paman and Jia Zhenzhen quickly turned their gaze to Qin Suisui. Qin Suisui understood that he was referring to her, so she nodded to the two of them, pushed open the wooden door, and entered the courtyard alone.
The old man in the courtyard was no longer the same as he had been that morning. He was wearing a loose-fitting robe with thunder and frog patterns embroidered on the cuffs and hem. His head was wrapped in black cloth and adorned with three pheasant tail feathers. A deer canine tooth hung on his forehead, and a copper bell was attached to his back. With a slight movement, the copper bell would make a tinkling sound.
Palon stood there imposingly, holding a snake-patterned cane, his eyes fixed intently on her.
Qin Suisui had witnessed firsthand the legendary grandeur of the Snake Witch Tribe. Just standing by and watching filled her with a sense of awe.
“Little girl, I can teach you the antidote, but you must agree to one condition.” Perhaps seeing the awe in her eyes, Palon spoke with satisfaction.
"I can agree to anything as long as it's not illegal or criminal." As long as it can save Pei Jiuyan.
"Hahahaha..." Palon let out a hearty laugh: "You girl, you're really straightforward. Don't worry, it's definitely not a bad thing."
"You may not know, but our Snake Witch tribe's medical skills and secret methods have never been passed on to outsiders. If you want to learn this detoxification method, there are two ways: First, you can divorce your current husband and marry someone from our tribe. That way, you will no longer be an outsider. Don't worry, our tribe doesn't have the dirty ideas of you Han people. We never discriminate against women who remarry. We only respect people with real skills."
Hearing his words, Qin Suisui frowned slightly. She knew that some traditional tribal secrets were indeed not passed on to outsiders, but she definitely couldn't get a divorce. Not to mention that she wouldn't agree, if Pei Jiuyan woke up and found out that she was going to marry someone else to save him, he would probably go crazy and it wouldn't be impossible for him to lead people up the mountain to kill her.
"And the second one?"
Upon hearing her voice, Palon glanced involuntarily toward the door and chuckled, "The second one is also very simple: you become my disciple and take me as your teacher. Although you are not a member of the tribe, you are still qualified to inherit my medical skills."
"But the price is that you must return to the tribe every year on the third day of the third lunar month and the Shanlan Festival to participate in the festival rituals with us. After my death, you must also make offerings for me every year. I know that you Han people are very superstitious about these things now. Are you willing?"
Qin Suisui gritted her teeth and knelt down immediately: "Master, this disciple is willing!"
She barely hesitated, and Palon couldn't help but laugh again. Before Qin Suisui left that morning, she gave Palon some of the antidote formulas she had researched. Palon was the only inheritor of Li medicine and the most respected shaman in the tribe. He could tell at a glance that Qin Suisui had a great talent for drug research and development, and she had a natural affinity for animals. Such a person was more than qualified to be his successor!
He didn't rush to help Qin Suisui up. Instead, he stroked his non-existent beard and continued, "I know that you Han people don't believe in snake spirits, nor do you agree with our witchcraft and divination, so I won't force you to learn these things. Let's agree beforehand that you will become my apprentice, and I will only teach you Li medicine and medical skills. But if anything happens to our tribe in the future, you cannot stand by and watch. Are you willing?"
Qin Suisui was overjoyed and quickly nodded in agreement. She knew that Paron was thinking of her best interests. After all, she was no longer a member of the tribe and would have to return to the wider society. If people found out that she was secretly engaging in divination or rituals, she would definitely be reported for practicing feudal superstition.
Moreover, she had always been curious about Li medicine and the medical skills of the Li people since she was a child. If she could become Palong's apprentice, she would have an inseparable relationship with this village. Whether they wanted to continue living apart or integrate into the larger society, she would have an inescapable responsibility and would not stand idly by when something happened.
Seeing her nod in agreement, Palon smiled again, took two steps forward and helped her up: "Since you have already called me master, then our master-disciple relationship is settled."
He handed her another glass of mountain orchid wine: "Drip the blood from your fingertip into it, and repeat after me."
Without hesitation, Qin Suisui bit her fingertip, drawing blood. She then followed Palon and recited in Li language, "Those who deceive their teachers will have their bones rot, and those who betray their students will have their souls scattered." After that, she drank the wine with the blood on it in one gulp.
After the simple apprenticeship ceremony was completed, Paron smiled and handed her a snake pendant: "This is our token. With this, you can freely enter and leave the tribe and command your people."
Qin Suisui took it and realized that it was also a bronze snake pendant inlaid with jade, but the patterns and the texture of the jade were different, making it look more exquisite.
Originally, the apprenticeship ceremony required six rites and sacrifices, but since Qin Suisui had traveled from afar and could not prepare these things, Paron simply skipped them, saying that she could make up for them when she came next time.
Qin Suisui held the snake pendant, feeling somewhat guilty, as if she were trying to get something for nothing.
Thinking of the situation in the tribe, Qin Suisui, under the cover of the cloth bag, took out several boxes of aminopyrine, quinine tablets, oxytetracycline, sulfonamide powder, and hemostatic powder, as well as several bottles of mercurochrome, and handed them to Paron, her face somewhat ashamed.
“Master, I brought these things with me when I left home. I’ll give these to you first. These are commonly used medicines in our area. If any of our clansmen are injured or sick, you can give them these to them to try. Maybe they will have a different effect. If they are good, I will bring you more next time!”
Palon wasn't actually averse to things outside; on the contrary, he looked at the bottles and jars with some curiosity.
Qin Suisui told him about the efficacy, contraindications, and usage methods one by one. Paron was amazed and said he would definitely try it.
After Palon carefully put all these things away, the master and apprentice began to teach/learn the antidote for the poison that Pei Jiuyan and the others had been afflicted with.
Qin Suisui couldn't help but sigh. Sure enough, there are always people more capable than you. She used to think that her grandmother was the most amazing and knew everything, but now, after only studying with Palon for a short while, her original understanding has been shattered. It was definitely worth it to become her disciple!
Paron shared the same thought. He was getting old and had been searching for young children in the tribe to succeed him for years, but he had never found a child with such a high talent for herbs and medicine. Now that he had met Qin Suisui, he wished he could pass on all his knowledge to her.
It's still a bit of a pity that she's not a member of the tribe.
Jia Zhenzhen, who was waiting outside, was getting anxious. She looked at Paman, who was standing to the side like a stone: "Why hasn't Sui Sui come out yet? What is that old man doing?"
Parman frowned: "Don't talk about Master like that. Master isn't a bad person."
Jia Zhenzhen exclaimed with sudden realization, "So he's your master!"
Around six o'clock, Qin Suisui came out with a smile. Jia Zhenzhen rushed over and looked her up and down: "Suisui, what happened? Did that old man bully you?"
Qin Suisui quickly covered her mouth: "Zhenzhen, I've become his disciple."
"What? You've become his disciple too?" She was about to ask something else when she saw Qin Suisui give her a wink, so she quickly shut her mouth. She would ask her anything when it was just the two of them.
Qin Suisui nodded to Paman again: "Senior brother, Master invites you in."
Parman glanced at her, pushed open the door of the cabin, and went inside without looking back.
This time they didn't have to wait long; Parman quickly came out and took them back.
Before going to bed that night, Parman came over and said, "Get a good rest tonight. We'll leave first thing tomorrow morning."
Qin Suisui asked in surprise, "Are you going to see us out?"
Parman nodded, said nothing, and walked away without looking back once again.
Jia Zhenzhen quickly pulled her to bed and carefully inquired about the details of her apprenticeship. Qin Suisui did not hide anything and told her everything.
After hearing this, Jia Zhenzhen was a little envious: "You're amazing! You came out and even got a powerful master for free! But it's great, Pei Jiuyan and the others are saved!"
Qin Suisui nodded and couldn't help but smile. After the apprenticeship ceremony that afternoon, Palon taught her the method of detoxification. Only then did Qin Suisui realize that what had bitten Pei Jiuyan and the others in the sea was most likely a sea snake, and one that had been injected with a deadly venom.
Coincidentally, the snake witch tribe also has the ability to cure almost all snake venom.
Perhaps it was because she now possessed the snake pendant, but all the small snakes that had been coiled around the beams of the room had vanished that night. With her worries resolved, Qin Suisui slept soundly for once.
At dawn, Qin Suisui was awakened by the sounds of the morning ritual outside. She gently got up and pushed open the door, and saw a man about the same age as Paron under the eaves, throwing mountain rice outside while chanting a prayer in Li language that she couldn't understand. The woman who cooked for them yesterday was using a bamboo tube to blow on the embers buried the night before to brew wild bitter tea.
Paman returned from outside with Zuling and Dahua, carrying bows and arrows, with a string of fresh pheasants and pigeons hanging from his waist. When he saw her come out, he nodded slightly: "We'll eat soon, and then we'll set off."
Qin Suisui didn't expect that when they finished eating and were about to leave, Palon also arrived, carrying several bags.
Qin Suisui hurriedly went to greet him: "Master, what brings you here? Didn't you give me all those medicines yesterday?"
Palon nodded: "That was yesterday, this is my gift for today, take it!" His words left no room for refusal, so Qin Suisui had no choice but to accept it.
Seeing that she had taken the things, Palon nodded in satisfaction. He then mumbled something to Parman beside him. Qin Suisui didn't understand, but Parman's expression turned serious. He suddenly said in Chinese, "Yes, I will protect you with my life."
Qin Suisui was surprised and turned to look at him, her eyes meeting Paman's deep-set features.
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