Chapter 155: Kurosawa Yaka
The next day, Bai Wei arrived at the hospital ward in the afternoon.
On the first floor of the hospital, a renovation was taking place. Many bullet holes were created by him with his own hands.
As Bai Wei entered the hospital room, he noticed that there were some gifts placed inside.
"Uncle," Sakurai Shiru's mood was very good as she sat under the sunshine, reading a book.
"What book is this?"
"It was the sister with white hair who brought it."
Sakurai Shiru closed the book, there was no name on it, just a notebook.
Bai Wei glanced at the contents written on the notebook and discovered that they were all translated cultivation techniques. They weren't too advanced, but still considered secret methods of cultivating Qi that ordinary people rarely came across.
[Return of the Four Elements: The Lost Scroll of the Mysterious Turtle]
"She was willing to..."
The immortal family lived up to its reputation as one of the most influential and prominent households in the Great Ming. She probably wasn't stingy with these ordinary and shallow techniques.
Bai Wei set the notebook down and said, "Has she come again recently?"
"She has already come several times." Sakurai Shiru blinked her eyes and obediently replied, "Each time is very cleverly planned, with the timing set a day apart from Uncle's schedule."
"Clever?" Bai Wei pondered for a moment.
In the immortal household, there was a belief in divination and predicting good and bad fortune. It's possible that, to avoid suspicion, she had deliberately bought a turtle shell to burn and perform divination.
This immortal had such a down-to-earth charm. She is indeed a delicate girl who was often caught up in her own worries.
Even after a scolding, Yun Wuxin couldn't completely improve her memory. When she saw Sakurai Shiru temporarily out of danger and her condition gradually improving, she took the initiative to approach again. Perhaps she was curious about what method Bai Wei used, but considering she couldn't bring herself to directly ask, and of course even if she did ask, Bai Wei couldn't possibly tell her.
There was no direct animosity between the two, but as they say, love me, love my dog; the nature of hatred and love can be so similar.
Bai Wei didn't ask any further questions and pretended as if it never happened.
Since Yun Wuxin intended to take care of Sakurai Shiru, why not simply enjoy the benefits she offered?
Just now, Bai Wei quickly memorized a passage of incantation with just a glance. He thought that practicing it later might reveal some special techniques.
This time, he casually brought some elementary school textbooks with him.
Sakurai Shiru was fragile since childhood and didn't have much opportunity to go to school. Although she had some basic knowledge, she inevitably couldn't keep up with her peers.
In order to prevent her from falling behind at the starting line, Bai Wei brought textbooks for her to consider self-study. He also encouraged her not to have wild thoughts, as it would be helpful for her to reintegrate into society in the future. Proper learning is necessary even for those who have been bedridden for a long time. When she saw the textbooks, her eyes lit up. She longed for the freedom and ease of going to school and attending classes like her peers.
In the past, Sakurai Akira didn't do this, purely because her condition had never been stable.
With Bai Wei's knowledge, teaching elementary school students was simple. He thought that Sakurai Shiru would be more interested in Chinese and history, but to his surprise, she immediately took a liking to math problems. She even carefully pulled out a few exercise books from the bottom of the cabinet.
Bai Wei finally realized that this little girl had self-studied until the completion of 9th grade. In terms of math, she was undeniably a formidable 9th-grade expert and was just a step away from advancing to 10th grade – an incredible accomplishment.
Bai Wei took a deep breath and, upon further inquiry, learned that Sakurai Shiru's exercise books and textbooks belonged to other patients. Some students continued to study even while hospitalized, although who would feel like studying when they were hospitalized? They thought about throwing the exercise books away, but when Sakurai Shiru saw them, she actively asked for them. She even found a few textbooks from Far East University, but unfortunately they were too complex for her to understand.
"Do you feel a headache when you look at math?"
"I can't, math is so lovely and fun, just a little challenging."
Well, challenging, hum?
Bai Wei folded away the elementary-level teaching materials and started taking out pen and paper to share his high school-level math knowledge with her.
Algebra, geometry, equations, calculus... He couldn't remember them very clearly, but he did his best to explain each concept as he went along. Even so, Sakurai Shiru still managed to grasp the concepts and apply them in different contexts.
Her sharp thinking skills made Bai Wei marvel at her being a descendant of witches. Each witch possessed special abilities, and most of them were quick-witted and beautiful women. Only a few were considered embarrassing "fools," but even though they lacked social or intellectual skills, they compensated with terrifying combat instincts. Representing this aspect were the 'Snow Leopard' and 'Koi Fish ' among Bai Wei's trusted witch attendants.
The time spent teaching Sakurai Shiru flew by quickly, and Bai Wei found himself enjoying it without even realizing.
He remembered the days when he used to be a mentor, teaching in a similar manner. He also recalled the period when he took over the witch village, and during that time, he worked as a part-time teacher for half a year.
He did almost everything and knew a little bit of everything. In order to gain the witches' trust, this emperor had little authority and was kind and approachable to everyone.
But...
In the end, that wasn't truly kind, was it?
It was just a means to gain trust, and then engage in beneficial exchange of interests between both parties.
The emperor of that time wanted a power that belonged only to him, strong enough to overturn the war and ignite the flames of revolution within the empire.
So he set his sights on the descendants of witches and saw their potential. He unleashed their terrifying powers through war, bringing an end to the history of the empire at a great cost of lives.
In the eyes of the emperor, in the eyes of the mentor, as long as the predetermined life path could be completed, no one was exempt from death, including himself.
It was also a display of utmost ruthlessness.
After breaking free from the confines of gold, he lived again, gazing out over a span of five hundred years.
Now, Bai Wei once again sat by the side of the witch, taking on the role he had played in the past.
He suddenly realized that perhaps there was still guilt lingering in his heart, only it was hidden far too deep, so deep that he hadn't even noticed it himself.
Did he show such kindness because he was seeking a sense of relief in this little girl?
Bai Wei unconsciously paused, gazing at the sunset outside the window, lost in thought.
At that moment, a warm little hand reached out and held Bai Wei's thumb.
"What's wrong, uncle? Missing home?" Sakurai Shiru blinked her eyes and asked.
Bai Wei felt the warm sensation and temperature from his thumb. He withdrew his gaze from watching the sunset and closed his notebook.
"As I grow older, sometimes I glance back at the past and wonder if I made any mistakes... but it's just being overly dramatic."
He gently touched the little girl's hair and said, "I should go back now, I'll come visit you again the day after tomorrow."
Sakurai Shiru delicately said, "Goodbye, uncle."
Bai Wei left the hospital room and closed the door behind him. He looked down the crimson-colored corridor and took a step towards the direction of the elevator.
Just as he took a few steps, he heard a voice behind him saying, "Please wait."
Bai Wei paused and heard a soft, intelligent female voice from behind, saying, "Are you Mr. Bai?"
This voice sounded so familiar.
"Oh, right... I remember hearing it on the phone," he recalled.
Bai Wei immediately turned around and mentioned the person's name, "Doctor Kurosawa, is that you?"
It has been a full week since the last conversation, and the attending doctor who was on a business trip should have returned by now.
The woman stood under the crimson evening sun and smiled, saying, "Yes, I am Kurosawa Yaka. Nice to meet you, Mr. Bai."
She wore glasses, giving her a scholarly appearance. Standing at one meter and seventy-three centimeters tall, she was considered quite tall among women. Clad in a white coat, she exuded the elegance and composure expected of a skilled doctor. Most female doctors carried a stern and nurturing maternal aura.
Her facial features were not particularly prominent, hidden behind the glasses, and even seemed somewhat blurred. However, her chestnut-colored, curly long hair stood out noticeably.
But Bai Wei was suddenly captivated for a moment.
"Mr. Bai?" Doctor Kurosawa waved her hand in front of his gaze. "What's the matter with you?"
"Ah, sorry," Bai Wei snapped out of his startled state, coughing softly, "I just lost focus for a moment."
"Daydreaming?"
"You bear some resemblance to someone I know," Bai Wei paused, "May I ask how old you are?"
"Mr. Bai, it's not polite to ask a lady about her age," Doctor Kurosawa's expression turned serious, then softened into a gentle smile, "However, I have been in this profession for over twenty years now. I am fifty years old, and I don't mind such trivial matters like age."
"That's hard to believe," Bai Wei was not trying to flatter her, there were no crow's feet at the corners of her eyes, her skin was moist and elastic, she looked young like a mature beauty in her twenties or thirties.
"People often say that, maybe I was born to defy aging," Doctor Kurosawa smiled and said, "I was actually about to discuss Sakurai Shiru's condition with you. Are you available now?"
Kurosawa Yaka gestured for Bai Wei to follow. They walked together, one in front of the other. As Bai Wei watched the doctor's figure, he still couldn't let go of his feelings deep inside.
It felt familiar.
It was so familiar.
But precisely because it was so familiar, it was difficult to determine.
After all, will someone who looks so similar really appear after a long gap of five hundred years?
Even through the cycle of reincarnation, it was impossible for the emperor's past self and present self to have similar appearances.
But if it were an occasional atavistic phenomenon among close blood relatives, perhaps?
Bai Wei couldn't tell for sure. He looked up at the person's head, but there were no words appearing, just a blurry image.
Bai Wei entered the doctor's office and was the first to ask, "Doctor Kurosawa, have you finished making the special medicine?"
Translator: Volume 17 has been translated and published on Amazon (https://amzn.to/43umpe0).
