You're Pressing on My Wound

Hua Jinyin nudged Xia Yu with her elbow in dissatisfaction. "Who are you calling a fuss-maker? Wouldn't you be scared if you ran into a pack of wolves?"

"Of course I would! I'm not made of iron; I'd be eaten by wolves too!"

Seeing that Xia Yu seemed sympathetic, Hua Jinyin gave a proud huff, then crossed her arms and acted a bit fearful. "I don't dare stay on the mountain anymore. Let's head back quickly."

Xia Yu agreed. Thus, Hua Jinyin led the way while Xia Yu supported Zhang Wei, whose wound had healed by more than half, following behind.

Several times Zhang Wei started to speak but stopped. Xia Yu acted as if he didn't notice. It wasn't until they had walked a distance that Zhang Wei finally couldn't help himself. "How about you two go back first? My wound is too severe; I really can't walk. I'll rest here for a bit and then head down the mountain on my own."

Xia Yu shook his head. "That won't do. You said there are wolves on the mountain. How could we leave you here alone? If you can't walk, I'll carry you."

Saying so, he grabbed Zhang Wei's arm, intending to hoist him onto his back. Zhang Wei cried out in pain, "Aiya! You're pressing on my wound."

Xia Yu was also at a loss. "Then what should we do? How about Comrade Erhua goes down the mountain to call for help while I stay here with you?"

Hua Jinyin gave a response and was about to leave when Zhang Wei hurriedly called her back. "Wait! How can you let a female comrade go down the mountain alone? Although I'm injured, I'm still a man. You go with Comrade Hua to call for help; I'll wait on the mountain by myself."

"But you're covered in blood. What if it attracts wild beasts?" Xia Yu muttered as if troubled, but finally nodded. "Fine then. We'll go and come back quickly. You wait here and don't go anywhere."

"Alright, I won't go anywhere!" Zhang Wei agreed with a smile. Watching Hua Jinyin and Xia Yu disappear around a bend in the mountain path, he immediately turned and ran back up the mountain.

After walking a short distance, Hua Jinyin pulled Xia Yu back. "Stop walking, he's running up the mountain."

"Follow him!"

Thanks to Hua Jinyin's special ability, the two easily trailed Zhang Wei from a distance of several dozen meters. On one hand, he followed signs to find his way, and on the other, he carefully checked behind him to see if anyone was following, completely unaware that he had two tails.

They followed him for over two hours. It was almost dark, yet Zhang Wei showed no sign of stopping.

Hua Jinyin was certain they were essentially just going in circles on the mountain. She was about to wonder if Zhang Wei had discovered them and was intentionally leading them in circles when her ability finally sensed a man and a woman several dozen meters ahead of Zhang Wei.

The man lay motionless on the ground, his status unknown.

The woman was looking around anxiously. She was dressed like a village woman and appeared to be about forty years old; she was likely the missing Auntie Liu.

Sure enough, Zhang Wei soon met the woman, but the way he addressed her took Hua Jinyin by surprise.

"Big Sister, is it handled?"

The woman glanced at the bloody wound on his abdomen and gave him a resentful, lingering look. "I thought he had stabbed you to death with one blow. You seem to be hopping around just fine; are you faking it for me?"

Zhang Wei sidled up and put his arm around the woman's waist. "How would I dare fake it for Big Sister? That stab of his really almost took my life. If I hadn't run into two people on the mountain who gave me medicine, by the time you finished and came back for me, you'd probably only find my corpse."

He then remarked with wonder, "That medicine was truly miraculous. As soon as I drank it, I felt the wound healing, and a moment later, my strength returned."

Saying this, Zhang Wei lifted the hem of his shirt that had been pierced by the knife. Indeed, the wound on his abdomen had healed by seventy to eighty percent. If not for the blood on his clothes and skin, one wouldn't be able to tell he had been severely injured.

The woman's eyes flickered. "What kind of medicine did those two give you? Have you heard of it before?"

"Never heard of it." Zhang Wei shook his head and smacked his lips. "It was a bit sweet, a bit bitter, and felt cool in the mouth. Even after all this time, I think I can still taste it. Why don't you take a sniff, Big Sister?"

With that, he leaned his mouth toward the woman, only to be slapped away by her. "Get lost! What time is it, and you're still playing games with me? Chu Ming has been drugged by me; tell me what to do with him."

Zhang Wei stopped joking and crouched down, delivering two sharp slaps to the face of Chu Ming, who was lying on the ground.

"I used medicine; slapping him won't wake him up," the woman said, then took out a bottle of smelling salts and handed it to Zhang Wei.

Zhang Wei took it, first dislocating both of Chu Ming's arms, and then held the bottle under his nose.

A moment later, Chu Ming began to groan. When he clearly saw Zhang Wei in front of him, he tried to throw a punch, but the feeling of weakness in his arms told him the situation was dire. Still, he opened his mouth to curse, "Zhang Wei, you son of a bitch!"

Zhang Wei delivered a straight slap, causing Chu Ming's already swollen face to become lopsided.

Hearing Chu Ming's curses, Zhang Wei calmly observed for a moment and then frowned. "The two sides don't match; it looks weird." Saying so, he added another slap, making both cheeks symmetrical.

Hua Jinyin couldn't help but laugh. She hadn't expected this Zhang Wei to have Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. She had to remember that when interrogating him with torture, she must do it in pairs; everything had to be symmetrical.

This era was different from her past life; no matter how cruel a villain was caught, one couldn't use private execution. Now, for these bad elements, as long as they could be made to confess, using torture or psychological pressure was perfectly normal.

Chu Ming, having been hit, began to groan again but finally learned to be sensible. He didn't dare curse anymore, though his eyes darted around, clearly plotting something.

Xia Yu didn't know what was happening on the other side. Seeing Hua Jinyin sometimes suppressed a laugh and sometimes shook her head helplessly, he was extremely anxious.

"What exactly is going on over there?"

Hua Jinyin then recounted the scene of the face-slapping interrogation to Xia Yu. Hearing this, Xia Yu knew Chu Ming's life wasn't in immediate danger and felt somewhat relieved.

"You wait here, I'll go save him."

Hua Jinyin shook her head. "No need to risk going over there. Leave it to me!"

Xia Yu was still wondering how Hua Jinyin planned to do it when he saw her lean against a nearby tree. He didn't see her move much, but ahead, a series of terrified screams suddenly rang out.

Hua Jinyin brushed her hands off and tilted her chin proudly at Xia Yu. "Done! Go take a look."

Xia Yu immediately ran toward the source of the sound. As he approached, he saw one person lying flat on the ground and two people hanging from a tree. All three were screaming in terror, making Xia Yu frown. *Too noisy!*

The two on the tree were out of reach, but what was so hard about the one on the ground? Xia Yu stepped forward and delivered a kick to Chu Ming's upturned buttocks, scaring him so much that he let out a "wu" sound and fainted.

Xia Yu didn't know what to say. With such small courage, he was sent to protect Elder An? Was it only because he was the old gentleman's biological grandson?