Chapter 28 - Beautiful, Despite the Imperfections

"Yuyu! Dummy! Has anyone seen a blue wooden box?" Lia's frantic voice calls out as she rummages through her belongings.

"Mister isn't here right now." Yuyu pops her little head into the room. "Mister went back to aunty Lia's house to bring more things."

The little girl, noticing Lia's troubled face, steps into the guest house at the north side of the courtyard. Her face turns stoic as she tries to copy Sun's expression.

"Mister will be right back." Yuyu giggles after unsuccessfully trying to mimic Sun's tone.

Despite her frantic state, Lia couldn't help but laugh before breathing a sigh of relief. She takes a deep breath as she realizes that the items in the house do not account for all of her belongings. Pushing the worst possible outcome out of her mind, Lia looks around at her new home. She runs a single finger along the top of a table before holding it up to her face. Looking at the pale, ashen, layer of dust on her fingertip, Lia decides that it would be best to do a thorough cleaning before unpacking her belongings. As she rolls up her sleeves to tuck them securely above her elbows, a silhouette descends onto the courtyard from the night sky. Upon catching a glimpse of the silhouette, Lia rushes out to the courtyard with only one sleeve fully tucked in.

"Dummy! Did you see a blue wooden box?" Lia asks. She gestures with her hands. "It should be about this big!"

Sun touches down onto the courtyard with two wooden crates full of Lia's belongings. He notices Lia's eyes scan across the crates, trying to determine if the item she was looking for is there.

"I think so." Sun replies as he makes his way into the house.

His uncertain response did not instill Lia with the confidence to breathe easy. As soon as Sun sets the crates onto the floor, Lia starts looking through the items. Sun watches curiously as Lia carelessly tosses aside her belongings onto the floor. His curiosity quickly turns into concern upon noticing her eyes glaze up. In her careless search for the box, Lia fails to even notice the tiny splinters and cuts on her hands. Sun disappears from where he stood, reappearing behind her. He restrains Lia's hands gently before pulling her towards him and away from the wooden crate.

"I'm sure it's here." He says as he hugs her. "We'll find it. Right Yuyu?"

"Mhmm!" Yuyu bites her lower lip as she nods vigorously. "Yuyu and Mister will find it!"

***

A row of lanterns line the street as they sway lightly with the chilly night breeze. Their glow lights up the streets as people walk to and fro. An elderly man walks amongst the sparse crowd, casting a soft shadow each time he passes a lantern. He stops beneath a sign board, marked with a white lotus, and turns to enter the building.

"Uncle Yi!" The lady in the building greets the elderly man.

"Child, your hands- what happened?"

"I'm okay, uncle. My cauldron exploded, but I'm okay."

"Oh child, you'll get there. Patience." The Ghost Doctor comforts the lady as he examines the burns and cuts on her hands.

Hearing his comforting words, the lady couldn't help but smile. She turns towards the stairs before gesturing towards the Ghost Doctor to come with her upstairs. The Ghost Doctor chuckles, thinking nothing of the lady's positive attitude, as he follows the lady up the stairs.

"Have a seat, uncle Yi." The lady says as she pulls out a chair by the window.

After a short moment, the lady returns with a small clay vial in her hands. She places the vial on the table in front of the Ghost Doctor before taking a seat across from him. The Ghost Doctor glances at the vial before lifting his eyes towards the lady.

"Child… That aroma…"

The lady gestures for him to open the vial. With a slight pop, the Ghost Doctor pulls the wooden peg off the vial. A dense aroma immediately fills the room, causing the Ghost Doctor's eyes to widen with disbelief. He carefully tips the vial into his palm.

"This… This is…" The Ghost Doctor mumbles as he carefully observes the pill between his fingers. "Golden exterior… a bit dull. Hmm… a little misshapen perhaps. Dense… very, no… extremely dense."

"It's not perfect." The lady comments. "But it's stable. The first, and only, stable sample I've been able to produce."

He pauses his observation to look back at the lady across from him. He looks back down at the golden pill in his hands.

"Gyohoho! Child! You've done it!" The Ghost Doctor breaks into a hearty laugh as he congratulates the lady. "The method of fusion- you figured it out! How did you do it?"

"I wouldn't say that I 'figured it out'." The lady replies with a sheepish smile. "It was accidental."

"Accidental?"

"Pure force." The lady chuckles as she clarifies. She holds up her hands by her face to draw attention to the burns and cuts. "In a fit of frustration, I injected all my aura into the cauldron. It exploded. As I was cleaning up the mess… I found that."

"Pure force… Of course! Gyohoho! It seems that the answer to the most complex problems can be quite simple." The Ghost Doctor exclaims as he marvels at the simplicity of the solution. "Lianyi, congratulations."

"Thank you, uncle Yi." Lianyi bows in gratitude towards the Ghost Doctor. "It was truly a stroke of luck."

"Child, luck does not present itself unless to just anyone. Luck only presents itself to those who persist through the failures. Don't discount your efforts. Even the most experienced masters of this art would've given up long before receiving their stroke of luck."

"Thank you!" Lianyi smiles as she bows again. "Thank you for all your teachings."

"Have you thought of a name for it?"

"Not yet." The lady chuckles at the thought of naming an imperfect pill. "I'll think more about it once I'm strong enough to consistently brute force the fusion."

"Good, child, good. Perhaps consider investing in a stronger cauldron. Gyohoho! Now, why don't you go bring me some san qi roots? Let this old soul take care of those wounds."

***

Sun places another splinter onto the table beside the other three. Lia winces as he squeezes her thumb, revealing the tiny head of the last splinter. He carefully guides the splinter outwards before placing it next to the other four. Lia's lips curl up slightly as she watches Sun wrap her hand with a cloth bandage. He tears off the excess fabric before looping the end under a previous wrap and fastening it securely.

Without him asking, Lia instinctively extends her unwrapped hand. Sun tears off another piece of bandage before taking hold of her hand. As he works on wrapping it, Lia holds her bandaged hand in front of her. She smiles at the crude wrap job.

Thank you, dummy. It's beautiful, regardless of the imperfections.

"Aunty Lia! Aunty Lia!" Yuyu's voice calls out from the courtyard.

The excitement in the little girl's voice wakes Lia from her reminiscing. She turns to look as Yuyu runs through the door.

"Yuyu found it!" Yuyu declares as she unfolds her hands to reveal a blue wooden box. "Here aunty Lia! See?! Hehe. Yuyu said tha-"

Lia wraps her arms around Yuyu, cutting the little girl off. She pays no attention to the blue box that she had accidentally knocked out of Yuyu's hands. The important blue box that she had been so eager to find, suddenly didn't feel so important.

"Thank you, Yuyu."