In dreams, I kill evil and talk about fate; when awake, I reason and cure stubborn diseases.
Maybe it was because of enlightenment yesterday, or maybe it was because Gu Quyu's persuasion was so thoughtful, so I drank a lot of wine and got very drunk! When I woke up, there was only the empty bedroom and Qian Jianjun's dizzy head.
He was a bit drunk last night. It seemed that when Lao Zhou and Gu Quyu were hesitating whether to send him home or to the hotel, the strong emotions stimulated him to wake up for a moment, and he mumbled, "Go, go, go home..."
Before he could finish his words, he leaned weakly on Lao Zhou's shoulder, and the last two words he uttered, "What are you doing?" seemed not to be heard by Lao Zhou.
If Sister Feng hadn't told him that Mei Rugu came home at midnight and rushed back to work early that morning, he wouldn't have felt the slightest trace of his wife in this house. The feeling of loss and irritability was more gnawing than a hangover...
The sky gradually brightened, but the fog was thick, like a newly opened eye, hazy and blurry. A fat man in a purple brocade robe walked slowly along the winding stone path beside the river.
On one side is a rocky riverbank, on the other a man-high reed patch. In the distance, the silent Huan River flows out from between the mountains that merge with the thick fog, adding a touch of vividness to the ink-and-wash painting.
The man would occasionally stretch his arms or shout as he walked—after all, this place was remote and wouldn't disturb others. This relaxing morning exercise continued until he encountered a man in gray hidden in the mist.
The two men must have known each other well. They chatted in low voices, accompanied by bursts of hearty laughter. The man in gray would occasionally pat the man in brocade robes affectionately on the shoulder. The man was completely absorbed in the conversation, completely unaware that a cold light had been captured in the palm of his muscular opponent's hand.
A bone-chilling coldness came from the waist and abdomen.
The man in the brocade robe looked down and saw a small hole in the smooth brocade, bleeding and draining away. He clutched the bleeding wound with one hand and pointed a trembling finger at the man in gray with the other. Before he could speak, his expression of astonishment gave way to understanding and then to fear.
He turned around and tried to escape but his steps were unsteady. The man in gray just followed him steadily, neither fast nor slow.
The blood flowed more and more, his breath became weaker and weaker, and he was about to fall. A frail shoulder appeared out of nowhere and became the last straw. He used up all his last strength to lean over.
"Eat it!"
A thin jade hand handed over a pill. It was only as big as a fingernail, but as red as blood, with flames dancing in it and blood flowing in it.
The man in brocade robe could clearly feel that his life was almost gone as he stumbled along the way. At this critical moment of life and death, he did not hesitate at all.
The pill entered his throat, and a warm current flowed through his limbs and bones. The bleeding stopped, and the man in the brocade robe raised his head to see a graceful figure before him.
Dressed in spotless white, she stood out against the foggy, gray morning, a vibrant, clean sight. Even in the stillness of the wind, her sleeves fluttered, giving her the air of an immortal. A thin veil obscured her face, but judging by the voice just now, it must be a woman.
"Girl, help me! The people behind me want to kill me!"
The man in brocade robes spoke as he walked around behind the man in white. He could tell from the magical elixir that he was a distinguished person.
"My name is Wei Deyi from Tianxi Town. May I ask your name, young lady?" the man in gray said with a fist salute.
"A passerby!" The voice was as clear as a bell, but the frail figure stood motionless in front of the sturdy man in gray.
"Miss, do you really want to save this rapist? He was just rude to a woman, and I'm just standing up for him."
"Girl, don't listen to his nonsense. He borrowed two thousand strings of cash from me half a month ago, and we agreed to pay 10% monthly interest. Who would have thought that he would actually want to rob me and kill me." The man in brocade robe, who had recovered, hurriedly defended himself.
"Hahahaha..." The gray-clothed man threw his head back and laughed heartily. Then he said, "Absurd! Within this radius of a hundred miles, who doesn't know that 'righteous' Wei Deyi is a wealthy man and a benefactor? Would I kill you for a mere two thousand strings of cash? And you, 'Notched Tweezers' Nie, are willing to lend me money?"
A person's reputation is like a tree's shadow. The name and the saying "righteousness" are indeed well-founded. The woman lowered her head, as if she was hesitating.
The man in brocade robes, whose real name was Nie Zique but who was ridiculed as "Notched Tweezers—Stingy," panicked, "I have the IOU on me as proof!"
As he spoke, he took something out of his arms. In his excessive anxiety, he suddenly raised his hand and lifted a veil.
"Miss Yue!"
It turned out to be the owner of the town’s flower shop—the most seductive focus of Tianxi Town.
However, the two men at the moment had no intention of appreciating her extraordinary beauty.
"Miss Yue, don't refuse a toast and then drink a forfeit! Hahahaha..." Because they were so familiar with each other, his previous reservations disappeared completely, and he was completely different from the righteous and righteous person he had just been speaking. After saying this, he even clapped his hands and laughed, as if praising the girl's courage.
The laughter and applause startled a few wild ducks, which fled from the reeds. A sly-looking man also dodged and stabbed Nie Zique in the back with a dagger. Before he could call for help, his corpulent body convulsed and collapsed.
Suddenly, the woman turned around and waved, floating like an angel! So beautiful—this was the last thought the world left for the flying head.
"Deli, ah, I will kill you!" Wei Deyi stood up in anger.
It turned out that the assassin was the burly man's younger brother.
These two brothers were renowned throughout Tianxi Town. Their personalities and appearances differed markedly. The elder, Wei Deyi, was a towering figure, known for his benevolence and righteousness, earning him the nickname "Lord of the Clouds." The younger, Wei Deli, was short and shifty, a drunkard and gambler who stole when he ran out of money and was a habitual thief. The people of Tianxi Town shunned him, earning him the nickname "Street Rat." Because gambling debts were constantly pressing him and he refused to change, Old Master Wei, while still alive, reported his younger son to the authorities for disobedience. The authorities issued a document, expelled him from the household, and sent him to separate households. When Wei Deyi took over the family, he offered his younger brother earnest advice, but he persisted in his evil ways, and ultimately, they became strangers.
Judging from the current situation, what we hear is indeed "false".
Miss Yue thought of this and completely ignored Wei Deyi who was approaching. When the sharp edge was only an inch away from her eyebrows, she swiftly slapped Wei Deyi's chest with her palm.
There was no bloodshed, no body or head torn apart. Instead, a dazzling white light exploded from Wei Deyi's chest, piercing through the gray sky and earth...
"Are you awake?"
The familiar warmth comes just as always, concealing the thrill of a thousand years.
After calming down his rapid heartbeat, Xue Jiuyue slowly spoke, "You found out again!"
"Any new discoveries?" Liu Che asked in a gentle voice, but with some anxiety.
Today, Liu Che changed the approach to hypnotize Xue Jiuyue, asking her to follow the tributaries of the previous dream to find traces of the truth.
"It's quite interesting, like a new story! And it's not scary at all, so I guess I've dreamt about it before but can't remember it."
Xue Jiuyue recalled the contents of her dream and told Liu Che about it...
"Wait a moment and try my new jasmine tea," Liu Che said, thinking while boiling water to make tea.
"Wow, I'm in for a treat! I remember back when I was in college and used to drink Jasmine Flower in Dongyuan!"
"As long as you like it!"
"What do you think this dream reveals? Or does past lives really exist?" Xue Jiuyue, stripped of her usual rationality, was as free and innocent as a child in front of Liu Che, surrounded by colorful dreams.
"Dreams come from your life, from your subconscious. They may be the processing and repackaging of characters in your real life! They should hide the imprint of real life and also reflect your true emotions and likes and dislikes!" Listening to the sound of the kettle boiling, Liu Che explained gently.
"Tsk, all that talk is as good as nothing! I wish there really was a past life."
"If you think there is, then there is! Freedom of belief. Right and wrong are subjective judgments, and it's just a matter of perspective."
Liu Che is always so gentle, without any sharpness or edges.
"Try it."
The white porcelain tea cup is filled with shimmering amber and the fragrance of jasmine flowers.
Xue Jiyue took a sip and slowly pondered the words of praise, "Elegant and long-lasting, with a lingering aftertaste. Good taste, good tea."
“It’s just tea. If it tastes good, it’s good tea!”
Liu Che's modesty, as gentle as jade, and his casual and light-hearted Zen spirit, paint a picture of familiarity shrouded in mist.
"Are there any lucid dreams? Or am I delusional?"
"Paranoia?"
"Well, I've been seeing some images lately. They're like dreams but I'm awake, like memories but I can't remember them."
"What kind of picture is it?"
"Hmm..." Xue Jiuyue savored the fragrant tea, clearing her mind. From the ginkgo leaves she received daily in the mail, to the photos, to the fleeting dreams, the lingering sweetness, shrouded in the warmth of an embrace, made her blush inexplicably shy. She even felt her face grow slightly hot. Her final description became brief: "It felt like college, with morning jogs, study sessions, games, and conversations... all scattered and random."
"That's definitely not delusion, don't worry. Delusion is a pathological way of thinking that is detached from reality. Its characteristics are based on unfounded assumptions, and the person firmly believes in the conclusions and is self-involved." Fortunately, Liu Che couldn't see the beauty of the peach blossoms on her cheeks, and he didn't ask too many questions but gave a professional answer.
"So what's going on with these images?"
"It's probably a lost memory! I've always believed your previous nightmares stemmed from a traumatic memory that your brain chose to forget or seal away. It was isolated from your consciousness and trapped in your subconscious, preventing you from finding it. Because it contains extremely strong emotions, it refuses to remain in its place and keeps trying to break free. This resistance becomes your nightmare and even affects every aspect of your life. My treatment method is to use hypnosis to relax your consciousness, slowly and gently releasing these emotions, allowing you to rediscover this memory. And these images in your mind right now might be the byproducts of this loosening of your consciousness."
"Why do you let me look for it myself? Can't you help me find it?"
"For some reason, your brain chose to seal these memories as a protective mechanism, similar to shock! If I force you to look for them, it will not only trigger your brain's protective mechanism again, but may even have more uncontrollable consequences. So I will only try my best to find clues in your dreams and let you find them on your own." In case Xue Jiuyue didn't quite understand, Liu Che added another metaphor, "It's like there is a puzzle hidden at the bottom of a lake. The only way to see it is to drain the lake. But you can't let the lake burst its banks all at once, because that would hurt you, and your consciousness would automatically plug the gap again! So I want to slowly turn the flood into a trickle, and eventually you will see the answer!"
"I understand! But if those images are memories, they're not scary at all, and they feel completely different from the dream."
"A slight error can lead to a huge mistake. The brain isn't so precisely insulated, so naturally some good memories might be affected. Of course, we can't jump to conclusions just yet. While awake, the conscious mind is guarding it closely, and the subconscious mind can be distorted beyond recognition. So, it's possible that, like dreams, these are just fabricated images created by the subconscious mind based on certain scenes from real life. All in all, this suggests that the treatment has been effective, and we can see the light at the end of the tunnel."
"Of course it works! I hardly have nightmares anymore, and the occasional dreams aren't that scary! It's all thanks to you! Tell me, how can I thank you, my good doctor?"
"Um," Liu Che was a little caught off guard. He smiled gently and said modestly, "You are my guest. It is my duty to be of assistance to you. No need to thank me."
"Tsk, I treat you as a friend, but you treat me as a customer!"
"No, no, of course we are friends, I just..." Liu Che raised his right hand to stroke his hair and explained in a panic.
"Haha, I was just kidding. I know that every time you brew tea for me, it is carefully prepared, and the teacups I use are all mine, so I should thank you even more!" The fact that Xue Jiuyue pointed out to him in person made Liu Che more embarrassed than the previous joke.
"Well, uh, you're afraid of physical contact with people, so I thought...actually, I also care about using other people's cups, so I thought you might also care about these details." Liu Che, whose secret was suddenly exposed, still forced himself to remain calm and found a reason in a hurry, but he couldn't hide his uncharacteristic incoherent speech and red face.
"Don't explain. If you're free someday, I'd like to treat you to a meal. Would you mind?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
