Who would have thought the silver needles would come in handy so quickly?
Lu Hanzhou pressed his lips together. “Are you sure you can do this?”
His gaze was sharp and alert, watching Su Xiaowan intently.
He had never seen her treat a patient properly before.
Last night, she had saved Tang Wenxi’s mother, but that was just an emergency measure.
It didn’t prove that she could actually cure a patient.
He couldn’t risk his mother’s life on a gamble.
“Please trust me,” Su Xiaowan said, each word deliberate and solemn.
Their eyes met, and in her clear, resolute gaze, Lu Hanzhou saw calmness, seriousness, and professionalism.
Even under his knife-like scrutiny, she didn’t flinch.
He hesitated only briefly before deciding to trust her, at least for now.
Meanwhile, Lu Yanxi quietly slipped out—she didn’t believe Su Xiaowan could heal anyone and rushed to find the village’s barefoot doctor.
Hurriedly leaving the house, Lu Yanxi saw Tang Wenxi sitting at her doorstep.
Tang Wenxi had actually been waiting for Lu Yanxi to deliver some meat.
This girl cared a great deal about Tang Wenxi; as long as Tang Wenxi treated her well, Lu Yanxi would do anything for her.
Tang Wenxi enjoyed this attention, knowing that one day she might need Lu Yanxi to act as a go-between to get closer to Lu Hanzhou.
But the thought of Su Xiaowan made her uneasy—this woman would be a problem sooner or later.
Seeing Lu Yanxi running in a panic, she called out, “Yanxi!”
But Lu Yanxi’s hands were empty, and Tang Wenxi felt a twinge of disappointment.
“Wenxi, that wicked Su Xiaowan hit me, and she made my mom faint! I need to find a doctor immediately!” Lu Yanxi burst out, tears streaming as if she had finally found a strong protector.
Tang Wenxi quickly stepped forward and wiped her tears.
Seeing the red handprint on Lu Yanxi’s cheek, she feigned concern. “Your sister-in-law hit you? Why would she do that?”
“Yes! I was just trying to bring some food over, but she refused and even hit me!” Lu Yanxi sobbed, but she hadn’t forgotten the most important thing.
“I have to hurry and find a doctor,” she said.
A thought suddenly occurred to Tang Wenxi.
She didn’t understand why Lu Hanzhou hadn’t divorced Su Xiaowan last time, but now, this seemed like her chance.
It seemed fate was finally on her side.
She grabbed Lu Yanxi’s hand. “Yanxi, I’ll go with you.”
She remembered clearly that the route to the village doctor passed by the small village square.
Today, the brigade captain was there with a group, cutting trees to stockpile firewood for winter.
“Okay.”
Lu Yanxi felt isolated and helpless, so Tang Wenxi accompanying her warmed her heart.
The village clinic was about a kilometer away, and the two ran almost the entire way.
In the square, the brigade captain and his team were busy chopping wood.
Because they were pressed for time, many of them had just eaten a couple of steamed buns for lunch and skipped their midday rest.
As Tang Wenxi and Lu Yanxi ran past, many young villagers and male educated youths couldn’t help but glance at Tang Wenxi.
She was particularly beautiful, and as she ran, her twin braids swung in graceful arcs.
Her cheeks were flushed from running, adding a bright, lively glow to her delicate features.
“Look, it’s Tang Wenxi!” Wang Shijun nudged Bai Fulin.
“Why is she running so fast with Lu Yanxi?”
Bai Fulin glanced at Tang Wenxi, then looked away and went back to chopping wood.
The midday sun made him sweat.
The axe hit the wood with a vibration that made his hands tingle.
He couldn’t help but remember that not long ago, Su Xiaowan had used this very axe to cut a snake down with astonishing ease.
The way she had done it so casually was unlike anything he had seen before.
When had she changed so drastically?
Wang Shijun and a few young men had lost focus on work, their eyes glued to Tang Wenxi.
Wang Shijun couldn’t resist shouting, “Tang Wenxi! Lu Yanxi! What’s going on?”
Tang Wenxi had already noticed Bai Fulin.
She ran carefully, trying to appear elegant and natural.
But Bai Fulin only glanced at her once before looking away.
She felt a bit disappointed.
Then she reminded herself that Bai Fulin wasn’t close to her yet—of course he wouldn’t be interested.
Wang Shijun called out again, and Tang Wenxi stopped, panting. “Aunt Zhang isn’t feeling well, so Yanxi and I are rushing to see the village doctor.”
“Someone’s sick?” everyone asked with concern.
Lu Yanxi, her voice still trembling, explained: “My mom fainted because of Su Xiaowan, and she slapped me too. We need to see the doctor immediately.”
This caused a stir among the onlookers.
“Seriously?”
“Su Xiaowan is way too arrogant! Bullying people in the Lu family and hitting someone? She even made her mother-in-law faint? Is there no law at all?”
“She and I both come from the provincial capital. Her family is extremely wealthy—a young lady like her looks down on us villagers!”
Everyone grew more outraged as they discussed it.
Brigade Captain Zhang Guojun hadn’t expected such a commotion.
As captain, he not only had to manage production but also maintain order in the village.
“You two go get the village doctor. I’ll come along and see what’s happening,” he said.
Seeing Zhang Guojun willing to accompany them, Su Xiaowan’s heart leapt—this was exactly what she wanted.
She intended to make the incident public, letting the whole village see Su Xiaowan’s “true colors” so that Lu Hanzhou would fully separate from her.
Her gaze shifted toward Bai Fulin, who was still silently chopping wood with his head down.
She wanted to use this opportunity to interact with him more.
“Bai Fulin, you and Su Xiaowan grew up together, right? Why don’t you come with us and talk some sense into her? Since she married into the Lu family, she should behave properly. What do you say?” she said softly, stepping close.
Bai Fulin looked up, his deep eyes meeting Su Xiaowan’s.
Though she appeared gentle, he could detect the calculation in her eyes.
He thought for a moment and nodded. “Alright.”
Meanwhile, at the Lu residence, Su Xiaowan was busy inserting the slender silver needles into Zhang Meiju’s acupuncture points.
She could clearly feel Lu Hanzhou watching her closely, his gaze intense.
In the original story, Lu Hanzhou’s father had passed away early, and Zhang Meiju had raised him and his sister alone.
Lu Hanzhou always respected his mother deeply.
“Mom’s health has always been poor. Over the years, her meridians are blocked badly. I’ll use acupuncture to clear the stasis and disperse the clotted blood,” Su Xiaowan explained.
After finishing the treatment, sweat beaded on her forehead, which she wiped away with her sleeve.
Seeing her pale and exhausted, Lu Hanzhou silently handed her his handkerchief.
She smiled at him. “Thank you.”
Her smile was bright, her eyes sparkling, and for a moment, Lu Hanzhou was taken aback.
Soon, a commotion outside the door drew their attention—footsteps, voices, and a crowd pressing in.
“Doctor! It’s here! Please, save my mother!” Lu Yanxi’s voice rang from outside.
Immediately, a large group surged in.
By now, Su Xiaowan had removed the needles from Zhang Meiju’s body.
“What have you done to my mother? You stuck needles in her?” Lu Yanxi screamed.
Su Xiaowan’s gaze swept to the doorway—there were quite a few people, all familiar faces.
Her eyes immediately landed on Tang Wenxi, hiding at the back of the crowd.
She smirked and let out a cold snort.
But at that moment, Zhang Meiju’s body suddenly began to tremble violently. She turned her side and coughed up a mouthful of dark blood, which all spilled onto the floor.