"Infected wounds, a persistent high fever, symptoms of severe pneumonia, multiple soft tissue contusions throughout the body, multiple frostbite lesions, ligature marks deep enough to expose bone on the left wrist and ankles, and extensive whip marks across the back. Our preliminary assessment is that these resulted from prolonged abuse!"
In the highest-tier ward at the Military Region General Hospital, the military doctor's voice was grave and clear. Every word was like a sharp knife plunging into the hearts of the Su family. Su Mingfeng stood beside the hospital bed, his face ashen.
In his arms, Nuannuan's tiny body was surrounded by medical equipment, an oxygen mask covering most of her face. Her breathing was still rapid, her little chest heaving violently.
Su Zhenbang and Lin Wanyi sat on the other side of the bed. The old lady had cried until she went limp. Su Zhenbang held her hand tightly, his weathered face now clouded with gloom. His eyes remained fixed on Nuannuan, fury churning in their depths.
"Prolonged abuse?" a low voice rang out.
Three men in military uniforms or Zhongshan suits stood at the ward's entrance. They were the three maternal uncles of the Su family who were in the capital.
At their head was Su Mingguo, the eldest Su brother. He wore a crisp military uniform, a general's stars gleaming on his epaulets. He was broad and powerfully built, with a stern face and an air of authority that needed no anger to make itself felt. He was a senior commander in the military region, in charge of logistics. At the military doctor's report, his expression instantly darkened.
Beside him was the third brother, Su Mingzhe. Dressed in a plain Zhongshan suit and wearing gold-rimmed glasses, he looked refined and scholarly. He was an expert at a major national research institute and spent most of his time in the laboratory. Now, behind his lenses, his eyes burned with fury too.
The youngest was the fourth brother, Su Mingyuan. He wore a white coat and was both the deputy director of the Military Region General Hospital and one of the country's leading cardiac surgeons. He had just come out of surgery and had not even had time to change out of his surgical scrubs. Hearing the military doctor's report, he trembled slightly. His usually calm, steady hands were now clenched into fists.
"Sir, Nuannuan's physical condition is even worse than we expected." The military doctor lowered his head, his voice catching slightly. "The most serious concern is her mental state. Prolonged extreme fear and hunger have caused severe deterioration of her bodily functions. If she had arrived any later..."
The military doctor did not continue, but everyone understood what he meant. Any later, and Nuannuan might truly have died.
"What exactly has she been through these past five years?" Lin Wanyi asked through her tears, her voice hoarse.
Su Mingfeng placed Nuannuan's medal on the bedside table. The bloodstained five-pointed star looked especially jarring beneath the ward's lights. It silently told of the suffering Nuannuan had endured over the past five years.
"The traffickers, and Liu Guifang from Li Family Village." Su Mingfeng forced the words through gritted teeth, his voice thick with killing intent. "I sent headquarters a telegram at the highest level of classification while I was on the train. The military regions along the route and the public security authorities have already launched a full-scale manhunt."
Su Mingguo stepped forward and walked to the bedside, looking at Nuannuan's little face beneath the oxygen mask. He gently rested his hand on her exposed forehead. Its icy touch made his heart feel as though it were being sliced apart.
"Liu Guifang? Li Family Village?" Su Mingguo's voice was low, filled with suppressed fury. "Investigate every last detail, going back eighteen generations! Anyone who dares shield them, conceal information, or collude with traffickers is to be severely punished without exception!"
Su Mingzhe adjusted his glasses, a dangerous light flashing in his eyes behind the lenses. He was normally gentle and refined, but now his face was utterly expressionless.
"Mingfeng, compile a copy of that trafficker's confession for me. And get me background information on Liu Guifang-the more detailed, the better." Su Mingzhe's voice was calm, yet held an unquestionable ruthlessness. "I'd like to see who has the nerve to lay a hand on a member of my Su family!"
Su Mingyuan had already walked to the other side of the bed. He picked up Nuannuan's medical chart and quickly leafed through it. His brow furrowed more deeply, and his face grew paler.
"These injuries... these scars..." Su Mingyuan's voice trembled. "This is simply... worse than beasts!" He snapped the chart shut, his eyes filled with anguish and anger. He was a doctor and had seen countless patients, but faced with the injury report of his own family member, he still could not suppress his grief.
Su Zhenbang slowly rose to his feet. He walked to the window, his back to everyone. His body trembled slightly, but no one dared disturb him. The entire ward was filled with suppressed grief and fury on the verge of erupting.
"The Su family has been silent for five years." Su Zhenbang's voice was low, carrying the authority of a battle-hardened veteran. "Now, it's time those people got to know the Su family again."
The moment he finished speaking, hurried footsteps sounded outside the ward.
"Sir! News from the train station!" The guard, Zhang Li, rushed in, a trace of panic on his face. "That snow leopard... it's gone!"
Su Mingfeng spun around. Su Mingguo, Su Mingzhe, Su Mingyuan, and Su Zhenbang all fixed their eyes on Zhang Li.
"Gone?" Su Mingfeng's voice was icy.
"Yes! We had men guarding it, but it was too fast. It caught them off guard, jumped off the platform, and disappeared into the night!" Zhang Li spoke rapidly. "We've already sent men to pursue it, but it doesn't know its way around the capital, and it's a wild beast..."
Su Mingfeng's heart sank. The snow leopard. Big Kitty. It was gone. Where would it go? Would it be in danger?
"It won't hurt anyone," Su Mingfeng said with certainty. "It just... it just wants to find Nuannuan."
Su Zhenbang turned around, his gaze deep and sharp. "A snow leopard?" He looked at Su Mingfeng. "You said Nuannuan was rescued by a snow leopard?"
Su Mingfeng nodded and briefly recounted how the snow leopard had saved Nuannuan.
After hearing the story, the Su family fell silent. A king of the snowy mountains had ventured into the capital for a five-year-old child. It was simply unheard of.
"Send men to keep searching," Su Zhenbang ordered gravely. "Find it and protect it. Don't let it hurt anyone, and above all, don't let anyone hurt it."
"Yes, sir!" Zhang Li acknowledged the order.
Su Mingguo, Su Mingzhe, and Su Mingyuan looked at the frail Nuannuan on the hospital bed, then thought of that loyal snow leopard.