Chapter 23 – 21: Meeting Old Doctor Chen Again (Please Favorite and Follow)
Chapter 23: Chapter 21: Meeting Old Doctor Chen Again (Please Favorite and Follow)
That night, Lu Qing slept especially soundly, not even dreaming.
Little Yan didn’t wake up in the middle of the night as usual, calling for his comfort.
Both siblings had a good rest.
In fact, Lu Qing slept so deeply that in the morning, it was Little Yan who had to call him to get up.
Rubbing his sleepy eyes while dressing Little Yan, he helped her brush her teeth and wash her face, casually tying her hair into two little tufts before he began his own ablutions.
Brushing his teeth absentmindedly with a willow twig brush, Lu Qing’s gaze lacked focus, casually drifting around the room.
After brushing for a while, he suddenly sensed something amiss and his gaze began to sharpen.
He stepped forward and looked at the two bamboo rings on the pole, now empty, and his eyes gradually widened.
What scoundrel had stolen his two large pieces of fish meat?
Someone from the village?
That was the first thought that crossed Lu Qing’s mind.
But he quickly dismissed it.
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Although the villagers weren’t wealthy, none were poor to the point of needing to steal two pieces of fish meat.
He had offered to treat everyone to fish just yesterday, and everyone had declined.
Moreover, if someone really wanted to steal, wouldn’t they have taken the whole pot, rather than just two pieces?
More importantly, he noticed there were still some bits of fish meat left on the two bamboo rings.
Clearly, the two pieces of fish meat had been forcefully yanked away.
What kind of thief would make such a ruckus while stealing, almost as if they wanted to alert others?
Unfortunately, he had slept so soundly the night before that he hadn’t noticed any activity outside.
Lu Qing searched the area carefully and eventually found several mud prints on the wall, resembling plum blossoms.
Each print had several tiny holes in it.
Similar prints were also found on the ground.
He stared quietly at these mud prints.
Before long, he saw a faint white light emanating from them.
White light?
Lu Qing was slightly startled.
He quickly looked at the two words that appeared.
“Mud footprints: Judging by their shape, they seem to belong to a mysterious little beast.”
“Looking at the small holes on the footprints, this is a creature with sharp claws.”
Reading the descriptions, a scene instantly formed in Lu Qing’s mind.
A mysterious and nimble unknown little beast, pushing off with its feet against the wall, lunging at the fish meat on the pole and violently tearing it down.
What could it be, a cat?
On that note, are there cats in this world?
Lu Qing pondered the question.
He certainly hadn’t seen any cats in the village or heard of anyone keeping one.
Nevertheless, now that he had determined it was not a human thief, that was the end of it.
Lu Qing breathed a sigh of relief.
If a villager had come to steal, it wouldn’t have been good news for him.
Fortunately, it was just a wild animal, and judging by its footprints, it wasn’t large.
Behind the village where he lived, not far from the mountains, it was only natural for wild animals to occasionally venture down.
However, it seemed he would have to be more cautious and make sure to secure the doors and windows before sleeping.
Otherwise, if some wild animal slipped in at night and hurt Little Yan, that would be terrible.
Having figured out what had happened, Lu Qing didn’t care much about it anymore.
After all, he couldn’t exactly argue with a wild animal; he just had to make sure to secure things after nightfall.
Thinking of this, Lu Qing suddenly remembered something, his eyes widened, and he hurried to the kitchen.
After a while, he came out with a relieved face.
Thankfully, he had kept the Red Moon Carp in a wooden basin and had placed it in the kitchen last night.
In order to prevent the fish from jumping out, he had covered the wooden basin tightly with a wooden board and stones.
Otherwise, it would have been difficult to ensure that it wouldn’t have been snatched away by that wild animal.
After this incident, Lu Qing had completely woken up.
He didn’t tell Little Yan about this matter but simply went to make breakfast. After the siblings had eaten, they took the Red Moon Carp in a bucket and walked towards the slope where Old Doctor Chen lived.
This time, when going to Old Doctor Chen’s place, Lu Qing deliberately delayed a bit before heading over.
Because he was afraid if he went too early and ran into the elder doctor practicing his boxing, he would not be able to resist using his superpower to mimic the elder’s cultivation technique.
The elder doctor was so kind to them, siblings, he couldn’t do such ungrateful things.
So he simply eliminated this possibility, and also avoided testing his own moral bottom line.
Lu Qing’s strategy proved to be very effective.
When he and Little Yan arrived at the Half Mountain Small Courtyard, they saw Old Doctor Chen slowly finishing his form, evidently just having finished his boxing practice.
“Grandpa Chen, we’ve come to see you!”
Little Yan ran up happily upon seeing the elder doctor.
“Oh, Little Yan is here!”
Old Doctor Chen picked her up in a hug upon seeing her run over, his old face blooming like a chrysanthemum.
“Good morning, Grandpa Chen.” Lu Qing also came forward to greet him.
“You’re here, why are you later than last time?” asked Old Doctor Chen.
“Because my brother overslept!” Little Yan giggled, “This morning, it was Little Yan who had to wake him up!”
Lu Qing’s face turned slightly red, “I fished by the river all morning yesterday, and I was a bit tired, so I slept more deeply.”
“Sleeping more is good.” Old Doctor Chen nodded, “You’re at the age where you’re growing, so ample rest is necessary.”
The elder doctor looked at Lu Qing and Little Yan’s complexions, which had significantly improved compared to a few days ago.
Knowing that they had been doing well these past few days, he felt quite satisfied in his heart.
“Grandpa Chen, yesterday when my brother and I went fishing, he caught a really big fish!”
At that moment, Little Yan began to brag to the elder doctor.
“Oh, how big?” Old Doctor Chen asked with a smile.
“So big, as big as Little Yan!” The little girl gestured with all her might.
“That big?” Old Doctor Chen became a bit surprised.
He had thought that the big fish Little Yan talked about would at most be two or three pounds, but if it truly was as she mentioned, it would far exceed that.
“Yeah, yeah, not only is that big fish tasty, but it also has very beautiful stones on its body. My brother made it into a pendant and gave it to Little Yan. Grandpa Chen, look, this is it–isn’t it pretty?”
Little Yan pulled out the Fish Stone pendant from her neck and showed it to Old Doctor Chen.
“Is this… a Green Armored Fish Stone?”
Old Doctor Chen became even more surprised after getting a clear look at the pendant around Little Yan’s neck.
Hearing him, Lu Qing’s heart stirred.
And he feigned surprise as well, “Master Chen, you recognize this stone?”
“How so, do you not know?” Old Doctor Chen inquired.
“No, I don’t.” Lu Qing shook his head, “I found this stone in the fish’s throat when I was killing it; it looked nice, so I made it into a pendant for Little Yan to wear.”
“Then you are quite lucky, this Fish Stone, is indeed a rarity, and you just happened to come across it.”
Old Doctor Chen picked up the pendant and examined it for a moment.
“The big fish you caught must be a Green Armored Fish, and what’s more, an old fish that has lived for quite some years.”
“Otherwise, it wouldn’t have bred such a high-quality Fish Stone.”
“Once this Green Armor Fish Stone undergoes Jadeization, it will have a rather magical function–it can soothe the Heart and Spirit. Moreover, it’s also a rare medicinal ingredient. Its powdered form mixed with water and consumed can calm a frightened child.”
“By the way, where did you catch this Green Armored Fish?”