Fang Chen nodded as he pondered over the reason he had asked to see her today. Soon, he got straight to his point. He looked at Huo Yao solemnly and said, “I asked you to meet today because I need your help.”
Huo Yao raised her brow and had an inkling of what he wanted from her. “Does someone need treatment?”
“Uh huh.” Fang Chen nodded sadly. “It is my teacher who requires treatment.”
Meanwhile, the food had arrived and someone was knocking on the door. Fang Chen glanced at the door. He paused and waited for them to serve the food and leave before he went into detail about his teacher’s illness.
After he was done explaining the situation, Fang Chen smiled sadly. “I should have brought his medical history along so that you could check it.”
Huo Yao ate some food before she raised her head and looked at Fang Chen. She said calmly, “It’s fine. I just need to check his pulse.”
Since Fang Chen knew of Huo Yao’s medical abilities, his worries dissipated the moment she readily agreed to help. He promptly said, “It is already late tonight. Maybe we can do it some other time. When are you free?”
Huo Yao thought about it. She welcomed the chance to make money, so she nodded and said, “How about tomorrow at 4:00 pm?”
Fang Chen naturally hoped that she could examine his teacher as soon as possible, so he answered without any objection. “Great. I will get Shuwen to pick you up at 4:00 pm at school tomorrow.”
Huo Yao gestured okay before she lowered her head and continued eating.
After dinner, Huo Yao turned down Fang Chen’s offer to give her a ride home. Since it was early, she took a cab to the night market in the old city district.
She had come here previously when she visited the capital to participate in the National Quiz Contest.
The night market was extremely crowded, so Huo Yao put on a mask before she entered so as not to garner too much attention.
Huo Yao walked deep into the night market. She paused briefly when she got to the noodle shop and looked inside.
It was the same shop owner running the place and there were very few patrons as usual.
Huo Yao veered her eyes before she entered the antique shop next door.
The antique shop was very small and the lights were dim while eccentric objects could be seen hanging inside the glass display cabinet. For some reason, it felt particularly creepy looking at the place from outside.
The shopkeeper was sitting inside the store having a nap when Huo Yao entered and did not seem interested in conducting business.
But Huo Yao seemed accustomed to his behavior and said nothing. Instead, she looked around the store unhurriedly.
After some time, the sleeping shopkeeper finally realized that someone was inside the store. He lazily opened his eyes and looked at the girl wearing a mask and pondered briefly.
“What do you need?” The shopkeeper was a man in his forties. He cleared his throat before he asked Huo Yao.
Huo Yao had just picked up a porcelain decoration, but she put it down and turned to look at him. Since she was wearing a mask and only half her face could be seen, she looked particularly mysterious in the dim light.
The moment the shopkeeper saw her, he was stunned. “You…”
Huo Yao raised her brow. She pulled up an old rattan chair from the side, sat down lazily, and pulled out the necklace she was wearing on her neck. “Have you seen this jade before?”
The shopkeeper snapped out of his thoughts and glanced at Huo Yao before he took the necklace and scrutinized the jade pendant for a couple of seconds. He thought she wanted to sell it, so he answered. “It is just an ordinary piece of jade worth a few tens of thousands.”
He paused briefly, held the jade pendant, and checked it carefully before he continued. “Shouldn’t this have a second half to it?”
