Chapter 54: Gathering Herbs

Chapter 54: Chapter 54: Gathering Herbs

"Eh, Biyun, how could you be so careless... Why is there a stick on the bed? It can heat up too?"

Chen Xiao was speechless.

Xu Yanran tossed and turned in a daze. "Biyun, why can’t I get this curling iron off? Huh? Could you take it so it doesn’t poke me in the middle of the night? I’m going to sleep..."

Immediately after, she began frantically tearing off her own clothes. Outerwear, underwear... everything was thrown all over the floor, with one piece even landing on Chen Xiao’s head. Her exquisite body, like a peeled egg, was laid bare before him.

A rush of heat went to Chen Xiao’s nose. This woman really doesn’t see me as an outsider, does she? Offering this kind of perk on the very first day we’re living together? I have to admit, her personality is terrible, but her figure is absolutely heavenly, like a perfectly ripe peach. Unlike other women, her years of martial arts training gave her body a feline power that complemented her feminine softness.

Sprawling out like a starfish, Xu Yanran mumbled in her sleep, "Biyun, remember to double-lock the door. Don’t let that pervert sneak in to peep in the middle of the night..."

Chen Xiao’s expression darkened. He had considered throwing Xu Yanran out, but on second thought, he was quite curious. He wondered what her expression would be like tomorrow morning when she discovered she was in his room.

「The next day!」

A scream echoed throughout the villa.

"You beast! What did you do to me?" Xu Yanran yelled, wrapping herself tightly in the blanket. Upon waking up, she found herself stripped completely bare, with Chen Xiao right beside her.

Chen Xiao smirked playfully. "You’d better try hard to remember why you’re in here in the first place!"

A wave of panic hit Xu Yanran.

Last night... did I really barge in here myself?

"You... you saw everything?"

Chen Xiao replied nonchalantly, "Yep. Not bad. Big and round, lush and pink..."

"I’m going to charge you with indecent assault!"

"Shouldn’t I be the one charging you with polluting my eyes?"

Xu Yanran was speechless. She knew she had a habit of sleeping in the nude. After wandering into the wrong room last night, she had most likely been the one to take off her clothes.

"Why didn’t you dress me and take me back to my room?" she demanded.

"How would I dare touch you? A delicate little fairy like yourself? If I actually made physical contact, I couldn’t clear my name even if I jumped into the Yellow River. I could only let you do as you please." He added, "By the way, I don’t own a curling iron."

"AHHH—!" Xu Yanran had a complete meltdown.

Just then, Li Biyun opened the door. Seeing the scene inside, she froze, her innocent, wide eyes filled with shock.

The two of them, last night...

She wasn’t a complete child; she understood a little about what went on between adults.

She quickly made a few hand signs, turned around, and closed the door behind her.

Xu Yanran frantically scrambled to find her clothes. "My... where are my panties?"

"I threw them in the trash."

"On what grounds?"

"On the grounds that someone threw them on my head!"

Utterly mortified, Xu Yanran wanted nothing more than to flee immediately. This was a colossal humiliation.

Downstairs, Chen Xiao found that Li Biyun had already prepared breakfast.

"Truly virtuous," Chen Xiao remarked. "So much better than some people."

Soon, Li Biyun brought over a dozen boiled eggs with several words written on them. Her cheeks were slightly red. "I heard eggs are good for replenishing protein. Mr. Chen, please eat up."

Xu Yanran’s face turned crimson. "Biyun... it’s really, really not what you think!"

Li Biyun gave a sly smile, her expression clearly saying,

I get it.

She then wrote on a slip of paper, "Aunt Xu, now I know why you were always bad-mouthing Big Brother Chen. It turns out you like him! You were afraid I’d compete with you, weren’t you?"

"I... I like him?" Upon hearing this, Xu Yanran nearly had a breakdown on the spot.

"Am I wrong?" Li Biyun asked with an innocent expression. "Can people sleep together if they don’t like each other?"

Xu Yanran almost fainted from exasperation.

Chen Xiao chuckled. "Thank you for the eggs. I do indeed need to replenish my strength."

For the rest of the meal, Xu Yanran was stuck trying to explain the scene Li Biyun had walked in on. It took a while, but Li Biyun finally seemed to understand.

After breakfast, Chen Xiao spoke to Li Biyun with a serious tone. "I need to go out and get some herbs for you later. Your body can’t be healed with aggressive and overbearing methods. You have to take a series of Medicine Baths. You’ll need to do this every day for the next ten days."

Li Biyun nodded obediently.

「Yuncheng City, Zhou Yuan Pharmacy」

This was a renowned, time-honored pharmacy in Yuncheng City and the source of many of the rare medicinal herbs that circulated locally. After some deliberation, Chen Xiao chose to get his herbs here. It was expensive, but the quality was guaranteed.

Today, however, the place was unusually bustling. Many young men and women from the Chinese Medicine Community, and even some men in their later years, were waiting here with great excitement. Today was the day the esteemed Divine Doctor Li, Li Zhengming, had been invited to Zhou Yuan Pharmacy to give a lecture.

As soon as the news got out, droves of people from the world of Chinese medicine flocked to listen. They all waited for Li Zhengming’s arrival with the earnestness of schoolchildren. If the owner of Zhou Yuan Pharmacy hadn’t had some connection to Divine Doctor Li, they never would have had such an opportunity. After all, Li Zhengming was a titan in the Chinese Medicine Community, a physician of national renown.

"Wow, it’s packed," Chen Xiao couldn’t help but remark as he saw the crowd upon entering. After asking around, he learned that the national-level physician Li Zhengming was scheduled to give a lecture. For anyone in the Chinese Medicine Community, this was an absolutely golden opportunity.

"Li Zhengming?" Chen Xiao muttered to himself. "A pharmacy is for selling medicine. Why hold a lecture here? What a hassle." Now the place was so crowded he couldn’t even squeeze through.

His muttering was instantly met with a barrage of public condemnation.

"What do you know? It’s an honor for all of us to have a master like Divine Doctor Li come here to lecture and share his experience!"

"You’re just here to buy medicine, what the hell do you know? You bumpkin, get lost!"

"Such disrespect toward Divine Doctor Li! You’re lucky you’re not in the Chinese Medicine Community, or your career would be over!"

Seeing their furious, spittle-flecked reactions, Chen Xiao felt a bit helpless. These people were far too fanatical.

Li Zhengming’s medical skills are just average... Is all this really necessary?

"Excuse me, let us through!" an urgent voice suddenly cut through the crowd, but it was quickly drowned out. "Please, everyone, make way! We have an emergency! We need to get medicine to save a life!"

A young woman could be seen supporting an older woman, desperately trying to push her way through the throng. The older woman, her face contorted in pain, clutched her chest.

Finally, with a thud, she collapsed to the ground.

"Someone fainted!"

"Quick, back up! Give them space!"

Only after seeing someone collapse did the fervent crowd from the Chinese Medicine Community slowly begin to disperse.

The girl, sweating profusely, looked around for help. But the onlookers just exchanged glances, none daring to step forward. After all, scams were all too common these days.

Just then, a voice came from the crowd. "I’ll take a look for you."