The repair shed was empty. On the ground—there were bloodstains.
“Who’s there?!”
Following the trail of blood, Wen Qiqi stepped forward and suddenly yanked open the curtain to the inner room.
A man in military uniform lay behind it. His handsome face was pale as paper. His army-green jacket was torn in multiple places, blood seeping steadily from his wounds, soaking the worn straw mat beneath him.
His brows were tightly furrowed, his jaw clenched, giving off a cold, unyielding aura.
Wen Qiqi’s heart tightened, and she instinctively took half a step back.
“Comrade… don’t be afraid…” the man said weakly, struggling to get up—but his injuries were too severe; he couldn’t move at all.
Suddenly, chaotic footsteps sounded from behind.
“Don’t be afraid,” Wen Qiqi said quickly, retreating and stepping outside the curtain.
A man rushed into the shed first.
He wore a black short jacket, his sharp eyes scanning the place. When he saw Wen Qiqi, he paused briefly, then demanded harshly, “Have you seen a man in a military uniform?”
Wen Qiqi’s heart skipped a beat, but she feigned confusion. “A uniform? No, I haven’t seen anyone. I just came in to fix my bike—the pedal fell off.”
As she spoke, she pointed to the bicycle at the entrance, trying to sound natural.
The man eyed her suspiciously, then glanced toward the curtain and strode forward.
Wen Qiqi grabbed his arm. “Hey! What’s wrong with you? The repairman isn’t even here yet—what are you barging in for?!”
The man stumbled from her grip, enraged. He pulled a knife from his waist. “Get lost! Don’t interfere with my business!”
Pulling a knife already?
In her previous life, Wen Qiqi had occasionally relied on her fists to solve problems. Since she disliked having bodyguards follow her everywhere, she had learned martial arts and self-defense.
Handling a couple of small-time thugs was no problem.
“You really don’t understand plain words, do you? Didn’t I tell you not to go in?” Wen Qiqi squeezed hard, and the man howled in pain, dropping the knife.
“Boss! There’s a fat woman blocking the way!”
At his shout, a bald man rushed in from outside.
With a twist of her hand, Wen Qiqi made the knife fall completely, then shoved the first man forward—he slammed into the bald man with a loud bang.
“Thieves! Someone’s stealing!” Wen Qiqi shouted loudly.
At the same time, a grease-stained wrench suddenly flew out from behind the curtain and smashed heavily into the bald man’s head.
Blood poured instantly.
That must’ve been thrown by the injured soldier.
What accuracy—impressive!
Reassured, Wen Qiqi grabbed a broom from the wall and started swinging it at the two men.
“Thieves! Comrades, come help—there are thieves!” she shouted while attacking.
In this era, acts of bravery were highly honored. Several passersby nearby rushed in.
Seeing the situation turn against them, the man in the black jacket knew lingering would only cause trouble. He shot Wen Qiqi a vicious glare, cursed, “Damn woman!” and fled with the bald man.
But once the crowd was riled up, there was no escape for villains.
The crowd surged forward, tackling the two men and beating them on the ground.
Wen Qiqi let out a breath. Her back was already drenched in cold sweat.
She was brave—but not reckless. Fear came after the fact.
Steadying herself, she called out, “Call the police, comrades! These two even injured a PLA soldier!”
A young man immediately volunteered, jumping on his bicycle and speeding off to make the call.
Seeing the two men subdued, Wen Qiqi hurried back into the shed and lifted the curtain.
The soldier still lay there, his face even paler now, his lips tinged purple.
Perhaps throwing the wrench had worsened his injuries.
Seeing Wen Qiqi, he moved his lips and whispered, “Thank you.”
“Oh, no need for thanks. Helping others when you see injustice—it’s only right,” Wen Qiqi waved it off. “You’re badly hurt. I’ll take you to the hospital.”
The man frowned. “You’re injured too…”
Only then did Wen Qiqi notice a cut on her leg—dark blood was flowing out.
Black blood?!
“The dagger might be poisoned,” the man said gravely.
Poisoned?
Wen Qiqi froze—then her vision went black, and she collapsed.
But the poison wasn’t from the dagger—it was from toxins already accumulated in her body.
That was what the nurse told her when she woke up, hooked up to an IV.
“The toxins have been building up in your body for too long. Luckily, they were expelled—otherwise, it would’ve seriously affected your health!”
“You’ve turned misfortune into a blessing,” the nurse said sympathetically. “Doctor Liu gave you an antidote serum. After three days of IV treatment, the toxins in your body should be mostly cleared.”
Wen Qiqi looked down at herself. It didn’t seem like her imagination—her swelling had already reduced quite a bit.
It seemed the spiritual spring had accelerated the expulsion of toxins, and the wound had helped release them directly.
With the serum and IV treatment, she’d probably lose this excess weight quickly!
“Thank you,” Wen Qiqi said, struggling to sit up.
“You’re welcome—you were very brave, saving a PLA comrade,” the nurse praised sincerely.
Wen Qiqi was about to say it was just coincidence when a young soldier knocked and entered.
The nurse quietly stepped out.
“Comrade, thank you for saving our regimental commander today,” he said, placing a meal on the table. “Our commander has already paid your hospital fees. Please focus on recovering.”
So the injured man was a regimental commander.
“How is he?” Wen Qiqi asked.
“Luckily, he was brought to the hospital in time,” the soldier replied. “Oh, and we found a letter you dropped. Our commander was worried it might delay your matters, so I delivered it directly to the neighborhood office.”
“Delivered it directly?” Wen Qiqi asked in surprise.
“Yes,” the soldier nodded. “I handed it to Director Wang at the neighborhood office. He said it would be handled urgently.”
Wen Qiqi almost laughed.
The nurse was right—this was truly turning misfortune into blessing. Not only were the toxins in her body being cleared, but her report letter would also be processed faster.
It seemed her scumbag father’s downfall would come even sooner than expected.
Her mood instantly improved.
And with a good mood came a good appetite—she finished the meal the soldier brought her completely.
Thinking about the children, Wen Qiqi didn’t stay long at the hospital.
The serum treatment was done; the rest was recovery. The hospital didn’t insist on keeping her and simply prescribed medication.
“Commander Guan, the comrade who saved you has been discharged.”
When Guan Xianzhi woke up, Zhou Hongbing informed him that Wen Qiqi had already left.