Chapter 240: Chapter 240: Every Grievance Has a Source, Every Debt a Debtor
"The scar on your face has completely healed!" This was the first time Old Mr. Gong had seen Su Qing since giving her the medicinal powder. The moment he saw her, he noticed her left cheek had fully recovered, without the slightest trace of a scar.
He couldn’t help but feel a little shocked. He knew the powder would be quite effective, but he never expected it to be *this* good. In his estimation, it should have taken at least a year or so for the scar to gradually fade, and perhaps even two to three years for the skin to completely return to normal.
But it had only been three or four months!
Just three or four months, and... and it was completely healed.
’Did I concoct a miracle drug or something?!’
"Yes, it’s completely healed. It’s all thanks to the powder you prepared, Old Mr. Gong." Su Qing sat smiling with him under the grape trellis in the backyard of Hongji Hall. A stone table and chairs were set up there, with a tea set placed on the table.
Old Mr. Gong poured Su Qing a cup of tea, then examined her face closely again. "You young people just have strong constitutions, so you recover well," he said with a sigh. "Still, this is so fast it feels a little unreal."
Su Qing knew, of course, but for now, she could attribute her scar’s complete healing to the medicinal powder. As for the recovery speed, well, every case was different. It was just as Old Mr. Gong said—she had good skin!
Although Old Mr. Gong found the speed of Su Qing’s recovery unbelievable, he was still very happy. "It seems your time in the mountains wasn’t wasted. The medicinal effects of those herbs are truly excellent."
"Yes, they are," Su Qing agreed with a nod.
Old Mr. Gong then asked, "Are you here to sell herbs today as well?"
"No, there’s something I’d like to talk to you about," Su Qing said with a smile.
"Oh? What is it?" Old Mr. Gong took a gentle sip of tea and asked softly.
Su Qing blinked. "The An Family."
"COUGH, COUGH, COUGH, COUGH, COUGH~!" Old Mr. Gong hadn’t even swallowed his tea and was so startled by those two words that he broke into a coughing fit. Seeing this, Su Qing quickly went over and patted his back. "Old Mr. Gong, did I startle you?"
"You still have the nerve to ask!" Old Mr. Gong shot Su Qing a mock glare. "Why on earth would you bring up the An Family? Besides, when did you get involved with them?"
"I have some dealings with them." Seeing that Old Mr. Gong had stopped coughing, Su Qing sat back down on the stone stool. "To be precise, I have a feud with some members of the An Family and a friendship with others."
"How so?" Old Mr. Gong asked immediately.
"On my recent trip to Yun Province, I happened to run into the An Family’s siblings, An Zhiqian and An Zhiwei. We had a bit of a conflict, and afterward, An Zhiwei sent their family’s bodyguards to secretly follow me into the mountains to deal with me," Su Qing explained her history with the An siblings simply and clearly.
"What!" Hearing this, Old Mr. Gong slammed his hand on the table in anger. "I knew it! No one from the An Family is any good."
After he spoke, he looked at Su Qing with concern. "You weren’t hurt by those people, were you?"
The moment the words left his mouth, Old Mr. Gong tapped his forehead. "Look at me. You’re standing right here in front of me, perfectly fine. Of course you’re alright."
Su Qing smiled. "Don’t worry, Old Mr. Gong, I’m fine. I took care of the bodyguards who were secretly following me. Don’t forget, you gave me something good for self-defense."
"That’s true. As long as you’re okay, that’s all that matters." Old Mr. Gong was very confident in the powder he had made. "Then... those bodyguards..."
He was worried that Su Qing, in her youthful hot-headedness, might have done something that would bring trouble upon herself. After all, the An Family was from Xiangcheng. If they really decided to go after Su Qing, she probably wouldn’t be able to handle it.
"Don’t you worry. I just knocked them unconscious and left them there," Su Qing said with a smile. As for what really happened, she certainly wasn’t going to tell Old Mr. Gong.
"That’s good. Remember to always protect yourself," Old Mr. Gong advised. After their several interactions, he had formed a very good impression of Su Qing and had genuinely started to look out for her as if she were one of his own.
"I will." Su Qing nodded, then changed the subject to her relationship with An Zhihan. "On another note, I have a friendly relationship with the An Family’s An Zhihan. You could say we’re friends."
Hearing her words, Old Mr. Gong looked at Su Qing, already understanding what she was about to say. "Are you trying to persuade me to treat An Zhihan?"
"I know you have some issues with the An Family..."
Before Su Qing could finish, Old Mr. Gong narrowed his eyes and asked, "Did that An Zhihan boy tell you that?"
"No, it was Old Mrs. An," Su Qing answered truthfully.
Old Mr. Gong pressed his lips together and said nothing.
Su Qing continued, "To be honest with you, my impression of most of the An Family is very poor—except for An Zhihan. From my few interactions with him, he’s different from the rest of his family. As his friend, I hope he can recover from his illness as soon as possible."
"His cousins wanted to kill you." Old Mr. Gong was well aware that when those two An siblings sent bodyguards after Su Qing into the mountains, they had malicious intentions. In that vast mountain wilderness, it would be all too easy for several grown men to deal with a young woman, or even make her disappear without a trace.
"They are all individuals. For me, blame lies where it’s due. I’ll go after whoever provokes me. An Zhihan has always been very friendly to me, so this debt certainly isn’t his to pay," Su Qing said with a smile.
Old Mr. Gong lowered his head, took a light sip of tea, and sighed softly. Looking up at Su Qing, he couldn’t help but smile. "You, kiddo. Every word you say is pointed right at me."
"Not at all. I was just sharing my own feelings," Su Qing said with a small laugh.
"Sigh..." Old Mr. Gong let out a long sigh. "My younger cousin... she’s really done everything she can for that little grandson of hers."
Su Qing raised an eyebrow slightly but said nothing.
She then heard Old Mr. Gong continue, "Actually, even if you hadn’t come to talk to me about this, I was already considering going to take a look at that An boy’s legs."
"Oh, really?" Su Qing asked quickly.
"Mhm. It was just a thought. But with you coming here today, you’ve made me even more curious about that An Zhihan boy." Old Mr. Gong glanced at Su Qing. "You came to plead his case, and my foolish apprentice came to plead his case too. I’m starting to wonder, what kind of charm does this An Zhihan kid have? It makes me want to meet him."
Su Qing smiled. "Actually, Old Mr. Gong, you’re just soft-hearted."
Old Mr. Gong pressed his lips together, refusing to admit he was soft-hearted. When it came down to it, An Zhihan was his grandnephew—a genuine blood relation.
He had to admit Su Qing had a point. In the end, blame did indeed lie with the guilty party.
