When Zaha and I returned to the medical clinic with the two little black slaves, I hadn't expected Li Ying to show such great interest in them, giving them candy and preparing meals. Zaha and I were both completely baffled by this; in the end, I could only attribute it to an overflow of maternal instinct.
Moreover, these two little ones had extremely sweet mouths, showering Li Ying with flattering titles like "Goddess Mistress" and "Fairy Mistress," making her smile bloom like a flower~~
That evening, before curfew, Lin'er and Ting'er arrived at the medical clinic and told my wife and me that the mansion was complete.
They had also consulted a Feng Shui master, who said the day after tomorrow would be an auspicious day, suitable for moving in and officially opening the residence. They also brought a box.
According to them, this heavily locked box was found beneath the pavilion in the garden while the mansion was being renovated. They immediately hid it and only retrieved it after the renovations were complete~~ Just as we were examining the box, the two little black slaves secretly pushed open the room door and watched us.
Unexpectedly, the moment they poked their heads out, Lin'er spotted them~~
"Oh my? Wow~~ Where did these two little black fellows come from?" Lin'er rushed over, grabbing one little black slave in each hand. When she clearly saw the little black slaves she was holding, she couldn't help but exclaim.
"Kunlun slaves? But their faces look just like our Tang children!" Ting'er, quite calmly, observed the two little ones struggling in Lin'er's hands and slowly analyzed, "Did they smear charcoal on their faces? But they don't look like it!"
"Yeah! Yeah! And they aren't as black as other Kunlun slaves either!" Lin'er released the two little ones, reached out to hold their collars, and examined them carefully.
"Master certainly has refined tastes; other mansions buy adult Kunlun slaves for work, but Master bought two little ones~~"
Ting'er shot me a glance, immediately embodying the spirit of a housekeeper, her tone full of sarcasm. "Ah~ does the mansion have too much silver?"
"Master probably felt pity for these two little ones!" Lin'er looked at me with a smile, her words carrying a hint of admiration. "Master truly is kind-hearted! The kindest person under heaven~~ Hehe~~"
"Hmph! Master is just foolish~~" Ting'er scoffed at Lin'er's words, muttering discontentedly.
"Hey, hey, hey! You two stinky girls, do you take me, your master, for air? Your master is still here!" I couldn't listen anymore and quickly spoke up to interrupt the two girls' chatter.
Ting'er turned her pretty face, twisted towards the door, letting out a "Hmph" from her little nose, no longer paying attention to me, her tsundere attitude fully apparent; while Lin'er stuck out her little fragrant tongue at me, closing her apricot-shaped eyes, making a funny face, cuteness beyond compare~~
"Heh heh, what?! You two little girls think you're in the right now? What is it? Planning a rebellion?" I was almost laughing out loud from their antics, feigning anger as I said, "Speak! Disrespecting the Head of Household, what crime is that!?"
"Alright, alright~~ These two girls are just spoiled by your usual indulgence. Now you're getting angry, huh~~"
Li Ying knew I wasn't genuinely angry and, chuckling, smoothed things over. "You two girls really have no filter, hurry back!"
"It's late, and curfew is approaching. Let Zaha escort them back~~" I looked at the two fearless little girls, feeling helpless. It was best to go with the flow and quickly send them back to the mansion.
So I turned my head and called out to Zaha outside, "Zaha! Zaha! Hitch the carriage and take these two disrespectful little girls from our mansion back. Go quickly and return swiftly; the ward gate is about to close! Also, take these two little ones back with you and have these two little girls arrange a place for them!"
"Understood! Zaha will go now!" Zaha heard me call him, quickly ran into the room, bent at the waist, and saluted.
"Ah~~ Master! Master! It's a ghost! It's a ghost~~" Lin'er and Ting'er were startled by Zaha's sudden appearance. Both simultaneously pointed at Zaha, shouting and screaming.
Their cries were so shrill they could rival modern electronic noise.
"Pah! What do you mean 'Master is a ghost'!?" I was startled by the two little maids' sudden shouts, but then I remembered that I hadn't told Lin'er and Ting'er about Zaha's existence.
To prevent them from screaming again, I quickly explained, "This is Zaha, he's our manor's head guard. You two maids remember that, and now! Immediately! At once! Go back with him!"
After coaxing Lin'er and Ting'er away, I closed and locked the door.
My wife and I pried open the box in the room. Inside, it was full of dust, covering objects wrapped in red cloth that resembled books and bamboo slips. "What's this? A medical text? The characters are a bit damaged~~" As I took out the first red cloth-covered book from the box, a closer look filled me with astonishment. "Late Han Dynasty? Yellow Turban~~Strongmen? Zhang Jiao?"
"Husband, could this be the secret manual the Yellow Turban Army used to cultivate Yellow Turban Strongmen during the chaos of the Late Han Dynasty?"
Li Ying leaned closer to me then, looking at the book in my hand, and whispered, "It's said that this manual disappeared during the establishment of the Jin Dynasty. It seemingly records some secret medicinal formulas that can give people immense strength~~"
"Hmm, possibly. Let's put it aside for now and look at others~~" I had little interest in these so-called secret remedies and manuals. Making people tall and strong purely through such medicines could only happen in dreams. So, I casually placed the book on the nearby table.
After placing the book on the table, I took out another object from the box that resembled a bamboo slip~~
"So heavy! Is this a bamboo slip?" When I opened the red cloth, I found that it was indeed a bamboo slip, but the characters written on it filled me with confusion. "It really is a bamboo slip!
The characters are~~ "The Art of War of Taigong"? Huh!? This is "The Six Secret Teachings", a military treatise!"
"This concubine has heard that "The Six Secret Teachings" was completely lost by the Late Han Dynasty. I never thought it would be hidden in our manor~~"
Li Ying also looked puzzled as she gazed at the bamboo slip.
Only a little over fifty fragments of "The Six Secret Teachings" were discovered in later archaeological finds.
I never imagined the complete version would see the light of day in my hands. It was also strange; my family has been physicians for generations, so why would a military treatise be hidden in our manor? But just as I was about to unroll it and read, my wife's soft whisper drew my attention again~~
"Husband, look at this. There are many paper pages in this red cloth package~~"
Li Ying took out a bundle wrapped in red cloth from the box, opened it, and softly read the revealed pages. "Hmm~~ It says~~ "Book of the Green Pouch"? Husband, what is this "Book of the Green Pouch"?"
"What? Madam, what did you say? "Book of the Green Pouch"?!"
I was startled by the book title Li Ying read out!
"Yes, the first page here says~~" Li Ying said, handing me the pages in her hand.
"Ah! Fuck! A treasure! An absolute treasure!" I took it, immediately let out a loud shout, ecstatic!
"Husband! You startled this concubine~~" Li Ying was startled by my sudden shout, and her delicate hands repeatedly caressed her chest.
"Madam! You may not know, but this "Book of the Green Pouch" was written by Hua Tuo, and it was also lost by the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty!
Back then, to treat Cao Cao's headache, Hua Tuo planned to open Cao Cao's skull to extract the so-called 'wind phlegm,' but Cao Cao mistakenly thought Hua Tuo intended to harm him and had him imprisoned.
Hua Tuo knew he couldn't escape Cao Cao's grasp, so in prison, he taught the jailer the "Book of the Green Pouch", which contained his life's experience." I flipped through the pages, explaining the origin of the "Book of the Green Pouch" to Li Ying.
"While Hua Tuo was in prison, there was a jailer named Wu, whom everyone called Jailer Wu. This man daily offered Hua Tuo wine and food. Hua Tuo, grateful for his kindness, told him: 'I am about to die, and I regret that the Book of the Green Pouch has not been passed on to the world. Touched by your great kindness, I have no way to repay you; I will write a letter, and you can send someone to my home to retrieve the Book of the Green Pouch to give to you, so that my art may continue.'
Jailer Wu was overjoyed and said: 'If I obtain this book, I will abandon this duty and treat the sick of the world, thereby spreading Master's virtue.
Hua Tuo then wrote a letter and gave it to Jailer Wu. Jailer Wu went all the way to Jincheng, asked Hua Tuo's wife for the Book of the Green Pouch, and returned to the prison to give it to Hua Tuo.
After checking it, Hua Tuo immediately presented the book to Jailer Wu. Jailer Wu took it home and hid it. Ten days later, Hua Tuo indeed died in prison. Jailer Wu bought a coffin and buried him, then left his duty and went home. He wanted to take out the Book of the Green Pouch to study, only to see his wife burning it.
Jailer Wu was greatly alarmed and quickly tried to snatch it away, but the entire scroll had already been burned, leaving only one or two pages. Jailer Wu angrily cursed his wife.
His wife said: 'Even if he learned to be as miraculous as Hua Tuo, he still ended up dying in prison, so what use is it?' Jailer Wu sighed and stopped. Thus, the Book of the Green Pouch was never passed down to the world; what was passed down were only minor techniques like castrating chickens and pigs, which were recorded on the one or two remaining burned pages~~"
"Ah! This truly is a precious book! Quickly hide it well! Don't let thieves steal it! This is for our son later!"
After listening to me, Li Ying immediately snatched the papers from my hand, muttering to herself as she turned to search for a place in the room to hide them.
Ancient times believed in "family and state under heaven," and secret formulas were always passed down within families, from male to male, never revealing the slightest hint to outsiders. No wonder Li Ying reacted this way~~
"Hahaha~~ It's alright, madam. The fact that this book appeared in our manor is known by heaven and earth, by you and me. If it doesn't come from our mouths, how would others know? Rest assured!" I laughed heartily, looking at my wife's awkwardness, and couldn't help but sigh with emotion, quickly speaking to comfort her.
Under my comfort, Li Ying finally relaxed. Still smiling, I took out the last red cloth package. When I opened this bundle, my reaction was identical to my wife's just now, perhaps even more so~~
"This is~~ Hmm!!! Fuck! Fuck! Fuck! This is! This is! "The Yellow Emperor's Outer Canon"!!! Ow? Ouch!!! Ah~~"
Just after glancing at the title, I immediately yelled, my voice shaking the heavens! Shaking the roof tiles! But then I felt myself fly sideways, hitting the wall heavily, the intense pain almost making me faint~~
"Husband, are you alright? It's all this concubine's fault~~" When I bounced off the wall and landed on the ground, Li Ying quickly knelt beside me and helped me up, ceaselessly explaining, "This concubine saw Husband holding that book like a madman, and in desperation, this concubine resorted to kicking Husband. Husband, this concubine was wrong~~"
"It's nothing, nothing~~ Your husband's bones are still quite sturdy~~" I slowly stood up with my wife's help, looking at her apologetic face, forcing a smile, and teasingly said, "But madam, that flying kick of yours had real power. Anyone who didn't know would think you were a martial arts master living in seclusion, hahaha~~"
As I teased Li Ying, I didn't notice the bewildered expression that flickered across my wife's pretty face, an expression as if her secret thoughts had been exposed by someone~~
"Madam, you don't know~~"
I bent down to pick up the book from the floor, gently placed it on the table, and explained its contents to Li Ying.
"This "The Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon" is said to record techniques for bringing people back to life, and it was also lost by the end of the Han Dynasty~~"
"So that's why Husband was wild with joy when you saw it?" Li Ying suddenly understood.
"Precisely! Madam is truly ice-snow intelligent!" I was exceptionally delighted, never imagining I'd obtain so many lost ancient texts today.
Looking at my voluptuous and beautiful wife before me, my interest waned from the books, so I leaned in and embraced Li Ying, whispering in her ear, "To reward madam, how about when Zaha returns later, you let him serve madam a few more times tonight? Madam must have been quite pent up these past few days, right? This time, let's try a different game. Your husband will just peek at madam and Zaha's copulation from outside the door, and I absolutely won't make a sound to disturb madam's refined pleasure. What do you think, madam? Hehehe~~"
"Hmph~ Husband, your body just recovered and you already want to debase this concubine, this concubine refuses~~" Li Ying's face flushed crimson, her delicate hands, as if annoyed yet also coquettish, lightly slapped my body~~
Deep into the night, Chang'an City's various wards closed their gates and locked up. Except for Pingkang Ward, which was alive with nightly revelry, all sounds were hushed. But at this moment, within my medical clinic, there was a vibrant scene of lust that even Pingkang Ward couldn't display~~