Suddenly, the lethality of the gazes doubled.

"d.a.m.n, I can't stand it anymore," w.a.n.g Yao said. "Don't hold me back. I'll go up and smash a brick on him."

"Didn't you want to walk around here?" Su Xiaoxue asked.

"Forget it. These people look as if they want to eat me raw," w.a.n.g Yao said. "Shall we go somewhere else?"

"Sure," Su Xiaoxue replied.

Jing was huge, so there were many interesting places to visit. It was now autumn, and there had been several rainfalls recently. It made the weather much cooler. From time to time, a few raindrops still fell on them. It felt slightly cold.

w.a.n.g Yao held up an oil-paper umbrella to protect Su Xiaoxue from the rain. At this time, the place was too crowded. More people meant more chances of being seen. It was no place to do anything too shocking.

"Miss, Sir." They heard a voice as a car came up to them.

"Aunt Lian," Su Xiaoxue said.

"Where are you going?" Chu Lian asked. "I'll take you there."

"It's alright, we'll just walk around. You can continue with your stuff," Su Xiaoxue said.

She didn't want one more person in her two-person world. Although Chu Lian didn't talk much and was just providing a service, she still preferred being alone with w.a.n.g Yao.

"Alright. Call me if there's anything," Chu Lian said.

"OK, just tell my mom that we won't go back for lunch at noon," Su Xiaoxue said.

"Alright," Chu Lian said before driving away.

"Where shall we go?" Su Xiaoxue asked.

"You have the final say," w.a.n.g Yao replied.

"OK, let's go to Beihai. I like it there," Su Xiaoxue said

The two of them went to Beihai Park and had a meal nearby. In the afternoon, Su Xiaoxue had cla.s.ses. w.a.n.g Yao followed her and listened to the courses at the famed university to see how they fared.

It was a public cla.s.s. w.a.n.g Yao listened very carefully, even more than most of the students.

After cla.s.s, Su Xiaoxue laughed and said, "You listened very earnestly!"

"Well, I suddenly felt that such an opportunity was rare, and the teacher was very interesting," w.a.n.g Yao said with a laugh.

"Let's go to my house for dinner in the evening," Su Xiaoxue said. "My father is free and wants to see you."

w.a.n.g Yao laughed and agreed.

This time, he had brought something along. It was a small pot of tea, tea from Nanshan Hill, and a bottle of wine. The wine was made from wild grapes grown on his hill. This had been his first time making wine. The effect was very good. His father had praised it very much.

"I've got to buy some gifts, right?" w.a.n.g Yao asked since the tea and wine were not very formal.

"No, your presence is enough," Su Xiaoxue said. "My brother will be back tonight too."

"Is that so?" w.a.n.g Yao asked.

"Yes, he's an alcoholic," Su Xiaoxue said.

"Alcoholic? He doesn't look like one!" w.a.n.g Yao had met Su Xiaoxue's brother several times. He was very popular and a typical army-style guy.

"That's because you don't see it," Su Xiaoxue said.

"Well, I'd better buy something," w.a.n.g Yao said. "Lead the way to the nearest shopping mall."

"You don't have to," Su Xiaoxue said.

"Listen to me," w.a.n.g Yao said.

"Alright, I'll just listen," Su Xiaoxue said.

The two of them strolled arm in arm.

…

In a hotel thousands of miles away in Lianshan County, a man felt very comfortable after drinking Primordial Spirit Soup.

"Ah, this d.a.m.n disease is finally cured!" He couldn't hold in his excitement. "I'll call home and tell them I'm safe."

He picked up the phone and made a call to his wife at home.

"h.e.l.lo, have you eaten yet?" he asked.

"Yes, how's the treatment going?" his wife asked.

"Very good. This doctor is very skilled and has gotten rid of my illness," the man said. "How is Xiao Ling?"

"She's in her room," his wife said. "Her stomach aches, and she has been having diarrhea."

"What?" The man was stunned.

"Yeah, there are still some insects in her stool," his wife said.

With a snap, the phone in the man's hand fell to the ground. His face was frighteningly pale.

"Hey, why aren't you talking?" his wife asked.

"No… Nothing. I'll be right back," the man said.

"Don't worry," his wife said. "I took her to see a doctor. He prescribed some medicine to get rid of the insects. It should be all right. You cure your illness at ease there."

"No, I have to come back right away," the man said.

After hanging up the phone, the man went to book tickets online. He had to rush back quickly. His daughter had been infected with the terrible bug. Was his wife infected with the same bug as well? Nothing could happen to them, absolutely nothing. He wanted to go back and bring them to see the doctor.

"Those d.a.m.n people!" He was now both angry and panicked. "If things get worse, we'll just not live there anymore and leave!"

The nearest flight was scheduled to take off in three hours. He checked out of his hotel and flagged down a taxi, which was quite expensive to get to Dao quickly.

"Hey, what're you so anxious about?" the taxi driver asked.

"My daughter is ill," the man said. "I have to catch a plane back."

"Oh, you should get home quickly," the taxi driver said. "I have a daughter too. She's 6 and just started elementary school."

Once they were out of the town, there were few cars on the road. It was not this taxi driver's first time making a long night trip. He was driving very fast, but he also knew when to slow down. In less than two hours, they arrived at the airport.

"Thank you." The man generously gave the rest of the money to the driver.

"You're welcome. Come to Lianshan County again," the taxi driver said.

"I'll be back soon," the man said.

"Oh, you can take my taxi then too." The taxi driver gave him his contact information.

The man took the piece of paper and hurried to the terminal. The plane took off that night. In the morning, he rushed back home. It was dawn when he arrived. His wife and daughter were still asleep.

"What's the matter, Xiao Ling?" his wife asked.

"Mom, my stomach hurts, and I need to go to the bathroom," her daughter said.

"Go quickly and come back to bed," her mother said.

The girl went to the bathroom. She still had diarrhea. Her stomach hurt badly. She squatted on the toilet and held her tummy as beads of sweat formed.

The door of the bedroom opened with a click. The woman came out of the room in a hurry. She was surprised to see her husband. They had just spoken on the phone the previous night, yet he had returned so early in the morning.

"Why did you come back so soon?" she asked.

"Where is Xiao Ling?" the man asked.

"In the bathroom. Her stomach hurts," his wife said.

The couple was talking when they saw their daughter come out of the bathroom holding her tummy.

"Dad, why are you back so soon?" The little girl was also surprised to see her father.

"Does your stomach hurt badly?" the man asked.

"Well, it's OK," the girl replied.

"Go back to bed and sleep a little more," the man said.

"Alright." The girl returned to her room to rest.

"Pack up. I'll take you to Qi Province," the man said to his wife.

"What are we going to Qi Province for?" she asked.

"To treat Xiao Ling. I suspect she has the same illness as me," the man said.

"Oh, alright, I'll get ready now," his wife said.

The woman quickly packed up her things. Luckily, it was her daughter's summer vacation.

"Where are we going?" the girl asked.

"To Qi Province," the man said.

He felt sorry for his wife and daughter. They had been suffering while he was away.

"Yay, Mount Tai is there," the girl said.

"Shall Dad take you to see it?" the man asked.

"Yes, some of our cla.s.smates have been there and said that Mount Tai is extraordinarily magnificent," the girl said.

"Is Xiao Ling going to be OK?" His wife was still worried about her child.

"It's alright," the man said. "My illness is better. That doctor can cure it completely, so she'll be alright."

"That's good," his wife said.

The family of three flew directly to Dao.

…

In the middle of Jing, in the courtyard of the Su family…

"Mom, did you say my brother-in-law is here?" Su Zhixing seemed very happy to hear that w.a.n.g Yao was coming.

"Who's your brother-in-law, and what's with your excitement? Do you wish your sister would marry soon?" Song Ruiping asked.

"I don't mean that. Hha, I just feel that I can get along pretty well with that w.a.n.g Yao," Su Zhixing said.

"Come on, the two of you have met less than five times," Song Ruiping replied. "How do you know if you'll get along well?"

"You wouldn't understand even if I told you," her son said.

w.a.n.g Yao arrived at the Su family residence with several gifts.