Su Shuochi returned to the courtyard on Xiangyang Street and immediately called his home in the Imperial City, but no one answered.

He was baffled. ’Jiaojiao should be home from school by now!’

He then called the Gu Family. This time, the call connected after just one ring.

"Hello? Is that Shuo Ci?" Grandpa Gu’s hearty voice came from the other end of the line.

Su Shuochi paused for a moment. "Hello, Grandpa. It’s Shuo Ci. I was wondering, is Jiaojiao over at your place?"

"Ah, Shuo Ci. The Si Family picked Jiaojiao up after school to give Elder Si his acupuncture treatment. She asked me to wait for your call and tell you she’ll be home after she’s done. Have you eaten yet, Shuo Ci?"

"Thank you, Grandpa. I haven’t eaten yet. I’ll call home to talk to Jiaojiao after dinner."

"Okay, sounds good. I’m going to hang up and eat now." It was clear that Grandpa Gu had been specifically waiting for his call.

Grandpa Gu didn’t ask Su Shuochi why he had returned to Qing City, nor did he ask if he had seen his eldest grandson.

It wasn’t that he didn’t care about his grandson-in-law and eldest grandson, but that he didn’t want to make things difficult for them.

"Okay, Grandpa. You all go ahead and eat."

Su Shuochi breathed a long sigh of relief after hanging up. Since Jiaojiao had made a point to let him know her whereabouts, he didn’t have to worry anymore.

He was about to start cooking so that dinner would be ready when his parents and younger sister arrived, but just as he stepped out of the living room, he heard a car pull up.

He went to open the courtyard gate and saw Song Zijie’s car slowly approaching.

Just then, the car window rolled down. Song Zijie stuck his head out and said, "Su, I brought Uncle Su and the others over."

Su Shuochi nodded. "Okay. Just drive the car straight into my courtyard."

But Song Zijie smiled and said, "Su, I’m just going to head back to my own courtyard. My mom’s been preparing all afternoon. She wants to treat your family to dinner."

"Zijie, your mom is too kind. Alright then, we’ll just wash up and head right over," Su’s mother said politely.

While her parents went inside to wash up, Su Qinchun started chattering away, complaining to her brother.

Meanwhile, Gu Jiaojiao, who Su Shuochi was no longer worried about, was extremely busy with a very thorny situation.

She was in the middle of giving Elder Si acupuncture when the Si family’s phone rang. It was about their eldest grandson, Si Jinghao. He had been attacked with knives while investigating a case.

He had already fallen unconscious on the way to the hospital. The Si Family Master put down the phone and immediately told the driver to take them to the hospital.

Only Elder Si, Grandma Si, and some of the younger grandchildren were left at the Si residence. Elder Si hadn’t been told about the incident yet.

After Gu Jiaojiao finished his acupuncture, the Si family’s phone rang again. The person on the other end asked if Gu Jiaojiao could come to the hospital.

They added that it was Xia Qiuming’s request. The moment Gu Jiaojiao heard that, she knew it was a very tricky situation.

Elder Si and Grandma Si wanted to go to the hospital with Gu Jiaojiao, but she said she would take her motorcycle and go on ahead.

Even though Gu Jiaojiao had mentally prepared herself, she still gasped when she saw Si Jinghao.

Xia Qiuming and his assistant were calmly and professionally suturing Si Jinghao’s wounds.

Si Jinghao didn’t just have superficial wounds; some were so deep they reached bone and internal organs. That was why Xia Qiuming had called for Gu Jiaojiao.

Gu Jiaojiao immediately fed Si Jinghao a special medicine pill and deftly performed acupuncture to stop the bleeding.

It was already ten o’clock at night by the time all his wounds were bandaged. Everything had happened so suddenly.

Gu Jiaojiao hadn’t even had time to call Su Shuochi before rushing straight to the hospital.

She got a rough rundown of what happened: Si Jinghao had been passing through a small alley when some thugs hacked at him multiple times, nearly killing him.

But Gu Jiaojiao knew these were no ordinary thugs. One look at the knife wounds told her they were the work of professionally trained individuals.

Looking at the lifeless Si Jinghao on the hospital bed, a firestorm of rage ignited in Gu Jiaojiao’s heart.

With Si Jinghao’s skills, dealing with a dozen or so able-bodied men would have been no problem at all.

This time, the attackers must have planned to ambush him all along. If it weren’t for Si Jinghao’s exceptional physical fitness and fierce resistance, which caused enough of a commotion to alert a colleague passing by on their way to work, he likely would have met his end in that alley.

"You can all rest assured. He’ll wake up in about half an hour. We’ve already treated the wounds to his bones and internal organs. There won’t be any lasting effects."

Her words weren’t just to soothe the Si Family; she was also stating a fact.

She had, after all, fed Si Jinghao a medicine pill made with Space Spirit Spring Water, and the effects of the spiritual spring water were immeasurable.

It was true that Si Jinghao was seriously injured, but he was lucky. He had been brought to the hospital just in time, and his wounds were treated promptly. And although one of the injuries should have been fatal, Gu Jiaojiao had her special medicine. Moreover, her medical skills were superb, so his life was no longer in danger. But it was also true that he would be weak for a while and would need to recuperate properly.

Gu Jiaojiao couldn’t let Si Jinghao recover and be full of life right away. After all, even Xia Qiuming had only been sixty percent confident about his chances.

Everyone saw how severe his injuries were. If he recovered the moment Gu Jiaojiao arrived, it would be too hard to explain.

"Thank you, Divine Doctor and Professor Xia. You’ve worked hard. Why don’t I treat you to a meal?" the Si Family Master said, his voice thick with gratitude.

Hearing his son was out of danger, his heart finally settled back into his chest. When he first arrived at the hospital and saw his son’s tragic state, he had nearly been scared to death.

"Jiaojiao hasn’t had dinner yet. Let’s all go eat together," Elder Si invited, seeming to be in good spirits.

He hadn’t known his grandson was injured at first. By the time he got to the hospital, most of the blood covering Si Jinghao had already been cleaned away.

So, neither Elder Si nor Grandma Si witnessed that frightening scene. The impact on them wasn’t as deep or shocking as it had been for their son.

"No, thank you. I have to get home right away. My Shuo Ci is waiting for me, and he’ll be worried." After saying her piece, Gu Jiaojiao turned and left.

"Master Jiaojiao, why don’t you use the phone in my office to call home first? I have to go home for dinner, too, after the patient wakes up."

Xia Qiuming’s voice sounded cheerful. By now, everyone in the hospital knew their Vice Director Xia had to go home for dinner every day.

He was no longer a workaholic, as he had married that one young nurse.

Although he was no longer obsessed with work, he was still very serious when it came to treating patients. If Si Jinghao hadn’t run into him today, he’d probably be a goner.

"Alright, I’ll go to your office and make a call now." Gu Jiaojiao didn’t hesitate; she was genuinely afraid of making Su Shuochi worry.

Xia Qiuming arranged for a skilled attending surgeon to keep watch over Si Jinghao in the hospital room.

He then accompanied Gu Jiaojiao to his office to make the call. Gu Jiaojiao first called the house in the large compound. 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

Mr. Su answered. He told Gu Jiaojiao that Su Shuochi was staying at the new house, so she hurriedly hung up and dialed that number.

That call, too, was answered in a split second. Since Xia Qiuming was right there next to the phone, Gu Jiaojiao didn’t say anything overly sentimental.

She quickly explained what had happened to Su Shuochi in a few brief sentences before hanging up. But Su Shuochi insisted he would wait up for her.