Liu Ye'er received a system prompt informing her that her martial arts learning task was complete, with the reward being the art of point-wresting! Her heart raced with excitement. An image of a book appeared in her mind, which she could browse using her consciousness.
The first page of this book was a human acupuncture point diagram, with each point meticulously labeled, while the subsequent pages provided a detailed introduction to point-wresting techniques. She gradually realized that point-wresting could not only be used for self-defense, but could also save lives in moments of crisis, such as stopping bleeding and relieving pain—something that would have a profound impact on her future.
At that moment, a new mission was issued: to rescue the mother and daughter of the Wang family. Liu Ye'er knew this was a test for her. She did not yet know who the Wang family mother and daughter were, but now that the mission had appeared, they would surely show up.
The carriage quietly entered another unfamiliar market town. Han Yuling sat at the front of the carriage and suddenly heard crying. Following the sound, she saw a woman sitting on the ground with two little girls, weeping sorrowfully.
Han Yuling immediately got off the carriage and slowly walked over. She asked with concern, "Elder sister, what difficult situation has happened? Can I help you?" Hearing these warm words, the woman cried even more bitterly, pouring out her ordeal: "I have been driven out of my home by my husband, and with no one left in my natal family, the three of us have nowhere to go."
Hearing this, Han Yuling felt a surge of pity in her heart. She said, "This is no great matter; I will take you in, come with me!" With that, she took the woman by the arm and led them back to the carriage.
Seeing how pitiful the three of them were, Liu Ye'er let them board. The carriage started up again, heading toward an unknown destination. Yet this decision would bring new hope to these three unfortunate souls.
Inside the jolting carriage, Liu Ye'er held Wang Danlu's hand tightly, her gaze warm and resolute. She said, "Auntie, if you have any difficulties, just speak up, and we will help you." Wang Danlu wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes and softly recounted her plight.
Wang Danlu was a daughter-in-law of the Yang family and an only child in her natal family. Ever since her parents passed away, all of her dowry had been used to support her husband's studies. Yet after her husband passed the county examination to become a Xiucai, because she had failed to bear him a son, he drove the three of them out of the house with a written letter of divorce. Now, they truly had nowhere to go.
Hearing this, Liu Ye'er felt a complex mix of emotions; such things happened in both ancient and modern times. Before her eyes, she seemed to see those women who poured their hearts and souls into their families, sacrificing their youthful years of toil, only to be met with their husbands' ingratitude and abandonment. She made a silent vow in her heart never to let such a fate befall her. She decided she would take control of her own destiny.
As the carriage rolled slowly along the country road, inside the carriage, Liu Cunxiu gently consoled her sister-in-law, soothing the pain in her heart with tender words. Holding her sister-in-law's hand tightly, she said with a firm gaze, "Sister-in-law, rest assured, as long as we have food to eat, we will not let you go hungry."
Sitting to one side, Liu Ye'er looked deeply at the silent little girl and asked gently, "What is your name? How old are you?" The girl hesitated for a moment before replying, "My name is Yang Xiaoyan, and I'm seven years old." The other weeping girl immediately chimed in, "My name is Yang Xiaying, five years old. No, from now on my surname isn't Yang anymore; I'm going to change my name to Wang Xiaying, taking my mother's surname, and I never want that bad daddy again." Yang Xiaoyan agreed, "That's right, my surname isn't Yang anymore either. Daddy doesn't want us, so why should we keep his surname? I'll take the surname Wang too."
Liu Ye'er gently took both girls' hands and sincerely introduced herself: "My name is Liu Ye'er, and I'm eight years old. I can barely pass as your older sister. Don't worry, I will treat you both like my own sisters." She pointed toward her young aunt Liu Cunxiu and younger brother Liu Shande nearby. "This is my young aunt Liu Cunxiu, and this is my younger brother Liu Shande. The one driving the carriage up front is my mother, Han Yuling. From now on, we are a family, so don't stand on ceremony."
Looking at the aunt and the two girls, Liu Shande firmly added, "Auntie, we won't treat you as outsiders." Hearing these words, Wang Danlu wept tears of gratitude. "Thank you all," she choked out, tightly grasping Liu Cunxiu's hand. "I... I don't know what to say... You are treating us this way, and I am beyond grateful."
Liu Ye'er, that clever and perceptive girl, stared intently at the two girls and asked earnestly, "Are you willing to be bullied by others?" Wang Xiaying immediately answered firmly, "Of course not!" Hearing this, Liu Ye'er smiled faintly and turned her gaze to Wang Xiaoyan.
After a brief moment of thought, Wang Xiaoyan asked with a knowing look in her eyes, "Does Big Sister mean we should know what to do so we won't be bullied?"
Nodding in affirmation, Liu Ye'er replied, "Listen to me: if you don't want to be bullied, the most fundamental way is to make yourselves strong. Neither begging nor crying can solve problems. There are two ways to make yourself strong: first, enhance your own strength; second, utilize external force."
Wang Xiaying silently repeated "enhance your own strength," a resolute gleam flashing in her eyes. Meanwhile, Wang Xiaoyan softly echoed "utilize external force," seeming to grasp the meaning. Both of them understood that Liu Ye'er was right.
Liu Ye'er continued, "Only when you become strong yourselves can you truly protect yourselves and those around you. This doesn't mean going out to bully others, but rather having enough strength so that you yourselves will not be bullied."
Wang Xiaoyan asked quizzically, "I understand a little, but how do we enhance our own strength, and how do we utilize external force?" After careful thought, Liu Ye'er replied, "There are many ways to enhance one's strength; mastering a specialized skill is one path, and the most direct path is learning martial arts. Once you have mastered martial arts, no one will dare bully you." Hearing this, Wang Xiaying's eyes flashed with fierce determination, and she said full of fighting spirit, "I want to learn martial arts to protect myself and to protect Mother."
Wang Xiaoyan, a girl of exceptional intelligence, used her sharp insight to pose a crucial question to Liu Ye'er: "How do we utilize external force?" This question undoubtedly revealed an important strategy for life.
Liu Ye'er, seemingly an ordinary village girl, possessed wisdom and insight that transcended her years. She answered, "Utilizing external force means having others do things for you. Just as becoming an official means having subordinates do things for you, or hiring a servant to do things for you—these are all ways of utilizing external force. Utilizing external force requires conditions; it demands a corresponding reward for others. Without a reward, one-sided giving cannot last."
Hearing this, Wang Xiaoyan nodded in understanding. She realized that although this principle was simple and easy to understand, it contained the wisdom of life. At that moment, her younger sister Wang Xiaying raised a new question: "Sister, I want to learn martial arts, but who should I ask to teach me?"
Liu Ye'er smiled and pointed toward Han Yuling at the front of the carriage: "Right here before us, my mother is one." Han Yuling was deeply shocked; she had always thought of Liu Ye'er as a simple child who had never read books or traveled far, never expecting her to understand and articulate such a profound principle with such clarity.
The carriage continued forward under the warm sunlight, the carriage interior permeated with deep affection and care. These words and sentiments were as warm and serene as a spring breeze brushing across the water's surface. In this turbulent world, this family's kindness and care had become their most precious asset.
In Liu Ye'er's mind flashed the system prompt she had just received, congratulating her on completing the mission to rescue the Wang family mother and daughter, and rewarding her with the precious skill of acupuncture. At this moment, her heart was filled with joy and anticipation.
A book appeared in her mind, accessible through her consciousness. This book was about acupuncture, a skill long regarded by physicians as invaluable. Now, this skill belonged to Liu Ye'er, and she would be able to relieve the illnesses and pains of even more people with it.
Liu Ye'er felt her heart swell with strength, and she was ready to embrace new challenges. The system immediately issued a new mission: to find a treasure. This new challenge aroused Liu Ye'er's curiosity. She knew a new adventure was waiting for her, and a new challenge was approaching. The system certainly understood her well; knowing she wanted to get rich, it had given her a hoard of treasure, speeding up the realization of her dream to make a fortune.
After galloping along for a stretch, Han Yuling stopped the carriage. She purchased some dry rations and drinking water at a roadside stall and called for everyone to get down and partake together. By this time, they had reached the edge of the town—a quiet and unfamiliar place that seemed to conceal endless secrets.
Liu Ye'er's gaze drifted inadvertently toward a seemingly ordinary grave mound in the distance. A stone tablet stood before it, and despite the weathering of time, the characters on the tablet remained clearly legible—"Tomb of Zhang Daoxing." These traditional Chinese characters seemed to possess a strange magic in Liu Ye'er's eyes, and she recognized them instantly, even though she had never seen them before.
Her heart began to race as a strange sensation welled up inside her. As if guided by an invisible traction, Liu Ye'er unconsciously walked toward the gravestone. Her pace was slow and steady, as though pulled by the threads of fate.
Han Yuling and the others watched Liu Ye'er's actions with strange looks, but they did not stop her. They simply watched quietly to see what she would do.
Liu Ye'er quietly approached the gravestone, her arrival like a spring breeze blowing across a cold lake, bringing a slight, gentle ripple. There, an old man and a youth were standing guard. The old man's gaze was as sharp as a sword, seemingly able to pierce the deepest secrets of a person's heart; he watched Liu Ye'er with guarded vigilance, as if guessing her intentions. Meanwhile, the youth wore a welcoming expression and did not try to stop her approach.
Liu Ye'er walked up to the gravestone, feeling somewhat bewildered in her heart. She didn't know why she had come here, nor what she was supposed to do. Yet leaving just like that also felt somewhat improper. Therefore, she paid her respects with three formal bows before the gravestone. This gesture seemed to convey her respect and perplexity to the departed soul.
The youth stepped forward and asked, "Little sister, what's your name?" Liu Ye'er replied, "My name is Liu Ye'er." The youth continued, "My name is Zhang Guangfu." The old man cast a displeased glance at Zhang Guangfu, blaming him in his heart for rashly revealing his identity.
Liu Ye'er smiled slightly and said, "Big Brother Zhang, it's nice to meet you, but I must be going back." A wave of disappointment welled up in Zhang Guangfu's heart, but he understood that everyone had their own affairs. Having finished whatever business she had, Liu Ye'er decided to leave. Zhang Guangfu watched her departing figure, his heart filled with puzzlement.
He pointed at the gravestone and asked, "Do you know him?" Liu Ye'er shook her head, "No." This reply left Zhang Guangfu even more perplexed. "Then why did you come here?" Liu Ye'er was silent for a moment before answering, "I can't figure it out myself." Her voice betrayed a sense of bewilderment and helplessness.
The old man stared steadily at Liu Ye'er's departing back, the suspicion in his heart gradually dissipating. He began to feel as though he had seen this young girl somewhere before, and the hostility in his heart slowly diminished. Knowing that everything was likely fine now, Liu Ye'er returned to where Han Yuling was.