Chapter 92: Head Wounded

"I'm not an idiot. I got hurt this time because I never expected he was a spy. I considered that other colleagues in our Intelligence Bureau might be spies, but I never once thought it could be him," said Su Hanlin with a sigh.

"This proves your thinking has a flaw. Everyone here is a stranger. You don't even know him well—do you know where he really came from? Maybe he's been trained as a spy since childhood and is even better at acting than you are," said Su Jian, scoffing. "As long as it's not someone you're extremely close to, you need to be more cautious from now on. Yesterday, he was 'emotional and righteous' enough to stab you in the stomach—if he'd stabbed your heart instead, you'd be dead right there."

"I'm not that stupid—I'd never leave my heart unprotected. I placed two heart-protecting mirrors, one in front and one behind my heart. Even if he had a split-water dagger, he couldn't pierce through them. I suspect he knew I had heart-protecting mirrors, so he stabbed my stomach instead," said Su Hanlin. "What 'emotional and righteous'? Who in your family would coat a stab wound in deadly poison and aim for the stomach?"

Su Jian nodded in agreement. "Fine, you're right."

Su Hanlin smiled faintly.

"I'll go prepare hot water for you—wash up early. Once you're done, eat your breakfast while it's still hot."

"Alright."

After Su Hanlin finished breakfast, Su Jian made him lie back down to rest before going to eat his own meal.

While eating, Su Jian noticed Su Jin and Su Hua had already finished and were preparing to head to the clan school. He said between bites, "Su Hanlin got injured and is resting at home. Don't disturb him when you get back from school. Understood?"

Su Jin and Su Hua nodded quickly.

"Wife, keep an eye on Xiaohe—don't let her bother Hanlin. He needs several days of proper rest."

Liu Yunniang had already known yesterday that Su Hanlin's injuries were severe.

She immediately nodded in assurance. "I understand."

"For lunch, make him chicken soup. Our chicks are still too young—go buy a chicken from outside."

"Don't worry."

After breakfast, Su Jian went to work, while Su Jin and Su Hua walked together to the clan school.

As soon as Su Jin arrived at the clan school, she noticed Su Cheng's head was wrapped in clean white cloth.

"What happened to you?"

"The day before yesterday, I visited my aunt's house in Nancheng. We got trapped there—there was a major battle nearby, and it damaged my aunt's house. My uncle and aunt fled east with us, but we were caught in the battle again. This wound on my head? I got hit by flying debris."

Oh my god, it hurts so much.

The doctor said my skull is cracked."

"The situation's tense lately—nobody's planning to go out. Why did you go to your aunt's house?" Su Wujie asked, leaning over.

"My aunt said she was worried about her home, so she planned to go back and check on it the day before yesterday."

"Then why did you go with her? Don't you know staying in the clan territory is safest?" Su Wujie asked again.

Su Cheng couldn't speak. "I was an idiot."

"Didn't your aunt enthusiastically invite you? She probably knew she couldn't carry her whole family back alone—so if you came along, she could bring everyone back. After all, you're a legitimate Su family descendant," Su Wujie added.

Su Cheng glared at him, thinking: Shut up. I already realized this after I came back yesterday.

"Your aunt has too many hidden motives—first the medicinal bath, now dragging you to Nancheng during a crisis. If you're not truly an idiot, contact your parents and grandparents right away. Stop letting her take care of you."

"If she keeps 'caring' for you like this, I'm worried you won't live to see your seventh birthday," said Su Wujie.

Su Cheng stayed silent for a long while, lips pressed tight.

"When I was little, my aunt was very kind to me."

"Are you sure she wasn't just preparing to take over your schooling duties?" Su Jin frowned. "My older brother and his wife took care of me—my grandfather gave them a house in the clan territory worth fifteen thousand spirit stones."

"Of course, that was my grandfather deliberately subsidizing them."

"But I think your aunt's care for you must come with substantial rewards from your parents and grandparents too."

"Cough cough cough!" Su Wujie stared at Su Jin in shock. "Your grandfather gave them an entire house inside the clan territory just so your older brother could take care of you?"

"My parents had to go on a sect mission. My grandfather couldn't look after me, so my older brother and sister-in-law took responsibility," Su Jin nodded.

"Then your parents must have given your aunt a lot of benefits too?" Su Wujie said. "No wonder my grandfather only assigned servants to look after me. The cost over three years must've been enormous. At least he could come back often to see me."

"I don't know what my parents promised my aunt," Su Cheng thought, his suspicion deepening after hearing about the benefits Su Jin's grandfather gave her brother.

Did my aunt truly care for me out of pure affection?

Or was she only doing it for the rewards?

"No matter how close the relationship, no one would care for you for three years for free. Looking after a child attending clan school takes a lot of effort," said Su Jin. Parents going on sect missions usually return after three years.

Su Cheng's parents would probably return in three years too.

"I..." Su Cheng didn't know what to say. Why did his head wound suddenly feel even more painful?

Soon, Su Yunhu and the others arrived.

Everyone began discussing yesterday's battle.

These young students had all stayed hidden within the clan territory and couldn't have witnessed the battle firsthand.

So Su Cheng, who had actually seen the battle in Nancheng, became the center of attention.

He was surrounded as he recounted how he and his family had watched the battle in Nancheng and barely escaped.

Su Linyuan and Yang Guan listened intently, utterly absorbed.

"It was extremely dangerous—my aunt and uncle led the children, fleeing desperately toward the eastern city. But everyone was running—ground chaos everywhere. Several times, enemies burst out and slaughtered indiscriminately."

"It was the Inspection Bureau's cultivators who rushed in and blocked the enemy's frenzied advance."

"On my way back, I saw at least ten Inspection Bureau cultivators fall."

"When I grow up, I want to join the Inspection Bureau," Su Cheng said longingly.

Su Linyuan stared at him blankly. "I heard the death rate among Inspection Bureau cultivators is extremely high—one out of every three years."

He thought: Who in their right mind would go to such a deadly place unless forced by a mission?

Su Cheng's breath caught. "I still want to go. I'll ask my parents to have more kids—then if I die, they won't be too heartbroken."

"So your parents wasted all that effort raising you from a tiny baby to adulthood, just so you could die?" Yang Guan retorted. "Have you calculated the emotional trauma you'd leave them with?"