Chapter 2: Replenishing Our Little One's Blood

Ying Zijin withdrew her hand, completely indifferent to the strange gazes of the people around her. She rolled up her sleeves and continued walking.

Shanghai was China's second international metropolis, with both its economy and technology developing at breakneck speed.

"Seventh Young Master, did you see that?" It took Nie Chao a long time to snap out of it. He pinched his thigh and hissed, "I remember clearly, this little sister just entered the hospital the day before yesterday. How can she already take on five people at once?"

"Yeah, I saw it." Fu Yunshen kept one hand in his pocket as he watched the girl's retreating figure. "But I can't quite tell what style her combat skills belong to. It's a bit like Muay Thai, and a bit like Judo."

Nie Chao was stunned. "What do you mean?"

"Every move she makes is very clever." Fu Yunshen chuckled softly. "If she had used just a fraction more strength, those five people wouldn't have just ended up on the ground; it would have been much worse."

Nie Chao broke into a cold sweat. "That's impossible, right? Could it be that this little sister knows Ancient Martial Arts?"

Martial artists who practiced ancient methods combined with modern science were known as Ancient Martial Artists. They were incomparably stronger than someone like him who only knew Karate.

China did have Ancient Martial Artists, but they were rare. Many ancient martial arts families had gradually retreated after the arrival of the 21st century. Even the powerful clans in the Imperial Capital were searching for true Ancient Martial Artists, let alone in Shanghai.

If any prominent family could invite a true Ancient Martial Artist to protect them, they would have the capability to contend with the ancient financial oligarchs of Europe.

If this adopted daughter of the Ying family knew Ancient Martial Arts, would the Ying family treat her as a living blood bank?

The entire family would be scrambling to cater to her every whim.

"Ancient Martial Arts, huh..." Fu Yunshen's gaze shifted and then froze.

Ahead, the girl suddenly turned back and was walking toward them.

Fu Yunshen narrowed his eyes and turned slightly to the side.

The bright lights from the roadside reflected in his long, peach-blossom eyes, coating them with a crimson hue and adding a touch of tenderness.

It was difficult for anyone to resist his gaze.

As she drew closer, Fu Yunshen could clearly see the blue veins beneath the girl's pale skin—so frail it was startling. His brow twitched slightly.

Nie Chao's cold sweat flowed even more profusely.

Could it be that she heard him talking behind her back?

Even though he was a ninth-dan Karate practitioner and a grown man, judging by the girl's display just now, it wouldn't have taken her both hands to take down a hundred of him.

At that moment, the girl came to a halt in front of him. She lifted her head, her eyes still clouded with a hazy mist, and spoke: "You—"

Nie Chao's legs went weak, and he fell to his knees with a "thud." "I'm just a big-mouthed gossip! I had no ill intentions! Big Boss, please show mercy!"

Fu Yunshen looked on with interest. "One knee down, such a pious posture. Are you proposing?"

Nie Chao: "..."

His useless legs!

Ying Zijin looked at the newly risen Nie Chao, raised an eyebrow slightly, and said unhurriedly, "Three days from now, at exactly seven o'clock in the evening, at the No. 1 Huangpu Road Tavern, you will encounter a brush with bloodshed, but it won't be serious. Starting from twelve noon seven days from now, I suggest you avoid the area south of the river, otherwise, your life may be in jeopardy."

Nie Chao was dazed.

Hearing this, Fu Yunshen's long fingers, which were playing with a piece of jade, suddenly tightened. He lifted his peach-blossom eyes, his voice low and husky, laced with a smile: "Little one, you can tell fortunes?"

Ying Zijin didn't answer, merely saying, "Thank you."

The thanks was just a pretext. Whether someone helped her or not didn't matter to her; she only wanted to test how much of her divine calculation ability remained.

It seemed she would need a long time to fully recover, but for now, it was sufficient.

Nie Chao was even more bewildered. "Huh?"

Fu Yunshen glanced at Nie Chao and then looked back at the girl. His pupils were a light amber, possessing a seductive tenderness. "Little one, thanking him but not me... isn't that a bit too mean to me? Hmm?"

Ying Zijin's expression paused.

Nie Chao was stunned into silence. "Seventh Young Master, you can't be serious. You're clearly the one bullying the little sister. Did you take the wrong medicine today?"

A grown man, how could he have the nerve?

He had never seen this young master speak to other women like this.

Fu Yunshen ignored him. His peach-blossom eyes narrowed as he stared intently at the girl, as if casting a spell. "You gave him a reading; why don't you give me one as well?"

Ying Zijin's eyes narrowed slightly.

"Little sister, don't mind him." Nie Chao sensed that Fu Yunshen was acting strange today and tried to smooth things over. "Where are you headed? Let us give you a ride."

As expected, the waters of the wealthy families were deep; this girl clearly wasn't the type described in the rumors.

"No need." Ying Zijin shook her head and prepared to leave.

But as she turned, her body swayed slightly—clearly a lingering effect of excessive blood loss.

She raised her hand to press against her temple, her eyes shrouded in a layer of frost.

Just then, a lazy voice sounded from behind her.

"Little one."

Ying Zijin stopped and turned around.

The man was leaning casually against a glass door, still maintaining his playboy persona. "Your benefactor says that to thank you for the warning, he would like to treat you to dinner tonight."

**

Han Ge.

Even after the waiter had laid out the tableware, Nie Chao still couldn't wrap his head around it. He looked at the girl, whose expression was indifferent. "You actually agreed? Aren't you afraid of being sold? What if we're bad people and we poison you?"

And it was strange of the Seventh Young Master too—since when did he start proactively inviting girls out?

Ying Zijin rested her eyes halfway to conserve energy. "Because I am truly hungry."

Nie Chao: "..."

"Yes, that's all. Bring another plate of stir-fried pig liver." Fu Yunshen closed the menu.

The waiter bowed and went to prepare.

Han Ge was the only restaurant in China that refused Michelin three-star ratings. It only accepted ten tables of guests a day, and reservations had to be made three months in advance.

Nie Chao looked around. "Seventh Young Master, you don't happen to know the owner of Han Ge, do you? Even my old man has to make a reservation for this place."

"I don't." Fu Yunshen rested his arm on the back of his chair, his tone extremely casual. "Maybe it's because of my face."

"Miss Ying, did you hear that? Seventh Young Master just likes to talk nonsense. Don't believe a single word he says." Nie Chao didn't mind and waved his hand grandly. "But since it's a rare treat from the Seventh Young Master today, eat your fill. He lacks everything except money."

"What a coincidence," Ying Zijin said casually. "I only lack money."

Fu Yunshen looked up.

"You lack money?" Nie Chao was stunned. "Doesn't the Ying family give you money?"

Even the servants of the Ying family were paid, let alone an adopted daughter.

"My studies are poor, I haven't learned etiquette, and I certainly don't know flower arrangement or tea ceremonies," the girl said calmly. "It's so embarrassing; why would they give me money?"

Nie Chao was choked up.

Fu Yunshen's eyelashes fluttered, and the corners of his mouth curled up. "Then they are truly blind. Your table manners follow the traditions of the ancient European royalty."