The Lie

He rubbed his hands together in embarrassment. "There, there. No need for you to get upset, girl. I didn't stalk you on purpose. I just felt guilty for earning the 10,000 silver taels. Although I am short of money, that doesn't mean I can bully a young girl like you against my conscience, right?"

Chu Liuyue raised an eyebrow. "There simply is no need for you to follow me because of this. To me, that red stone is worth 10,000 silver taels." It was more than worth it; she bought it for a great price!

The old man didn't believe her as he shook his hand. "Hey, you don't have to be so polite, girl. I've seen my share of red stones, around 90,000 to 100,000 of them. However, none of them are worth 10,000 taels. How about this? I give you something else as compensation?"

Chu Liuyue shook her head. "I'm not interested."

The old man looked crestfallen. This girl was a handful.

"What was it that you actually want to ask? You might as well spit it out."

He looked at the calm Chu Liuyue. Her sparkling dark eyes had already read his mind, so he stopped pretending to be embarrassed. "Actually… I wanted to know who your master is."

Although there was no fluctuation of force from her body, he could tell that those few movements definitely originated from one or more profound martial art techniques.

She must be learning from a highly-skilled expert. Otherwise, it would be impossible for her to defeat a stage three martial artist like Lu Zhitao.

He had been leading a boring life all these years. It would be great if he could spar with the expert!

Chu Liuyue squinted her eyes. "What do I have to gain by telling you?"

The old man scratched his head in annoyance. He was penniless, and she didn't look like she was in a shortage of money either. He finally patted his head after a long time and took out a jade pendant. "Why don't we use this to trade? It's still worth something."

Chu Liuyue looked at his hand, and her eyes lit up briefly.

It was a jade pendant with the carving of the Xuan symbol. From the looks of it, the pendant with the Xuan symbol wasn't of inferior quality. It was definitely worth more than 10,000 taels! How could he offer it to her so casually?

"Really?"

"Of course." Sensing that his proposition somewhat moved her, the old man advanced a few steps and shoved the jade pendant into her hand. "An old man like me has no use for this thing. Since you like it, it's yours."

After a moment's thought, Chu Liuyue accepted the pendant. She gladly accepted it since he dared to give it to her. "Fine. I'll be honest with you. I don't have a master," declared Chu Liuyue openly.

The old man was so excited and full of anticipation that he instantly froze.

"What? No master? How can this be? Don't tell me you actually mastered the skills on your own?"

Chu Liuyue coughed. She really had no explanation. "It's true. I don't have a master."

The old man caught her wrist in disbelief. "Damn, girl. You better tell me the truth…" He suddenly paused halfway through his words. As he stared at Chu Liuyue, his face turned a few shades darker and gradually showed shock. "You… you…"

Chu Liuyue's eyebrows knitted tightly together, and she intended to break away.

"… You're that girl from the Chu family?"

Chu Liuyue froze. He could actually tell who she was without looking at her face? She had no recollection of such a person.

The old man grew incredulous at her silence. "You're really Chu Liuyue, but I thought your Yuan meridian…"

Oh, he recognized me by checking my pulse. Chu Liuyue let out a sigh of relief, and she removed her bamboo hat. "Yes, I am Chu Liuyue. You are?"

The old man was startled for a moment when he saw the beautiful face before him. "I can't believe you've grown so big. But it shouldn't be… your Yuan meridian was…" He suddenly paused, at a loss as to what he should say.

When Chu Liuyue was young, he checked her pulse and repeatedly confirmed that she was born with a defective Yuan meridian. She would never be able to cultivate for the rest of her life. However, when he accidentally touched her pulse earlier, he noticed that there seemed to be a subtle change in her Yuan meridian!

Chu Liuyue's eyes narrowed as she looked at the old man's changing expression.

My Yuan meridian has only just begun to repair itself; ordinary people shouldn't be able to notice. Nevertheless, this old man could tell with just one look. He must be someone extraordinary. Could he… be a heavenly doctor? At the very least, he is someone powerful.

The old man shed his previous idle appearance and looked more serious. He let go of Chu Liuyue's hand while he stared into her eyes intently and asked, "Girl, you better be honest with me. Who is helping you?"

Chu Liuyue shook her head sincerely. "There really isn't anyone. You can ask around if you don't believe me. I may be the Chu family's titular eldest daughter, but I've been treated worse than a servant all these years. It's fortunate enough that I managed to stay alive until now. What else can I ask for?"

The old man remained skeptical. He hadn't been bothered with the daily ongoings in the world, so he didn't really know much about what had been happening in the Imperial City.

Chu Liuyue was a born loser. Anyone could guess the kind of life she had been living all these years.

What if there is someone helping them behind their backs… But she and Chu Ning have nobody to rely on. Who would they go to? "… There's some truth in what you've said, girl. However, your Yuan meridian… there simply isn't any explanation for it."

The old man thought long and hard, but he couldn't guess the reason for the sudden change in Chu Liuyue's Yuan meridian. He hit his head with his fan in agony.

Chu Liuyue glanced at the sky, noting its color. "If there is nothing else, I will take my leave." Although she couldn't be sure of this old man's identity, Chu Liuyue was certain that his origins were definitely not simple. She wouldn't offend someone like that now.

The old man waved his hand casually, still frowning as he pondered the question that he didn't have the answer to. "Is it…"

Chu Liuyue didn't stay long; she left with haste.

All that was left in the alleyway was that old man deep in his thoughts.

…

Everything was normal as Chu Liuyue returned to the Chu family.

The new batch of herbs had been delivered. As per the norm, she boiled Chu Ning's medicine first and awaited his return to give it to him.

Without saying a word, Chu Ning drank all his medicine. His initial misgivings had long since been dispelled by his apparent improvement in health. In his opinion, his daughter was an indisputable genius! He felt the warm power surge through his limbs.

Chu Ning sighed softly. "Yue'er, I'll take you to a master when I'm feeling better. A talent like yours must not be wasted!"

Chu Liuyue asked, seemingly unintentionally, "Father, how many heavenly doctors are there in Country Yao Chen?"

Chu Ning thought for a moment. "The conditions for becoming a heavenly doctor are very harsh. Even those who are slightly gifted might not become one in the end. Today, there are only seven heavenly doctors throughout the entire Country Yao Chen."

Chu Liuyue asked some indirect questions, but it was a pity that Chu Ning had little knowledge regarding the heavenly doctors. In the end, she could find nothing to link that old man.

She knew there was no point in rushing, so she stopped her inquiries completely. When Chu Ning left, she resumed boiling her own medication.

Xue Xue didn't come that night.

…

In the blink of an eye, three days had passed.

An unwelcome guest arrived just when Chu Liuyue was going to boil Chu Ning's medication—it was that old man.

He had apparently not entered through the main entrance. He was still clothed in the same tattered cotton jacket. There were even a few pieces of fallen leaves on his head; the dark eye bags beneath his eyes indicated that he had not slept for the last few days.

Chu Liuyue was surprised to see him like this. "How did you enter?"

The old man's eyes were sad. "I have pondered for the past three days and three nights, but I just can't figure out…"

Chu Liuyue was shocked to hear that he had not had a single day or night's rest since she last saw him.

He reached out with his quivering hands, pointed to the pot of aromatic herbs, and complained as if he had suffered a great deception. "You still haven't told me who is helping you! You have made this old man very miserable!"