Chương 53: Chapter 50 - The Call of Gold

Song stepped quietly into his uncle's yurtwagon. It was completely transformed from when he'd last entered during the move. The sweet scent of camphor wafted from a pair of incense sticks near the entrance, and the thick tapestries covering the walls dampened the sounds of the village. The space in the center of the yurt was largely dominated by a wide table and six chairs, and a small collection of wardrobes to the left.

Two beds lay against the far wall – a large futon piled high in thick furs, and a small thing covered in woolen blankets that lay almost forlornly at its side. Much like its sole occupant. Mae was curled up beneath the thick blankets, the tips of her buns barely visible past the lip. She let out a rasping cough as Song entered the yurtwagon, and he winced – she sounded terrible, much worse than this morning. Beside her, Elder Minsu sat in lotus position holding her hand.

Her mother – Auntie Haru – was fretting about the yurtwagon, watering changpo flowers, dusting off end tables, and doing whatever she could to distract herself. Auntie Haru was quite different from Song's Mother, though both shared the small horns of a novice Lee cultivator. While Chohee was compact and athletic in appearance, Auntie Haru was tall and willowy. She kept her hair short, just above her shoulders, and wore long bangly jade earrings that'd been gifted to her by Uncle Seok on their wedding day.

She was dressed in a simple brown deel. She glanced up at the flap as Song entered, Seojoon close behind him.

"Song. Mae's been waiting for you." She bit her lip and pointed over to the bed, then turned around and busied herself with organizing what few books Uncle Seok had atop his nightstand.

"Hello Mae~" Song coo'd, coming up alongside the futon. He shuffled the doll in his arms uncomfortably. ["Oooh, I'm not a doctor, but that looks bad."] Cyrus hissed. Song had to agree. The black flecks on Mae's skin had spread, and were growing almost visibly. They looked like the craggy outcrops that jutted out of the steppe, spaced unevenly across her skin. It gave her an appearance not too unlike a young pangolin.

"Cousin Song?" Mae whispered, her eyes peeking out past the blanket. She tried to pull her hand away from Elder Minsu, but the man's grip tightened on her wrist, and he shook his head sharply.

"Sorry Elder," Song spoke aside to the Lee family physician. To Mae he said, "I got you something special, Mae. We had a powerful merchant come by the village today, and he just happened to have the most amazing doll." Song held the doll out to Mae, then awkwardly shoved it down into the blankets when she proved unable to lift her arms that far. His hand briefly touched her skin, which felt like coarse stone. She was surprisingly cool for someone who looked so feverish.

Mae's eyes grew wider the longer she looked at the doll. Her trembling hand brushed the ebon hair almost disbelievingly, then traveled down to finger the real silk and gold of its clothes.

"Cousin Song…" She whispered. Tears welled in her eyes.

"She's beautiful."

"The most beautiful doll in all of Changpo," Song declared proudly, holding himself up.

"Sarang is going to be so jealous," Mae giggled.

"She was showing off her new wooden doll last week. Just wait until I –" Whatever she was going to say was cut off by fresh coughs. Her eyes drank the doll in, and she ran her fingers over its porcelain skin.

"I'm going to name her Boram."

"With the Hanja for 'valuable'?" Song choked.

"Isn't that a bit…"

"You gave it to me, cousin Song. It's the most valuable thing in the world," Mae held the doll tight, her chin trembling. She was trying to be brave, but Song could hear the fear in her voice. After all, he'd experienced something similar himself just a few weeks ago.

"You look like you're fighting hard, just like a proper Lee," Song said, trying to cheer her up. Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.

"I can hear the earth breathe. When it's quiet," Mae whispered.

"Sometimes there are words, but I don't understand what they mean. Is the Golden Emperor calling me to become one of his concubines? Am I going to die, Cousin Song?" Across the yurt, there was a choking sound, and Aunt Haru collapsed to her knees. Seojoon rushed forward and held his mother upright.

"You're the strongest girl I know, Mae. You'll be fine." Song choked.

"Just listen to Elder Minsu, okay? Promise?" He put hand out and patted her head like she always liked.

"Promise…" Mae whispered. Slowly her eyes squeezed shut, and her breathing evened out. Her voice called out in a sing-song tone, "Little Song, little Song, come on won't you sing along." Song joined her, for once not finding the little ditty annoying. She smiled faintly, and a moment later, the blankets on her bed slowly moved up and down in a steady rhythm. Elder Minsu's eyes opened, and he rose on creaking knees.

He was wearing his usual black and white hanfu, and he brushed one hand down his robe while considering his charge. His other hand remained closed tightly in a fist.

"I've done what I can for now. But I'll need to go get more supplies."

"Thank you for bringing the doll, Song." Seojoon said, his arm still supporting his mother.

"I know it must've been expensive. Let me –" Song held up his hand to forestall his cousin.

"No. I said I'd do it." He turned back to the Elder and asked curiously, "How are you treating her?"

"Interested in medicine too? You've been all over the place these days, youngest child of the Patriarch. Poison orbs, strange sticks, a mysterious master," the Elder pursed his lips, then gave a wide smile.

"But to answer your question, I'm using a variation on a new treatment for the Twelve Yin Meridians."

"The True Yin body?" Song asked curiously.

"What does that have to do with Earth qi poisoning?" The True Yin Body was one of the most famous constitutions in all of Murim. It granted a young woman – and it was always a young woman – a body that had twelve yin meridians instead of the usual combination of six yin and yang. It granted the ability to easily circulate qi, especially of the Azure Scholar, but it also caused the body to slowly freeze from the accumulation of cold Yin energy with no hot Yang to supplement it.

If the victim was able to overcome their unique constitution, they'd become a natural genius and peerless beauty. The current Ice Flower of Emei was one such talent; her skills as an orthodox water body cultivator were matchless amongst her peers.

"The treatment for Twelve Yin Meridians is famous. I'm aware that all you young men know of it," Elder Minsu said, his tone scathing. Song blushed, and Seojoon had the grace to look away from his mother. The treatment for too much yin, was to externally supply the yang, usually from a virile young man…

"The current Divine Physician has always considered the medicine more harmful than the disease. Sometimes the shame of the young woman was harder to bear than her constitution." The elder shook his head distastefully.

"It leads to poor outcomes. So, he decided to try solving the problem using the Great One's qi instead. After all, the Crimson Hunger is the ultimate expression of Yang, and the Azure Scholar the ultimate expression of Yin. They act in balance, so could he not balance too much cold Yin by counteracting it with hot Fire qi? Like a cultivator taking in a divine treasure, but in the opposite direction."

"I thought putting the wrong kind of qi into the body was poison," Song shivered, looking back at Mae. Was that what the physician was doing? No wonder she looked so haggard.

"Even poison can be medicine," Minsu held up his hand and opened it, revealing some crushed leaves. Song's cultivator senses could detect faint Wood qi from the remnants.

"The Divine Physician is called that for a reason. He was successful, and it turned out that the method could work for most kinds of qi poisoning as well. By using the opposite element, we can balance the energies within the body, thus helping the body acclimatize to the Great One's qi. Since Mae has Earth qi poisoning, I've been siphoning small bits of Wood qi into her meridians using the Divine Physician's methods to try and balance it out."

"We should ask the Jos," Aunt Haru said, tears in her eyes.

"They worship the Golden Emperor, maybe if we prayed –""Prayers to the Great Ones do nothing, or worse," Minsu cut her off. He took a deep breath and regarded the distraught woman.

"I'm doing what I can. But I can't guarantee anything. And even if she survives, there'll be long lasting effects. She may even gain the Sign of a Demonic Cultivator." Haru gasped. Seojoon caught his mother then carried her to her bed and laid her down.

"I may need to petition the Patriarch to dip into cultivation materials," Minsu said seriously to Song.

"The Earth qi she's taken in is quite strong, and I'm running out of supplies."

"The Patriarch will agree," Seojoon said, his face red.

"He dotes on Mae. Everyone does. She's our Lee family's little plum blossom."

"I know father will. I'll make sure." Song nodded.

"It may not be that simple," Minsu said, looking back down at his charge.

"I'm afraid that the council may need to make a decision tonight. How much are we willing to sacrifice to save one small child?" Song glanced down at Mae. She shuffled beneath the blankets, and clutched her new doll tightly. Everything, he thought. I would sacrifice EVERYTHING.