Chapter 221 Hypnotized (2/2)
”He's the one who asked for it,” Lin Quan said, still smiling. ”He asked me what abilities I have, and I told him I know hypnosis. He didn't believe me, so he forced me to hypnotize him.” All of a sudden, Lin Quan seemed a little sheepish. ”I've caused you trouble, haven't I?”
For a moment, Boss Wan just stood there quietly with his ever-present facial paralysis on full display. Ying Qingcang gave Boss Wan a sidelong glance. ”Nah, there's no trouble. We just thought that the guy had lost his mind, that's all.”
”Oh, no, no. He'll stay like that for five minutes at most,” Lin Quan said hurriedly. ”Why don't I go over and wake him up now?”
Ying Qingcang smiled politely. ”That's not necessary. He'll wake up on his own soon.”
It was not clear whether or not Lin Quan had understood Ying Qingcang's statement. Lin Quan's only response was an ”oh” before he returned his attention to his vegetables.
Boss Wan brought his men away, all the while giving them a piece of his mind: ”It's not like you knuckleheads don't know that everyone here has some kind of special abilities. From now on, behave yourselves, all of you! And stop embarrassing me!”
The men dispersed and went away. ”I can't believe there are people with such talents here,” Ying Qingcang said, shaking his head. ”Do you think you can find out Mo Lin's true identity?”
”I'll look into it once we get out of here,” Boss Wan said, pausing in thought. ”I suspect he might be former military.”
”Not, 'might be'. He has to be!” Chen Huan said smugly, chewing a weed.
”Oh, yeah? And you're able to tell?” Boss Wan took the weed away from her mouth. ”That's disgusting.”
Chen Huan pouted. ”With that kind of shitty attitude? Fine! I won't tell you!” Chen Huan turned around and stormed into the cabin.
”Don't worry, I'll pry the information out of her,” Boss Wan said in a serious tone. Then, he turned around and entered the cabin as well. He even bolted the door.
Ying Qingcang snorted and walked back to his own cabin, all the while mocking Boss Wan for using sex as an emotional release, and when the sun was still up, no less. Not once did he considered the fact that he himself was the same; the pot had called the kettle black indeed.
Roughly a week later, Chieftain Mo Lin summoned Ying Qingcang to him happily.
”Here you go, this is a modified version of the prescription. There won't be any side effects this time, which means it can be consumed for a prolonged period of time. For this one, she only needs to consume it three times a month. Although it still can't cure the root cause of the condition, I can guarantee you that she won't be experiencing any headaches again.”
”And how would it affect the baby?” Ying Qingcang was still far from reassured.
The old chieftain glared. ”Of course it won't harm the baby. Do you think I'd be prescribing it to her if it does?”
”By the way, once you leave here, she should start consuming ginseng, snow lotuses, caterpillar fungi and the like more frequently. Those will help nourish her body!”
Ying Qingcang frowned. ”So what you're saying is that... We can leave?”
”I recommend that you leave,” Chieftain Mo Lin said in a serious tone. ”To be frank, I'm not confident that I'm able to eliminate the root cause at the moment. I'll definitely need a long time to conduct a more thorough research. Her stomach will start to show as the months go by. Staying in the mountains while she's in that kind of physical condition will inconvenience you.”
Ying Qingcang thought for a moment. ”You guarantee that she'll be fine after taking the medicine?”
”You have my word!” The old chieftain nodded. ”You can send a messenger here every month. And bring some of her blood samples here as well. I'll relay my progress to you through the messenger.”
”Alright,” Ying Qingcang agreed. ”We'll leave once the rain stops.”
Just like that, the news of their departure spread all over the village. According to the chieftain, the rain would stop after three days. Thus, for every night during those three days, the villagers had invited them to sit around a bonfire where they feasted on meat and alcohol. The presence of outsiders in the village was rare. The villagers really enjoyed revels like this once in a while.
While Ying Qingcang was away, the chieftain approached Xin Qing.
”I have a request that I hope you will agree to,” said the chieftain. Xin Qing had noticed the way the chieftain had kept staring at Xiao Rui, so she quickly said, ”Don't worry, chieftain, we'll definitely help Xiao Rui locate his family!”
”No, this isn't about that,” Chieftain Mo Lin said, shaking his head. ”I'm hoping you can bring this child with you when you leave.”
”Huh?” Xin Qing was stunned. ”You want me to take Xiao Rui with me?”
The light in Xiao Rui's eyes dimmed the moment he saw Xin Qing's reaction. Xin Qing noticed Xiao Rui's dismal and quickly grabbed his hand. ”It's not that I'm against the idea. I was just a little surprised that's all,” Xin Qing said. Then, she turned to the chieftain. ”Back then, when Young Master Shen offered to bring him away, didn't you reject it?”
”It wasn't that I'm unwilling to let the kid go back then. It was the kid himself who had refused to leave.” Chieftain Mo Lin laughed. ”Now, he's going with you willingly!”
Xin Qing understood. She sat down and picked up Xiao Rui. ”Alright, then! Looks like we're going to be family from now on!”
Xiao Rui nodded sheepishly and buried his face into Xin Qing's embrace.
Xin Qing smiled at the chieftain and gave him her word: ”Please don't worry. We'll do everything in our power to track down his family. If we really can't find them in the end, Ah Cang and I will adopt him and raise him as if he's our own child!”
”I'm glad to hear that!” The smile on Chieftain Mo Lin's venerable face suddenly made him look like a flower. ”He's chosen you, so of course I won't worry. You shouldn't worry, too. I will figure out a formula that will cure your condition once and for all.”
Ying Qingcang had only found out about the new addition to the family when he returned that night.
”Ah Cang, are you mad at me?” Xin Qing clung to him and tried to sweet-talk him. ”See? We've gained another child. A son this time! How nice!”
”Ugh, fine. I'm good as long as you're happy!” Ying Qingcang pinched her nose. ”Come on. Let's sleep. We'll start packing our stuff tomorrow. We'll be leaving the day after that.”
They finished packing their things the next morning. In the afternoon, Chen Huan once again visited Lin Quan's place. For the past few days, Chen Huan had been harassing Lin Quan, begging him to teach her the art of hypnosis. Seeing that she was leaving soon, Lin Quan finally agreed to her request.
”Right now, you will obey my command. Go to the village entrance and bring me the stuff...”