"The person beside him tugged at Han Jisi's sleeve, 'I saw that girl coming with such ferocity. Do you think she might have an ambush waiting in the alley?'
Han Jisi scoffed, 'Am I afraid of a mere girl? Ridiculous. You all go on ahead, I'll go deal with her.'
He rolled up his sleeves and entered the deep alley.
Only Su Yunmo was in the deep alley.
Han Jisi put his hands on his hips and sneered, 'You actually want to stand up for your brother? You, of all people?'
Su Yunmo didn't say a word. She leaped up, sprang forward, and punched towards his face.
Han Jisi let out a mocking laugh and blocked with one hand.
But this punch felt as if his foot had stepped on a nail.
'Ugh!' Han Jisi's eyes widened in disbelief. The wrist that was hit went numb, and he stumbled back two steps.
Before he could even steady himself, Su Yunmo, who had already landed, swept his legs out from under him.
'Damn it, what's going on!' Han Jisi, sprawled on the ground, was completely stunned.
Su Yunmo jumped onto him and sat down, raising her fist to smash hard at his right eye socket!
'Ah!' Han Jisi immediately screamed. He tried to get up with a flip, but
Su Yunmo's eyes flashed with a red light.
Han Jisi suddenly felt an unknown force controlling his limbs, rendering him unable to move.
Su Yunmo then slapped him across the face, knocking his head aside, and grabbed his neck, 'You like whistling at people so much, why aren't you doing it now!'
Han Jisi struggled to breathe, gasping, 'You little brat, don't think this will make me back down! I will never apologize to Su Siyuan!'
That kind of person doesn't deserve it!
'You don't need to apologize, I just want to beat you,' Su Yunmo threw another punch, hitting his nose bridge.
'Crack'
His nose bridge broke.
Han Jisi spurted out a mouthful of blood, coughing violently. Terror flickered in his eyes.
He felt the blood in his head flowing backward, rushing into his brain.
Does this girl want to kill me?
Su Yunmo had no such intention. She knew people's weak points and how to apply just enough force to avoid killing.
'Listen to me carefully. From now on, if you see my third brother, you walk around him. If I find out otherwise, I'll beat you up every time!'
Su Yunmo grabbed his collar and spoke word by word, then suddenly let go. Han Jisi's head hit the bluestone bricks.
Su Yunmo stood up.
Han Jisi clutched his head, wailing as he vomited blood from his mouth.
His nose began to swell shortly after.
Su Yunmo's anger subsided somewhat, and she turned to leave the alley.
The other children from the martial arts school hadn't left. They had been guarding the alley entrance and had seen everything that happened inside.
When Su Yunmo emerged, they all flinched back in fear, making way for her.
After Su Yunmo left the alley, they rushed in to help.
It was noon, and the streets were crowded.
As Su Yunmo walked back after exiting the alley, she suddenly felt a gaze upon her.
This gaze was not unfamiliar; she had felt it before.
She quickly looked up and indeed saw a figure flash past at the street corner opposite.
'Stop!' Su Yunmo bolted after him. As she passed the alley entrance and turned a corner, she ran straight into someone.
She instinctively threw a punch, and the person she hit gasped.
'Little girl, your welcome gift is a bit too generous.'
Su Yunmo froze for a moment, then looked up to see a face that was both familiar and strange. She blinked, unable to recall for a long time.
Han Jitong grabbed her collar and dangled her in the air, smiling, 'What? Have you forgotten your tutor after leaving the academy?'
Su Yunmo suddenly remembered him.
When she had first entered the academy, he was her instructor. One time, he had even made her copy something for oversleeping.
'Tutor, why are you here?'
Han Jitong replied, 'I heard about your third brother being expelled and wanted to come see him.'
'He's at the manor. Go home and find him,' Su Yunmo's attention drifted. Her gaze scanned the crowd, but the person she had seen earlier was gone.
Who was it? Why had they been following her?
'I'm looking for you, not him,' Han Jitong pulled her into his arms and hailed a carriage on the street, 'Come with me.'
'Huh? Wait! Hold on!' Su Yunmo flailed her limbs, refusing, but before she could finish, she was thrown into the carriage.
The carriage headed towards the Han manor.
Su Yunmo was carried down from the carriage and, with a displeased mood, was led to the backyard of the Han manor.
'I want you to help me look at someone. She's a bit... unwell.' Han Jitong said the last three words with hesitation.
He pushed open the door and called out, 'Qing'er.'
There was no response from inside, and he breathed a slight sigh of relief.
Su Yunmo noticed that all the windows in the room were open. She walked closer to the inner chamber.
A woman lay on the bed, sleeping soundly. Her face was somewhat pale, her lips were faint in color, and even in her sleep, her brows were furrowed, looking very pained.
'I know you're good at medicine. I could have found other doctors, but none of them were suitable. After much thought, only you would do,' Han Jitong lifted a corner of the quilt.
A foul odor immediately wafted out.
Su Yunmo finally understood what Han Jitong meant.
The woman's arms were covered in dense rashes, a mixture of bruises and festering sores, spreading from her arms all over her body.
Although the quilt covered other parts, just looking at her arms, one could tell how severe the illness had become.
Han Jitong looked at Su Yunmo anxiously, 'How is it? Can she be saved?'
Since she could cure Chen Mingmo's long-standing ailment with a pill, perhaps she was the only one who could cure Qing'er's illness.
Su Yunmo didn't answer his question, but instead asked with a serious expression, 'Who is she to you?'
Han Jitong paused, then lowered his head and covered the quilt again, 'Besides my mother, she is the most important woman in my life.'
Su Yunmo frowned, 'Are you serious? She has venereal disease.'
This disease was most commonly contracted by women in brothels, and judging by the severity of her condition, this woman had likely spent a considerable amount of time in a brothel.
Han Jitong carefully tucked in the quilt and asked the same question, 'Can she be saved?'
Su Yunmo had a headache.
Most of the people she had encountered recently were troublesome.
'I can't say for sure if she can be saved, but we can try. Her condition is too severe. If it were earlier, there would be a nine out of ten chance of recovery. Given the current situation...'
Su Yunmo calculated mentally and said conservatively, 'A thirty percent chance of survival.'
Han Jitong's eyes lit up. Even a thirty percent chance of survival exceeded his expectations.
He knew how serious Qing'er's condition was. Even if imperial physicians were consulted, the news would most likely be bad.
Su Yunmo continued, 'I don't have any medicine on hand. I'll go back tonight to research it and try to administer medicine tomorrow.'
'Thank you,' Han Jitong's eyes held a glimmer of hope as he regarded Su Yunmo as his last lifeline. 'Then I'll have someone escort you back to your manor.'
'No need, I'll walk back myself.'
Her mind felt heavy; a walk might clear her head.
Han Jitong also knew that the General's manor had been in trouble recently, and she was not in a good mood. He didn't insist, merely had a servant see her out."