Love & Redemption
Chapter 215: Volume 5 Phoenix Flower Blooms - 22 Blooming Panorama (2)

Chapter 215: Volume 5 Phoenix Flower Blooms Chapter 22 Blooming Panorama (2)

The fourth update. Mission complete. ^_^ Thank you for your support.

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It was only then that Xuanji truly relaxed, letting out a long sigh of relief. The pain from the wounds all over her body suddenly intensified, causing her to involuntarily inhale sharply from the chill. Yu Sifeng quickly let go of her and said in a low voice, "You’re too reckless, let me see your wounds."

Xuanji rolled up her sleeves to reveal her two snow-white arms, each marked with a long streak of blood that continued to ooze. Yu Sifeng hurriedly set about stopping the bleeding and bandaging her up. Seeing how adept his movements were, and that his complexion, though pale, was not as ashen as before, she couldn’t help but ask, "Are you...okay now? You vomited a lot of blood just now... Does your chest still hurt?"

Yu Sifeng shook his head and said, "I’m fine, the Lover’s Curse was only a momentary surge of power. Now...and in the future, it’s fine." He smiled, and seeing Xuanji looking pale as if clenching her teeth against the pain, he couldn’t help but say gently, "Does it hurt a lot, the wound? I added some pain-relieving herbs to the medicine, it should feel better soon. You’re not allowed to be so reckless in the future, understand?"

Xuanji nodded with a pained expression. In truth, it wasn’t her arms that hurt, but the burn on her thigh. Earlier, when the backlash from the Lover’s Curse threw her into turmoil and she helped him onto the bed, her thigh had slammed painfully against the table, nearly causing her to scream out. The wound that was nearly healed had probably reopened from the impact, and who knew to what extent.

She was restless, one moment hoping Yu Sifeng would leave quickly so she could check her injury, the next not wanting him to go, thinking even a little more pain was worth the extra moment together.

Yu Sifeng, noting the cold sweat on her forehead and her hands clenched into fists shaking slightly on her legs, immediately realized the pain wasn’t in her arms. Frowning, he said, "Does the burn hurt?" Xuanji could only nod again, choking back tears, "Si Feng...you should go out, I can’t take the pain anymore, I need to see what it’s become..."

He hastily got up, rummaged through a cabinet in the corner for a long time, and retrieved a small black porcelain bottle. After carefully smelling its contents, he turned back and said, "Take off your pants, let me see how bad the injury is."

Xuanji shook her head in panic, "No, don’t! Please go out!"

Without further discussion, Yu Sifeng pressed down on her arm, disregarding her screams, and quickly yanked down her pants, revealing a large area of blood soaking through the bandage, clearly indicating a serious wound. Burns were the hardest to heal, especially in a delicate area like the inner thigh. During the skin’s healing phase, scratching or even rubbing forcefully could ruin the healing process and even leave scars.

Seeing Xuanji shivering all over, he assumed it was because the pain was severe, and spoke softly, "It’s okay, don’t be afraid, I will change your dressing. It will stop hurting soon, and you must be very careful in the future not to hurt yourself again."

He carefully removed the bandage and using a smoothly polished wooden spatula, he dabbed ointment from the porcelain jar and meticulously applied it to her wound before rebandaging it. Suddenly, he caught a hint of a faint fragrance near his nose, and something in his heart stirred as if he had just realized something amiss. Her legs were bare, sitting across from him... his fingers touched her skin, soft and smooth as if made of jade, and sunlight filtered through the curtains, casting her long, straight legs in a tender, pink hue.

Yu Sifeng suddenly felt restless, and the motion of bandaging her slowed to a stop. He raised his eyes to look at her, only to find her face was so red it seemed nearly aflame with a shy charm. He almost couldn’t resist reaching out to touch her, but he forced himself to stay calm—after all, at this moment he was the doctor, and she was the patient. Any improper thoughts would be a disgrace to the medical profession.

Xuanji’s heart was pounding as if it might leap out of her chest. She vaguely hoped he would do something more intimate. But he kept his distance, maintaining the complete professionalism of a doctor. She felt a little disappointed but, bold as she was, she dared not make a move herself. And so, the two of them were each lost in their thoughts, falling into an awkward silence.

Who knows how much time passed before the simple act of bandaging was finally completed. Yu Sifeng quickly withdrew his hands and stood up, instructing in a serious tone, "For the next few days, you must not let the wound touch water, and you cannot eat spicy food. Change the dressing every day, and I will write a prescription for you to take orally—take the medicine every day until the wound is fully healed."

He spoke with such gravity and sincerity that he found himself almost amused. He bit his lip, turned back, and let down the curtain, saying, "Put your clothes on properly. I’m going to prepare the medicine."

Xuanji hurriedly put on her pants. The medicine he used was truly miraculous; after its application, the severe pain had eased a lot, and the wounded area had turned somewhat numb. She tidied up her appearance on the bed before getting up. Unexpectedly, her feet went numb, and she became unsteady, nearly falling with an "Aiya."

Yu Sifeng quickly steadied her, repeatedly asking, "What’s wrong? Does it still hurt?"

Xuanji, with a flush face, looked up and explained, "No... It seems... My posture was wrong just now, and both my legs have gone numb..."

Yu Sifeng couldn’t help but pinch her rosy cheek, about to say something intimate, when suddenly they heard a "bang" from beneath the window. Both were startled and hurriedly went outside, only to see Lanlan’s figure dashing away. She pushed open the wicket gate and disappeared in the blink of an eye. A medicine basket lay overturned below the window—it was the one they had taken with them when they went up the mountain today. Because Yu Sifeng’s Lover’s Curse had acted up, both of them had completely forgotten about Lanlan. She must have waited on the mountain for a long time, not seeing them come back, and so she had returned to look for them. She must have witnessed their intimate moment just now, which was why she ran off so devastated.

Xuanji sighed. That resilient young girl must be heartbroken, and the cause of it all was the young man beside her—she looked up at Yu Sifeng, and he innocently looked back, both feeling a bit speechless. After a while, Yu Sifeng finally said, "Go back inside and rest. Don’t move around any more. You always make people worry about you."

Xuanji obediently nodded her head, turned, and walked into the bedroom. She looked back, reluctant to part from him, but saw that he too was standing at the doorway watching her. She couldn’t help but chuckle and waved at him, saying, "Get going, you little lecher!"

Yu Sifeng laughed when she called out the old nickname, a wave of mirth followed by an immense sense of warmth. He felt boundless joy and relief in his heart, as if the long-standing knots there had suddenly cleared away, leaving him without a single worry. They looked at each other for a long time, neither willing to part at that moment. Yu Sifeng simply let go of all thoughts about the apothecary and herbs and turned back, took her hand, and gently said, "Tell me, where have you been all this time over the past year?"

Xuanji was only too glad to comply. They sat side by side on the chairs, whispering to one another. Xuanji spoke about wherever she recalled, her words a jumbled mix, but neither of them minded. With the most important person by her side, who cared for the details? She rested her head on Yu Sifeng’s shoulder and softly said, "I really have been to quite a few places, famous and not. I’ve searched them all. In the future, I won’t need a map anymore—I am a living map."

Yu Sifeng was touched and gently kissed her cheek. Xuanji giggled, "I went to Qingyang no less than ten times, and although I didn’t find Brother Liu, I did drink lots of their specialty, Bijian Tea. When I first left, I was worried about not having enough silver, and Tengshe eats so much. But luckily, there were plenty of Little Demons causing trouble everywhere. I made money by performing Demon Exorcisms for people, which was quite a lot. I was even honored as a ’master’! If it wasn’t for thinking of you every day and the hardships, this past year would have been quite fun."

"Seeing that Yu Sifeng didn’t speak, she couldn’t help but lift her head and cradle his face, whispering, "Do you think I got what I deserved? That it’s all my own doing?"

He shook his head, reached out a finger to trace her beautiful features, and said softly, "I would have never thought, it’s too much of a surprise..."

Xuanji wrapped her arms around his neck, smiling, "It’s my turn done, now it’s yours. Why did you leave Lize Palace? What fun things have happened here in West Valley after more than a year? And the most important thing... is... well..." She felt embarrassed to continue. Yu Sifeng chuckled and said in a low voice, "Every day I would wonder. Wonder what you were doing, whether you were crying or laughing, whether you had met someone better than me."

Xuanji pressed her forehead against his, closed her eyes, and murmured, "The best person I’ve found already..."

He too closed his eyes, silent for a moment, before saying, "I... My own matters, let’s find time later to talk about them in detail. It’s almost noon, if we don’t cook, Tengshe will get upset."

Xuanji giggled, squinting her eyes and said, "Let him get upset! Starve him!"

Despite her words, she still stood up, and hand in hand, they both went to the kitchen to cook.

*******

In the following days, Lanlan didn’t come again. Her absence was tolerable to others, but Tengshe reacted the most. Because she always brought a lot of delicious food every time she visited, the highlight of Tengshe’s day was waiting for her to push open the fence gate with yummy treats, and then he would have a sumptuous dinner that evening. Without her delivery, they would be stuck with the most mundane home cooking, considering fried eggs to be quite the luxury.

Fed up one day, Tengshe seriously tugged at Xuanji and asked, "Are you planning never to leave and just stay here?"

Xuanji was startled, and after pondering for a moment, replied, "I don’t know, I won’t leave for the time being. Why, don’t you like it here?"

Tengshe looked as dark as coal, exclaiming, "Of course I don’t like it! There’s nothing tasty to eat, Yu Sifeng is stingy as can be—no wine, no meat, just stuffing bitter tea down my throat every day, is he trying to starve me to death?!"

Xuanji hadn’t expected Tengshe to have such grievances but thought about it and understood: Tengshe loved fighting first and foremost and then food, especially meat and alcohol. This was a remote town where one could only occasionally savor wild game from the mountains–indeed, it was harsh for him. So, she generously took out her purse and handed it to him, "Here, buy whatever you like to eat in town. Just don’t spend all the money at once."

Tengshe’s eyes lit up as he eagerly took the purse, then his face fell after remembering something, "No, I can’t. Our pact means I can’t wander too far. I can’t go into town unless you come with me."

Xuanji sighed, "There’s no danger here, don’t worry about the pact. I still have burn wounds and can’t travel far, so just go by yourself."

Tengshe said, "Alright then, but you have to say it, allow me to leave and I’ll return within three days, then I can go out and buy food on my own."

Xuanji had no choice but to say as he asked, and then inquired, "What does this mean?"

With shining eyes, Tengshe tossed the purse into his bosom and laughed, "It means—from now on, I can leave you for three days! Don’t worry, I see you and Yu Sifeng are having a tough time together, it must be hard holding back, so your buddy here will kindly leave for a few days to give you guys some time alone! I’m off!"

"What nonsense are you talking about!" Xuanji, feeling embarrassed and annoyed, was about to chase after him and punch him twice when Tengshe had already soared into the air and disappeared in the blink of an eye.

Of course, if he knew that Lanlan would muster the courage to deliver two big baskets of delicious food that very evening, he might have regretted leaving too early. To be honest, Xuanji deeply admired Lanlan’s tenacity, for even under Yu Sifeng’s unwelcoming and impassive demeanor, she still made every effort to wedge herself in—her spirit was something else!

So when Lanlan stood outside the fence wall, carrying two baskets and calling at the gate, Xuanji’s gaze was practically sparkling. Unfortunately, the girl opposite was not happy. Biting her lip, Lanlan looked at Xuanji with sorrow and murmured, "Can I have a word alone with Young Master Yi?"

After thinking for a moment, Xuanji shook her head, "No, better not. Lanlan, we all welcome you to learn medicine if you really want to, but if you have other intentions, I think it’s better for you not to come anymore."

Lanlan was silent for a while, then with a resentful look at Xuanji, she whispered bitterly, "It’s all your fault. Ever since you came, all the girls in the village have been heartbroken! Why did you have to come here?! You’ve dashed our hopes!"

Xuanji was somewhat taken aback, and after a long pause, she said, "Do you know? I spent almost two years looking for someone. I’ve known him since childhood, but back then, I didn’t understand and made him angry and he left. Later, I regretted it. There are no pills for regret in this world, so I left to look for him, and finally found him here. I’m very fortunate because many people probably can’t find their way back to what they once lost. Tell me, once I’ve found it again, how could I possibly let go?"

Lanlan stood in silence, then suddenly stamped her foot fiercely and said, "I hate you!" Turning on her heel, she ran off crying, but she was still considerate enough not to take the two baskets of good food with her. Xuanji brought the baskets inside and browsed through them—smoked meat, eggs, and two jars of osmanthus brew, all of which were nice things. Yet she guessed that Lanlan wouldn’t come back, so these treats would no longer be available.

She carried the baskets into the kitchen, set them down on the floor, and laughingly called out, "Si Feng! Tonight I want to eat fried eggs!"(To be continued, for the continuation of the story, please visit www.qidian.com. More Chapters available, support the author, support genuine reading!)"