Feed Me

"This... story is purely fictional. Any resemblance is purely coincidental," Chen Luo explained reluctantly.

Wei Yan frowned slightly. "Elegant Script bears the true meaning of the Heavenly Dao. Can fictional matters be put into writing as well?"

Chen Luo rolled his eyes inwardly. These rules were entirely some shady backroom deal between the Dream Flower Forest and the Heavenly Dao of this world—what did they have to do with him? But after a thought, he explained, "Though it speaks of things that never existed, it carries what people yearn for in their hearts. Why would the Heavenly Dao disallow it?"

Chen Luo silently added, I'm still writing The Smiling, Proud Wanderer. That's all made up too!

Wei Yan looked at Chen Luo with some surprise, then suddenly laughed. "Indeed. This old man had become fixated on appearances. Since the article has already manifested, that is the greatest reason of all."

"Young friend, I will deliver this work to the Imperial Court as soon as possible. The court will naturally grant you a reward. Allow me to thank you on behalf of the people of the Great Xuan Dynasty!"

As Wei Yan spoke, he was about to perform a salute again. Chen Luo hurriedly supported him. "Senior, there's no need for such courtesy. There is only one matter I'd like to trouble you with..."

Night had fallen. Chen Luo carefully adjusted the wick, making the candlelight a little brighter.

Wei Yan's pair of "blue-glowing eyes" stared fixedly at Chen Xuan's white pupils. The scene looked exactly like a showdown between ocular techniques from some Shadow Ninja series.

The moment Wei Yan first called him "young friend," Chen Luo had already quietly planned to take advantage of the connection and bring Chen Xuan back to have her illness treated.

Whether it could be cured or not, a Great Scholar's knowledge was still beyond anything he could compare with.

After a moment, Wei Yan knitted his brows and straightened up. Chen Luo hurried forward and asked anxiously, "Senior, can my sister's eyes still be saved?"

Wei Yan's expression was grave. "The soul-leaving method of the Thirteen Needles of the Heavenly Gate actually creates the illusion of bodily death, deceiving the soul into leaving the body. Because it causes great harm to the physical body, it results in the loss of the five senses. If it were the normal Thirteen Needles of the Heavenly Gate, consuming spiritual items that replenish essence and nourish qi would naturally allow recovery... But Miss Chen's cultivation method is likely not the complete Thirteen Needles of the Heavenly Gate, is it?"

Chen Xuan nodded. "I obtained this method from an old beggar woman. That granny had told me that this needle technique was incomplete..."

"Then is there any solution?" Chen Luo asked, growing anxious.

Wei Yan hesitated for a moment. "Barbarian Bone Pill!"

Chen Luo froze. "What is that?"

"The barbarian clans have an established system: fifty thousand Barbarian Soldiers make up one division. Every barbarian division possesses a sacred tree, called the Barbarian Bone Tree. Each year, this tree grows five new branches. These new branches are ground into powder as the main ingredient for a medicinal pill, which is called a Barbarian Bone Pill."

"This pill is a precious treasure for nurturing essence and nourishing the soul. It can treat Miss Chen's eye injury."

Chen Xuan reached out and tightly gripped Chen Luo's hand. "Xiao Luo, listen to your sister. Let's not treat it..."

Just from the introduction, Chen Luo understood how precious this thing was. Not to mention it was a treasure of the barbarians. But when he heard Chen Xuan say, "Let's not treat it," he still refused to give up and pressed, "Could the merit from my presentation of Brief Biography of Zhong Kui be exchanged for one?"

Wei Yan gave a bitter smile and shook his head. "Great Xuan has not ventured beyond the Great Wall of Righteous Qi for forty years, and there are no Barbarian Bone Pills in the national treasury. However..."

Chen Luo was about to explode. Why did this Great Scholar always talk as though every sentence came with a sneeze halfway through it?

"However what?"

"There is a Myriad Treasures Tower in the capital. Its means reach the heavens, and occasionally, Barbarian Bone Pills appear at auction."

"What is the selling price?"

"What are silver coins worth? This old man heard that, last time, one was bought with two Great Scholar's Literary Treasures."

Chen Xuan's grip on Chen Luo's hand tightened further. "Xiao Luo, listen to your sister. Let's not treat it..."

Chen Luo studied Wei Yan for a moment and asked, "Senior, you are a Great Scholar. You should have Great Scholar's Literary Treasures, right?"

Wei Yan wore an incredulous expression. Was this Little Guy thinking of fleecing this old man?

"Cough, cough..." Chen Luo realized he had been somewhat improper and hurriedly explained, "I want to purchase two or three Great Scholar's Literary Treasures from you, Senior!"

"No other meaning. I simply admire the Literary Qi of a Great Scholar."

Wei Yan snorted. "Brat, what an enormous appetite. A single Great Scholar's Literary Treasure requires a Great Scholar to painstakingly nurture it with his own Literary Qi for half a jiazi! Tell me, how many thirty-year portions of a Great Scholar can you afford to buy?"

Seeing Chen Luo's astonished, open-mouthed expression, Wei Yan inexplicably felt three parts more satisfied. Yet when he saw Chen Xuan sitting by the bedside, tightly holding Chen Luo's hand and leaning against him, he could not help remembering his elder sister, who had long since passed away. His heart softened again. With a flick of his sleeve, a half-green, half-red apricot appeared in his hand.

"This fruit grew from the Thousand-Year Apricot Tree within Wenchang Pavilion. It bears no more than a hundred fruits a year and is surrounded by Righteous Qi. Eat it, and your ears will grow sharp and your eyes clear. This old man receives only four or five each year. I will give this one to you. Though it cannot cure Miss Chen's eye injury, it will still offer some beneficial effect."

Chen Luo was overjoyed. He hurriedly received the fruit with both hands, feeling its warm smoothness as it landed in his palm. "Thank you, Senior."

"No need. Consider it this old man's personal thanks for the kindness of the book you gifted to Great Xuan." Wei Yan thought for a moment, then added, "Do not tell Tong Chen about this. That boy looks imposing and upright, but his wits are terribly small, and he loves to be jealous. He has followed me for over twenty years, yet I have never given him a single one!"

Chen Luo nodded. Wei Yan continued, "All right, everything has been explained. This old man still has official duties to attend to, so I shall take my leave. Oh, Chen boy..."

Perhaps the gift had deepened the bond between them. Wei Yan no longer called him young friend, instead using the familiar form of address for a younger generation member. "Three days from now, the Heart of Literature Choosing Master Ceremony will be held outside the city. You discovered that Heart of Literature, so you may come and observe the ceremony!"

No sooner had Wei Yan left than Chen Luo hurriedly held the apricot out before Chen Xuan. "Eat it quickly. It'll be too late if he changes his mind."

Chen Xuan smiled gently. "He is a Great Scholar. Why would he regret it? You are not allowed to speak badly of people behind their backs in the future!"

Chen Luo looked at Chen Xuan. There were only the two of them in the room now. Chen Xuan's eyes were blind, so Chen Luo had no psychological burden and stared at her openly.

"Xiao Luo!" Sensing that Chen Luo had suddenly fallen silent, Chen Xuan's brows furrowed slightly. She seemed to think Chen Luo had left.

Chen Luo hurriedly answered and changed the subject. "All right, eat the fruit first."

But Chen Xuan shook her head slightly. "You eat it."

"Huh?"

"You heard what the Great Scholar said too. This fruit has been steeped in Righteous Qi. If you eat it, perhaps you'll be able to thoroughly understand the classics? Besides, I'm already blind. The Great Scholar said it cannot be completely cured anyway, so don't waste it on me. You eat it..."

As Chen Xuan spoke, she instinctively took the fruit, wiped it against the clothes over her chest, and somehow accurately held it out to Chen Luo's mouth.

Chen Luo looked at the apricot thrust right up to his mouth and, for a moment, did not know what to say. The last person to offer him something good like this had been his maternal grandmother.

Chen Luo took Chen Xuan's hand, took the apricot from it, and held it back to Chen Xuan's mouth. "Eat it. Forget an apricot—one day, I'll definitely get you Barbarian Bone Pills!"

For the first time, Chen Xuan sensed the domineering side of her younger brother, yet warmth also filled her heart. Just as she was about to say something else, Chen Luo said, "If you won't eat it, I'll give it to Xiao Huan."

That maid really would eat it!

Helpless, Chen Xuan finally parted her cherry-red lips, faintly revealing two rows of pearly teeth.

Chen Luo froze at Chen Xuan's movement. What's going on? Does she want me to feed her?

Chen Luo gently pushed his hand forward, brushing against Chen Xuan's lips. She took a light bite, and the apricot crunched crisp and sweet.

Just then, Xiao Huan rushed in. "Young Master, Young Master, that young man you saved has gone crazy..."

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