History Has Fallen Ill

Chapter 55: Return in Fine Clothes, Five Zhi Immortal Medicines

By the end of August, the scorching sun blazed overhead.

Hangzhou, historically known as Lin'an, Qiantang, and Wulin.

It was the cultural and economic center of Jiangnan Province and, in the new era, also a hub of high technology.

Binjiang District.

Jiang Yan, dressed in black and wearing sunglasses, was accompanied by Zhao Yinman, who still wore that same set of Ming-style Hanfu. The talisman earrings swayed gently in the wind, her demeanor cold as snow.

The handsome man and beautiful woman drew quite a bit of attention as they appeared.

"Hangzhou, your Tech‑Tired Bro is back!"

Looking at the familiar skyscrapers, Jiang Yan had thought that after quitting his job, he had embraced freedom and would never return to this sorrowful place.

Yet unexpectedly, after just a little over a week, he was back—and it was for…

A business trip.

Because Old Ba had told him that the task location for obtaining the life-extending item was in Hangzhou.

Jiang Yan glanced at the roiling Cataclysmic Qi above Hangzhou’s skies. As expected, big cities offered more opportunities than small places. He asked curiously:

"Would this count as cross-district poaching of performance credit?"

Zhao Yinman narrowed her phoenix eyes, like a proud little cat sunbathing, and replied:

"Everyone at the Bureau of Historical Revision is easy to talk to. Old Ba said to treat each other like family—no need to be too polite, as long as you give them a heads-up in advance.

This past month, the Hangzhou Bureau of Historical Revision has been overwhelmed fighting several large Diseased Domains and hasn’t had time to manage matters in the real world. You taking on a task here would actually make them grateful for easing their burden."

"That's good, then."

Jiang Yan nodded, looking at the familiar office building before him, a bit nostalgic.

This was where he used to work.

As a child watching TV, he had always thought a company was a building where people went to work. Only after growing up did he realize—

Ordinary companies didn’t even occupy a full floor. They had to share office space with other companies, surviving in this steel jungle by squeezing every drop out of the Tech‑Tired Bro.

"Jiang Yan?"

Suddenly, a tentative call came from behind.

Jiang Yan turned around and saw a sweet-looking woman in black stockings and OL attire, holding a cup of Ruixing Coffee.

He smiled and said, "Xu Xiaoman, buying Tech‑Tired Bro feed out of your own pocket again, huh?"

This was his former colleague, the woman just ten centimeters away—

Referring to their desks.

"What else can I do? Wage slaves working early and late are bound to get sleepy. Blame the capitalists for not treating people like humans."

Xu Xiaoman grumbled a few words, then cheerfully said, "Just now I saw your back and figured you’d quit, so it couldn’t be you. But there aren’t many people as handsome as you. I can’t believe it really is you."

Xu Xiaoman, being naturally outgoing, now noticed Zhao Yinman beside Jiang Yan. Her nearly flawless face made Xu Xiaoman instinctively feel inferior. She stammered:

"Is this your… girlfriend? She’s really beautiful. Congratulations."

Even though she knew such handsome men were unlikely to be hers, occasionally she would use him as a casting material in the dead of night for amusement.

Now, seeing an exceptional woman by his side, she couldn’t help but feel a pang of bitterness in her heart.

Such is human nature—at its core, a longing for beauty.

"This is my new colleague."

Jiang Yan shook his head, denying it without offering further explanation.

"I see. So you're back working here? Looks like you’ve changed jobs, got promoted and a raise, and become a senior Tech‑Tired Bro!"

Xu Xiaoman laughed, glanced at the watch on her wrist, and her expression changed.

"Can’t talk more—lunch break’s ending. If I’m late, they’ll dock my pay. Let’s grab a meal sometime. Bye."

She left in a rush.

Jiang Yan smiled and, together with Zhao Yinman, entered an office building.

Guyao Technology!

Just as they walked in, a manager came up to them respectfully and asked, "Are you Mr. Jiang and Ms. Zhao? The chairman is still in a meeting—I’ll take you to the reception room to wait for a bit."

Jiang Yan followed the manager and took the elevator to the 19th floor.

His gaze was filled with emotion. A place where his resume once couldn’t even get through—now he was being invited in.

The reception room was luxuriously decorated, filled with expensive high-end custom furnishings, antiques, and many rare medicinal materials, all displayed within glass cabinets.

"The chairman will be here shortly. Please have some water."

Jiang Yan accepted the tea offered by the manager, took a sip after expressing thanks, and said to Zhao Yinman, who sat calmly beside him:

"This should be tea from a local mountain plantation—there's a certain highland charm to it."

"Mm."

Zhao Yinman took a sip and replied blandly, "It's bitter, with a hint of traditional medicine taste."

Jiang Yan chuckled, "Bitter highland teas are supposed to be good… well, forget it, I can’t keep making this up. It doesn’t even taste as good as regular tea. They must’ve added powdered medicinal herbs. Even for a medicinal tycoon, this kind of health obsession is a bit much."

The one he had come to see today was none other than a powerful medicinal merchant in Jiangnan Province—head of Guyao Technology, Gong Yuntao.

After all, medicinal materials were tied to pills and cultivation methods, which in turn connected directly to the Transcendent world.

Gong Yuntao had no spiritual talent and could not awaken as a History Walker, but he was clever. He proactively supplied high-quality, low-cost medicinal herbs to the authorities in Jiangnan Province, successfully building a connection.

Using that relationship, he spent money to recruit many History Walkers as guest experts, becoming a minor force operating in the seam between the two worlds.

‘To think, the Transcendent was once this close to the old me.’

Jiang Yan murmured, "A rich man like that wouldn’t be content without pursuing transcendence, right?"

Having once witnessed the radiance of the sun, how could one endure the dark?

"People always focus on the beauty of a thing, ignoring the price behind it."

Zhao Yinman calmly explained, "This mission was triggered by Gong Yuntao’s ten-year-old grandson suddenly going missing inside the company. Surveillance footage showed no trace of him leaving. It’s been twenty-four hours without any ransom demand, ruling out kidnapping. He suspects it’s a Transcendent event and came to the Bureau of Historical Revision for help.

After he reported it, Hangzhou's local database AI unexpectedly detected a correlation with another case.

In the past three months across Jiangnan Province, nine children have gone missing. At first, people thought it was human trafficking. But after AI cross-referencing, it found all of them, including Gong Yuntao’s grandson, were born in similar lunar dates—Yin year, Yin month, Yin day—and all had unusual destinies. There might be a link between the cases."

"As long as you can retrieve my grandson Gong Pengfei, I will offer the Zhi People Grass with both hands."

Suddenly, the doors of the conference room swung open. A deep and steady voice echoed from outside.

A thin old man with a head of white hair, clad in Tang-style attire, entered the room. His gaze was sharp—it was Gong Yuntao.

Behind him followed a middle-aged man with about seventy percent similar features, and a plump qipao-clad woman with tear-reddened eyes and a pitiful demeanor.

Aside from them, there were four other History Walkers present.

Jiang Yan rose to shake hands and asked, "Zhi People Grass—is it related to the Zhi People and Zhi Horses?"

All he had heard from Ba Lie was that there was a life-extending item here, but he didn’t know the specifics.

To think it was… the Zhi People.

In legends, the Zhi People were tiny humans riding Zhi Horses, about seven to eight inches tall. Consuming them could prolong life—or even grant immortality. Their origin could be traced back to the “Five Zhi” immortal medicines recorded in Baopuzi.

The Classic of Divine Marvels also mentioned “clad in red robes and black crowns, riding chariots and horses.” Consumption could expel the “Three Corpses Insects” from the body, allowing one to attain the Dao and become immortal.