59. Notice
◎Du Zhijin, setting aside this debt of gratitude, did you ever love me?◎
Traditional Chinese medicine? Which kind? Is it the kind he was thinking of...?
Suddenly, certain books that I only read late at night came to mind, and the dry words suddenly came to life.
Embracing, intertwined, suffocating... Ying Jianhua bit his lower lip hard to prevent himself from making any unseemly sounds. He inhaled slowly and laboriously; the summer night was sweltering, and with the two of them huddled together, the medicine pavilion instantly turned into a furnace.
"You... stay away from me." She said this, but her body was uncontrollably drawn to him. Ying Jianhua watched helplessly as the distance between herself and Du Zhijin drew closer and closer until their breaths could be heard.
She leaned close to his neck, sniffing him like a little animal, her thin lips moving lightly: "Amo, you smell very nice."
His tone was firm and contained not a trace of coquetry, yet the content of his praise made him feel dazed.
This wasn't the first time she had described him as "smelling good." She had used the same phrase on a night not long ago, the night he wore a light blue gauze dress.
But that time, she rejected him.
Ying Jianhua's inner world suddenly calmed down, the restlessness subsided, and what replaced it was a hidden struggle.
Will she push him away again this time?
He looked into her eyes, and those eyes, which were usually as calm as a still lake, finally rippled, and his reflection was in the center of the ripples.
At this moment, she was stirred by him, and Du Zhijin stepped into a not-so-clever trap because of Ying Jianhua.
Zhouzhou, she was the boat that carried him across.
Du Zhijin exhaled a scorching breath. How strange, how could this be? It felt like there was a fiery mountain inside her body; if her soul stepped on it barefoot, the footprint would evaporate as soon as it touched the ground.
My eyes seemed veiled by a white mist, everything in the world was blurred and indistinct, and my vision was desolate and lonely.
Suddenly, she sensed a faint clarity and light, and couldn't help but grasp it.
The clear spring is right in front of us, the lantern tower is right in front of us. If we just take a step forward, pick it up, and climb it, the dried-up river will come back to life, and the lost boats will be able to return home.
But why did he stop there? Why did he remain unmoved?
"Amo..." She bumped her head at him in annoyance, unable to say anything else but keep calling out "Amo, Amo".
But he should understand, understand what she meant. Weren't they always so in sync?
The lights flickered, seemingly on the verge of going out; the white fog dissipated, and night was approaching.
Before her consciousness faded, she heard a high-pitched sword cry and a very soft incantation.
Just as she had once told him.
"...Sleep well."
————
The small medicine stove in Shuyuzhai was used for the second time that day. Zhao Zhonggan kept watching the heat and kept turning back.
Beside the couch, Ying Jianhua is watching over the sleeping person, and he himself is silent, like a clay sculpture.
Unable to suppress his worry and doubt, Zhao Zhonggan mustered his courage and asked, "Young Master Mo, Senior Sister, she..." However, before he could even raise his voice, he was met with a faint glance. It was a light, insignificant glance, yet it sent a chill down his spine.
He immediately stopped talking, lowering his voice and weakly asking, "What happened to you? Why did Senior Sister faint?"
In his memory, Du Zhijin was someone capable of taking on a phantom demon single-handedly. What exactly did his family's medicine pavilion possess that was even more powerful than a phantom demon?
Upon hearing this, Ying Jianhua seemed to come back to life from the clay sculpture, tossing him a packet of medicine. Zhao Zhonggan, curious, was about to open it and smell it when he heard a thunderous announcement: "That's aphrodisiac."
"A type of herb?!"
This time, her tone was higher, but she didn't get a glare. Ying Jianhua lowered her eyelashes and said, "It was prepared for you by your dear cousin."
Zhao Zhonggan's eyes widened: "How is this possible? Where did Wu Ti get this kind of medicine?"
"Why not?" Ying Jianhua stared at him and said coldly, "This medicine is hidden behind the bricks in a well-hidden location. It's impossible to find without some effort. If an ordinary doctor or apprentice stays inside for too long, they will definitely arouse suspicion. And you can't enter the medicine pavilion with just a key; you must also have the steward's jade token. Guess who held the token when the Lady of the Marquis was seriously ill?"
Zhao Zhonggan opened his mouth, but had nothing to say.
Wu Ti herself said that she had spent eight years in the Jianchang Marquis's residence, learning the art of household management for those eight years. Given how much the Marquis's wife favored her, obtaining the household management jade token would have been a piece of cake for her.
"...Drowning in Qinyun Lake is just one plan. Now guess if this plan doesn't work, will there be another one?"
His words struck Zhao Zhonggan like a hammer blow, catching him completely off guard.
Finally, he came to his senses and found a flaw: "But these are all your speculations; you have no evidence. Young Master Mo, it's not that I don't believe you, and I'm also very worried about Senior Sister, but..." "This matter also involves your mother, doesn't it?"
“But in your heart, she is certainly not as important as your mother.”
Ying Jianhua spoke in a normal tone, as if recounting the most ordinary thing, but Zhao Zhonggan felt as if he had fallen into an ice cave.
A moment of silence filled the room. After a long pause, he asked, "Could it be that in Young Master Mo's heart, Senior Sister is the only one?"
Was she the only one in his heart?
One should look at the painting and ask oneself questions.
He might not have dared to answer "yes" before, but now he suddenly has the confidence.
Because he pushed her away.
Those who cultivate the Tao must not be entangled in worldly affairs or disrupt cause and effect; he always remembers the consequences.
At best, all previous efforts will be wasted and inner demons will arise; at worst, one will be annihilated by lightning and one's soul will be scattered.
He had once tried to restrain Du Zhijin for his own selfish interests, but now he realized how foolish his past actions had been.
He almost ruined her.
Like a vine, it clings to her, entwines her, and finally strangles her.
He knew her original path. He was the evil side, and she would never see him again in this life, so she would follow in the footsteps of her predecessors to the summit.
They were two different kinds of people, a fact that even Jiangwei understood, yet he was so foolish.
After Ying Jianhua said "yes," he remained silent for a long time, gazing quietly at something. Zhao Zhonggan looked over and saw that he was looking at Du Zhijin's sword.
Overwhelmed by guilt, perhaps mixed with a touch of resentment and sorrow, but those emotions no longer mattered. He asked in a hoarse voice, "Then, do you have a way to wake my senior sister up?"
Ying Jianhua shook his head: "This is no ordinary medicine. Wu Ti knows that you are a cultivator, and ordinary medicines are ineffective, so he sought out medicines that can be transformed into spiritual energy. The deeper the spiritual energy, the more potent the medicine."
Upon hearing this, even the slow-witted Zhao Zhonggan could sense something was amiss: "This kind of medicine is not something that can be obtained easily."
A terrifying thought surged into his mind, and he was taken aback, meeting Ying Jianhua's tacit gaze.
Medicine...miracle medicine...that divine doctor.
He was unsteady on his feet, his steps were a little unsteady, but his mind was clear: "No wonder... if it was just my father's words, my mother would not believe it at all... but if Wu Ti is added, Wu Ti is her closest junior, if she also persuaded her, my mother will definitely lower her guard, and she often praises the elixir."
"But why would she do this? I still don't understand. My mother treated her well!" Zhao Zhonggan's eyes were bloodshot, filled with shock and confusion.
Ying Jianhua glanced at the person on the couch with their eyes closed and no longer concealed anything: "There is a great demon in Liuli Capital, who appears and disappears unpredictably. That is why we have come here."
“Yesterday, Wu Ti came to Youhuang Courtyard looking for me. The moment she approached, the great demon moved.”
Ignoring Zhao Zhonggan's increasingly broken gaze, he roared like thunder: "Are you sure Wu Ti has always been the cousin you remember?"
————
Du Zhijin had another dream. She vaguely remembered that the last time she had a dream was after drinking with Huo Bai.
She got very drunk and dreamed of her master for the first time in a long time, and even spoke in her sleep in response to the painting.
Upon waking, he was forced to swear an oath never to drink alcohol again.
But she still secretly drank it once later, and strangely enough, she neither got drunk nor had any dreams that time.
So what is the reason for my dreams?
As she pondered, Du Zhijin saw a familiar yet unfamiliar little house. In her dream, she was carrying a sword in one hand and a fish in the other, walking briskly towards the village.
Huh? I actually dreamed about Wuling Village this time?
This was the first time she had ever dreamed of anything other than Mount Dengxian. She found it strange, floated to "herself's" side, and secretly poked the fish.
The fish looks pretty realistic.
"Amo! Look what I caught! We can have fish tonight!"
In the dream, "Du Zhijin" pushed open the wooden door and saw Yingjian Hua cooking by the stove. He didn't pay attention to her when he heard her voice, and only asked her to scrape off the fish scales.
"Alright!" Du Zhijin replied, raising his sword to clean up the fish scales. Du Zhijin used his divine sense to scan the courtyard for a while and discovered that the roof was not thatched but covered with tiles, sturdy and airtight, and would never leak again.
She had built a chicken coop next to the Huang family's house, and she had always wanted to raise chickens there because the soil was soft and there were many earthworms, which she could use to feed the chickens. As the smoke rose from the chimney, a miniature version of a little yellow dog ran to "Du Zhijin's" feet and snuggled up to her. "She" glanced into the house and secretly tossed a piece of fish entrails to the dog.
This scene was very heartwarming, representing the idyllic rural life she had longed for.
But as she looked, she suddenly realized something was wrong.
Back in Wuling Village, would she call him "Amo"? Didn't she always call him Doctor Ying?
Furthermore, why is there only "Awakening Moon" and not "Drunken Mist"? Is "Drunken Mist" still at the bottom of the pool?
As if sensing her suspicion, the once peaceful dream began to turn eerie. She saw "Du Zhijin" going up and down mountains and down rivers day after day, chopping wood, catching fish, and even doing carpentry, but never practicing swordsmanship.
People always called her "Wooden Girl," even Honghua did. Honghua still got along well with her, but she never said, "Sister, you're so amazing!"
Just like the native people of Wuling Village, Du Zhijin and Ying Jianhua lived a simple and contented life.
He practiced medicine and consulted doctors, while she farmed and fished; life slipped by like flowing water.
No! Du Zhijin cried out in her heart, this was not true. She clearly left Wuling Village with Amo, how could it be like this in her dream!
As my emotions fluctuated, the scene in my dream shifted once more. A storm raged over Tiger's Pool, a bolt of lightning struck, and an immortal arrived riding on a cloud.
That's... Master.
Zui Lan flew from the bottom of the pool to the master's hand, while Du Zhijin held the Awakening Moon, the two standing opposite each other.
She's on the opposite side of her master? How could that be!
However, the dream did not stop there. She saw her master unleash lightning, while she struggled to protect Ying Jianhua.
The master said, "You have deceived her."
Who? Who has deceived her?
[...She shouldn't be here. You forced her to stay using your gratitude, which has disrupted the natural order of things.]
Now, everything should be restored to its original state.
As soon as he finished speaking, a torrential downpour began, accompanied by lightning and thunder.
A dragon's shadow seemed to appear in the pool, but it quickly disappeared in the thunderstorm.
She saw Ying Jianhua collapse into her arms, tears streaming down her face.
He asked, "Du Zhijin, setting aside this favor, did you ever love me?"
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