Chapter 266 The Withering Sakura
Ye Shaoyang gathered his thoughts and took out a small ceramic bottle from his backpack. This was the Garnet Baihua Pill that Tan Xiaohui had given him not too long ago. There were only three pills inside the bottle. Ye Shaoyang took one out and placed it into Teng Yongqing's mouth. Xie Yuqing passed Ye Shaoyang a bottle of distilled water, and he fed the water into Teng Yongqing's mouth to flush the pill into his stomach.
Nothing looked different from the outside, but to Ye Shaoyang's surprise, he noticed that the Yang Qi started to disperse at a much slower rate. Soon, the effect of the pill took full control and the Yang Qi stopped rushing out from Teng Yongqing's body. Ye Shaoyang drew a Soul Binding Rune on a talisman paper and stuck it onto Teng Yongqing's forehead to stabilize his condition. After all, the latter was in such a weak condition, and his soul could be easily seized by any outside force.
"Okay, now his life is saved." Ye Shaoyang let out a sigh of relief before he further instructed, "Get him to the hospital as quickly as you can for a blood transfusion. Do whatever the hospital needs to, but don't ever take away the talisman paper."
Xiao Ma and Old Guo carefully carried Teng Yongqing out of the place. Ma Cheng finally had the chance to prove his worth. He volunteered, "Come with me. My car is fast, and it is outside."
Since Xiao Ma and Old Guo were there, Zhou Jingru and Xie Yuqing felt that there was no need for them to follow. They walked over to the sakura garden. As they saw the ground covered with withered flowers, they could not help but feel sad.
Ye Shaoyang was utterly exhausted after using the sword. Now, he sat on the ground motionlessly, as he stared in the direction where Tan Xiaohui had vanished into just now.
"She must have done that for Tan Xiaohui…. The real Tan Xiaohui. She chose to avenge her." Xie Yuqing mumbled.
Ye Shaoyang kept quiet for a long while. Finally, he answered, "That is one of the reasons. She also did not want to go to the Underworld. She wanted to stay in the mortal world, hence…." As he thought back to Tan Xiaohui's every little reaction, Ye Shaoyang realized that she had already decided to sacrifice herself. She had already accepted her fate, so she was calm all the time.
However, can anyone really accept their fate without any regret?
Suddenly, Ye Shaoyang noticed something. He approached the spot and picked up a small item. It was a silkworm, flawlessly white in color. But it was dead.
"This is Tan Xiaohui's remains?" Zhou Jingru asked.
Ye Shaoyang nodded, as he whispered to the dead worm, "Although you are dead, at least you get to stay in the mortal world now. Congratulations, I guess."
Xie Yuqing was surprised to hear this, so she asked, "What do you mean?"
"She came from the Underworld but died in the mortal world. So, her Qi of the Underworld has been cleansed. As long as her primordial spirit gathers into a Hun, she can enter the Netherworld Council and start her journey of the Underworld through the six paths of reincarnation, just like a normal spirit in the mortal world," Ye Shaoyang said as he stared at the lifeless worm.
Zhou Jingru was surprised, "I remember you told me this before, after the primordial spirits gather, it has to be reincarnated into the path of animals."
"If she doesn't undergo the pain of reincarnation, how would she qualify to be reincarnated into a human? I guess this choice would be worth the pain to her."
Zhou Jingru and Xie Yuqing could only nod in silence. It was a sad ending, but it was a consolation to those who lived. After all, this was Tan Xiaohui's own choice. Besides, this was a new beginning for her, rather than an end. The only sad part was that this would take a long time, and they would not be able to see her after this.
A gust of wind blew again, and the petals dropped onto the ground, reminding everyone about the sad event again. Ye Shaoyang stood up and let out a sigh, "Time for us to leave."
The trio stood in the sakura garden for a while longer, each bearing heavy thoughts. Then, they finally left without uttering another word.
The next morning soon arrived. Teng Yongqing was now in a stable condition, but he was still unconscious.
Zhou Jingru hired two nurses to take care of him. The group visited him on his bed again before they left for Tan Xiaohui's grave. It was a spot Zhou Jingru had picked for her. It was a cemetery on a hill with a great view.
Ye Shaoyang carried Tan Xiaohui's remains in a handkerchief. He buried her with the real Tan XIaohui. Now, both Tan Xiaohui were resting in peace together.
As they left, everyone kept quiet. Finally, Xie Yuqing broke the silence, as she asked Ye Shaoyang where the handkerchief came from. Ye Shaoyang answered without thinking twice. Xie Yuqing asked again, "Do you know what the significance is in Miao culture when a girl presents a man with a handkerchief she knitted?"
Ye Shaoyang shook his head, but the answer was a little obvious.
Xie Yuqing bitterly smiled, "Furthermore, that handkerchief was knitted using the silk she produced."
Ye Shaoyang was silent.
Everyone gathered in the afternoon for a lunch. They were in no mood to celebrate, but it was a success after such a long time. They had killed Madam Chee, so it was a burden lifted off their shoulders, especially for Ye Shaoyang.
Ma Cheng joined the group for lunch, and he insisted on paying. He even opened up a bottle of old liquor, but everyone was not in the mood to drink.
Halfway through the meal, Ma Cheng suddenly popped out a question, "Mister Ye, what should I do now with the sakura garden?"
"Burn it to the ground. Those Sakura trees are now demons, so it is risky to keep them." Ye Shaoyang then turned to Old Guo, "Senior brother, perhaps it's better if you could go along with him. Just to be safe. And check out the well, see if the pagoda tree is still in there."
Old Guo was nervous, "What if I bump into something powerful?"
"Those powerful spirits are dead in the formation since they came out along with Madam Chee. So, there shouldn't be any spirits left. Even if there is, you will be able to handle it. Just be careful."
On second thought, Old Guo could actually earn some money from Ma Cheng for this. So, he delightedly agreed. Ma Cheng would only need to inform Old Guo after all the diving equipment had been prepared.
Ma Cheng held up his glass and toasted to Ye Shaoyang, "Master Ye, you really opened up my eyes yesterday. I would not believe it if I had not witnessed it with my own eyes. I can't believe there is really such thing as a pill to bring back the dead in this world."
Ye Shaoyang explained, "There is no such thing. The pill merely blocked the Yang Qi from escaping from his body. This would only buy time for a person until they could be saved by real medical professionals. It's that simple."
This explanation only brought more confusion to Ma Cheng, "What exactly is Yang Qi?"
Ye Shaoyang was not in the mood to explain. He sipped the liquor in his glass without uttering another word.
In the afternoon. Ye Shaoyang and Xiao Ma went back to the bamboo building. They slept away the whole afternoon and only woke up in evening. Then, they continued their day by drinking beer.
"Now that this has come to an end, what is your plan?" Xiao Ma asked.
"I guess… I will rest for a few days, and then continue living my life. How about you?"
"A date." Xiao Ma grinned.
This answer somehow resonated with Ye Shaoyang's feelings. After dinner, he called Rui Lengyu. They talked for a long time. He recounted the story to her, and she did not comment on anything; she only listened. However, after telling her everything, he felt so much better.
Ye Shaoyang spent the next few days wandering around the city. It was not exactly a vacation, but he felt loosened up. Although he was resting, he was connected to his friends and allies through the phone. So, he quickly received the news that Old Guo had gone down the well but did not find the pagoda tree.