Chapter 86: Do You Want to Enter the Main Institute?

Xu Lin grabbed the old witch by the neck and flung her in front of Si Han. “Hand her over for interrogation. You’ll get some unexpected gains.”

“Aren’t you coming with me? Part of the credit belongs to you too,” Si Han asked, catching hold of the old witch.

Xu Lin shook her head. “No need. I’m not interested in credit.”

After saying that, Xu Lin pressed her lips together and looked up at the sky, a faint smile hanging on her face. What I am interested in, she thought, is merit.

Who would have guessed that besides healing the sick and saving lives, catching villains also earned merit?

And whether it was used for cultivation or simply accumulated so that merit might cling to her person, its benefits to Xu Lin were beyond measure.

This old witch had harmed no small number of people. Capturing her had earned several times more merit than reporting Xu Chenglin ever had.

“Thank you,” Si Han said, lips pursed, his gaze solemn. “The credit that should be yours will not be taken from you. I promise.”

Xu Lin turned her head and smiled at him, without pursuing the matter any further.

At that moment, hurried footsteps sounded outside the courtyard gate. Very soon, Guo An appeared at the entrance with his men.

The moment he saw the old woman dangling from Si Han’s hand, Guo An could not help asking, “Si Han, who is she?”

“The mastermind behind the attack on my father. Captain Guo can interrogate her and find out,” Si Han said, handing her over.

“Well done.” Guo An took the prisoner and praised him, then cast a curious glance at Xu Lin, unable to understand why she was here.

Then he looked at Si Han’s handsome face and felt he had grasped the truth.

He was in too much of a hurry to interrogate the old witch to linger over a few more words, so he left in haste with his men.

To save time and to avoid missing any crucial information, Guo An also took Si Han and Xu Lin along.

As for the later inspection of the scene and the pursuit of the escaped criminals, those naturally fell to Guo An’s people.

Once back in the interrogation room, Guo An immediately began questioning the old witch with his team, and things went so smoothly he could scarcely believe it.

Whatever they asked, she answered. She would probably even have confessed how old she was when she wet the bed.

He truly could not believe that this old witch was all bark and no bite, without even the slightest thought of resistance.

What a wonder. He had never seen the like.

Though the old witch did not know what Guo An was thinking, she could read it plainly enough in his eyes, and the frustration in her heart was beyond words.

Through the interrogation, Guo An and his colleagues learned that the old witch was named Ji Ruolan. It was a fine name, one that sounded as though it belonged to someone of noble birth.

And indeed it did. Ji Ruolan was the eldest daughter of the third branch of the Ji family. In those days, the Ji family had been a mighty and celebrated clan throughout the Three Northeastern Provinces.

They possessed countless fields and shops and were attended by swarms of servants. Yet Ji Ruolan had not grown up surrounded by care and deference.

From childhood, she had never been liked by her family. She was one of those children who grew up neglected, so disregarded that even favored servants in the household could trample on her.

Little by little, Ji Ruolan’s mind twisted and warped.

Because the Ji family had great faith in geomancy and the occult, they kept several masters in their household to serve at their command.

Even as a child, Ji Ruolan had been fascinated by such arts. After learning to read and write, she secretly began studying geomancy and mystic techniques.

She was highly gifted in this regard. Before she was even ten, she had already learned to use occult arts to harm others.

The one she harmed was her own younger brother, simply because he received too much attention at home and caused the family to overlook her.

But Ji Ruolan did not know that her petty tricks could never be hidden from the adults.

One of the Ji family’s resident masters easily saw through her methods and reported the matter to the family patriarch.

When the patriarch discovered that Ji Ruolan possessed talent in this field, he conceived an idea. A master from one’s own family, after all, was more reliable than one hired from outside.

So the patriarch found her an eminent teacher and cultivated her with great care.

Later, when the Dragon Nation was founded, the patriarch took part of the Ji family’s direct line to the island nation, while Ji Ruolan remained behind in the Dragon Nation with a mission.

After that, Ji Ruolan served the island nation and became a traitor. Some members of the Ji family became traitors as well.

They had not done little to sell out the Dragon Nation for personal gain, and even now some members of the Ji family still occupied high positions, using the influence in their hands to work harm.

As Ji Ruolan continued her confession, the Ji family was nailed to the wall beyond all hope of rising again.

Once this news reached them, the entire Ji family, from top to bottom, would surely hate Ji Ruolan to the bone.

It could be said that Ji Ruolan confessed through tears. While giving her testimony, Xu Lin’s words kept echoing in her mind.

The Ji family would hate her to death. For ten generations she would receive no offerings of incense, and for ten lifetimes she would be cursed by misfortune.

Waaah...

The more Ji Ruolan thought about it, the more terrified she became. At last she could not bear it any longer and burst into loud sobs, bitterly regretting her involvement in this operation.

Armed with the matters Ji Ruolan had confessed and the evidence she had provided, Guo An quickly led his team into action.

One traitor after another was dragged out and arrested, and those spies who had hidden themselves with such care were rooted out one by one.

This operation nearly swept away every large and small fish on Ji Ruolan’s line in a single net. Only a very few managed to slip through.

Although not all of that enormous merit fell upon Xu Lin’s head, her share of the credit was by no means small.

Of course, that was a matter for later. For now, after cooperating in the interrogation, Xu Lin and Si Han returned to the Si residence, where they were warmly welcomed.

At the dinner table, Si Zhan thanked her again and again, sincerely grateful for the life-saving kindness she had shown.

Qi Min, meanwhile, held on to Xu Lin and praised her without ceasing. Looking at Xu Lin and then at her own eldest son, little stars practically shone in her eyes.

She only wondered whether her rascal of a son had the good fortune to win such a girl.

Si Han, the rascal in question, sat there with his lips pressed together, grinning foolishly, his heart full of nothing but celebration at his father’s awakening. The atmosphere at the table could not have been better.

“Linlin, it would be a pity for someone with your abilities to stay in the countryside. Would you like to come to the General Hospital? If you do, I can help arrange your transfer.”

Old Master Ge asked the question with an eager expression. His admiration for Xu Lin’s medical skill knew no bounds, and he dearly wished to have her as a colleague.

Even the hospital leadership, upon hearing that Xu Lin had been sent down to the countryside as an educated youth, felt it was a terrible waste.

If Xu Lin did not mind, they would set the process in motion at once, bring her in, and arrange for her to begin seeing patients.

The Si family, along with Grandmother Zheng and her daughter-in-law, were all drawn in by the question. Everyone at the table fixed their eyes on Xu Lin, waiting for her answer.

But Xu Lin merely smiled and replied softly, “I’m sorry, but I don’t want to enter the hospital and practice there. Still, thank you, Elder Ge, for your kindness. I like staying in the countryside.”

Her eyes were utterly sincere; there was not the slightest trace of reluctance in them.

She was refusing in all earnestness, not speaking out of courtesy, nor evading the matter in hopes of securing greater benefits for herself.

And she truly did feel that life in the countryside was quite good. She needed time to rest and to strengthen her abilities.

Though seeing patients every day could earn her merit, it ran contrary to the kind of life she wanted.

She had already struggled and competed across thousands of worlds. She had no wish, after being reborn, to go on toiling like that.

Had she not endured all those worlds precisely so that in this life she could properly enjoy living?

To enjoy life and idle along in peace like a salted fish—that was Xu Lin’s goal in this lifetime.

No one was going to make her work hard and become some tireless overachiever.

Alas, Old Master Ge was not in the least surprised by Xu Lin’s refusal. His old friend had long since told him that Xu Lin was unwilling to sit in regular consultation.

Exactly so!