Chapter 18 Meeting Bai Yihao

Genera Luo Cheng had been guarding the borders for years. He left his family in the capital. Only Luo Wenyou and Luo Wenchi, who had studied martial arts, accompanied him to the front lines. They rarely returned home. Mo Huawen had stayed in Cloud City all the while and was not close with the general's family. In her last life, Mo Xuetong had not even seen her cousin when she entered the capital. In that life, she'd been much older when she'd made it to the capital, and she'd been ashamed to let others see her disfigured face. She'd avoided even her closest relatives and friends. Every year, her cousin had sent her a present, even when the General's household had become destitute. She bowed deeply to Luo Wenyou. Her heart twinged. She was grateful that he had not given up on her in her past life, even when everyone had, and was thankful that it seemed that he loved her as much in this life. Luo Wenyou was surprised when he saw the gentle and elegant young woman. "Younger Sister Tong is so pretty. Our Uncle is horrible to leave such a beautiful daughter in Cloud City," Luo Mingzhu said. She walked over to Mo Xuetong, sizing her up with a smile "Eldest Cousin, Second Cousin!" Mo Xuetong curtseyed deeply. Luo Wenyou regained his wits and laughed. "Younger Sister Tong, there's no need to be so polite amongst siblings. Your clothes are too thin, you've got to take care of your health!" Her weak constitution made others want to take care of her. Luo Wenyou's expression darkened. Mo Xuetong's mother had been the same way, and she had died young. Old Madam Xu cut him off. "Alright, alright. You've haven't seen her in ages. Why are you scolding her first thing? She may be in poor health, but she's a tough kid." "Grandmother's right. Sister Tong has come to the capital, so now we can help her get well. Grandmother, I have just received some precious medicinal herbs. I wanted to send them to you, but I think Sister Tong will get a share too, so I can be at ease," Luo Wenyou said with a serene smile, taking a place on a finely carved seat. "Oh, child. You can't just take medicine randomly. We don't know your younger sister's constitution. We have to get her a checkup first." Old Madam Xu was pleased to see Luo Wenyou's concern. Mo Xuetong looked exactly like Cheng'er and Xia'er in the past. She couldn't help the fondness or the pain of seeing a girl so like her deceased daughter. Mo Xuetong knew that the old madam was thinking about her mother. She hurried to slip her hand out of Luo Mingzhu's grasp and went to hold the old madam's hands. "Eldest Brother is so concerned for me, how can grandmother worry so much? He must have already considered that. He won't just let me take some random medicine." She'd heard her eldest cousin was very intelligent. He would never do anything thoughtlessly. Indeed, Luo Wenyou gave her an appreciative glance. "Grandmother," he said with a smile, "I've already summoned for a famous physician. I've called in a lot of favors to invite him. I even gave away the memoirs of Benyan that you gave me. My heart is still aching. Grandmother has got to remember to give me another one next time." The old madam laughed out loud. It was rare to see her grandson looking as if his heart was aching. "This child is so stingy. Your heart is aching just just because you gave up some trinket for your younger sister." "Because it was a gift from you. I really treasured it. I couldn't even bear show it to others. How can my heart not ache after giving it away?" Luo Wenyou's handsome face was filled with regret. "Alright, alright. I'll think of you first when I have something good in the future! Now what kind of physician have you invited, that wants to be paid in previous books?" The old madam smiled widely and the heavy atmosphere lightened. "Grandmother, Brother invited Sir Bai specifically to take a look at you and Sister Tong. He's going to use the medicinal herbs that big brother sent people to look for before winter sets in," Luo Minzhu said with a smile, eyes sparkling with excitement. "His Highness, Sir Bai?" Even the old madam was surprised. "How did you manage to invite him?" Everyone turned to look at Luo Wenyou. Sir Bai was no ordinary person, nor the son of an ordinary man, he was the crown prince of Yan, Bai Yihao. Mo Xuetong could not help but shudder, a hint of wariness appearing in her eyes. Even in her past life, when Mo Xuetong had remained in seclusion, she had known about the crown prince of Yan Kingdom. He was an intense man. It was said that the crown prince was different from the other royal princes. He was not only handsome, his bloodline was impeccable. He was not only the crown prince of Yan, his mother was the princess of Qin. He came as a hostage of Qin, but because of his status, he was not imprisoned but allowed to come and go freely. He walked around the capital in flowing white clothes and lived as he pleased. He was almost like a deity. He did not hang out with military or government officials, but with scholars. However, Mo Xuetong knew that the crown prince would someday return to the Yan Kingdom. He would betray the military and order the death of hundreds of thousands of slaves, then secure control of the Yan Kingdom. It was impossible to reconcile that image with the image of a noble deity that walked freely in the night. "Grandmother, you're underestimating me. Even though I'm not the greatest scholar of my time, but I'm still a scholar. I met His Highness a month ago. You were feeling poorly then, and I'd heard that Sister Tong would be coming today, so I invited him to take a look at you two," Luo Wenyou said lightly. Mo Xuetong knew that things were not so simple. Bai Yihao was known to be laid-back and gentle, but he did not make friends easily. Because of his noble status, he never did favors for power. He was handsome, and it was hard for a regular person to get to know him well. It was rumored that his medicinal skills were incredible. Three years ago, the Empress Dowager had fallen seriously ill, and no doctor could cure her. Bai Yihao, who had just arrived in the Qin Kingdom, hadn't even had time to change before he entered the room in a flurry of white to cure the dying Empress Dowager. The incident had spread across the Qin Kingdom, and Bai Yihao's handsome appearance had resulted in many looking at him in awe. After that, Bai Yihao dedicated himself to nature and no longer cared about matters of the world. He rarely interacted with nobility. Instead, he spent his days with scholars, and was praised for it. He became the idol of many young girls. When he traveled down the street, there would often be a commotion as girls came up to give him flowers. How could Luo Mingzhu not be excited when such an interesting character was coming to the manor? "Then why have you not invited him?" Old Madam Xu asked, clearly afraid of offending Bai Yihao. The two maids backed away and pulled open the door curtains with excitement, and Luo Wenyou went out to invite the man in personally. Mo Xuetong, however, hid behind the screen with the reluctant Luo Mingzhu. The maids had already set out a brocade stool for them. They had just taken a seat when they heard a clear, mellow voice outside the door. Even the voice alone had something intoxinating about it. Through the plain colored screen made of gauze, Mo Xuetong first saw her eldest cousin return. He moved out of the way and a handsome young man appeared behind him like a colorful ray of light. The room, which had been noisy earlier, fell silent. At the age of eighteen, the boy's beauty could not be described in words. Even Mo Xuetong's jaded heart skipped a beat. There was a mysterious quality of carefreeness in his eyes that matched his white clothes. They were both pure white, like the ice and snow on top of Tianshan Mountain, and they reflected the brilliance of stars and moons. He looked like a fallen spirit. Bai Yihao greeted the old madam with gentleness and elegance, but without formality. He put his fingers on the old madam's wrist, closed his eyes, and began to explain his diagnosis. He did not say much as he sat to the side and wrote a prescription. "Miss, Old Madam is asking you to go meet with him as well," a maid told her. On the other side of the screen, Luo Mingzhu looked at her pleadingly. She pointed outside and indicated that she would like to go out as well. It was a rare opportunity to have a close look at this famously handsome man. She pulled on Mo Xuetong's sleeve and refused to let go. She would not let Mo Xuetong go out if she could not go either! "Could you ask Grandmother to remove the screen?" Mo Xuetong looked at the maid awkwardly, tugging on her sleeve and showing the maid. "This..." The maid was put in a tough spot as well. She knew what her second young miss was thinking about when she saw how the young woman was holding on to Mo Xuetong. However, the noble families placed importance on separating men and women. "Go and tell Grandmother that Sir Bai is a gentleman that everyone looks up to. No matter men or women, he is admired by everyone!" Mo Xuetong smiled gently at the maid. A smile appeared on Bai Yihao's lips as he sat on the outside prescribing medicine. He glanced at the screen and continued his work. The maid did not know what to do, but Madam Xu came to her rescue. "Remove the screen and invite the two ladies!" "Yes!" The maids moved to pull back the screen.