Chapter 47: Becoming Her Friend
Ye Lingling's personality was simply too withdrawn.
In Lin Mo's impression, Ye Lingling almost never took the initiative to speak to anyone.
Whenever she was at the Medical Hall, she spent most of her time sitting quietly in her seat, either flipping through medical books or staring blankly out the window.
Even when others took the initiative to speak to her, she usually answered with only a few brief words. Her face rarely showed any emotional change, and she always gave off a cold aura that seemed to say, keep away.
She had no friends. Other than necessary communication, she almost never interacted with the other apprentices or the Medical Hall staff during the day.
The path of her life was so simple that it bordered on monotony. Aside from Cultivating spirit power, she read medical books and studied her own Martial Soul. Her days were even duller and more repetitive than those of old man Ye Linyuan.
In order to improve his granddaughter's withdrawn personality, Ye Linyuan had actually tried many methods.
The reason he had kept the notice outside the Medical Hall for so long, specifically recruiting Spirit Master apprentices of a similar age, was partly because he hoped there would be peers around Ye Lingling.
That way, there might at least be a chance for her to open up and become a little more cheerful.
But the results had always been minimal.
As for why Ye Lingling had become like this, Lin Mo had gradually learned a little from the daily chatter of the Medical Hall staff and from Ye Linyuan himself.
After Ye Lingling's parents had both died early in an accident, she had become like a different person.
According to Ye Linyuan, she had actually been a very lively and cheerful child when she was young, someone who loved to laugh and play.
But ever since the blow of losing her parents, she had gradually become the quiet and aloof person she was now, keeping everyone at a distance.
In this regard, although Ye Linyuan felt heartache for her, he also understood that some things could not be rushed.
He could only do his best to create opportunities, but as for the final result, it could only be left to fate.
As soon as the morning classes ended, Lin Mo immediately packed up his things and walked quickly out of the classroom.
Unlike the other students, he did not head to the cafeteria for lunch. Instead, he went straight toward the academy's main gate, preparing to rush to the Ye Family Medical Hall.
As he walked, he could not help thinking about the private conversation old man Ye Linyuan had had with him a few days ago, and a faint headache rose in his mind.
Old Ye had patted his shoulder at the time, his tone very kind, but the meaning behind his words had left Lin Mo at a loss for how to respond.
The old man's intention had been very simple. He hoped that Lin Mo would interact with Ye Lingling more.
To put it plainly, he wanted Lin Mo to try to become friends with her.
As for the reason, Old Ye had only vaguely mentioned that Ye Lingling seemed to quite like Charmander.
Thinking back carefully, Lin Mo realized that this was indeed true.
Whenever he stayed at the Medical Hall in the afternoon, in order not to delay his spirit power Cultivation, he would usually release Charmander and let it move around freely in the backyard.
The backyard was spacious and quiet, and no one would disturb it.
And without Lin Mo realizing it at first, Ye Lingling seemed to have developed an unusual interest in this little fellow with a flame burning on its tail in the small courtyard.
Lin Mo had accidentally seen it several times.
Ye Lingling would occasionally hold some fruit or dried meat, stand quietly not far away, and try feeding Charmander.
What surprised Lin Mo even more was that Charmander did not reject her at all.
One had to know that, aside from Lin Mo himself, Charmander normally disliked having contact with anyone else.
Back at Nuoding Academy, when Xiao Wu had rashly tried to reach out and touch it, Charmander had spat out a string of Ember without hesitation, nearly setting Xiao Wu's scorpion braid on fire.
Although the Ember back then had been more of a playful warning than a real attack, it was still enough to show that Charmander did not like anyone besides Lin Mo touching it.
Even when old man Ye Linyuan had tried touching Charmander earlier, it had not been because Charmander approved of it, but because the gap in strength between them was simply too great.
Charmander's resistance had been easily suppressed by the old man, and only because Lin Mo soothed it afterward did it stop attacking.
But Ye Lingling was an exception.
Charmander not only tacitly allowed her to approach, it would even accept the food she handed over.
Although its attitude could not exactly be called intimate, it at least showed no hostility.
More than once, Lin Mo had seen Charmander wagging its tail as it took the dried meat from Ye Lingling's hand, then run off to one side and nibble on it leisurely.
Just like before, this little fellow was still not interested in vegetarian food such as fruit.
This left Lin Mo even more puzzled.
"Does this little guy actually judge people before deciding how to treat them?" Lin Mo could not help muttering to himself.
Still, after thinking it over, he came up with 2 possible explanations.
Either it was because Ye Lingling's quiet and peaceful temperament made the unusually perceptive Charmander feel no threat, which caused it to react completely differently from how it had reacted to Xiao Wu.
Or it was because Ye Lingling's Spirit was the Nine Heart Begonia, a Spirit that naturally carried a rich, gentle aura of life.
That aura might make Charmander feel comfortable and at ease, which was why it silently accepted her approach.
No matter which reason it was, it was not a bad thing for Lin Mo.
It was just that the task Old Ye had given him, to become friends with Ye Lingling, truly left him not knowing where to begin.
The aura Ye Lingling gave off, that distinct stay away feeling, was not something that could be broken with just a few casual words.
Moreover, Lin Mo himself had no experience in something like making friends.
Although he had lived 3 lives, they only added up to a little over 30 years altogether.
And more than half of that time had been spent as a sickly invalid lying in bed, so his experience interacting with others was truly limited.
All he could do was try his best.
After all, the old man had genuinely treated him well.
While all these messy thoughts ran through his mind, his feet never slowed, and he walked quickly through the streets of Heaven Dou City.
He was already extremely familiar with this route by now, and before long, he had arrived at the Ye Family Medical Hall in the southeast corner of the city.
As usual, the front hall where patients were examined and medicine dispensed was bustling with people coming and going, looking quite busy.
Lin Mo followed the path he knew well and walked through the hall, intending to go straight into the backyard to report to Ye Lingling and see what had been arranged for this afternoon.
However, just as he entered the corridor leading to the back, he saw a figure that surprised him a little.
Li He was carrying a rather large and heavy wooden box, moving with difficulty toward the Medical Hall's main gate.
Lin Mo had some impression of that box. It was the one Li He usually kept in one of the side rooms of the Medical Hall to store his personal belongings.
Seeing this, Lin Mo could not help stopping, his eyes full of confusion.
"Senior Brother Li He, what are you doing? Are you getting ready to leave?"
Li He, who was carrying the box, heard the voice and looked up. When he saw that it was Lin Mo, a somewhat complicated expression appeared on his face.
He stopped walking, and his voice carried a sense of relief.
"So it's you, Lin Mo. You came at just the right time."
"I... I'm preparing to leave."
.....
[Check Out My Patreon For Advance Chapters On All My Fanfics!]
[[email protected]/Eldryx]