As dusk fell, the people on the island finished their dinner and busied themselves in the courtyard when two elegant, handsome men and a small mountain emerged from the mist.
One wore green robes with white hair, the other had brown robes and phoenix eyes—undoubtedly Wei Yuzhi and Mo Sigui.
Mo Sigui was as whimsical as ever. He had firmly declared he wouldn’t come, yet in the blink of an eye, he started packing and ended up tagging along. Wei Yuzhi knew no one here would welcome him, but for the sake of curing his illness, he had no choice but to shamelessly follow.
Mo Sigui fanned himself with a folding fan. "A Jiu, I abandoned wealth and luxury to come treat you. Aren’t you touched?"
Mo Sigui was just teasing, never expecting An Jiu to suddenly stride toward him. His heart skipped a beat—not for any particular reason, but out of fear that Chu Dingjiang might later find a secluded spot to beat him up. Yet An Jiu’s fiery enthusiasm was genuinely moving...
His hands hovered uncertainly, half-extended, but An Jiu brushed past him and headed straight for the pile of packages, tearing them open without hesitation.
Everyone took a closer look and realized the "small mountain" was actually Da Jiu.
"Don’t throw that! That medicine is expensive! It’s extremely rare!" Mo Sigui abandoned all pretense of dignity, tucked his fan behind his back, and frantically began gathering the scattered medicine.
Da Jiu’s tiger eyes welled with tears, filled with regret for not following An Jiu earlier and instead being lured by Mo Sigui’s newly concocted Poison Pill.
"Mo Sigui, you’re utterly heartless. Seems like you can only bully the dumb ones now!" An Jiu freed Da Jiu before turning to coldly mock him.
The others were speechless, thinking, Is this supposed to be protection? Thankfully, Da Jiu couldn’t understand human speech.
Clutching his medicine bag, Mo Sigui defended himself, "Wei Yuzhi is seriously ill—I couldn’t possibly make him carry it!"
An Jiu scoffed. "What, are your hands too delicate? Your wife’s? You only spare them for jerking off, not for anything useful!"
"Who says I didn’t carry anything?" Mo Sigui tossed his medicine bag to the ground and undid his belt.
Ling Ziyue silently raised a hand to cover Lou Xiaowu’s eyes, though she squirmed with curiosity, trying to peek.
"Look!" Mo Sigui flung open his outer robe, revealing numerous pockets sewn inside, each stuffed with various medicines.
Zhu Pianxian spat out melon seed shells and remarked, "Miracle Doctor, we all know you always carry that much medicine on you."
Exposed, Mo Sigui glared at her.
Thud!
The moment he turned his head, a palm-sized medicine bag smacked him square on the skull.
"You’re so childish!" Mo Sigui lamented indignantly.
An Jiu strode past him, leading a now-bold and triumphant Da Jiu, who clearly felt emboldened by her support. She tossed a casual remark over her shoulder, "Hurry up and cover yourself. Don’t ruin the island’s scenery. We’ll pretend you’re still a man."
"Hey, explain yourself!" Mo Sigui retorted.
Zhu Pianxian leaned against Sheng Changying’s chest and continued the verbal assault. "Husband, you may look refined and slender, but undressed, you could easily outweigh two Miracle Doctors!"
Sheng Changying’s face flushed slightly as he turned away awkwardly. "Don’t talk nonsense."
Zhu Pianxian clung to his arm and cooed, "Don’t be upset, husband. I won’t tease anymore—you outweigh three of him!"
Chu Dingjiang had never understood why An Jiu liked Zhu Pianxian’s pretentious antics, but now it made sense. One stabbed with words, the other twisted the knife—leaving no room for survival."Arrange accommodations for Master Wei." Although Chu Dingjiang was bothered by Wei Yuzhi's arrival, he wasn't petty enough to refuse him outright—his confidence in this relationship was absolute.
Sui Yunzhu stepped forward to carry out the order. "Master Wei, please follow me."
Ling Ziyue lowered his hand, and as they passed by, Lou Xiaowu finally got a clear look at Wei Yuzhi. She couldn't help but sigh. "So handsome."
Wei Yuzhi paused slightly, tilting his head slightly to nod at Ling Ziyue and Lou Xiaowu, but otherwise showed no emotion, as if he didn’t recognize Ling Ziyue at all.
In truth, no one here held any deep-seated hatred for Wei Yuzhi—their opposition stemmed merely from differing allegiances. Among them, Li Qingzhi was the most resistant. Before Wei Yuzhi had even walked far, he turned to Chu Dingjiang and said, "Sir! Why did the Miracle Doctor save a traitor and bring him to the island?"
It wasn’t a question, but a complaint.
Chu Yuding replied, "This man served the Liao Kingdom under duress. If he can let go of the past, he would be a rare talent for the Great Song."
"But—"
Chu Dingjiang didn’t let him finish. "It all depends on whether the new Emperor has the courage for it."
After all, Wei Yuzhi had once been a trusted minister under the Liao Emperor.
If this were the Warring States period, it wouldn’t even be an issue—strategists often switched allegiances, seeking better opportunities. It was perfectly normal to weigh one’s options before making a choice. Nowadays, things were far too rigid! Chu Dingjiang grumbled inwardly.
He wouldn’t lay all the blame on Confucianism. Any school of thought from the Warring States period, if imposed as the sole governing doctrine, would have its flaws. In times of peace, Confucianism aligned with the natural order, which was why it had thrived—it was simply the choice of the times.
"Dingjiang, His Majesty has summoned you back. What are your plans?" Sheng Changying asked.
This letter couldn’t be taken lightly. Chu Dingjiang had only two options: return obediently to accept his orders, or prepare for a life on the run.
Chu Dingjiang thought to himself that the reason he had stepped back wasn’t just because he had seen through certain things—it was also because he couldn’t quite accept this era where imperial authority reigned supreme. "I’ve grown too accustomed to freedom. I don’t like groveling before others in fear. Who knows? One day, I might snap and curse the Emperor to his face. The Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods were better in that regard."
Zhu Pianxian, cradling her belly, snorted. "Exactly! When there’s more competition in business, everyone works harder to manage well, treats their employees better, and the employees serve customers with enthusiasm instead of always thinking about jumping ship. But if only one merchant controls the trade, who cares about any of that?"
"Crude words, but the reasoning isn’t crude," Chu Dingjiang remarked.
Seeing Sheng Changying nod in agreement, Zhu Pianxian pinched him. "Who’s crude?"
"Me, me. The least crude thing I’ve ever done in my life was marrying my wife." Sheng Changying had initially been a little embarrassed when spouting sweet nothings, but after realizing how much Zhu Pianxian loved it, he now delivered them effortlessly, each line more original than the last.
Chu Dingjiang was impressed, and it got him thinking.
Lost in thought, he returned to his quarters.
An Jiu was feeding Da Jiu the medicine Mo Sigui had prepared. She crouched on a chair, holding a medicinal pill in her hand, while Da Jiu lay on the ground like a dog, head tilted back, mouth gaping wide, waiting to be fed.
An Jiu took aim and flicked the pill.
It flew straight down Da Jiu’s throat.
"Oww!" Da Jiu sprang up.
Aww, aww, aww! What had it missed? What had it missed?! There was still a faint medicinal taste in its mouth, but it hadn’t gotten to savor it at all!After a moment of frantic frustration, it suddenly remembered that An Jiu still had some left and quickly obediently lay down again, tilting its head back with its mouth open. For the first time, its tiger eyes sparkled with a bright, shrewd gleam—it was determined to catch them this time. It! Must! Catch! Them!
An Jiu noticed Chu Dingjiang entering but didn't pay much attention at first. However, seeing him hesitate as if he had something important to say, she dumped a handful of medicinal pills into Da Jiu's mouth all at once.
Happiness came too suddenly. Driven by its gluttonous instincts, Da Jiu began chewing voraciously before it even had time to savor the moment. By the time the Medicine slid down its throat, turning into a warm current in its belly, the dazed tiger finally remembered it had meant to save some for careful tasting. (To be continued...)
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