The first ray of dawn rose, and the people in the courtyard weren't starting their warm-up like usual.

Du Qingyue pushed a suitcase in front of Xiao Feng, buttoned his coat collar, and said with a smile, "Come back soon!"

Xiao Feng returned the smile: "Don't worry, I won't keep you waiting too long."

The two of them exchanged smiles and just calmly looked at each other without speaking, yet there was a sense of understanding without words.

Unlike the warmth here, the farewell between the little girl and Jiang Yixin was quite unique.

Jiang Yixin stuffed a big bag of snacks into the little girl's hand, pretending to be indifferent: "Be careful, don't get scared halfway and run away, don't end up getting trafficked into the mountains with no one to help."

"Sister Jiang, instead of worrying about me, why not put a zipper on your mouth? With the way you speak, I worry that by the time I come back, your memorial service will already be held." The little girl retorted unapologetically.

Xiao Feng shook his head with a smile, realizing that it was only when Jiang Yixin bantered with the little girl that he would think verbal sparring was an art form, with both sides going to extremes to deliver a mental blow to each other.

Various rhetoric, metaphors, and irony flew around, and without a single curse word, the impact was even stronger than swearing.

"Alright, you can resume fighting when you get back." Xiao Feng pulled the little girl away, because by the looks of it, if he didn't forcibly end the squabble, the two of them might argue endlessly.

The little girl waved goodbye to Du Qingyue, carrying a small bag and holding snacks, looking as if she was off on a trip.

In the little girl's heart, she indeed considered this trip as a journey, although a rather special one.

Upon reaching the hospital and meeting others like Lin Zhiyan, everyone boarded a tourist bus, and Su Yuzhuo, sitting in a wheelchair, said: "According to my father, the godly doctor's descendant is in Huangshu Village, Jiuyou Town. It's not too far."

Lu Yao opened her laptop and quickly found the exact location: "It's in the neighboring province, more than 2,000 kilometers from us. We'll first cross the Jiangxin Bridge to reach Xinwen City, then hit the highway and should arrive by tomorrow afternoon."

Everyone nodded, showing understanding, but no one felt relaxed despite the short distance.

If the journey was safe and smooth, even if it was further, it wouldn't matter; the fear was an unsafe journey, which would render even the shortest distance meaningless.

As the vehicle started moving, the little girl generously handed out snacks to everyone, enthusiastically saying: "I just checked on my phone, Jiuyou Town is a famous tourist town with a temple fair every month.

The fair has all kinds of performances and specialty food, and the next one is just three days away. If there's a chance, we should visit."

"No problem," Xiao Feng readily agreed, given that going out for a trip wasn't easy and the little girl merely suggested going if there was a chance, not insisting on it—there was no reason to disagree.

The little girl immediately cheered, sitting beside Xiao Feng, chatting nonstop on her phone about the local customs and unique local foods and specialties, like a professional tour guide.

Xiao Feng didn't mind, simply listening, while Lu Yao focused on her screen, each of the three busy with their own things, undisturbed by each other.

At the moment, Lin Zhiyan walked over to Zhao Guo'an, sitting opposite him and gently said: "About the medicine you prescribed…how do I put it, the effect isn't particularly noticeable. Is there another way?"

Zhao Guo'an replied with a smile: "We'll talk about the effect after finishing one course of treatment. Patience is a virtue. Besides, aren't we searching for the godly doctor's descendant? Perhaps they have a solution."

"That's not what I meant, don't misunderstand." Lin Zhiyan apologetically smiled and quickly explained.

Just as she finished, a voice, tired of life's ups and downs, sounded: "Mr. Zhao, may I sit here?"

The voice, needless to say, was obviously Fujiwara Keiaki's, as he was the oldest on the bus, and his Mandarin was exceptionally standard, accurate to the point.

Zhao Guo'an trembled slightly as if startled, hurriedly standing up and said: "Sure."

Fujiwara Keiaki was slightly taken aback, not understanding what the other meant, assuming Zhao Guo'an was not used to sitting by the window, and sat down by himself.

Yet, after sitting down, Zhao Guo'an moved to the other side of the aisle, keeping a respectful distance.

"..." Fujiwara Keiaki was bewildered; he only wanted to discuss how to neutralize the ninja's special toxin. Why did the other react this way?

Little did he know, ever since Xiao Feng told Zhao Guo'an to ponder the phrase "you're very good," a seemingly ordinary compliment had taken on a completely different meaning.

At this moment, in Zhao Guo'an's mind, Fujiwara Keiaki was marked with a big question mark, and before that question mark disappears, it seemed best to keep a distance from the old man.

Seeing this scenario, Xiao Feng couldn't help but laugh, turning back to say with a smile: "Old Zhao, you should show at least basic respect to the elderly. They just want to discuss something academic with you. Why are you so distant?"

Zhao Guo'an immediately glared angrily as if to say, why am I keeping my distance; don't you have a clue?

Lin Zhiyan glanced at Xiao Feng, then at Zhao Guo'an, clearly sensing something was amiss here, but regardless of what it was, decided not to get involved and returned to her seat to rest with her eyes closed.

"Mr. Zhao, Mr. Xiao is correct. I do have a matter I'd like to discuss with you." Fujiwara Keiaki said, standing up and sitting opposite Zhao Guo'an.

Zhao Guo'an jumped up as if electrocuted, his face solemn: "I'm feeling unwell; let's discuss this another time."

Finishing his words, he hurried into the bus restroom, moving with a nimbleness unbefitting one who was supposedly seriously injured.

"Serves you right for pretending to be lame!" Xiao Feng laughed heartily.

"Xiao Feng, why does Zhao Guo'an seem so frightened?" the little girl blinked her big eyes curiously.

Lu Yao took her gaze off the screen, clearly harboring the same doubts.

Xiao Feng remained silent with a smile, suddenly realizing that seeing Zhao Guo'an's awkwardness on the journey was quite a unique joy.

However, soon enough, everyone sensed something was wrong.

Because Zhao Guo'an had been using the restroom for too long—a full twenty minutes had passed without him coming out.

While many people indeed have the habit of using their phones on the toilet for thirty or even forty minutes, this bus had squat toilets, not commodes; wouldn't he get numb squatting for so long?

"Knock, knock, knock…"

Xiao Feng knocked on the restroom door and jokingly said: "Hey, you're not that scared, are you?"

Yet, after several seconds, there was no response.

Xiao Feng immediately sensed something was wrong, preparing to break down the door, but just as he was about to, the driver braked suddenly, bringing the bus to an abrupt halt.

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