Chapter 242 - 152 En Route_2

Words : 1359 Updated : Oct 7th, 2025

Chapter 242: Chapter 152 En Route_2However, bringing merchant ships along and unloading at the docks inside Luoyang City was inconvenient, so they stopped at a small-town dock some ten miles away from Luoyang to unload the cargo. Having become accustomed to the swaying of the ship, Ran Yan felt somewhat dizzy the moment she stood on the solid ground. Since the merchant ship needed to unload, Ran Yunsheng had Ran Pingyu take Ran Yan and Ran Meiyu to an inn to rest for a while, while he dealt with the tedious matters of unloading at the dock with a shopkeeper. Ran Pingyu said they would stay in this place for one night, and if they were not tired, they could take a carriage to Luoyang City to have a look. However, Ran Meiyu was already as limp as noodles all over and immediately said, "I won’t go. In terms of prosperity, how could Luoyang compare to Chang’an? What’s there to see!" Ran Yan was naturally interested in Luoyang, a historically famous city, but thinking of the bumpy rides on horseback for the next several days, she dismissed the idea. After all, Luoyang was right here. If there was a chance in the future, she could come to see it again. There was no need to make things difficult for herself. After deciding, they hastily ate their meal and sought out the largest guesthouse in town to catch up on sleep. The moment Ran Yan touched the pillow, she fell into a deep sleep, never having been this tired even after examining corpses in seven or eight places within a week. She slept through the night until the shen period of the next morning. Ran Yan had yet to rise when Wan Lu softly called by her ear, "Wife, Wife?" "Hmm?" Ran Yan frowned slightly, her voice muffled as she asked, "What is it?" "Doctor Liu has come to see you," Wan Lu said softly. Ran Yan opened her eyes, propped herself up with the quilt, and took a moment before asking, "Doctor Liu? Which Doctor Liu?" Seeing that Ran Yan was awake, Wan Lu no longer restrained her voice and answered with a smile, "Wife, you must be confused from sleep. Which other Doctor Liu could it be but the one from the Xiao Family, Doctor Liu Qingsong." "Liu Qingsong? Didn’t he rush off to Chang’an with Xiao Song?" Ran Yan slipped off her socks and stepped down from the bed, scooping water from the wooden basin to wash her face. Wan Lu quickly helped her dry off, and Ge Lan deftly helped her put on her clothes and combed her hair into a simple bun. Wan Lu said, "It seems Xiao Jiulang is concerned about the injury on your arm not healing and worried about your seasickness. Guessing that we would take a detour through Luoyang, he sent Doctor Liu here to wait for you." Although Xiao Song felt a slight sting in his heart about Liu Qingsong and Ran Yan both knowing the poem "Guanshan Yue," he still trusted Liu Qingsong deeply. Thus, he sent him without reservation to take care of Ran Yan’s injuries. Once she was neatly arranged, Wan Lu went to invite Doctor Liu over. Ge Lan drew the curtains in the room, and Ran Yan sat down cross-legged on the mat outside the curtains. In just a moment, Doctor Liu Qingsong arrived, carrying a big bag, and entered with a wavering gait. He was still as thin as a bamboo pole, but his face looked a bit fleshier, indicating that away from Xiao Song, he was living quite comfortably. "Wife, how is your arm?" Liu Qingsong put down the box, took out a cushion from inside, placed it on the lid of the box, and sat down on it with a thud. "It’s alright," Ran Yan stroked her tightly wrapped arm and said, "It can be removed in ten more days or so." "Then it seems to be healing very well." Liu Qingsong had felt that Xiao Song had sent him on a wild goose chase, but since he had come, he couldn’t just do nothing, "Jiulang is in a hurry to return to the capital to report on his duty, otherwise you would definitely be meeting him today." Ran Yan nodded expressionlessly. Liu Qingsong held his forehead. Regardless of gender, Ran Yan’s abilities were undoubtedly admirable, but when it came to male-female affection, he couldn’t understand how Xiao Song could fall for such a woman who never smiled and had no charm. Liu Qingsong liked all beauties, but as for Ran Yan, he thought she only had her looks going for her. After Liu Qingsong had quickly finished discussing the official business Xiao Song had sent him for, he leaned in closer and started his favorite pastime – gossiping, "You’re quite familiar with Pharmacist Su, right?" Ran Yan felt a sudden pause in her heart and looked at him quizzically. She thought that Xiao Song wouldn’t be the kind of person who couldn’t keep his mouth shut, but how did Liu Qingsong know? Seeing her confused, Liu Qingsong couldn’t help but say, "Ordinary gossiping is catty, but it’s only gossip when you apply high IQ in thinking. I’ve played with Jiulang in open-crotch trousers since we were kids, so of course, I can guess his character. The incident involving Pharmacist Su at Yingmei Temple wasn’t a secret, and Jiulang managed to keep it down, which shows that he truly has you in his heart...but..." Liu Qingsong leaned in closer still, cocked his head, and asked in a lower voice, "Truthfully, you have a preference for Pharmacist Su, don’t you?" As soon as these words were out, Ran Yan, Wan Lu, and Ge Lan all frowned. Liu Qingsong coughed a few times and said, "Never mind then." Ran Yan had always been a woman of few words. Liu Qingsong, who could find gossip even in the pattern of ants leaving their nest, found himself unable to dig up anything interesting about her. After a while, he felt bored and picked up his large medical box, shaking as he bid farewell. No sooner had he left the door than Wan Lu said, "Wife, this Doctor Liu is all over the place with his talk, and he’s extremely improper." "He’s just a pitiable person," Ran Yan’s calm, even voice could be heard outside the house, and Liu Qingsong, overhearing this, involuntarily stopped in his tracks. Only to hear her continue, "He doesn’t want to face reality, so he spends his days making up those stories, thinking that he’s just acting out a story, and once the performance is over, or when he wakes from the dream, he can return to the reality he longs for..." Sёarch* The novёlF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. In fact, Ran Yan had also harbored such thoughts. Wan Lu and Ge Lan listened, completely perplexed, while outside, tears suddenly streaked down Liu Qingsong’s face. A single word can awaken the person in a dream. For years, Liu Qingsong had gone from the novelty of initial discovery to later self-deception, never truly waking up. For Liu Qingsong, who yearned for home and had a warm family, being in the Great Tang was something he couldn’t accept. This loneliness and being in an alternate reality was not something everyone could bear. Over the years, he’d always felt as if he was trapped in a story, unable to break free, just as Ran Yan said, hoping that one day he could wake up to find himself lying on his own memory foam bed. While Liu Qingsong was engulfed in his desolation, a loud bang erupted in the front hall of the inn, startling him into a shiver. Inside the house, Ran Yan and the others were also startled, and Wan Lu said, "Slave will go check it out." (To be continued. 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Chapter 242 - 152 En Route_2

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