The young man's house was built at the bottom of a cliff full of withered trees. The white snow around the house had not completely melted, and the outer circle was surrounded by a simple fence made of branches. The inside of the fence showed signs of being plowed, but in this weather, it was hard to tell what had been planted.
Li Yue jumped out of the carriage, and Tie Chuanjia helped the old doctor.
She did not follow the old doctor and the young man into the house. Instead, she stood outside and waited.
The cold wind was blowing at the bottom of the cliff, and Tie Chuanjia stood over to block most of the cold wind for the little girl.
Li Yue smiled at Tie Chuanjia and tightened her cloak around her body. Her eyes turned and moved to the main body of the house.
The house was made of wooden planks, and the roof was covered with thatch. It was not covered with frost, and it was obvious that someone had cleaned it.
The window was an old sliding door, and because there was a patient in the house, it was not opened. The paper pasted on the window was old and yellow, but it was neat and did not show any signs of damage.
It had clearly snowed a few times during the Spring Festival, but now there were signs of snow falling again.
Li Yue breathed into her hands and watched the young man busily going in and out. When he came out with a big basin of water, she saw the tears in the young man's eyes.
Li Yue did not see the old doctor come out, so she guessed that he was still in the house performing acupuncture on the patient. She nodded slightly at Tie Chuanjia and followed behind the young man.
The young man went to the well not far away to fetch water. Because he was still small, he could only carry small buckets of water each time. When the basin was full, he put down the wooden bucket and put his hands on the well to support himself with his head lowered.
Although the sound was very soft, Li Yue could still hear the young man's sobbing. That sound made her heart inexplicably tighten. She hesitated for a moment, but still moved to the young man's side and gently patted his back.
"That … the old doctor hasn't come out yet. The situation might not be that bad … Then, you … forget it."
The one who was sick in the house was definitely a close relative of the boy, and the situation was very critical.
So far, Li Yue had only worried about the drunk Li Xunhuan. She had never faced the situation of a family member who was seriously ill. She knew that it was useless to say anything at this moment. She just stood silently beside the young man and observed the movements in the cabin on his behalf.
Although the Spring Festival had passed, there were still no signs of spring. The sky was already covered by the darkness of night. Thick clouds covered the stars and the moon in the night sky. In the vast wilderness, there was only a faint flickering light in the wooden house. It was like a candle that had burned to the end and could be extinguished at any time.
Li Yue and the young man fetched water and boiled water outside the house, doing some work that they could.
When the doctor gave no orders, they sat together on the shafts of the cart and waited.
The snow was getting heavier. Tie Chuanjia was worried about the two children standing in the cold wind and advised them to go into the carriage to avoid the cold. Just as Li Yue was about to persuade the young man, the old doctor pushed open the wooden door and came out.
The old doctor's expression was very calm. There was no joy for the timely rescue of the patient, nor was there any pity for the patient's helplessness. He didn't say anything and just motioned for the boy to enter the house.
The door closed again. The old doctor carried the medicine box into the carriage and massaged his old arms and legs. Suddenly, he asked Li Yue:
"Aren't you curious?"
Li Yue nodded and then shook her head:
"Old man, you are a good doctor."
The old doctor laughed. It was unknown whether he was laughing at himself or at Li Yue. After a long while, he touched Li Yue's head and sighed:
"Little girl, don't be too stubborn and straightforward. Don't think too much and don't be too stubborn. You still have a long way to go. There is no hurdle that you can't cross. If you really can't cross it, then the time has come."
Li Yue wanted to refute the old doctor's idea, but she didn't say anything in the end. She just nodded silently. She knew that the old doctor was talking to her, but more importantly, he was referring to the patient in the house.
The patient in the house didn't have any other illness. It was the most difficult heart disease in the world.
Since it was a heart disease, no matter how skilled a doctor was, he couldn't intervene.
At this time, they probably wouldn't be able to return to Shuo Zhou City. The weather was getting worse and worse. The wooden house was so small that it definitely couldn't fit five people, even if two of them were children.
Tie Chuanjia had always been rich in life experience. Just as he was about to drive the old and the young to a shelter to rest for the night, the door of the wooden house creaked open. The young man walked out of the house to the side of the carriage and reached out to lift the curtain:
"Li Yue, my mother … she wants to see you."
The little girl froze for a few seconds, then quickly jumped down from the carriage. The young man walked with her to the side of the wooden house, but he didn't go in with her. Instead, he stood guard outside and carefully closed the door.
Inside the house, there was a woman wearing a plain white dress. She was quietly examining Li Yue.
Li Yue and the people of the same age in her world had all heard of Bai Feifei's name. However, most of them had heard of her from TV series, and a few of them had heard of her from novels.
Li Yue was the former. At this moment, the woman in front of her didn't look like the actress in the TV series. However, she clearly knew that this was Bai Feifei.
Even though she was a mother, a patient with a pale face and pale lips, Bai Feifei still looked graceful and graceful. She was like a delicate and moving young girl who was like a water lotus flower.
The corners of her eyes, eyebrows, and facial features were all exquisite and gentle. However, the light in her eyes was cold. Her heart was also hard and cold.
Li Yue wanted to find something to say to break this uneasy silence. She opened her mouth, but didn't know what to say. Instead, it was Bai Feifei who spoke first:
"Hoodlum told me that you were the one who invited the doctor."
Bai Feifei's tone was extremely calm. She wasn't asking Li Yue, but simply stating the facts.
Li Yue knew that Bai Feifei and her son didn't like to owe others favors. She was worried that Hoodlum would be punished by Bai Feifei because of this. She also didn't want Bai Feifei to be overly worried despite her illness. She could only think of a way to explain:
"Yes, but … uh, Hoodlum also … helped me a lot before. This time … I'm just returning the favor. Even if he owes me, it's only money. Anyway, he's still young, and so am I. The money … will be paid off eventually."
As she spoke, Li Yue didn't know what she wanted to say. Bai Feifei had been in the underworld for many years. She had eaten more salt than rice. Lying in front of Bai Feifei was obviously not a wise choice.
Li Yue's voice became lower and lower. Bai Feifei didn't interrupt her. When she finally stopped, Bai Feifei suddenly asked a question that had nothing to do with the current situation:
"What about your parents?"
"They're not in this world anymore. But later on, I met Uncle Li. That is, Li Fei Dao. Later on, I went to Shuo Province and happened to meet Hoodlum. So I really … um … helped out."
Helped out?
Just purely to help out?
A long time ago, someone had said something similar to Bai Feifei. But whether it was that person or whoever it was, their figure gradually faded away in Bai Feifei's memory. She took something out of her sleeve. Her eyes flashed with an imperceptible trace of nostalgia.
Bai Feifei didn't pause. She directly handed it to Li Yue. Li Yue took it in her hand and realized that it was a jade pendant.
The jade pendant was top-grade mutton fat jade. It was warm and delicate to the touch. In addition to the excellent material, it couldn't be separated from the touch of a person.
The front of the jade pendant was engraved with the word "Shen". The back was engraved with a strange pattern that Li Yue had never seen before.
Li Yue looked at the word and couldn't speak. Her heart was filled with a series of exclamations and questions.
Bai Feifei looked at the little girl's hand, which was whiter than mutton fat jade. She slightly closed her eyes and opened them again:
"I don't like to owe people anything. I also don't want my son to owe people anything.
So, this jade pendant is for you. You can pawn it. This jade pendant is enough to pay for your doctor's expenses. Also, I'll tell you one thing. You have to remember to tell Li Xunhuan, never, ever, go to the desert. Stay away from a woman named Shi Guanyin. "
Bai Feifei always spoke in a flat and straightforward manner. But these words set off stormy waves in Li Yue's heart. Especially the last three words, which made her directly suck in a breath of cold air.
Bai Feifei noticed the change in the little girl's emotions. Her expression was indifferent and her voice was cold:
"You seem to have heard of Shi Guanyin and know what fear is. That's good.
If you know fear, you won't cause big trouble.
Most of the people who cause trouble don't know what fear is. "
As she spoke, Bai Feifei's gaze slightly shifted. She looked at the little girl's clear eyes and seemed to think of someone. Her expression was slightly complicated, but she didn't dwell on it. Instead, she ordered Li Yue to leave.
Li Yue still had a lot of questions in her heart, but she knew that Bai Feifei didn't want her to be too entangled with Hoodlum. Strictly speaking, Bai Feifei didn't want anyone to be entangled with her and her son.
Li Yue didn't want to owe Bai Feifei and her son a favor, and she also didn't want Bai Feifei and her son to owe her a favor. She could only suppress the doubts in her heart and wait to go back and ask Li Xunhuan.
When the little girl came out of the room, the youth and the Bearded Man were still standing in their original positions. There was a lot of snow on their bodies, and they didn't look like living people. Instead, they looked like statues.
Li Yue went out and nodded at Hoodlum. Without hesitation, she stepped onto the shaft of the carriage. Before she entered the carriage, Hoodlum opened its mouth and stopped her.
"I will definitely do what I said."
"Okay, I know."
Li Yue smiled and sat in the carriage and waved at Hoodlum.
"The doctor left the pharmacy to you. Take good care of your mother."
Hoodlum didn't reply. It just pursed its lips and stood in place.