Chapter 5: Such Remarkable Skill!

The newcomer was none other than the Xia family’s Fifth Young Master, the martial artist Xia Huaiwu.

When Xia Liu saw Xia Huaiwu about to attack Xia Zhuozhuo, he rushed forward to stop him.

“Fifth Brother! Stop!”

But Xia Huaiwu was consumed with rage, intent on killing the one he thought was harming Madam Xia. How could he listen to Xia Liu’s cries?

His shoulder slammed straight into Xia Liu, knocking him aside. The gust of his palm strike curved around and once again shot toward Xia Zhuozhuo.

The deadly blow was about to land on the back of Xia Zhuozhuo’s head. Xia Liu thought it was over. He didn’t even dare to watch his little sister’s tragic fate and squeezed his eyes shut on instinct.

A sharp crack echoed—a bone being displaced.

It’s over…

Was it her skull, smashed apart by the blow?

Xiao Qi! Their family’s Xiao Qi!

Heartbroken, Xia Liu snapped his eyes open—only to find that the one injured was not Xia Zhuozhuo at all, but Xia Huaiwu.

At some point, Xia Huaiwu had been forced down to the ground, pinned beneath Xia Zhuozhuo’s single hand, completely unable to move, his face twisted in pain.

The housekeeper on the side was already dumbstruck.

Xia Liu hadn’t seen what happened, but the housekeeper had seen it with perfect clarity.

At that instant, the Seventh Young Lady’s speed had been so fast it left only a blur to the naked eye. Swift, precise, and ruthless, she had turned defense into attack, subdued her opponent, and pressed the Fifth Young Master firmly to the floor…

Such astonishing speed, such remarkable skill!

Even though he knew nothing of martial arts, the housekeeper could still tell—Seventh Young Lady’s abilities far surpassed those of the Fifth Young Master.

But how could that be possible?

The Fifth Young Master was a member of the Ancient Martial Arts Association…

Members of the Ancient Martial Arts Association were all extraordinary fighters—at the very least, each could hold their own against five opponents at once.

And yet this Seventh Young Lady… was she truly someone who came from the countryside?

While the housekeeper was still reeling in shock, Xia Liu had already recovered from his own daze. He hurried over to ask Xia Zhuozhuo,

“Xiao Qi, are you alright?”

Xia Zhuozhuo shook her head, her expression unchanged.

The strength of someone who relied on a sneak attack was nowhere near enough to harm her in the slightest.

Xia Huaiwu, gritting his teeth against the pain in his arm, glared fiercely at Xia Liu.

“You should be asking if I’m alright! And who is this Xiao Qi? Why are you siding with someone who tried to harm our Mother?! Did you go out and lose your mind, let some ghost take over your body?”

Once Xia Liu was certain Xia Zhuozhuo was unharmed, he quickly explained to Xia Huaiwu.

“Fifth Brother, this is Zhuozhuo, our Seventh Sister! She wasn’t harming Mother—she was giving acupuncture, treating her illness!”

Xia Huaiwu froze, his face filled with disbelief as he turned his head.

But from his angle, all he could see was Xia Zhuozhuo’s slender yet powerful arm.

“You are… Seventh Sister?”

Xia Zhuozhuo had already guessed who Xia Huaiwu was.

Since it was nothing more than a misunderstanding, she released her hold on him.

With a simple “Mm,” she turned back toward Madam Xia’s bedside, resuming her acupuncture with calm precision.

Her composure was so unshaken, it was as though nothing had happened at all.

Xia Huaiwu, finally freed, managed with difficulty to push himself up from the ground.

Xia Liu glanced at Xia Zhuozhuo, then at Xia Huaiwu, whose face had turned pale, and couldn’t help asking, “Fifth Brother, are you alright?”

Not alright.

Very much not alright.

His right arm was dislocated, the lower half utterly useless.

Even the slightest movement sent waves of pain through it, sharp as if the bone were cracking.

But his pride would never allow him to admit he was injured.

As a member of the Ancient Martial Arts Hall, how could he confess to having been defeated by his own little Seventh Sister?

He told himself he had merely underestimated her—that was the only reason she’d found an opening.

Bolstering his wounded pride, Xia Huaiwu forced the words out stiffly. “I’m fine!”

Xia Liu accepted it without doubt, exhaling in relief. “Good. Just be careful next time—you nearly hurt Xiao Qi just now!”

Once again, Xia Huaiwu’s gaze turned toward Xia Zhuozhuo.

She was dressed head to toe like a country girl, wearing a patched-up coat that looked like something only a village auntie would wear.

And yet the aura around her was icy and intimidating—just one glance at her, and it felt as though the air itself dropped several degrees.

From his angle, Xia Huaiwu still couldn’t clearly see Xia Zhuozhuo’s face.

But in his memory, their little Seventh Sister had been a sweet, soft little dumpling of a child.

The woman now standing at their Mother’s bedside, however, radiated a sharp, oppressive presence—there wasn’t a trace of that soft little Xiao Qi left.

“How was I supposed to know she was Xiao Qi… But are you really sure she’s our biological sister?”

“I’ve confirmed it. There’s no mistake.”

With Xia Liu’s explanation, and the jade pendant as proof, Xia Huaiwu finally, grudgingly, began to believe.

He gave a short “oh,” then, gritting his teeth through the pain, asked why Madam Xia had suddenly fainted.

At the mention of this, Xia Liu’s jaw clenched with fury.

“Who else? It was because of Xia Liuli!”

“Seventh Sister? What about her?”

“You’re still calling her Seventh Sister? Our only Seventh Sister is Zhuozhuo! From this day on, Xia Liuli has nothing more to do with the Xia family!”

Among the six Xia brothers, aside from Xia Liu, the others had always been close to Xia Liuli.

So when Xia Liu said this, Xia Huaiwu instinctively felt it must be Xia Liu’s fault.

“Huai Jin, you’ve always been at odds with Liuli. Whatever quarrel you two had again, you can’t just speak recklessly! From the day she was adopted, she has been our sister!”

“Heh—”

Xia Liu let out a sharp, bitter laugh.

He knew Xia Huaiwu was stubborn to the bone. Once he set his mind on a person or a belief, he wouldn’t change it until faced with irrefutable proof. No matter how much one explained, it was useless.

So Xia Liu couldn’t be bothered to argue further. Instead, he simply tossed over one of the two copies of the severance document.

“See for yourself!”

Suspicious, Xia Huaiwu took the paper.

The moment he clearly saw the words written upon it, his dark eyes widened.

“This is… Liuli’s handwriting.”

There was no mistaking it.

In bold black characters on white paper, it declared that from this day forward, Xia Liuli would have no ties whatsoever with the Xia family, and that the adoption agreement was hereby terminated.

What on earth was going on?

After the initial shock, a sudden suspicion rose in Xia Huaiwu’s mind.

With his uninjured left hand, he grabbed Xia Liu by the collar and glared at him with obvious displeasure.

“Is it because Zhuozhuo has come back that you’re forcing Liuli out of our family?”

“Even if the Xia family has fallen, is there really no room left for Liuli to eat at our table?”

“No matter what, Liuli was raised before our eyes. How could you do this to her?”

Xia Liu was so angry he nearly rolled his eyes.

“I’ve said it before—out of all the brothers, I’m the only one who can see straight. The rest of you are blind with your eyes wide open!”

Xia Huaiwu’s brows furrowed deeply.

“What nonsense are you spouting? Go bring Liuli back right now and apologize to her properly! Otherwise, don’t blame me if I use force against you!”

Xia Liu’s face darkened, twisted with frustration. He shoved Xia Huaiwu away and snapped, his voice laced with bitter disappointment—

“You’d raise your hand against your own younger Brother for the sake of an outsider?”

“What spell has Xia Liuli cast on you that you still can’t see her true face?”

“Didn’t you just ask why Mother suddenly fainted?”

“Fine, I’ll tell you!”

“That severance document wasn’t forced by me—it was she who forced us to sign!”

“When our family ran into trouble, she didn’t want us to hinder her marriage into the Du family, so she wrote that severance letter to cut ties with us!”

“It was her betrayal that drove Mother to faint from rage!”