"Lord Mu Yuan, don't scare the child."
Granny Bai immediately stepped in front of me. "This wasn't her wish! No decent young girl would willingly let herself become such a mess."
"You're right."
A faint smile even appeared on the white wolf's face. "It's her immoral relatives who truly deserve to be struck by lightning. They created such a being that brings harm to the world."
"Granny Bai..."
After staring at me for a while, the white wolf slowly said, "If one day you can't control her anymore, just send a message to me through the spirit messenger. I'll take care of her."
"Hehe!"
Granny Bai showed her usual kind smile. "In this world, there are only unquellable evil thoughts, no incurable evils. With me, Xiao He will only get better."
"I hope so."
The big white wolf swept its long tail and jumped onto the roof. "We non - human spirits are not accepted by the world. Practicing in the human world is far more dangerous than in the mountains. Human hearts are more terrifying than natural enemies in the mountains! And you're carrying such a coveted treasure... Sigh..."
"The mortal world tempers the heart. I've practiced in the deep mountains for so many years without any breakthrough. So I want to save more people and do good deeds in this chaotic world... Thank you for your reminder, Lord Mu Yuan. I'll act carefully."
Granny Bai sighed. "Since we found Xiao He, it's fate."
"Alright then. Take good care of her while you practice. I hope it ends well."
As the voice faded, the wolf disappeared into the dim night...
I watched these two non - humans talking in riddles and felt my mind was in a complete mess. I had no idea what they were talking about.
Seeing my confused look, Granny Bai reached over and grabbed my schoolbag. "Xiao He, go wake up Stone's mother. We'll lead the child's soul back."
"Okay!"
One of my greatest strengths was that if I couldn't figure something out, I wouldn't dwell on it. Instead of racking my brains and worrying myself, I'd just put it aside.
I went and knocked on the side - room door. Stone's mother opened the door, wrapped in a robe.
"Sister Xiao He, Granny Bai, did you find it?"
After finally getting a good night's sleep, the woman's complexion had improved a lot.
"We found it!"
Granny Bai took the clothes wrapped with little Stone's soul and walked into the room with me.
This side - room used to be a wood - shed. Granny Bai simply propped up a bed - board with bricks and turned it into a room where one could sleep.
Now little Stone was sleeping inside the bed. Thanks to the decoction from Granny Bai, his fever had temporarily subsided.
"Go outside and call the child's name."
Granny Bai asked me to light an incense stick in the room and told Stone's mother, "Just stand in front of the door and shout 'Wei Shitou, come home!'"
"Okay!"
Stone's mother stood in front of the door as told and shouted in a long - drawn - out voice, "Wei Shitou, come home!"
"Hey! I'm back!"
Inside the room, Granny Bai responded while shaking out the clothes.
I saw a faint shadow flash, and little Stone's soul was standing beside the bed, looking around in a daze.
"Wei Shitou, come home!"
Stone's mother shouted again, and Granny Bai responded.
Little Stone seemed to be suddenly awakened and tried to get into his own body.
But his body was like an ill - fitting suit. No matter how he lay or crawled, he just couldn't get in.
"Wei Shitou, come home!"
When Stone's mother shouted for the third time, Granny Bai responded and slapped little Stone hard on the forehead with her right hand.
"Wow!"
Little Stone was immediately slapped into his body, and then he opened his eyes.
"He's back, he's back!"
Hearing her son's voice, Stone's mother rushed back into the room, hugged little Stone, and thanked Granny Bai repeatedly.
"Alright!"
Granny Bai touched little Stone's forehead and said with a kind smile, "You can leave when it's dawn."
"Granny Bai, we... we have nowhere to go. Could you please take us in?"
Hearing that Granny Bai wanted them to leave at dawn, Stone's mother showed a panicked and surprised expression on her face. "Xiao He can stay. We can too... I'm more capable than Xiao He. You just need to add two more bowls of water when you cook."
I didn't expect Stone's mother to say such a thing. I quickly looked at Granny Bai.
Actually, it didn't matter to me whether I stayed or not. Originally, A Wen and I were going to wander around. I just didn't dare to leave because A Wen's injury wasn't healed yet.
"No. This is a clinic, not a shelter."
Granny Bai still shook her head calmly. "I'm just an old woman. I can't support so many people."
"... But..."
Stone's mother hugged little Stone and wanted to plead, but Granny Bai had already waved her hand and walked out of the door.
"Xiao He! Sister Xiao He! Please plead with Granny Bai to let us stay!"
Seeing that pleading with Granny Bai was hopeless, Stone's mother grabbed me and cried, "We're a mother and son without a husband or a father. How can we survive... Sister Xiao He, I know there's a place for everyone in the clinic. Please have mercy on our mother and son and let us stay..."
Saying that, she grabbed little Stone and forced his small body to kneel in front of me. "Quick, kowtow to Aunt Xiao He and beg her to have mercy on us."
Little Stone had just woken up. His mother pushed and pinched him, and he plopped down on the ground, crying loudly.
"... Xiao He, go fry the medicine quickly!"
Granny Bai's urging voice came from outside.
"Okay, coming!"
I quickly broke free from the mother - son's entanglement and ran out of the door as if fleeing.
It wasn't fully bright yet. I saw Granny Bai's slightly hunched figure standing at the clinic door.
"Granny Bai..."
I knew that asking me to fry the medicine was just an excuse for Granny Bai to let me get away, but I felt a little blocked in my heart.
Clearly, Granny Bai and I had saved little Stone's life. Why did it seem like we were the bad guys and had to flee in a hurry?
"Don't say anything, Xiao He."
Granny Bai looked at the sky. "They can't stay, and neither can we..."
"What?!"
I looked at Granny Bai in surprise.
"Go pack your things. After the mother and son leave, we'll go too."
"Why?"
I remembered that someone was supposed to come for a follow - up visit in the next two days. What would happen to those people if we left?
"Because of human hearts..."
Granny Bai looked at Stone's mother in the side - room, who was crying and secretly eavesdropping on our conversation. She shook her head and didn't avoid others when she said, "Xiao He, remember 'A handful of rice breeds gratitude, a bushel breeds hatred.' There's a limit to helping others."
Granny Bai's words left me feeling confused. Did it mean that Stone's mother would bite the hand that fed her and do something bad to us?