Chapter 6

“Weiwei, why did you bring out Grandpa’s old acupuncture needles?”

Su Yunxiang asked in surprise. Lying on the opposite bunk, Zhao Fang also froze for a moment.

Su Yuwei pulled out a relatively thick needle, looked at it under the light, then nodded in satisfaction and said to Su Yunxiang:

“Don’t move. I saw you rubbing your leg a lot. Let me stick a few needles in to relieve the pain.”

Su Yunxiang: “…”

“When did you learn how to do this?”

His facial muscles twitched, and he looked at his sister with deep suspicion.

He thought she was joking, but then she actually told him to roll up his pant leg and was eager to stick the needle in.

Su Yunxiang was startled and quickly grabbed his sister’s hand to stop her.

“…”

Su Yuwei was still holding the unusually thick needle in her hand. Seeing his horrified expression after being stopped, she cleared her throat and explained calmly:

“Don’t be scared, bro. Grandpa taught me this in a dream I had before.”

Su Yunxiang bared his teeth…

How could he believe that? It was one thing for her to dream of Grandpa—it wasn’t like they hadn’t considered taking him to the city for his leg, so they let that go.

But now she was saying Grandpa taught her medical skills in a dream…

How was he supposed to believe that?!

After the founding of New China, even monsters weren’t allowed to become spirits anymore, and now his sister was using this kind of excuse to fool him.

If this had been a few decades earlier, she’d have been sent for criticism sessions!

What’s worse, Grandpa himself was barely skilled—just a back-alley, traveling quack. He didn’t even have real skills!

Su Yunxiang didn’t trust Su Yuwei, and no matter what she said, he wouldn’t let her mess around with his leg.

“No way. What if you turn a lame man into a paralyzed one? My leg’s already bad—what if I can’t walk at all afterward? Are you going to take care of me then?”

After he said that, he looked over at Zhao Fang lying on the opposite bed. As soon as she met his gaze, she quickly shut her eyes and pretended to sleep.

Annoyed, he said, “Mom, can you control your daughter?”

Zhao Fang, caught faking sleep, opened her eyes awkwardly. She cleared her throat and looked at Su Yuwei.

“Uh… sweetheart…”

But before she could finish, she met her daughter’s clear and serious eyes.

Zhao Fang instantly couldn’t bring herself to say no.

Her daughter looked just like her maternal grandmother, who had been a renowned beauty in her youth—especially her eyes, like a pair of crystal-clear lakes.

Looking into those eyes made Zhao Fang’s heart melt. She really couldn’t bring herself to refuse.

Cough cough…

Zhao Fang gave her son a guilty glance, then suddenly changed her tune and backed up her daughter.

“Son, I don’t think your sister would lie. Why don’t you just let her try? I’ll watch over it. If it doesn’t feel right, we’ll stop. Besides, your grandpa used to do this for others all his life, and no one ever ended up worse off.”

Su Yunxiang: “…”

Fine, it’s not like it’s the first time…

He looked expressionlessly at his sister, sighed, and reluctantly let go of her hand, saying with exasperation:

“Just be gentle, okay? If you screw up my leg I—ouch…”

Before he could finish his sentence, Su Yuwei had already stuck a needle into an acupuncture point on his leg. He instinctively sucked in a breath of cold air, then suddenly realized—

“Huh? That didn’t really hurt.”

“Of course not. I haven’t really started yet.”

Su Yuwei rolled her eyes, then used two fingers to gently twist the needle using a technique she recalled from memory.

“Ow… my leg’s going numb.”

Su Yunxiang said, surprised. He didn’t expect his sister’s movements to actually look so skilled.

“Good, numbness means it’s working.”

Su Yuwei nodded, then took out two thinner needles and inserted them into other points on his leg.

Soon, Su Yunxiang felt the difference.

By the time Su Yuwei removed the needles, he moved his leg and said with disbelief:

“It really does feel a lot lighter!”

Su Yuwei smiled, wiped the needles with an alcohol-soaked cloth, and returned them to the acupuncture kit. She looked at her brother and asked:

“So? I wasn’t lying, right?”

Su Yunxiang gave her a thumbs-up, nodding. His face relaxed, and he smiled, praising:

“You really are my sister. That was amazing.”

Zhao Fang, seeing it really worked, first looked shocked. Then her expression turned to delighted surprise as she beamed:

“Sweetheart, you actually… wait a minute…”

She paused, then looked seriously at Su Yuwei and said:

“You’re not exactly the brightest. Even if Grandpa taught you, how could you have learned it all in just one dream?”

Su Yuwei’s mouth twitched.

Before she could respond, Su Yunxiang chuckled and came to her defense:

“Mom, if dreams can teach things, don’t get caught up in the details, okay?”

Zhao Fang thought for a moment and figured he had a point. She rolled over and went back to sleep.

…

Su Yuwei packed up the acupuncture kit. Seeing her mom and brother resting on their bunks, she decided to go to the restroom.

The restroom was between two train cars. As she was walking, she suddenly heard a startled cry from a nearby soft sleeper cabin, followed by a panicked female voice.

“Xiaojing, Xiaojing…”

Clattering noises came from inside. Su Yuwei stopped in her tracks.

Just then, the door to the cabin was flung open and a tall, handsome young man stepped out.

He wore a crisp olive-green military uniform, had a clean, short haircut, sharp features, and intense eyes. He gave off the aura of a sharpened blade—his whole presence was commanding.

As he walked into the corridor, Su Yuwei stepped aside to make room in the narrow passage.

“Thank you,”

he said with a slight nod as he passed. His voice was clear and pleasant, with a hint of fatigue.

He didn’t look like an ordinary person.

Whatever had happened must have been serious—the commotion from the cabin continued. Su Yuwei couldn’t see what was going on inside, so she continued to the restroom.

On her way back, she passed the same cabin and saw the door wide open, with several people crowded around inside.

Curious, she stepped over to take a look.

Inside, a teenage girl lay on the floor, pale and convulsing violently. Her eyes had rolled back, and foam was spilling from her mouth.

One word flashed in Su Yuwei’s mind—epilepsy.

She pushed through the crowd to get a better look. The young man from earlier stood beside a middle-aged woman who looked distraught and unsteady, leaning heavily against him.

“Doctor Yu, how is my daughter?”

The woman asked anxiously.

A middle-aged man kneeling beside the girl wiped sweat from his forehead, his face troubled.

“It’s not looking good. This episode seems more severe. She won’t wake up, and we can’t even get her to take medicine.”

Hearing this, the woman nearly collapsed. The young man quickly supported her. She clutched his arm, sobbing:

“Shuchen, please, do something—save your sister!”