Boss Hayes was in a very good mood. Imperial Doctor Wen had said before that if anyone in Hua Kingdom could cure Erina's illness, it would only be Doctor San. Now that Doctor San himself had agreed, and he was Doctor San's direct disciple, the illness would almost certainly be cured.
Even though Boss Hayes's face was mostly covered by a beard, everyone could see the joy in his eyes.
Because Boss Hayes was happy, he held a big banquet on Phoenix Mountain. Erina had just given birth, so everyone on Phoenix Mountain was full of happiness.
At this joyful time, two people at the banquet stood out. They were Minnie and Sanruwi.
Sanruwi originally thought he had made things hard for Minnie. She had worked hard for a long time. But when he turned around, he saw all the medicinal herbs had been dried and prepared.
Minnie alone could not have done this. Rhett had brought a group of brothers from Phoenix Mountain to help. When Imperial Doctor Wen came before, he had ordered them to dry the herbs. They were very skilled at this work now.
Sanruwi was unhappy inside, but he could not stop the men from Phoenix Mountain from trying to please Minnie. Boss Hayes would never order them not to help her. It was bad luck to ruin a good relationship.
Jax sat between Minnie and Sanruwi. Sanruwi often wore a serious face. Jax did not mind. Seeing Minnie looking so sad surprised him. Had she not been smiling happily before?
Minnie looked listless. Sitting beside her was Rhett, who had cleverly secured this seat for himself.
"Minnie, I know you like this fruit wine at noon. I specially asked to prepare a big jar for you. Tonight we will drink until we cannot go home," Rhett said cheerfully as he poured her wine.
Minnie waved her hand again and again. "No, no, I can't drink."
"Why? Don't you like the taste?" Rhett asked quickly.
"It's not that. I can't control myself when I drink this fruit wine," Minnie sighed heavily. "I never drank before, and everything was fine. I regret it now. Alcohol really causes trouble."
She banged her head on the table. She got drunk quickly but sobered up fast because the wine was weak. When her mind finally worked, she thought about what happened that afternoon and felt very regretful. How could she have been so brave to blame Sanruwi? Now she had such a difficult task. What kind of place was this anyway?
Minnie looked at Sanruwi. His cold gaze met hers. She felt even more discouraged and banged her head on the table again. "I regret it, I regret it. Why is there no medicine for regret in this world?" she moaned.
If she had known what would happen, she would have stayed home and never gone on that graduation trip.
Jax held back a laugh and put his hand on Minnie's shoulder to stop her from hurting herself. "Be careful or you'll bruise your head."
"Jax, you are a good person," Minnie said, looking at him with a pitiful face. "If anything happens in the future, can you help me?"
"Don't worry, Minnie. As long as it's within my ability, I will not refuse," Jax answered frankly.
"You really are a great person." Minnie almost had tears in her eyes. Why did such a good person like Jax become friends with someone so moody like Sanruwi?
Rhett hurried to interrupt. "Minnie, if you order, I would go through fire and water without a frown."
"Heh." Minnie forced a smile. "Not that extreme, Doctor San. Thank you too." Rhett was very enthusiastic but too much enthusiasm made shy Minnie uncomfortable.
"Minnie, come for a walk. The moonlight is nice tonight. Let's walk together," Rhett appeared from somewhere just as Minnie stepped outside.
Minnie had eaten a lot at the banquet. She wanted to walk for digestion. Also, this place felt strange to her. She wanted to understand how this Phoenix Mountain was different from the one she had visited on her trip. So after bathing, she went out.
Seeing Rhett, Minnie hesitated but then nodded. Rhett knew Phoenix Mountain well, so walking with him was safe.
While Minnie got familiar with Phoenix Mountain, Jax went to Sanruwi's room to chat.
After bathing, Sanruwi let his hair down. His delicate face looked even more graceful and charming.
"Sanruwi, I think Minnie is not one of those shallow women. You should stop bullying her."
Sanruwi did not look up. "What is your relationship with her?"
"Nothing. Just strangers passing by."
"Strangers, and you spoke for her in one day?" Sanruwi smiled teasingly. "Little Fish, what are you up to?"
"Don't call me Little Fish." Jax showed a black line.
"What, Melonie calls you Xiao Bai, but I can't call you Little Fish?" Sanruwi raised his eyebrows.
"Melonie even calls you Xiao Bai." Jax said with no patience.
Sanruwi was silent. Jax did not speak either. They both felt a chill thinking of Melonie. Sanruwi and Jax had known each other since childhood. They trained together most of the time. Jax learned martial arts, Sanruwi learned medicine. Their masters both married the same woman, Melonie's mother. Melonie inherited both families' skills and was a torment for both Sanruwi and Jax. Sanruwi's dislike for women was mostly because of Melonie.
"If Melonie hears about Boss Hayes's wife's illness, she might come out of curiosity to interfere," Jax worried.
"What good would that do? She is good at causing trouble but not at healing."
Jax shrugged. "If she really wants to interfere, can you stop her?"
Sanruwi thought carefully about that possibility.
"Compared to Melonie, Minnie seems like a fairy," Jax sighed.
"Be careful what you say or Melonie might hear and see who can save you then."
"Isn't it just us here?" Jax smiled. "Minnie is gentle, not like other women who are difficult. She helped Erina, so she must have a kind heart. She also knows some medicine. If you dropped your prejudice, you might get along with her."
"Why should I get along with her?" Sanruwi said with disdain.
"Minnie is not married yet, and her room is empty."
Sanruwi was surprised. Then he said, "So what?"
"That means Minnie keeps herself pure. Don't you want someone like that?"
"Nonsense!" Sanruwi's eyebrows rose. "I would rather never marry than..." He did not finish.
"If only it were true you never married..." Jax lowered his voice, thinking of the future wife and feeling a bit bitter.
Sanruwi drank tea. "You are already engaged. Do you want to not marry?"
Jax steadied himself. "Sanruwi, you know we cannot avoid marriage. The government law says if you are not married by twenty-five, the government will arrange marriage within a year." Because there were fewer women than men and a low birth rate, especially after the war, Hua Kingdom's population had decreased. The rule changed from fines to forced marriage.
"I am only twenty-three. Besides, many people in Ning Shui City are over twenty-five and still unmarried." Sanruwi's hometown was Ning Shui City.
"You're talking about Logan." Jax, who was not in Ningshui City, had also heard of him. "Who else is as rich as Logan? His gifts make officials have nothing to complain about."
"Even so, I am not afraid." Sanruwi remained calm.
Jax glanced at him. "Is your protective charm from Rhett? Don't forget, Rhett married the master's wife. If you don't marry, he won't agree."
"Even so, it's enough to delay things for a few years."
"Since you will marry sooner or later, why not choose someone you like early?"
Sanruwi's expression changed slightly, then he sneered. "Is Minnie really good? At a time like this, she goes out with that Rhett. Who knows what might happen?"
"She's not that kind of person."
"How do you know that?"
"Want to bet?" Jax suggested.
"Bet?"
"If Minnie is innocent with the third young master, you promise not to trouble her."
"You really care about her."
Jax just smiled. "So, do you want to bet or not?"
Sanruwi thought for a moment. "Since you care so much, why not? But if I win, Minnie is mine to deal with. Don't speak for her anymore."
"Of course. By the way, why did you leave Shuran at the foot of the mountain? What about Yno?"
"This place is no good. Bringing Shuran here is useless. If anything happens, I don't have your skill to rescue him from these mountain bandits. Also, preparing medicine here is a lot of trouble, so leaving him at the foot is better. I sent Yno home to send the news. He probably won't make it back for the Mid-Autumn Festival." Both Shuran and Yno were Sanruwi's medicine boys and had followed him for years.
They talked about other things. After about half an hour, Jax smiled slightly. "They're back."
Sanruwi focused and listened carefully.