"You clearly resorted to deceit—this victory is dishonorable!" Hua Fuhai’s servant flushed crimson with anger, his eyes burning with anxiety.
It seemed the Bone Shedding Pill was as crucial to Hua Fuhai as it was to her.
"This is called 'all warfare is based on deception,'" Zhenzhu retorted righteously. "The Hua family of Taoyi, with their immense wealth, must have engaged in numerous conflicts. Surely they’ve employed tricks before?"
"We... we..." The servant stammered, unable to refute—of course they had. "But..."
"Step back," Hua Fuhai chided softly, then turned calmly to Shen Xihe. "I concede defeat. Since the Bone Shedding Pill belongs to you, may I request a copy of its prescription?"
"By all means, Hua Taoyi," Shen Xihe handed him the notebook.
Hua Fuhai had his servant grind ink in the elegant chamber and copied the prescription before returning the notebook to Shen Xihe. He then bid farewell to Old Man with White Hair.
Shen Xihe watched the master and servant depart before taking her leave as well. Old Man with White Hair did not detain her. She left the notebook with Zhenzhu, who had two months to study under the old man—how much she could grasp depended on her efforts.
Zhenzhu was reluctant to see Shen Xihe go but understood that the Bone Shedding Pill hadn’t been thoroughly tested and might not be entirely reliable. Shen Xihe needed her to learn more medical principles.
Upon returning to the inn, Shen Xihe sent for Xie Yunhuai.
"Moyu, send word to Brother to inquire if anyone has seen a century-old Golden Eagle," Shen Xihe instructed, then added, "Tell him we only need information—no risks."
This Hua Fuhai was a capable man; earning his favor was worthwhile.
The northwestern deserts housed many Golden Eagles, but in Shen Xihe’s memory, the longest-lived one she’d heard of was only eighty years old.
"Understood."
Shortly after Moyu left, Xie Yunhuai arrived. Shen Xihe pushed the Bone Shedding Pill toward him. "Give this to Doctor Qi."
Even after revealing their identities, Shen Xihe still addressed Xie Yunhuai as Doctor Qi, as he had renounced being a son of the Xie family.
Xie Yunhuai opened the medicine box, and a refreshing herbal aroma wafted out. After a single glance, he closed the lid. "Your Highness, this is exceedingly precious..."
"No matter how precious, it is not worth more than my life," Shen Xihe replied with a faint smile. "The old man doesn’t know how to consume it either. I cannot stay here long, and he won’t accompany me. There’s no need for alarm, Doctor Qi. You verify the medicine for me, and I give you the prescription—we are even."
After a pause, she continued, "However, I must trouble you to accompany me to the capital. If you prefer not to enter the city, you may reside in the suburbs."
"I am honored by Your Highness’s trust and will spare no effort to aid your recovery," Xie Yunhuai clasped his hands in salute.
Precious herbs, prescriptions, and ancient medical texts were invaluable to a physician. Xie Yunhuai agreed to Shen Xihe’s proposal, arranging to stay outside the capital upon their arrival.
After a brief conversation with Xie Yunhuai, Moyu returned with Old Man with White Hair’s elderly servant, who silently returned the Fairy Ribbon to Shen Xihe.
"Your Highness, what shall we do with this?" Moyu asked.
They had exchanged this item with Old Man with White Hair for the Bone Shedding Pill, assuming he needed it. It turned out he merely wanted to see it.
In his youth, Old Man with White Hair had been obsessed with rare and incurable diseases, traveling thousands of miles upon hearing of peculiar ailments. When confronted with a challenging condition, he would even forget sleep and food in his relentless research.Later, because he traveled thousands of miles without notice to treat others, his wife had to watch helplessly as her parents died from severe injuries without timely treatment. Resenting him, she divorced him and never interacted with him again.
Afterward, she never remarried, and no matter how he tried to win her back, she could never overcome the emotional barrier in her heart.
Subsequently, in an attempt to save his wife’s nephew, he personally tasted a poisonous substance and turned white-haired overnight. Only then did his wife give him a painting—the Fairy Ribbon that had been shown earlier to Shen Xihe and the others.
She told him that if he ever found this object, it would be a sign from heaven that she had forgiven him, and they could renew their relationship. Unfortunately, after ten years, his wife passed away before he could find it.
He wished to be buried with her and had never given up searching all these years. Now that he had finally found it, his mind was at ease.
He did not know what use the Fairy Ribbon had and dared not recklessly bring it into the tomb he shared with his wife. Destroying it would be a pity, and his wife had only wanted to know that such an object existed in the world. With that goal achieved, after careful consideration, he decided to return it to Shen Xihe.
He did not care who originally owned the Fairy Ribbon; he only knew who had brought it to him, so he sent it to Shen Xihe.
Shen Xihe’s fingertips brushed over the green ribbon of the Fairy Ribbon. Though she liked it very much, she still decided to return it to Hua Fuhai.
“Find out where Hua Taoyi is staying and return it to its original owner.”
Moyu then inquired about Hua Fuhai’s residence from Old Man with White Hair’s servant and personally delivered it there.
To Shen Xihe’s surprise, Moyu not only brought back the Fairy Ribbon but also one of Hua Fuhai’s servants.
The servant spoke respectfully, “Miss Shen, my master said that since this object descended from the heavens into your hands, it must be fate. He gifts it to you. Please do not refuse. This object holds no other use for my master. If you feel uncomfortable accepting it, perhaps you could pay more attention in the future to the ingredients of the Bone Shedding Pill, treating this as an advance token of gratitude.”
A gift of gratitude for her?
Shen Xihe inwardly scoffed. This was clearly a preemptive move to block her from asking him for favors later.
She had the prescription for the Bone Shedding Pill and knew exactly what Hua Fuhai lacked. Given Hua Fuhai’s immense wealth and extensive connections, he was likely afraid that one day she might encounter difficulties and, upon learning what ingredients he needed, use that information to strike a deal with him.
Now, with the gift of the Fairy Ribbon given in advance, even if she later obtained such information, she would find it hard to demand repayment.
And she would feel too embarrassed to withhold the information if she knew it.
“Please convey my thanks to Hua Taoyi,” Shen Xihe accepted the gift.
She had always liked the object, but even if she hadn’t, Hua Fuhai’s attitude made it clear that returning it now would only make him wary of her. Why bother?
When Hua Fuhai’s servant returned to the estate with Shen Xihe’s message, Hua Fuhai was standing by the window, a black chess piece—the one retrieved from Old Man with White Hair—pinned between his fingers. The smooth piece twirled under his touch.
“Master, why did you gift this to Zhaoning County Princess? It holds no use for her. Wouldn’t it be better to give it to the old madam? It is, after all, a rare flower and herb recorded in the ‘Classic of Mountains and Seas,’” the servant ventured after delivering Shen Xihe’s words.
He had sensed Shen Xihe’s reaction earlier; it was clear she had misunderstood his master’s intention in gifting the Fairy Ribbon.
“A object resembling a love knot, gifted to my grandmother?” Hua Fuhai’s silver-glinted eyes swept over his subordinate. “What does a love knot symbolize?”
A love knot…Meaning: Eternal unity of hearts.
It is also a wedding item.
"Master, you..." The servant's brow twitched.
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