(a)

The room was covered with thick curtains and lit benzoin, and it was very quiet. In the dim light, a slight popping of the wick burning on the oil lamp could occasionally be heard.

You open your eyes slightly. You feel someone gently wipe the sweat off your face with a towel.

You said in a weak voice, "Master." ”

Dao Ji said: "Jinglong. Are you awake? ”

You say, "Where am I?" ”

The fourth senior brother wrung out the towel on the other side of the bed and handed it to Dao Ji again to wipe your sweat. He said, "Senior brother, you are in your room. Just blocked up thick curtains. Master said that this can be insulated from light and sound, so that you can rest well. ”

You say, "Senior brother." ”

Dao Ji asked, "Does your head still hurt badly?" ”

You say, "Not too much." ”

Dao Ji said: "You can frighten the whole family this time, but fortunately there is no danger." But you need to stay in bed for a while, rest and recuperate, and you can't go to the barracks anymore. ”

You say, "I know." ”

You close your eyes and rest for a while. Cold sweat keeps running down your face.

Dao Ji watched as you breathed unsteadily, and he picked up your wrist and gave you a pulse again.

He sighed inwardly.

He said to the fourth senior brother: "Help him get up slowly, take medicine again, I hope I can calm down." ”

Dao Ji said to you, "Just swallow this decoction with these pills." In this way, the two aspects of medicine can be mixed better. You'll feel better. ”

With the help of the master and apprentice, you slowly sit up. You feel like the world is spinning, and all of a sudden you lose consciousness again.

(b)

You wake up again. Only Dao Ji is by your side.

You ask, "Is it day or night?" ”

Dao Ji said: "It's the middle of the night. You've fainted for most of the day. What do you think now? ”

You say, "It's better." Tired Master and Senior Brother are tired. ”

Dao Ji said: "Alas, it's all like this, what are you polite about." ”

You say, "Master." How much longer? ”

Daoji said: "What for how long? ”

You say, "How long will I live?" ”

Dao Ji didn't expect you to ask this question, and he was stunned for a moment and didn't know how to answer.

You say, "Tell me." ”

Looking at Dao Ji's hesitation, you said weakly, "What happened to me, I know in my heart." ”

So, Dao Ji said: "The truth of life and death, Master thinks, you also know. ”

A sharp tingling in the temple hit the nerve center. You have to close your eyes with the convulsions in your skull.

You close your eyes, you haven't spoken for a long time.

You fall on the pillow and don't move or speak.

Dao Ji looked at you and didn't speak.

The rich aroma of benzoin floats in the room. The veiled flame flickered slightly, casting your shadow on the wall.

After a while, Dao Ji said, "Jinglong, Master doesn't know how to comfort you. ”

You say, "I've got something in my head that I can't take out, right?" ”

"Yes," said Daoji. ”

You say, "It's going to keep growing, isn't it?" ”

"Yes," said Daoji. ”

You say, "How much longer?" ”

Dao Ji said: "It depends on the speed of the disease, and Master doesn't know. ”

You say, "What will happen?" ”

"The headaches will become more frequent and more intense until there is no way to do it," Daoji said. Maybe you're blind, you're bleeding profusely, you're paralyzed. ”

You say, "Life is so short. Sometimes, it's so short that you can't do anything. ”

"Sometimes, it's like this. ”

You say, "If only I had known sooner." ”

Daoji said: "If you knew it earlier, you can't change it." ”

You say, "You can't change the outcome, but you can change the process." A person who knows not knowing the date of his death will live a completely different life. ”

"Not everyone wants to know when they are dying, and some prefer not to know," Daoji said. ”

You say, "It's nothing but fear." I'm not afraid. I'd like to know. Whatever lies ahead, I want to know clearly. ”

(c)

"My mother used to be like that, right?" You asked.

Dao Ji nodded.

Your heart contracts. You say, "It's cruel." You say, "It's too cruel for a woman." ”

"So, in the end, she was in unbearable pain, and one night, the person who accompanied her fell asleep. She tied a sheet to the bed rail. ”

You are silent. Your eyes are filled with tears.

You say in a trembling voice, "No one ever told me that she committed suicide." Her father kept saying that she died of illness. ”

Dao Ji held your hand and comforted you, saying, "It's been so many years, and your father and uncle are afraid that you will be sad. ”

Your tears run down your cheeks. You say, "I'm really unfilial." ”

(iv)

"Why haven't I been at home since I was a kid and have been in Qingchuan?" You ask.

"Because when you were almost three years old, you fell seriously ill and showed the same symptoms as your mother. That time, you almost died. It was Shizu and Weishi who happened to pass by Cui Jiaji for something, and Shizu came to the rescue of you. But the master said that your disease has not broken its roots, and it will recur in a few days. Master Zu said that if you don't take care of yourself, it will be difficult for you to live to adulthood. In order for you to live safely, your father and uncle discussed it repeatedly, and finally decided to let you follow Shizu and Weishi all the time, so you will grow up in Qingchuan. After so many years, we have spent countless efforts and multi-faceted conditioning treatments, and you have never relapsed. We all thought you were well, that it had healed itself and disappeared and would no longer threaten you. However, some protective measures were maintained just in case. ”

"Let me practice Tongzi Gong and learn the Golden Bell Jar, not because I have outstanding qualifications and can inherit this sect, right?"

"Nope. It is also because your qualifications are indeed outstanding enough to pass on this sect. However, there is also the purpose of bringing out the best positive potential in your body and restraining its growth. ”

"What about the Mixed Yuan Dan? It's also inhibiting its growth, right? ”

"It's a miracle medicine unique to this sect. You got sick when you were three years old, and it was it that saved you. It also has a unique effect on the practice of internal exercises. ”

"Wherever I am, send me pills to keep me from getting sick, right?"

"Yes. It is also to save your life in case of a recurrence, protect your heart, and give you time to ask for help from your teacher or doctor. ”

"But the fourth senior brother didn't tell Junzi and the seventh senior brother about this matter. None of them knew about this use of the elixir. ”

"None of them are good at disguising. If they know, you know. If the root has been broken, why should you know it, and only increase the troubles in your heart? ”

"What if I hadn't thought of what it was used for, and hadn't used it to save my life?"

Dao Ji said, "You grew up watching from a young age. You will surely be able to deeply appreciate its powerful protection of the heart and veins when the body is tired, and you will definitely intuitively perceive Master's mind and think of its use in such a critical situation when you are in an emergency. ”

Dao Ji said: "At that moment, the hearts of our masters and disciples will be connected with each other. Right? ”

You say, "What would have happened if I hadn't had Tong Zi Gong, if I hadn't learned the inner strength of the Golden Bell Jar, and if I hadn't learned the Inner Strength of the Golden Bell Jar, and if I hadn't protected it with the Mixed Yuan Dan?" ”

"It's going to grow, and you're going to get sick," he said. ”

Your face suddenly turns white.