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Family was just within reach, and Lian Mu’s heart burned with urgency.
Unsure how his parents, his second brother, and his third brother were, uncertain if his mother’s illness had improved, having left for many days, his heart was filled with concern.
On the eve of the announcement, his eyelids twitched with the fear that something had happened at home.
Early next morning, he hurriedly packed his bags, prepared food for the journey, rushed to the market to hastily hire a carriage, and after sorting out these matters, the announcement was just made.
Upon learning his ranking, he left Taiyuan Prefecture in haste without even bidding farewell to his friends.
The carriage they hired in haste malfunctioned just after leaving Taiyuan Prefecture, leaving them stranded, fortunately unharmed. Soon after, they encountered Old Lady Wu and her group, and they accompanied each other to the capital.
When the ox-cart reached an old tree, Lian Mu, Wu Sheng, Old Man Wu, and Old Lady Wu said their goodbyes, agreeing to visit each other in the future.
Old Lady Wu warmly invited him, telling him when they brewed vinegar, they would save a jar for him to collect. Lian Mu smiled in agreement, and the two groups parted ways.
After watching Old Man Wu and Old Lady Wu leave, Lian Mu continued on with Wu Sheng.
The place Old Man Wu had taken them to was the nearest intersection to where Old Lady Wu’s nephew resided, guided there due to concerns they might get lost in unfamiliar territory, still some distance from where he lived.
Carrying a bundle, Wu Sheng said, "Young master, per your instructions, I secreted the fare into their bedding; it surely won’t be lost."
The bundle he carried mainly consisted of dry food and a few pieces of clothing and bedding, not heavy.
Lian Mu responded, "Good."
He himself carried a book basket on his back.
The book basket looked heavy, a side strapped with an oil-paper umbrella, covered with a bamboo lid, inside were books, writing brushes, paper, inkstone, and clothes.
Wu Sheng then said, "Young master, should I carry the chest on your back? I can handle it."
The book basket on the young master’s back was much heavier than his.
Although the young master was tall and slender, taller than him by a head, the young master’s left foot, rumored to have been misaligned due to a past injury and healed improperly, made walking more strenuous for him than it was for himself.
Lian Mu smiled, "No need," and continued on.
Standing, he appeared like any ordinary person; walking slowly, the peculiarity wasn’t too obvious. But when hurrying as now, his left foot obviously limped, invariably drawing some unusual stares.
He didn’t mind this, not slowing his pace due to the gazes of others; he walked as he needed to walk.
The two of them pressed on, reaching a main road when three fast-riding horses came directly toward them. The riders were dressed not like ordinary folk; the leader, fair-skinned and beardless with a hint of fierceness on his face, was clearly in a bad mood.
The fast horses sprinted past them; the leader glanced at Lian Mu and then rode on, the setting sun behind them kicking up billowing red dust.
Lian Mu stopped and looked back, his gaze revealing a trace of solemnity; these people were no ordinary folks, especially the leader, who looked young but carried an imposing air and indifference in his eyes.
Why would such people come to the Southern City area?
Thoughtful, he turned back and hastened forward, increasing his pace so much that Wu Sheng could barely keep up.
Lian Mu walked increasingly urgently, observing horse tracks all along the path, which completely matched their current direction, as though they had come from his courtyard. His first thought was that their enemies had discovered them, his heart pounding wildly.
Yet, as he walked, he calmly dismissed this possibility; if those were their enemies, they wouldn’t have just ignored him like that earlier, and ordinary people couldn’t maintain the kind of demeanor the leader had.
He could not guess why that person had come, whether it was for them, and only seeing his parents could put his mind at ease.
Finally reaching the vicinity of the courtyard, he saw the same horse hoof prints on the ground. Lian Mu’s gaze darkened, and he took off the book basket he was carrying on his back, threw it to the ground, and without time to say much else, he dropped a phrase to Wu Sheng, "Wait for me here."
He limped forward, running.
Wu Sheng and Lian Mu had long had an understanding. Knowing his young master’s unique identity, he did not shout or ask questions. He quickly picked up the book basket from the ground, moved it to a hidden corner, and anxiously awaited.
The young master had given him a new life.
He was originally a street-wandering orphan, saved by the young master who became his attendant student.
The young master had also taught him to read and write, and when the time came, he had planned to let him take the imperial examinations.
Thus, he owed a great debt to the young master, ready to repay it with his life, sparing no effort.
However, he was prone to acting carelessly, often causing more harm than help, so he dared not take matters into his own hands anymore, only doing as the young master instructed.
As Lian Mu neared the courtyard, his step faltered, he took another alley to observe, and saw under the tree in front of the house where they lived, three horses tied up and faint sounds coming from inside the courtyard.
He could hear his father’s voice inside, the tone laced with a nervous unease.
Sweat formed on his forehead, his expression calm as he analyzed the horses and the footprints on the ground, his heart suddenly relaxed, a false alarm.
But then his anxiety surged again. If they were not here to capture them, why was his father so anxious?
Could it be something had happened to his mother?
At that thought, he could no longer hold back. He ran toward the main gate, which was unlocked.
As he pushed the door open, he saw his younger brother, Lian Wanzhen, squatting at the doorway, head in hands and looking very pained. Seeing the door open, he turned his head, saw him, and immediately stood up, shouting, "Big brother, you’re back, Mother is in a bad state!"
Lian Mu, or should I say, Lian Musu, his mind went blank in an instant...
On his end, Cao De rode a quick horse, rushing on the road.
Just now, his subordinate had come to report to him, mentioning there was a lead on the Xue Family’s private soldiers.
Because of this, he had just met with his sister not long before, but had to leave. Fortunately, the task his sister had entrusted to him, he had already completed.
These days, to find out the location of the private soldiers kept by the Xue Family, he had been busy, leaving early and returning late.
Fortunately, he had instructed his subordinates that if someone from the Li Family Firm came looking, they were to report to him immediately, thus he hadn’t missed the information.
The message from his sister said that the benefactor had been found, but was seriously ill in bed. They had consulted several doctors, but they were all at a loss, and now the condition was critical, clinging to hope she asked him to help find a highly skilled doctor.
Upon receiving the message, he immediately left his current tasks behind and went to the Imperial Medical Bureau to fetch Huang Zude, only to find that he was not on duty today.
So he hurried on his horse to the Huang Family, the gatekeeper was still the same old man, who, without a word, agilely opened the gate, informing him that the family and the young master were in the dispensary and permitted him to enter.
He strode directly into the dispensary, and upon entering, the first thing that struck his eye was the large-font family maxim of the Huang Family, prominently displayed in the center of the room: "Heal the world, life and death are destined."
He felt in his heart that the Huang Family truly was extraordinary.
The first half of the maxim was about the benevolent heart of a healer, contesting with the King of Hell for lives, while the second half seemed to reflect a detachment, as if to say, "save if you can, let go if you cannot," seeing through the world’s trivialities—the two parts were indeed contradictory.
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