C15 Do Your Best to Help

"How much money do you need for Xiaozhi's school?" Lee Yifann asked.

"His tuition used to be over two grand, plus some extra fees, almost four grand total. Now, it's probably more," Wang Cuifen replied, grabbing a bite of greens. "I haven't been able to work these past few years, caring for Xiaozhi and fearing he'd fall sick. We've been getting by on rent money alone."

"You're not taking rent from me now, though. Won't that leave you high and dry?" Lee Yifann pointed out.

"It's fine" Wang Cuifen said, smiling. "Now that he's better, I can hustle for work. I plan to take him job hunting with me tomorrow."

Lee Yifann frowned, "Auntie, that's a no-go. Xiaozhi's too young. He should be in school; if he doesn't get an education, he won't have any prospects."

"I know, but we're just plain broke!" Wang Cuifen knew the value of education, but treating Zhizhi's illness had cleaned them out, and a few grand was a tough nut to crack.

Lee Yifann mulled it over, laid down his cutlery, and pulled out five grand. "Take this, Auntie."

Wang Cuifen balked, shaking her head vigorously, "Can't do that. It's your money."

"Auntie, it's for Xiaozhi's tuition."

"No, I can't take it!" she insisted.

"Auntie!" Lee Yifann raised his voice, his tone serious. "Xiaozhi needs an education. You want him to grow up illiterate and looked down on by everyone?"

Tears rose in Wang Cuifen's eyes, and she hugged her son tightly.

Her life had been a hard slog, and now that her son was healthy, she couldn't afford his tuition. Lee Yifann's words struck a chord, and all her sorrow poured out.

"Xiaozhi, Mommy's so sorry."

Lee Yifann stuffed the money into her hands, "Auntie, take it. Sign him up for school tomorrow. Three years ain't a big deal; he can catch up if he tries."

Shaking, Wang Cuifen took the money, "I don't know how to thank you. We'll be grateful to you forever."

Lee Yifann smiled, "Auntie, I grew up without parents. You and Xiaozhi are like my family. This money's peanuts if it can help you."

He never had been one to pinch pennies. If he could lend a hand to someone who was truly in a bind, he wasn't one to hold back.

"I'm forever in your debt. Kid, you can go to school again, all thanks to this big guy here," Wang Cuifen said, her voice filled with heartfelt gratitude.

"Big Brother, thank you!" Xiaozhi exclaimed.

"You can go to school tomorrow. Remember to hustle and catch up on everything you've missed; you got that?" Lee Yifann said with a serious face.

"I got it! I'll bust my hump studying!" Wang Xiaozhi was eager and knew not to slack off. Growing up in a hard-knock life, he knew his mom had been busting her tail to keep things going, and he needed to make her proud.

"Yifann, where did you get this cash from? Weren't you saying you didn't have a job a while back?" Wang Cuifen was both curious and worried. She recalled that when Lee Yifann first arrived, he didn't even have a few bucks for his room. Now, he was tossing around five grand like it was nothing.

Was the money stolen?

Lee Yifann laughed it off, saying, "Auntie, I didn't rob a bank or anything. I found a job, and they gave me an advance on my salary."

He told a little white lie, as telling her he snatched the money from Ma Yishan would have made her refuse it.

He only gave her five thousand, just enough for what was needed.

"How much you got left? Enough to get by?" Wang Cuifen asked, concern in her voice.

"I'm good! My job pays well; they fronted me seven or eight grand!" Lee Yifann reassured her.

"Well, that's a relief. If you were going broke to help us, I'd never forgive myself," she said.

"Auntie, let's eat before the food gets cold," Lee Yifann said, picking up his cutlery. He knew he'd better find a job soon; otherwise, he'd run out of money eventually.

After dinner, Lee Yifann returned to his room to meditate and delve into his medical books.

He'd met the requirements for martial arts and medicine for the Medical Saint Scripture.

He knew that someday, he'd have to face the big shot and prove his innocence by healing his son.

With his current skills, he was nowhere close, so he needed to up his game.

At the same time, he knew he had to step up his game in self-defense. The world was tough, and he had to be tougher.

"In martial arts, I've crossed the first threshold and reached the Qi-training stage. Now I need to harness my body's energy to cultivate genuine Qi and unblock my meridians," Lee Yifann mused.

Although he'd broken through to the Qi-training stage, he felt unsteady.

Regular practitioners needed to refine genuine Qi in their core and connect it through their bodies.

But with the Medical Saint Scripture, once the Qi flowed through his meridians, Lee Yifann had to form a spiritual cauldron in his mind's eye, genuinely entering the Qi-training stage.

The so-called "soul cauldron" was something he crafted from fragments of his soul, his consciousness, and his vital energy.

It wasn't just a part of him; it held his soul and was crucial to his future training.

As long as that soul cauldron wasn't destroyed, he couldn't die.

But, heck, the realm of immortality was miles and miles away.

Right now, the energy in his core was so weak he couldn't connect his energy channels, let alone create a soul cauldron.

"Looks like I need to save more people 'cause just practicing this way ain't going to cut it. I'm moving at a snail's pace here," he muttered.

After a few hours of training, he realized he was getting nowhere fast with his energy concentration. Lee's brow furrowed, and he mumbled curses under his breath before sitting back down to meditate. When he got tired, he flopped onto his bed and pored over his medical texts, dissecting every sentence, going over them repeatedly until he had them down pat.

The night led to morning, and around five or six, Wang's mom was up bright and early, to take young Wang off to school.

It was the kid's big day back at school, and they were all stoked. They didn't want to wake Lee, so they let him sleep in.

Lee's eyes snapped open, and he sprung out of bed, stretching his bones well. The day was waiting, and he was ready to face it head-on.