005 The Divine Doctor Promised
"Tell me, how did you figure out I was a man?!"
The 'lady' leaned against the door frame, her right foot on the ground, casually crossed over her left, arms crossed, and asked her arrogantly, "No one has ever been able to see through my disguise."
His voice was clear and bright, with a slightly deep tone, like that of a wealthy, leisurely, carefree, and slightly arrogant young master.
Li Yang, having figured out his temperament, said, "If I tell you, can you let me go see Ghost Hand?"
He didn't give a clear answer: "Let's see if your answer can convince me."
Li Yang pointed to his neck: "You tied your scarf wrong, it's too rough. Generally, when girls tie a scarf around their neck, there's only one reason: for aesthetics. So it creates a loose, casual look. You tied it very formally to hide your Adam's apple, which makes it seem deliberate. Plus, considering your height..."
She raised her hand to indicate the height difference between the two: "Compared to a normal woman, I am already quite tall. But you are more than half a head taller than me, so when I put the two together, I became a little suspicious."
The man seemed to accept her reasoning. He touched his face and checked repeatedly, "My makeup didn't give anything away, did it?"
"Absolutely not." Li Yang immediately denied it, then praised, "Look at your skin, brother, so fair and flawless, delicate as a flower, and your lips so red, it's impossible to look away. May I ask where you bought your rouge and powder? I must buy some tomorrow."
"Hmph, my looks are all natural, okay? You ordinary people can't compare."
The young master was flattered by Li Yang's words and relaxed: "Alright, seeing how sharp your eyes are, I'll give you a chance and take you to see Ghost Hand. But let me make this clear beforehand: if Ghost Hand doesn't want to treat your husband, you're not allowed to cause trouble."
"Okay, thank you so much, 'sister'~"
Upon hearing Li Yang's address, the young master arrogantly raised the corners of his lips and charmingly swayed his body as he led her inside: "Come with me."
Li Yang then stepped into the courtyard.
The courtyard was filled with winding corridors, small bridges over flowing water, artificial hills and strange rocks, pavilions and terraces, and its exquisite and luxurious decorations were astonishing. Li Yang secretly suppressed her surprise and tried her best to remain calm and composed, following the young master with her head down to the main hall of the courtyard.
The man had been observing Li Yang's every move, noticing her calm demeanor and clear eyes, devoid of any greed or envy. He unconsciously felt a surge of admiration: "You just wait here. Don't wander off, understand?"
"Yes." Li Yang nodded and found a seat to sit quietly.
But the person did not return for a long time.
Nearly an hour later, a rhythmic 'thump-thump' sound came from outside the hall. Li Yang immediately got up, went outside, and looked toward the source of the sound.
An old man emerged from the distant corridor. He had a full head of silver hair, a gray beard, and a wrinkled face that seemed to have endured half a lifetime of hardships.
Only his two bright, piercing eyes revealed his spirited demeanor. Leaning on his cane, he approached Li Yang unhurriedly, his expression slightly displeased: "So it was you who came looking for me."
Li Yang had intended to reach out to help him, but upon hearing this, she paused, withdrew her hand, and said helplessly, "Young master, are you playing a trick on me?"
The old man glanced at her in surprise, realizing she had seen through him again, and immediately became somewhat embarrassed and angry: "How did you see through me again? This time I even changed the color of my eyes!"
Li Yang pointed out directly: "An old person's back is hunched. Although you are bent over and your back is bent as well, you are not the same in appearance or spirit. Your bones are strong, while an old person's bones are brittle. This is something you cannot imitate. Moreover, you have a smell that is very similar to that 'sister' from earlier. This smell is not the usual herbal smell; it is very distinctive."
"How boring," the young man said, throwing down his cane, straightening his back, and walking away without looking back.
Li Yang was somewhat disappointed. After these two observations, she was certain that this young master was someone with a powerful background and family connections, a simple personality, and a spoiled and irritable temper. Even if he had some skill, he couldn't possibly be the renowned divine healer, the "Ghost Hand."
He probably thought she was funny, and since he had nothing else to do, he wanted to tease her a bit more to make her happy.
She wanted to leave as soon as possible and ask Dr. Tao if the address was wrong.
But now that he's not here and there's no one else around, it might be inappropriate to just leave like this.
Li Yang stopped, preparing to say goodbye and leave after he came out.
He returned quickly this time, arriving in the hall again in just half an hour.
However, she was no longer the "young lady" and "old man" from before. Instead, she wore a white, round-necked, narrow-sleeved robe embroidered with continuous auspicious cloud patterns in silver thread. The silk gauze was sheer and layered, looking extremely expensive. Her hair was styled in a simple bun with a jade crown, and beneath her forehead were bright eyes and crescent-shaped eyebrows. Her skin was as delicate as jade, her lips were as red as cherries, and her teeth shone like broken jade. She was truly a fairy-like beauty, with an elegant demeanor.
Li Yang only glanced at it quickly before lowering her head.
This action did not escape his notice. He exclaimed excitedly, "Ha, you lost! You're captivated by me this time!"
Li Yang didn't want to say more to him, so she took a half step back to avoid his direction: "Yes, I lost. It's getting late, and you must be busy, so I won't disturb you any longer."
"Leaving so soon? Aren't you going to look for Ghost Hand anymore?"
Upon hearing this, Li Yang immediately looked up: "Young Master, do you really know Ghost Hand?"
The man nodded smugly, put his hands on his hips, and said arrogantly, "This person is both far away and right before my eyes; he is none other than myself."
"You?" Li Yang was genuinely surprised. He looked to be only about twenty years old, with eyes as pure as an innocent child. Even if he studied medicine in his youth, it was impossible for him to have the ability to "bring the dead back to life and heal the wounded."
"What, you still don't believe me? Fine, I don't want to treat your husband anyway."
Seeing that he was about to leave after speaking, Li Yang didn't bother to verify and immediately stepped forward to stop him, "I believe you, I believe you. Divine doctor, young master, sister, please save my husband."
"Hmph, too late, no saving her!"
He seemed a little angry, but not to the point of being completely furious. Li Yang asked, "Then what will it take for you to save my husband?"
He walked to the main seat, crossed his legs, and sat down leisurely, casually twirling the jade pendant on his body: "Not so great. I'm not happy today and don't want to treat anyone."
Li Yang stood beside him and followed up on his question, asking, "So, how can you make yourself happy?"
The man's eyes darted around, as if he had come up with a good idea, and a smile appeared at the corner of his eyes: "How about this, you give me a gift, and if I'm happy, I'll naturally go."
What gift?
"Hmm... I want a statue of Yama, the King of Hell." He leaned back in his chair, swinging his legs casually. "Everyone says that I, Ghost Hand, snatch people from Yama's hands. So I have to get on good terms with Yama, burn incense for him and give him some pocket money, so he'll give me face next time."
The statue was easy to find, and Li Yang immediately agreed: "Okay!"
The man raised an eyebrow and glanced at her: "You agreed so quickly? I want you to carve this statue yourself, so that it will show my sincerity in front of the King of Hell. By the way, I'll give you three days. Wait for me at the door at the same time in three days. No waiting for you after that."
Sincerity? If you want to be sincere, go carve your own statue! You want someone else to make a statue to show your sincerity? How shameless!
Li Yang inwardly scoffed, but outwardly still smiled and agreed: "Yes, Divine Doctor, please rest assured, I will definitely come to see you on time!"
"Hmm," having enjoyed her compliments enough, the man pointed outside and said, "The door's over there, go by yourself!"
With the statue on his mind, Li Yang didn't ask any more questions and followed the direction the man pointed, winding his way out of the courtyard gate.
Given Yuan Chongjing's injury, she couldn't afford to be careless. Li Yang stood outside the courtyard, looking at the tightly closed vermilion gate with some suspicion, before turning and heading towards Doctor Tao's clinic.
In response to her question, Doctor Tao seemed prepared: "I have never seen Ghost Hand's true face. When he makes house calls, he likes to wear a mask and sometimes disguises himself as other people. I heard that he is extremely handsome and can bewitch people, so he does not show his true face."
That sounds quite fitting for that young master. Li Yang continued, "I heard him say that he only entered the city this morning, Doctor Tao. Has he been living in that large courtyard all along?"
Doctor Tao lowered his eyes, suppressing his emotions. This question seemed simple, but it had set a trap for him.
A renowned healer with unparalleled skill should be able to appear and disappear without a trace. This morning, he had just entered the city, and before noon, his address was known to an ordinary doctor like myself—a rather inappropriate situation to reveal.
Doctor Tao's mind raced, but he smiled and said, "It's only become fixed in the last few years. I had to pull a lot of strings to find out."
"Dr. Tao, please don't be offended. It's just that Brother Jing's condition can't wait, and I'm also afraid of encountering an imposter, which would make all our efforts wasted. Since you're so sure, then I'll go and do it. Just before I left, the divine doctor gave me quite a task," Li Yang explained with a smile.
After discussing Yuan Chongjing's condition with Doctor Tao, Li Yang left the clinic.
She was somewhat worried about the choice of material for the statue.
There are many kinds of statues on the market nowadays, such as wood carvings, root carvings, jade carvings, and clay carvings. It is likely that Ghost Hand often travels around, and the rare treasures in his yard alone are dazzling. He probably has a lot of statues as well, and ordinary precious statues probably wouldn't catch his eye.
Li Yang decided to make a very simple wood carving, using the most ordinary wood. She had figured out Ghost Hand's eccentricities this time: he loved to show off, was sophisticated, meticulous, and often quirky; he had kindness, but not much; and his temper flared up quickly but subsided just as fast. She figured she could flatter him a bit, and with her silver tongue, getting him over with shouldn't be a problem.
Woodcarving masters in the city are easy to find. On her way back to the mansion, Li Yang asked the best craftsman and spent a lot of money to buy his three days of work.
The two carried their tools and supplies back to the Yuan residence, making a clanging and clattering sound all the way.
Li Yang deliberately chose a secluded courtyard. After giving instructions to the maid, she locked herself in the courtyard and, together with the woodcarving master, began to select suitable, soft wood that was suitable for beginners.
She was pressed for time, with only three days. The woodcarver spent nearly half an hour selecting pieces of wood and had Li Yang try several different types before finally settling on a piece of pine.
Li Yang excitedly stroked the piece of pine wood, as if she could already see the finished product. Just as she was about to look up and ask the craftsman about the tools, she saw Yuan Chongjing standing not far away, seemingly having been watching her for a long time.
"Jing-ge? What brings you here? Are you able to get out of bed now?"
Yuan Chongjing didn't speak. Seeing that she had changed into ordinary cotton clothes and was surrounded by wooden blocks of different materials, he asked in a deep voice, "What are you planning to do now?"
Li Yang got up and walked up to him, explaining in a low voice, "I told you before, the Divine Doctor Ghost Hand has come to Kyoto. I went to see him today, and he promised that if I make him a wood carving within three days, he would agree to help you cure your amnesia."
Yuan Chongjing remembered that she had mentioned this before. He had thought it was just empty talk, but he hadn't expected her to actually go to find Ghost Hand. However, Ghost Hand was supposedly a miracle doctor; how could she agree so easily? He wondered what method she had used.
Thinking about it carefully, what could she possibly do? She just kept pestering him relentlessly.
Now is not the time to think about these things; we still need to find a way to cure my amnesia as soon as possible. Yuan Chongjing wanted to seize this opportunity: "Let me do it. This is too dangerous; the blades are sharp. What if I get hurt?"
Li Yang chuckled and teased, "Is Brother Jing worried about me?"
She looked up at him with a smile, her body backlit, the jeweled hair ornaments on her head hanging quietly, and her eyes were frighteningly bright.
Yuan Chongjing's heart skipped a beat. He immediately looked away, clenched his fist to his mouth, coughed awkwardly, and said expressionlessly, "How could that be? I just don't want to owe you a favor, so you won't use that favor to blackmail me into doing something in return."
Li Yang curled her lip and said mercilessly, "If you really don't want to owe him, go find Ghost Hand yourself and make him agree to make a wood carving to cure your illness. After all, I'm the one who went to see Ghost Hand and I'm the one who begged him to agree to it."
Yuan Chongjing was now extremely sensitive to provocation, especially from Li Yang, whom he despised the most. Upon hearing this, he immediately said, "I'll go then!"
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