Chapter 733: Jianghu Matters, Jianghu Ends

Qin Huairu sighed: "Your stepfather is just narrow-minded and hasn't seen much of the world, but he isn't a bad person. In the future, if you want to associate with him, go ahead; if you don't, I won't force you. However, don't worry about my affairs anymore."

Tianzhen's eyes turned red, and she said in a hoarse voice: "Mother, now that my brother and I can earn big money, you don't have to live by reading his expression."

"You can't say it like that. Back when we were at our worst, he did reach out to help us. This kindness cannot be forgotten just like that."

"Isn't he just living with you by pooling his salary?" Tianzhen couldn't help but retort.

Qin Huairu suddenly became anxious, her face sinking: "Aren't you just annoyed that he's embarrassing you now? If you really think that way, don't come back to this home in the future!"

"I won't come back then!" Tianzhen stiffened her neck, "I'll go change my name tomorrow and stop using his surname! I'll take your surname, Qin; it was you who raised me!"

Qin Huairu let out a long sigh: "A grown child is beyond a mother's control; change it if you want... What is wrong with you today? You've never reacted to him like this before."

"Every time he sees He Zheng, he keeps saying 'Young Master He' over and over, fawning over him desperately, as if me dating He Zheng is me climbing the social ladder!" Tianzhen said, feeling aggrieved and angry, "He Zheng hates this kind of thing the most; maybe he doesn't want to marry me because of this!"

"Those are just excuses." Qin Huairu shook her head, "It's clearly that his mother doesn't think much of you. Our two families were never a match to begin with. What kind of family is the He Family now? They are a truly prominent and wealthy household. You need to have some self-awareness and stop always thinking about climbing higher."

"He Zheng isn't that kind of person!" Tianzhen was so angry her face turned white, "He Zheng, he hates people who use their family background to act superior the most!"

Qin Huairu let out another long sigh: "I can't control you anymore; do whatever you want."

Tianzhen's expression turned solemn: "My brother and I have already discussed it; from now on, we will both change our surnames to Qin. I am Qin Tianzhen, and he is Qin Guoqing."

Qin Huairu was silent for a moment before saying: "Yang Ruihua said, she said He Zheng doesn't fancy you, he's just letting you help him with trade and keeping you as a backup, saying that the one he intends to marry in the future is the daughter of a high-ranking official."

Tianzhen sneered, her face full of disdain: "Mother, don't listen to her gossiping. Maybe in a few months, we'll be married."

Qin Huairu's eyes lit up, and she pressed: "Daughter, is that true?"

Tianzhen smiled, "False, I was lying to you."

Qin Huairu was immediately annoyed: "If you tell me such lies again, I won't talk to you!"

Panjiayuan, Boguzhai.

Xu Damao had a fruitful harvest today, having just sold a small Warring States bronze tripod—a replica, of course. He had first entrusted someone to take photos and measure the dimensions at a provincial museum, then made a special trip to Zhongyuan Province to forge one exactly like it, crafted to be absolutely indistinguishable from the real thing.

The buyer was A Zhuang, a man from the underworld who had come over from Hong Kong.

This time, he had followed Boss Li to the Mainland to discuss business, and having heard that one could find real treasures in Panjiayuan and flip them for several or even ten times the price back in Hong Kong, he had come specifically to try his luck.

Who would have thought that as soon as he reached the street corner, he would be spotted by people Xu Damao had arranged in advance, led all the way to Boguzhai, and confusedly bought that "Warring States small tripod."

Once the item was brought back to their lodging, Boss Li immediately called in an old Expert to appraise it.

The old Expert only took one glance before concluding it was a newly forged fake.

A Zhuang exploded on the spot, grabbing a tool and preparing to smash the shop, but was held down firmly by Boss Li.

Boss Li knew in his heart that if A Zhuang caused trouble in Beijing, his investment business this trip would mostly likely fall through.

But A Zhuang couldn't swallow this insult, and after thinking it over, he eventually sent two of his men to find Xu Damao to settle the score.

The current Xu Damao was no longer who he used to be; he was constantly followed by two martial artists, Lao Ma and Lao Zhao, both skilled in wrestling, and usually had Liu Sange, the third older brother of Liu Sanmei, following to protect him.

Xu Damao had just finished this business deal and was happily driving to a small alley to eat, but just as he turned into Shijia Hutong, a black sedan suddenly swerved over, forcing his Jeep to a stop on the side of the road.

As soon as the car doors opened, two people quickly got out.

Bodyguards Lao Ma and Lao Zhao immediately pulled their belts from their waists, pushed their doors open, and charged out.

Those two thugs from Hong Kong were no pushovers; seeing this, they pulled out Daggers and lunged forward to stab without a word.

The two men had only blocked a couple of times with their belts when they realized something was wrong—the opponents were attacking fast and viciously, clearly out to kill.

The tall Lao Ma took a knife to the arm and was so scared he turned and ran; Lao Zhao followed suit and fled.

Liu Sange, clutching a wooden stick, gritted his teeth and met them head-on.

Liu Sange had genuinely trained; he swung the stick with a whistling force, smashing it hard onto one of the men's heads, causing him to stagger.

But that man was extremely ferocious; he shook his head, gripped his Dagger, and lunged again like a madman.

Liu Sange dodged to the side and backhanded a strike onto the man's arm; with a crisp "Crack!", the man's bone was broken on the spot.

The Dagger fell with a "clatter," but the other man's blade was already closing in—a knife stabbed fiercely into Liu Sange's lower abdomen.

Liu Sanmei shouted: "Xu Damao, are you eating shit with that Pistol in your bag? Why aren't you pulling it out to shoot!"

Xu Damao tremblingly took out the Pistol and fired two shots at them.

But he hadn't touched a gun in a long time, and his aim was ridiculously poor; only one bullet hit a man in the shoulder, and the rest missed entirely.

By the time he wanted to fire again, the magazine was empty.

He stuffed the gun back into his pocket and was about to get out of the car, but was grabbed tightly by Liu Sanmei.

Liu Sanmei's eyes were red, her voice trembling but filled with ferocity: "Hit them!"

Xu Damao finally came to his senses, slammed the steering wheel, floored the gas, and rammed hard toward the other car.

One of the thugs saw there were no more bullets, grabbed his injured accomplice, scrambled into their car, and drove off.

Xu Damao rammed them twice, but in the end, he let that sedan get away.

Watching the opponents disappear at the intersection, Liu Sanmei suddenly pushed open the car door, saw her brother lying in a pool of blood, and screamed: "Xu Damao! Drive! Take my brother to the hospital!"

Xu Damao finally panicked and came to his senses; the two of them scrambled to lift Liu Sange into the Jeep and drove frantically toward the Beijing hospital.

When they arrived at the hospital emergency room, it was exactly when Huang Ying and Jiang Mei were on duty.

Huang Ying looked up and saw the bloodstains on Xu Damao and Liu Sanmei's tear-streaked face, and immediately stepped forward to ask: "What happened to the injured person?"

Liu Sanmei was crying until she was out of breath: "We were robbed on the road, he was stabbed in the stomach! Doctor, please, you must save him!"

Huang Ying's expression tightened, and she immediately ordered the nurse beside her: "Quick, push him into the rescue room!"

The group efficiently sent Liu Sange into the emergency room. Huang Ying quickly checked him, her brows locked: "The knife wound is very deep, the small intestine must have been punctured. Jiang Mei, you are the lead surgeon today, I will be your assistant."

Jiang Mei nodded steadily.

She was now a Vice Director of Surgery, handling several surgeries every day, and was already well-versed in this type of abdominal knife wound.

Jiang Mei walked out of the clinic, glanced at Xu Damao in the hallway, and asked: "Who is the person inside to you?"

Liu Sanmei answered first: "He's my brother!"

Jiang Mei's gaze landed on Xu Damao, and she suddenly said: "You're from the Ninety-five Courtyard, right?"

Xu Damao was stunned: "You know me?"

"I used to go see Chen Xueru often, and I've seen you a few times."

Xu Damao's eyes lit up instantly, as if he had grabbed a life-saving straw, and he hurriedly stepped forward: "Doctor, what is your surname? This is my brother-in-law; I beg you, you must save him! Don't worry about the money, we will pay however much it costs!"

Liu Sanmei also cried as she grabbed Jiang Mei's hand: "Doctor, I beg you, my brother doesn't even have children yet..."

Jiang Mei waved her hand gently, her tone calm and firm: "As doctors, saving lives and healing the wounded is our duty, so rest assured."

Xu Damao hurriedly chimed in: "I'll call He Yuzhu right now and have him come over immediately. Please, you must put in extra effort."

Jiang Mei smiled faintly: "I am very familiar with the He Family, and I also know that you and Brother Zhuzi don't get along very well. But rest assured, I will treat him as I should, and I won't be half-negligent because of your little personal grudges."

Xu Damao looked a bit sheepish and managed to squeeze out a smile: "Actually, Zhuzi and I grew up together; we just like to bicker. When it comes to real major issues, he definitely wouldn't ignore me."

Jiang Mei smiled with a look that was not quite a smile: "That's what you say, but you haven't scammed him any less, have you?"

Xu Damao let out two dry laughs and stammered: "Hey, those were all just trivial matters..."