Zhongnan Mountain, Clear Spring Retreat.
Following Luo Qingge's directions, Lu Changfeng passed through a quiet bamboo grove, and the view suddenly opened before him.
Beside a jade-green pool fed by a clear spring, several houses with whitewashed walls and dark roof tiles stood against the mountainside. Lush wisteria trailed from their eaves, lending the place a serenity that seemed beyond the mortal world.
He gently laid Luo Qingge on a bamboo couch covered with a soft brocade mattress in an inner room.
"Rest for now. I'll see if there are any suitable herbs nearby." Lu Changfeng checked her pulse. Though the Gu Poison had been cleared, her blood and vital energy were depleted, and her spirit had suffered a shock. She truly needed time to recover.
He rose and briefly explored the retreat, unexpectedly discovering a small, carefully tended herb garden behind the house. There were no rare specimens, but common herbs for calming the mind-mint, poria, silktree bark, and night-crossing vine-were flourishing. He gathered a few, returned to the little kitchen, found an earthenware pot, and deftly lit a fire to brew the medicine.
The fragrance of herbs mingled with the scent of burning wood, spreading through the quiet mountain courtyard.
Luo Qingge lay on her side beneath a soft, light quilt, her gaze following Lu Changfeng as he worked in the outer room. Watching him handle the herbs with practiced ease, watching the stove fire illuminate his focused profile, she felt an unprecedented warmth and security dispel the last traces of fear and chill in her heart.
Her gaze was so tender it could have dripped water.
When Lu Changfeng came in carrying a bowl of dark brown medicine, Luo Qingge propped herself up slightly. Her eyes first darted toward the courtyard outside the window. Only after confirming