FID – Chapter 704

Chapter 704: Too Many ‘Accidents’ Are No Longer Accidents

Feng Qingbai’s expression remained unchanged. After hearing the woman out, he said calmly, “Did Prince Ting refuse to see you?”

Otherwise, she wouldn’t have been waiting outside the gates of the residence.

Even if she had come with a matter to discuss, she could have been allowed inside to wait.

A hint of awkwardness flickered across Li Ruibai’s face, and she looked slightly uneasy. “Yes, I was turned away. So I stayed here, hoping for a bit of luck.”

Liu Yusheng chuckled. This person was surprisingly straightforward—despite being a woman, she didn’t put on airs or act coy.

However… Her surname was Li. Could she be from the Li family, one of the three prominent families in the capital?

“Come inside first. We can talk later.”

Inside the residence, Duan Ting, the ‘cripple,’ had evidently just returned from carousing. He was lounging in the main hall, seated in his wheelchair, with a faint flush of post-drinking redness on his cheeks.

There was an air of seductive charm about him, like peach blossoms blooming on a spring day.

When he saw them enter, his gaze naturally fell on Li Ruibai, who followed behind them.

“I turned him away, and you brought him in right after. At least leave me a little dignity, will you?” 

Li Ruibai quickly stepped forward, cupping her hands in a respectful gesture. “Please forgive me, Your Highness!”

Duan Ting gave her a sidelong glance, then waved his hand dismissively. “Forgive what? I was just joking with them. Besides, you’re their guest now, not mine, so it’s fine.”

He clearly meant that if he were his guest, he would have kicked him out himself.

Liu Yusheng was already quite familiar with Duan Ting’s temperament and knew he truly didn’t care about such things. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have taken it upon herself to invite someone in without his permission.

“Miss Li waited at the gate because she must have something important to discuss. You can speak now.”

“Miss?” The drunken Duan Ting blinked his hazy eyes open again, propping himself up to take another good look at the figure in white. He examined her for a long moment before muttering, “No wonder. I was wondering why someone in white looked better than I do—there isn’t anyone in the whole capital who can pull that off. Turns out… you’re a woman.”

Liu Yusheng sighed and rubbed her forehead.

Feng Qingbai stepped forward without a word and pushed Duan Ting’s wheelchair off to the corner.

There was no point in reasoning with a drunk.

Watching this scene, Li Ruibai’s eyes flickered with a trace of amusement, and the tension in her expression softened slightly.

These people weren’t quite what she had expected.

Suppressing the curiosity and questions in her eyes, Li Ruibai turned to Liu Yusheng and said, “I’m here today to visit you, Miss Liu.”

“Me?”

Li Ruibai nodded. “Miss Liu, your reputation as a divine healer has spread far across Nanling, and I’ve even heard about it in Beicang. I’ve come to ask for your help in treating my elder brother. Whatever conditions you have, I will do my best to fulfill them!”

“Your elder brother? What illness does he have?” Liu Yusheng asked.

“Li Ruifan—that’s someone I’ve heard of,” the drunken Duan Ting muttered, rolling back from the corner and giving Li Ruibai another look. “One of the only two male heirs left in this generation of the Li family. Actually, by now, he should be the only one left. He’s been bedridden for years… and, well, they say he’s no longer capable of being with a woman.”

A fate that, in some ways, mirrored his own.

“That’s correct,” Li Ruibai confirmed, her eyes darkening briefly with a trace of sorrow. “When my brother was young, he suffered a severe injury after being thrown by a frightened horse. Although he miraculously survived, he’s been confined to bed ever since and… he also lost the ability to have children.”

He was the only remaining male heir of the Li family.

In recent years, her brother’s health had deteriorated significantly. Where he could once manage to get out of bed with difficulty, now even sitting up had become an arduous task.

Despite seeking out countless renowned doctors over time, none had been able to cure him.

Thus, upon hearing that the renowned young healer from Nanling was at the Prince Ting’s Manor, she shamelessly came to seek help.

“Speaking of your Li family, you really do have it rough,” Duan Ting remarked, rubbing his chin. “Even though the younger generation is full of talented and virtuous individuals, it seems like one after another, they’ve all had terrible luck. If they didn’t die young, they encountered inexplicable accidents, like your family’s under some kind of curse. Now, you’re left with just one male heir—who, unfortunately, can’t carry on the family line.”

He gave a thoughtful pause, then added with a mischievous glint, “Maybe your ancestors did too many shady things, and now karma’s catching up to you?”

“Your Highness, please refrain from speaking nonsense.” Li Ruibai frowned, her face darkening with anger. “The Li family has always conducted itself with honor and integrity. We’ve done nothing to shame the heavens or our ancestors! Our current misfortunes are merely due to poor fate and bad luck!”

The other party might be a prince, but that didn’t give him the right to slander her ancestors so casually. Such disrespect was unacceptable.

“I get it, I get it—I was just joking. No need to take it so seriously.”

Hearing Duan Ting’s casual apology, Li Ruibai’s anger subsided a bit, though she was inwardly surprised.

She hadn’t expected a dignified prince to apologize so readily.

From their conversation, both Liu Yusheng and Feng Qingbai had already gained a general understanding of the Li family’s current situation.

By Li Ruibai’s generation, it seemed that the Li family had fallen into severe decline, with very few remaining members.

Li Ruibai’s choice to dress as a man likely had something to do with that situation.

“I do have some knowledge of medicine,” Liu Yusheng said after thinking it over for a moment. “But I can’t guarantee that I’ll be able to cure him. Besides, I would need to examine your brother in person to determine his exact condition.”

Hearing this, Li Ruibai’s eyes lit up. “We’ll do our best and leave the rest to fate. As long as you give it your all, Liu Yusheng, regardless of the outcome, my family will be forever grateful!”

Liu Yusheng nodded and glanced at Feng Qingbai. “Shall we head over tomorrow?”

“It’s up to you,” Feng Qingbai replied, as he never interfered with her choices.

Li Ruibai stood up, bowed deeply, and expressed her gratitude. “Many thanks to you, Miss Liu, and to Your Highness as well! Tomorrow, I will personally come to escort you.”

After saying that, Li Ruibai took her leave.

Once she was gone, Liu Yusheng turned to Duan Ting and asked, “So, what’s really going on with the Li family?”

“The Li family is currently one of the top three aristocratic families in the capital,” Duan Ting explained, “but in the past, they had even more prestige. A hundred years ago, the Li family completely overshadowed both the Lu and Huo families. However, things took a turn when their most talented descendants began suffering from a series of accidents.”

“Some died young, others didn’t live long enough to reach adulthood, and those who survived weren’t much better off—like Li Ruifan, who’s been bedridden for years. Because of this string of misfortunes, the family’s population dwindled, and their patriarch became fixated on their declining numbers. Meanwhile, their business empire gradually shrank, carved up by other prominent merchants.”

Speaking of the Li family, Duan Ting sighed. “If that curse doesn’t lift, give it another twenty or thirty years, and the Li family might be reduced to just a handful of old men, with no heirs left to carry on their name.”

“How could this happen…” Liu Yusheng frowned.

Feng Qingbai said calmly, “Too many accidents are no longer accidents.”

The other two fell silent at his words.

A towering tree draws the wind. The Li family’s once overwhelming power had inevitably drawn envious eyes.

Having reached such a stage, their predicament was inevitable. 

The situation they found themselves in now wasn’t entirely unexpected. But the tactics of whoever was behind this were despicable—targeting the descendants of a rival family to win through underhanded methods was vile and detestable.

Early the next morning, Li Ruibai was already waiting at the gate of the prince’s manor with a horse-drawn carriage. After picking up Liu Yusheng and Feng Qingbai, she drove them toward the Li Manor.

Coincidentally, the Li Manor was located on the same street as the Lu family’s. However, unlike the prominent and striking Lu Manor, the Li Manor was understated and blended in with the other wealthy but ordinary mansions on the street—low-key and inconspicuous.

Inside, several elders of the Li family were gathered in the front hall, waiting. Upon seeing their guests arrive, they hurried forward to greet them with polite bows.

“Thank you, for taking the time to come, Miss Liu. Our family is deeply grateful!” said the current head of the Li family. The elderly man with snow-white hair and beard respectfully addressed himself as Elder Li.

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