Chapter 191: Preventing Future Trouble
Yu Luo turned away coldly and headed toward Ye Jiamei’s courtyard. A’Yu took a step forward, intending to follow her, but Tao Ming quickly sidestepped in front of him, raising a hand to block his path, patiently trying to coax him back.
“What is your relationship with my wife? Get out of my way!”
The gentle, warm smile A’Yu had been wearing vanished the moment Yu Luo disappeared down the corridor. His eyes turned icy cold, emitting a chilling aura as he fixed his gaze on Tao Ming.
“What’s going on?”
Zhang Xiao Liang’s mouth fell slightly open. Looking at the strikingly handsome A’Yu, his mind went blank.
Instinctively, he glanced at his elder brother, then at Tao Ming.
Tao Ming rubbed his temples, feeling a headache coming on. “Yesterday, Miss and I saved him. When he woke up, he just…”
BAM!
Before Tao Ming could finish, a sudden pain struck his chest. A powerful palm strike landed squarely on him!
His body arced through the air and crashed heavily several meters away onto a stone bench. A mouthful of fresh blood spurted out immediately!
“You…”
Seeing Tao Ming get struck, Zhang Xiao Liang was instantly enraged and lunged forward, ready to retaliate. But before he could move, his collar tightened—he turned and found himself meeting his elder brother’s steady gaze.
“Brother, he just hit Tao Ming!”
“You are no match for him.”
Zhang Hu’s voice was calm, but his sharp eyes had already assessed A’Yu from head to toe.
Zhang Xiao Liang, unconvinced, turned back and glared fiercely at the tall, imposing man standing before him, his teeth clenched in frustration.
Now that he thought about it, the speed of A’Yu’s palm strike had been so fast that none of them had seen it coming. This man was incredibly skilled—perhaps even the three of them combined wouldn’t be able to defeat him.
“This is Miss’s estate, and since he is her guest, it would be inappropriate for us to engage in a fight. We should report this to Miss and let her handle it.”
Hearing Zhang Hu’s detached tone, A’Yu curled his lips into a cold smile.
“And you think you’re worthy of guarding my wife? Hah!”
With that, he turned and walked back toward his courtyard.
“Wait… isn’t this strange? I thought he was supposed to be a fool. But how does he know to call Miss his wife? Tao Ming, are you sure there’s nothing wrong with him?”
Still sitting on the stone bench, Tao Ming wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, pressing a hand against his still-aching chest.
He narrowed his eyes, staring at A’Yu’s broad back as he disappeared into the corridor, his brows furrowing.
“Zhang Hu, am I really that weak?”
Tao Ming completely ignored Zhang Xiao Liang’s approach, his expression wounded and uncertain as he turned to Zhang Hu.
His confidence seemed to have been shattered entirely by A’Yu’s single palm strike.
Zhang Hu withdrew his gaze and shook his head slightly.
“It’s not just you—both my brother and I are weak as well.”
Zhang Xiao Liang and Tao Ming fell silent.
“Let me check if your bones or meridians are injured. His strike was incredibly fast. If he had truly wanted to kill us, all three of us would have died instantly.”
Zhang Hu, being more composed, quickly regained his clarity. He sat beside Tao Ming and took his wrist, carefully checking his pulse.
Those trained in martial arts were typically capable of diagnosing minor internal or external injuries themselves, even prescribing the appropriate treatment.
Only complex ailments required a physician.
“Brother, how is he? That guy hit him so hard that he flew several meters and coughed up blood. If it’s not an internal injury, I’d be surprised.”
“You sound like you want me to have an internal injury,” Tao Ming grumbled, shooting Zhang Xiao Liang a glare.
Although they weren’t blood-related, they had come from the same village and learned martial arts from an old monk at a local temple.
Having lived under the same roof in the stone huts for five years, they had long regarded each other as brothers.
Zhang Xiao Liang hastily waved his hands. “You know that’s not what I meant! I’m just worried about you!”
“There are no internal injuries, and none of his ribs are broken. It seems that man held back.”
Zhang Hu’s diagnosis confirmed it.
Indeed, his chest pain had already subsided significantly in just a short time.
But none of them could understand why he had coughed up blood if the strike wasn’t fatal.
“Since he didn’t intend to harm me seriously, I think we shouldn’t tell Miss about this. She already avoids him—if she goes to confront him because of me, he might latch onto her even more.”
Tao Ming recalled how Yu Luo went out of her way to avoid A’Yu and spoke rationally.
“But keeping an unidentified man like this in the estate, especially one with such formidable martial skills, is dangerous. We must inform our masters—otherwise, it may lead to disaster later,” Zhang Hu argued.
He didn’t want to cause Yu Luo trouble, but at the same time, he feared that failing to report this now might bring greater danger in the future.
As long as their masters were safe, they would continue to have a good life—even if today was just their first day in service.
“Zhang Hu is right. When we found him yesterday, his body was covered in wounds—some were so deep that you could see the bone. But after just one night, he has already recovered so much. This man is not to be underestimated.”
Tao Ming led Zhang Hu and Zhang Xiao Liang to report to Yu Haojie and Ye Jiamei, coincidentally just after Yu Luo had left.
Seeing the two new guards, Ye Jiamei was very pleased.
“Since you have the skills, then stay here and serve us well. I’m sure Yu Luo has already explained everything to you. We don’t need much protecting, but since there are no servants yet, you’ll be in charge of preparing the meals for now.”
Cooking was the last thing Ye Jiamei wanted to do. Even though she hadn’t explicitly instructed them before, she didn’t forget to remind them now.
“As servants, it is our duty to take care of our masters’ daily needs,” Tao Ming said quickly with a smile, which only made Ye Jiamei even more satisfied.
“Madam, we just encountered the man Miss brought back yesterday. His martial skills are unfathomable. For the safety of the estate, we must warn you and Master to be cautious around him,” Zhang Hu reported.
“Yes, Master, Madam! That man just struck Tao Ming with a palm, sending him flying several meters! Tao Ming even coughed up blood!” Zhang Xiao Liang added.
Hearing this, the seated couple’s expressions darkened.
Ye Jiamei immediately beckoned Tao Ming forward.
“Come here, let me check your injuries.”
“Thank you, Madam, but I am fine now. Although the strike seemed powerful, it no longer hurts. Zhang Hu also checked me—there are no internal injuries. It seems the man did hold back.”
