A day later.

A dozen masons were busy in the Suns.h.i.+ne Orphanage, repairing or installing sports equipment for children, such as swings, treadmills and wooden horses.

The children were so happy that they scrambled to play on the swing that had been installed. Fortunately, Ge Ming kept the order, asking them to queue up, and then he pushed them in turn, which solved the disputes among the children.

Su Ya and Ning Tao helped Ge Ming trim vegetables, like Ipomoea aquaticas and cowpeas, and they had trimmed a big pile.

The night before was history, and Su Ya had come out of the horror of that night. After all, she was not the kind of girl who grew up under the love and care of her parents. She was a wild girl with great resilience. Today, however, she looked a little different—she was wearing lipstick. Her thin lips were bright red, making her, who had infantile features, look a little mature.

This was the first time for Ning Tao to see Su Ya wearing lipstick. He thought it was a little strange but didn't show it. After all, Su Ya was a girl, and wearing lipstick was pretty normal. He trimmed the vegetables, while his mind was on something else.

Qiu Meng had been arrested and his daughter was under police protection, so he didn't have to worry about that for the time being. As for w.a.n.g Yaoyang, Jiang Hao must have taken action, but hadn't told him the result yet. In fact he guessed that w.a.n.g Yaoyang had probably been caught. What bothered him was the old man, whom he had stabbed with a Sacred Needle to Nasty Diseases. In general, the old man should have come to him, but he hadn't turned up yet.

"Is he dead? Or does he have a way of getting rid of the evil energy I left in his body?" Ning Tao wondered. He thought there were only the two possibilities, but he couldn't be sure.

Su Ya stole glances at Ning Tao while tr.i.m.m.i.n.g vegetables. Suddenly she broke the silence between them. "Hey."

Ning Tao collected his thoughts and confusedly looked up at Su Ya sitting on a small bench. "What's the matter?"

Su Ya looked slightly unnatural. "Er... Is there anything different about me today?"

"No," Ning Tao replied.

Su Ya gave him a dirty look. "Lipstick, aren't you seeing I'm wearing lipstick?"

Ning Tao looked at her carefully, then smiled and said, "Wow, you're wearing lipstick. You look good with it."

"Stop pretending! I was not to hope you say me to look good!" Su Ya gave Ning Tao another dirty look, but two pink spots had appeared on her cheeks.

At this point, Li Xiaoyu came over, took a glance at Su Ya, and then at Ning Tao. Then she crossed her chest with one hand and touched her chin with the other, looking thoughtful.

Ning Tao chuckled, and asked, "What are you doing, Xiaoyu?"

"Why did you come here instead of playing with the other kids?" Su Ya also asked.

"Sister Su Ya, go and wipe off your lipstick. I'll trim the vegetables," Li Xiaoyu stated with a serious look.

"Why?" asked Su Ya curiously.

"You're too young to put on lipstick," answered Li Xiaoyu. "You've changed, and I'm worried about you."

Ning Tao broke into a sn.i.g.g.e.r.

Su Ya waved to Li Xiaoyu and said, "Come here and I'll have a word with you."

"Hum! You must be trying to beat me again. I'm not going to fall for that!" Li Xiaoyu could no longer pretend to be an adult.

Su Ya got up and walked over to Li Xiaoyu.

"Purr!" Li Xiaoyu put out her tongue at Su Ya, and then turned to ran.

"Li Xiaoyu, stop!" Su Ya ran after her, shouting, "I'm going to teach you a lesson today!"

Watching Su Ya chasing Li Xiaoyu and listening to the laughter of the children, Ning Tao felt at peace in his heart.

Ring, ring...

His ringtone suddenly sounded.

Ning Tao took out his phone, took a look at the screen, and answered, "It's me. Go ahead."

Jiang Hao's voice came over the phone. "My mom has come to this city. She wants to see you. Are you free now?"

"Yeah," responded Ning Tao. "Where are you? I'll be right there."

"I'm at the gate of the Suns.h.i.+ne Orphanage," Jiang Hao replied. "You come out, I'll take you to meet my mom."

Ning Tao unconsciously looked up at the closed gate and answered, "Okay, I'll be right out."

Su Ya had caught up with Li Xiaoyu, but instead of beating her, she grabbed her and tickled her.

Li Xiaoyu laughed and laughed. Seeing Ning Tao walking toward the gate, she asked, "Uncle Ning, where are you going?"

"I have to go out on something," Ning Tao replied.

Su Ya released Li Xiaoyu and asked, "Are you coming back for lunch?"

"No." Ning Tao thought for a moment before adding, "Stay alert. Don't open the door to strangers. Call me if something happens."

"Okay," Su Ya replied, and muttered, "I'm not a baby. You are so long-winded!"

Ning Tao wanted to say something to Ge Ming, but he gave up when he saw Ge Ming was having fun with the kids. As soon as he opened the iron gate, he saw a Buick parked on the side of the road. He went over and saw Jiang Hao in the driver's seat. He greeted her with a smile and got on the car.

Jiang Hao started the car and drove on.

"Where is your mother now?" Ning Tao asked.

"She's back home in the countryside," Jiang Hao said. "My dad is there, too. He insisted on waiting for you to be there before he knelt down and apologized to my mom. I asked him the reason, but he refused to tell me. My mom got very angry."

Ning Tao knew the reason, but he wouldn't tell Jiang Hao, so he changed the subject. "How's Qiu Meng?"

"He is in the hospital for treatment. The prosecution will take him to court when he is cured. He killed so many people, I figured he'd get the death penalty," Jiang Hao said.

Ning Tao wasn't surprised by the result.

"I have commissioned relevant persons to find an adoptive family for his daughter. We're going to give her the best environment to grow up in," Jiang Hao stated. "I know you have a commitment to Qiu Meng. Don't worry. You've helped me so much, I won't put you on the spot."

Ning Tao nodded and said, "Thank you."

Jiang Hao glared at him. "Don't say that to me. I didn't even thank you for helping me so much."

Ning Tao smiled and said, "Then I take it back."

"Besides, w.a.n.g Yaoyang ran away. We failed to catch him."

The result was unexpected for Ning Tao, but he soon figured out why. "I guess w.a.n.g Yaoyang lied to Qiu Meng. Since Qiu Meng tried to kill him, how could he tell Qiu Meng the truth?"

"I think so," Jiang Hao said. "By the way, I made a call to the academy of sciences before I came. They said the circuit board was a disguised thumb drive, which contained secret information about the project of ancestor seeking and a prescription. The capsule was indeed the biopharmaceutical Lin Qinghua worked on, named ancestor seeking. Researchers are now working on them, and more results are expected over time. I'll let you know by then if it's allowed. If not, that's all I can tell you."

"That will probably not be allowed. But I understand. Never mind. I'm not interest in the drug that Lin Qinghua has worked on." Then Ning Tao made a pause before saying, "I'm curious about the clay-like material. Did the academy of sciences tell you what it is?"

"I asked them, but they said they weren't sure what it was," Jiang Hao replied, "and it was their first exposure to that material."

It was hard to explain things about cultivation with science.

Ning Tao didn't ask anymore, because he believed Jiang Hao had told him everything she could. If he pressed further, she would be in a dilemma.

"I want to talk to you about something and ask you for your opinion." Jiang Hao changed the subject.

Ning Tao asked, "What's it?"

"I talked to my superiors about you," Jiang Hao said. "They appreciate your abilities and want to hire you on an exceptional basis. What do you think?"

"Is it the same job as yours?"

Jiang Hao nodded and answered, "Yes, but because of your special skills, it's up to the superiors to decide exactly what your job is."

Ning Tao smiled and shook his head. "I won't take the job. I am quite content with what I'm doing now."

"Are you still going to be a roving doctor?"

"There's nothing wrong with being a roving doctor. I can help people in need and I don't have to rush."

Jiang Hao appeared disappointed with his choice. "I really can't understand you. You could have a better future but instead of going for it, you insist on being a roving doctor. Don't you ever want to have a better life? A comfortable and sweet home, a decent job, and a wife and children. Depending on your abilities, you can get these if you want, but why..."

"It's good to be a roving doctor," interrupted Ning Tao.

"You..." Jiang Hao was so angry that she didn't know what to say.

Ning Tao gave a sigh in his heart and thought, "I'd like to live that life, but I'm the owner of Sky Clinic, and the way I'm going is beyond your comprehension."

Then they both stopped talking, and the atmosphere was a little awkward.

An hour later Jiang Hao drove into a village in mountains. Since the car couldn't get to her house, Jiang Hao and Ning Tao got out and walked down the mountain road to her old house. The house was a few low tile-roofed house of clay walls. The brown walls were pitted, with nests of wasps, and the corners were covered with clay powder. The roof tiles were scattered here and there, and if it rained hard outside, there would probably be a light rain inside.

This was Jiang Hao's childhood home. Her mother married Jiang Yilong when he was very poor, and then she gave birth to his child, cooked and washed for him and ran the house. However, when Jiang Yilong got rich, he thought she wasn't pretty enough and abandoned her and Jiang Hao. For this sin alone, even if Jiang Yilong kowtowed to her 10,000 times for apology, it would not make up for the hurt and suffering that Jiang Hao and her mother had suffered.

Before they could enter the room, a woman's voice came out. "Get out of here! I don't want to see you! I'm here to see my daughter, not you."

"Tang Zhen, I know you hate me, I was wrong. I'm really changing, please give me a chance to apologize." Jiang Yilong's voice sounded.

Tang Zhen was Jiang Hao's mother.

"Mom, I brought Doctor Ning here," Jiang Hao called out.

A woman came out of the old central room. She and Jiang Hao looked very alike, probably in her early forties, wearing loose casual linen clothes that gave the impression of being sophisticated and generous.

Jiang Yilong also came out of the old central room. Upon seeing Ning Tao, he acted like a rat meeting a cat. "h.e.l.lo... Doctor Ning."

He still remembered Ning Tao's advice not to call him Master Ning, especially in front of Jiang Hao.

Ning Tao ignored Jiang Yilong's greeting.

Tang Zhen came to Jiang Hao and Ning Tao, stared at Ning Tao, and the smile on her face became bigger and bigger. "You're Ning Tao?"

Ning Tao nodded, smiling. "Nice to see you, Ms. Tang."

He wanted to call her Aunt Tang, but he found it a bit inappropriate to call her aunt because she looked quite young.