3: Lessons

Thanks to this doctor, Mel and I now have a place to stay and good food! While she helps with cooking and cleaning, I spend most of my time teaching medicine to the good doctor. 

“My name? My name is Bradford. I’m no one special.”

“I’ll call you Brady.” 

“Of course, call me whatever you wish.” 

He’s got no talent worth mentioning, but lucky for him, this is just medicine concocting. What matters most is hard work, perseverance, and having a good teacher. He clearly didn’t have good teachers before. There are many important details about medicine making that he’s not aware of, so I’ve got a lot of teaching to do. Reminds me a little of the past, when I had a disciple. Too bad they were foolish and did not outlive me. Far too many people are fond of taking unreasonable risks.

While I would like to start cultivating again, unfortunately, I need pills I don’t have the materials for yet. I probably need to let Brady get more fame and fortune before I can obtain what I need to heal this wretched body. At least I’ve had time to confirm something: This is indeed my reincarnation. I didn’t wake up in someone else’s body, but my own. Still no idea why my memories from my past life and this one got swapped though. Perhaps when I start soul reformation, I’ll be able to unlock this life’s memories as well. Though, from Mel’s descriptions, it may be better to forget this life’s past and move on. I can’t expect anything good from that family.

At least I have enough materials and time to do some basic body tempering. I don’t wish to remain powerless, if such a word can be used to describe me. In truth, power doesn’t mean as much as mortals usually think.

One of the great lessons I learned over the millennia, was that skill was more important than power. It was just easier to acquire power at the start than to acquire skill. After all, true mastery of ki manipulation took me fifteen thousand years. A cultivator can gain immortal level power in just a fifth of that time.

However, with my mastery of ki manipulation, even without any cultivation at all, no mortal should be my match. Only someone at the level of an immortal should have enough skill and power to challenge me. Immortals don’t normally visit the mortal realm, so there should be no true threat here, unless there’s something different about this world I don’t know. That’s my true fear: The unknown. That’s how I died before: Ignorance.

I mustn’t let my confidence turn into reckless arrogance again. 

…

The Rumor Mill

“Have you heard? There’s a doctor selling medicine really cheap in the slums!”

“Bah, of course it’s cheap there, it’s cheap because it’s trash. Only the worst doctors work in the slums.”

“I heard his medicine was able to cure the plague!”

“What? That’s nonsense! How could a slum doctor do that?”

“But this city has hardly been touched by the plague. All other cities suffered great losses.”

“What do you mean great losses? No one important died!”

“Thousands died!”

“In the slums.”

“... maybe a kind doctor saved the slums here?”

“Who would do that? The poor can’t pay.”

… 

More Rumors

“Did you hear? Apparently some servants ran away from the Melborn house after stealing from them!”

“I also heard there’s tension between the Master and Head Wife.”

“Well of course! The Head Wife is in charge of the household, which means she’s responsible for making sure servants don’t steal!”

“Haha! Foolish nobles can’t run their own house properly!”

“Are you calling yourself a noble now? You can’t run your house right either! How many times has your son gotten into trouble!”

…

Mr. Melborn’s view

It seems I made a mistake. My first child is missing, and upon investigation, servants have been stealing the funds that were supposed to be spent upon her wellbeing. When I saw the state of the house she’d been living in, it became clear: She was being mistreated. What do I do?

I cannot run the household myself, not only am I far too busy with court duties, it would be quite a scandal to do so. I cannot trust my current head wife anymore. Yet, I do not trust my third or fourth wives any more. If only Velora, my first wife were still around. I have really chosen poorly. Married the wrong women. I can only hope my eldest son finds a good wife to take over the household. He’s only 8 though. It’s too soon. 

Well, we need to hire some new servants now, so perhaps I can sneak a few of my own spies in to keep an eye on things for me. Never thought I’d have to do something like this before! As for my daughter… I’ll send someone to find her and watch over her. I failed to protect her when she was in my house, I don’t have the right to bring her back.