Chapter 2971 — I Am Willing! Within the Family, Old Master Zhao Affirms Zhao Qiwu, Praising Him Warmly, and Hopes That Once Zhao Qiwu Completes His Studies and Returns, He Will Contribute to the Zhao Family

Old Bi had now passed away, and Old Bi's position was temporarily filled by Old Mian. But Old Mian was, after all, advanced in years, and the younger generation would still have to produce a disciple to succeed him. Old Master Zhao had hinted that this person was to be Zhao Qiwu.

Reading Old Master Zhao's letter, Zhao Qilei sneered inwardly. Earlier, Old Master Zhao had said that Old Mian's position would be his, Zhao Qilei's—and in the blink of an eye it had become Zhao Qiwu's? Still, Zhao Qilei had never cared about Old Mian's position in the first place, so he pretended he had not stolen a glance at all, glancing left and right, looking up at the sky, feigning idle distraction.

"This letter—just take it straight to Zhao Qiwu." After finishing it, Old Master Zhao did not show it to Zhao Qilei, but sealed it directly, affixed the Zhao family's own secret seal, and only then handed it over.

"Yes, Grandfather." Having gone through his earlier "ideological struggle," Zhao Qilei was now much more docile. He accepted the letter with respect and then asked, "So when do I set out?"

"Pack up today and be on your way." Old Master Zhao would only feel at ease once Zhao Qilei was sent off as quickly as possible, and so with a wave of his hand he decided Zhao Qilei's fate.

Zhao Qilei said nothing more, nodded, and went back to his room to pack his things.

What Zhao Qilei regretted slightly was that he had never managed to get his hands on the poison formula. That day, when he and Zhao Qibing had seen Wei Zhao off, the food and dishes had been thrown away; by the time they returned, nothing was left. Zhao Qilei could only bide his time and look for the formula, but afterwards no one brought the matter up again, and he could not very well raise it himself.

Once his things were packed, Zhao Qilei drove off in the direction of the Ice Palace. He had originally wanted to take a look in on Wei Zhao, but fearing complications, he did not go. After all, who knew whether Old Master Zhao truly trusted him, or whether he was having him watched in secret?

In fact, Old Master Zhao really had ordered Old Mian to follow Zhao Qilei secretly for a stretch of the road, and only after seeing that Zhao Qilei was indeed driving toward the Ice Palace did Old Mian return to the Hidden Zhao family.

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Though Uncle Qing and Sun Luoying were overjoyed to be reunited with Sun Jingyan, they had their own affairs to attend to. Gu Pengzhan's company was in the midst of its growth, especially now that such a large sum of money had been handed to Wei Zhao to support Lai Pangzi's company, which forced Gu Pengzhan, Uncle Qing, and the rest to work all the harder. And to cut down on staffing costs, many things had to be done personally, every detail seen to by hand.

So, early the next morning, Gu Pengzhan left Wei Zhao's villa together with Uncle Qing and Sun Luoying, while Sun Jingyan stayed behind to treat Wei Zhao's injuries.

"Jingyi, shall we begin the treatment now?" Gu Mengyao and Shen Yushu had gone to the school to deal with the final exams. Wei Zhao had special privileges, but they did not, and so they had no choice but to ask for leave.

"Now?..." Sun Jingyan, who had been so poised before, seemed to have changed; at Wei Zhao's words she grew somewhat awkward and shy.

"Jingyi... if this puts you in a difficult position, then forget it. I'll think of another way. Anyway, even if my meridians and dantian are restored, there's no elixir for me to take." Seeing her expression, Wei Zhao thought she had changed her mind, and he hastened to say so.

"No, that's not it!" Sun Jingyan shook her head. "Being able to help you makes me very happy. You've always been the one helping me, saving me all this time. It's only... I'm afraid Yao Yao might be unhappy if she sees..."

"Her? How could she be unhappy? You helping me heal—that's something she'd be glad to see, isn't it?" Wei Zhao was suddenly puzzled.

"When we heal... the clothes have to come off..." Sun Jingyan had shed her old disguise as the capable career woman; at this moment she was no different from any ordinary girl. Counting it out, she was only a year or two older than Wei Zhao, so her shyness was only natural.

"Clothes off?" Wei Zhao was taken aback, but then he laughed. "I'm the one taking my clothes off—what would Yao Yao be unhappy about? It's not her undressing! Besides, a doctor's heart is a parent's heart. Back then, Yao Yao was stark naked when I treated her poison!"

"Wei Zhao, it's not you taking your clothes off—it's the two of us taking them off together..." Sun Jingyan explained, blushing. Yet inwardly she was rather surprised: the young lady, who was so conservative—she had actually stripped completely bare in front of Wei Zhao?

Though Sun Jingyan could tell that the young lady was fond of Wei Zhao, fondness did not necessarily mean she would undress before him—after all, the two had not reached that sort of relationship. It seemed the young lady's guard against Wei Zhao was far lower than she had imagined.

"You too?" Wei Zhao was rather startled by her words. "What are you taking your clothes off for?"

"Ordinary healing would not require it, but to repair the meridians and dantian, my true qi must pass through a medium into the acupoints throughout your body, so the clothes have to come off. Otherwise, any obstruction at all, and it fails," Sun Jingyan explained.

"And what is this medium?" The truth dawned on Wei Zhao. He had been judging Sun Jingyan's situation by the logic of his own Xuanyuan Dragon-Taming Art, but though that art and the Sun family's mental cultivation method were similar, they were not the same after all.

"The medium is... water! We have to be together in a sealed pool of water—only then can the treatment be completed," Sun Jingyan said.

The two of them stripped bare, together in a sealed pool of water? Was that not a lovers' bath? Just thinking about it made Wei Zhao feel a certain flirtatious ambiguity. If he had not the slightest feeling for Sun Jingyan, that would be one thing, but unfortunately he did hold some affection for her—after all, being her half-lover was not for nothing; the two of them had been through so much together, and feelings had long since taken root.

"You don't need to worry about Yao Yao and the others' feelings on this—what matters here is your own feelings!" Wei Zhao said with a bitter smile. "You're making such a great sacrifice—why are you still asking after other people?"

"For myself... I am willing..." Sun Jingyan said in a small voice.

Looking at her, Wei Zhao sighed inwardly. It seemed he had incurred yet another debt of love. Now there were Xiaoxiao and Xinyan; and though the young lady and Xiaoshu had not fully revealed their feelings, Wei Zhao could sense them all the same. These things, in the end, would surely have to be repaid.

Still, the Wei Zhao of now had come to terms with things. He no longer had so many misgivings as before. These girls, when he was hurt and in difficulty, could still follow him and help him so unhesitatingly—his heart was not made of iron, so how could he fail to see it?

So Wei Zhao looked at Sun Jingyan and slowly nodded. "Jingyi, rest assured, I will not fail to live up to your feelings!"