Chapter 486 The Kind-hearted Fisherman

Suddenly, a woman's questioning voice came from the courtyard. The woman, who was cleaning the fish with her head down, heard a weak voice coming from outside the door and looked up with a slight puzzlement.

But she still wiped her hands, turned around, walked to the door, and opened it somewhat warily, asking, "Who is it?"

When they opened the door and saw two people soaking wet and bleeding, they were shocked and quickly tried to close the gate.

Lin Changning's face was wet, her hair plastered to her cheeks. She quickly put one hand on the door and stared directly at the woman in the courtyard with her wet phoenix eyes.

With a tone of helplessness and pity, she said, "Auntie, we're not bad people. My brother and I fell into the water, and we barely managed to climb ashore. Please, Auntie, save my brother!"

The woman looked at Lin Changning's handsome face, hesitated for a moment, and then let go of the door. The two brothers were quite handsome and spoke slowly and deliberately, so they didn't seem like bad people.

After hesitating for a moment, he looked at the clothes on the two men and asked questioningly, "Are you soldiers?"

Lin Changning shook her head slightly, a bitter smile on her face: "Do you think my brother and I are fit to be soldiers? We are soldiers under the command of the King of Chu. We were fighting at the front when my brother and I accidentally fell into the water. Fortunately, we were lucky and were swept to the riverbank. But when I woke up, I saw that my brother seemed to have stopped breathing. Even after I splashed water out, he didn't wake up. So I walked along the riverbank for an hour and finally saw your family, Auntie. I begged you to save my brother's life."

As he spoke, he staggered and prepared to kneel down. The woman was startled and hurriedly helped Lin Changning up.

"Oh dear, this won't do, this won't do! Are you the soldiers of that King of Chu who distributed grain to the people?"

Lin Changning raised her phoenix eyes and a bitter smile appeared on her lips: "Yes, Auntie, we are indeed under the command of the King of Chu. This year's taxes are too high, and my brother and I were forced by the court to join the army in order to exchange some grain from the King of Chu."

The woman looked at Lin Changning's pitiful face. He looked about the same age as her own younger brother. It must have been tough for him to join the army and fight at such a young age.

A pang of pity struck her, and she looked at Lin Changning and said, "Sigh, life is hard these days. Look at you, you poor thing. Come with me into the inner room first, and I'll change your clothes. Don't catch a cold, or you'll get a fever!"

He then ushered the two men into the house, shouting urgently as he led them inside, "Master, master, someone's here! Come out quickly! Go to the east end of the village and find a doctor! These two young men fell into the Yellow River today; they'll probably get a fever tonight. Hurry!!!"

As soon as the words left his mouth, a dark-skinned man came out of the house. He wiped his hands with a rag and said, "What? I was cleaning fish here, I didn't hear you."

The woman glared at her husband, then snorted as he came out, "Stop cleaning the fish! These two young men are soldiers from the Chu King's camp who distributed grain a few days ago. They fell into the water today. Go quickly to the east end of the village and call the doctor over!"

Lin Changning saw the dark-skinned man with a suspicious look in his eyes lifting Qi Rong up a little: "Uncle, this man on my back is my second brother. Please help me find a doctor. Don't worry about the money; I have some loose silver on me. Please save my brother!"

When the man saw Lin Changning's face, most of the suspicion in his eyes lessened. He thought, "This child looks so young, he's only fifteen or sixteen years old. What could be wrong with him?"

Seeing that the child was worried they wouldn't save him, he put one hand behind his brother's back and touched his pocket with the other. With a slight blush on his face, he awkwardly took out a small piece of silver and handed it over.

"Uncle, I really have money. Please help me save my brother."

Seeing Lin Changning's sincere gaze, the man waved his hand, glanced at his wife, and said, "It won't cost much to treat a cold. Wife, I'll go and fetch a doctor right away. Have Man'er and Xiu'er boil some hot water, and you go and find my two sets of clothes for these two young men to wear."

After saying that, he helped Lin Changning carry Qi Rong to the room, and after helping him into his own bed, he waved to the two of them.

"I'll go and fetch the doctor right away. Please wait here for a moment."

After saying this, she hurriedly left. Lin Changning felt a bit grateful and took out the silver from his pocket and stuffed it directly into the woman's hand.

“Aunt, thanks to you all, I really didn’t bring any valuables with me when I came out. You can take this money, but we can’t let you take care of us for nothing.”

A hint of embarrassment flashed across the woman's face as she refused the silver Lin Changning offered: "Oh dear, it's just a matter of borrowing a bed and getting a couple of pieces of clothing. Why would I need any money? You're so young and it's not easy for you to be out here working so hard. Take it back."

As the woman spoke, she handed the silver to Lin Changning, who, with an innocent and delicate face, refused to take it back with his hands behind his back.

"Even a doctor charges money for a consultation or to get medicine. Auntie, please keep it, otherwise I won't feel at ease."

Seeing that she couldn't refuse any longer, the woman stopped trying to persuade Lin Changning. She sighed and smiled at him, "Oh, child, I'll accept this money. When the doctor comes later tonight, I'll have him prescribe some good medicine for you. I'll go find you some clothes now."

After saying this, the woman went out the door, and as soon as she stepped out, she called out, "Man'er? Xiu'er? Is the hot water heated yet?"

Then, two clear, childlike voices could be heard responding in unison, "It's burning, Mother!"

A short while later, the lady carried two sets of coarse linen clothes into the room where Lin Changning and the other man were staying.

Seeing that the room was a little dark, the woman put the clothes on the table, then turned around and went to a cabinet to take out a candle and light it.

"These are all the clothes the head of the household wears. Although they are all old clothes, they are very clean. They are wet and uncomfortable to wear. Change into these clothes first. The hot water will be ready soon, and then you can wipe yourself down."

As the woman instructed Lin Changning, she headed out, saying, "I won't stay in the room. Could you please help your brother change his clothes? It's not appropriate for a woman like me to stay here."

Lin Changning sighed, watched as the woman went out and locked the door, then found a corner, called Qi Rong softly a few times, and after confirming that he was still asleep, quickly took off his clothes and changed into the coarse linen clothes the woman had brought him.

After tying the belt around her waist, Lin Changning turned to look at Qi Rong, who was still fast asleep on the bed, and reached out to remove his clothes.

After taking off his shirt, Lin Changning was about to take off his pants when he suddenly stopped.

Tsk, I almost forgot my real gender.

Pulling someone's pants down, isn't that a bad idea?