Breakfast began and ended in an awkward atmosphere. Neither Ning Tao, Jiang Hao, nor Tang Zhen mentioned what happened last night, or they might be in a more awkward position.

Jiang Hao ate a quick breakfast, put down the dishes and headed for the door.

“Where are you going?” Tang Zhen asked.

“I’m going to work,” Jiang Hao replied, hurrying to the door. When she opened the door, she looked back at Ning Tao, who was still sitting at the table. “Ning Tao,” she called, “come out here for a minute, I have something to talk to you.”

Ning Tao somehow turned his eyes to Tang Zhen.

Tang Zhen gave Ning Tao an innocent smile and said, “I don’t need your company. I have an appointment to go food shopping with my friends of the community.”

Ning Tao mouthed wordlessly at her.

When did he say he wanted to be her company?

“Go,” Tang Zhen urged. “You two are both young guys. Go and play together. You come to Beidu once in a blue moon. Ask Jiang Hao to accompany you to the Forbidden City, the Great Wall, the Mausoleum of Prince Yongjing and other places of interest. If you don’t come back tonight, just text me…”

“Good-bye,” Ning Tao interrupted, not daring to listen any more. He put down the dishes on the table and went to the door. When he passed the couch, he picked up his medicine chest.

“Be careful when you go out to play. Bye,” Tang Zhen cried with a smile.

What did she mean by being careful?

Ning Tao went out the door as if on the run.

When Ning Tao walked into the hallway, Jiang Hao said to her mom, “Thanks to your bad idea!”

Tang Zhen spread her hands and said nonchalantly, “Well, blame me?”

Then the door slammed shut.

Ning Tao stopped in the hallway, pondering how to explain to Jiang Hao. However, when Jiang Hao walked up to him, he still had no idea what to say.

Jiang Hao stared straight at him without saying a word. Her eyes were fierce, as if Ning Tao owed her hundreds of thousands.

Ning Tao couldn’t stand her eyes and awkwardly murmured, “Er…”

He paused, at a loss for words.

“Last night…” Jiang Hao finally began.

But before she could finish, she paused as well.

At this point, Ning Tao had a brainwave. He smiled and asked, “What happened last night?”

“Last night…” Jiang Hao finally said, “I was drunk last night. Did I say anything?”

“I… I don’t know. I was drunk too…” Ning Tao replied with a dry cough. “Did you say anything last night?” he asked back brilliantly.

Jiang Hao’s face turned a little red, and then she changed the subject. “I didn’t seem to say anything. Well, let’s just drop it. I called you out to tell you something. I’m flying to Shan City tonight to follow up on the project of ancestor seeking.” Then she made a pause before adding, “You’re not going to tell anyone about what I’m going to tell you. Will you promise me?”

Ning Tao nodded in agreement.

Jiang Hao leaned over to Ning Tao’s ear and said, “I just got the news this morning. My superior will restart the project of ancestor seeking. Liang Keming, the man you’ve met, will be the leader of the project, and Lin Qinghua will probably be asked to join the project.”

“That’s a dangerous study. Why restart it?” asked Ning Tao, amazed. “Also, Lin Qinghua has shut down the project of ancestor seeking and promised not to touch it again. Why ask him to join?”

With a bitter smile, Jiang Hao stated, “The nuclear bomb never should have existed, but humans built it, and are still making it. The project is similar to the nuclear bomb. There is nothing we can do about it. And you, you’re just the doctor who cured Lin Qinghua. It’s none of your business, so don’t involve yourself in it anymore. Besides, you’d better not get in touch with Lin Qinghua from now on. Otherwise you will get into unnecessary trouble.”

“Is Lin Qinghua being watched?” Ning Tao asked.

Jiang Hao said helplessly, “I just told you to leave it alone, and you immediately ask me about him. Do you realize you’re getting yourself into trouble?”

“Well, I’m not going to ask or care about it,” Ning Tao said. But he had another idea in mind.

The old man who killed four security guards had not been arrested yet. The mysterious motorcyclist asked him to have a meet on the 15th night of this lunar month. He gave Jiang Hao two lumps of spiritual soil and the prescription for medicine of ancestor seeking, and then healed Lin Qinghua, a new demon. How could he get out of it easily when he was already in the middle of it?

What was more, he didn’t even think about leaving it alone. How could he avoid such difficulties and troubles as a go-between of good and evil and the owner of the Sky Clinic? He wouldn’t shy away from it, but would take the initiative! This was actually a very simple truth—if there was no struggle between good and evil in this world, did him, the owner of the Sky Clinic still need to exist? If the world was really at peace, he was done.

But he couldn’t tell Jiang Hao the secret.

Having no idea what Ning Tao really thought, Jiang Hao continued, “It’s good you got it. I’m relieved. I’m going to the station to give a presentation, and then fly back to Shan City in the evening to continue my mission. Why not go back with me to Shan City?”

Ning Tao thought for a moment and replied, “Sorry, I can’t go back yet. I have to give Zhao Wushuang a second treatment the day after tomorrow, and I haven’t gotten the medicine Fan Huaying promised to buy for me. When these two things are finished, I will go back to Shan City.”

“All right, I’ll wait for you in Shan City.” Jiang Hao took a glance at the small medicine chest in his hand and asked, “Where are you going right now? I still have some time. I can give you a ride.”

“Don’t worry about me. You go about your business,” Ning Tao refused. “I just want to visit the Forbidden City.”

“Well, call me if you need something,” Jiang Hao said, and left.

After Jiang Hao drove away, Ning Tao got a ride-hailing car of Didi Chuxing online and went to the Forbidden City.

When he arrived at the gate of the Forbidden City and saw several long lines in front of the ticket office, Ning Tao felt the urge to give up. Then he saw a notice about the forbidden goods, and he immediately remembered that the dagger entrusted to him by Ding Ye belonged to the forbidden goods, which could not be brought in. So he gave up the idea of visiting the Forbidden City and left with the small medicine chest.

Ring, ring…

Ning Tao was standing on the side of the road, about to hail a cab, when his cell phone rang. He pulled out his phone, cast a glance at the caller id, and answered the call.

“Hi, Huaying, this is Ning Tao. What’s up? Go ahead,” Ning Tao said politely.

Then Fan Huaying’s voice came through the phone. “Ning Tao, I’m calling to tell you the medicinal materials have been almost ready, except for two herbs. One is chicken blood bamboo and the other is white snake slough. Taoist Qing Shui said he had chicken blood bamboo, and he had ordered his disciple to get it, but you have to wait a day. Then he will personally give you the herb. I think he wants to see you. Is that all right?”

“No problem,” Ning Tao responded. “Can you find the white snake slough?”

Fan Huaying’s voice replied, “Snake slough is just snake skin. It’s common in the Chinese medicine pharmacy. Does it have to be the white snake slough? I investigated and learned that it was form the albino white snake. It’s extremely rare. And the white snake slough on the list is from a snake at least 50 years. The average life of a snake is only over 10 years, and long-lived snakes live up to 30 or 40 years at most. This herb is too hard to find… Do you have to get the snake slough from a white snake that is over 50 years old?”

“Yes. Do you have a way to get it?” Ning Tao asked.

Fan Huaying was silent for a moment before he said, “Please forgive my incompetence. I asked the relevant personnel, and also pulled some strings, but I only found a live white snake. As for the white snake slough from a snake over 50 years old… Wait a minute!”

“Have you got any further news?” Ning Tao asked hurriedly.

“Ning Tao, you may not believe this. I just got a message…”

“What is it about?”

“The man who texted me said he had the white snake slough from a snake of 50 years old, but he asked you to go and see him yourself,” Fan Huaying answered.

“Where is he?”

“Panjiayuan Market, it’s an antique market. The man said he would see you if you went there.”

“I’ll be right there,” Ning Tao said quickly.

“I’ll be right there, too. We will meet at Panjiayuan Market and go to see the man together,” Fan Huaying stated and then hung up.

Ning Tao was actually very curious why Fan Huaying suddenly received such a text message, as if the one who texted Fan Huaying knew that he desperately needed the herb. Since Fan Huaying had hung up the phone, Ning Tao could only ask him when they met.

Then Ning Tao got a taxi and went straight to Panjiayuan Market.

There was no native Beidu citizen who did not know about Panjiayuan Market. It existed since the late Qing Dynasty. It was called Ghost Market then. The down-and-out aristocracy of the Qing Dynasty and falling plutocrats could not survive in the turbulent situation and could only eke out a living by selling the family property left by their ancestors. However, these nobles, official descendants and rich people were too ashamed to be seen in the light, so they took antique objects and set up their stalls to sold them before dawn. In this way, they made money when they were not seen by acquaintances which made sure that they did not lose face. Over time it became the Ghost Market. Now, the Ghost Market had developed into an antiques market with multibillion yuan annual business.

All the information was found by Ning Tao on Baidu when he was in the taxi. Before that, he didn’t even know that there was a Panjiayuan Market in the world, let alone its history. He could not understand why the man had chosen this place to meet him, but his life was bound up with the materials for Primary Elixirs. He didn’t care about the doubts.

The taxi stopped at the side of the road. Ning Tao paid the fare, got off, and entered Panjiayuan Market.

The crowd in the market was huge. On both sides of the street were stalls selling bronze objects, ancient coins, porcelain, jade, and so on. The range of goods here was dazzling. There were also numerous other commodities, such as walnuts, buddhist bead bracelets, gourds and wood carvings.

“Young man, do you sell your wooden box?” Before Ning Tao could get used to the noisy environment, an old man took a fancy to the small medicine chest that Ning Tao was carrying.

Ning Tao looked at the old man and said firmly, “No.”

“Name your price. If the price is acceptable, I’ll buy it.” The old man went on, not giving up.

Ning Tao didn’t want to get involved with him, so he went deep into the market with his medicine chest and looked for the person who wanted to meet him.

Before he had gone a few paces, the old man ran after him, and his voice changed. “Are you the one who is looking for the white snake slough?”

Ning Tao stopped and looked at the old man.