Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
In this world, different people had different social statuses.
Some people held a high position. They thought they were aristocrats and looked down upon everyone else. They thought they could do anything they wanted. Some of them did, in fact, have significant power and affected other peopleâs lives.
Some of them just did whatever they wanted.
If what Wang Yao had experienced had happened to a common person, the person would probably be jailed for something he hadnât done. His life would be ruined.
Sometimes it was not very difficult to destroy someone.
Wang Yao was disgusted about those who tended to destroy another personâs life without a second thought.
Ji City?
Wang Yao squinted his eyes.
Sooner or later Iâll get pay back.
It started to snow in the afternoon. It was the first snowy day of the winter.
The temperature was actually not very low.
The snowflakes turned into water when they touched the earth.
âItâs snowing! San Xian! Itâs snowing!â Wang Yao stood on the top of the hill and looked at the snowflakes.
San Xian was standing next to him. It was a dog with a lionâs spirit.
So quiet!
Wang Yao could even hear the sound of snowflakes touching the ground.
No one will come to the clinic in this kind of weather.
Wang Yao decided to stay on the hill to read a book and appreciate the snow.
The snow hadnât stopped. The snowflakes dropped slowly, like in a slow motion scene.
It was also quiet in the village.
Moo! The cows made sounds.
They were making sounds and eating grass.
A taxi came into the village.
âIs this the place?â asked the taxi driver.
âYes, thank you,â said the passenger.
A woman in good spirits got out of the taxi. She carried some stuff in her hands.
The village was very quiet.
Chen Ying found Wang Yaoâs house according to the address given by Chen Boyuan.
It was an ordinary house with light blue doors. She knocked at the door before entering the courtyard. There was a pile of coal in the courtyard. It was a four-bedroom, tile-roofed house. An old house.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
âHello, who are you looking for?â asked Zhang Xiuying.
âHello, Maâam, may I ask if Wang Yao â or, rather, Mr. Wang lives here?â asked Chen Ying.
âMr. Wang?â Zhang Xiuying was surprised. It was the first time for her to hear someone call her son Mr. Wang. The young woman was very pretty, almost as pretty as Tong Wei.
âYes,â said Zhang Xiuying. âYou are looking for Yao? This is his home. Iâm his mother.â
âMaâam, my name is Chen Ying. I come from Beijing. I would like to meet with Mr. Wang,â said Chen Ying. âAnd this is a gift for you.â
âThank you, you donât need to bring anything for us when you visit. Yao is on the hill. Iâll call him,â said Zhang Xiuying.
âWell, maâam, you donât need to call him. I can find him on the hill. Is that okay?â asked Chen Ying.
âOf course,â said Zhang Xiuying with a smile.
âThank you,â said Chen Ying.
After locating Nanshan Hill, Chen Ying walked towards it by herself.
It was still snowing, but very slowly. It seemed that the snow was about to stop.
It was not difficult to locate Nanshan Hill. Chen Ying just needed to follow the uneven path all the way to the south. She would be able to see Nanshan Hill after passing two hills.
The path was very unsteady.
What is that?!
Chen Ying suddenly stopped.
How could that be possible?
Surrounded by deserted hills, Nanshan Hill was covered by green trees and plants. Everything around it was dark and yellow.
It was winter and this was north of China.
Nanshan Hill was obviously not normal.
. . .
Wang Yao was still up on the hill.
Someoneâs coming?!
He could see a person approaching Nanshan Hill from distance.
Who would come in such kind of weather at this time of the day?
Chen Ying followed the narrow path on the hill and soon reached the Spirit Gathering Battle Array.
The trees were moving, as if she had double vision. The moving trees made her dizzy.
What is going on here?!
A Battle Array!
She thought about such an unusual possibility.
Iâve heard about it before. How could it appear here?
She wanted to enter the battle array, but she couldnât find the entrance.
âDr. Wang! Itâs Chen Ying!â shouted Chen Ying.
Chen Ying? How come she is here?
âSan Xian, bring her in,â said Wang Yao.
Chen Ying guessed Wang Yao had heard her, so she stopped worrying and waited outside. A moment later, a dog the size of cattle came out. The dog had bright eyes. It looked quite intelligent.
Woof! Woof!
San Xian barked at Chen Ying twice, then turned around.
What does it mean?
Suddenly Chen Ying realized that the dog wanted her to follow it.
So, she followed the dog. The trees were no longer moving as fast. She was no longer dizzy.
How amazing!
âWhat brings you here?â asked Wang Yao as soon as he saw Chen Ying.
Wang Yaoâs voice brought Chen Ying back to reality. Now she could have a good look at the place.
There was an herbal field, a cottage, and a man.
That was all.
It looked simple, but it was extraordinary.
The place was bright and alive. All the herbs were growing very well. In addition, she felt at ease here. She started to have such a feeling on her way to Nanshan. The closer she was to Nanshan, the stronger the feeling was. She felt the air was so fresh and moist outside the battle array. It was cold and bleak outside, but nice and warm inside. The place was totally against nature.
What a paradise! thought Chen Ying suddenly.
âHello, sir!â
Chen Ying greeted Wang Yao.
âPlease come in.â Wang Yao invited Chen Ying into the cottage. âLet me make you a cup of tea.â
âThank you.â Chen Ying looked around.
The cottage contained two rooms. There were a bed, several wooden chairs and a few books inside the cottage. It was simple, but not shabby.
The cottage made her think of a book called An Epigraph in Praise of My Humble Home.
The tea smelled nice.
âMs Song sent me here to ask you when you will be available to visit Beijing again,â said Chen Ying.
âI see. Is Miss Su much better?â asked Wang Yao.
âYes, sheâs much better,â said Chen Ying.
âHow about your brother?â asked Wang Yao.
âHeâs also better. But he has relapsed recently,â said Chen Ying.
âI see. Donât worry. Iâve been reading some medical books lately and Iâve had a few thoughts about how to treat your brother. I will go to Beijing in near future. I will try to cure Miss Su and your brother. Just give me some time,â said Wang Yao.
He did have plans to visit Beijing, but had been delayed by recent events.
âYour herbal field is amazing!â praised Chen Ying.
Wang Yao smiled.
His herbal field didnât look distinguished in spring and summer. However, it looked so different in winter, like an oasis in the middle of the desert.
Wang Yao chatted with Chen Ying until lunch time.
âLetâs go, Iâll buy you lunch,â said Wang Yao with a smile.
âIt might not be appropriate,â said Chen Ying.
âWhy not? You are my guest. My treat, letâs go,â said Wang Yao.
They went to a restaurant in the village next door. Wang Yao ordered the same dishes, mainly food from the hills. These food were also available in Beijing, but it tasted different here.
He ordered some wild fungus, which were picked and dried in summer, wild chicken from the hill, and wild vegetables with nuts.
âWow, so delicious!â Chen Ying enjoyed the meal. The dishes did taste different from the ones in Beijing.
âHow long are you going to stay here for?â asked Wang Yao.
âJust a few days. I have to go back soon,â said Chen Ying. She just came talk to Wang Yao to make sure he hadnât forgotten about Su Xiaoxue and about her own brother. She wanted to know Wang Yaoâs plan to visit Beijing and maintain a good relationship with him. It was nothing too complicated.
âI see. If youâd like, I can show you around in the afternoon,â said Wang Yao.
âOkay,â said Chen Ying.
âGood,â said Wang Yao with a smile.
Lianshan County was full of small hills. Only the southeastern part of Lianshan was remotely flat. The view was good. People from Dao City and Ji City often visited Lianshan during the holidays.
After lunch, Wang Yao called his parents before driving Chen Ying to Jiulian Hill.
Lianshan County was named after Jiulian Hill. Although Jiulian Hill was not very big, the view was pretty good. There were not many flowers and plants on Jiulian Hill. However, there were a lot of strange-looking trees and rocks on the hill.
There were not many people on the hill during winter. They only saw a handful of visitors.
Chen Ying was not busy, but she didnât get many chances to leave Beijing. Therefore, it made her happy just to see several small hills.
The two of them were chatting and walking around the whole afternoon.
Chen Ying had a lot of questions, especially about Nanshan Hill. However, she didnât ask.
In the evening, Wang Yao drove her to the town center. Chen Ying checked in at the best hotel in town.
They had dishes in hot pot for dinner, nice and warm.
Then, Wang Yao drove back to the village.
Wang Yao was an amazing person. He was capable but so easy-going.
This was how Chen Ying thought about Wang Yao after knowing him for quite some time.
Wang Yao would treat any decent person sincerely.
The night was quiet and peaceful.
The next morning, Chen Ying visited Wang Family Village again. She happened to see the construction site and vehicles with license plates from Dao City.
Dao City? wondered Chen Ying.
Wang Yao was treating Sun Yunsheng in the clinic.
He gave him the decoction as well as Qi therapy.
The two therapy methods worked well together.
After several treatment sessions, Wang Yao found that this treatment method was very effective. However, Sun Yunshengâs corporeity was severely damaged. The damage was everywhere in his body.
Maybe I should give him the Regather Soup, thought Wang Yao.
When he was still treating Sun Yunsheng, someone knocked at the front door.
âPlease come in,â said Wang Yao.
His was not loud, but his voice went all the way through the door.
Crackle! Chen Ying pushed the door open and walked into the clinic.
What a nice courtyard! What a nice building!
There were dropped leaves on the ground and some of the leaves on the trees had turned yellow. However, majority of the trees were still covered by green leaves. The temperature in the courtyard was significantly different from outside.
Two different worlds divided by one wall.
How amazing it was!
âHello, Mr. Wang?â asked Chen Ying.
âJust one second.â Wang Yaoâs voice came out of the room. Chen Ying didnât enter the building. She just wandered in the courtyard.
There were trees, bamboo, grass, and...grapes?
Grapes were not supposed to grow in winter, yet it was still bearing fruits.
This was so against nature!
âWell, the treatment session for today is over. Iâll give you another decoction next time,â said Wang Yao to Sun Zhengrong and his son after he had finished the treatment.
âOkay, thank you,â said Sun Zhengrong.
He and his son came out of the room and bumped into Chen Ying in the courtyard.
âWhat?!â Sun Zhengrong was surprised. âChen Ying?â
âUncle Sun?!â said Chen Ying with surprise.