Chapter 70

Combo.

In my burning gaze, my father-in-law discerned a resolute will and began to talk about a few ways to treat my wife.

"First, when Qing'er turns nineteen, your wife will come to the Ice Palace, so we should go there and listen to advice about the energy Qing'er possesses."

My mother-in-law, who was taken to the Ice Palace, left a message that when my wife turns nineteen, she should come to the Ice Palace.

So when my wife turns nineteen, we should go there and find out in detail what kind of energy from the Ice Palace was implanted in her at birth. Since my father-in-law is well-informed about the energy of the Zhuge family, he can then research how to control both energies.

"Doesn't that mean we have to wait for another year?"

"Yes, since Qing'er was born in autumn, we'll have to wait for a year."

My wife is currently eighteen by Korean age, which is nineteen.

It's now between late spring and early summer, and although I don't know when my wife's birthday is, we have to wait for at least a year.

"Can't we go right away?"

Anxious, I asked if we could go immediately, but my father-in-law shook his head and replied.

"Your wife must be around nineteen to see the Ice Palace Master, so if we go before then, we might not be able to meet her. My mother-in-law dislikes people from the Central Plains."

I held my chin and thought for a moment.

Then the flaw in this plan became apparent.

My father-in-law said this was one of the methods, but it couldn't really be considered a method.

Because even if we find out about the two martial arts, we still need to research how to control them, and the success of the R&D is another issue.

Anyway, my father-in-law, who is a crude martial artist and mafia boss, seemed to underestimate R&D.

Research and development require time and manpower, and if it takes five, ten, or twenty years, what then?

For that reason, I decided to put this off for later.

"This method requires waiting for a year, and there's no guarantee that we'll immediately find a way to control it. Let's look for other methods. If the other methods fail, we can keep this as a last resort."

My father-in-law nodded, acknowledging the reasonableness of my opinion.

"Your point is valid."

"Then what are the other methods?"

"Another method is to meet the Medicine King."

"The Medicine King? Isn't he the one who treats illnesses? My wife's condition is due to internal energy. Will it be okay?"

I had heard about the Eight Kings from my wife when we returned from Tokyo, so I knew roughly what kind of person the Medicine King was.

From what my wife told me, he seemed to be the best doctor in the Central Plains.

That's why I asked, unsure if he could also deal with martial arts, but my father-in-law gave me a slightly hopeful answer.

"The Medicine King has experience treating cases of demonic possession, so it's worth hoping for."

"Oh, in that case. Then I'll take my wife to see the Medicine King tomorrow..."

I was about to say I would go see the Medicine King right away, but my father-in-law dampened my hopes.

"However, there's a problem. The Medicine King wanders around the world..."

My father-in-law, who keeps raising and lowering my hopes.

'Really, this guy?'

"Do you mean you don't know where he is?"

"Yes, for now. Since he wanders around looking for herbs, we'll have to search for him..."

At least we can use the丐帮 (Beggars' Gang) access card I received from the beggars, so there's a hope we might find him sooner than expected?

The fourth and final method, which is to seek advice from the Wudang Sect, is the most feasible because they are located in the same Hubei province.

However, my father-in-law explained that since they are in a different sect, revealing the secrets of internal energy might be a bit risky.

In the end, none of these opinions were solid.

It felt like I was drowning in a sea of disappointment.

But I couldn't just wallow in disappointment.

I had to consider how my wife would feel, as I was disappointed too.

I asked my father-in-law how my wife was taking this news.

"By the way, does my wife know about this?"

"No, she's only just recovered, and I can't tell her that her body is abnormal again, so I haven't told her yet..."

My father-in-law's sad face.

Thinking about it, that made sense.

My wife had only recently recovered from her peanut allergy and returned to normal. How devastated would she be if she found out her body was sick again?

I agreed with my father-in-law and asked him to be careful.

"Father-in-law, please keep it a secret from my wife for now and help her maintain her composure, perhaps through some kind of mental training."

Then my father-in-law looked at me with a very moved expression.

"You..."

"I'll also try to find a solution."

At my answer, my father-in-law, who seemed to be in menopause, shed a tear and replied.

"Alright. If you need anything, just say so! Qing'er still has a debt to pay, and I'll make sure to keep the promise until it's paid off. Just in case."

'Yeah, my innocent wife would probably wait until the debt is fully paid if I told her it was a white lie.'

With a determined look, I nodded.

"And remember, if the two of you can't hold back, it will mean the end of your life and the Zhuge family... Also, to prevent any mistakes, I'll make some arrangements."

I don't know what kind of arrangements my father-in-law was talking about, but I nodded and left with a gloomy expression, heading back to my quarters.

The next early night.

While lying down and pondering what to do, one of my wife's closest attendants, a servant, knocked on the door and came in.

"Is Lord Consort in?"

'What's going on?'

Feeling curious about her sudden visit after dinner and before bedtime, I invited the servant in.

"Come in."

Even from the dim light of the lantern, I could see the servant's face was flushed.

She entered with a shy expression, bowed, and handed me a small note.

"I'm sorry to disturb you so late, Lord Consort. Miss asked me to give this to you."

"A letter?"

"Yes. She said you should read it in secret."

'What is it? A love letter?'

In my previous life, love letters were something exchanged before marriage, not between family members after marriage, but in this era, it's common for couples to exchange love letters.

My heart raced as I took the letter.

I quickly dismissed the servant and opened the letter with great joy.

When I unfolded the crumpled paper, the content inside was revealed.

'Zi Shi (子时), Qian San Bu (前三步), You Yi Bu (右一步), Zuo Si Bu (左四步). Hou Er Bu (后二步), Qian Er Bu (前二步), You Yi Bu (右一步)...'

A piece of paper filled with incomprehensible words.

'Is there a fighting game in the Central Plains?'

The paper was filled with what looked like fighting game combos.

I held the paper and thought about it.

Zi Shi refers to the time between 11 PM and 1 AM.

Ultimately, it means midnight.

'Forward three steps, right one step, left four steps? What is this?'

I was a bit puzzled by the cryptic content.

***

"Haa..."

Tang Yingying, sighing, recalled a poem from the Book of Songs she had once read and recited it.

Pi Cai Ge Xi (彼采葛兮) Yi Ri Bu Jian (一日不见) Ru San Yue Xi (如三月兮).

Picking the vine, not seeing you for a day feels like three months,

Pi Cai Xiao Xi (彼采蕭兮) Yi Ri Bu Jian (一日不见) Ru San Qiu Xi (如三秋兮).

Picking the mugwort, not seeing you for a day feels like nine months,

Pi Cai Ai Xi (彼采艾兮) Yi Ri Bu Jian (一日不见) Ru San Sui Xi (如三歲兮).

Picking the wormwood, not seeing you for a day feels like three years.

Yi Ri San Qiu (一日三秋)...

Tang Yingying, now understanding the feeling of a day feeling like three years, cautiously squatted in front of the flower bed.

That night.

The Tang family's night was as bright as daytime due to the many lanterns lit around a pavilion.

In front of the pavilion, the Poison King shouted at the family head and the elders.

"Is the doctor here yet!?"

"No, Father. It seems he hasn't arrived yet because it's night."

"What were you all doing while the child got to this state!"

The Poison King was raging, and the Tang family was in chaos in the middle of the night because the precious daughter, Tang Yingying, was found unconscious in the garden after dinner.

"Recently, she has been saying she has no appetite, but I didn't expect her to suddenly faint..."

The servants, who were responsible for taking care of the young lady, were terrified and wept as they answered the Poison King's fierce questions.

Not noticing the young lady's condition until she fainted was a fatal mistake, and if anything happened to her, their lives would be at risk, so they couldn't help but tremble in fear.

"Tell Hua'en from the Poison Hall to come here!"

The Poison King blamed himself for not paying attention to Tang Yingying, who had missed a few days of martial arts practice, thinking she was just being lazy.

He started to tear into the family members like a venomous snake, and this continued until the doctor, who looked sleepy, and Tang Hua'en from the Poison Hall arrived.