The little girl's action greatly surprised Zhou Huan; he was currently being lauded by his market acquaintances, basking in dazzling glory, so this sudden grand gesture truly caught him off guard.

Zhou Huan glanced at Wang Er Sao, the butcher next to him. Wang Er Sao was uneducated and looked at Zhou Huan several times without grasping his meaning. Zhou Huan helplessly turned to look at Xiao Wu Zi, who sold couplets, and Xiao Wu Zi finally spoke.

"Master Zhou, this girl is from the market's head workshop. Her father is Old Zhao, who cleans up the market every night. It wasn't easy for Old Zhao to have a daughter; he saved for fifteen years to marry a short-lived wife who died right after giving birth last year. So, for five or six years now, it’s just been Old Zhao raising the girl by himself."

Zhou Huan scratched his head and asked Xiao Wu Zi, "Then why did Old Zhao make her kneel for me?" Zhou Huan thought for a moment longer: "Has Old Zhao been acting strange lately?"

After Zhou Huan asked, the onlookers exchanged glances, and then Aunt Cai casually remarked, "Come to think of it, my vegetable stall hasn't been tidied in days, and I haven't seen Old Zhao around recently. Could something really have happened?"

"Don't talk nonsense! My dad is fine; he just wants to sleep all the time and stays in bed ** every day. He sent me to find Uncle Zhou today so my dad can get better." The little girl was indeed quite capable; children from poor families mature early, and she was only five.

"Little girl, if you answer the questions Uncle Zhou asks, Uncle Zhou will go with you. If you don't answer, Uncle Zhou will turn around and leave. Think carefully about it yourself." Zhou Huan wanted to genuinely help this family. Old Zhao was already elderly, and educating a child would certainly be difficult, so he pressed the girl persistently, wanting her to reveal the whole story herself so that she wouldn't be afraid of pressure in the future.

The little girl opened her mouth and said, "Uncle Zhou, first promise to come see my dad, and then I'll tell you what you want to know."

Zhou Huan looked at the innocent little girl and felt a sincere fondness for her. Even if they hadn't come to beg him, Zhou Huan would have offered assistance once he knew the situation. So, he readily agreed to the girl's request.

The little girl suddenly became very cheerful, patted her clothes and pants, puffed out her chest, placed her hands on her hips, and looked up at Zhou Huan, saying, "My name is Zhao Feiyan. Dad usually calls me Xiao Yan'er. Dad suddenly ran back into the room the day before yesterday, and then he told me to find you. But I didn't know the way, so I ran back when I reached the market entrance. I only knew it was you today when I heard someone call your name!"

Xiao Yan'er's words didn't sound like something a five-year-old would say, but that was what she said.

"Alright, Xiao Yan'er, take Uncle Zhou to see your dad!" As soon as Zhou Huan finished speaking, he extended both hands, signaling that he was ready to hold Xiao Yan'er.

Xiao Yan'er quickly ran into Zhou Huan's embrace. Holding the child, several market people led Zhou Huan toward the end of the market.

At the very end of the market was a large iron gate. Outside the gate stood a makeshift shack—a structure too simple for words. Gaps in the walls were vaguely visible; if this were winter, a person could easily freeze to death inside, especially in the north.

"Uncle Zhou, we live here. Hurry and go find my dad! I’m going to buy candy!" Xiao Yan'er happily hopped off Zhou Huan and skipped toward a store to buy a packet of sweets. Zhou Huan, however, couldn't quite decipher the child's state of mind; just moments ago, she was terribly anxious about her father's condition, and now she was buying candy?

Zhou Huan watched Xiao Yan'er run off, then looked at the market people who had followed him. He managed a weak smile, pushed open the dusty wooden door, which creaked loudly amidst the sound of breaking bottles, followed by the squeaking of mice that immediately vanished.

In the corner, several insects newly caught in a spider's web hung still, and a large spider was rapidly crawling toward them.

Creeeak! The inner door opened. Zhou Huan peered through the slowly widening gap but saw no one opening the door for him; however, a single foot was visible beneath the threshold.

"This family is strange. They open the door with their foot. Is Old Zhao's hand injured?" Zhou Huan thought to himself as the concerned market folk who followed him crowded behind.

When the door finally opened wide, Zhou Huan clearly saw Old Zhao lying on the bed at the far end of the room, his hazy eyes fixed on the cobwebs covering the ceiling. Yet, there was no one who opened the door—this...

Relying on his professional intuition, Zhou Huan immediately realized Old Zhao was possessed. The person who opened the door wasn't Old Zhao, because besides the man on the bed, there was no one else in the room. Yet, there were no obvious signs of ghosts or spirits either, which left Zhou Huan utterly bewildered.

"Master Zhou, Master Zhou, save me!" Old Zhao groaned, his hands tightly clutching his thin blanket, wrinkling it into a mess.

Little Yan'er grabbed Zhou Huan's hand and shook it incessantly: "Uncle Zhou, please save my dad quickly! Look at him, he's about to have an episode again!"

Zhou Huan quickly stepped forward, pressed his fingers against Old Zhao's wrist, and took his pulse with three fingers aligned. After a moment, someone asked Zhou Huan, "Master Zhou, what is Old Zhao's condition..."

"He currently suffers from severe depletion of both Liver and Kidney energy, his vital signs are weakening. He must be taken to the hospital for further treatment." As he spoke, Zhou Huan lifted Old Zhao: "Come, everyone, lend a hand and help carry Old Zhao to my car. We need to get him to the hospital as soon as possible."

Seeing this, everyone who could offer help rushed to lift Old Zhao into Zhou Huan's vehicle. Zhou Huan took a quick look around the room, finding nothing particularly unusual, except that Old Zhao's bedding was soaked with urine—it seemed Old Zhao was gravely ill. He then pasted ghost-repelling talismans in the four corners of the house before turning to close the door and leave. As he stepped out, he noticed the spider at the doorway had already devoured the trapped insects, waiting for the next victim to arrive.

"Master Zhou, we'll follow you. I have a car, and more people will mean better support if anything happens," the market people said one after another.

Zhou Huan couldn't refuse their heartfelt offer and agreed to their suggestion, casually saying, "You all discuss it amongst yourselves. I hope everyone can help Old Zhao out."

Xiao Yan'er tightly held Zhou Huan’s hand, shaking it continuously, and mumbled, "Uncle, will my dad be okay? I heard going to the hospital costs a lot of money, and they need injections!"

"It's fine, Uncle is here, Dad will be fine. Come on, get in the car and go to the hospital with Uncle." Zhou Huan held Xiao Yan'er as he got into the car.

Dongzi, carrying various items in both hands, looked eagerly at Zhou Huan getting into the car, now accompanied by a little girl. Dongzi grinned when he saw this; he loved children immensely, and now he had finally met one. Dongzi set down his things and took Xiao Yan'er, holding her in his arms.

"Little girl, Uncle will hold you." Saying this, Dongzi looked back at Old Zhao lying in the back seat, then at Xiao Yan'er, and asked Zhou Huan blankly, "Is that person her father?"

Zhou Huan didn't answer, only nodding, started the engine, and drove toward the hospital.

After a sound of brisk leather shoes faded away in Old Zhao's room, the door slowly closed by itself, and then the sound vanished...

At the hospital, doctors and nurses admitted Old Zhao. Zhou Huan settled him into an intensive care unit, where he would be monitored around the clock. However, Old Zhao’s gaze remained hazy, his pupils occasionally dilating widely, yet he simply stared at the ceiling, occasionally drooling from the corners of his mouth, unable to control his bodily functions.

Dongzi played with Xiao Yan'er in the hospital corridor while Zhou Huan waited anxiously with several market vendors for the doctor's assessment.

Soon, the attending physician who received Old Zhao emerged from the specialized ward. Zhou Huan immediately stepped forward and asked, "How is the patient?"

"Master Zhou, the patients you send have never been normal. I think I need to bring in someone from psychiatry for consultation!" After his reply, the doctor led two young nurses to the office.

Zhou Huan smiled faintly upon hearing this. Perhaps this was his destiny. It seemed he really needed to handle Old Zhao’s matter properly; he might be able to help with this. The atmosphere in that room earlier was definitely not simple.

"Dongzi, let's go back. Take Xiao Yan'er with us; she'll stay with us for a while until Old Zhao gets better." When Zhou Huan called out to Dongzi, he was happily playing with Xiao Yan'er. Hearing Zhou Huan's words, a hint of reluctance for Old Zhao appeared on Xiao Yan'er's small, tender face.

Zhou Huan squatted down in front of Xiao Yan'er and coaxed her, "Come back to Uncle's house with me. Dad will be well taken care of here by the nurse aunties and doctor uncles."

Xiao Yan'er pouted, nodding, her two little braids swinging back and forth. Zhou Huan took her hand, leading Dongzi toward the hospital exit.

The market people followed behind Zhou Huan. This group walked in silence, not a single person speaking. They descended the stairs, and upon exiting the main hospital doors, Zhou Huan politely addressed the group of market workers: "Thank you all for your help. I believe Old Zhao will recover soon, and he still needs to return to sweep and clean up for everyone. You all can go now; I'll take care of Xiao Yan'er for a while."

"Master Zhou, you've worked hard. We'll be going now. If you need anything, just call for us at the market; we're available anytime." The market people left, glancing back at Xiao Yan'er as they walked away. She was usually the market's ray of sunshine; whenever Old Zhao brought her out, everyone loved to tease her, and she never made the adults angry or caused trouble.

However, at that moment, Zhou Huan's unique eyesight caught a very peculiar detail: as one of the people following them looked back at Xiao Yan'er, their gaze wasn't the normal way an adult looks at a child; instead, their eyes held a longing that seemed to crave unattainable maternal affection.