Chapter 272: Chapter 113: Faded Dreams_2
It was not unusual that he did not recognize himself.
Pei Yunmeng glanced at the wound on his shoulder and seemed to think of something, Clicked his tongue, and said disdainfully, "The stitching is really terrible."
Lu Tong: "..."
Looking along the scar on Pei Yunmeng’s shoulder, time had muted its ferocity, yet it couldn’t change the fact of its roughness. Both new and old wounds had been tended by her hand, like the same canvas being sketched on different days, from crude to refined, each clearly recorded.
Unexpectedly, Lu Tong suddenly remembered what Pei Yunshu had said to her at Treasure Bead’s Baby Washing Ceremony at Prince Wen’s Mansion.
Pei Yunshu asked, "Doctor Lu is from Su Nan, and Ah Ying was also in Su Nan a few years ago, did you meet there?"
At that time, she had subconsciously denied it, never imagining that destiny, after its twists and turns, would bring together passersby who had once sought shelter from the winter chill to meet again elsewhere.
The silver lamp flickered, its light blossoming brightly, reminiscent of shining red millet. Lu Tong gazed at the lone lamp on the table, lost in thought.
A hand waved in front of her.
Lu Tong raised her eyes.
Pei Yunmeng withdrew his hand and said with a smile, "Doctor Lu seems to have many worries on her mind."
Lu Tong gathered her thoughts back, "If Lord Pei could refrain from visiting uninvited a few times less, I would have far fewer worries."
Her words were ironic, yet her demeanor had relaxed considerably compared to before, as if facing an old acquaintance with a casual ease.
This ease was caught by Pei Yunmeng, and his expression turned somewhat strange.
After a moment, Pei Yunmeng’s gaze flickered, and he mused, "For some reason, this scene seems familiar."
Lu Tong pursed her lips.
The black-clothed man in the temple had never inquired about Lu Tong’s private matters from beginning to end. Even though he had initially teased her a few times for stealing from the dead, once Lu Tong explained it was for medicine-making, he ceased to ask further.
He ignored her strange behaviors and eventually did not pull off her face cover, as if she was just an ordinary girl who had happened upon the decrepit temple by chance.
Perhaps for this reason, Lu Tong now looked at Pei Yunmeng with a hint of familiarity in her eyes.
Although they had met but once before.
The snow fell silently to the ground, the continuous flakes melting quickly into clear puddles on the windowsill.
"The snow is about to stop," he looked out the window.
The moon had completely disappeared behind the clouds, and in the dark snowy night, the faint sound of bird calls rose from the distant sky.
Pei Yunmeng’s expression shifted slightly.
Shortly after, he downed the tea in his cup in one gulp, fastened his collar, and stood up.
"Doctor Lu," he looked down at Lu Tong with a gentle smile in the dim candlelight, "Thank you for your assistance tonight."
"You’re welcome," Lu Tong responded lightly, "Lord Pei has paid his fee."
Pei Yunmeng raised an eyebrow, his dimples shining as he smiled, "Then I shall visit again to express my thanks."
With those words, he picked up his sword, ready to leave.
"Lord Pei." Lu Tong called out to him.
He turned around.
Lu Tong handed him the vial containing the wound medicine, "Fifty taels, don’t forget."
He paused, then laughed and gratefully accepted, "Thank you."
"Squeak—a sound."
After the door of the medical hall gently closed, all returned to silence. The wooden window was pushed further open by the north wind, and looking out, the garden was filled with swirling snow.
Yin Zheng approached with a lantern in hand, peering cautiously outside, "He... he’s gone?"
"He’s gone."
Yin Zheng patted her chest with relief, "I was so scared just now, miss, he didn’t do anything to you, did he?"
Lu Tong shook her head.
That bird call in the snowy night was abrupt... Those who were to meet him must have already arrived.
Perhaps the snowy days always lowered one’s guard, but now that she knew something of the past, her gaze at Pei Yunmeng was different from before. They couldn’t be called friends, and in the future, they might even face each other on the battlefield, but at that moment, there was an unexpected pang of meeting an old friend.
Lu Tong went to the low table in the inner room and opened the lid of the medical chest.
Inside the medical box were scattered some little vials, a Silver Jar, Golden Needles, and a few old, yellowed medical books. Lu Tong reached for the edge and with a "click," the lid of the innermost compartment opened.
This compartment wasn’t big, just the length of a finger, square and upright, purpose-built to hold mulberry bark thread, but within it was a neatly placed White Jade Pendant, as well as a tarnished Silver Ring.
Lu Tong picked up the Silver Ring.
Too much time had passed, and the Silver Ring had lost its luster, now covered with rust, the patterns indiscernible, but held in her hand, she could feel the cold texture of the engravings.