CH 55

You have to wait for me, but don’t wait for me

Leaving the captial and heading towards the west, the chilly fall breeze of wintertime was blowing powerfully, making the dark cloak flap behind in the wind.

On the meadows, a person on horseback, covered in the bright white light of the moon, urged their horse onward despite its tiredness, the sound of the whip snapping in the air.

“Good horse, just a bit more to the resting spot, and then you can take a break,” Ming Qin comforted in a quiet voice.

It had been four days since they departed from the capital, and this was already the seventh horse she had swapped. The woman didn’t dare relax, afraid of dozing off and falling from her horse. She firmly secured herself to the saddle with a strap.

She brought out a tough and parched bun and gnawed on it. In the past, even plain pale buns without any stuffing would still have a trace of sweetness, but now she sensed nothing on her tongue. She only ate to survive, mechanically chewing and gulping down with water to aid in swallowing.

Despite this strange sensation, Ming Qin wasn’t worried or scared.

Even if the world she perceived became quiet or the food she tasted turned insipid, her determination remained unwavering.

Before departing from the capital, Ming Qin had silently slipped into Murong Yan’s sleeping quarters for one final time, silently observing the woman lying on the bed.

Murong Yan’s chest moving up and down showed that she was still alive, making it look like she was just dozing off.

Softly straightening the loose strands on the woman’s forehead, Ming Qin rolled her sleeves and knelt near the bed to put on some lipstick for her.

Devoted and calm.

The youthful shadow guard gazed fixedly at Murong Yan, wanting to imprint the picture of this graceful person onto her heart like a hot stamp. Even if she never saw her again, she could still recall that moment from her mind and easily draw it in her thoughts.

Yan Yan.

It will be alright soon.

You have to wait for me a little longer.

But also, don’t wait for me.

When you wake up, I hope to see you living without any restraint, shining under the sunlight, like vines growing rapidly and flowers blooming strongly. I hope to see the vivid and unbounded you, no longer held captive.

At that time, everyone will once again appreciate your beauty.

They will.

They definitely will.

I am sure that, after all, Yan Yan, you are so perfect.

But don’t let the robbers steal you away again, my charming and indolent yet radiant and lovely one, because I won’t be there.

If by coincidence there is someone who knows how to treasure you, value you, and respect you, just like me, don’t hesitate to receive their kindness.

Even if I am six feet under, I will pray ceaselessly to the sky, wishing for you and that person to have a joyful and satisfying life together.

A throbbing ache suddenly hit her heart.

For some strange reason, she felt the urge to smear the just-applied lipstick.

Ming Qin smiled, thinking that this sudden impulse was a bit silly.

In the end, she didn’t do anything, just gave a final long glance, resolutely turned around, and silently departed.

When Ming Qin reached Jingzhou, her first stop was the inn where she and Wang Wei had separated.

After asking the workers inside, she learned that no one could recall her or Wang Wei due to the passage of time.

However, Ming Qin wasn’t disheartened since she had predicted this result.

She persisted in asking around, moving outwards from the inn as the starting point. Even when darkness crept in, she persisted and explored the cramped and worn-down alleyways, hunting meticulously.

Even though Ming Qin put forth much effort, her search still yielded no results.

While passing by the courtyard of the Guan family, the servants were dismissive and treated her like a beggar, despite her politeness. In poor households, people mostly looked wary at the sight of a stranger and refused to listen to her.

But Ming Qin didn’t have the time to be disheartened. For six full days, she tirelessly searched for information, expanding the scope of her search each day.

“Excuse me, sir, have you seen a doctor with the last name Wang? He’s tall, in his prime, and speaks Mandarin.”

Today, Ming Qin continued to knock on the door of a luxurious mansion without giving up, but the gatekeeper inside was very rude and shouted at her to go away.

As she scratched her head, Ming Qin suddenly felt her vision becoming hazy, as if a fog had settled over her eyes and everything was about to disappear into darkness.

This was not good!

Something was wrong.

Ming Qin swiftly retrieved the wooden jar from her arms and scooped out a bit of its contents, chewing and swallowing it immediately.

But to her dismay, it didn’t work.

Her sight remained hazy.

She vigorously blinked her eyes and squeezed her nose, and while her sight was still not crystal clear, it was an improvement from before.

Just as Ming Qin was about to go to the next house, a little girl around seven years old tugged at her clothes.

“Sister, sister.”

The girl’s clothes were tattered, and she had been observing the scars on the adult’s face. Now she finally gathered up her courage to stop her and said, “Are you looking for Uncle Wang?”

Ming Qin crouched down and asked kindly, “Good girl, is the Uncle Wang you’re talking about a doctor?”

The little girl thought for a moment and said, “Even though others say that Uncle Wang is crazy and not to believe him, he healed my brother’s sickness, so I think he must be a doctor.”

Ming Qin felt hopeful after hearing the girl’s words and asked urgently, “Can you take me to find Uncle Wang? I need his help to cure someone.”

The girl hesitated and looked troubled.

Ming Qin saw her hesitation and gave her two strings of copper coins, pleading, “That sick person is very important to me. Please, I beg you.”

Looking at the coins in her hand and the sincere eyes of the woman, the girl nodded and led Ming Qin away from the busy streets.

The child walked not too slowly, skillfully turning left and right in the narrow alleys and streets, even Ming Qin, who had a great memory, was a bit confused.

After a while, the two stopped under a hill, where there were few people around, and only a crooked wooden house stood alone in the distance.

The girl looked disgusted, then let go of Ming Qin’s sleeve and pointed to the small house, “Uncle Wang lives there.”

Seeing the little girl’s peculiar expression, Ming Qin curiously asked, “What’s the matter?”

“Don’t you notice that smell?” Holding her nose, the little girl looked disgusted, “Uncle Wang’s house always has a peculiar odor, making everyone avoid it unless necessary. It’s really unpleasant. Sister, you go alone! I’m leaving!”

Ming Qin took a deep breath, not feeling anything unusual, and understood in her heart. She waved and smiled calmly at the little girl, then proceeded towards the wooden house alone.

『Knock, knock, knock』

No one answered the door.

『Knock, knock, knock』

The door was knocked again.

『Knock, knock, knock』

As Ming Qin knocked on the door for the 32nd time, it finally creaked open.

“I told you to come in by yourself! Are you deaf or something?” The old man’s gruff voice echoed through the doorway. “I’m busy with my experiments and don’t have time to open the door for every random person who knocks. Did that not occur to you?”

He wore a peculiar white coat and had beige gloves on his hands that were made of an unknown material. His hair was wild and unkempt.

If Song Shu Qing saw him, she might have exclaimed, 『Damn, this old man looks like Einstein!』

“Hmm? I was just wondering who it could be,” the short old man peered up in surprise when he saw the visitor and exclaimed, “Isn’t this Little Ming, the shadow guard?”

Wang Wei examined the young woman, who had not been seen for a long time, with a worn-out face and slight scars on her face. “Indeed, being a shadow guard is a risky profession. It’s easy to get hurt, and there’s no insurance, health insurance, or retirement benefits.”

“When shadow guards reach a certain age and are still alive, they may receive a pension and retire,” Ming Qin obediently answered, watching Wang Wei’s lips move and replying, “I’m sorry I didn’t hear you answer the door earlier. My hearing is not that great.”

“It’s still a high-risk occupation. They can even receive disability certification and still have to work. It’s exploitation! If it were me, I would undoubtedly protest,” Wang Wei muttered to himself as he removed his gloves, looking at the shadow guard for whom he still had some affection, “So, what brings you here, Little Ming?”

“Doctor Wang, I need your help. There’s someone poisoned in the capital and I need you to take a look,” Ming Qin said, but she was quickly interrupted by the old man in front of her.

“Don’t call me Doctor Wang, please!” Wang Wei’s face turned pale and he waved his hands frantically, trying to push Ming Qin out of the door. “And don’t ask me to go to the capital, that place is a dump, even dogs won’t go there!”

Ming Qin desperately clung to the door panel, explaining, “Wang… Uncle Wang, there really is someone who needs urgent medical treatment, and only you can help. Please, I beg you!”

She quickly rushed into the house before the door was closed, and knelt down in the crowded hallway with a thud.

Please consistently improve writing by replacing some words with simple creative words.

The cramped room was cluttered with bottles and jars filled with suspicious-looking herbs, leaving Ming Qin only enough room to kneel on a small patch of ground.

“Hmph, those old fogies at the Imperial Medical Academy won’t let me research this, won’t let me research that. Can you believe it?” Wang Wei crossed his arms and blew a strand of hair out of his face. “And now they send someone to beg me. I’m not going!”

“Uncle Wang, please, I’m begging you. Time is running out,” Ming Qin’s voice was sincere, with a hint of desperation. “The poison is very tricky. The doctors at the Imperial Medical Academy can’t do anything, and they say only you can help. Please come back with me!”

“You’re trying to butter me up, no way!” Wang Wei gritted his teeth as he looked at the pitiful Ming Qin in front of him. “They’re the ones who kicked me out, saying that I practice dark and unorthodox methods. A bunch of crusty fossils, they don’t know anything about science! And now they want me to go back?”

“I’m telling you, no way!” he exclaimed with anger.

“Uncle Wang.” The woman on the ground tried to kowtow, but the clutter around her hindered her, and she could only plead with a heart-wrenching tone, “Uncle Wang, I’m begging you.”

She reached out to stop the person in front of her from leaving.

“You… can’t come in, I’m going to conduct an experiment. Get out of here.” The obstinate old man hardened his heart and walked back into the house without looking back, leaving the person kneeling on the ground alone.