That Night
Another day had passed in the blink of an eye.
There were less than fourteen days left before the Tang family would be liquidated. Somehow, it felt as though she had done a lot today, yet also as though she had accomplished absolutely nothing.
Tang Jiaojiao had Lu Ye now, so there was no need to worry about her for the time being.
But what about Tang Hao and Zhou Ping?
Tang Youyou idly played with a fragrant apple in her hand.
*Anything that comes from the dimensional space is bound to be top quality.*
This apple was nothing like the ones Lu Ye had bought. Those were small and sour, and aside from being fresh…
No.
Even their freshness couldn’t compare to an apple freshly picked from the tree.
She brought the apple to her nose and inhaled its sweet fragrance. Just as she was about to put it away, she suddenly heard a loud *clang* from the balcony.
Tang Youyou immediately sat upright, her back straightening.
Outside the window, the bright moonlight blanketed the earth, leaving nowhere for the darkness to hide.
She clearly saw a figure fiddling with the handle of her window.
Tang Youyou’s heart jolted. She immediately took a surgical knife from her dimensional space.
Thankfully, the space had been passed down through generations of the Tang family.
There weren’t many other things in there, but there were several complete sets of medical instruments—surgical knives, forceps, silver needles, and all kinds of other tools.
Barefoot, she stepped onto the floor without taking her eyes off the window and slowly approached.
The person outside seemed rather weak. He had tried several times, but the window wouldn’t budge. He was even panting heavily, and after resting for about two or three minutes, he finally tried again.
Tang Youyou was speechless.
*He’s this weak, yet he actually dared to break into someone’s house to steal things?*
Click!
Finally, after fiddling with it using a tiny piece of wire, the window handle loosened.
The person outside was delighted. He pushed the window open.
*Creaaak.*
The sudden noise startled him so badly that he immediately grabbed the window, afraid the sound would wake Tang Youyou.
He carefully listened for any movement inside before sticking his head through.
*This is exactly what I’ve been waiting for!*
Tang Youyou’s eyes narrowed. She tightened her grip on the slender surgical knife and thrust it forward.
“Fuck!”
Under the silver moonlight, the surgical knife gleamed with a chilling brilliance.
The thief was terrified. He hurriedly stumbled backward several steps, crouched down, covered his head with both hands, and shouted,
“Don’t hurt me! It’s me… I-I-I…”
Hearing the familiar voice, Tang Youyou quickly withdrew her hand and frowned at the old beggar standing on her balcony.
“You?”
“It’s me!”
The old beggar patted his chest and stood up, his unkempt face deathly pale.
Tang Youyou remained wary.
“What are you doing here?”
She tightened her grip on the surgical knife, its sharp tip pointed directly at him.
The old beggar raised both hands in surrender, his expression sheepish.
“I…”
His stomach happened to rumble loudly.
His face turned even paler.
“I… I’m just hungry.”
Tang Youyou remained suspicious.
“What does you being hungry have to do with me?”
The old beggar immediately gave her a look that practically screamed *You heartless woman!*
He complained miserably,
“Didn’t you promise to bring me food every day?”
“Who promised you that?”
Tang Youyou rolled her eyes.
The old beggar hurriedly explained,
“That day! You were out and almost got bullied by those young thugs. I risked my life to save you…”
Tang Youyou tilted her head.
She racked her brain before finally recalling the incident from the original owner’s memories.
It seemed to have happened about a year ago.
The original owner had gotten into another one-sided argument with Tang Hao. She had stormed out of the house around dinnertime, only to run straight into several young thugs.
What she had told Cai Jinhe before about hooligans trying to ruin wealthy families by assaulting their daughters in hopes of getting rich overnight wasn’t completely made up.
The original owner had quickly been cornered by several thugs in an alley, almost reaching the point where she could cry for help and no one would answer.
Fortunately, the old beggar had bravely appeared…
Tang Youyou shot the old beggar a sideways glance and snorted.
“Those thugs were just disturbing your sleep.”
The old beggar’s expression stiffened.
“Fine, but was it me who saved you or not?”
Tang Youyou: “…”
She really didn’t want to admit it.
Perhaps seeing the reluctance in her expression, the old beggar suddenly flopped onto the ground and burst into tears.
“Waaah! Someone’s bullying this poor old man!
“Waaaah! The Tang family’s eldest young lady repays kindness with ingratitude!
“Oh, woe is me! Everyone, come and take a look!”
Tang Youyou was completely speechless.
If it weren’t the middle of the night—and if the old beggar weren’t deliberately keeping his voice down so he wouldn’t attract Tang Hao and the others—she might actually have believed he was genuinely pitiful.
“Stop crying!” Tang Youyou snapped.
A flash of cold light swept toward him.
The old beggar was so frightened that he immediately clapped both hands over his mouth, his eyes widening in shock.
Tang Youyou approached with the surgical knife.
“Are you going to leave on your own, or do I have to make you jump?”
“Mmph! Mmph!”
Tang Youyou couldn’t make out what he was saying, so she barked again,
“Speak clearly.”
The old beggar lowered his hands.
“I can help you.”
“What?”
The old beggar didn’t dare waste any more time. He rattled off several sentences in quick succession.
“I know you’re worried about the Tang family being liquidated. I also know you haven’t figured out a way to deal with it yet. But I can help you.”
Tang Youyou’s pupils suddenly contracted.
In an instant, she stepped forward, planted a knee against the old beggar’s chest, grabbed his throat with her left hand, and pressed the surgical knife in her right hand directly against his yellowed eyes.
The old beggar was terrified. He hurriedly raised both hands.
“Hey, hey, hey! I really don’t mean any harm! I wasn’t deliberately eavesdropping either!
“I was just hungry, that’s all! Right! As long as you promise to give me enough food, I’ll help you.”
Tang Youyou remained wary.
“You’re a beggar. What could you possibly do to help me?”
The old beggar burst into tears, putting on an exaggeratedly aggrieved expression.
“Just because I’m a beggar doesn’t mean I have no abilities!
“Can’t a beggar do someone a good deed?
“And who was it that I helped escape from those thugs back then?”
Tang Youyou rolled her eyes.
*He really can’t go three sentences without bringing up the fact that he saved my life.*
*Is this beggar planning to cash in on that favor forever?*
“Tell me your plan first.”
The moment she said this, there was clearly a chance she might agree.
The old beggar grinned. He reached out with his right index finger and pushed the tip of the knife away.
But the instant his finger touched the blade, a trace of surprise flashed across his face.
Tang Youyou calmly withdrew the surgical knife and hid it inside the sleeve of her pajamas.
“Talk!”
The old beggar didn’t dare stare at the young girl’s pajamas, so he suppressed his curiosity for the moment. He climbed to his feet and sat down on the balcony chair, crossing his arms and putting on a profound expression.
“You know Gu Yuan, the director of First People’s Hospital?”
Tang Youyou answered very straightforwardly,
“No.”
Old Beggar: “…”
*That brat Gu Yuan has been around for so many years. How does he still have no reputation at all?*
The old beggar ground his teeth and complained inwardly. On the surface, however, he put on an expression that clearly said, *How can you be so ignorant?*
“You don’t even know Gu Yuan?
“He’s the heir of the Gu Medical Hall! The Gu family is a hundred-year-old medical family. His ancestors even treated several generations of emperors. Do you know that?”
Tang Youyou looked at him from the corner of her eye, a suspicion forming in her heart.
“Don’t tell me you know Gu Yuan?”
The old beggar nodded enthusiastically.
“Mm-hmm!”
Tang Youyou asked again,
“Don’t tell me you’re also going to say that you’re very close to Gu Yuan?”
The old beggar continued nodding.
Tang Youyou asked again,
“Perhaps you’ll even tell me that you’re actually an heir of the Gu family, and that your medical skills are better than Gu Yuan’s.
“But years ago, something happened that forced you to hide your identity and mingle among beggars.
“Yet you’re actually a hidden master, the kind who could have the country’s top leaders and ordinary people alike scrambling to visit you the moment you revealed your name?”
The old beggar’s eyes widened instantly.
“How did you know?!”
He could hardly nod enthusiastically enough.
Tang Youyou: “…”
*Pfft!*
*Has this old man been reading too many novels?*
*No.*
Tang Youyou stared intently at the old beggar.
*Where would there even be that many fantasy novels these days?!*