Awakening (Part One)

Settling privately? How do you propose we do that?" Upon hearing the bald driver's words, the hefty man cast a sidelong glance in his direction. After the doctor had mentioned that Fang Yi seemed to be relatively unharmed, the hefty man's anger towards the driver had notably diminished.

"I'll cover all medical expenses and offer you an additional three thousand yuan for nourishment. How does that sound?" 

Manjun calculated in his mind; he had already paid a deposit of ten thousand yuan for the hospitalization. Even if he had some left, it was unlikely he would see it returned. The injured individual appeared to be fine, so an extra three thousand seemed reasonable.

"Three thousand? Are you trying to insult us?" 

At the mention of Manjun's offer, the hefty man's temper flared. "My brother hasn't even regained consciousness yet! If he ends up in a vegetative state, not even three hundred thousand yuan would suffice. You think three thousand will placate us? Are you dreaming?"

"Seriously, Fatty, must you curse Fang Yi like that?" 

San Pao, standing nearby, smacked the hefty man's head in annoyance. Yet he too was dissatisfied with the driver's offer of three thousand. "We're not trying to extort you. If my brother wakes up and is fine, then you can give us thirty thousand. If there are any aftereffects, you'll be responsible for his medical care. How does that sound?"

"Thirty thousand is excessive!" Manjun's face fell at once. He had only made a modest profit of thirty to fifty thousand from this venture. If he were to part with thirty thousand, it would render the entire endeavor pointless.

Moreover, after seven or eight years in the antiques business, although he had amassed a fortune of three to four million, that included inventory and real estate—none of it was liquid cash. Most of his wealth was tied up in goods, leaving him with only fifty to sixty thousand in circulating funds. Parting with thirty thousand would nearly deplete his reserves.

"Excessive? How about I let you hit me with your car, and I'll give you thirty thousand, sound good?" The hefty man retorted, his irritation palpable.

"Come on, gentlemen, can we settle for a bit less?" Manjun replied with a wry smile. "Why don't we wait until that brother of yours wakes up, assess his condition, and then discuss compensation?"

To be honest, after years in the antiques trade, Manjun had encountered all sorts of characters. If this had happened when he was new to the field, he might not have feared these two young men, perhaps even calling in a few associates to deal with them. 

However, as the saying goes, the longer one is in the business, the more cautious they become. Manjun was currently thriving; his family was secure, and he truly did not wish to clash with these young men. He recognized that the two before him bore an air of hostility, and those who fought with such fervor often struck without restraint. At over forty years old, he felt it unwise to engage in a reckless confrontation.

"If he's alright, it's at least twenty thousand!" The hefty man reconsidered, offering a figure. Having worked as a security guard, earning only a few hundred a month, two thousand yuan was a substantial sum for him.

"Fine, twenty thousand it is!" Manjun begrudgingly agreed, gritting his teeth. No one could be blamed but himself for this misfortune; it was simply a case of misfortune begetting further misfortune.

"Brothers, I don't have that much cash on me. Can I bring it to you this afternoon?" Having settled on compensation, Manjun was eager to leave. Who knew when the person in the hospital would awaken? He certainly couldn't wait around indefinitely.

"Trying to leave?" 

Upon hearing Manjun's words, the hefty man's eyes widened in disbelief. He grabbed Manjun by the collar and said, "If you run now, where will we find you? If you want to leave, you can either leave the car or come with me to get the money..."

"Alright, you can come with me to my shop to collect the money..." 

Manjun nodded. He owned an antique shop near Chaotiangong, where he had nearly twenty thousand yuan in cash. More importantly, he needed to secure the items he had acquired in the shop's safe; he was relying on the sale of the Tang Bohu fan to offset the losses incurred from this accident.

"To your shop? Just so you know, don't try anything funny; my friends are not easily intimidated!" The hefty man scrutinized the bald driver, issuing a warning. Country folk in the city often felt a sense of insecurity.

"What could I possibly do? Young man, are you coming or not?" Manjun replied, managing a wry smile. He could see that these two young men hailed from the countryside, yet they had likely seen their fair share of the world; otherwise, they wouldn't be so audacious.

"Let's go!" The hefty man replied after a moment's thought, turning to San Pao. "You keep an eye on Fang Yi. I'll go with him. If I'm not back by this afternoon, call the police and make sure you remember his license plate number..."

"Sure, if he tries anything funny, I'll blow his house up..." San Pao nodded, his threat laced with sincerity. He was more than capable of following through. Reaching into his pocket, San Pao shouted at the driver, "Hey, I think I lost my wallet. Do you have any spare change? Just a little to tide me over..."

"Just two hundred..." Having already agreed to pay twenty thousand, Manjun wasn't concerned about the two hundred yuan. He promptly emptied his pockets.

"This guy's even more unscrupulous than I am..." Seeing San Pao ask the driver for money, the hefty man couldn't help but smirk. A lost wallet? It was likely that San Pao had never used one in his life.

"Fang Yi, you need to wake up soon!" 

After the hefty man and the driver departed, San Pao settled at Fang Yi's bedside, feeling an indescribable weight in his heart. Having just descended the mountain, encountering such a calamity made him feel immensely guilty towards Fang Yi.

However, at that moment, Fang Yi was clearly oblivious to San Pao's words. Unbeknownst to San Pao, Fang Yi's seemingly unconscious body was subtly trembling. During his state of unconsciousness, an inexplicable force seemed to be altering his very essence, a phenomenon of which Fang Yi himself was unaware.

"Hey, wake up! Fang Yi, can you hear me?" 

About half an hour later, while keeping a vigilant watch over Fang Yi, San Pao suddenly noticed Fang Yi's eyelashes flutter. The fingers hanging down by his side began to curl. Witnessing this, San Pao hurriedly pressed the call button for the doctor.

"Awake? Young man, do you recognize him?" The hospital room was adjacent to the nurse's station, and within a minute, a female doctor entered. At that moment, Fang Yi had only just opened his eyes.

"Of course! We grew up together in short pants. How could he not recognize me?" As Fang Yi's pupils slowly focused, he had yet to respond to the doctor's question when San Pao, filled with indignation, interjected. Fang Yi was no child; how could such a foolish question even be posed?

"His body sustained a blow; I'm concerned about potential brain injury. I'm asking to see if he might suffer from amnesia..." The female doctor shot a glare at San Pao, who promptly fell silent.

"Yes, I know him... He's Peng Sanjun..." Fang Yi's voice was faint, yet he managed to articulate San Pao's name.

"Ha! I knew he'd be fine..." San Pao laughed heartily, his heart finally settling into a state of calm.

"Do you remember how you were injured?" the doctor continued her inquiry.

"I do. I was hit by a car..." Fang Yi gazed at the woman in the white coat and asked, "You're a doctor, right? Your uniform is really nice..."

"Am I not a doctor? Are you?" 

The attending physician shot back with a hint of irritation. After so many years in her profession, it was her first time hearing someone compliment a doctor's coat. She stood up and turned to San Pao, stating, "Even lying in a hospital bed, you're still worrying about trivial matters. Enough! He's fine; just a few days of observation, and he can be discharged..."

"Thank you, thank you, doctor..." San Pao nodded and bowed as he escorted the female doctor out. Turning back to Fang Yi's bedside, he couldn't help but chuckle. "You sly one, waking up just to tease the doctor, but she must be over forty..."

"Teasing? I wasn't teasing her..." Fang Yi replied, somewhat bewildered. He genuinely found the doctor's attire far more appealing than the shabby robes his master wore while practicing medicine.

"Enough about that. Fang Yi, do you realize you scared both me and Fatty to death?" San Pao perched himself at Fang Yi's bedside, his demeanor tense as he spoke, genuinely fearful of losing his brother.

"I was scared too..." In response to San Pao's words, Fang Yi's mind drifted back to the moment he was struck by the car. Reflecting on those events, he was uncertain whether they were figments of his imagination or actual occurrences.

At the instant Fang Yi was thrown by the vehicle, he felt a sudden dizziness, as if his consciousness had been forcibly detached from his body. He could no longer feel the pain coursing through him, yet he could vividly see his own body lying on the ground and the hefty man furiously pursuing the driver.

In Taoist practice, one learns to cultivate one's spiritual awareness, yet at that moment, Fang Yi's extraordinary perception felt as if it were ensnared by the heavens. No matter how he struggled, he could not utter a sound or return his consciousness to his body.

"Is this what they call an out-of-body experience? Infinite Celestial Sovereign, am I... am I about to die?"

A flicker of realization crossed Fang Yi's mind. He recalled his master mentioning that after death, the soul lingers for a brief period, but that time is fleeting. Fang Yi was uncertain if he was experiencing such a phenomenon. If his master had spoken truthfully, then his life was indeed in jeopardy.

"Master, you truly are a harbinger of misfortune..." 

Watching San Pao clutching his body, Fang Yi suddenly recalled the divination his master had performed for him. The omen warned that if he descended the mountain before April 26th of this year, he would encounter calamity, and today was precisely three days prior to that date.

"Disregarding the wisdom of the elders has led me to this peril!" A pang of regret washed over Fang Yi, though it was too late to lament. He could already feel his consciousness fading, uncertain if this was a precursor to his soul dissipating.

"Perhaps this is for the best; after all, I am unencumbered by attachments, and the only ones who would mourn would be these two brothers..." 

Having practiced Taoism for over a decade, Fang Yi had come to terms with life and death. Nevertheless, he harbored a lingering regret; he still knew nothing of his origins or the nature of his parents.

With this thought, Fang Yi glanced down at his own body lying on the ground, where the kabala he wore was the only clue left by his parents. Yet, he feared that he would never have the opportunity to seek it out.

"Is it shattered?" 

Fang Yi noticed a wound on his chest, and the kabala pendant, no larger than a thumb, had fractured upon impact, splintering into four or five small pieces. Had it not been for the blood adhering it to his chest, it would have surely scattered to the ground.

"Wait, what... what is happening?" 

Suddenly, Fang Yi observed a flash of red light emanating from his chest, and the kabala pendant seemed to disintegrate into countless tiny particles, swiftly merging into his wound.

In the next moment, Fang Yi felt an immense force pulling at his body on the ground, and his immobile consciousness, suspended in mid-air, was swiftly drawn back into his physical form.

"It hurts..." 

The first sensation upon returning to his body was pain; it felt as if every bone had been shattered by a mighty hammer. The intensity of the agony caused Fang Yi to black out once more.