Exemption Bead

"Second Sis, I'm fine... What are you doing back?"

Seeing Chen Chunmiao's eyes turn red as if she were about to cry, and realizing she was about to keep lecturing him, Chen Jing hurriedly cut her off.

Usually, his second sister was an apprentice at Spring Return Hall and lived at the medicine shop. She was busy from dawn to dusk and hardly had time to come home.

She'd suddenly appeared at the door today, clearly to check on him.

The concern of his family filled Chen Jing with a natural warmth.

"You went through something so serious. Of course I had to come back!"

Chen Chunmiao wiped her eyes, then chided him, "And our eldest sister knows you were injured, too. She'll be here soon."

Chen Jing was taken aback.

"Eldest Sis is coming, too? I'm fine now. Tell her not to rush over. The troupe leader has a terrible temper and snaps at people over every little thing. It'd be awful if she took time off and got chewed out."

His eldest sister, Chen Chunhe, worked as a background performer in the opera troupe, playing minor roles like soldiers and attendants. The pay was low, the pressure was high, and even asking for a day off meant enduring a long scolding.

Of course, because this was a world that favored men over women, Chen Jing had been doted on since he was little.

And during the time he'd been unconscious after getting injured, Chen Chunhe and Chen Chunmiao had both visited him every day.

"It's fine."

Chen Chunmiao waved a hand. "Once she sees you're all right, she'll go home."

As she spoke, she seemed to remember something. She took an item from the gray cloth bundle she was holding against her chest and waved it at Chen Jing.

"Oh, right, little brother. You've only just recovered from a serious injury. Don't pull a rickshaw for a while. Stay home and rest properly. I brought you some Blood Recovery Powder. I'll boil it for you now. Drink it while it's hot later—it'll help your qi and blood recover."

"Blood Recovery Powder?"

Chen Jing hurriedly asked, "Second Sis, how did you get that?"

Blood Recovery Powder was a common formula martial artists used to replenish their qi and blood. It was expensive, and for ordinary people it was the sort of thing they could see but never afford.

The rules at Spring Return Hall were ironclad: apprentices were absolutely forbidden from taking medicine home without permission.

If caught, they'd be thrown out of the Medicine Hall at best. At worst, their hands would be broken and they'd be left to fend for themselves!

But before Chen Jing could finish, Chen Chunmiao raised a hand to stop him. "Little brother, what are you thinking? Do you think I'd steal medicine?"

She curled her lip and smiled. "These are just the scraps left over after they prepared the medicine at the Medicine Hall. I clean up the medicinal waste every day and pick out the usable bits, one by one. I've been saving them for ages... and this is all I've managed to gather."

As she spoke, she opened the cloth bundle.

Inside were tiny fragments of medicine. The largest was no bigger than a fingernail, while the smallest were like crumbled, dried tea leaves.

How many days had it taken to save enough scraps for a little bundle like this? How many times had she patiently sorted through them?

For a moment, Chen Jing felt as if something had lodged in his throat. For some reason, his eyes grew slightly hot.

After a moment, he took a deep breath and said softly, "Second Sis... thank you."

"You silly boy."

Chen Chunmiao gently tapped him on the forehead. "We're family. Why say things like that?"

Then Chen Chunmiao rolled up her sleeves and briskly poured the medicinal scraps into an old clay pot to boil. Her movements were practiced and earnest.

While Chen Chunmiao prepared the medicine, the siblings chatted on and off. The atmosphere was fairly relaxed.

Before long, a hurried knocking came from outside the courtyard.

"That must be Eldest Sis!"

Chen Chunmiao rose and went to open the door.

As soon as the door swung open, a petite girl in gray stood outside. Her features were calm and composed. It was Chen Jing's eldest sister, Chen Chunhe.

"Eldest Sis, you're here."

Chen Chunmiao greeted her first.

"Mm. You're here too, Second Sis."

Chen Chunhe nodded. After stepping inside, she immediately looked toward Chen Jing, who was by the stove boiling medicine.

"Little brother, how are you feeling?"

Her tone was unhurried, but she couldn't hide her worry.

"I'm fine now."

Chen Jing answered easily, "I just need another day or two to rest, then I can go back to work."

"Another day or two?"

Chen Chunhe frowned, her tone suddenly turning stern.

"Injuries like this are most dangerous when you push yourself too soon. And starting the day after tomorrow, you're done pulling a rickshaw."

After a pause, she continued, "Come with me to the opera troupe."

"After what happened, going back out to pull a rickshaw would be like handing your life to someone else."

Hearing this, Chen Chunmiao asked curiously, "The opera troupe? Is yours hiring?"

"Not usually."

Chen Chunhe shook her head, then added, "But I've worked there for two years. If I ask the troupe leader, I can probably get little brother in as a helper."

"...Eldest Sis, I don't want to join the opera troupe."

Chen Jing shook his head at once.

"Why not?"

Chen Chunhe's face darkened. "No! You have to come with me. Even if it's hard and tiring, at least it's safer than pulling a rickshaw."

Although Chen Chunhe sounded harsh, Chen Jing knew she was worried about him, so he explained, "Eldest Sis, I want to learn martial arts."

"Learn martial arts?"

Chen Chunhe rejected the idea almost immediately. "No! Martial arts are a path where you can barely get enough to eat. Forget whether you can make anything of yourself. If you do, you'll have to fight other people, and your enemies might come after you for revenge!"

"That's right, little brother."

Chen Chunmiao hurriedly tried to dissuade him. "You're the only son in the Chen family. If you learn martial arts and something happens to you... how are we supposed to go on?"

"I've made up my mind."

Chen Jing's voice was unwavering. "Eldest Sis, Second Sis, there's no point trying to talk me out of it. Besides, Dad agreed."

"Dad... agreed?"

Chen Chunhe was utterly stunned.

Their father, who had always been the most careful and conservative, the one most afraid of trouble befalling the family...

Had actually agreed to let little brother learn martial arts?

Chen Chunhe fell silent for a long while. Seeing the stubborn resolve in Chen Jing's eyes, she finally let out a quiet sigh, took a small purse from her clothes, and pressed it into his hand.

"Little brother, this is the money I've saved over the years. I was going to give it to you to pay the troupe leader so you could join the opera troupe."

She pushed the purse farther into his hand. "Since you're set on this, use it to learn martial arts."

Chen Jing hurriedly tried to refuse. "Eldest Sis, I have money. I really don't need—"

"Learning martial arts costs money like water, and you'll need to eat more, too."

Chen Chunhe cut him off. Afraid he might hand the money back, she quickly took Chen Chunmiao by the hand and headed outside.

"If you don't want it, then consider it a loan. If you really become a martial artist, you can pay me back then!"

By the time she finished speaking, the two sisters had already hurried out of the house.

"Eldest Sis! Second Sis..."

Watching them hurry away, Chen Jing took a deep breath and clenched the heavy purse tightly in his palm.

Just then, the warm scent of medicine drifted through the house, its bitterness touched with a hint of coolness.

At the smell, Chen Jing came to his senses and poured the Blood Recovery Powder from the pot into a bowl.

The brown medicine steamed in the bowl. Chen Jing took a deep breath, waited for it to cool a little, then tipped his head back and gulped it down.

As soon as the medicine reached his stomach, an intense heat burst through his abdomen, as if his blood had been set ablaze.

"So this... is what Blood Recovery Powder does?"

Chen Jing could clearly feel a warm current flowing along his meridians and through his entire body. Not only had his arms grown stronger, but the pain in his head had eased as well.

"Just as the name promised!"

While Chen Jing was carefully feeling the medicine's effects—

Buzz!

Chen Jing could clearly sense the Exemption Bead deep in his mind slowly lighting up as it was nourished by the medicine. It recovered by a third right before his eyes.

"This... Blood Recovery Powder can strengthen the Exemption Bead, too?"

"Looks like I can go to the martial arts school and seek a master tomorrow!"