Fish 020: Chase After And Ask

Physician, don’t go.

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Mo Li left the house immediately.

With the trees, courtyard walls, and dozens of large and small rooms here, if a martial artist wanted to hide, it couldn’t have been easier. Who knows if that voyeur is really gone, or hiding in the dark?

He can’t stay in this place for a long time!

Mo Li ran out for half a mile in one breath. Seeing no one on both sides, only then did he slow down and began to worry about the wind and snow wrapping around his robe.

When Magistrate Xue first talked about Meng Qi, Mo Li wasn’t afraid but he’s still a bit curious, because Elder Qin said that with his martial arts, he could take on thousands of troops and horses with no problem.

Poison? He’s a genius physician.

Scam? This is not impossible, but many scams are useless for true masters.

A love affair? It’s also possible, but Qin Lu knew his student very well and knew how small the probability of this kind of thing happening is. First of all, Mo Li had no specific concept of human beauty and ugliness since he was a child. For Mo Li, a beautiful and weak woman would receive the same treatment as a beggar woman with abscesses. Qin Lu once praised him for this. This shows that Mo Li has talent for practicing medicine and helping the world.

Secondly, it’s caused by misunderstanding. Since it’s necessary to treat diseases, there are not only men, but also women. Besides, if you suddenly encounter a pregnant woman who has dystocia that’s about to kill two lives, as a doctor, you can’t just stand by and watch, right? Even in this case, he could only instruct the midwife through a curtain after diagnosing the pulse. Moreover, the doctor must have an image in his mind, and at least know where the child would come out.

When Mo Li was eight years old, Qin Lu cut two wooden figures with a knife to teach him how to distinguish between the two.

One man, and one woman.

Since childhood, he’s more than able to concentrate.

Qin Lu said nothing else, but he could be sure that even with the most beautiful woman under the heavens, Mo Li wouldn’t have any reaction even after she danced for a day and a night in front of him. What about the light muslin whirling, hiding behind a screen, and lying on the jade body…he won’t fantasize about it, but he’d be able to tell from the occassionally bare chest whethere they have cysts, whether it’s serious or not, and whether they need to take medicine.

In this way, seducing him is difficult.

Qin Lu used to think about what kind of woman would his student set his heart on in the future, but then thought to himself that there was none. Only then did he work hard to arrange Mo Li a life in Zhushan County. Now that he knew Mo Li’s true body, it’s estimated that these worries would go in a strange direction.

Because Qin Lu spared no effort to praise his student, and Mo Li had never encountered any rivals, he was still very confident in his own strength.

Magistrate Xue said that Meng Qi was unapproachable and unfathomable, so Mo Li immediately believed him. He came out this time to look for spiritual plants and beasts, to see if there are no other dragon veins in the world besides the one in the Great Capital, and not to win the title of the World’s Number One Master.

It doesn’t make sense to call him the number one in the world, his teacher said.

Mo Li walked and stopped among the wind and snow, a little hesitant.

He didn’t know whether he should be as far away as possible from Zhushan County to lead the voyeur away, or to return to Zhushan County as soon as possible to remind Qin Lu and Xue Ting.

Mo Li began to think about whether he had revealed his identity to his targets or his appearance to the voyeur a moment ago…

The answer to the first question is no, and the second one is uncertain. At that time, he didn’t know that someone’s outside, but he didn’t let the owner and thin man see his face. However, it’s hard to say whether he could be seen from outside.

And Mo Li didn’t know when the voyeur came.

Had he always been waiting to ambush near the mansion, and his goal was the owner and the thin man, but Mo Li just happened to be there? Or did he follow Mo Li all the way?

The praying mantis catches the cicada and the oriole is behind, this might not be impossible.

The more Mo Li thought about it, the more solemn his expression became. He quickly made a decision and went back to Zhushan County!

As he turned around, a faint brown shadow flashed at the corner of his eyes.

Mo Li suddenly widened his eyes and woke up. The other party didn’t leave and was still following him?! Not only did he not notice what kind of martial arts the other was using, but he didn’t even notice the slightest breath.

You have to know that humans have to breathe, even birds and animals, flowers and trees, and even the swimming fishes are no exception!

At this moment, Mo Li thought a lot, but his dagger was faster than his thoughts.

The dim light of the dagger flashed in the wind and snow, swift as lightning, and immediately rushed to the other side’s figure.

This slash was already his best move.

It has no dazzling momentum, nor did it even cut off the falling snow, but it seemed to be part of the natural qi. The blade wind hid among the whistling north wind, dim and almost transparent.

However, no one in this world can take this slash unscathed.

In the wind and snow, a piece of sleeve fluttered to the ground.

“Good dagger technique.”

That voice was clear as if a jade chime ringing from far away.

The visitor stood in the wind and snow, dressed in a cloak, a robe, and fluttering long sleeves.

Although it’s not white, nor is it a crane cloak feathered garment, but a common one, he exudes nobility and cleanliness.

His long dark hair was pulled up by a wooden hairpin with no other accessories. He sighed softly when he looked at his missing sleeve.

Mo Li had already retreated ten feet away while looking at the other.

To be honest, he was a little puzzled. As the old saying goes, your heart would show on your face. Although the face is a mystery within a mystery, it’s not reliable. However, if a person has a violent or depressed personality, it would naturally affect that person’s appearance.

Mo Li is not a fortune teller, but he is a doctor, so seeing, hearing, and asking are all basic skills.

This person didn’t seem to be a killer.

The other person’s eyes are clear and straight, his expression calm, and more importantly, during the brief encounter just now, Mo Li felt a breath of awe, as if he was not facing a person, but rather a lofty mountain and the scorching sun.

“Who are you? Why are you following me?” Mo Li stared at the man vigilantly and asked.

The visitor didn’t intend to answer at all. He looked at the dagger in Mo Li’s hand and slowly said, “No blade.”

The dagger didn’t have an edge so there’s naturally no blade and its lethality depends entirely on the wielder’s intention. This requires a lot of skill and also requires the user to always be sober and sensible to control it.

“The dagger is less than a foot long and can be hidden in the sleeve, so it’s called a sleeve dagger.” After judging the knife, the man raised his head to look at Mo Li, and said in a sure tone, “You really are the disciple of the Silver Fox Doctor, Qin Lu.”

Mo Li didn’t want to show any weakness, and bluntly asked: “Are you Meng Qi?”

“…that’s my previous name. You can call me that way.” The man looked at ease and didn’t panic.

Mo Li involuntarily frowned. To tell the truth, the other party was completely different from what he thought. He was not as cold as Minister Xue said where a single look can scare people.

“Previous name? With the collapse of the previous dynasty, do you no longer have the State Teacher’s name?” Mo Li asked bluntly, no matter who was being followed, they would be unhappy.

The fight just now gave Mo Li a threshold. Meng Qi’s martial arts is indeed high, but not as terrible as he thought. It’s just that this person is very special and has no aura, like a perfect fusion with everything around him, coupled with his light footwork of not even leaving a trace in the snow, he’s difficult to detect.

Meng Qi looked at Mo Li with a strange expression, it seems that there’s even a touch of thirst. He didn’t care about Mo Li’s anger but explained: “Not so. I no longer use the name Meng Qi because I don’t remember.”

This surprised Mo Li.

Then he quickly realized what the desire in Meng Qi’s eyes meant. It’s like when those people suffering from chronic illness for a long time saw him. Isn’t he the same?

Sure enough, in the next second, he heard Meng Qi say: “You are Qin Lu’s disciple, so do you know the art of medicine?”

“…”

“It looks like you did. Can you cure incurable diseases?” Meng Qi’s eyes brightened.

Mo Li smiled and instinctively asked: “What’s your problem?”

This time, it was the former State Teacher’s turn to be distressed. He thought for a while and described it with difficulty: “It’s just like that.”

What do you mean that? Physician Mo thought dumbfoundedly, do you mean when you’re following me inexplicably and scarily like a ghost? No, that couldn’t be it——

“You killed a lot of people, everyone in that house.”

“Not everyone. There’s still the military officer and that group of soldiers he brought.” Meng Qi retorted.

Mo Li immediately coldly said: “Maybe it’s not a disease. Although many diseases made patients kill people, they wouldn’t remember what they did, let alone choose their victims deliberately.”

Meng Qi didn’t care about the hostility in this sentence. He actually nodded in agreement and sighed: “I hope it’s not madness, after all, no one wants to be a lunatic, but the fact is obviously not the case.”

“Oh?”

“When I kill people, I know what I’m doing and why I want to kill them, but I didn’t mean to do it. I can’t control my own body at all. It’s like watching this happen through someone else’s eyes.”

Physician Mo’s expression changed slightly. He really heard Qin Lu talk about this kind of case.

Because it’s a very rare case and the patients are often treated as lunatics talking nonsense, there are no records in the medical books. And Qin Lu, who traveled the world and all over the mountains and rivers, only encountered it two times.

But Mo Li didn’t directly admit that Meng Qi was sick. He tentatively said: “It sounds like the Miao Border’s Gu and also Xiangxi’s sorcery, which can manipulate the minds of others.”

“I’ve been to these two places, and I’ve been disappointed.”

Meng Qi now looked at Mo Li’s eyes, making Physician Mo realize that if he didn’t take his pulse today, he wouldn’t be able to leave.

——I never thought that this mysterious master chased me to see a doctor.

“How did you guess that I’m a disciple of the Silver Fox Doctor?”

“Because I arrived before you came to that mansion and heard what you said. Gan Wu treated you as Ghost Poison Vulture, but I saw your face. Ghost Poison Vulture is not good at disguises, so he can’t possibly be a young man under 30 years old. This place is very small, so except for the Ghost Poison Vulture, there’s only the Silver Fox Doctor.”

Mo Li asked back: “What if I’m just someone passing by who didn’t care about the treasures of the previous dynasty and have nothing to do with those two people?”

Meng Qi hesitated before saying: “…actually, I returned to normal when you slashed me with the dagger. Before, I didn’t chase you to seek treatment. I just felt interested in you and wanted to know who you are.”

“…”

Mo Li took a deep breath and decided to ask Meng Qi first why he wanted to kill.

Teacher said to save patients that should be saved and cure the disease that can be cured.

If he’s killing innocent people indiscriminately, he doesn’t want to cure it.

“You called the owner Gan Wu, right? It sounds like a code name, who is he?”

“They’re called JinYiWei* and worked for the Emperor. This group belongs to JinYiWei’s secret men that will never see the sky unless they make great contributions.” Meng Qi held up his hands and looked calm.

*JinYiWei: Brocade Uniform Guard, imperial bodyguard, and secret police force of the Ming emperors.

Mo Li felt that the problem was big. Although the counties northwest of Pingzhou didn’t follow the Imperial court laws, the Imperial power still had a lot of pull.

“Why did you kill them?”

“Three years ago, JinYiWei secretly found my house and ransacked it while I was away.”

Meng Qi sighed with a heavy expression, “There’s a mouse in my family that’s very well-behaved along with several elixirs in the courtyard. They not only killed my pet, but also dug away the elixir, even digging three feet in my courtyard, and breaking the elixir’s roots. When I came back, it was too late. My disease originated from this, and the medicinal stone was ineffective. Because I was away from home, it’s been a few days since the incident, and these people had already dispersed and the elixirs distributed. Although these people are extremely hateful and I can’t wait to kill them myself, I also know they’re just acting on orders. What they did is a capital offense that’s hard to forgive, and it’s enough to just punish them, but…it’s been three years, as long as I found those who participated in this matter, they will not survive.”

Mo Li: “…”

Mouse? The chubby mouse? Elixir? Why does this sound so familiar?

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The author has something to say:

There are no (ordinary) servants in this house. After all, it’s to deal with the Ghost Poison Vulture, so the staff wouldn’t have bad martial arts.

This gong is different from the past. He’ll be more like a villain, but he’s only evil because of negative emotions.

Yes, Meng Qi is the gong, but in human form. He doesn’t remember that he’s a dragon vein.

He didn’t lie and didn’t cheat Mo Li. In fact, the Great Capital’s dragon vein called for Mo Li, just to cure his illness →_→

As for the cause of the disease, the small dragon vein that the Great Capital’s dragon used to self-differentiate died.

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When he was young, Qin Lu met beautiful women. If he changed his words to the present, then, in that lively and fragrant scene, Physician Qin would say: There’s a small growth ah, it’s a little serious so take medicine.

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Qin Lu: I used to think that my student had delusions, but now I hear that the person my student is looking for has a split personality? Can’t it be better?

Great Capital’s dragon vein: No, I have amnesia.