Chapter 409: Illness
Translator: Sparrow Translations Editor: Sparrow Translations
Heart Questioning House.
"Sorry... our boss is really not around! There's no more stock left for Opening Point Incense..."
Both Ding Qiuyu and Zhao Lihong smiled while accompanying their last customer away. As they looked at the "deposit" he insisted on leaving behind, they could only give an awkward smile.
"Dear... I think there are at least 10,000 dollars in this stack of cash!"
Ding Qiuyu counted the cash and was at a slight loss of words, "Little Boss is such a capable person, can't believe the Opening Point Incense he casually made would sell so well! I guess you can't even earn as much by selling antiques?"
"I know right!"
Zhao Lihong was a youthful university student too, with a mischievous smile on her face, she said, "If you can get a guy like Little Boss, you would have no worries for the rest of your life... Sister Ding, you have to work hard!"
"Rude lass, it's not like you don't know my situation..."
Ding Qiuyu rolled her eyes and continued, "Lately, Chen Bo has been acting all weird. He keeps saying he wants to breakthrough and reach a new height, it's like he's crazily obsessed... He even asked me for Opening Point Incense and he was prepared to buy a batch of it!"
"There are so many weird things happening lately!"
Zhao Lihong's expression turned mysterious and she continued, "There are rumours that some people saw a ghost on the path behind our school!"
"Also, the fire at 2nd West Street, some people swore they saw the God of Fire..."
"Furthermore, many people also had odd sightings at the old pagoda trees at the west of the city and the Dragon King Well at the east of the city... This can't be good too, the world is changing, I better go to General's Temple on Green Phoenix Mountain to ask for an effective talisman to ward off evil!"
...
Zhao Lihong was making a big deal out of the events as she counted with her fingers.
"Miss Zhao, please... you are a modern university student, how can your brains be so feudal and filled with trash?"
Ding Qiuyu rolled her eyes and then asked curiously, "Eh? General's Temple on Green Phoenix Mountain, this name sounds familiar..."
"It was originally a normal temple, but lately, I heard there's a new daoist elder there, he's amazing! He can do palm reading, stop your misfortunes, and if you ask for a son, he will grant you a son!"
"Cough cough..."
Ding Qiuyu was even more speechless, "Ask for a son? This seems like the duty of the Goddess of Fertility, there's no link to the name of General's Temple at all?"
"Doesn't matter if the name has a link or not, as long as it's effective... Think about it, Boss was gone for so long and we have no news of him at all, we should go and pray for his safety! What if Boss was really met with some danger? At least we can still burn more paper money for him..."
As Zhao Lihong saw Ding Qiuyu slightly wavered, she immediately persuaded her.
"That's true... we should go together one day, I heard the sceneries on Green Phoenix Mountain is not bad!"
Indeed, Ding Qiuyu had a change of mind.
"Cough cough... I'm not dead yet, burn paper money for me?"
Fang Yuan stepped into the store with a sour face.
He was very disappointed to hear those words the moment he returned to the capital.
"You are fine, Little Boss! That's great!"
Ding Qiuyu went forward as though she wanted to take a good look at Fang Yuan. However, she suddenly saw Ye Yingzi and Zhao Daniu standing beside him and was alarmed, "The two of them are..."
"My bodyguards!"
Fang Yuan scratched his head, "Zhao Daniu, Ye Yingzi!"
"Wow! Boss, you are really rich! You even have bodyguards, just like in the movies..."
Zhao Lihong's eyes lit up. She was not interested in Ye Yingzi at all and instead, she was very interested in Zhao Daniu. Her eyes kept looking at Zhao Daniu.
"If I said these were just the bodyguards they could see and that I have eight more hidden around me, I wonder what will they expressions be like..." Fang Yuan thought to himself secretly.
Fang Yuan was then curious, "Why are both of you around?"
"Oh, it's because business in the shop has been too good lately! Many are attracted by the Opening Point Incense!"
Ding Qiuyu took out the ledger, "Boss, the stock you kept has all been sold out! Just now, there was even a customer who wanted to buy it for 1,000 dollars per tael! He even left tens of thousands of dollars as deposit!"
"Ah, you all have worked hard! You all can split the cash as your bonuses!" Fang Yuan said nonchalantly.
People nowadays were pure and honest.
If it was in Fang Yuan's previous realms, when the Boss disappeared for a few months and there was so much money left behind, it would not be out of the norm for anything to happen.
Of course, these two women might have to count themselves lucky for not having any ill-intentions with the money.
Else, Fang Yuan aside, the force represented by Ye Yingzi would definitely teach them a good lesson.
"It's most likely those cultivators who discovered the use of my Opening Point Incense..." Fang Yuan thought.
With the support of the country, Fang Yuan was no longer interested in these people.
"From now on, we will stop selling the Opening Point Incense and don't accept any more deposits. For those we have accepted, they can count themselves lucky! I will ask someone to bring over the stock!"
Fang Yuan looked around the shop and was very satisfied as the shop was running well. He then left the shop.
On the journey, Ye Yingzi left for a short while before returning and said, "Major Fang, we investigated the surroundings of your Heart Questioning House and discovered traces of spy activities. It can be confirmed that at least half of those customers purchasing Opening Point Incense were intelligence officers from other countries... Also, the other half are cultivators from nearby! The social relationships are very complex!"
"I know, hence, this is the last time!"
Fang Yuan went back to the courtyard house he rented and asked Zhao Daniu to harvest the fully grown medicinal herbs and deliver them to Heart Questioning House. Fang Yuan then prepared to visit each of his friends one by one to return the favours.
He Tianming was obviously the first stop. Teacher He vaguely knew about Fang Yuan's whereabouts and when he met him, he was very glad and said many words of encouragements and blessings to Fang Yuan.
After Fang Yuan knew the other people in the Gifted Class were already in their new jobs, Fang Yuan did not ask about them further and left for Professor Tian's house.
Tian Family was not far from Xijing University and had their own decently sized courtyard house.
Fang Yuan visited the house once before and thus, he knew the way there.
As usual, Ye Yingzi was the one who went forward to knock on the door.
"Who is it?" An old granny came out and asked.
"It's me!"
Fang Yuan walked forward two steps, "I came to see Professor Tian!"
"Little Fang!"
The moment Professor Tian's wife saw Fang Yuan, she forced a smile on her face and said, "You came at the wrong time, my husband is in the hospital. Sigh... I was just about to leave the house before you came."
"Eh, what happened?"
Fang Yuan furrowed his eyebrows.
"Sigh... my poor granddaughter..."
The old granny's eyes turned red at once and she began sobbing.
Fang Yuan glanced at Ye Yingzi and she immediately went forward to help the old granny enter the house.
"Something happened to Tian Ai!"
Fang Yuan squinted his eyes slightly and the sight of an energetic young girl appeared in front of his eyes.
She was two years older than Fang Yuan and was in her university studies. She was Professor Tian's family's apple of the eye.
Of course, Professor Tian even shamelessly tried to have Fang Yuan date his daughter, just that he was firmly rejected by Fang Yuan.
"Which hospital is it, I will visit them!"
Now that they were in trouble, Fang Yuan had to do something about it. He immediately went to the hospital.
"Professor Tian!"
"Fang Yuan!"
Inside the ward, Fang Yuan saw Professor Tian and his family members.
Professor Tian used to be full of vigour, but now, he was as skinny as a skeleton. It was as though he had just aged ten plus years. His eyes lit up the moment he saw Fang Yuan and exclaimed, "Quick, come take a look at my granddaughter!"
"Mister Tian..."
Beside him, two doctors helplessly persuaded, "Your granddaughter has a problem in her mind. Her biological markers are all perfectly normal!"
"Doctor Xu!"
At that moment, another female doctor looked at Fang Yuan. She seemed to recognise something and whispered to the other doctor.
This Doctor Xu then glanced at Fang Yuan surprisedly and stopped what he was doing.
"Problem in her mind?"
Fang Yuan went forward and opened Tian Ai's eyelids. As he looked at her pupils, he said, "Hmm... indeed, it's Soul Leaving Illness! When did it begin!"
"Three days ago! She has been like this since she returned from Green Phoenix Mountain!"
Professor Tian forced a smile on his face, "The onset was so sudden, if I did not possess your 13 Needles Technique, I'm afraid I might even have to send her off at then..."
"Green Phoenix Mountain again!"
Fang Yuan gave a look and Ye Yingzi immediately went out to collect details and information about the mountain.
"I'll try!"
Fang Yuan picked up the needles and pricked the acupuncture points on Tian Ai's temple.
"Cough cough... Doctor Fang, although I admire your new found knowledge in Traditional Chinese Medicine, but..." Doctor Xu who was at the side coughed and wanted to continue speaking, but suddenly, his pupils dilated in awe.
On the bed, Tian Ai who was unconscious at first suddenly opened her eyes and looked around. She was a bit dazed and asked, "Where is... this?"
"Wha…...aattt! This is not scientific!"
Doctor Xu could not even speak coherently, "Impossible..."
Doctor Xu exhausted all his efforts and did all sorts of checks, but he still could not treat this odd illness. However, Fang Yuan managed to solve it with just a needle?
This was simply mind blowing to Doctor Xu and shattered his world view!
"Granddaughter!"
"Daughter!"
Professor Tian and his family members could not hold their tears and thanked Fang Yuan profusely.
Fang Yuan then humbly left the ward. He gave a mirthless smile and asked, "Did you discover anything?"
"Yes!"
Ye Yingzi immediately softened her volume, "The General's Temple on top of Green Phoenix mountain was built before our country was founded. It was destroyed once and was rebuilt afterwards. The current residing daoist priest is called Ma Kunyuan and he is not officially registered... Before that, it was all normal but once the new year began, there were weird and magical news regarding the temple and rumours that he was very effective..."
"Furthermore, we have checked with the hospitals in the capital and discovered 6 other teenage girls with the same illness as Tian Ai. All of them have also visited Green Phoenix Mountain before...."
"Hehe..."
Fang Yuan remained composed and quiet for a moment before he gave a cold laughter, "Looks like all sorts of bull ghosts and snake gods have really emerged!"
...
Inside General's Temple, Green Phoenix Mountain.
The temple was not big and was old looking. At the front, there was an altar set up for a ferocious looking war deity, which was Green Phoenix General.
At that moment, at the house behind the temple.
Inside a secret room, a daoist priest sat cross-legged with his arms resting. He was looking at the 7 small flags in front of him and a joyful look appeared on his face, "Ancestral Master, bless and protect me! There's hope for me! As long as I finish cultivating my Xuan Yin 7 Evil Flags... my powers would increase by another tier! Eh? Who dares to destroy my spell?"
His face changed at once and an ominous atmosphere brewed at once.
A "bang" could be heard as a black flag originally in the array exploded suddenly. It began burning without any wind…...