C9 The Girl That He Missed Day and Night

The girl peeked her head out from the edge of the magazine, her fair, oval face framed by two sparkling eyes and a light, playful smile that hinted at mischief, yet she exuded an air of confident beauty.

She was Shen Yong's girlfriend during his university days.

And she was his first love.

As Shen Yong gazed at the photograph, memories he couldn't shake flooded back.

It was a warm spring day when he visited the school's cherry blossom garden to enjoy the blooms and snap some photos with his phone.

Just as he was about to leave, having captured the scene, he caught sight of a girl seated on a bench beneath a distant cherry tree.

The image was reminiscent of Sister Lin from the classic tale, demurely reading beneath the peach blossoms.

Shen Yong couldn't pass up the chance to capture such a vision. Stealthily, he positioned himself, framing the shot perfectly, ready to take a candid photo.

But before he could press the shutter, the girl sensed his presence.

Her name was Su Yaner!

With a gentle smile, Su Yaner not only immortalized that beautiful moment but also sparked an instant connection between them, quickly blossoming into love.

Time together always felt fleeting, precious.

Twenty-four hours a day just wasn't enough—they wished for thirty-six to spend side by side.

Silent walks, hands entwined, brought them a deep, unspoken joy.

But in the midst of their romance, Shen Yong abruptly lost touch with Su Yaner.

He was like a man without a soul, listless, his appetite vanished, shedding over twenty pounds in a single week.

Upon hearing from Su Yaner's roommate that she had enlisted in the military, Shen Yong told no one of his plans and resolutely enlisted as well.

In a haze of emotion, his only thought was to find Su Yaner in the ranks, not considering the enormity of his decision.

But in a vast nation, recruits couldn't all be stationed in the same place.

After five years of searching, Shen Yong came up empty-handed.

Yet, he never ceased his quest.

Every time Shen Yong undertook a covert mission in the snowy mountains, a single photograph served as his greatest source of solace.

Whenever drowsiness crept in, he would pull out the picture and plant a kiss on Su Yaner's face. The photo, thankfully laminated, had withstood countless kisses; otherwise, it would have been worn through by now.

Shen Yong shook his head, urging himself to let go of bygone days.

"Fold up the beautiful memories like paper and tuck them into your heart's deepest corner," he murmured, giving the photo one more kiss before securing it back in the safe and locking it up.

He slid the safe under the bed, bidding farewell to the past and embracing the fresh start awaiting him in his home village.

Back in the main room, his mother, Xie Yun, inquired if the safe contained anything of significance.

Shen Yong chuckled, "Nothing much! Just some old army clothes that don't fit the setting of home. I figured I'd lock them away as keepsakes."

"That's a fine idea, keeping them for memory's sake," Xie Yun agreed. "Yong, you must be famished! Chat with your dad for a bit while I whip up your favorite wild vegetable buns."

"Sure, Mom!" Shen Yong replied with a contented nod.

As Xie Yun headed to the kitchen, Shen Yong turned to his father, Shen Wanshan, "Dad, let me have a go at treating your leg injury."

"Yong, you know how to treat people?" Shen Wanshan inquired.

"Uh, well, during my time in the army, I picked up a few tricks for treating pigs," Shen Yong said, scratching his head and offering an awkward fib, "I once reattached a pig's leg in three seconds! The methods aren't all that different for humans and pigs when it comes to broken limbs. Let me give it a try!"

Shen Yong kept the truth from his father, for even he found the inheritance from the Mountain Peach Golden Immortal hard to believe, let alone anyone else.

If he were to reveal it, people would surely think he'd lost his wits again. It seemed wiser to stick to a benign fib that others could more readily accept.

"I see," his father nodded, taking in the explanation.

Shen Wanshan hesitated briefly before saying, "Alright, take a look at the X-rays from the hospital first. I can't make heads or tails of them, but the doctors said the injury was severe. Given my age, they're afraid I'll be confined to a wheelchair for the rest of my life."

"I don't need to see the X-rays!"

Shen Yong declared confidently, "Dad, rest easy! I'll heal your leg and have you walking as swiftly as you did in your youth!"

Shen Yong bent down to examine his father's injured right leg. He hadn't realized the extent of the damage until he checked—what a shock it was!

He discovered that his father's right leg had suffered severe muscle damage, with clear signs of atrophy. Cracks marred the entire length of the bone, and both the knee and ankle joints were dislocated. Although the joints had been realigned and set in a thick plaster cast, the soft tissues around them were still seriously damaged and far from healed. If left untreated, the right leg would soon be beyond repair.

Luckily, Shen Yong had discovered a treatment for his father's leg injury within the Immortal Doctor Secret Technique, known as the Muscle Bone Repair Technique. Following the instructions, he used spiritual energy to swiftly mend his father's torn muscles, fractured bones, and injured cartilage.

"Yong! My leg doesn't hurt anymore, and the muscles feel stronger! If you take off the cast now, I could stand up!" Shen Wanshan exclaimed with excitement.

"Alright, Dad! I'll remove the cast right now!" Shen Yong replied. He placed his hands on the plaster cast and, with gentle pressure, began breaking it apart piece by piece.

Once free from the cast's confinement, Shen Wanshan sprang from the wheelchair like a child bursting with energy.

"It's fixed!? Hahaha! It's fixed!" he cheered, dashing out of the room. Overjoyed, he called out to the small kitchen, "Wife! Wife! Come quick and see! My leg is healed!"

Hearing the commotion, Xie Yun emerged, apron-clad and holding a fire poker, to see what all the excitement was about.

Shen Wanshan, overcome with excitement, dashed to Xie Yun's side, scooping her up in his arms and spinning her around in circles.

"Oof! Oof! Hahaha, my dear husband! Please, put me down now!" Xie Yun laughed, patting Shen Wanshan's shoulder. "We're not as young as we used to be! This could end in tears of pain mixed with joy if I fall!"

"Look, my dear wife! Our son has healed my leg!!"

Shen Wanshan gently set Xie Yun down, beaming with joy. "Yong's even more skilled than the hospital doctors now! He used the same technique he uses on pigs—no injections, no pills. Just a few presses on my leg, and voilà, it's healed!"

"Really!? That's incredible! We spent a fortune at the hospital and got nowhere, and our son fixed it just like that!"

Xie Yun tossed aside the fire poker, wiped her hands on her apron, and clasped her hands in front of her, murmuring gratefully, "Thank heavens for this blessing! Today is truly a great day for our family!"

"Mom! I can smell the wild vegetable buns! Are they ready yet?"

Shen Yong sniffed the air eagerly.

"They're ready! I'm about to take them off the stove. Go wash your hands; they'll be ready to eat in no time!"

Xie Yun, picking up the fire poker from the ground, disappeared into the small kitchen.

Living off the land.

Though each family in the village cultivated their own vegetable patch, when summer came, they all adhered to the tradition of foraging for wild greens on the mountain, unwilling to let nature's finest offerings go to waste.

By the time Shen Yong had washed his hands, Xie Yun was already emerging from the kitchen with a basket full of wild vegetable buns.

The sun was now dipping towards the horizon.

Nestled among the mountains in a central basin, Mountain Peach Village welcomed the evening a bit earlier than most places.

The family of three settled on the courtyard bench, savoring their wild vegetable buns in contented harmony.

"Dad, how did you hurt your leg?" Shen Yong, reaching for his fifth bun, asked with curiosity.

At his question, the previously cheerful faces of the elderly couple suddenly turned somber.

With just a quick glance, Shen Yong perceived that there was more to his father's leg injury than met the eye.