Rebirth: Phoenix Riding the Ninth Heaven

Zhao Si's wife watched helplessly as the man in black rushed toward her like a ghost, his gleaming knife held high. In a flash, Zhao Si's wife dodged like a rabbit, turning in just two or three steps and reaching the northern courtyard wall. She skillfully dodged along the wall, successfully avoiding the man in black's dagger.

Zhao Si, seeing his wife being attacked, was terribly anxious. He completely disregarded his own injuries and rushed towards the man in black without hesitation, intent on snatching the deadly weapon from his hand. However, the man in black was clearly no ordinary man. Facing Zhao Si's sudden appearance, he showed no mercy and fiercely plunged the dagger straight into Zhao Si's heart.

Although Zhao Si was seriously injured, his years of experience allowed him to react instinctively at the critical moment. He gritted his teeth and, with all his might, dodged to the side, narrowly avoiding the fatal blow. The man in black, unmoved by this, swung his sword and stabbed Zhao Si in the back again. In the nick of time, Zhao Si rolled onto the ground, and in the blink of an eye, he was out of the man's reach.

Zhao Si's wife, watching the man in black swearing to take her head's life, was filled with anxiety. She looked around and her eyes fell on a large rock by the wall. Without hesitation, she quickly stepped forward, picked up the rock, and smashed it with all her might at the man in black's head.

The man in black was quite skilled. Hearing the sharp sound of wind piercing the air from behind him, he quickly moved to the side. The stone flew past his head and fell to the ground with a "bang".

The man in black was instantly enraged. He threw his belongings aside and turned to charge at Zhao Si's wife. Seeing the man in black charging at her like a ferocious monster, Zhao Si's wife was terrified and ran away. However, she was only a woman after all. Even if she tried her best to escape, how could she outrun this strong man?

In that split second, as the black-clad man's long knife was about to plunge into Zhao Si's wife's back, Zhao Si, who had been lying on the ground, suddenly leaped up and pounced on the black-clad man like an arrow. In a flash, with the black-clad man's knife just a foot away from his wife, Zhao Si successfully tackled him to the ground. Then, the two of them rolled on the ground and wrestled.

Unfortunately, Zhao Si was already wounded, and his strength naturally couldn't match that of the man in black. As the two sides engaged in a fierce struggle, the man in black seized the opportunity, suddenly pulled back his long sword, and stabbed Zhao Si in the chest. Zhao Si was horrified and quickly stretched out his hands to block the approaching blade, trying to prevent it from piercing his chest.

But who would have thought that at this critical moment, the cunning man in black would secretly cheat. He suddenly shook his sleeve, and a crossbow arrow hidden inside suddenly shot out, rushing straight towards Zhao Si's chest...

Zhao Si fought fiercely against the black-clad man's attacks, but ultimately he was no match for his cunning and cunning hidden weapon. A sharp crossbow bolt, like lightning, pierced the vicious dog's body. Instantly, Zhao Si felt as if all his strength had been drained. His hands involuntarily loosened, and he fell limply to the cold ground.

When the man in black saw this, a fierce look flashed in his eyes. He quickly raised his hands and tied the rope tightly around Zhao Si. Then he raised the big knife in his hand high up and stabbed it towards Zhao Si's heart without mercy!

At this critical moment, Zhao Si's wife happened to witness this thrilling scene. Her heart instantly rose to her throat, and the flames of anger burned fiercely within her. Without time to think, she used all her strength, like a mad lioness, lowering her head and rushing towards the back of the man in black.

The man in black was completely focused on Zhao Si, who was about to succeed, and had not anticipated the sudden and violent impact from behind. With a loud bang, Zhao Si's wife slammed into the man in black's back, knocking him off balance and deflecting the dagger that was originally aimed at Zhao Si.

Zhao Si's wife didn't care if she was injured or not. She quickly turned around and looked at the head of the household lying on the ground, gasping for breath, with blood gushing out of his chest. She was extremely anxious and screamed at the top of her lungs: "Help! Help! Someone's killing someone! Someone's killing someone! Someone come and save us!"

At this moment, people nearby heard the shrill cries for help from Zhao Si's wife and stopped what they were doing, picked up their knives and rushed forward to execute the murderer. However, before they could get close, they saw a team of well-trained soldiers rushing over like lightning.

The leader of the group saw from afar the man in black, blade in hand, about to strike the woman who had collapsed before her husband. His eyes widened in anger, and he roared, "You daring lunatic! How dare you commit such atrocities in broad daylight! Drop your weapons and surrender! Otherwise, don't blame us for being rude!"

The moment the man in black saw the approaching person, he instantly lost all desire to continue fighting. Without hesitation, he turned and ran forward. Seeing this, the leader waved his flag and shouted to his men, "Chase him! Don't let him get away!" With that, a group of wolf-like men rushed towards the direction of the man in black's escape at lightning speed.

Meanwhile, Zhao Si's wife, seeing the man in black disappear in a flash, rushed to the injured Zhao Si. Her eyes widened, her face filled with fear and anxiety. She reached out her hands tremblingly, gently stroking the blood gushing from Zhao Si's wound. Tears streamed down her face like beads from a broken string, and she kept muttering, "Master, what should I do? What should I do?"

Zhao Si endured the waves of severe pain, gritted his teeth, and forced a smile, gently comforting his wife: "Don't be afraid, wife, it's okay, it's really okay..." However, Zhao Si's wife cried even more heartbrokenly, sobbing and saying: "How can it be okay? Master, you've been hit by a crossbow arrow!"

At this moment, a soldier from the group that had gone after the men in black stayed behind to handle the aftermath. Seeing Zhao Si's wife in such a panic and disoriented state, the soldier hurried forward and shouted, "Sister-in-law, please don't panic. Come and help us. We need to get this person to the clinic!" Hearing this, Zhao Si's wife seemed to have just woken up from a dream, finally regaining some consciousness. She quickly wiped the tears from her face, hurriedly stood up, and together with the soldier, carefully lifted Zhao Si and rushed him to the nearest clinic.

The two men hurriedly rushed Zhao Si to the slightly old clinic in a panic. It was the cold winter, with a biting wind and few people on the street. The clinic was even more deserted, with few patients in sight.

As soon as Zhao Si's anxious daughter-in-law stepped into the clinic, she shouted at the top of her voice: "Someone come! Doctor, come and save my master's life!" Her shrill shouts echoed in the empty clinic.

In this cold weather, not many people are willing to go out to see a doctor. Even if they are really sick, most people are reluctant to go to the clinic unless they have no other choice. After all, the price of medicinal materials here is shockingly high, and ordinary people simply cannot afford such expensive medical expenses.

The doctor, who was tidying the medicine cabinet in the back hall, heard the shouts and noisy footsteps outside. He quickly dropped his work and hurried out. He saw a man and a woman laboriously carrying a bloodied, unconscious patient into the hall. The doctor, not wanting to delay, quickly stepped forward and directed them to carefully lay the patient flat on the worn, simple wooden bed.

The experienced doctor stepped forward with a solemn expression and carefully examined the horrific sword wound on the victim's chest. He first gently pressed around the wound, feeling the depth of the sword's fury, then extended his fingers and carefully felt the victim's pulse. After a long moment, the doctor slowly lowered his hand, a trace of helplessness and regret on his face, and gently shook his head.

"This sword hit him right in the heart..." The doctor sighed and said in a heavy voice, "Once this sword is pulled out, I'm afraid he will die instantly. You'd better hurry up and tell him anything important."

The wife, standing nearby, was struck by lightning when she heard this. Her face turned pale. Her eyes widened in disbelief at what she was witnessing. Then, tears welled up in her eyes like a flood. She rushed to the injured man's side, clutching his hand tightly and bursting into tears.

"Doctor, please! My husband can't die like this!" The wife cried and pulled the doctor's sleeve hard, begging non-stop, "Uncle, you must think of a way to save him! Our family can't live without him!"

However, facing his wife's pleading, the doctor just shook his head helplessly again and sighed: "Alas, it's not that I don't want to save him, it's just that there's nothing we can do. Let me get some ginseng slices and let him hold them in his mouth, so that he can hold his breath temporarily. If you have anything to say, just say it now." After that, the doctor turned around and left in a hurry, leaving his wife crying heart-wrenchingly.