Bitter Fruit (23)
The old woman was indeed very familiar with this place.
Not only had she barely taken any wrong turns on the way here, but she also knew about the lit room not far away. It was so thoroughly concealed that most people would hardly notice it.
She must have seen it more than once during her many nighttime journeys. She already knew the place well.
The reason she had lit the lamp was simple, too. After showing him the place, she clearly had no intention of going with him, so she had given him a light before leaving.
That was thoughtful of her. Unfortunately, it seemed he had frightened her a little.
"Are you hurt?"
The old woman turned around and looked him up and down repeatedly, then let out a gasp.
Oh?
Seeing that her gaze had landed on the many wounds on his body rather than his face, Fu Qian felt a flicker of surprise.
"I'm fine. Just minor injuries."
Of course, that didn't stop him from waving a hand to show that it was nothing to worry about.
With his surgical skills and ability to recover, there were hardly any visible wounds left by now. That made the claim fairly convincing.
"That's good... Here, take this."
After hesitating briefly, the kindhearted old woman handed him the lantern, taking a few more looks at his face as she did.
"Are you... from out of town?"
The next moment, she seemed to realize something and jolted in surprise.
She really didn't recognize him?
When he'd lit the lantern, Fu Qian had worried that he might frighten the old woman. He hadn't been referring to his injuries, but to his face.
That was also why he'd slightly altered his voice at first.
His appearance was already