The Almighty Martial Arts System - Chapter 307

If one were to calculate carefully, Old Master Du was actually over ten years older than Old Master Cui, the Divine Doctor, and his seniority in the field was also greater.

It was only later, after both had achieved fame and success, becoming the heads of the two most long-standing and prominent families in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), and being hailed as the two leading pillars of the TCM community, that they began to interact as peers.

Logically, such two individuals, recognizing each other’s prowess, should have joined forces to strive for the prosperity of TCM together. Yet, the ultimate outcome was a bitter falling out, leading to a complete severance of ties for the rest of their lives.

If it weren’t for the fact that Du Zikang—a direct descendant of the Du family and a grandson Old Master Du was quite fond of—had been ‘killed’ in the capital by the TCM Association, he might never have set foot in Beijing again for the rest of his life!

Before his retirement, while Old Master Du’s reputation wasn’t as resounding as Old Master Cui’s ‘Hand of the Ghost Gate,’ nor did he command the same universal respect and admiration for his medical ethics from the members of the TCM Association, his medical skills were second to none.

Perhaps he fell short of Old Master Cui in terms of medical virtue and personal cultivation, but his医术 (medical skill) was on par. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have been similarly revered as a ‘Pillar of TCM.’

Thump! Thump! Thump!

Hearing Du Ziliang’s words, Old Master Du’s cane struck the floor with even greater force, the anger on his face intensifying. The steady middle-aged man and woman behind him both wore expressions of deep grief. The man asked furiously, “How exactly did your brother die?! How dare the TCM Association bully our Du family like this! Do they truly think that just because our Du family withdrew from the TCM Association over a decade ago, we’ve become toothless tigers they can push around?!”

This person was naturally Du Chengde, the biological father of Du Ziliang and Du Zikang.

Neither Du Chengde nor Old Master Du held the slightest doubt about Du Ziliang’s words; they believed him completely.

They had witnessed Du Ziliang’s conduct since childhood. Although Du Zikang had been slightly more doted on, Du Ziliang’s performance had truly won them over, making them somewhat proud to have a junior like him.

Moreover, they had no reason to suspect Du Ziliang. It simply never crossed their minds that Du Ziliang could have killed Du Zikang!

Since childhood, Du Ziliang’s affection for his younger brother Du Zikang could be said to run even deeper than theirs. How could such a virtuous older brother possibly kill his own sibling? That would be the most ridiculous, absurd notion imaginable, utterly impossible.

Besides, Du Ziliang had absolutely no reason or motive to harm his brother Du Zikang. Everyone knew what Du Zikang was like—lacking both ability and medical skill, posing no threat whatsoever to Du Ziliang’s position as the future heir to the Du family.

Therefore, no matter from which angle one looked, even if Du Ziliang had killed Du Zikang, it wouldn’t arouse the Du family’s suspicion. Most would believe what he said.

However, among this ‘most,’ there was ultimately one exception.

That was Du Zikang’s biological mother, the woman Du Ziliang had long covertly desired, found incredibly alluring like a vixen, and yet also very charming—his stepmother!

Feng Yurao.

Many say women are long on hair and short on insight, or that they are all beauty and no brains.

But in reality, often it is the meticulous women who possess great wisdom. They can perceive things many men cannot. Their intuition can be startling to men!

Just as everyone in the Du family trusted Du Ziliang, only Feng Yurao, amidst her boundless grief, held a deep-seated suspicion and resentment in her eyes.

Within the entire Du family, only she understood the true, wolfish ambition lurking within Du Ziliang, far removed from the well-mannered, elegant demeanor he projected.

This scheming, profoundly deep individual was the most terrifying opponent she had ever encountered. It was precisely because of him that her own precious son had been deliberately molded into a good-for-nothing playboy, to the extent that her son felt closer to this half-brother than to her, his own mother!

Every time she tried to earnestly counsel her son, urging him to strive for improvement and aim for the position of family head in the future, Du Zikang would show intense disgust and anger towards her, even hurling insults!

This fact alone, without needing any other evidence, convinced Feng Yurao that this future heir of the Du family was terrifyingly cunning—a wolf in sheep’s clothing!

This time, her son’s sudden death struck her as highly suspicious. Perhaps it was the doing of this very ambitious wolf right before her eyes.

Du Ziliang didn’t care what others thought. His acting was already impeccable; the grief on his face made it impossible for anyone to doubt him. He explained to his father and grandfather, “To be honest… Zikang also bore some responsibility in this matter. The reason he met such a tragic end traces back to some time ago when he took a liking to a beautiful girl named Bai Ruoxi, a newspaper reporter, and pursued her. However, this girl already had a boyfriend—Jiang Fei, the current president of the TCM Association, the young heir to the Divine Needle Eight Methods! The first time Jiang Fei met Zikang, he beat him so badly he ended up in the hospital…”

“That bastard! Just because Zikang liked his girlfriend, he killed him? If I, Du Chengde, don’t kill this scoundrel, I’m not fit to be a father!” Du Chengde roared in rage upon hearing this.

Old Master Du also slammed his cane down hard again, his face full of fury. “This is beyond insulting! Beyond insulting!”

Du Ziliang’s eyes were filled with sorrow. After letting the two vent for a moment, he continued, “Jiang Fei didn’t just kill him solely because Zikang pursued his girlfriend. There’s another reason…”

“What other reason?” Du Chengde asked, fists clenched tightly.

“The recent major medical incident caused by the TCM Association’s misdiagnosis, the one that resulted in a patient’s death!” Du Ziliang continued mournfully. “According to the information I’ve received, it seems the TCM Association believes this medical accident wasn’t a simple mistake, but a deliberate frame-up by someone working behind the scenes, which is why they’re entangled in such trouble. And they suspect that the person behind this… is Zikang…”

At this point, a faint, peculiar emotion finally flickered deep within Du Ziliang’s eyes.

He silently thought to himself: My dear brother, your death must serve a purpose. You must ensure your big brother successfully deceives everyone, allowing me to escape blame. At the same time, make them use all their resources to go after the TCM Association!

Yes, this was Du Ziliang’s ultimate goal in killing Du Zikang.

Even if Jiang Fei now suspected him, or was even certain he was the mastermind behind the scenes, perhaps even knew he was a member of the Tianwang Organization…

Jiang Fei had no concrete evidence. If Jiang Fei accused him of being the mastermind, he could simply shift all the blame onto the now-deceased Du Zikang.

After all, Du Zikang was dead. A dead man tells no tales. Even if Jiang Fei didn’t believe it, there was nothing he could do. He would have no evidence to refute the claim, leaving him helpless!

If Jiang Fei decided to disregard the rules and directly move against him by force, then the Du family’s influence was not to be underestimated.

Now that his father, the current head of the Du family, and Old Master Du himself had personally come to the capital, it would be absolutely impossible for Jiang Fei to harm him without evidence, or without substantial proof, through forceful means.

Although the Du family had withdrawn from the TCM Association over a decade ago and Old Master Du had retired from public life, the Du family had not vanished over the years. They still maintained their own network of connections and influence!

As a TCM family on par with the Cui family, countless influential figures had received favors from the Du family over the years. The number of powerful individuals indebted to the Du family was incalculable.

The Du family had already ‘unjustly’ lost one direct descendant. They were seething with rage with nowhere to direct it, eager to demand justice. Who would dare provoke the Du family further at such a time?

He was the future heir of the Du family. Who would dare arrest or kill him without a shred of evidence? Old Master Du was not someone to be trifled with!

Hearing Du Ziliang’s words, Du Chengde’s eyes widened in rage. “Slander! This is pure slander! Even if Kang’er was a bit irresponsible at times, he wouldn’t be foolish enough to go this far! Framing the TCM Association? Creating a medical accident and killing someone? Kang’er grew up in our TCM family; he would absolutely never do such a thing! I think this Jiang Fei, the president of the TCM Association, held a grudge against Kang’er. Coupled with the TCM Association’s incompetence pushing them into a corner, this shameless scoundrel decided to make Kang’er the scapegoat!”

Du Ziliang hung his head, a slight squint in his eyes.

Truly, no one knows a son like his father.
What a loving father, able to guess exactly what my ‘dear brother’ was thinking.
Du Zikang had indeed expressed similar sentiments back then—creating a fatal medical accident would indeed deal a heavy blow to the TCM Association and give Jiang Fei a major headache, but it seemed like a strategy that harmed the enemy a thousand while damaging oneself eight hundred, not beneficial to their own family either.
Unfortunately, you got the first half right, but the second half completely wrong.
Indeed, someone intended to make your precious son the scapegoat. But it wasn’t Jiang Fei; it was your other son!

Old Master Du also narrowed his eyes. A sharp glint flashed within his cloudy eyes, carrying a fierce killing intent. He said angrily, “I watched Kang’er grow up. Although his character wasn’t always upright, he would never do such a thing! In fact, he wouldn’t even think of such a thing; he wasn’t capable of devising it! I will not let the TCM Association or Jiang Fei get away with this!”

“I also believe Zikang couldn’t have done such a thing. When I heard these accusations, I refused to believe them,” Du Ziliang said solemnly, expressing his agreement.

Old Master Du snorted heavily once more. “Ziliang, where is that scoundrel Jiang Fei, the president of the TCM Association, right now? This old man isn’t planning on sleeping tonight. Unless that fraudulent, malicious villain receives his due punishment, I will turn the capital upside down!”

“I… don’t know. Since the medical accident at the TCM Association, he’s become a target, hunted and blocked everywhere. He’s gone into hiding,” Du Ziliang replied with a serious expression.

In truth, of course he knew where Jiang Fei was. The informant had just told him over the phone.

Right now, after Jiang Fei and that Ye Yuanyuan rescued Min Dong’s wife and daughter, they were rushing non-stop through the night towards his hideout, intending to finish him off!

But of course, he had to pretend he knew nothing; otherwise, his cover would be blown.

“You don’t know? Fine, I can’t be bothered to look for him either. Chengde, Ziliang, let’s go. We’re going directly to the Cui residence!”

Old Master Du brandished his cane and strode forward, taking the lead. Despite his full head of white hair, his presence was formidable. He said angrily, “I originally swore I would never have anything to do with the TCM Association or that old man Cui again in this lifetime. But now that this has happened, even if I have to disregard everything in my old age, I must demand justice for my deceased grandson! The TCM Association has become a den of filth. That old man Cui, as the Honorary President, cannot shirk responsibility. He must give me an explanation!”

And so, the entire group promptly followed behind him out of the airport. The three Mercedes-Benz sedans Du Ziliang had arranged for were waiting, and they sped off towards the Cui family mansion.

Moreover, after getting into the car, the aged but imposing Old Master Du issued orders. He had Du Chengde, the current family head, make several phone calls, notifying several powerful, influential figures in Beijing.

In his words, since the TCM Association had killed his grandson and probably intended to use their influence to pressure them and make his grandson the scapegoat, he would let everyone know that the Du family was not so easily slandered.

The Du family was still the same Du family from over a decade ago!

——-

After Jiang Fei and Ye Yuanyuan rescued Min Dong’s wife and daughter, it took them about an hour by car to reach the villa where Du Ziliang had been staying.

With their skills, the villa’s security was virtually nonexistent. They easily and boldly entered the living room.

Unfortunately, upon inquiry, they found Du Ziliang wasn’t there; he had left that very evening!

“Could he have foreseen the danger and known he was exposed? That shouldn’t be the case,” Jiang Fei and Ye Yuanyuan left the villa, frowning in thought.

Just as they were considering they might have to let it go for the night and plan a city-wide search for Du Ziliang tomorrow, Jiang Fei suddenly received a call from Cui Xiuping.

“What? Du Ziliang is at your place? And he brought a whole crowd to demand justice?” Jiang Fei was momentarily stunned, then sneered. “Fine. Tell them to wait. I’m coming right over!”