“What about the medicine?” An Jiu was still more concerned about this issue.

Mo Sigui tossed his bangs and proudly lifted his chin. “How could anything in my possession be snatched away so easily?”

“In that case, stay with us for a while. That person will surely come again,” An Jiu said.

Mo Sigui, however, showed no sign of worry. “It doesn’t matter. There are some pills in the medicine box made from Gu Jinghong’s blood. Even if my master came back to life, he couldn’t tell the difference between heart and blood. Only after taking it for a while and seeing the effects can one be sure.”

“That medicine boy of yours…” Chu Dijiang wanted to say that the boy was likely in grave danger, but he didn’t finish his thought. His intention was merely to test Mo Sigui; he wasn’t certain about the matter.

“A medicine boy assigned from the Konghe Army – whether he lives or dies depends on his abilities.” His words suggested he didn’t care at all about the boy’s life.

Chu Dijiang confirmed, “You don’t want to save him?”

Mo Sigui hesitated for a moment, then said, “If you have time, lend a hand to save him. If not, forget it.”

He wasn’t willing to ask Chu Dijiang for a favor and owed him for the sake of a mere medicine boy.

“Whether I have time or not is up to you,” Chu Dijiang said, dropping the subject.

An Jiu, seeing Mo Sigui’s calm demeanor that bordered on heartlessness, believed he was truly that cold.

In reality, even Mo Sigui himself thought so. He fell asleep quickly that night, sleeping deeply and lost in dreams.

He returned to the cellar in Meihua Village. Elder Qi, covered in blood, lay before him. His aged voice echoed clearly in Mo Sigui’s ears, word by word, sentence by sentence.

“Sigui, don’t betray the word ‘qing’ (feeling).”

“Don’t betray the word ‘qing’…”

“Qing…”

Mo Sigui repeated this word over and over. His vision blurred, and he saw many trivial moments of learning medicine from Elder Qi. Mo Sigui had always remembered the medical teachings most clearly, but these moments seemed to have never been etched in his memory. Yet, in the dream, they were unprecedentedly vivid.

The long dream eventually came to an end.

In the dawning light, Elder Qi leaned on his cane, smiling at him. His gaze held affection, expectation, and deep concern.

“If you’re dead, just rest in peace. Don’t worry needlessly…” Mo Sigui muttered, waking up in the glaring light. In his hazy state, he saw someone standing before him, with strong light shining into the tent from behind, obscuring their face.

After his eyes adjusted, he realized it was An Jiu standing in front of him.

She curiously said, “You were crying.”

Mo Sigui raised his hand to touch his face, and indeed, it was covered in tears. He was stunned for a moment, then found an imperfect excuse for himself, “It must be because the sunlight is too harsh.”

“Chu Dijiang says Liao is desperate for Gu Jinghong’s heart blood. Whether the medicine in your box is real or not, they’ll use that medicine boy to threaten you. He told you not to worry,” An Jiu grew more curious. “Do you care about that medicine boy? You’ve even cried secretly. You never cried for Lou Mingyue.”

“Put away that exaggerated expression of yours!” Mo Sigui snorted.

“I’ve interacted with many psychologists and have some understanding of this,” An Jiu analyzed seriously. “Suppressing yourself like this, you’ll soon become depressed.”

Mo Sigui glared, “So should I vent recklessly like you and end up mentally ill?!”

Whoosh!

A feathered arrow whistled through the air, landing with a thud on the bedboard in front of Mo Sigui.

Chu Dijiang walked in, holding the Fulong bow. Though he didn’t speak, his gaze was full of threat.

“See, you’ve admitted to suppressing your emotions,” An Jiu concluded calmly, ignoring the tense atmosphere.

Mo Sigui’s face turned ashen. He sprang up from the bed, glaring hatefully at the two before him, and said through gritted teeth, “You two are truly a match made in heaven!”

Equally annoying!

Mo Sigui threw on his clothes, put on his shoes, and rushed out.

An Jiu, lacking tact, said, “You’re safer with us.”

“I’d be more comfortable anywhere but here!” Mo Sigui shouted, tying his belt as he ran.

He made his way to Lou Xiaowu’s tent.

She was placing sulfur, saltpeter, and other materials into a sealed tube, preparing to shoot it with a crossbow from a distance.

Bang!

After a loud explosion, the tent was filled with smoke.

Mo Sigui quickly fled. After a while, Lou Xiaowu emerged from the billowing smoke, her face blackened, making her eyes appear starkly white. She blinked her almond eyes a few times and wiped away the tears that threatened to fall from her sleeve. “Brother Mo, you woke up so late today.”

As she spoke, she exhaled another puff of smoke.

Ah! In the past, Mo Sigui truly wouldn’t have wanted to deal with Lou Xiaowu, but compared to those two annoying people, she seemed much more lovable now.

It seems one’s standards indeed lower bit by bit in adversity…

Mo Sigui was in a very unpleasant mood.

“Inspired by the explosive crossbow, I’m trying to see if I can make other weapons,” Lou Xiaowu, knowing the power of the explosive crossbow, was even more enthusiastic about it. After seeing that kind of destructive power, studying swords, bows, and crossbows no longer excited her.

She rubbed her chubby little face vigorously and sighed with worry, “If only we had a furnace for melting iron!”

Chu Dijiang walked over, “What do you need a furnace for?”

“I want to try making the explosive crossbow smaller, something that can be held in the palm,” Lou Xiaowu said. Despite pondering such a profound question, her face remained innocent and childlike.

An Jiu peeked out from behind Chu Dijiang, “I think your idea is excellent.”

Chu Dijiang’s tall figure had completely hidden An Jiu, so neither Mo Sigui nor Lou Xiaowu had noticed her earlier. Her sudden voice startled them both.

Lou Xiaowu quickly recovered, “Fourteen is here too!”

Encouraged, she instantly felt that An Jiu’s image improved tenfold.

Mo Sigui turned his head away, preferring to avoid what annoyed him.

An Jiu walked over, “Perhaps I can help you.”

Wasn’t what Lou Xiaowu just thought of essentially a firearm? An Jiu couldn’t say for certain, but she knew the structure and performance of various firearms by heart. With the help of someone skilled in crafting, they might have a chance to make one!

“You two carry on,” Chu Dijiang turned and said, “Divine Doctor Mo, let’s have a chat.”

“I have nothing to say to you,” Mo Sigui grumbled.

“If it weren’t necessary, I wouldn’t want to say much either,” Chu Dijiang replied.

Mo Sigui glanced at him, seeing Chu Dijiang turn to walk towards the back of the main camp. He hesitated for a moment, then followed, saying as he walked, “If you dare to hit me again, I’ll fight you to the death!”

Chu Dijiang didn’t look back, “Don’t worry, I don’t want to lower myself like that again either.”

“Hmph!”

When they reached an open area, Chu Dijiang extended his spiritual sense around them. Only after confirming no one was nearby did he speak again, “With me in this area, the person coveting the heart blood will be more cautious. It won’t be easy to catch them. I’ll pretend to leave for a few days.”