That kick was swift and decisive. The thief fell to the ground, unable to get up for a long while, and was soon bound hand and foot with the strap from the man's military canteen.
The staff quickly fetched a flatbed cart. Several male educated youths hastily lifted the injured female educated youth onto it, accompanied by a doctor from the dock's medical office.
After just one glance, the doctor immediately said, "Take her straight to the hospital!"
The man beside them quickly retrieved the snatched cloth bag from the thief and placed it on the cart. "These are the belongings this comrade had stolen."
As the cart departed, dock staff quickly took custody of the thief, and the dispersing crowd gradually began to gather again.
Ye Jinchun and the others hurried over, carrying Su Muqing's abandoned luggage. "Comrade Su! Your luggage! Quick, check if anything's missing!"
Seeing that her opened bag had been neatly repacked by Ye Jinchun, Su Muqing didn't mind. She took it back, slung it over her shoulder, and pulled out the canteen she had brought.
"It's fine, I only have a few pieces of clothing. Here, Comrade Ye, wash your hands too."
Both their hands were stained crimson with the female educated youth's blood. Su Muqing's clothes were also splattered, but changing now wasn't an option, so she could only wash her hands first.
The surrounding people gradually regained their composure. Lin Fang helped pour water for them, muttering, "That was terrifying. Comrade Su, you're so brave—throwing your things aside and rushing forward like that."
"Hey, have you studied medicine before?"
Su Muqing glanced at Xie Liaoyuan, who was following behind and keeping an eye on her quilt, then replied, "I've only learned a few emergency hemostasis techniques. I wouldn't say I've truly studied medicine."
She couldn't reveal her medical knowledge in front of Xie Liaoyuan now. Since the Xie family had ties with her biological father, they would surely investigate once she returned.
Exposing herself now would be impossible to explain. How could a pitiful girl who had been mistreated since childhood have learned medicine?
"You dared to act after learning just a few techniques? I've seen military medics stop bleeding in the compound, but I was completely stunned earlier," Ye Jinchun said, still shaken.
Su Muqing smiled. "I saw her lying on the ground. Isn't life at stake?"
Ye Jinchun washed her hands clean and let out a long sigh, praising, "You're amazing. In that situation earlier, my mind went completely blank. I couldn't remember anything I'd learned before."
Xie Liaoyuan remained silent, but his gaze toward Su Muqing held a hint of scrutiny.
By the time they finished tidying up, the sky had gradually darkened. Ignoring the stares and whispers around them, they blended into the crowd, waiting for the ferry.
It was then that Su Muqing noticed the discharged soldier standing behind them. His posture remained as straight as a pine tree, but she keenly sensed a slight tremor in his right leg.
Clearly, his earlier actions must have aggravated his wound again.
Su Muqing wrestled with her thoughts for a moment, her innate medical instincts stirring, but she quickly suppressed them.
Rushing out to save someone earlier had already made her conspicuous enough.
The ferry's whistle sounded again, urging the crowd on the shore.
Dock staff waved small flags to maintain order as the crowd slowly began to move forward.
Once aboard the ferry, the deck was already packed with people. Su Muqing found a spot near the railing to stand firmly, placing her luggage at her feet.
The river wind had grown stronger than before, whipping their clothes until they flapped loudly.
"Comrade Su, do you want to deal with these stains on your clothes?" Ye Jinchun pointed at the dark red bloodstain on Su Muqing's clothes.
Su Muqing looked down and saw that the bloodstain had half-dried, standing out starkly against the gray-blue cotton fabric. She grabbed the backpack at her feet and said, "I'll go to the restroom to change. I'll deal with it properly once we arrive."
Ye Jinchun nodded and said, "Alright, we'll keep an eye on your luggage. Go ahead."
The restroom on the ferry was located at the stern of the ship, requiring a walk through a narrow corridor. Inside the corridor, only a few kerosene lamps flickered on the walls, casting mottled shadows.
Just as Su Muqing approached the restroom, she heard a suppressed gasp from a corner.
The sound was faint, but in the quiet corridor, it was exceptionally clear.
Su Muqing paused her steps and followed the sound. She saw a tall figure leaning against the cabin wall, his back to her, hunched over, his right hand tightly gripping his knee.
It was the discharged soldier.
A moment of hesitation crossed her mind, but seeing no one nearby, Su Muqing walked over anyway. "Comrade, are you alright?"
The man turned his head abruptly, his face as pale as paper, his forehead covered in cold sweat, his lips pressed tightly together.
"I'm fine," he gritted out the two words through clenched teeth, sounding anything but fine.
Without another word, Su Muqing crouched down to examine his right leg. Even through his military trousers, she could feel the obvious swelling.
"This isn't a minor issue," her voice turned serious. "You overexerted yourself just now, causing an acute flare-up of an old injury. If you don't deal with it now, the swelling could worsen and lead to other problems."
The man tried to say something, but another wave of intense pain hit him. He groaned, his body swaying slightly.
Su Muqing reacted quickly, steadying him and helping him slowly slide down to sit on the floor. "There's no one here. Don't tough it out. Let me take a look."
At that very moment, a series of urgent notifications suddenly rang out in her mind from the System:
[High-dimensional energy entity direct contact detected. Energy points obtained: 20 points.]
[Energy contact channel opened. Current rate: 10 points/minute]
[Host, please maintain contact to complete energy transmission.]
[System detects the energy entity is in a state of severe health impairment. Planning a solution…]
[Planning successful: Corresponding medication has been issued to the host's backpack.]
Su Muqing was taken aback, and before she could process it, she felt a weight in her shirt pocket.
Pushing aside her confusion, she crouched down and rolled up the man's right trouser leg.
His knee was indeed swollen to a considerable size, the skin red and shiny, hot to the touch. What alarmed her even more were the two twisted scars on the outer side of his calf and above his knee.
Starburst-shaped penetrating gunshot wounds.
Su Muqing's heart sank. "When were you injured?"
The man was now in too much pain to speak properly, squeezing out a few words through gritted teeth: "Three months…"
Su Muqing felt her pocket and pulled out a palm-sized tin box. An interface automatically popped up in her mind:
[Item: Strong Analgesic and Circulation-Activating Ointment]
[Effect: Rapid anti-inflammatory and pain relief]
[Usage: Apply externally to the affected area, 2-3 times daily]
The box was old, its surface paint peeling, resembling a common ointment container from this era. But when she opened the lid, a cool, medicinal fragrance wafted out.
Without time to think further, Su Muqing couldn't just disappear into the Small Apartment to find medicine right now. She could only trust in the System's miraculous properties, scooping out a portion and applying it to the man's swollen knee.
The moment the ointment touched his skin, his body shuddered violently.
"Bear with it—this reduces inflammation and relieves pain." Su Muqing kept her movements as gentle as possible, carefully spreading the ointment and massaging along the muscle.
The man's tense body gradually relaxed. The cooling sensation from the ointment quickly penetrated, and the burning, intense pain actually began to fade.
[Current energy value: 35.8/100]
[Current energy value: 45.8/100]
The System continuously refreshed with increasing values, but Su Muqing had no time to check. She focused intently on examining the wound.
"This is knee joint damage caused by a gunshot wound," she said seriously. "The bullet must have grazed the joint, damaging the meniscus and ligaments. The initial treatment wasn't thorough enough, leaving behind complications."
The man remained silent, but Su Muqing could feel his body stiffen once more.