Chapter 157 - 149: Will He Leave?

Chapter 157: Chapter 149: Will He Leave?

In the past, Hu Changlin would never have believed Bai Zhi if she had said something like this. But based on recent events, it was clear she truly knew medicine. After all, hadn’t she just written a prescription for Lord Meng yesterday? He was a court official; if Bai Zhi didn’t truly know her craft, how could she have so casually written him a prescription?

"Alright. We’ll treat him however you say. We’ll listen to you. If you can really cure Hu Feng, you’ll be the Hu Family’s greatest benefactor!"

Bai Zhi gave a faint smile and glanced at Hu Feng’s tightly shut door. "Uncle Hu," she asked in a low voice, "aren’t you afraid he’ll leave you after his memory returns?"

Uncle Hu sighed, and his voice turned somber. "Afraid? How could I not be? But even if I am, I can’t prevent Hu Feng from being cured. He has his own past and his own life, after all. He doesn’t belong here. A man like him must have a better future waiting. I can’t just have him spend his whole life farming in the mountains, can I? I can’t be that selfish. I’d rather grow old alone than ruin his prospects."

Bai Zhi felt a sting in her nose. She believed that Hu Feng, inside his room, must have heard it all. ’How fortunate he was to end up in a place like this and meet such a good person—someone who gave him a home, warmth, and care, always putting him first and considering his needs without asking for anything in return.’

She said to Hu Changlin, "Uncle Hu, I once asked Hu Feng the same question. I asked if he would leave once he remembered who he was, where his hometown was, and where to find his family."

Hu Changlin’s eyes shot up, and he stared intently into Bai Zhi’s. "What... What did he say?"

Bai Zhi replied, word by word, "He said that he would leave, but that you... will always be his father. And wherever he is, you will have a place with him."

The moment she finished, hot tears welled up in Hu Changlin’s eyes. The expression on his face was somewhere between a laugh and a sob. "Hu Feng... he really said that?"

Bai Zhi nodded. "Every single word. I believe him. He is not an ungrateful man."

Hu Changlin nodded and pulled his sleeve up to wipe the tears from his eyes. "As long as he feels that way, it’s enough. It’s enough."

It was as if his three years of devotion had been repaid. He was overjoyed.

Hu Feng rarely spoke and always wore a stern expression. He would never say such sweet, considerate things. To think that those words had actually come from Hu Feng’s mouth...

Though a door stood between them, every word from outside slipped through and reached his ears. Hu Changlin’s selflessness and Bai Zhi’s thoughtfulness battered against his heart. In that moment, it was as if a crack had been torn open in his stone-hard heart, allowing something to slowly, surely burrow its way inside and take deep root.

That night, he slept more soundly than he had in ages. In his dreams, he was no longer desperately chasing after blurry, indistinct figures. He no longer cared who they were, no longer ran until he was drenched in sweat. He stopped in his tracks and looked back. In the distance, he saw Hu Changlin, smiling and waving. He turned and strode toward him, free of his confusion and anxiety, his hesitation and regret.

When he awoke, morning had already broken, and he felt utterly refreshed.

He hadn’t slept so well in a very, very long time. Ever since arriving here, ever since losing his memories, he’d had the same dream on repeat. In it, he would desperately chase those figures, asking who they were, and asking who *he* was.