Faced with Gu Qishao's question, Long Feiye remained silent, a complicated look in his eyes. Gu Qishao silently flew away from the roof, his blood-red figure drifting into the darkness. It was a desolate and sorrowful feeling that stemmed from a kind of loneliness that would last for eternity.
This night was destined to be a sleepless one. Gu curled up in the branches of an ancient tree in the backyard, dreaming of his childhood …
Behind the medical academy, there were tall mountains and lush greenery. That night, a clear cry broke the decades of silence in the Poison Sect's forbidden grounds.
In a small thatched hut in the valley closest to the medical academy, a baby boy was born.
There was no midwife inside, so the boy's father had personally delivered him. The mother was already unconscious and was quickly sent out without so much as a glance at the child. The newborn couldn't find his mother, so he cried incessantly in search of comfort.
He cradled the infant in his arms and gently rocked him, smoothing him out as he coaxed, "Baby, be good … be good, don't cry, baby, be good …"
He was born into a prestigious family in Medical City and was the most talented disciple in the medical academy's history. He was the academy head's appointed successor and the youngest vice head of Medical City, so people called him Vice Head Gu. At the age of thirty, he was still unmarried. Only he knew how this son came about, and only he knew why he wanted this son.
The baby's cries grew louder and louder, sounding especially desolate in the deathly stillness of the forest. A man in blue soon arrived and took the child from his hands. After examining him for a while, he exclaimed, "He's actually safe and sound!"
When the child was still in his mother's womb, they'd worked together to perform all kinds of experiments on him. They'd used special acupuncture techniques to cause him to fall ill, then observed his condition before treating him and tracking his prognosis.
During the ten months of pregnancy, they'd experimented once a month and successfully solved an extremely troublesome illness during pregnancy. They'd also developed the most effective treatment and medicine. Although there was only one cure, it was enough to shake the medical world.
Because of this, one of them had jumped two levels to become a Medical Sage, while the other had jumped one level to become a Medical Ancestor. Of course, after the child's mother was disposed of, no one but the two of them knew of their cruelty.
"It's already been cured, so of course it's safe and sound." He was very confident.
"Vice Academy Head Gu, is the child hungry? Should I feed her or …"
The man hadn't even finished speaking when Vice Academy Head Gu decisively replied, "Give him some medicine."
"Still too young, I'm afraid …"
The man's words were interrupted once more. Department Head Gu said, "She was fed medicine every day in her mother's womb, but didn't she survive? What's there to be afraid of? "
His obsession with medical skills could be described as fanatical. He was most obsessed with the study of human diseases. He had wanted to do research for a long time. Starting from the study of embryos, he wanted to figure out the characteristics of the human body at every stage, the process of disease, disease resistance factors, treatment essentials, and so on.
The man was absolutely obedient to Vice Academy Head Gu and immediately brought over the medicinal decoction he'd prepared earlier. One of them carried the other and fed the child with a small spoon. The two of them treated the child like a patient. They were meticulous, careful, and serious.
This was the child's first bite of food. It was bitter.
Without the contrast of sweetness, the child did not know that this taste was called bitter. He did not know that this was one of the worst tastes in the world. He ate with relish. His little mouth instinctively sucked and swallowed the medicinal soup that was fed into his mouth. After a while, he was satisfied and stopped crying. His mouth, stained with medicine, would occasionally curve into a sweet smile, making others unconsciously smile along with him.
His smile had been very beautiful since he was young.
"Vice Academy Head Gu, why don't you give the child a name?" The man said with a smile.
"Today is the seventh of the seventh month. Let's call him Xiao Qi."
Vice Academy Head Gu only gave Xiao Qi a nickname. The child didn't need a proper name because he would only exist as a secret.
Just like that, Xiao Qi ate medicine for three days without any problems. However, something happened on the fourth day.
He cried and cried, vomiting up all the medicine and water he'd been fed. He was like a child who couldn't find his mother and refused all consolation.
Vice Academy Head Gu and the man tormented each other for an entire day. Even their hearts of stone had been broken by Xiao Qi's crying. Of course, they were afraid that they wouldn't be able to protect this special child, the child they'd spent so much effort to obtain.
Helpless, they could only stop feeding him medicine and call for a wet nurse.
The wet nurse immediately comforted Xiao Qi. Soon, the man discovered that Xiao Qi's pulse was abnormal.
"Vice Academy Head Gu, we must stop all experiments and raise the child first. Otherwise, all our previous efforts will be wasted."
Vice Academy Head Gu gently stroked Xiao Qi's cheek. He looked completely like a loving father, his eyes full of tenderness and love.
Xiao Qi was his treasure, his most infatuated treasure. Of course he would love him wholeheartedly.
He said, "Let's try again."
And so, for the next three days, they alternated feeding and feeding medicine. Xiao Qi's pulse became worse and worse. Finally, Vice Academy Head Gu was afraid and immediately stopped the experiments and began the normal treatment.
He didn't dare to sleep at all. He held Xiao Qi and watched Xiao Qi sleep, watch Xiao Qi wake up, watch Xiao Qi smile, watch Xiao Qi cry.
Ten days later, Xiao Qi's pulse finally returned to normal. However, he had developed a bad habit of having trouble sleeping. He had to be coaxed half the day before he could fall asleep.
Vice Academy Head Gu personally held him every day. "Qi 'er be good … Qi' er be good …"
"Qi 'er be good and sleep … Qi' er be good and sleep …"
His voice was so gentle and kind that Xiao Qi gradually fell asleep. He would grin from time to time in his dreams, still as sweet as ever.
A baby's memory was very short. He didn't know how to hate, so he easily forgot the pain from a few days ago.
Vice Academy Head Gu and the man discussed and analyzed the situation. They decided to raise Xiao Qi until he was six years old first before beginning their sacred experiments.
Just like that, Xiao Qi survived in the forest of the Poison Sect's forbidden grounds. When he was four months old, his wet nurse disappeared. For as long as he could remember, the only people who had accompanied him besides his father was the man surnamed Ling. Xiao Qi called him Uncle Ling.
As he grew up, he began to have clear preferences and dislikes. He began to boldly explore the mysterious world of the Poison Sect's forbidden grounds, filled with curiosity and pleasant surprise.
When he found a tree he liked, he would wait for his father to come back at night and say, "Father, Qi 'er wants to be a tree and have flowers bloom all over my body."
When he found a bird flying high in the sky, he would wait for his father to come back at night and say, "Father, Qi 'er wants to be a bird and fly to the other side of the mountain."
He found that all the plants in the mountains had withered and died. When his father came back, he would say sadly, "Father, will Qi 'er wither and die one day?"
"Withered and dead. Once winter passes and spring comes, you'll come back to life," his father replied.
Xiao Qi was so happy that he grew impatient. "Father, Xiao Qi doesn't like to wither. I don't like to die."
His father's eyes were always filled with love when he looked at him. His father would patiently answer his every question. His father was Xiao Qi's everything in his life.
Xiao Qi had many, many questions, but he never asked his father where his mother was.
Because in Xiao Qi's isolated world, no one had ever told him about the existence of a mother.
Xiao Qi's world consisted of his father, Uncle Ling, and all the flowers, plants, birds, and beasts in the mountains.
Xiao Qi was very smart and learned everything he saw once he was taught. He had a photographic memory and remembered every single poisonous plant his father mentioned. Before he was six years old, he had already recognized every single one of the poisonous plants in the mountains.
Life in the mountains was the most unrestrained. Little Seven was like a wild child. Every day, with a dirty little face, she ran all over the mountains and plains. She behaved atrociously without a care in the world.
However, no matter how carefree he was, Xiao Qi still needed someone to accompany him every night. He needed his father to coax him to sleep.
"Qi 'er, be good … Qi' er, be good … Qi 'er, be good …"
These words had accompanied Xiao Qi for six whole years.
That day, his father came back at noon.
Xiao Qi was still running around the mountains when his father played the melodious flute. Xiao Qi was overjoyed and ran back excitedly.
"Father!"
"Hey!"
His father picked him up and lifted him up high. His father tickled his armpits until he giggled.
His father was affectionate with him for a while before putting him down. Xiao Qi saw a table full of dishes the moment he entered the house. They were all his favorite dishes.
He didn't understand and turned to look at his father.
His father was smiling when his expression suddenly became serious. "Xiao Qi, after this meal, you can only take medicine every day from tonight onwards."
The six-year-old Xiao Qi didn't understand. His attention was on the delicious food on the table. He asked in surprise, "These are all for Xiao Qi to eat?"
"Xiao Qi, I'll bring you to the medical school tomorrow. Don't call me 'Father' anymore, okay?"
Xiao Qi didn't say anything. He ate with relish.
His father said seriously, "Xiao Qi, you have an evil disease. I can't cure you. Only Uncle Ling can. From now on, you'll follow Uncle Ling and call him 'Father'. You have to listen to Uncle Ling and take your medicine every day, okay?"
Xiao Qi still didn't answer. He licked his lips and narrowed his eyes to look for the food he wanted to eat.
"Xiao Qi, you're not allowed to tell anyone about this. No matter what they ask, you have to shake your head, okay?" His father reminded him seriously again.
Xiao Qi continued to talk to himself. When his stomach was round, he turned to look at him. He blinked his innocent eyes and said, "Father, Xiao Qi doesn't want to go."
"Father wants Xiao Qi to go," his father said seriously.
Xiao Qi hesitated. After a while, he asked, "Why?"
"You'll understand when you grow up," his father replied.
"I really don't want to go." Xiao Qi was in a difficult position.
"If you don't go, you'll never see Father again." His father suddenly became serious.
Xiao Qi was stunned. He muttered, "Xiao Qi … isn't sick."
"Xiao Qi still wants to see Father?"
Xiao Qi thought for a long time. He understood but didn't quite understand. In the end, he lowered his head. "Xiao Qi is sick …"
This year, Department Head Gu became the head of the medical school and wielded great power. He had a thousand affairs to attend to every day and couldn't come to the Poison Sect's forbidden grounds every day. This year, Elder Ling became the head elder of the Council of Elders and had more free time to focus on studying medicine.
In the end, the Poison Sect's forbidden grounds weren't a place to stay for long. After some discussion, the two men decided to bring Xiao Qi to the medical school and make him a disciple of the medical school under the guise of an adopted son and a herbalist.
On the seventh day of the seventh month, Head Elder Ling brought Xiao Qi back to the medical school …
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