Su Wanxing clenched her fists, the last trace of restraint in her eyes completely gone—these past few days she had been busy handling the house and land purchase, tidying up the ancestral hall, and taking care of her younger siblings. She had no time to deal with the people from the old house, yet they had come knocking on their own. They were already cut off from the family, and now they dared to try and take her money under the guise of “elders”? Did they really think she was an easy target?
“Since you insist on causing trouble, don’t blame me for being rude,” Su Wanxing said in a deep voice. Afraid of waking her siblings inside, she quickly stepped to the door and flung it open.
Outside stood her grandparents, eldest uncle, second uncle, and second uncle’s wife—five people in total, all with hostile expressions. Seeing Su Wanxing open the door, her grandmother immediately lashed out, reaching to scratch her face. “You little brat, how dare you open the door! Hand over the money from selling ginseng, or I won’t let you go today!”
Su Wanxing was ready. She shifted her feet lightly, her body moving like willow catkins, dodging her grandmother’s strike. The grandmother stumbled forward two steps, almost falling, screaming in fury, “You dare dodge me?!”
The eldest uncle, furious and humiliated, rushed forward swinging his fists. “A little girl dares to defy me! Let me show you!” His punch, full of force, aimed straight at Su Wanxing’s chest.
Su Wanxing’s eyes hardened. Instead of retreating, she advanced. Having trained in self-defense with a martial arts instructor and studied human acupoints with an old Chinese medicine doctor, she knew exactly how to handle these brutish farmers. Her left hand shot out like lightning, seizing the eldest uncle’s wrist. With her right hand, she bent her index and middle fingers and pressed them forcefully on the Quchi acupoint on the inner elbow of his arm.
The Quchi acupoint is a vital spot in the body connected to the arm meridians. A precise strike instantly makes the arm numb and powerless. The eldest uncle’s punch suddenly dropped; his arm went limp like it had no bones. Sweat formed on his forehead as he groaned and shouted, “Ah! My arm! It’s numb! You did what to me?!”
Seeing her elder brother fall, the second uncle rolled up his sleeves and charged. “You little brat dare touch me? I’ll deal with you!” Instead of punching, he bent down to grab Su Wanxing’s leg, aiming to throw her to the ground.
Su Wanxing lightly stepped back to dodge. As he bent, she lifted her right foot and precisely kicked the Chengshan acupoint on the back of his calf. This point controls leg strength, and a strike sends a sharp, searing pain, instantly unbalancing him. The second uncle collapsed with a “thud,” his knee hitting the stone slab, wincing in pain, tears threatening to form. “It hurts! My leg! It hurts so much!”
The moves were clean and fast, leaving no time for reaction. The grandmother and second uncle’s wife were stunned, their shouts swallowed. The grandfather, standing behind, glared and shouted, “How dare you! You unfilial girl, striking your elders!”
“Elders?” Su Wanxing sneered, her eyes full of mockery. “You call yourselves elders? You seized my parents’ inheritance, forced me to sell my sister for money, and now want my hard-earned money? You scum dare call yourselves elders? I’ve cut ties with you long ago. If you harass me again, that’s provocation!”
The second uncle’s wife snapped back, lunging at Su Wanxing. “You little brat, how dare you talk back! I’ll settle this with you!” She tried to overpower her with her weight.
Su Wanxing’s eyes turned cold. As the woman got close, she pressed the Jianjing acupoint on her shoulder. The Jianjing acupoint is connected to the shoulder and back meridians; when struck, the body goes limp, and strength vanishes. The second uncle’s wife barely touched Su Wanxing’s clothes before collapsing, unable to lift her shoulder, whining, “My shoulder… so sore… I can’t move…”
Seeing both her sons and daughter-in-law incapacitated, the grandmother stepped back in fright but still shouted stubbornly, “You… this is sorcery! I’ll call everyone to see! The whole village will know you’re a little witch!”
“No need to call,” came a stern, elderly voice. Su Li Zheng, accompanied by several villagers, arrived briskly. The commotion had been so loud it alerted nearby villagers, some of whom notified Li Zheng.
Li Zheng’s brow furrowed at the scene. “What’s going on? At this hour, what are you doing here?”
The grandmother, seeing Li Zheng, immediately wailed. “Li Zheng! You have to take our side! This Su Wanxing, she’s gotten bold, sold ginseng for a fortune, bought a house, and now doesn’t acknowledge us as elders! We came to demand some filial money, and she not only refuses but used sorcery on us!” She pointed to the groaning eldest uncle, second uncle, and second uncle’s wife on the ground.
“You’re lying!” Su Wanxing immediately countered. “Grandpa Li, don’t listen to her nonsense. The money from selling ginseng was earned by me, picking it myself. It has nothing to do with them. They tried to rob me and attacked first. I was just defending myself. I didn’t use sorcery—just self-defense techniques my parents taught me for dealing with bad people.”
Li Zheng looked at Su Wanxing and then at the fallen relatives, asking sternly, “Wanxing, you said the ginseng you sold was picked by yourself? How does a little girl know ginseng and even find such valuable roots?”
“Grandpa Li, you don’t know,” Su Wanxing replied calmly. “When my parents were alive, they often went into the mountains to collect herbs to sell in town to support the family. They taught me to recognize many herbs, including ginseng. They told me it was valuable and could fetch a lot of money. I just inherited their skills and happened to find a few ginseng roots. What’s so strange about that?”
Nearby villagers who knew the situation nodded in agreement. “Yes, Li Zheng, the old Su couple often went into the mountains to gather herbs. We’ve seen it ourselves. Wanxing has been going with them since she was little, so it’s natural she knows herbs.”
Li Zheng nodded, then looked at the old household members. “Do you have evidence that Wanxing used sorcery on you? I don’t see any injuries on you.”
The grandmother hesitated, looking at the eldest uncle and others. With no visible injuries, she could only insist, “She used sorcery! We all felt pain and couldn’t move!”
“Where in the world is there such sorcery?” Li Zheng’s expression darkened, his tone stern. “You came here to cause trouble, trying to steal Wanxing’s money. Wanxing has already cut ties with you. The money she earned and the house she bought have nothing to do with you! If you dare harass her or her siblings again, I’ll report this to the authorities and have you punished!”