Chapter 4: She Understands Herbs
812 Words
After walking for less than half an hour, Rong Jiu encountered Ye Tianlin and his men again. Yes, she was lost. The memories of the original Rong Jiu showed that she rarely left home and was unfamiliar with the routes. However, Rong Jiu wasn’t going to expose her weakness. She simply lit a fire at the entrance of a tree hollow and dried her clothes, making it look as if she was merely resting.
She didn’t pay much attention to Ye Tianlin and his group as they approached. The forest was vast—so vast that they wouldn’t suspect her intention was to follow them out.
"Master, should we rest for a while? Xiao Liu is injured," Xia Mu requested.
“Alright.”
After Ye Tianlin agreed, all six men, including himself, rested in a tree hollow opposite Rong Jiu. The hollow was large, spacious enough for several grown men to sleep comfortably.
One of the men went out to gather firewood.
The fire was lit, and its glow flickered in the wind and rain.
Rong Jiu noticed that one of them was injured—it was the one called Xiao Liu. He had herbal medicine applied to his leg, and she recognized the green herb from the cliff she had climbed. It was a kind of hemostatic herb, and Ye Tianlin and his men must have been gathering it when they encountered her.
But this herb wasn’t effective enough.
“Master, the bleeding won’t stop—it’s getting worse,” Xia Mu said anxiously. He had already removed the herbs, revealing a wound that was purplish-black and still oozing dark blood. Xia Mu was startled. “Master, the beast’s claws were poisoned!”
Ye Tianlin quickly crouched down to inspect Xiao Liu’s wound, his brows furrowing tightly. He asked sharply, “Does anyone here understand herbs?”
“Master, I only know this hemostatic herb, nothing else. And this is poison—if we use the wrong medicine, Xiao Liu’s life will be in even greater danger.” Xia Mu frustratedly ran his hand through his hair, regretting that he hadn’t learned more about herbs.
The other two men also shook their heads, saying, “We don’t know.”
They knew martial arts and how to kill, but they didn’t understand medicine.
Ye Tianlin didn’t either. He was the war god of Liu’an City, praised by everyone, but he wasn’t truly a god. He was helpless when it came to poison.
The silence was suffocating.
Xiao Liu weakly smiled, his pale lips trembling. “Master, don’t worry about me. This lowly life of mine was saved by you, and living this long has already been a blessing. Even if the heavens take me back, I have no regrets.”
“Xiao Liu!” Xia Mu scolded him in a pained voice. “Don’t talk nonsense.”
Ye Tianlin remained crouched, his loneliness deepening.
Xiao Liu grasped Ye Tianlin’s hand, handing him a small box. “Master, you must take this beast pill back. It’s the old madam’s only hope.”
Ye Tianlin took the box, his grip tightening around it.
Xia Mu covered his eyes, hiding the tears at the corners.
They had traveled so many days, but it was still too late.
The poison had reached the heart—there was no way to save him.
“No matter what, we won’t let you die in a foreign land. We’ll make sure to bring you back to Liu’an City!” Xia Mu said, his voice trembling.
Xiao Liu smiled weakly, “Good.”
He had accepted his fate.
Ye Tianlin held the box tightly, the group remaining silent. Suddenly, the scent of herbs filled the air. They looked over and saw Rong Jiu applying medicine to her own wounds.
The group was momentarily stunned—how did she have herbs?!
Ye Tianlin’s eyes narrowed slightly, and he suddenly took large strides toward the tree hollow where Rong Jiu was.
Xia Mu was startled and quickly followed. “Master!”
As she slid down the cliff, Rong Jiu had sustained several scrapes and was now treating them, squeezing herbal juice onto the wounds. When she saw Ye Tianlin approaching, she coldly glanced at him, but her hands continued to work without pause.
Ye Tianlin sat down directly across from Rong Jiu, his gaze deep and thoughtful.
Rong Jiu: "..."
Rong Jiu ignored him.
The fat from the wild rabbit roasted over the fire, sizzling softly. Rong Jiu remained silent, indifferent to Xia Mu’s several attempts to speak. She simply tore off a rabbit leg and began eating, seemingly unbothered by the man sitting across from her.
After finishing one rabbit leg, Rong Jiu started on the other.
Ye Tianlin waited patiently. When she was finally done eating, he spoke, “You understand herbs.” It wasn’t a question but a statement.
- Writer
