Chapter 5: Seeking Justice (Part One)

Everyone was struck dumb—could this really be the famed master and disciple, the elusive divine physician whose reputation had spread like wildfire? The disparity was enough to leave jaws hanging.

Rumors about the "divine physician" had recently swept through several cities in Crescent Moon, and with the heavy traffic to Moon City, the story naturally made its way here as well. But hearsay is one thing; witnessing it firsthand is quite another, and the shock that settled in their hearts now was beyond words.

The young woman appeared delicate and refined, no more than sixteen years of age, yet she had a venerable elder willingly calling her "master." If that wasn’t extraordinary, what was? Moreover, there had been outbreaks of plague in Crescent Moon’s towns; the imperial officials dispatched to handle the crisis had not even arrived before the epidemic was already under control and the pathogens eradicated.

During the rescue, the pair had reportedly donated tens of thousands of taels of silver, and when they left, not a single coin was demanded from the authorities. No one could say for certain whether this tale was true. Yet ever since the plague incident, stories of the divine physician abounded in Crescent Moon's towns—even temples had been erected in her honor, so she might receive the people's worship.

The young woman brusquely blocked the onlookers outside the tavern, and those inside, overwhelmed by the acrid stench, fled outside, leaving the innkeeper stamping his feet in distress. She found a room on the third floor; the innkeeper tried everything to stop her, but she turned and shot him a piercing look, tossed him a piece of gold, and told him to get lost. The innkeeper retreated quickly, unnerved, clutching the silver—her gaze was truly frightening.

“Please, miss, you must save my son!” The elderly master had agreed to help, and the woman, overwhelmed by gratitude, hurriedly knelt and bowed her head to the floor.

“Get up. Don’t speak,” the young woman replied, her voice cool and calm, tinged with aloofness. She slipped on gloves made from celestial silkworm thread, took the blade the elder had just sterilized in the flame, and pressed it to the child’s bloodied abdomen.

The mother watched, terror-stricken, her face alternating between pale and flushed, cold sweat soaking her back.

The child suffered so terribly because his intestines were nearly severed; if An Yue did not act swiftly to stop the bleeding, he would soon be nothing but a lifeless corpse. The young woman pressed several acupoints on the child, then carefully stitched the torn intestines with special thread. Her forehead was beaded with fine sweat, yet her hands never faltered.

Cold Yi had never imagined she could be reborn. The oath sealed with blood had finally come true—yet she returned in the body of the heir to the An family! The An family, renowned healers of Night Moon, and somehow the orphaned soul from Crescent Moon had awakened in the medical dynasty of Night Moon. Thanks to her extraordinary memory and talent, she had become, by the age of six, the most outstanding traditional physician of her generation in the An family.

She did not know why she was given a second chance at life, but surely fate itself had grown weary of those two cruel, wicked wretches, and sent her back to deal with them. Indeed, as the parents are, so are the children—arrogant, heartless, vicious and malicious; such people deserved no good end.

When she finished the final stitch, An Ran exhaled slowly and handed the remaining tasks to An Yue. The child’s mother stood by, stupefied.

Having washed her hands, An Ran looked at the dazed woman, her voice still cool and unruffled. “Why have you not sought justice for your child?”

She had opened the window as she spoke, deliberately raising her voice so those downstairs could hear clearly.

“You may not know, miss, but that is the second son of Prime Minister Lu’s household. We cannot provoke them!” The woman’s eyes brimmed with tears as she glanced at her unconscious child. How desperately she wished for justice.

“Prime Minister Lu? Is Crescent Moon’s realm owned by the Lu family, then?” An Ran sneered. “This vast Moon City stands beneath the Emperor’s feet—how could the Lu family presume to rule as they please?”

The woman was struck dumb, unable to reply.

As An Ran finished speaking, the crowd below erupted. Yes, this was the Emperor’s domain—how could the Lu family dictate all? Prime Minister Lu was known for charity; would he permit his son to treat lives so carelessly?

“Madam upstairs, we’ll go with you to the Prime Minister’s residence and demand justice!”

“Yes, yes!”

“Come down quickly!”

The crowd below boiled with excitement, eager to act. The woman hesitated, looking at her unconscious child; then, gritting her teeth, she said, “Very well. I’ll entrust my son to you, miss!”

An Ran’s eyes narrowed slightly. She nodded, then turned to the bedside.