Huo Yulin walked out and headed to the storage cabinet placed near the entrance. He entered its password, which was his phone number, and the door opened automatically.
Sure enough, there was a package inside.
He took it out and closed the cabinet door before he went back inside the villa.
He removed a small knife from the drawer and opened the package before removing a wooden box from it.
The box was filled with incense sticks. He could smell sandalwood and some Chinese herbs when he opened it.
It smelled good and was not overpowering. The moment Huo Yulin caught a whiff of it, it made him feel relaxed from head to toe.
The incense was certainly different from the ones he was used to.
Huo Yulin picked up his phone, took a picture, and sent it to Huo Yao: [I received it. Thanks, Yao.]
[Remember to use it at night. It will help with your insomnia.]
Huo Yulin replied: [Okay.]
Huo Yulin put down the phone and retrieved a stick of incense, giving it a sniff. It certainly smelled different. Then he headed to the sideboard and took out his incense holder.
He went up to his room with the incense and the holder. He lit up a stick before placing it in the holder.
Smoke instantly curled upwards with the scent of sandalwood and herbs wafting through the air.
Huo Yulin inhaled deeply and lay down on the bed. Even though it might not work, he wanted to give it a shot since his little sister sent it over especially for him.
Although Huo Yulin did not harbor any hope that he could sleep, his eyelids gradually felt heavy. Before he knew it, he fell asleep with the incense slowly spreading in his room. The usual darkness that plagued his mind was nowhere to be found.
By the time Huo Yulin woke up, it was the next evening. He sat up on his bed in the dark room and rubbed his forehead before turning on the wall lamp.
He looked at the decoration in the room. Then his eyes landed on the incense holder to see that the incense had finished burning. His blurry eyes finally sharpened.
Was he sleeping just now?
Huo Yulin took out his phone from under the pillow in disbelief and looked at the time. He was stunned when he saw it.
He had already slept through a night and a whole day.
Huo Yulin lifted the blanket and walked up to the French windows. He opened the curtains to see that it was already dark outside. After a long time, he finally gathered his thoughts.
He had not suffered from any nightmares nor did he suddenly wake up startled, mid-way. He slept the whole time soundly.
He had not slept like this in years. His little sister’s incense was really effective.
Huo Yulin went back to the room and held the box as he looked at the incense. Then he quickly texted Huo Yao.
[Thanks for the incense, Yao.]
*
Huo Yao was still in class when he sent her the text. She only noticed her brother’s message after class.
He had clearly tried the incense.
After contemplating briefly, she replied: [You have to address your mental issues here. Brother Yulin, you are a doctor too, so you ought to know better. No matter how effective my incense is, it can’t save you forever.]
Huo Yao received a reply after a long time.
Lin: [I know.]
Lin: [Your incense contains special herbs. Do you know Chinese medicine?]
Huo Yao leaned into the seat and replied modestly: [A little. I read some books about Chinese meds before.]
Lin: [Are you planning on studying medicine in the future?]
Huo Yao raised her brow. It was impossible for her to study medicine. The bell rang, so she quickly wrote to her brother that she was not interested before putting her phone away.
