Jin Huanlai, standing nearby, couldn't hold back any longer.
"Hey, you're supposed to be the master, your disciple didn't even bother to ask what happened after he didn't come back all night?"
"I'm busy."
"Busy?" Jin laughed angrily, looking at the pile of colorful bottles and jars and various herbs in front of him, and softened his tone, "I brought these people here, so you should at least consider my feelings."
Jin Yue didn't even look up: "The cult leader has quite a bit of influence."
Jin remained silent.
“If it weren’t for your sake, I wouldn’t be in such a hurry to get these things done,” Jin Yue sneered. “Don’t say another word. Once this medicine is developed, you’ll be grateful to me.”
Jin scoffed and turned to leave, but a servant came in and said, "Master, a letter from Jin Yuan."
"The Yi family again?" Jin Hailai didn't find it strange when he saw the words on the cover. After opening it and reading a few lines, he immediately frowned, said nothing, stuffed the letter into his pocket, and strode out the door.
Behind him, Jin Yue was having his servant pour medicine from the earthenware jar and feed it to a small dog curled up in a ball, shivering all over.
.
"I heard my cousin took the bounty, did he find Pei?"
The young master remained calm and said, "It accidentally fell into the garden and broke in one place. I sent someone to have Zhang Zhen repair it this morning, so it should be ready to be retrieved in a few days."
"It's good that we found it. It saves Auntie from getting angry. Zhang Zhen's skills are flawless; no one can tell the difference," Cheng Xiaolin said with a smile, relieved. "My cousin is so careless; he should have been taught a lesson long ago."
It was indeed a lesson learned; we'd have to search for jade again. The young master sighed, "You've been out for so long; your aunt and uncle must be very worried. I'll have them send you back."
Cheng Xiaolin seemed displeased: "My parents know I'm here, and my cousin always tries to send me away."
The young master smiled and said, "How could I send my sister away? In that case, please stay for lunch."
Cheng Xiaolin couldn't help but laugh and stood up: "Never mind, I know my cousin is busy with business and has a lot to do. I was just joking. How could I bother you!"
The young master was delighted: "No wonder Mother often praises my younger sister for being sensible."
Cheng Xiaolin blinked: "So Auntie mentioned me before?"
Before the young master could answer, a servant lifted the bamboo curtain and came in. He called out "Young master," but when he saw Cheng Xiaolin was also there, he immediately shut his mouth and looked embarrassed.
The young master raised an eyebrow, signaling him to continue.
The servant hesitated for a moment: "The young lady upstairs just woke up, but she won't eat anything. She only said she wanted to see you, but she fell asleep again after only a short while. Young master, look..."
It is said that those who are affected by 'Half-Moon Dew' are most prone to sleepiness. The young master was not surprised at all and waved his hand: "I'll go take a look." But his eyes were glancing at Cheng Xiaolin.
It's not surprising for a man to do these things, especially since he's not married yet and no one can control him. In any case, he will only have one lawfully wedded wife in the future. What are other women? At most, they'll be concubines. Cheng Xiaolin was raised by the matriarch of the household and knew that some things were inevitable. So she forced a smile, stood up, and said, "I'll go back now."
The young master asked with concern, "I'll have someone send my sister away."
"No need." With a perfectly measured hint of bitterness, she bit her lip and left without looking back.
.
Upon entering the south building, there is a small flower hall, with a study inside. Several servants were guarding outside the hall. The young master was not yet married and did not bring any female relatives with him when he went out, so naturally there were no maids. He was accompanied by a group of servants and pageboys. Now that there was a young lady lying in the study, it was inconvenient for them to stay inside.
Stepping into the small flower hall, the young master suddenly stopped: "Everyone, go down."
Everyone withdrew.
The young master walked slowly to the door of the study, personally lifted the curtain, and went inside.
Originally, there was only an unconscious kitten lying in the study, but now there is a man in black standing in front of the bed, bending down to lift the thick brocade quilts, intending to pick up the person on the bed.
Upon seeing him enter, the man in black showed neither surprise nor did he raise his head. He flicked his finger, and something flew out, quickly dissipating around the young master with a "poof" sound, like smoke.
The young master remained unmoved.
The man was somewhat surprised. Without thinking, he lunged forward. In the narrow space, two shadows moved silently. Only the faint sound of palm wind could be heard. In an instant, the two exchanged more than a dozen blows.
Finally, the young master raised his hand and took the blow head-on, and they both stepped back.
Dressed in black with a large cloak, he appeared quite tall. His handsome face was slightly turned to the side, with high eyebrows and a straight nose. His face had an inexplicable air of roguishness, and his bright eyes held a hint of surprise.
The young master smiled and said, "Master Jin, you have impressive skills."
His tone was gentle and friendly, but Jin Hailai never really liked this kind of polite tone, so he just hummed in greeting: "You've practiced the Heart-Clearing Technique."
The young master admitted it quite readily: "The sleeping potion has no effect on me."
"You shouldn't have such internal strength."
"It's not surprising. When I was fifteen, I received help from six elders of Shaolin Temple, who worked together to open up my Ren and Du meridians."
Once the Ren and Du meridians are opened, true qi can directly reach the dantian, saving many detours. Naturally, one can cultivate internal strength faster than ordinary people. Unfortunately, apart from natural martial arts prodigies, it is extremely dangerous for ordinary people to open the broken meridians in between. It is impossible for one person to do it alone. Even if several top masters are found to help, if their internal strength is different or their methods are different, the slightest mistake will lead to very serious consequences. At best, one will be crippled; at worst, all the meridians in the body will be broken, and the true qi will backfire, and everyone's life will be in danger. Therefore, no one in the martial arts world has ever dared to try it. Moreover, it is already difficult to find several masters with comparable internal strength and the same methods. Once found, persuading them to agree is even more difficult than climbing to the sky.
Jin Huanlai was greatly shocked. No matter how good the moves were, it was all in vain if the internal strength was too different. No wonder Yi Qinghan was able to defeat the top master of the palace at such a young age. He had risked his life to open up the Ren and Du meridians. He was truly the number one person in the martial arts world. "Back then, within just two years, four of the six elders of Shaolin died. It turned out that they were all dying because they were exhausted."
The young master remained calm: "Successfully opening up the Ren and Du meridians for someone is a pioneering act in the martial arts world, unprecedented and unparalleled. Several elders possess great internal strength, yet they have been unable to make any further progress in martial arts. Now that we can work together to create a martial arts talent, they should not feel any regret."
Jin Huanlai said calmly, "Young Master Yi is quite open-minded about them. It must have taken a lot of effort for them to help you."
“I almost lost my life back then. A person who has been through life and death will be more open-minded about everything,” the young master said without changing his expression, turning to look at the couch. “Now that Master Jin has arrived, why not take this young lady back first?”
How did she end up here?
"In my opinion, what Master Jin should be more concerned about is the 'Half-Moon Dew' that she has been exposed to."
Half-moon dew! No wonder there were no signs of poisoning! Jin was stunned for a moment, then quickly bent down to check. After a moment, he slowly picked up the person on the bed: "Thank you."
The young master smiled but said nothing.
.
A stove, an earthenware pot, porcelain bottles filled with herbs, and the room was filled with the aroma of medicine. Jin Huanlai stood expressionlessly to the side, while Jin Yue sat calmly, ignoring him, and added medicine to the earthenware pot on his own.
Half a day later, Jin came to speak: "You knew all along that she had been poisoned by 'Half-Moon Dew'."
Jin Yue ignored him.
Jin said, "You're making an antidote, aren't you? You kindly passed on your internal energy to her, but it turns out you had planned to use her as a test subject for the poison all along."
“If you want to say that, you can,” Jin Yue said without looking at him. “I’m the one who passed on her internal energy and taught her martial arts. There’s nothing wrong with me asking her for a little help.”
Jin replied coldly, "A little favor? Why don't you try it on yourself?"
Jin Yue said calmly, "Kneel down."
Jin didn't move, his fists slightly clenched, glaring at him.
Jin Yue turned his head and sneered: "What, now that you're the leader, you think you're all grown up and want to kill your master? Who saved your life? How did you acquire these skills? How did that poor boy become the leader of the Thousand Hands Sect? Without me, would you be where you are today? Who is that girl to you? What benefits did she give you that make you speak to me like this?"
A long silence followed.
Like a bucket of cold water being poured over him, all his anger and dignity vanished in an instant. Although he had already experienced Jin Yue's sharp tongue before, every word this time seemed to strike his heart heavily, leaving him feeling utterly humiliated and ashamed.
No, the little girl brought him no benefit whatsoever, and had absolutely no connection to him. She was just something he had picked up by chance. But this unrelated person was with him, at least for now.
Jin Huanlai bowed his head and knelt down: "Disciple knows his mistake, please punish me, Master."
Jin Yue raised his hand and slapped him across the face.
Jin Huanlai turned his face to the side after being hit: "This disciple can test the poison for Master."
"I have plenty of people to test poisons, why would I care about a mere girl!" Jin Yue finally lost his temper, threw down the herbs, jumped up and slapped him more than a dozen times, cursing as he hit him, "Have you been with me all these years, are you dead yet?"
His handsome face was slightly swollen, and blood seeped from the corner of his mouth.
Jin remained motionless.
Jin Yue stared at him for a while, then sat down again to organize the herbs, his tone returning to calm: "I have been skilled in making poisons all my life, but I am helpless against 'Half Moon Dew'. For many years, I have been trying to develop an antidote to prove the reputation of my Thousand Hands Sect that no poison is invincible. So that day I took some and put it in a cup, intending to find something else to try, but in the blink of an eye she drank it herself."
Jin was completely taken aback by his explanation.
Jin Yue glanced at him and said sarcastically, "I never imagined that in the eyes of the leader, my master is so despicable."
Jin Huanlai bowed his head and said, "This person was brought by your disciple. I am willing to admit my guilt and beg Master to quickly give her the antidote."
Jin Yue remained silent for a while before saying, "There's a problem with the antidote."
.
It was early summer, the sun was shining brightly, and the lotus leaves in the pond stretched out in large swaths, like small green umbrellas. Dragonflies occasionally landed on the leaves, and fish swam leisurely to and fro beneath them.
"Can I move back in?" I was delighted.
Jin didn't answer, but handed over a bowl of medicine: "Drink it."
Qiu Lingling looked at him, then obediently took the drink and finished it.
Even under the warm sun, those little hands were still icy cold. Jin remained silent for a long while, then sternly instructed, "I'm going to get the medicine. You stay here in the sun and don't fall asleep, understand?"
"Am I going to die?" she asked, grabbing his arm.
Jin was taken aback when he first heard the question.
Her large, dark eyes were unfathomable as she looked at him earnestly: "I'm sick. Will I die?"
Jin looked at her quietly for a moment, then suddenly flew into a rage: "What do you mean 'die'? Where did you learn all this nonsense from!" Pointing at the pond: "If you want to die, jump in now, and stop bringing me bad luck!"
“I can swim,” Qiu Lingling seemed relieved, hugged him and smiled, “Don’t be angry, I was just scared, I want to stay with you.”
Jin lowered her head, a hint of sadness in her eyes. She was just a little girl she had no connection with. She had never thought of keeping her by her side. But when the time came to truly part, she was still reluctant to let her go. Everything ended so unexpectedly. Look, the person who was with me had to leave in the end, and the little girl was no exception. I just didn't expect it to be in this way.
He softened his voice: "Everyone who learns kung fu is like this, it will be fine in a few days."
"Oh, I see," Qiu Lingling believed him completely, and reached out to touch his face. "Did someone hit you?"
Jin turned his face away and glared at him: "Nonsense, who dares to hit me?"
"Ah, I know, it's Master!"
"Sunbathing, no sleeping!"
.
Time flew by, and these were the busiest six days of Jin Huanlai's life. He barely slept and his temper became increasingly irritable. The mute servants in Jin Garden lived cautiously, as even the smallest things could provoke his anger.
The little girl's complexion grew worse day by day. Sometimes, seeing her extremely tired but still refusing to sleep because of his instructions, he even thought, "Forget it, there's no need to keep her any longer." But whenever those cold little hands hugged him, he wavered again and couldn't bear to let go.
"Half Moon Dew" is extremely insidious. Almost all the medicines for dispelling cold and restoring yang have been used, but the effect is minimal. What is still missing?
One day, the last day, filled with despair, he fiddled with various porcelain vases haphazardly.
“Gold, please return.”
"What are you yelling for!" Though his tone was rude, he still dropped the bottle and went over.