The carriage had only traveled half an hour before it had to stop by the river.
Qin Yi clutched his stomach and hurriedly jumped down. Following the river, he spotted a massive stone about three meters high at a bend. His eyes lit up. He circled it, then picked two smaller stones and threw them into the river. The spacing was perfect—just a shoulder-width apart—and the tops barely peeked above the water.
"Perfect!" Qin Yi nodded in satisfaction, then, clutching his stomach, steadied himself on the bank, leapt onto the stones, faced upstream, lifted his clothes, and squatted.
Plop—
"Ah, that's better!" Qin Yi squinted, exhaling deeply, finally releasing the pressure inside him.
Afterward, he cupped some clean upstream water with his right hand and rinsed himself, then retrieved a handkerchief from his pouch—one Huang Lao had lent him for emergencies.
Looking at the fine silk handkerchief in his hands, he hesitated. Using such a delicate cloth for this… felt wasteful. Yet, he had nothing else. Reluctantly, he used it.
Once clean, he wrung it out and stood, putting his clothes back on, then returned to the carriage. He held the handkerchief, torn between keeping it and discarding it.
"It's such a nice handkerchief… would be wasteful to throw away."
And it wasn't even his—it was borrowed from Huang Lao.
Qin Yi scrubbed it clean several times, twisted it dry, and returned to the carriage. Standing there awkwardly, he greeted Huang Lao: "Huang Grandpa, I'm back."
"Mm." Huang Lao responded with a nod, as usual.
Qin Yi didn't immediately board the carriage. He shyly said: "Um, Huang Grandpa, this handkerchief got dirty. Once we reach the county town, I'll buy a new one to replace it."
Huang Lao glanced at the now-clean handkerchief, coughed awkwardly, and finally said: "Xiao Yi, you're thoughtful… but it's meant… for this purpose. Use it and throw it away—no need to return it."
"Oh? I see! Haha…"
Qin Yi quickly tossed it aside and scrambled onto the carriage.
Seeing Qin Yi's antics, Qin Wei couldn't contain himself and doubled over laughing, clutching his stomach.
Qin Yi glared at him, initially wanting him to stop, but Qin Wei only laughed harder. Truly, this little brat was infuriating.
As the carriage rumbled along, Qin Xu smiled gently: "Xiao Yi, feeling better now?"
Embarrassed, Qin Yi nodded: "Yes, thank you, Master, I'm much better."
He scratched his head awkwardly and explained: "I've never been sick before, so I didn't know what was happening… I just had diarrhea."
Qin Xu smiled and said: "You haven't eaten anything other than Yangyuan Soup in two years. Yesterday's two meals at home may have upset your stomach. Judging by your dark circles and lack of sleep, plus leaving home, you likely experienced some mild water-and-soil imbalance. That's why your stomach acted up."
He didn't mention another factor—the mental stress of leaving home, which weakened Qin Yi's mind, combining with his physical discomfort to cause this sudden ailment.
Qin Yi scratched his head: "I see… thank you for explaining, Master."
"Explaining to my disciple is only natural," Qin Xu said.
Qin Yi didn't notice that this was the first time Qin Xu had called himself Master in front of him. For Qin Yi, his benefactor was always both teacher and father figure.
Encouraged by this, Qin Yi hesitated, then asked: "Master, if someone undergoes a major change in their body, would it affect their personality?"
Qin Xu looked at him curiously, unsure why he asked. But reflecting on Qin Yi's earlier remark—this being his first illness—he guessed correctly: the first time leaving home, combined with the first illness, was a significant event affecting Qin Yi's body and mind.
After a moment of thought, Qin Xu replied: "Of course. Xiao Yi, think about it: a person's personality isn't the same in youth, adulthood, middle age, and old age. If changes are gradual, they may go unnoticed. But if a healthy person suddenly falls ill, could their personality shift? If someone healthy is suddenly injured and becomes disabled, wouldn't their personality undergo major change?"
He reflected on himself as he spoke. Indeed, his own personality had drastically changed after his rebirth—almost the opposite of what he was before.
Collecting his thoughts, Qin Xu continued his lesson: "Xiao Yi, remember the Way of Yuan Martial Arts, which divides a martial artist into three parts: body, mind, and technique. According to the Yuan Martial Sage, these three are tightly linked; a change in one can affect the others."
"Xiao Yi, haven't you noticed that even small bodily adjustments before practice influence your sword techniques?"
Qin Yi recalled the fine adjustments before every sword practice, and nodded in sudden understanding.
"So the body really does affect personality! No wonder, after reincarnating as a child, I've been getting more childish. Of course, environment also matters. But now I'll be careful—I won't be so immature again."
Still a bit unsure, Qin Yi asked: "Master, is there a way to counteract these… negative effects?"
Qin Xu looked at him, smiled, and nodded: "Of course. Since body, mind, and technique are interlinked, to counteract negative bodily effects, you need to make positive adjustments in the other two."
Qin Yi's eyes lit up. "I see! Thank you, Master, I understand now."
Qin Xu raised an eyebrow and asked suddenly: "Xiao Yi, why ask this question all of a sudden?"
Still lost in thought, Qin Yi replied casually: "Oh, to… change my childish… personality…"
He realized mid-sentence, covering his mouth, glancing cautiously at Qin Wei, then looked at Qin Xu with a helpless expression: "Master, you tricked me!"
Qin Wei couldn't help but grin again.
Qin Xu chuckled and teased: "Xiao Yi, look at yourself now—you're very childish."
"Ha ha…"
Qin Wei laughed loudly, even attracting Huang Lao's soft chuckle from outside.
Annoyed, Qin Yi rolled his eyes and turned away, pretending to nap.
Forget it. Can't stand them… can't escape them either.