Mu Er couldn’t bear it, but she couldn’t stand seeing her master’s regretful expression.
“Mu Er, if you don’t want that person to test the medicine, then forget it,” Xue Baihua’s eyes were empty as she suddenly grabbed Mu Er’s chin, looking at her delicate face with a charming smile.
Xue Baihua, who was once enchanting and alluring, now only had a pitiful sickly appearance, and even her once bright eyes were now dull and dark.
“If you don’t want to be a medicine tester, then,” Xue Baihua whispered in Mu Er’s ear, “kill her.”
Mu Er eventually let Xi Fuhong test the medicine.
She didn’t know if this was helping her or harming her.
After taking the Lin Xian Dan, Xi Fuhong curled up in the corner, not moving.
Her body was extremely sensitive now, and even a light touch would make her feel weak all over.
So she stayed in the corner, trying not to move, waiting for the effects of the medicine to pass.
Fortunately, Mu Er gave her a pill to counteract the medicine, which reduced the effects of the Lin Xian Dan by half.
“Ugh…” Xi Fuhong groaned softly.
Although Mu Er said that as long as she didn’t have contact with others, she would be fine, the heat surging inside her was hard to bear, as if there was a fire inside her with no outlet.
Just as Xi Fuhong was focusing on resisting the heat inside her, a commotion suddenly came from outside the door.
Before Xi Fuhong could react, the old wooden door was pushed open.
The person who came in was Xue Baihua in a white robe, followed by a worried-looking Mu Er, who clearly couldn’t stop her master’s persistence.
“Ah Fu!” Xue Baihua suddenly smiled charmingly, but her sickly appearance took away some of her allure.
Xi Fuhong shrank back into the corner in fear, but Xue Baihua approached without hesitation.
“Ah Fu! I’ve missed you so much! Mu Er told me you were back, and I’m so happy!” Xue Baihua acted like a child, waving her hands and feet.
She knelt beside Xi Fuhong, “Let me take a good look at you.
You’ve lost weight… it must have been very hard for you…”
Xi Fuhong looked at Xue Baihua in shock, completely at a loss.
She had seen Xue Baihua last night, and she was as cold as when they first met.
Why was she like this now?
“Don’t! Don’t touch me!” Xi Fuhong avoided Xue Baihua’s approaching hand and shouted in distress.
“Ah Fu?” Xue Baihua’s smile froze instantly.
Seeing Xue Baihua’s hurt expression, Xi Fuhong bit her lip hard, the pain bringing her a bit of clarity.
She was under the influence of an aphrodisiac, and any touch could lead to disaster.
Even though Xue Baihua was the one who caused this, she clearly didn’t remember what happened yesterday.
The cold poison had driven her mad, as Mu Er had told Xi Fuhong.
“Ah Fu, you don’t look well.
Let me check your pulse, okay?” Xue Baihua asked with a faint smile.
Xi Fuhong shook her head nervously.
“I won’t hurt you.
Let me check your pulse, okay? Ah Fu?” Xue Baihua persisted.
Mu Er couldn’t stand by any longer and stepped forward, “Master, I’ve already checked Xi Fuhong’s pulse.
She’s just tired.
A few days of rest will be fine.
I think it’s best not to disturb her rest.
Master, your condition has improved, and you should rest more too.”
“No,” Xue Baihua suddenly said with a serious face, “Shortness of breath, rapid breathing, cold sweat on the forehead, trembling body, flushed face, how can this be just fatigue? It’s clearly a symptom.
Ah Fu, tell me, where do you feel unwell, hmm?”
Mu Er was stunned by her master’s clarity, realizing she couldn’t hide it.
“Master, Xi Fuhong…” Mu Er glanced at Xi Fuhong and gritted her teeth, “I followed your orders and let her test the Lin Xian Dan…”
“Lin Xian Dan?” Xue Baihua’s hand trembled slightly, her enchanting eyes fixed on Xi Fuhong, “Did I… ask you to let Ah Fu test the Lin Xian Dan? Is that so… is that so… I…”
“Master, you were seriously ill last night.
Xi Fuhong will understand, so you don’t have to blame yourself,” Mu Er quickly said, but Xue Baihua suddenly raised her hand to stop Mu Er’s words.
This cold poison had truly driven her mad, making Ah Fu take an aphrodisiac? Her own concoction?
How pathetic and ridiculous…
“Ah Fu, do you blame me?” Xue Baihua’s voice trembled uncontrollably, and Xi Fuhong listened in confusion.
Blame Xue Baihua? Would she blame her?
Her heart was already dead, so how could she blame anyone?
Xi Fuhong just looked at her in the end, giving no response.
Seeing this, Xue Baihua’s shoulders slumped in disappointment.
She moved closer, about to speak, when she noticed Mu Er’s worried face.
She understood that Mu Er cared about her, but there were too many things she only wanted to say to Ah Fu, not wanting others to know.
“Mu Er, wait outside the door,” Xue Baihua said softly.
Mu Er, despite feeling uneasy, respectfully retreated.
The dilapidated woodshed was left with only Xi Fuhong and Xue Baihua.
The distance between them was close, and Xi Fuhong could feel the cold emanating from Xue Baihua, while Xue Baihua could feel Xi Fuhong’s heat.
“Ah Fu… I’ve been thinking about you since we parted that day…” Xue Baihua squinted her eyes, her smile weak, but Xi Fuhong saw a hint of sincerity in it.
However, Shi Cuiyan’s warnings brought her back to reality, refusing to accept Xue Baihua’s ambiguous warmth.
“I often think… if I could have taken you away that day… would things be different now?” Xue Baihua asked.
Xi Fuhong frowned and shook her head, “I had to follow the Righteous Path to retrieve the treasure.” Even if it was a futile effort…
Even if she couldn’t see her grandmother when she returned to Miaojiang.
“Do you hate me that much? Not willing to be with me? I said I would take care of you, right? I would treat you well, hmm?” Xue Baihua’s eyes filled with tears, and she was so agitated that she couldn’t catch her breath, coughing lightly.
But how could Xi Fuhong believe her?
“Is making me test the medicine your best treatment?” Xi Fuhong smiled bitterly, and Xue Baihua suddenly froze.
Yes…
What kind of love is this?
What kind of good treatment is this?
“Do you hate me? For treating you like this, for hurting you like this… do you hate me?” Xue Baihua ignored Xi Fuhong’s resistance, grabbing her hands tightly and asking excitedly, “Ah Fu, tell me! Do you hate me? Hate me so much you can’t forgive me? You said you liked me, right? You said it, right? Say it again, okay? Let me hear it again, okay?”
As if struck by lightning, Xi Fuhong closed her eyes in pain, trying to shake off Xue Baihua’s hands, but they were held even tighter.
“Ah Fu, you’re my medicine person! Now that you’re back, you can’t leave again! Do you know, at the Wulin Branch, when you cured the Frost Flower poison, how heartbroken I was! You were supposed to be mine! Only mine!” Xue Baihua’s tears fell like beads, dripping onto Xi Fuhong’s leg.
“I’m not yours! I’m not!!” Xi Fuhong said painfully, she didn’t belong to anyone!
“How are you not? I had you, right? I did, right? I once held you, caressed you, kissed you! How are you not mine! How are you not!” Xue Baihua suddenly cried out in anger, then coldly stared at Xi Fuhong, “Or… besides me… has someone else taken you? Has someone else held you down and loved you? Has anyone? Tell me!”
Xi Fuhong’s eyes widened in an instant, as if her heart’s scar was being torn open again, the pain unbearable.
