"Honestly," Yuan Chao couldn't help but sigh, "this is practically a miracle. I've been a doctor for so many years, and I've never seen anything like it."
That his legs, necrotic as they were, hadn't atrophied, requiring immense financial and temporal resources just to maintain, was already a miracle. To think that one day he would not only stand up but recover completely—
"I mean, did you save the Milky Way in your past life? Is that why heaven gifted you a miracle?"
"If I recall correctly, you hadn't been practicing medicine for long, and you'd barely been on the operating table, had you?" Wen Zhiyan withdrew his gaze and, with practiced ease, used the railing to stand. "Besides, you study medicine, you believe in science, so why are you starting to get superstitious?"
"Tsk, no, no, no, you don't understand," Yuan Chao said, wagging a finger mysteriously. "The frontier of science leads to metaphysics. I've encountered something truly wondrous."
Receiving no immediate affirmation, Yuan Chao pressed on. "Tsk, you're such a bore. But seriously, I did encounter something strange not too long ago, one night at the Qingdao Temple, I saw something I'll never forget."
"What did you just say?"
"I encountered something incredibly bizarre at the Qingdao Temple."
"Qingdao Temple?"
A flicker of light flashed in Wen Zhiyan's eyes. The name sounded familiar. When he'd asked Xin Xuan to investigate Miao Miao's accounts, Xin Xuan had mentioned that the last million had been transferred to the Qingdao Temple.
"When was this?"
Yuan Chao, rarely seeing Wen Zhiyan show interest in anything else, quickly replied, "Not long ago. Uh... the night before the first episode of your wife's variety show."
That scene had been unforgettable, making his staunch scientific beliefs waver for a moment.
The night before the first episode of the variety show.
That was the first night the little fairy had arrived.
Could it really be related to the current Miao Miao?
"What did you see?"
"What's wrong with you?" It was Yuan Chao's turn to look at Wen Zhiyan with curiosity. "Your demeanor isn't right."
"It's nothing." Wen Zhiyan quickly regained his composure. "Are you going to tell me, or should I leave?"
"What?" Yuan Chao couldn't believe his ears and looked at Wen Zhiyan with disbelief. "You're actually suggesting leaving?" Ever since his rehabilitation training began, he had to plead with Wen Zhiyan every single day, urging him not to push himself so hard.
"I suddenly remembered I have something to do."
"Oh, okay. That works. You're recovering well. You can try standing up anywhere now," Yuan Chao finally conceded.
"Alright, thank you."
With that, Wen Zhiyan took out his phone and made a call.
Watching him, Yuan Chao felt as if he'd just been dumped.
Ugh, what the heck?
Yuan Chao's skin crawled. Just as he stood up, intending to speak, he saw the "scumbag" pushing his wheelchair away.
Yuan Chao: ...
"Just end me."
"Master Wen?"
Xin Xuan was quite surprised when he received Wen Zhiyan's call.
"To Qingdao Temple."
"Qingdao Temple?" It sounded somewhat familiar.
"Yes."
Xin Xuan remembered. "Isn't that where Madam transferred her last million yuan?"
"Yes."
Seeing Wen Zhiyan with his eyes closed, Xin Xuan refrained from further conversation and drove quietly.
Qingdao Temple wasn't far from A City. It was a two-hour drive.
The car stopped at Qingdao Temple.
Qingdao Temple was built on a deep mountain, surrounded by forests, giving a sense of refreshing tranquility.
However, looking at the endless staircase, Xin Xuan swallowed. "Master Wen, do we really have to climb that?"
Wen Zhiyan stared at the almost vertical staircase outside the window, his fingers unconsciously gripping his pants, his gaze deep and unreadable.
"Master?" Xin Xuan called out tentatively.
Just as Wen Zhiyan was about to speak, a young boy with a topknot, only a few years old, came bouncing down the stone steps. He bounced again and again, smiling, completely unafraid of falling.
"Let's go," Wen Zhiyan said after watching the boy for a moment.
"Yes."
Xin Xuan opened the car door and heard the bouncing boy call out to them.
Though Xin Xuan was puzzled, he stopped. The little boy ran to the car and bowed to Wen Zhiyan inside. "Hello, my name is Qing Jiu. Master knows you're coming and asked me to give you a brocade pouch and deliver a message to the destined person."
Xin Xuan was perplexed. "Little boy, aren't you afraid you'll mistake someone?"
Qing Jiu snorted a few times. "Not at all. Master says I'm very smart and won't make mistakes." His proud demeanor amused Xin Xuan, but when he saw Wen Zhiyan looking at him, he cleared his throat and stopped talking.
"Little master, please speak."
"Master says," Qing Jiu looked up at Wen Zhiyan in the car and said crisply, "that your wishes will come true."
"Really?" Wen Zhiyan's heart trembled.
"Master says, don't overthink it. What is yours, by fate, will return to you." After speaking, Qing Jiu bowed again. "I've said what I needed to say. You can go back the way you came."
"Thank you, Abbot, for the enlightenment. Thank you, little Qing Jiu, for delivering the message."
"You have mobility issues, so you don't need to get out. Goodbye, handsome uncle."
With that, Qing Jiu handed a dark brocade pouch to Wen Zhiyan and skipped away.
"Wow, Master Wen, this place feels so eerie?"
Wen Zhiyan rubbed the brocade pouch. "Let's go back."
"Yes, sir."
Xin Xuan got into the car and drove away smoothly.
The moment they drove off, Qing Jiu, who had been skipping, stopped in his tracks and looked at the car's disappearing tail. A child's voice echoed in the quiet surroundings.
"You're cheating."
"How so?" Qing Jiu's gaze was deep, no longer showing the previous innocence. "What did I do to be called cheating?"
"You told Wen Zhiyan the story in advance."
"Heh." Qing Jiu chuckled softly. "Did I? It was just a little bit."
"You, you, you!"
"Stop with the 'you' and 'me.' I've already said it anyway."
"Why bother?"
Qing Jiu's eyes flashed with a hint of nostalgia. "This is what they deserve."
With that, Qing Jiu turned and skipped back towards the temple.
Wen Zhiyan sat in the back seat, watching the scenery recede, a sense of unease creeping over him.
"Master, what's wrong?"
Wen Zhiyan looked at the brocade pouch in his hand. Just as he was about to speak, his phone rang.
Miao Miao?
He answered the call. Miao Miao's voice, anxious and worried, came through.
"Wen Zhiyan, where are you?"
"In the car. Miao Miao, what's wrong?"
"Pull over, get out, leave that place immediately."
Wen Zhiyan's pupils contracted.
Bang!