Zhou Renhe said, "When I left Huichun Hall, he was just a boy. What could he understand? By the way, did you know that the Xu Family once opened a medical clinic in the old town?"

Xu Chunliang said, "Do you mean on this street?"

Zhou Renhe replied, "Exactly!" His profound eyes fixed on Xu Chunliang’s eyes, "Do you want to go take a look?"

Xu Chunliang asked, "Is the old site still there?"

Zhou Renhe nodded and said, "It has always been there."

Xu Chunliang was very interested in the Xu family’s history. According to Zhou Renhe, there were many old stories about Huichun Hall that even his grandfather might not know.

Zhou Renhe stood up and paid the bill. The tea house staff treated him with respect, showing that he was held in high esteem in the area.

Xu Chunliang was curious why Zhou Renhe would actively seek him out. Was today’s meeting in the tea house a coincidence or a deliberate arrangement? Did he know Mo Han?

Though Zhou Renhe was in his eighties, he was remarkably spirited, walking with energy as he led Xu Chunliang to an ancient house on the old street, opening the door, and entering.

Inside, there were three rooms with tiles, a kitchen on the east side, and in the courtyard, a stone mill trough that had been converted into a fish pond, with a few koi swimming inside.

Zhou Renhe said, "This is where your great-grandfather used to practice medicine."

Xu Chunliang pondered silently, having never heard his grandfather mention it.

Zhou Renhe said, "Let me show you something else." He opened the main hall’s door, pushed it open, and a plaque came into view. The black lacquered, golden-lettered plaque was somewhat mottled, but the words "Huichun Hall" were still clear on it.

Xu Chunliang could tell that this plaque was older than the so-called ancestral one in their home. Could it be that when Zhou Renhe raided their house all those years ago, he took this plaque with him and kept it until now? Their Xu family’s property had to be reclaimed somehow.

Zhou Renhe said, "In extraordinary times, one must use extraordinary methods. To preserve the Xu family’s medical texts to the greatest extent possible under the circumstances, this was the only way."

Xu Chunliang’s gaze moved to the altar table with two photographs, one of which was his great-grandfather; the other woman he did not recognize, though he had seen his great-grandfather’s photo before.

Zhou Renhe said, "Chunliang, I have been observing you for a while. Among the Xu descendants, only you can set my mind at ease for what I wish to entrust."

Xu Chunliang became even more puzzled. From his words, it was clear he had been observing him for quite some time, but what did he wish to entrust? There was something odd about the whole situation.

Zhou Renhe invited Xu Chunliang to sit on the grand master’s chair beside him and placed his left hand on the tea table, gesturing for Xu Chunliang to diagnose his pulse.

Xu Chunliang placed his fingers on Zhou Renhe’s pulse point, immediately determining that Zhou Renhe had an external pulse according to traditional Chinese medicine. If the area in front of the pulse is significantly greater than the pulse, even three to four times greater, it indicates an external pulse, suggesting an imminent separation of yin and yang, and such a pulse portends death as it cannot achieve perfect harmony with the essence of heaven and earth.

With slight pressure from his fingers, Zhou Renhe’s pulse felt exceedingly tight, with no hint of softness, resembling a taut string or clattering stones, proving he was in a state of renal failure, his condition worsening continuously, unlikely to survive past midsummer.

This kind of pulse is usually called a death pulse. Typically, the death pulse appears before the symptoms of death, meaning the patient is beyond cure, rendering acupuncture, medicines, and poisons ineffective. Only with calm and careful nurturing and perhaps divine intervention could there be a faint hope for recovery.

Xu Chunliang felt a heaviness in his heart. Zhou Renhe’s pulse signified symptoms of a terminal illness, suggesting at most half a year of life remaining as per the pulse’s judgment.

Xu Chunliang looked at Zhou Renhe in astonishment.

Zhou Renhe nodded and said, "Yes, I don’t have much time left."

Initially, Xu Chunliang was very wary of Zhou Renhe, but realizing he was a dying man, much of that wariness faded. Although meeting him for the first time, Xu Chunliang felt Zhou Renhe was not a person of great evil. Not long ago, accompanying his grandfather to pay respects at their ancestor’s tomb, he saw Zhou Renhe leaving flowers for Xu Changying, and now he knew that Zhou Renhe’s two sons were not biological, showing this person’s deep feelings for Xu Changying.

Zhou Renhe said, "My time is near. There are things I must say but cannot reveal to outsiders. After much thought, only you are most suitable in this world."

Xu Chunliang increasingly felt that this matter was unusual. He was a Zhou, while I was a Xu. He was a traitor to Huichun Hall, whereas I was the legitimate descendant of the Old Xu Family. The two of us should have only enmity, yet Zhou Renhe chose me. Was he senile, or was he trying to trick me?

Xu Chunliang said, "Sir, I’m afraid I’m not up to the task."

Zhou Renhe replied, "Regarding the Xu Family’s affairs, who else can I talk to if not you? The Xu Family’s medical skills are never passed outside, nor from father to daughter. Do you know why your great-grandfather took me as his apprentice?"

Xu Chunliang was slightly startled.

Zhou Renhe gazed at the photo on the altar and said, "I was born during the Japanese occupation. Because of the war, I was separated from my parents shortly after birth. I lived with my mother and never saw my father, thinking he had long since died. At the age of nine, my mother died of illness. Before her death, she wrote a letter and gave me something, instructing me to go to Dongzhou and seek out a family surnamed Xu at Huichun Hall. She admonished me never to open the letter, but to hand it over to the man herself."

Xu Chunliang’s gaze fell on the photo of the woman hanging beside his great-grandfather. The woman looked gentle and virtuous. At this moment, Xu Chunliang vaguely guessed something.

Zhou Renhe continued, "I begged for food along the way, encountered several wars, and barely survived many times. After countless hardships, I finally arrived at Dongzhou, found Huichun Hall, and, following my mother’s instructions, handed the letter to my master."

Xu Chunliang asked, "He acknowledged you?" In fact, Xu Chunliang had already guessed the connection between Zhou Renhe and the Xu Family.

Zhou Renhe shook his head.

"My master had just married and started a family not long ago, with a beautiful wife and a lovely newborn daughter. My master took me as an apprentice and later even acknowledged me as an adopted son. My master’s family treated me well, and my master even broke tradition to teach me the Xu Family’s medical skills."

Zhou Renhe closed his eyes, the expression on his face extraordinarily gentle. After a while, he continued, "My master and his wife were kind to me, and my junior sister Xu Changying treated me like family. She was talented and understanding—the best girl I’ve ever met. One day, she secretly told me that she liked me..."

Zhou Renhe’s breathing became rapid. Even though many years had passed, recalling these past events still stirred him. The happiest times of his life were forever in that era. Although he has been alive all these years, it’s as if he was dead.

"I liked her too, but I never hoped she would like me back, because I was just an apprentice without parents, living under someone else’s roof. The Xu Family showed great kindness to me, and I owed them a lot. Yingzi was much braver than me in this regard. She told my master’s wife about her feelings for me. Master’s wife, who had always treated me well, had this intention long ago. Upon hearing from Yingzi, she immediately decided to arrange our marriage, but..."

Xu Chunliang’s view of the elderly Zhou Renhe subtly changed. The old man’s life was so unfortunate. Zhou Renhe hadn’t finished speaking, but Xu Chunliang could already imagine his great-grandfather’s reaction upon learning of this matter.

Zhou Renhe said sorrowfully, "My master firmly opposed our marriage. Yingzi wanted to elope with me, but I couldn’t bear to let her suffer with me. Master’s kindness was as great as a mountain, and I couldn’t do anything to betray them."

Xu Chunliang softly said, "So she took her own life?"

Zhou Renhe shook his head and said, "She was murdered. After I rejected her, she left crying. She didn’t return home that night. We searched everywhere and found her; she... she drowned herself in the river. I found her clothes in the nearby woods. All signs indicated that she was violated before her death..."

Zhou Renhe gripped the arms of the Tai Chi chair tightly, veins bulging on his forehead. Even after sixty years, he still harbored deep hatred.

Xu Chunliang asked, "Did you find the murderer?"

Zhou Renhe nodded, "A person we couldn’t afford to offend at the time. My master and I buried Yingzi. I decided to leave Huichun Hall, cutting ties with my master. I wanted to take revenge in my own way, not implicating the Xu Family. My master understood my intentions and tried desperately to stop me. To persuade me to give up on vengeance, he had no choice but to reveal the truth to me."

Xu Chunliang gasped. Even his grandfather didn’t know this part of history. Although Zhou Renhe didn’t say what the truth was, Xu Chunliang completely understood.

Zhou Renhe said, "I didn’t heed my master’s warning. I blamed him entirely for Yingzi’s tragedy. If he had revealed the truth earlier, Yingzi wouldn’t have fallen for me, wouldn’t have left in anger. I left Huichun Hall, and soon the movement came. I actively sought progress and found ways to get close to the enemy, becoming friends with him. Only then did I have the chance to act against him."

Xu Chunliang looked at the old man before him with sympathy. If he hadn’t heard it directly, he would never have imagined such a complicated and strange story.

"So you seized the opportunity and killed him?"

Zhou Renhe replied, "Of course, I wouldn’t let him go so easily. I made him suffer every human pain and wanted to repay my suffering tenfold onto him. Finally, I found the opportunity. I poisoned their food; his parents, his brothers, his wife, and even he died from the poison..."

Zhou Renhe’s methods were extremely ruthless, but considering all he had endured, there was a reason for his actions.

Xu Chunliang thought to himself, if such a thing happened to him, he might do the same. The elder before him seemed to have a similar vengeful character to himself.