The early morning at Listening Wind Hall carried a touch of refreshing coolness.
After the rain ceased last night, an easterly wind had picked up, scattering the mist and carrying away much of the damp, sticky humidity.
Perhaps it was because she had run a few laps with Tang Shenyan before bed, stretching her limbs and bones, but Qin Jiuye had slept exceptionally soundly. Now, humming a tuneless little ditty as she pushed open the hall doors, she felt an unprecedented sense of rejuvenation.
The courtyard was silent, giving her the fleeting illusion that she was the only one there.
To accommodate the lazy and undisciplined lifestyle of those in the martial world, Listening Wind Hall usually didn't open its doors until the hour of the Snake. But Guoran Pharmacy was different. Those who rose early for labor or field work often had to leave before dawn; they couldn't simply drop their tools halfway through the day to fetch medicine. To cater to this clientele, Qin Jiuye had made it a habit to rise even earlier over the years.
Rising early had its perks; the early bird gets the worm, after all.
Qin Jiuye glanced back at the still-silent main hall. Realizing she had no business to attend to today, she didn't bother waking the others. Rubbing her hands together, she made her way toward the small kitchen alone.
The kitchen at Listening Wind Hall was slightly larger than the eastern room at Guoran Pharmacy, where medicine brewing and cooking were all crammed together. However, it was ultimately just another dilapidated space, and she was all too familiar with the layout of such ruins. With little effort, she fished out a few leftover steamed buns from a crevice beside the stove.
The overnight buns were dry and hard. After a few bites, her throat felt like it was on fire. She turned toward the water vat in the corner and walked over.
The lid was only halfway on. Unsure if dust had settled inside, Qin Jiuye clicked her tongue in disapproval. She let out a yawn and yanked the lid off, only for the half-eaten bun in her hand to clatter to the floor the very next moment.
The vat was only half-full, and floating in that water was half of a sodden head. Strands of black hair clung to the walls of the vat like tentacles, looking as if they—and the "drowned ghost" they belonged to—might crawl out at any second.
Qin Jiuye was struck speechless with shock. The first thought that popped into her head was: *I never expected Old Tang, who looks like such a refined gentleman, to be capable of murder and body disposal!*
Then, something even more terrifying happened. The "drowned ghost's" head slowly turned toward her. With a sudden splash of water, the entire "corpse" stood upright like an iron tower.
Qin Jiuye had heard tales of the "living dead" from Jianghu travelers who had raided tombs, but as a physician who believed in pharmacology and medical science, she had always been skeptical. Seeing it now with her own eyes, she didn't scream; she only felt the internal medical canon built on common sense slowly begin to crumble.
She stared blankly at the "corpse" for a moment before finally recognizing something. She reached out and brushed aside several damp locks of hair plastered to the person's face.
"You... what are you doing hiding in a water vat? Is your condition acting up again?"
Li Qiao wrung out his soaking hair and stepped out of the vat.
"Jinbao was snoring last night. Too loud. Couldn't sleep."
Qin Jiuye blinked, still finding it hard to comprehend.
"And what does that have to do with the water vat?"
"It's quiet in the vat." The drenched youth looked at her intently. As if fearing she wouldn't believe him, he added, "Try it if you don't believe me."
Qin Jiuye certainly would not try it.
She was a normal person, and no normal person would spend the night in a water vat just because they found someone's snoring annoying.
However, the martial world was a treacherous place, filled with all manner of strange creatures. There were martial arts masters who, in their pursuit of the so-called "pinnacle," ended up torturing themselves into forms that were neither human nor ghost. This was especially true for those who sought quick results.
Thinking of this, Qin Jiuye couldn't help but speculate. She adopted a meaningful expression.
"Aside from what happened at the Precious Mirage Pavilion, are you practicing some kind of forbidden art? Since you want me to make an antidote, I need to know the full truth. Otherwise, if something goes wrong, you'll be the one suffering. There's no need for shame; you can tell me. I'm just a layman who doesn't understand cultivation or techniques. I won't look down on you like those self-righteous orthodox sects..."
Li Qiao's eyelashes trembled slightly. An unfamiliar emotion surged in his gaze, much like the water still settling in the vat.
"Didn't you also admit, Sister, that there are illnesses you cannot cure? If you can't cure it, then say so. Why resort to these roundabout, prying questions now? Do you truly wish to treat the illness, or do you just want to hear a story?"
Qin Jiuye was visibly taken aback. She hadn't expected such a strong reaction. After a moment, she bent down to pick up the half-bun she had dropped, carefully blowing the dust off it.
"I only see that you are young, and I am a few years your senior. I've experienced more than you and have some insights I wanted to share. If you don't want to speak, then don't."
Li Qiao lowered his head, seemingly determined to remain silent.
Qin Jiuye stopped looking at him. She continued eating her bun while surveying the kitchen, mentally weighing the day's provisions.
"As for treating your illness, man proposes, but Heaven disposes. If a person doesn't put in the effort, even Heaven is helpless. Among the people I've brought back in the past, there were those who valued their dignity and secrets more than their lives. They would rather die from poison than let a village girl like me give them a proper examination. But guess what? The martial world changes like waves washing over sand. Within months, no one speaks of them anymore, and everything they tried to protect naturally ceases to exist..."
She spoke with earnest intent, but to Li Qiao's ears, it still sounded like "probing."
He kept his head lowered, his thoughts unreadable. After a long silence, he spoke in a tone tinged with melancholy and self-mockery.
"It is not that I distrust you, Sister. It is just that I was born with a lowly life; what dignity or secrets could I possibly have? No one in the martial world knows of me. If I were to vanish, no one would know."
He intentionally belittled himself as worthless, but Qin Jiuye felt it was merely a stubborn refusal to listen.
When words are not understood, even half a sentence is too much. Why waste her breath?
Her gaze fell upon a bamboo basket in the corner. Finally remembering a serious matter, she said to herself, "Though this dirt-poor Listening Wind Hall has few rations, it isn't entirely useless."
Qin Jiuye walked to the basket, picked out a few stalks from the scattered wild greens, threw them into a stone mortar used for crushing garlic, and began to grind them.
He had intentionally played the pity card, but the woman didn't seem to buy it at all.
Li Qiao observed Qin Jiuye, trying to analyze her behavior, but he came up empty. After watching coldly for a while, he finally asked, "What are you doing?"
Qin Jiuye didn't look up, her hands remaining busy. She took the yellow-green juice from the bowl and carefully applied it to her neck.
"This is Bitter-pod Grass. Because it looks very similar to a certain wild vegetable, it's often picked and brought back by mistake. Old Tang is getting on in years; his eyesight isn't what it used to be. He's only good for spotting bun crumbs on my face..."
Bitter-pod Grass? This sounded different from what they had discussed before.
Li Qiao narrowed his eyes. "Are you trying to poison me, Sister?"
Qin Jiuye finished her neck and started on her wrists, seemingly oblivious to his shift in mood.
"Has it only been a few days, and you've already forgotten everything I taught you? Bitter-pod Grass isn't very toxic; it just tastes incredibly bitter and pungent. You're so strong; I can't let myself be at your mercy every time. For the sake of our future peaceful coexistence, I have to take these precautions. I'll give some to Jinbao later, too—I'll tell him it's an insect repellent. His constitution is quite weak; you must absolutely not target him..."
She continued her rambling as she diligently applied the pale green juice.
The emotion faded from Li Qiao's eyes, and he regained his usual composure.
"You never taught me that, Sister. If you had, I would certainly remember."
As he spoke, he inconspicuously sized up her frame and her face, which looked even more sallow due to the herbal juice. He decided her actions were somewhat reasonable.
After all, her small body didn't look like it could sustain him for more than a few feedings. If he accidentally bit her to death, wouldn't his antidote be lost as well?
As for that useless fellow who was young but already soft with laziness, sporting a little potbelly wherever he went...
Li Qiao frowned slightly in distaste. "You need not worry about others, Sister. I will not touch him."
Qin Jiuye glanced at him, seemingly seeing through his thoughts instantly. She said bluntly, "You're only being picky now because I've sacrificed myself to fill you up. If I left you hungry for a while, who knows if you'd pounce on the first person you saw..."
Before she could finish, a loud *clatter* echoed from the doorway.
Qin Jiuye turned and saw Jinbao standing by the door with a look of pure horror. The wooden washbasin he had been holding was spinning on the floor at his feet.
"You... what are you two talking about?"
Qin Jiuye snapped back to reality and instinctively stepped forward to comfort him. "Listen to me, it's not what you think..."
But it was too late.
Situ Jinbao, who had read far too many erotic novels and play scripts, had a head full of filthy nonsense. Sordid imaginings immediately nested in his heart like a flock of birds, and now they were flying out in droves, circling his none-too-bright head.
*So people in the martial world are truly this insatiable? Had his Shopkeeper and the new pretty boy already developed that kind of relationship without him noticing? And it wasn't enough to ruin one person; they might even scourge the whole neighborhood, pouncing on anyone they saw?!*
*You can know a person's face but not their heart... no, this is the heart of a beast!*
He had already forgotten his previous prejudices against the youth; all that remained was endless fear and worry. What if his Second Miss Fang visited Guoran Pharmacy again? He hadn't even declared his feelings to her yet, and he certainly wasn't prepared to engage in a life-and-death struggle with a "beast" for her sake.
After a silent internal battle, Jinbao clutched his head and stumbled away from the small kitchen, not looking back despite Qin Jiuye's shouts.
A few paces behind him, the woman who had chased him out of the kitchen suddenly stopped. She looked toward the front courtyard with a wary expression, as if only now sensing something.
It was truly an unsettling morning.
****** ****** ******
When Lu Zican walked into the backyard of Listening Wind Hall with his hands behind his back, not
