Frühlingsreise - Kapitel 8
"Besides bone-dissolving powder, can't you vent your anger on something else?" Tang Congrong smiled wryly. "I took some Rejuvenation Pills." Then she added, "Six of them."
Tang Congrong's niece, Hua Qianye, was born with a deficiency of vital energy, so Yang Luoxue specially concocted a Rejuvenating Pill for her. Later, seeing that Tang Congrong also had similar symptoms, she allowed Tang Congrong to take it as well. The Rejuvenating Pill's formula was strange; Hua Qianye needed to take one pill daily to get out of bed, while Tang Congrong took one pill a month. Yang Luoxue had warned against overdosing on the Rejuvenating Pill, but no one knew what would happen if overdosed.
Upon hearing this, Tang Qiefang's eyes widened. "You're only allowed one a month, and you ate six at once? Are you crazy? Are you looking for death?"
Chapter 18
"On Mount Xuyu, when the falling snow couldn't dispel the cold, they told me I could use the Rejuvenating Pill to unleash my inner strength and overcome the crisis." Tang Congrong smiled gently. "I had already planned to shoot the Snow-Slaying Crane today, and I was prepared to fall seriously ill—"
"Did he tell you that you'd sleep like a dead person after the stimulation?" Tang Qiefang gripped Tang Congrong's collar, her eyes almost glaring at his face. "You heartless wretch, why didn't you tell me first? Do you know I almost died three years too soon? You've made this old man age prematurely, his hair turning gray early—"
He was about to continue when Tang Congrong raised a finger and touched his lips. "That's enough. I know you're happy I'm alright, but you don't have to be so nagging."
The fingers, devoid of any warmth, felt like a block of ice placed between her lips. Tang Qiefang suddenly had an extremely absurd thought.
If you hold it in your mouth, will it melt like ice?
Ugh, ugh, I'm so anxious, I'm really so anxious I'm dizzy.
The gentle spring sunlight shone on Tang Congrong's face, her smile warm and her skin like jade. Having obtained the Cloud Barrier, shot the Snow Screen Crane, issued the Clan Head's Order, and discovered the crucial use of the Rejuvenation Pill—in this gamble, he had won big, a sure-fire victory.
Roses were in full bloom in the courtyard, and locust trees were sprouting new green leaves. The fewer people there were, the more lush the flowers and trees became. Tang Congrong reached out and picked a leaf, her smile undiminished. "Qiefang, look, this tree wasn't even as tall as you back then."
Yes, that tree was as tall as Tang Congrong back then, but Tang Congrong was always half a head shorter than him.
This gap of half a head, even after twelve years, has not been bridged. With a slight lowering of his brow, he could see Tang Congrong's gentle and graceful face.
Such a discovery inexplicably brought a gentle joy. Tang Qiefang gracefully swung up the tree and sat down on a forked branch. Her gorgeous clothes fluttered in the wind, and her pearl crown shone alluringly in the spring sun. The brilliance in her eyes was no less than that of pearls. She nodded her chin and said, "Come up!"
Tang Congrong landed lightly on a branch opposite him and smiled slightly. "I never thought that the boy with a bruised and swollen face and snotty nose back then would become the most flamboyant and showy man in the world today."
"Tch, look at my outstanding demeanor, you're not convinced?" Tang Qiefang was dissatisfied with her past image being smeared. "If I hadn't fought with my father back then, would I have come into this haunted house? If I hadn't come, I'm afraid Tang Congrong would no longer exist in this world."
Yes, he secretly practiced the Flower Rain Needle technique in this uninhabited courtyard. His small body was not enough to resist the cold air on the needles, and he was frozen stiff on the first day.
If Tang Qiefang hadn't argued and fought with her father that night, if Tang Qiefang hadn't run into that courtyard... the next day, people would probably have seen the young master's frozen corpse.
Fate is fate because it is irreversible. Tang Qiefang entered the courtyard, saw Tang Congrong, and saved him.
At the time, Tang Qiefang didn't know he was saving the future head of the family. His attempt to transfer his inner energy was ineffective. He considered starting a fire, but the light would attract others, and he didn't want his father to find him. After thinking for a moment, he took off their outer robes and embraced him.
Sometimes I would climb into bed and sleep with my mother, and she would hold me like that.
That kind of warmth can warm everything up, right?
Chapter 19
The boy's body was so cold, like an ice cube, that Qie Fang shivered involuntarily. Was it his resentment towards his father that sustained him through that night? Or was it the boy's gradually warming body, the feeling of him snuggling closer?
It looks a lot like a frozen cat.
With these thoughts in mind, ten-year-old Tang Qiefang slowly fell asleep.
When the two woke up in the morning, it took them quite a while to remember why they were sleeping in this place. Then, it all started with exchanging names.
The boy said, "Tang Congrong."
Tang Qiefang was taken aback, "Young Master?!"
The seven-year-old young master was the apple of the family mistress's eye, raised like a girl in seclusion. Mischievous and unruly boys like Tang Qiefang had even less chance to see him.
"I'm not the head of the family!" Xiao Congrong suddenly exclaimed, her voice shrill. Only after shouting did she remember that this person was her savior, and her voice lowered, "What's your name?"
"Tang Qiefang".
"Uncle?!" This time it was Tang Congrong's turn to be surprised.
"Don't call me Uncle!" Tang Qiefang clenched her fist. "I'm not that old."
And so, the agreement was reached.
You are not allowed to call me Uncle, and I will not call you Master.
If you don't call me head of the family, I won't call you uncle.
It's been a long, long time, but I can still almost hear the clear, childlike voices, and under the pale spring sun, I can almost see those two small figures.
The two sitting on the tree branch smiled at each other. Without saying a word, they both knew what the other was thinking. Tang Congrong smiled slightly and said, "Your eyes were bruised and swollen back then..." Before she could finish speaking, she suddenly fell forward.
Tang Qiefang reflexively grabbed one of his arms. "Tang Congrong! What tricks are you playing?"
He was suspended in mid-air with his eyes closed.
He fell into the same deep sleep as before.
The consequences of overdosing on Huichun Pills are far more complex than Tang Congrong imagined.
Tang Congrong could fall into a brief coma at any time. Tang Qiefang didn't know when he would fall asleep or when he would wake up.
After shooting down the Snow Screen Crane, the Elders' Council will formally concentrate its power in the hands of the family head. Tang Congrong will have to personally handle all matters, big and small, and can no longer stay in the Listening Water Pavilion as before.
This makes it difficult to keep Tang Congrong's secret of intermittent unconsciousness, and it will inevitably arouse suspicion from everyone.
After Tang Congrong woke up from another deep sleep, the two came up with a plan.
I will temporarily leave the Tang Clan.
"As for the excuse, it's very simple," Tang Qiefang said. "Before you officially take over the Tang Clan, go and learn about the Tang Clan's herb gardens and equipment workshops in various places."