Wei Chen’s family had a fixed wake-up schedule, and he had long developed the habit: getting up at six to do morning exercise downstairs with his grandfather and father, then waiting for his beautiful, refined mother to wake up so the whole family could enjoy a quiet breakfast together before discussing current news or medical treatments.
His luggage had been packed the previous night. Hearing a discussion about laparoscopic surgery starting up, Wei Chen immediately stood up and volunteered to go next door to see if Gu Liang was ready.
It was only eight o’clock, so that guy Gu Liang was definitely still asleep. He slowly opened the small connecting gate between their yards and strolled over, greeting the Gu family servants along the way without hindrance.
The butler was an elderly man who had watched them grow up. The moment he saw Wei Chen walk in, he called out: “Young Master Wei, here to wake our young master up again?” followed by various warm greetings.
Having experienced his own grandfather’s tough-love style of upbringing since childhood, Wei Chen couldn’t handle such overwhelming warmth. Seeing the Gu family butler, he gave a polite greeting and immediately took off, sighing with relief only when he reached Gu Liang’s room.
Sometimes excessive enthusiasm could leave psychological scars. Shaking his head after his daily sigh, Wei Chen bypassed the small living room of Gu Liang’s suite and went straight into the bedroom.
The room was bright and spacious; the curtains were basically decorative. Ever since Gu Liang was six years old, he had been somewhat afraid of the dark, so Wei Chen had rarely seen the curtains pulled closed.
The three-meter-wide king bed was slept in until it looked like a bird’s nest this guy always buried his head tight under the covers.
Wei Chen drew the curtains, returning the room to a night-like darkness. He then tiptoed over, pulled Gu Liang’s head out from beneath the blanket, and sat on the edge of the bed with his legs crossed, playing on his phone.
The flight was at two in the afternoon, so it was still early; he could let Gu Liang sleep a bit longer.
“Wei Chen?”
The person beside him called his name indistinctly. His deep voice carried a touch of softness, sounding almost like a coo. Moments later, rustling sounds echoed as he huddled closer.
Wei Chen didn’t respond. One of his hands was pulled down by Gu Liang, who held it, rubbed his face against it, and fell back asleep.
“Pig.”
Suppressing the slight upward curve of his lips, Wei Chen put on a cool facade in the darkness and switched to an offline game played with one hand.
The entire Wei family along with Gu Liang boarded the private jet.
Wei Chen found his dedicated seat, reclined the chair, draped a blanket over himself, and prepared to sleep.
Sitting next to him, Gu Liang wasn’t sleepy at all nor was he about to let Wei Chen sleep. Flipping off Wei Chen’s sleep mask, he hit him with a death glare.
At times like this, Wei Chen didn’t mind Gu Liang going to play with Chen Youming. He let out a yawn, eyes hazy as he played the pity card: “I didn’t sleep well yesterday. Go play with Mingzi, be good.”
“Who are you fooling?” Gu Liang’s brows knitted into a tight scowl. His striking eyes spoke volumes, vivid as if displaying two big words. Yeah, right.
Gu Liang: “I’m not a kid, what do you mean ‘be good’?”
“Fair enough.” Wei Chen rested his chin on his hand, pondering for a moment. “Ah, then take a brother’s advice and go play with Mingzi.”
“Not going!”
“Then watch a movie, I’ll set it up for you.”
“Not watching.”
“How about a top-tier Shanghai afternoon tea?”
Gu Liang pulled a face of pure disgust.
Wei Chen: “…”
Wei Chen: “Fine, I’ll play with you.”
Having gotten his way, Gu Liang happily pulled out a laptop he had prepared long ago, connected to the private jet’s Wi-Fi network, and opened the 43kk Mini Games website.
Wei Chen’s face instantly shifted into confusion: “This…”
“It’s super fun, really.” Gu Liang’s eyes sparkled like a diaper-wearing toddler who had found a treasure to share with his buddy.
Wei Chen genuinely hadn’t expected that a classic might be delayed, but would never fail to show up.
To think this gaming website blew up so late in this world.
Wei Chen took a glance, discovering that aside from a few name changes, the design and programming were almost identical to what he had played in his childhood.
He said calmly, “Mm, I believe you. Truth be told, I used to love playing it too.”
Gu Liang frowned, “Used to?”
“A couple of days ago, that counts as ‘used to’ too.”
Perhaps Gu Liang had even secretly bought all sorts of QQ VIP memberships behind his back. Wei Chen resolved to check his own QQ account which he hadn’t opened in ages later on.
Taking a look at this future overbearing president’s black-history, cringe chuunibyou childhood might yield eye-searingly glorious results.
He definitely had to document it.
It took over ten hours of flying to reach their destination. Having spent an entire day playing mini-games with Gu Liang, Wei Chen refused to talk after stepping off the plane, resting his eyes in the car.
Gu Liang didn’t have much energy either, leaning against him while doing eye exercises.
Seeing the two boys getting along so well, Mrs. Wei teased Mr. Wei: “Look at how close these two children are. When Mrs. Gu and I were pregnant at the same time, we talked about having our families marry if it was a boy and a girl. They both turned out to be boys, but it’s no shame being childhood friends is great too. Their future kids can still marry into each other’s families.”
Mr. Wei put his arm around his wife and brought up old times: “Back then, my mom said the exact same thing to me and Gu Liang’s dad…”
Listening in, Wei Chen patted Gu Liang’s head and teased: “Hear that, little wife? If you were a girl, we’d be engaged right now.”
Gu Liang spat back: “I’m two months older than you. No matter how you look at it, you should be the girl.”
That evening, they arrived at an ancient-style residence comparable to an ancient imperial palace, greeted by servants dressed in Tang dynasty attire.
The estate featured blue bricks, green tiles, and red lacquer, with a cool breeze wafting through the long corridors. Magnificent without being ostentatious, the clean and simple layout showed touches of refinement everywhere. As late-night fog rolled in, it felt like retreating into mountain forests while hiding in the city. Living here for a few days almost made Wei Chen want to refer to himself as a noble scholar.
He felt like sipping tea and gazing at mountain clouds.
“Didn’t see this coming, your family really keeps a low profile.” Gu Liang patted Wei Chen’s shoulder and whispered: “How come I’ve never heard you mention this place before?”
Wei Chen was speechlessly amused: “I just found out myself.”
“Did your grandpa buy this recently for retirement?”
“I don’t think so. Don’t you think the servants moving like ghosts around here feels a bit eerie?”
“Not really. Aren’t they leading us up ahead?”
“Look over at that pavilion.”
Gu Liang looked in the direction Wei Chen pointed. Several women dressed identically to the guide up front were gliding across the thin mist as if floating past. Combined with the ancient architecture, it was indeed somewhat eerie in the middle of the night.
Gu Liang curled his lip: “It’s just heavy night dew.”
“Oh.” Wei Chen nodded, leaning over to ask in a whisper: “Then why are you holding onto the hem of my shirt?”
“…” A faint pink spread across Gu Liang’s ears. Having a habit of touching his ears when telling a lie, he said with flustered annoyance: “I just think the fabric of your clothes feels comfortable. What’s wrong with holding it a bit?”
Wei Chen curled his lips into a smile, his two dimples clearly visible even in the dark. Gu Liang felt infected by Wei Chen’s habit of restless hands, suddenly wanting to poke them.
However, Wei Chen didn’t give him the chance, reaching out to grasp his hand directly. “Sure, but my hand is much smoother than my clothes. Let’s hurry up; your room should be arranged right next to mine.”
The warmth of another person’s hand was slightly cool, just enough to bring down his temperature.
For some reason, the further inward they walked, the previous sense of ethereal elegance transformed into a surging feeling of heat and restlessness that grew deeper and deeper only settling down when holding Gu Liang’s hand.
This place was definitely extraordinary and likely tied closely to his own book’s storyline.
“Wei Chen, come over here first.”
Old Master Wei had a solemn expression, his authoritative voice sounding particularly imposing in the quiet courtyard, even startling birds on the branches into flight.
Wei Chen released Gu Liang’s hand and followed him.
Crossing a pond reflecting the moon and passing by several blooming night-blooming cereus flowers, amidst the crisp fragrance, they arrived before a towering pagoda that reached into the clouds.
Old Master Wei pushed open the red pagoda door, and an overwhelming odor of chaotic medicinal herbs rushed out, making Wei Chen cough a few times from the fumes.
“Grandpa, what kind of place is this really?”
It was pitch-black inside, so dark that even moonlight couldn’t penetrate. He had never seen such a bizarre residence.
Designed as an imperial palace on the outside, yet featuring a Buddhist pagoda at its center appearing not to worship eminent monks, but to store medicinal herbs instead.
Lowering his voice, Old Master Wei glared at him: “Unfilial descendant, quickly kneel and pay homage to our Ancestral Master!”
As he spoke, a gust of wild wind blew in from outside. Wherever it swept, candlelight lit up with gold and silver brilliance, making the entire space shine so intensely it dazzled the eyes.
At the very center of the pagoda stood a stone monument inscribed with three magnificent, flowing characters Wei Buping.
With a loud thud, an invisible force pressed down on Wei Chen’s knees, and he naturally performed three kowtows.
“Junior Wei Chen pays homage to Ancestral Master.”
The moment he lifted his head, he saw a glowing white light rise from the stone monument and fly toward him, quickly merging into his body and turning into a warm current extending to all his limbs and bones, stretching his tendons and marrow.
Old Master Wei suddenly fell silent. When Wei Chen looked over, he saw the old man gazing at him with delighted surprise before falling to his knees with a heavy plop.
As if going crazy, he shouted at him: “Heaven blesses my Wei family! The position of Medicine King finally has a successor!”
“Thank you, Old Ancestor!”
As he shouted, he even wept tears of joy to the point of choking up.
Wei Chen was rendered speechless for a moment, not knowing whether to stand up or kneel opposite his grandfather.
He really hadn’t expected his book to belong to the urban fantasy genre as well.
System 2002 suddenly spoke: Congratulations, Mr. Wei Chen, on obtaining the SSS-grade medical boon: “Observation, Listening, Inquiry, and Pulse-taking”.
Wei Chen instantly threw his grandfather to the back of his mind.
“What does it do?”
“Translated into modern terms, it means you can tell the general illness with a single glance, and know the exact condition and treatment method just by taking a pulse. It is the boon left by your ancestor, Wei Buping, for the most suitable successor.”
“Oh.”
Curious, Wei Chen took his own pulse, and a line of text instantly popped up in his mind:
Stature of pine and cypress, turning the sun with every step (In prime health and vigor).
Raising an eyebrow, he turned his gaze onto his grandfather.
Another line of text replaced the previous one in his mind:
Mentally fatigued and physically exhausted, deficient kidney energy and weak spleen. Should regulate daily routine, exercise the body, and consume black rice, black beans, black sesame, black mulberries, yam, leeks, beef, mutton, sea cucumber, purple laver, kelp… to nourish the kidneys.
Wei Chen: “…” Was this a chronic health issue left over from his younger days? Or was he acting unbecoming of his age?
He finally understood why his grandfather hadn’t been chosen as the successor a doctor unable to cure himself was indeed a bit embarrassing.
“Grandpa, stand up. It’s getting late, so go get some rest if there’s nothing else.”
Wei Chen looked around: except for the first floor, the dozen-plus floors above were filled with medical texts and rare herbs. He was quite curious as to how they were preserved.
Old Master Wei was now looking at him with an exceptionally amiable smile, wishing he could pluck the moon out of the sky for him. How could he refuse? Holding his lower back which had been strained by his dramatic movements earlier he slowly backed out.