Warm medicine emits fragrance

After soaking in the water for a while, the heat in his body subsided somewhat. He struggled to lift his head and said to Li Qiuping, who was standing beside him with concern, "You go first."

Li Qiuping was shocked. "And what about you?"

"With the medicinal properties of the pill, I'll soak it for a while and get through it."

Li Qiuping was about to say something when Li Chenbi impatiently interrupted him: "Don't waste time!"

He is currently physically exhausted, and it takes a lot of effort for him to speak each word.

Li Qiuping clenched his fists, struggled for a moment, then took out the medicine bottle from his bosom and a jade pendant from his waist, stuffing both items into Li Chenbi's hand.

"Sir, if you can't hold on any longer, take another pill. We left in a hurry and didn't bring any money. Take this jade pendant. If someone comes to do laundry later, have them take you to the clinic."

Even after explaining all this, he was still uneasy and didn't move.

Only after Li Chenbi impatiently replied, "I know," did he reluctantly jump onto the boat and urge it to leave.

After Li Qiuping left, Li Chenbi lay back down on the stone slab. He was really exhausted. If the current had been any stronger, he probably would have been swept away.

Fortunately, the river water was cool enough that he didn't suffer too much.

Fan Liuer slept until noon before waking up.

She has been living here for over a month, and during that time she still hasn't figured out what to do with the front shop.

Feng Ji's blacksmith shop next door has opened and business is pretty good. Si Qing helps out every day and doesn't even have time to come over. Feng Xu is also very busy; he not only has to go to the academy to study every day but also has to help out at home.

Only Fan Liuer was the most idle.

However, Fan Liuer was not in a hurry. She had the mentality that even if the sky fell, there would be tall people to hold it up. She would worry for a while, but she would come to terms with it herself.

Eating, drinking, and sleeping every day, life is simple and easy.

Today was a sunny day, and Fan Liuer was in a good mood. The heavy rain that had lasted for several days had kept her indoors from getting any sunshine, and she felt cold inside.

The sun was out today, and taking advantage of the good weather, she decided to wash the clothes she had changed out of a few days ago.

Carrying a basin full of clothes out of her house, she met a neighbor who asked, "Madam Fan, are you going to do laundry?"

Fan Liuer replied with a smile, "Yes, while the sun is shining."

The neighbor shook his head. "You really aren't afraid of the sun. Everyone else goes after sunset, but you go in this blazing sun."

Fan Liuer still smiled and said, "I like sunbathing."

Although the neighbors were puzzled, they were used to Fan Liuer's eccentricities and didn't say anything more, going back inside to avoid the sun.

Fan Liuer carried a basin, basking in the sun, feeling the warm temperature on her body, and walked towards the river in a very good mood.

The riverbed was low-lying, so she had to go down into a small alley next door and follow the stone path to the platform.

When she was still a few steps away from the platform, she saw what looked like a person lying on it.

This isn't unusual. With the weather getting hotter lately, men and children living nearby like to soak in the water, especially the older children, who can stay in the water all day.

Every day at sunset, the river becomes lively, with people washing clothes, washing vegetables, taking baths, and chatting idly.

Fan Liuer didn't like going to the river after sunset. Whenever that happened, she would open the window of her house, sit by the window, crack melon seeds, and chat with the women washing clothes below.

However, with the rising water levels these past few days, especially around midday, there haven't been many people coming to the riverbank.

Fan Liuer muttered to herself, "Whose child is this? Aren't they afraid of being swept away by the water?"

Having lived here for a month, Fan Liu'er had gotten to know all the neighborhood children. She thought she should send the child home to prevent any accidents from happening later.

She quickly walked to the platform with the basin in her hand, only then realizing that something was wrong.

This figure, this clothing, no matter how you look at it, it can't be a child, nor does it look like someone who's here to take a bath; it's more like...

She suddenly opened her eyes wide, covered her mouth with her hand, dropped the basin in her hand, and scattered her clothes all over the ground.

It can't be...

Dead, right...

Just as she was shaking her leg and trying to turn away, the person lying on the ground let out a soft groan, which sounded very painful.

Fan Liuer's rapid heartbeat gradually subsided.

He's...not dead yet.

After standing there for a while to catch her breath, she finally mustered up the courage to speak: "Hey, are you... alright?"

At this moment, Li Chenbi was fighting against the recurring fever in his body. Although the life-saving pill he took could help suppress the effects of the medicine and prevent the fever from engulfing his consciousness, he had used too much internal energy today, and the fever was more severe than usual. The feeling of the two forces entangled in his body was really unbearable.

My limbs and bones felt like they were about to burst into flames; every inch of my skin and every joint felt like it was being roasted on a fire, causing excruciating pain.

Even the icy river water couldn't bring him any relief.

Just as he was about to lose his patience and take another pill, a sound suddenly came to his ears.

He knew someone was coming; judging from the noise, they seemed to have been frightened by him.

He managed to groan, signaling to the other person that he was not dead.

He mustered his strength, preparing to look up and ask for help, when he heard a familiar voice.

The voice was so familiar, so familiar that it appeared in his dreams and fantasies day and night, making him both love and hate it.

The unbearable physical pain seemed to freeze at this moment, making him forget everything else and only think about looking up.

Go find the source of this voice, and see who the owner of this voice is.

Li Chenbi suddenly looked up and met the person in front of him.

What came into view was the other person's suddenly wide-open eyes.

Fan Liuer stared at the face in front of her, her eyes filled with disbelief.

"You...you're not dead?" She was so shocked that she forgot their current situation, forgot that Li Chenbi was still in the river, and forgot that she was the person Li Chenbi wanted to capture.

Li Chenbi was also deeply troubled. He had been searching for this person for over four months, and yet he had unexpectedly encountered him under these circumstances.

In the days when he couldn't find her, he considered many possibilities.

What if something happened to her? What if she encountered bad people? What if an accident occurred?

These thoughts tormented him every day, causing him resentment, worry, pain, and restlessness.

Unexpectedly, she was actually in Xingzhou, in Guanshan Town, less than a hundred miles away from him.

Look, they seem to be doing quite well.

Fan Liuer was stunned for a while before she came to her senses. Her first reaction after coming to her senses was to run.

If Li Chenbi isn't dead, then she's doomed.

That's what she thought, and that's what she did. Without saying a word, she turned around and ran up the stone steps.

Halfway through the run, she realized something was wrong when she heard no sound behind her, so she stopped and turned around to look back.

Li Chenbi did not chase after her, but remained looking up at her as before.

The emotions in her eyes were far too complex, unlike anything Fan Liuer had ever seen in Li Chenbi's eyes before.

The sight made her feel uneasy, as if that gaze had gripped her heart, making it hard to breathe.

She could no longer take another step, biting her lip, unsure of what to do.

Just then, Li Chenbi's eyelids slowly closed, his head tilted to the side, and he fell into the water.

He had only managed to avoid being swept away by the water by clinging to the platform with his hands, but now his upper body was also submerged in the water, and he was about to be swept away by the river.

Startled, Fan Liuer rushed forward and grabbed Li Chenbi's clothes, pulling him back.