Chapter Ten: A Life in the Mortal World, Part Three
"You can even do chores." Ji Zhen put the buckets and wooden basins back into the house. At the same time, Di Huan pushed the stool to the corner of the yard and picked up a broom to sweep the water out of the yard.
“I told you I’m not a general. After passing the imperial examination, I was assigned to manage grain supplies; I was just a minor official. When I was little, my father did odd jobs in the government office, and my mother had to clean the house and cook. I would help her after school. Last June, I left the capital. Now the war has dragged on for a year, and I don’t know how my parents are doing at home.” The broom, woven from thin bamboo, made a loud sound as it struck the ground, but the water dampened the courtyard, preventing the surroundings from drying out. “And you, when did you start learning medicine from Doctor Cheng?”
“I remember my master found me. I think I got lost from my biological parents and my master adopted me. He named me because he found me under a pine tree by the Ji River. I don’t have much of an impression of my biological parents, and it’s good that I can learn medicine and save people, so I don’t really want to think about what happened before I met my master,” Ji Zhen said.
“You two have really had a tough time,” Di Huan said, changing the subject. “I know there are many miracle doctors in the countryside, but I’ve never heard of any goddess doctors, let alone two goddess doctors traveling together. It’s not safe outside. There are ferocious birds and beasts in the mountains, as well as criminals roaming around. It’s hard to imagine that you two women have been traveling for so many years.”
After sweeping the courtyard, Di Huan placed the broom in the corner and suddenly seemed to remember something: "Did you and your master encounter some master in the mortal world who mastered great skills, allowing you to roam freely in the world?"
Ji Zhen was a little at a loss. He knew that he actually possessed supernatural powers, but he couldn't tell Di Huan. So he made up a story and told Di Huan: "It's just a matter of 'better safe than sorry.' As for supernatural powers, I've been working with my master since I was a child. I'm strong and I've also learned some self-defense skills. If I happen to encounter two people with ill intentions, I can handle them."
“Really? Come on, let’s have a contest,” Di Huan said, sitting down at a table in the courtyard and waving his right hand at Ji Zhen. Ji Zhen, not one to back down, thought, “If we’re going to have a contest, let’s give it a try,” and sat down opposite Di Huan. The two clenched their fists and began to wrestle, but before long, Di Huan’s arm was forcefully twisted onto the table, and he cried out twice, announcing his defeat.
"Why do we have to compete like this?" Although Ji Zhen's expression remained unchanged on the surface, she was quite happy with this small victory.
“I’ve never practiced martial arts since I was a child, and I’m always no match for Lao Hao and the others in terms of strength and skill. I’ve already competed against them once, and I lost badly. To be honest, I was actually looking to boost my confidence, which is why I wanted to compete with you. But it just made me look incompetent, and I apologize for that. I’d better go back and practice more.”
Just then, a voice came from outside the courtyard gate, telling Di Huan to hurry back. Di Huan knew that there was no time to lose, so he quickly got up and said to Ji Zhen, "I came here today for another reason. Thank you for your care these past few days, Doctor Ji. If there is an opportunity, let's meet again outside the battlefield."
He told Ji Zhen that he didn't need to see him off any further, and then returned to his military camp.
A few days later, General Shu led his troops to join the commander and head to the front line. On the day the troops set off, Cheng Zhilin and Ji Zhen also embarked on their journey back to their hometown.
Cheng Zhilin's hometown is a small mountain village called Weixiang, nestled among the mountains outside the current Kongyun Mountain barrier. Cheng Zhilin first learned some medical skills from the village's old doctor there, and later studied magic under Jing Tang, becoming a wandering cultivator who traveled to various places, only occasionally returning home. Ji Zhen was actually aware of Cheng Zhilin's health condition, but Cheng Zhilin only told Ji Zhen that her health had declined with age and didn't ask Ji Zhen to take her pulse. Having been a doctor for decades herself, she felt her life was nearing its end within the next year or two, so after writing a letter to Jing Tang, she returned to where she had started her journey.
Two years later, Cheng Zhilin passed away in her sleep at the age of fifty-two. The people of Weixiang were grateful to Doctor Cheng, and since she had only left behind Jizhen as her only son, the villagers worked together to hold a funeral for Cheng Zhilin.
Before his death, Cheng Zhilin wrote to Jing Tang, hoping that Jing Tang would accept Ji Zhen as his disciple. In the letter, Cheng Zhilin clearly stated that Ji Zhen was exceptionally intelligent and diligent, and would surely become a renowned scholar in the future. Knowing that Jing Tang would not let any talented person slip by, Cheng Zhilin sent a letter and indeed received a reply from Jing Tang, saying that if Ji Zhen was willing, they could meet again at Kongyun Mountain at any time. Ji Zhen had no impression of this advisor, only knowing that she was indeed exceptionally skilled, and was willing to study under her. He was just curious why Jing Tang, knowing that Cheng Zhilin was about to die, was unwilling to come and meet him.
“My master was most reluctant to see people one last time,” Cheng Zhilin said softly as he lay on his bed, already seriously ill. “If it was a farewell, in her heart, the person would truly be gone. My master had some eccentric little tempers, and you might not get along with her when you first met her, but once you know how she does things, you won’t worry about these little problems anymore.”
Cheng Zhilin was unable to leave his home due to his serious illness, so Ji Zhen stayed at "Cheng's Medical Clinic" to practice medicine. As a result, he learned from the people who came and went that a war was about to break out outside the village.
"A lot of people came, many of them on tall horses, followed by many cars. You'll see them once you cross one mountain."
Ji Zhen chose not to listen to these things.
In mid-April of that year, after Cheng Zhilin passed away, the clinic closed for ten days. Ji Zhen packed her things in the backyard. Apart from a few clothes and a medicine box, she didn't have anything she absolutely needed to take. The tables and cabinets, if Ji Zhen didn't return, would only gather dust.
Two women in the village recently gave birth, and one child contracted a cold. Ji Zhen plans to wait until they all recover before leaving.
As soon as the clinic opened that day, two children with sprained elbows ran in one after the other, almost tripping on the threshold. They immediately asked Ji Zhen to apply some medicine. Ji Zhen asked the two mischievous children where they had been causing trouble. The taller child immediately replied, "We sneaked out of the village early this morning to see Da Ma, but the village chief caught us halfway there. We were trying to hide from him, but in our haste, we tripped and fell, and he caught us red-handed."
“The village chief said there were no big horses outside and told us to hurry home. So we were sent back,” the younger one sniffled. “But when I fell to the ground, I thought I really heard a horse neighing, right when I fell to the ground with a 'thud'.”
After saying that, he even demonstrated what it looked like when he was lying on his back.
"Really? There really is a Malaysia?" The older child immediately became interested.
"I... I've only ever seen mules, anyway, it sounds pretty much like one." The younger one, being chased, couldn't quite remember what animal's sound it was.
"Alright, let's go home first." Fortunately, it was just a scrape, and Ji Zhen quickly applied ointment to both of them. "In the village, we can't disobey the village chief even more."
The two children answered in unison, then went out the door and ran off to the left. They didn't notice that someone was already waiting on the right.
Ji Zhen also saw him.
"It's been a long time, Dr. Ji."
Two years meant little to Ji Zhen; her time was like a forest stream, occasionally punctuated by a falling pebble with a crisp "thud," but quickly vanishing without a trace in the stream's memory. However, when she saw Di Huan, she knew his time was more like a vast river with towering waves capable of uprooting boulders, constantly surging forward, sometimes crashing against the banks, creating white, billowing waves, causing pain to both the water and the shore. But beyond her understanding, Di Huan was actually dragged into it, later forced to take the lead.
Ji Zhen was certain that Di Huan was only two years older than him. Although his appearance was not much different from two years ago, Ji Zhen noticed that there were a few white hairs hidden in his hair, and the rest of his black hair looked grayish.
A pall of gloom hung in the sky.
Di Huan has been fighting for the past two years, and the battle line is about to reach Weizhuang. Therefore, he was sent here to relocate the residents of Weizhuang to the border city to prevent a future enemy attack that could rob and kill them. They had previously sent someone to discuss the matter with the village chief, but the chief scolded them before they even reached the village: "You're here to rob us too! Both of you are enemies to us!"
However, in recent days, the village chief had also sent a few clever villagers out to gather information, and they discovered that the battle between the two armies was imminent. While the old man in his sixties was still pondering what to do, he received a letter from Di Huan, saying that he would come to visit in person and asking the village chief not to refuse visitors.
Di Huan talked with the village chief for a long time. That afternoon, the village chief called as many people as possible to the open space at the entrance of the village and told them to prepare to move.
Ji Zhen had planned to leave soon and had already packed her things, so she treated a few patients as usual. She predicted the future course of their illnesses, prepared plenty of medicine for them, and handed the rest over to the village chief.
It's difficult for women who have just given birth to move, especially when they have a four-year-old child to care for and their husbands to guard the village. Ji Zhen quietly stayed with her, looking after the child and helping her pack her belongings onto a flatbed cart. By the time her husband returned to fetch them, the entire village had already been emptied; they were the last family to leave.
Di Huan and his men searched the empty village to make sure no one was left behind. Ji Zhen didn't need to take the main road at the village entrance. When Di Huan found Ji Zhen at the pond behind the village, she was sitting behind a large rock by the water, playing with a piece of jade she had found on the bank, wondering if she could cross the bright water to reach the other side.
The midday sun was gradually setting. It was only early July, and still near the woods, it wasn't too hot yet. Around the pond, the reeds grew thick and lush, one close to the other, all about the same height. A breeze came from the green grass and woods beside the pond, making the reeds sway and the water ripple, making it even brighter.
"Want to try skipping stones?" Di Huan walked up behind Ji Zhen, saw the stone in her hand, bent down, and looked for a suitable weapon. "I used to like playing this when I was a kid. I hope I haven't lost too much of my skills."
After speaking, he found a suitable stone, held it in his hand for a moment, and then stood by the water's edge. With a wave of his hand, he sent the stone flying towards the opposite bank. Unfortunately, the stone fell back down just before reaching the other side, and the spot where it landed was shimmering in the sunlight, so all that could be seen were the ripples spreading across the water.
As Di Huan was feeling for stones on the riverbank, Ji Zhen stood up and walked over to him, watching him throw stones. Seeing the water return to calm, she also threw her own stone, but like Di Huan's, her stone did not travel the final distance and landed on the opposite bank.
The shimmering water momentarily dazzled the two people standing by the water.
"Where are you going after this?" Di Huan asked, already knowing that Ji Zhen would not retreat with the villagers.
“Go to the advisor’s place and continue learning medicine,” Ji Zhen replied.
“Master Shi…” Di Huan thought for a moment, “What a long and distinguished lineage of masters. You and Doctor Cheng are both highly skilled in medicine, so this Master Shi must be a divine physician as well.”
“I met her when I was little, but each meeting was very short, and we didn’t talk much. She is indeed a miracle doctor; there is no illness in this world that she cannot cure. However, she went into seclusion a few years ago and doesn’t want to see anyone anymore. This time, it was my master who asked my master to take care of me, and only then did my master agree.” Ji Zhen recalled that when he was seven or eight years old, he hid behind Cheng Zhilin and watched the two of them talking and arguing. “My master doesn’t come out to see patients anymore. I remember she once said that it was because there were so many patients in the world that she had such excellent medical skills, so as she got older, she became more and more pessimistic. I don’t dare to say she’s bad; she has indeed experienced a lot. I was only about ten years old when I first heard her say that. At that time, I just thought that the higher the medical skills, the better. Now that I think about it, maybe there is some truth to it.”
“You’re still underestimating me,” Di Huan said, picking up a slightly larger stone from the ground and throwing it into the water in the distance. The sound startled several water birds hiding in the reeds. “Look at me. The more enemies I kill, the higher my military merits become. If you doctors earn the title of ‘miracle doctor’ from patients, then I earn the title of ‘general’ from the dead.”
“I hear the soldiers around you calling you ‘General,’ now you truly deserve that title,” Ji Zhen asked.
“Yes,” Di Huan said as he squatted down and washed the mud off his hands in the water. “This war has lasted for three years, and we’ve only just begun to see signs of victory. Countless people have died before and after me before I was able to bear this title.”
Just as they finished speaking, the two heard the neighing of warhorses coming from the woods behind them, and Di Huan realized that someone was looking for him.
“I have to go,” Di Huan stood up and patted the water off his hands on his coat. “I hope you will understand that I cannot see you off.”
The two walked back to the village one after the other. At the village entrance, a soldier was leading two horses, waiting for Di Huan to return to the military camp together.
Di Huan and Ji Zhen bid each other a final farewell. Afterwards, Di Huan mounted his horse first, and together with his lieutenants, they quickly rode out of the small village.
After he left, Ji Zhen stood there for a while. Before acquiring knowledge and experience, Ji Zhen was also used to understanding the world through intuition. At that moment, she heard a silent voice telling her that she would never return here.
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