Courtyard House: My max-level medical skills specialize in treating beasts.

He Yudong quickly wrote a prescription and handed it to the stall owner. The stall owner took it with trembling hands and carefully put the prescription away. This was his wife's lifeline.

"Little miracle doctor, come with me." After putting away the prescription, the stall owner quickly pulled He Yudong out of the stall and into another room. He moved a stone from the corner that was twice the size of the one on the stall.

When He Yudong took a look, he was immediately dumbfounded. This was undoubtedly a genuine Tianhuang stone, with excellent quality. He never expected to see such a large and exquisite piece here.

"Young man, you saved my wife's life. If you like this stone, it's yours," the stall owner said sincerely.

He Yudong shook his head and said seriously, "Sir, you should know how precious this Tianhuang stone is. We agreed that I would buy it."

"Sigh, in this day and age, we can't even get enough to eat, so what good is this rock?" The shopkeeper sighed, his expression somber.

"Let's keep things separate. How about this, I'll offer a thousand dollars for this stone. What do you think?" He Yudong said.

"This...this is too much, little miracle doctor." The shopkeeper felt that if he really asked for a thousand yuan, it would be too unfair to He Yudong, after all, he was the great benefactor who saved his wife's life.

"It's not much, please take this money." He Yudong took out a thousand yuan and insisted on stuffing it into the stall owner's hand. The other party couldn't refuse and could only accept it with tears of gratitude.

A thousand yuan is nothing to He Yudong now, but it's a huge sum for the old man. Moreover, this Tianhuang stone is a treasure that money can't buy in later generations, so He Yudong actually got a good deal. As for curing his wife, it was just a side effect for him.

"Ding! Treating a critically ill patient has earned you 30 merit points."

A system notification sounded in my mind. Although it wasn't as effective as cracking down on beasts, it was still pretty good.

After putting away the Tianhuang stone, He Yudong left with the lazy cat. Only after He Yudong left did the stall owner realize he'd forgotten to ask for He Yudong's address, and he was filled with regret.

He Yudong didn't intend to continue exploring the ghost market; instead, he took the little lazy cat home. Before leaving, he bought her a lot of food, and the little girl immediately felt that this handsome older brother was the best person to her.

"What good stuff did you find, kid?" As soon as he got back, Grandpa Guan came up to him and asked.

"Take a look at these two pieces." He Yudong took out two pieces of Tianhuang stone.

Grandpa Guan's eyes widened in amazement. He quickly picked up a magnifying glass to examine it closely, then slapped his thigh and exclaimed, "Hey, kid, your luck is truly incredible! I've never seen two such large pieces of Tianhuang stone before. These are real treasures! Looks like I'll have to try my luck sometime."

In terms of texture, appearance, and weight, these two pieces are undoubtedly genuine Shoushan Tianhuang stones.

"Grandpa, I have one too. My older brother gave it to me. Look!" The little lazy cat proudly dangled the lazy cat pendant around its neck.

"This is... a piece of mutton fat white jade? You found this too, kid? This is too valuable!" Grandpa Guan exclaimed in surprise.

"It's nothing valuable. I really like this little lazy cat girl. I treat her like my own sister. What's a little gift to her?" He Yudong said with a smile.

"Hahaha, you're just my type, alright!" Grandpa Guan laughed heartily.

"Oh, right, there's one more thing. I'm not quite sure about it. Could you take a look?" He Yudong finally took out the clay stamp again.

"Huh?" Grandpa Guan looked at it and found that the mud seal was very crudely made, although it was quite old, but the weight was wrong.

"Is there something wrapped inside?" He Yudong asked.

Grandpa Guan nodded: "Yes, that's true. In the past, people would wrap good things in clay to conceal them. Wait a moment, I'll go get my tools so I don't damage what's inside."

Grandpa Guan got up and walked onto the shelf, took out some small tools from a box, placed the clay model on the table, and began to carefully remove the clay.

It took a full half hour for the outer clay to be completely removed. Inside, a gleaming golden seal was revealed.

"Your luck is truly incredible, kid." Grandpa Guan sighed. He hadn't even seen the contents of the seal yet, but its quality alone was enough to make it extraordinary.

"What is this?" He Yudong asked.

Grandpa Guan examined it carefully for a while, then gasped, "This is the gold seal of an emperor from the Liao Dynasty! This is a national treasure of our country! You'd better promise me you'll preserve it well, and don't melt it down like others do, or I'll fight you to the death!"

"Haha, don't worry, sir, I'll keep it safe." He Yudong laughed.

"It's true what they say, comparisons are the thief of joy. I've collected a lot of treasures over the course of my life, but none of them are as good as what you collected in just one day," Grandpa Guan sighed.

The two chatted for a while longer, and seeing that it was getting late, He Yudong prepared to say goodbye and leave.

Little Lazy Cat tugged at He Yudong, reluctant to let him go: "Big brother, are you leaving so soon? You won't play with Little Lazy Cat anymore."

He Yudong patted the little lazy cat's head and said with a smile, "Good boy, little lazy cat. Big brother will come to see you often and bring you delicious food."

"Really, big brother? Let's pinky swear."

He Yudong was somewhat amused and exasperated, but after making a pinky promise with the little lazy cat, he left.

With a cheerful mood, He Yudong returned home. Sha Zhu had taken Lou Xiao'e to her parents' house and hadn't returned today; they would probably stay for a couple of days, so it was just He Yudong and He Yushui at home.

The next afternoon, He Yudong rode his bicycle to the ballet theater after lunch, having made an appointment with Zhou Xiaobai to see a ballet performance.

By this time, a large number of people were already queuing up to buy tickets. Seeing this massive crowd, it seemed quite difficult to get a ticket.

"Brother He, over here!" At this moment, Zhou Xiaobai, who was not far away, had already seen He Yudong and quickly waved.

He Yudong parked his bicycle and quickly went over.

"Xiaobai, are you sure you can get tickets?" He Yudong asked with a smile.

"Well... I didn't expect there to be so many people," Zhou Xiaobai said with a hint of helplessness.

"Make way! Make way!" At this moment, a group of young men wearing military-grade nylon coats walked over and cut in line at the ticket window. The other people in line dared not speak out when they saw these people.

"This works too?" He Yudong's lips twitched.

"These people are all from military compounds, they have absolutely no manners. Why should others have to queue up while they don't?" Zhou Xiaobai said with dissatisfaction.

"What? Didn't you get enough of that beating last time? Want to do it again?" He Yudong said calmly, showing no intention of backing down. Instead, he took a step forward, and an invisible aura instantly locked onto the little rascal.

The young rascal's heart skipped a beat at this sudden move, and his grip on the dagger tightened slightly. The kid's terrifying skills in the alley had left a lasting psychological scar; the pain from that kick still throbbed. He had thought that coming out today with his brothers and weapons would give him a chance to get revenge, but now that they were face to face, that deep-seated fear resurfaced.

"Stop talking nonsense! I don't want to deal with you today, so if you know what's good for you, get out of here!" the thug roared, trying to mask his inner panic with his voice. He gestured to his thugs to surround him, hoping to bolster his courage.

"Looks like you won't give up until you're completely defeated." He Yudong sneered, his eyes instantly turning sharp.

Just as the little rascal was about to grit his teeth and rush over, He Yudong moved.

He moved with lightning speed, leaving only a blur in everyone's eyes. Before the little rascal could react, he felt a sharp pain in his wrist, and with a "crack," the dagger in his hand fell to the ground. Immediately afterward, a large hand gripped his throat like an iron clamp, and a tremendous force struck, lifting his feet off the ground in an instant.

"Cough cough...cough..."

The little rascal frantically scratched at He Yudong's arm, his face instantly turning a deep purplish-red, his legs kicking wildly in the air, but he couldn't budge that iron hand an inch.

The thugs who were about to rush forward were stunned by the sudden turn of events, frozen in place, unable to move forward or backward. Their leader, the notorious "Number One Assassin in Beijing," had been lifted up like a chicken!

Zhong Yuemin, Zhang Haiyang, Li Yuanchao, and others who were not far away were also dumbfounded.

"Holy crap... that was way too fast!" Zhang Haiyang couldn't help but swear, his eyes wide with disbelief. He considered himself a trained fighter, but he knew he could never have executed He Yudong's move so effortlessly and cleanly.

Zhong Yuemin swallowed hard, secretly relieved that he hadn't really angered this troublemaker in the alley that day, otherwise he would probably be the one lying on the ground.

He Yudong, carrying the little rascal, coldly swept his gaze over the stunned thugs and said in a deep voice, "Get lost!"

Those thugs were overjoyed, no longer caring about their leader, and they all took off running as if they had more legs.

"No...don't kill me..." the little rascal managed to squeeze out a few words, his fierceness replaced by fear.

He Yudong casually tossed the little rascal to the ground like he was throwing away trash.

"what!"

The little rascal screamed and rolled on the ground, clutching his chest.

He Yudong stepped forward, looking down at him, and said calmly, "This is a lesson for you. If I see you doing wrong again, it won't be so simple. Get lost!"

The little rascal didn't dare to say another word. Enduring the excruciating pain, he scrambled to his feet and limped away into the crowd.

[Ding! Host has punished evil and promoted good, cracking down on thugs and criminals, gaining 50 merit points. Current merit points: 500.]

[Ding! Host has punished evil and promoted good, cracking down on thugs and criminals, gaining 50 merit points. Current merit points: 500.]

The system notification in his mind made He Yudong's lips curl into a slight smile. This was an unexpected delight; not only had he dealt with the scumbag, but he had also made a perfect score.

At this moment, Li Yuanchao and Zhong Yuemin came to their senses and hurriedly came over.

"A master! Truly a master!" Li Yuanchao rubbed his side, where the knife had been pressed against him, and looked at He Yudong with eyes full of admiration. "Brother, thank you so much. If it weren't for you, I'd probably be done for today. I'd only ever heard Haiyang boast about his skills before, but seeing it for myself today, his reputation is well-deserved!"

"Yeah, Brother He, you're amazing!" Zhang Haiyang's eyes lit up as he looked at He Yudong with admiration. "That 'chokehold' move was absolutely awesome! You have to take me on as your apprentice!"

Although Zhong Yuemin was usually carefree and irreverent, he sincerely clasped his hands in thanks and said, "Thank you for getting me out of that predicament, brother. That little bastard had a weapon; if we had really started fighting, the consequences would have been unimaginable."

He Yudong waved his hand, his expression returning to its previous calm. He turned back to Zhou Xiaobai's side and smiled, "It's nothing, just a little incident."

Zhou Xiaobai watched He Yudong's retreating figure, her eyes filled with admiration. His protective manner just now was absolutely adorable.

"Alright, since the tickets are all gone, everyone can go home." Although Li Yuanchao's tickets were stolen, he was still in a pretty good mood since he had escaped with his life. He turned to He Yudong and said, "Brother, thanks for today. I'll treat you another day, Lao Mo, it's on me!"

"No problem," He Yudong smiled faintly, not refusing.

The turmoil was thus resolved, and He Yudong's skills became widely known among the children of the compound.

When He Yudong got home, it was already dark. He pushed open the door and a familiar aroma of food, along with warmth, wafted towards him—it was a warm meal left by Yingzi, still warm on the stove.

He changed his shoes, draped his coat over the back of the chair, and was about to go to the kitchen to get the food when he heard a soft rustling sound coming from the inner room. He went over to see what was happening and found Lin Leier hunched over the table, frowning at a physics workbook. Seeing him come in, Lin Leier quickly sat up straight: "Brother Yudong, you're back?"

"Yeah, just got back." He Yudong ruffled Lin Leier's hair. "Why aren't you asleep yet? Don't you understand this problem?"

Lin Leier blushed and scratched his head: "I've been thinking about the last mechanics problem for half an hour, but I still can't figure it out."

He Yudong walked over and glanced at the question; it was a typical problem involving friction on an inclined plane. He picked up a pen and quickly sketched a free-body diagram on the scratch paper, explaining as he drew: "Look, when an object moves on an inclined plane, we first need to determine whether it's moving at a constant speed or accelerating. This question says 'just at a constant speed,' so the net force is zero. Gravity is decomposed into two components: one along the inclined plane and one perpendicular to it. The component perpendicular to the inclined plane equals the normal force, and the component along the inclined plane equals the frictional force..."

His explanation was clear and simple, and Lin Leier's previously furrowed brows gradually relaxed, his eyes brightening: "Oh! I see! I just got the direction of friction wrong!"

"It's a small problem." He Yudong smiled and handed him a pen. "Try calculating it again."

Lin Leier buried himself in calculations, and after a while, he excitedly looked up: "I got it! The answer is correct!"

"Not bad, quick-witted." He Yudong patted his shoulder, glancing at the half-eaten sweet potato on the table. Yingzi probably left it as a late-night snack so he wouldn't be hungry. He felt a warmth in his heart and turned to the kitchen to get the food—a bowl of millet porridge, two freshly made cornbreads, and a small dish of pickles, simple yet steaming hot.

He had just sat down and taken a couple of bites when there was a knock at the door. He frowned. Who could it be at this hour? When he opened the door, he saw Zhou Xiaobai and Luo Yun, carrying two bags of fruit.

"Brother He! We've brought you something!" Zhou Xiaobai smiled as soon as she saw him, her eyes crinkling into crescents. "Thanks to you today, otherwise that ballet dancer would have been in danger."

Luo Yun nodded in agreement: "Yes, our teacher said that it's good to be brave and righteous, but we also need to be careful. Your silver needles... were amazing, we didn't even see how you used them."

He Yudong quickly ushered them inside: "Don't be so polite, it was just a small favor. Please sit down, I don't have much to offer, but I just cooked some porridge, would you like some?"

"No need, no need!" Zhou Xiaobai waved his hand, placing the fruit on the table. "We're here to become your disciples!"

"Become an apprentice?" He Yudong was taken aback.

"That's right!" Zhou Xiaobai said earnestly. "Zhang Haiyang and Zhong Yuemin both want to become your apprentices, and so do we! You're so skilled in martial arts and you also know medicine. We want to learn a few self-defense techniques from you, and also some first aid knowledge."

Luo Yun chimed in, "Yes, society is in chaos these days, so it's always good to learn more skills."

He Yudong looked at the two bright-eyed girls in front of him, feeling somewhat amused and exasperated. He was only in his early twenties; how could he have ever been a teacher? "What are my skills anyway? Besides, I have to work and take care of my family; where would I find the time to teach apprentices?"

"It's okay!" Zhou Xiaobai leaned closer and lowered her voice, "We don't need you to teach us every day, just take some time on weekends! We promise to learn diligently and won't cause you any trouble!"

"Yeah, Brother Yudong!" Yingzi came out of the kitchen, wiping her hands. "I think that girl is pretty honest. If you don't mind the trouble, why don't you teach her? It's good to have more friends and more options. Besides, teaching them is a good deed."

He Yudong looked at Lin Leier, then at Yingzi, and finally smiled helplessly: "Alright, but I'm making this clear, I'll only teach you the basics, things like strengthening your body and self-defense. Don't expect to become a martial arts master."

"Great!" Zhou Xiaobai and Luo Yun cheered, almost jumping for joy.

That evening, the group held a "mini-class" in He Yudong's small living room. He Yudong first taught them to identify common acupoints and simple methods to stop bleeding, and then demonstrated a few basic self-defense techniques—such as how to strike the ribs with an elbow when someone hugs you from behind, and how to break free by twisting your joints when someone grabs your wrist.

Zhou Xiaobai studied with exceptional seriousness, practicing each movement repeatedly until fine beads of sweat appeared on her forehead; Luo Yun, though less strong, was quick to grasp the essentials. Lin Leier also joined in, correcting their postures from time to time, looking every bit like a "teaching assistant."

When the clock on the wall struck ten, He Yudong waved his hand and said, "That's enough for today. It's too late. You should all go back and rest."

After seeing the two off, He Yudong closed the door and turned around to see Lin Leier still practicing the escape technique he had just learned, while Yingzi was tidying up the fruit on the table with a gentle smile on her face.

He suddenly realized that although life was ordinary, it was filled with warmth. Helping others, learning a skill, having a healthy family, and true friends—this kind of life was more reassuring than anything else.

He walked to the window, pushed it open, and the evening breeze carried the aroma of food wafting from the alley. A few barks came from afar, and the starry sky above was bright and clear.

"Tomorrow will be another lively day," He Yudong smiled, turned around and went back into the house, preparing to explain a couple more problems to Lin Leier and chat with Yingzi about everyday things.

This mundane world, with its everyday life, is perhaps the best kind of martial arts world.