I Don't Understand

Chen Mei was deeply puzzled.

While it was a good thing that the divine doctor was so easy to talk to today, she was perhaps a bit too easy to talk to.

'Perhaps I just don't know her well enough? Whatever, as long as she’s willing to treat Yuer, it’s a good thing. Since it’s a good thing, that’s enough.'

Following behind Su Qing and the others toward the house, Chen Mei thought to herself, 'I just don’t know if she can actually cure Yuer’s illness. Sigh, I hope everything goes smoothly!'

Chen Mei remained silent as they all stepped inside.

From the outside, the small cottage looked quite cramped, but once inside, the space proved to be relatively spacious—at least it didn't feel particularly claustrophobic.

Once everyone was seated, Liang Yueru brought out several cups of tea for Su Qing and the others. Afterward, she and Su Qing began to discuss Yuer’s condition.

Of course, while the two of them appeared to be seriously discussing the illness on the surface, it was all for show. Behind the scenes, they were using Sound Transmission to discuss other matters.

Specifically, Su Qing was instructing Liang Yueru on how to cooperate with her in this play.

"So, you want me to pretend that I cannot cure your daughter?" Liang Yueru couldn't help but sound surprised in her mental transmission after hearing Su Qing's request.

Seeing her surprise, Su Qing gave a brief explanation of her reasons.

After hearing the explanation, Liang Yueru understood why Su Qing wanted to do this. However, whether she understood or not didn't really matter—she couldn't exactly refuse Su Qing's request anyway.

"Rest assured, I will perform this play beautifully. I definitely won't cause you any trouble," Liang Yueru promised.

Su Qing felt a sense of relief and said, "Thank you."

"It is my honor to be of assistance to you," Liang Yueru replied quickly.

'I will remember this favor,' Su Qing thought, shaking her head inwardly.

"If you encounter any trouble in the future, you can come to the Changbai Mountains to find me. If it's something I can help with, I certainly won't refuse."

"Of course, if you feel that a tangible reward would be better, you can also bring that up..."

Simply saying she would help in the future sounded like an empty promise, so Su Qing added that last sentence to prevent any resentment from building. Although Su Qing was thick-skinned, she wasn't completely shameless. Since someone was helping her, it was only natural to offer a return.

After all, the mood of the person helping is very different depending on whether they receive a reward. While Su Qing could have easily forced her to comply, she disdained doing something so disgraceful.

For her, a small reward was something she could easily afford; why bother with such shameful tactics? She still hoped to maintain a good reputation.

Her reputation in that particular area was already ruined beyond repair. Her reputation in other areas, however, still needed to be maintained.

Liang Yueru felt neither joy nor sorrow upon hearing Su Qing's words.

She simply replied via Sound Transmission, "You're joking, Sister. It is already my honor to be able to help you. Why would I need a reward?"

Liang Yueru was still being quite cautious with Su Qing. She didn't let her guard down just because Su Qing appeared friendly, nor was she deluded by a few kind words. She maintained a certain distance.

To her, helping once for free was nothing. But if she got caught up in trouble or incurred Su Qing's dissatisfaction, that would be unfortunate. So, she didn't care about the reward, nor did she find it easy to ask for one.

Su Qing naturally understood the girl's thoughts.

She smiled helplessly in her heart and said, "I won't be in a hurry to leave. You have plenty of time to think about what kind of reward you want before the play is over. Rest assured, I do not break my word on things I have promised."

Su Qing didn't know if these words would put the other at ease, but she said them anyway—mostly for her own peace of mind, so she could feel she was acting fairly.

Liang Yueru stopped using Sound Transmission and simply gave Su Qing a soft, reassuring smile.

Liang Yueru then spoke aloud, "Sister... your daughter's illness is very strange. Even I am hearing of such a thing for the first time. Therefore, I cannot judge for the moment whether I can cure her. How about this: you and Yuer stay here for a day so I can examine her thoroughly?"

Su Qing put on a thoughtful expression, then nodded helplessly. "Will that be an inconvenience for you?"

"Don't worry about that. Although my house isn't large, it's no problem to have one or two more people stay. However, for the others, I'm afraid I must ask you to endure a little. You'll have to stay at an inn in the city..."

A trace of apology appeared on Liang Yueru's face.

She would have been willing to let everyone stay the night! But the problem was that her home was only so big. Staying with one or two people was fine, but housing this many people was simply impossible. So, she could only ask the others to make do.

Hearing Liang Yueru's words, Chen Mei went silent for half a second before nodding. "Mhm, that's not a problem. It's not very far from the city. It's fine for us to stay at an inn there."

Chen Mei didn't care much about staying or not; her only concern was whether Yuer could be cured. Since Chen Mei had no objections, the others naturally wouldn't either.

And so, the matter was settled simply.

"I'm sorry to trouble you all," Liang Yueru said again. "But before you head back, why don't you have a meal? Although it's a bit late to start cooking, since you've come all this way, I can't let you leave empty-handed. It shouldn't be an issue to head back to the city after eating, right?"

Liang Yueru naturally couldn't bring herself to let everyone leave right now, especially not these people. The reason was simple: they were Su Qing's friends. She couldn't treat them too poorly. If she did, it would surely incur Su Qing's dissatisfaction. So, she invited everyone to stay for lunch. Doing something was better than doing nothing, even if it was something simple.

Everyone naturally agreed to stay for the meal. Especially Yuer—the girl had been wanting lunch for a while now. If it weren't for the sake of the act, she would have started pestering Su Qing by now!

"Alright, I'll go start the cooking now," Liang Yueru said, clapping her hands with a joyful expression.

Su Qing nodded and said, "I'll help too! If nothing else, I have a bit of confidence in my culinary skills."

"This... Sister, although you've come to seek medical help, you are still a guest. How can I let a guest do the work? I'll just do it myself," Liang Yueru declined.

Su Qing shook her head. "Since I've come to seek your help, I should help out all the more. After all, I still need you, the doctor, to help cure my daughter!"

Seeing Su Qing's persistence, Liang Yueru said no more. She could only nod and say, "Very well then... I'll have to trouble you to help me, Sister."

Since Su Qing wasn't just being polite but truly wanted to help, agreeing to her suggestion was the right move. Liang Yueru was quite skilled at gauging the situation.

Su Qing nodded. "It's no trouble! Let's go! Where is the kitchen?"

Hearing this, Liang Yueru quickly led Su Qing to the kitchen. Once the two of them went to cook, the others couldn't just wait around in the house or watch from the side, so they all followed to help.

For a time, the already small kitchen became quite crowded. Liang Yueru was a bit helpless about this. However, despite her helplessness, she couldn't say much, so she could only join everyone in the crowded bustle.

Fortunately, Su Qing was quite adept at handling such situations. She quickly assigned everyone tasks. Having been a deity for so many years and a guardian for so long, Su Qing still possessed this much capability.

And so, everyone worked together to prepare today's lunch. Perhaps because they had all worked on it together, the meal tasted exceptionally delicious. Almost nothing was left over.

After the meal, they chatted for a while longer. Once they were done talking, the others naturally set off to return, leaving only Su Qing and Yuer behind to wait for the doctor's treatment.

After everyone left, the space in the house suddenly felt much more open. Su Qing sat on a chair, adopting a lazy expression.

"Thank you for this time," she said.

Liang Yueru shook her head. "It is my honor to be able to help you, Sister."

Su Qing's brows furrowed slightly; she was somewhat helpless regarding this. "You don't need to be so cautious. I'm actually quite easy to get along with," she explained again, feeling a bit exasperated.

Liang Yueru said with a smile, "I know you're easy to get along with, Sister. I truly do feel it is an honor to be able to help you."

Su Qing looked at her, knowing the girl was still lying. However, she didn't feel like saying much more on the subject and switched topics instead.

"You... are a demon, aren't you?"

Hearing this, Liang Yueru was momentarily stunned. Her thoughts raced for a moment as she considered many things. In the end, she nodded. "Yes, I am a demon... a white-haired yellow weasel who cultivated into a spirit. Please don't laugh at me, Sister..."

Su Qing smiled. "Don't be nervous. I have no issue with you being a demon. After all, I am also a demon who cultivated into a spirit."

Liang Yueru was instantly dazed. Although she had imagined many possibilities for Su Qing's identity, she never expected Su Qing to be a demon.

"You are also a demon, Sister?"

"Mhm, I am a snake spirit."

Su Qing nodded without hiding it. "However, I am now the Mountain God of the Changbai Mountains... that's why I said if you encounter trouble in the future, you can come find me there."

"Sister... you are a Mountain God? But why do I not sense the scent of Incense Power on you?" After learning Su Qing was a demon, Liang Yueru suddenly felt a bit closer to her. Although the degree of closeness was limited, it was at least no longer as stiff as before.

"I am currently only a clone; my true body is not here." Seeing the other's confusion, Su Qing didn't mind explaining it to her.

After all, hiding certain things was quite pointless.

Hearing this, Liang Yueru sucked in a sharp breath, staring at Su Qing in such shock that she was speechless.

If she could have previously imagined Su Qing's strength, she now found herself completely unable to fathom what kind of power Su Qing truly possessed.

If just a clone was already a powerhouse she couldn't deal with, then how terrifying must the true body be?

"I can no longer imagine what kind of existence you are, Sister." Liang Yueru sat there, looking at Su Qing with eyes full of shock.

Su Qing smiled. "If you can't imagine it, then don't think about it. You only need to know that I have no ill intentions toward you."

"Mhm, I believe you wouldn't do anything to me... after all, if you wanted to, I doubt I would have any ability to resist."

Su Qing nodded; that was indeed the case.

"Alright, you must still have some questions! Since I've asked for your help... I should clear up your confusion." Su Qing looked at her patiently. "You can ask anything..."

Of course, she could ask, but whether Su Qing would answer was up to her.

"Actually, I'm very curious why you would do such a thing, Sister," Liang Yueru asked.

Su Qing rubbed her chin, thinking about how to answer. After a moment of silence, she said, "Mhm, it's a bit difficult to explain. You can just assume I'm doing it out of sheer boredom... but if you must hear a proper explanation, it's likely because I want to withdraw gracefully. After all, I'm currently a mortal and cannot use spells at will... I don't want to ruin the image I have in the eyes of others, so I need an excuse to make a clean break."

Su Qing's reasoning left Liang Yueru completely bewildered.

One could say she didn't understand, or perhaps she simply couldn't comprehend it. Liang Yueru shook her head. "I'm sorry, I probably cannot understand your thoughts, Sister."

"It doesn't matter if you can't understand..." Su Qing said with a smile. "Anyway, you just need to know that I don't want to expose my identity."

Liang Yueru nodded.

Su Qing spread her hands and followed up, "So, do you have any other questions?"