Chapter 16: He Suian

In the pitch-dark mountains, one person walked barefoot, stepping over countless fallen leaves, while a ghost trailed behind at a distance, too timid to get close.

Beneath the canopy that blocked the moonlight, everything was dim and silent.

It wasn’t clear how long they had been walking, but Xiang He’s feet were now filthy beyond recognition. The ghost had followed her the whole way, repeatedly looking like he wanted to say something, yet holding back. Xiang He wasn’t concerned about anything else—her mind was focused solely on the big cat that would come after the task.

She could go search for it herself, of course, but helping someone and earning merit points in the process? Why not?

“Are we there yet?”

They’d been going up and down for quite a while, and Xiang He’s patience was wearing thin.

Her sudden voice startled the male ghost, who quickly pointed ahead. “V-very close…”

Xiang He sighed and sniffed the air—there was a faint scent of blood lingering in front of her. It really wasn’t far now. She followed the smell quickly, and after rounding a ridge, she finally heard shallow breathing.

Below a cliff was a small mountain stream, with no trees nearby to block the view. Moonlight poured down, illuminating the clear pool below. A man lay flat beside it, seemingly unconscious.

“It’s him?”

The ghost nodded frantically.

Xiang He walked over lightly on her toes and crouched down beside the man, using the moonlight to get a clear look at his face.

The light made his features look softer. His eyes were shut tight, brows twitching slightly with discomfort, and his breathing was erratic—he seemed to be in pain.

Xiang He lifted his chin to examine his face, gently touched his chest to check his heartbeat, inspected his limbs for injuries, and finally took his pulse with two fingers. She quickly got a sense of his condition.

“He fell down here?” Without waiting for a reply, Xiang He continued, “Dislocated right knee, thankfully no fracture. Scratch marks on both hands—looks like he tried to break his fall on the way down…”

Halfway through her analysis, Xiang He laughed. “Why do I sound like a autopsy?”

“Y-young lady… is he going to be okay?”

The voice came from right nearby. Xiang He looked up and saw the male ghost squatting opposite her—a face gray and faded, but with a faint brightness shining through his brow.

“Why haven’t you reincarnated yet?”

His death was clearly from a heart attack, but that faint brightness was the sign of his kind virtue in the afterlife. If he reincarnated, he’d be born into a fairly good family. Even if he didn’t reincarnate, the underworld should have assigned him as a spirit messenger.

The male ghost looked embarrassed. “I… I have unfinished business…”

“Oh,” Xiang He wasn’t very interested in hearing more and pointed at the man. “Do you know him?”

“Yes, he is a young gentleman from Shuiyun City. Tonight while patrolling the mountain, I saw him slip and fall here. I wanted to find someone and then saw you, hoping you could come and save him…”

If this were an ordinary person, not only could he not save anyone, but he might scare someone to death…

Xiang He scratched her head in resignation, then looked back toward the cliff. “The thing he wants is up there?”

“Yes. Do you want to pick it?”

“No,” she showed a sly look in her eyes, “But the thing he risked picking must be very important.”

With that thought, she sat down, dusted the dirt off her feet, and put on her cloth shoes. “You watch over him here. I’ll go up.”

The male ghost was startled and hurriedly tried to stop her. “Miss, that’s too dangerous! You can’t!”

“Don’t worry.”

Xiang He stretched her body, touched the rock wall to check its smoothness—not too slippery—and roughly figured out where she could hold on. She gripped firmly with both hands, confirmed it was secure, and immediately started climbing.

The male ghost stayed beside the young gentleman, anxiously watching her, afraid she’d get hurt too.

She was used to mountain running, let alone climbing a rock face. Agile and quick, Xiang He climbed steadily and by speed advantage had already reached halfway up the mountain.

The male ghost kept his eyes on her, unaware that the young gentleman lying there had already opened his eyes. His black, bright eyes reflected the slender figure climbing above, calm on the surface but with subtle, unusual flickers deep within.

Neither the person nor the ghost noticed he had already woken up. At that moment, Xiang He was looking around, carefully identifying the plants growing out from the cracks in the mountain.

At a glance, she recognized it right away—quadrilateral-shaped opposite leaves. Found it!

Delighted, she eagerly dug them out. Seeing more nearby, she grabbed another handful. But she didn’t notice she had just stepped onto a slippery patch—

“Miss, watch out!”

Her foot slipped, leaving only one hand clutching a small crevice. Her body sank downward. Xiang He quickly shoved the herbs into her chest and used her left hand to grab at something else. Her foot scrambled to return to its original spot, and she just barely managed to stabilize herself without falling.

Xiang He let out a relieved breath. “Whew~ That was scary.”

The ghost below also exhaled in relief. He had already floated down, ready to catch her in case she fell.

Xiang He looked up at the wild herbs growing above and eventually muttered to herself, giving up, “I’ll come back next time better equipped. Don’t want to fall to my death…”

Clutching the herbs, she carefully made her way back down. The moment her toes touched the ground, both she and the ghost sighed in relief.

She quickly walked over and crouched beside the young gentleman. As she lowered her head, her eyes met his.

“Oh no!” Xiang He jumped in surprise again. “You’re awake? Why didn’t you sit up? Scaring people isn’t nice…”

She gave him a side glance and reached out to help him sit up. “Your surname?”

The young man froze briefly. Once upright, he politely cupped his hands and replied with slight reserve, “My humble surname is He—He Suian. And may I ask for the lady’s name? Why are you out in the mountains so late at night?”

“Xiang He. I… I was nearby looking for a water source when I saw you lying here. Can you still walk?”

He Suian glanced at the herbs in her arms, his expression lighting up. “Did you pick those, Miss?”

“You want them?”

Faced with the unfamiliar young woman, He Suian nodded dumbly. Xiang He held out her hand to him. “Pay up.”

Just two words made He Suian freeze even more. “Miss, you climbed all the way up just for money?”

“What else?”

This young gentleman’s clothes were clearly much finer than hers—he obviously came from a well-off family. He probably wouldn’t lack money to buy herbs. As for Xiang He, she was short on money. A fair trade wasn’t asking too much.

Suddenly remembering what the male ghost said earlier, Xiang He clutched the herbs to her chest. “You’re a teacher? A schoolteacher?”

“I am…”

The girl who was so calm earlier now showed a warm, beaming smile. “I can give you the herbs for free, but you’ll have to return the favor.”

Her smiling face leaned in, and He Suian instinctively leaned back. “What… what is it that you want, Miss?”

“I have a younger brother and sister. Since you’re a teacher, would you be willing to teach them?”

Even though she hadn’t gotten a clear answer from them yet, Xiang He still wanted to pave the way. After all, she owed this second chance at life to the original owner of the body. A small gesture of gratitude felt right.

He Suian let out a helpless chuckle. “So the lady is giving me what I want… only to turn around and leverage it for a promise.”

“So what? If I hadn’t been here tonight, who knows if a wild beast would’ve dragged you off?” Xiang He dangled the herbs in front of him. “So? Yes or no?”

The herb was right in front of him—of course He Suian was tempted. With a resigned sigh, he said, “Miss, you truly know how to work the heart. I do need that medicine very badly.”

“Then it’s settled!”

Xiang He reached out and grabbed his leg directly, startling him into swatting her hand away. “Miss, what are you doing?!”

——”Men and women shouldn’t touch each other so casually, Miss!”

The male ghost’s voice echoed by her ear. Xiang He pouted and raised both hands, looking completely innocent. “Your kneecap is dislocated. I’m helping you reset it. Otherwise, you won’t be able to walk.”

“You know medicine?”

“Uh… just a bit!”

As a Taoist priestess—especially the second senior apprentice—she had learned everything she needed. She definitely had the basic skills.

Xiang He cracked her fingers and said calmly, “Just relax. If you’re afraid of the pain… grab the ground or something.”

She lifted He Suian’s robe, gently pressing on his knee to find the right position. Her thumbs applied pressure. “Here it comes.”

Crack!

He Suian only let out a muffled grunt. Xiang He continued feeling around his leg, making sure there weren’t any other issues.

The girl before him was small and thin, dressed in coarse fabric, but her actions were bold and decisive—nothing like a typical village girl.

He Suian’s dark eyes dimmed slightly. The corners of his lips tightened, and his gaze grew more probing, filled with suspicion and curiosity.