Chapter 118

Xia Qingtang pointed to the outside of his left leg and said, "This area hurts so much that I didn't dare to pedal with my left leg. I used my right leg to push back. My left leg has been burning and the bones hurt too."

Xie Jinxuan handed her the umbrella, squatted down and checked Xia Qingtang's left leg, and immediately said: "The weather is too bad, let's go to the infirmary first and ask Doctor Liu to check you out. If she says there is any problem, let Grandpa's car take you to the hospital, okay? Your pants are all wet, if you go to the hospital, it's better to change into clean pants, otherwise you will catch a cold."

"Okay, I'll listen to you."

Xie Jinxuan rode her bicycle and took Xia Qingtang to the infirmary in the compound.

The infirmary was closed at this time, but Doctor Liu's residence was not far from here, so Xie Jinxuan took Xia Qingtang to Doctor Liu's home. After explaining the situation, the kind Doctor Liu immediately took out some simple medicine and asked Xia Qingtang to take off his pants so that she could see the injury.

Dr. Liu was a middle-aged woman, and there was no one else at home, so Xia Qingtang had nothing to worry about and simply took off her trousers.

When she took it off, she felt a tearing pain. Her skin was indeed torn. It was now stuck to the innermost layer of pants and it hurt every time she moved.

"You fell pretty hard. Let me treat your wound first, and then see if your bones are okay." Doctor Liu immediately began to treat Xia Qingtang's wound.

Xie Jinxuan said, "Doctor Liu, please take care of Qingtang. I'll go home and get her some clean pants, okay?"

"Okay, don't worry about it, you'll be at my house soon." Doctor Liu smiled at him.

The act of taking off her underwear made Xia Qingtang shed many tears. Doctor Liu treated her gently as if coaxing a child, saying, "It's almost done. It will be fine soon. It won't hurt when it's done."

Fortunately, there was nothing wrong with the left leg bone, and Xia Qingtang was able to move freely after his left leg was bandaged.

After Xie Jinxuan delivered the pants and learned all this, she breathed a sigh of relief.

Xia Qingtang didn't feel so much pain now, and after changing into clean pants, his body gradually warmed up.

"Before the wound scabs over, be careful not to get it wet. Come to me every night to change the medicine. You are young, so it should heal quickly. The wound is not too small. When you eat, pay attention to the foods you avoid, and don't eat anything too spicy." Doctor Liu carefully reminded him, "Otherwise, there is nothing wrong. If you have a fever at night, take an anti-inflammatory and antipyretic medicine."

"I see. Thank you, Dr. Liu." Xia Qingtang sighed. "Tomorrow our office will have to move things together. I don't know what my colleagues will say about my current situation."

Doctor Liu said, "No one wants to get hurt. How about this? I'll write you a note. Actually, you can rest at home tomorrow."

"Ah... would it be too bad?" Xia Qingtang was a little hesitant.

Xie Jinxuan said, "Please ask Dr. Liu to write a note. I will go to her workplace tomorrow morning to ask for leave for her. Her left leg fell so badly, and it's snowing heavily tonight. It's better for her to rest at home."

"Okay, then I'll write one for you." Doctor Liu opened the drawer to find paper and pen, and wrote a note to Xia Qingtang.

"Thank you, Dr. Liu. We'll go back now." Xie Jinxuan quickly put away the note.

Doctor Liu escorted them out the door and, looking at the sky, said, "The snow is getting heavier and heavier. It's starting to accumulate. You have to be careful when walking or riding a bike these two days. It's easy to get hurt."

"Yes, we will pay attention." Xie Jinxuan didn't dare to ride the bike anymore. She let Xia Qingtang sit on the back seat and pushed the bike back.

Xia Qingtang limped up the steps of his house, then opened the door and walked into the house. He breathed in the warm air inside and couldn't help but sigh heavily.

Xie Jinxuan came in carrying a cloth bag with the dirty pants she had just changed. He said, "Your cotton coat is also dirty. Change it and I'll take it out to soak."

"Okay." Xia Qingtang then realized that the hem of his cotton coat was also covered in mud.

Such clothes are particularly difficult to wash. Thinking of this, she couldn't help but say bitterly: "I'm still very angry when I think about it. It's really an unexpected disaster today! Why are there people like this on the street, and no one cares?"

Xie Jinxuan soaked all the cotton-padded clothes and other items covered in mud and water in a large basin, then washed her hands and came over to make malted milk for her.

"We can't do anything about it even if we want to. Just like the time we encountered a thief at the train station, we did manage this kind of minor incident, but we would only lock him up for a dozen days at most and then release him. After that, he would continue to steal again."

Xia Qingtang felt refreshed at this moment. She sat on the sofa and slowly wiped her hair with a dry towel.

"Drink something hot." Xie Jinxuan handed her a cup of malted milk.

Xia Qingtang held the cup and drank while still feeling very angry.

"They don't dare to find big men to hurt people, they only dare to find female comrades like us. The weather is so bad today, and I was in a bad mood. I really wanted to grab that woman. Now I still regret it. I should have sent her to the police station, so that at least I can vent my anger! And, do you know? This afternoon when I was the busiest at work, Ding Yurou ran to our factory to find me. She said a lot of nagging, which was really annoying. Today was full of bad things!"

Xie Jinxuan said: "She went to see you?"

"Yes, she wanted me to come back and persuade you, and asked the two of us to ask Lao Luo out, and then have a face-to-face meeting. I refused at the time. I thought that after she went back, she must have said a lot of bad things about me, and maybe even cursed me, so I encountered such bad luck today!" Xia Qingtang snorted.

Xie Jinxuan quickly touched her head, then took the towel and wiped her herself: "She came to see you in the afternoon?"

"yes."

"She was really busy today. She went to the provincial capital university to find me this morning. She said the same thing, wanting me to ask Xiang Qian out. She also wanted to win back Xiang Qian in person, but I rejected her. In my opinion, this woman is not a good match, and I agree with Xiang Qian breaking up with her." Xie Jinxuan said.

"Since you also rejected her, why didn't she curse you, but only me? Ah, I get it, this person is also a bully, what a bad guy!" Xia Qingtang was so angry that he slapped the sofa with his hands.

After the photoshoot, she said angrily, "I know, I'm taking my anger out on Ding Yurou. This has nothing to do with Ding Yurou. I just had bad luck."

"Don't be angry. It's not worth getting yourself hurt. The main reason for your injury is the weather. If the weather was good, you would not have been pounced on by that man. However, the street you pass by after get off work has been quite chaotic in the past six months. I heard that a lot of things like this have happened there, and some people have taken care of it, but it's useless. If you meet these people again next time, you don't have to confront them head-on. What you did today was actually quite dangerous. If you have money, give them a few dollars. They just want a little money, so just send them off. Safety should still be the priority." Xie Jinxuan said softly, "I understand how you feel, but safety is always the most important thing. It's painful to fall down, and I can't imagine if those people really beat people up..."

"Do you think I don't know that losing money can ward off disaster? I was so angry at the time. Plus, I was soaked and it hurt so much from the fall. I was too embarrassed to cry at that moment, so I felt really wronged and I was so angry that I didn't care about anything else." Xia Qingtang said, "It's all your fault!"

Xie Jinxuan was confused: "How could it be my fault?"

"Because I didn't have such a temper before. It was only after I was with you that you spoiled me. I became like this now and get angry at the slightest thing. It's all because of you. Do you think it's your fault?" Xia Qingtang was very confident.

"If that's the case, it's indeed my fault." Xie Jinxuan held her hand, "This is all my fault. During this time, I will take good care of you. You should take good care of your injuries. Before your leg is healed, I will take you to work in the morning and pick you up in the evening."

"Forget about it these days. The snow is getting heavier. I won't be able to ride tomorrow morning."

"You don't have to go out tomorrow morning, did you forget? Doctor Liu gave you a note, asking you to rest at home."

"Then I mean the morning after tomorrow."

Xie Jinxuan said: "It's okay, I'll take the bus to take you to the cotton mill the day after tomorrow morning."

"That's better." Xia Qingtang sighed, feeling that the feeling of injustice in his heart finally disappeared.

As she was talking, her stomach growled and she couldn't help laughing: "I'm hungry after all this time. Jinxuan, go to the cafeteria and get some food. I want to eat."

"Do you want to go eat at grandma's?"

"Forget it. I don't want to move. Besides, I don't want to worry the old man."

"Okay, I'll go to the cafeteria now."

Xie Jinxuan immediately went to get some food. After they both finished eating, he quickly got some water and asked Xia Qingtang to wash up, then let her lie down on the bed.

Xia Qingtang's wound was neither big nor small. It was not known whether it was because of the wound or because of his wet clothes and he caught a cold, but in the middle of the night, Xia Qingtang developed a fever.

Xie Jinxuan was very alert when sleeping. He heard a slightly painful moan coming from beside him, so he quickly turned on the desk lamp and sat up. He reached out and touched Xia Qingtang's forehead, which was burning hot.

Maybe because the fever was too severe, she started talking nonsense in her sleep.

"Asshole... Asshole... You lied to me... You lied to me..."

"Qingtang? Qingtang?" Xie Jinxuan patted Xia Qingtang's shoulder gently.

Xia Qingtang was awakened in a daze, and it took him a long time to realize where he was.

"Jinxuan? Is it dawn yet?" As she spoke, she realized her voice was a little hoarse, "Huh?"

"It's two o'clock in the morning now. You have a fever and are talking nonsense." Xie Jinxuan said, "Wake up first. I'll get you some medicine."

He quickly got up, found some medicine and fed it to her, then wrung out a cold towel and put it on her forehead, his eyes full of heartache: "Are you feeling better?"

Xia Qingtang felt as if her consciousness was floating on the clouds. She said lightly, "I don't know. I just... can't use my fingers."

"You have a fever, that's what happens. Take some medicine now and you should be better by dawn. You continue to sleep, I'll stay with you." Xie Jinxuan touched her hot cheek and her heart sank.

Xia Qingtang smiled at him and said, "I'm fine. I'm in very good health and have been very strong since I was a child. I was malnourished when I was young, and I rarely caught a cold or had a fever. Now that I have good nutrition, I will definitely get better soon. Don't worry."

"Well, I'm not worried."

"If you're not worried, why are you frowning?"

Xie Jinxuan said softly: "I just feel distressed."

"Well, I allow you to continue to feel bad." She laughed softly, feeling a little dizzy.

Xia Qingtang smiled and slowly fell asleep.

Although Xie Jinxuan also lay down, she did not sleep well. She had to get up every half an hour to change her cold towel.

As dawn approached, Xia Qingtang's temperature finally dropped. Xie Jinxuan breathed a sigh of relief. Seeing that it was almost time, she got up and went to wash herself.

After washing up, he changed his clothes and went to the small western-style building, carrying the muddy clothes that had been soaked yesterday.

The snow fell all night and stopped just before dawn. It was white outside. Xie Jinxuan walked out in rubber shoes and found that some people were organizing snow sweeping. The neighbors who got up early were also clearing snow in their own yards.

Aunt Six and the others had just gotten up for a while when they saw Xie Jinxuan coming over with clothes, so she came to help.

"Hey, why are these clothes so dirty?" Aunt Six asked in surprise, "Qingtang is a very clean child, did he roll around in the mud?"

Xie Jinxuan said: "Qingtang was pushed down by someone yesterday, and he and his car fell down, so his body was covered in mud and water. These clothes have been soaked several times. Wash them twice in the washing machine, and they should be fine."

"What? Qingtang fell down? How's that guy? Is he injured?"

Xie Jinxuan took out the washed underwear and said, "Look, the pants are torn and covered in blood. Her left leg was injured. Doctor Liu bandaged it and said the bones were fine. But she still had a fever and talked nonsense in the middle of the night. I gave her medicine and her fever went down in the morning. She is sleeping more peacefully now. I'll come over to wash clothes first. I also want to ask Aunt Liu to make her some nutritious breakfast. She is sick and I don't want her to eat in the cafeteria, but what I make is not tasty."

Aunt Six said immediately, "Oh my God, this child is in such a cold weather, and she is injured and soaked in muddy water. No wonder she has a fever. Come, let's wash the clothes first, and then I will make breakfast. Let me think about it, she just has a fever, I will cook her some millet porridge, make a few soft egg pancakes, and stir-fry some vegetables for her, that should be enough."

"Okay, thank you Aunt Six." Xie Jinxuan said, "I'll wash the clothes and go back. I'm afraid Qingtang will be scared when he wakes up and can't see anyone. Please tell Grandma and the others about this later."

"I will. Don't come over later. I'll bring breakfast to Qingtang when it's ready. You can eat with us in the morning. There's a lot of food left over from last night. We'll have vegetable soup and rice with coarse flour buns in the morning."

"Then I'll wait for Aunt Six to come over." Seeing that the washing machine started running, Xie Jinxuan walked back home on the snow.

Xia Qingtang was still sleeping soundly. Xie Jinxuan warmed her hands before touching her face. Seeing that her breathing was steady, she felt relieved and went out to clear the snow.

Xia Qingtang slept until 7:30 in the morning. When she woke up, Xie Jinxuan was sitting next to her. She could also hear her grandmother and Aunt Six talking quietly outside the house. She was startled and said, "Oh, how did I wake up Grandma and the others?"

"You've had a fever all night. I'll go over in the morning and ask Aunt Six to make you some breakfast." Xie Jinxuan said, "Besides, I'm going to ask for leave for you later. I asked Doctor Liu when I was sweeping the snow just now. She said that you'd better rest for two days in a row, otherwise the fever might continue. I'll ask her to write you a new note. You should rest well at home. I'll ride my bike to the cotton mill to ask for leave for you. I'm going out, how can I worry about you being alone at home? So let Grandma and Aunt Six come to accompany you for a while."

Xia Qingtang said: "Did I have a fever last night? I was almost unconscious... But now that I say this, I really feel like I have no strength at all, I feel weak."

"Then do you want to sleep a little longer? More sleep will help with recovery."

"I don't want to sleep anymore. I want to go to the bathroom and drink some water. My throat is very dry." Xia Qingtang wanted to sit up.

Xie Jinxuan quickly reached out to pick her up, then carried her to the bathroom.

After coming out of the bathroom, Xia Qingtang saw her grandmother and Sixth Aunt sitting on the sofa, looking at her with concern.

"Qingtang, are you feeling better?" grandma asked.

"Much better." Xia Qingtang smiled.

"She doesn't have much strength. It's obvious that she's not well yet." Xie Jinxuan handed her a glass of warm water and said, "Put on your clothes first, and then go eat. After eating, you may feel more energetic."

"Yes, eat first. I cooked millet porridge for you, fried some vegetables, and made egg pancakes. They are very soft. Eat more bites. The sicker you are, the more you should eat." Aunt Liu pointed to the straw basket next to her, which contained the breakfast she had prepared for Xia Qingtang.

Xia Qingtang put on her clothes and went to the living room. Because of her injured left leg, she walked with a limp.

Grandma was heartbroken. She said, "How could such a thing happen to me? It was such an unexpected disaster!"

Aunt Six also said, "That's right, Jinxuan, is there no one to control those people? They hurt people so badly and still want to extort money. This is too much!"

Xie Jinxuan pondered and said, "It's true that we can't control them. If we control them today, they will run out again the day after tomorrow."

"But they let Qingtang get so badly injured and have a fever and get sick, and nothing is wrong with him?" Grandma said, "Why?"

Xie Jinxuan looked at Xia Qingtang and whispered, "I know what's going on with this."

The problem will definitely not be solved through formal channels. Just like what the kind-hearted lady said, if someone is arrested and detained for a few days today, he will be released later and have to start all over again. It has no punishment effect at all.

If she wanted to teach them a lesson, she had to find another way, but Xie Jinxuan would not tell these things to her family.

Grandma probably understood, so she changed the subject and said, "Qingtang, hurry up and eat. Look at your face, it's so pale. You must eat well."

Sixth Aunt took out the breakfast that was delivered to her. Xia Qingtang thanked her and began to enjoy her own breakfast.

The omelet was soft and seasoned just right, and the millet porridge went down well too. Xia Qingtang took a bite of the omelet, drank a sip of the millet porridge, and smiled with satisfaction.

Xie Jinxuan had already eaten, and seeing her slowly start to eat breakfast, he stayed with her for a while. When the time was almost up, he said, "It's time for me to leave, too. Grandma, Sixth Aunt, please help me keep Qingtang company for a while."

"Okay, go ahead. You don't have to worry about this. We know how to take care of people." Grandma said, "It's cold outside and the ground is slippery. You should be careful when walking."

"I will." After saying that, Xie Jinxuan put on her cotton coat and went out in rubber shoes.

Xia Qingtang ate his breakfast slowly, describing the bad guys from yesterday to his grandmother and Aunt Six while eating.

"She's so old and still comes out to hurt others. She really doesn't fear retribution." Aunt Six said angrily, "If I see her, I will definitely fight with her."

Xia Qingtang said: "I wanted to hit someone yesterday, but I felt pain and cold, so I gave up in the end. Now I think about it and feel really bad. I should have hit him before going home."

Grandma said, "Forget it. Just trust Jinxuan. He won't let you suffer this loss."

Xia Qingtang was stunned for a moment, then understood what her grandmother meant: "I understand."

After breakfast, Aunt Six cleared the dishes and the two of them asked Xia Qingtang to go back to the bedroom and continue lying down.

"I can't sleep now, why don't we listen to the radio for a while?" Xia Qingtang said.

Grandma let her lie on the sofa, then covered her with a small blanket and turned on the radio, and the few of them listened and chatted.

Xia Qingtang initially said that he was not sleepy, but as he listened, he curled up on the sofa and fell asleep.

Grandma quickly asked Aunt Six to turn off the radio, then covered her tightly with a coat and a small blanket, and the two of them sat beside her to keep her company.

"This child rarely gets sick," the grandmother whispered, "and rarely cries... She was really wronged by what happened yesterday."

Aunt Six said, "Isn't it? The way I look at Jinxuan makes me want to kill her."

Grandma smiled and said, "Jinxuan is a much more irritable child than his grandfather and father. He will never let this go."

Xia Qingtang slept comfortably on the sofa. When she woke up, it was already past ten o'clock. Grandma and Sixth Aunt were not in the room. Instead, Xie Jinxuan was there.

"Huh? Why are you at home? Don't you have classes today?" Xia Qingtang was very surprised.

She thought Xie Jinxuan called her grandmother and the others over because Xie Jinxuan had to go to class.

Xie Jinxuan said, "How can I go to class when you are so sick? Don't worry, it doesn't matter if I miss one day of class. I can make it up tomorrow. How do you feel now? Are you still feeling bad?"

"Not bad, I feel better than when I woke up earlier, probably because I have more energy after eating." Xia Qingtang let out a long sigh, "I slept really well, so comfortably."

"After I came back, I wanted to carry you to the bedroom, but grandma said that you would definitely wake up if I moved you, so it's better to let you continue sleeping here. Besides, the living room is warmer, so I didn't move you." Xie Jinxuan handed over a glass of warm water, "Drink more water."

Xia Qingtang sat up, took the cup and drank it down, saying, "What's the reaction of the people in our office? Are they very angry?"

The factory is going to distribute employee benefits, and today is the day when the benefits arrive at the factory. All the people in their union are responsible for inventory and counting, so they have to go and move things around. Now that she, a young person, has asked for leave, it may be okay for others, but Li Yue will definitely be angry.

Xie Jinxuan said, "I'm not sure how your colleagues reacted. I only went to Chairman Qin's office and asked for leave from her alone. She knew you were injured and had a fever, and she was very concerned about you. She asked me to take good care of you. She also said that you don't have to worry about work and you must focus on your health."

"Chairman Qin is a good leader, she will definitely say that." Xia Qingtang said: "Actually, I don't want to be sick either. It's really uncomfortable to be sick. I would rather go to work in good health."

She rested peacefully at home for a day, and Xie Jinxuan also stayed with her peacefully for a day.

Lunch and dinner were prepared and sent over by Sixth Aunt, and Xia Qingtang ate specially prepared meals that were light and easy to digest.

After all, youth means good health. Xia Qingtang had a good sleep at night, and when he woke up the next day, he felt much better and had more energy.

But after Xie Jinxuan took her temperature, she decided to follow Dr. Liu's advice and let Xia Qingtang continue to rest at home for another day.

"I will rest at home, but you don't have to accompany me. I will read books and newspapers at home today and enjoy myself. You just go to class well. Good students should not miss so many classes." Xia Qingtang said.

Xie Jinxuan went to school as usual, and Xia Qingtang stayed at home alone reading books and newspapers. When he was enjoying himself, a neighbor came to the door.

This was a neighbor who lived several yards away from their small yard. They would greet each other when they met, but they didn't interact very often.

Xia Qingtang opened the yard door, invited her in, and asked her what was the matter.

The neighbor was also a middle-aged woman. She handed over the small basket in her hand and said, "I heard that you were sick and resting at home. I have also been resting at home these days. I have some mountain products at home. They are not valuable, but the mushrooms are very nutritious when boiled into soup, so I thought of giving you some."

The small bamboo basket was filled with some dried mushrooms that Xia Qingtang was not familiar with, and there was quite a lot of them.

She quickly said, "Thank you, Sister Tan. We have a lot of mountain products at home. You should take these home and eat them yourself."

Although they didn't have much contact, Xia Qingtang remembered that this neighbor was not very well-off. Although she and her husband were both working, they had many children, so they must have been tight on food. She couldn't accept anything from such a person.

Sister Tan smiled and said, "Here you go, just take it."

"Then Sister Tan...is there anything else?" Xia Qingtang couldn't help but ask when she saw how persistent she was in wanting to give her something.

Sister Tan said, "Actually, it's like this. My oldest son also wants to go to college, but he failed last year. He wants to try again this year, but the more he reviews, the less confident he becomes. I think your Xiao Xie is a top student who was admitted to the provincial capital university. Can you...can you ask Xiao Xie to give our eldest son some advice...or borrow some of the review materials he used before, that would be great too."

The eldest son of Sister Tan was a sent-down youth. Because he had many younger brothers and sisters and the house was crowded, he stayed in the countryside for a long time and only returned to the city recently. He currently has no job and is probably waiting for the electrical appliance factory to recruit workers after the spring.

Xia Qingtang had seen the young man several times. He had the impression that he was a dark and thin man who seemed very shy. When he greeted people, he didn't dare to look directly into their eyes and always kept his head down.

Xia Qingtang said, "Oh, this shouldn't be a problem. I'll tell Xie Jinxuan when she gets back from get out of class today. But he's usually busy, so he probably won't have time to give me advice."

Helping others with their homework is hard and tiring. Who would be willing to do this except for your own family?

"I know he is very busy. As long as we can borrow his review materials, we will be satisfied. He is a top student. With his review materials, our eldest child will definitely get a good grade in the exam." Sister Tan smiled brightly. "Then you have a good rest. I won't disturb you. These mushrooms are really delicious. Wash them and soak them several times. Then use a clay pot to cook the soup directly. No salt is needed. Just add a little salt after serving it in the bowl. It is guaranteed to be delicious."

"Okay, thank you, Sister Tan." Xia Qingtang said, "Then I'll pour the mushrooms down."

As she spoke, she poured the dry goods in the bamboo basket onto the kitchen table and returned the empty basket to Sister Tan.

Sister Tan looked at her small kitchen, then at the living room, and said, "Your family... has two coal stoves?"

Xia Qingtang was stunned for a moment and said, "Not really. In winter, we mainly burn the one in the living room to keep warm."

"That's great, it's great that you guys are like this." Sister Tan sighed and said, "My husband and I are already so old that we can live in a house like this. It's great that you can live in one in your early twenties."

Xia Qingtang didn't know what to say, so he just smiled at her.

Sister Tan probably realized that she had said something wrong, so she quickly said, "Ah, I won't bother you anymore. Take care of yourself. I'm going back. Please help me with the information."

"Okay, I will. Take care, Sister Tan." Xia Qingtang sent the person out and closed the yard door.

Back in the house, she looked at the pile of unfamiliar dried mushrooms on the table, thought about it and decided to put them away, then took out the dried shiitake mushrooms and dried cowpeas and soaked them in warm water.

Then she washed the cabbage, fried it and put it aside. She also chopped up the dried mushrooms and dried cowpeas and made them into stewed rice. When Xie Jinxuan came in, lunch was ready.

"Didn't I tell you to have a good rest? Why are you cooking?" Xie Jinxuan walked into the house, washed her hands and quickly touched Xia Qingtang's forehead.

"I don't have anything to do today, and my legs don't hurt that much. I'm just sitting around doing nothing, so making lunch is nothing." Xia Qingtang said, "By the way, Miss Tan from over there came over and gave me some dried mushrooms. She also asked you to borrow some review materials for the college entrance exam, saying that she wanted to use them for her eldest son."

Xie Jinxuan said, "I have lent my review materials to someone else. Let me go and ask in a couple of days. If they have copied it, I will take it back."

"Okay, I'll go talk to her this afternoon." Xia Qingtang said, "Okay, let's eat quickly."

After dinner, Xia Qingtang went to take a nap, and Xie Jinxuan stayed with her for a while.

When she woke up, she found it was already past three o'clock. She tidied herself up, drank some hot water, and went out for a walk.

The snow in the yard had been cleared long ago, but the snow on both sides of the road was obviously frozen, and you could see a lot of footprints that were probably left by children.

Xia Qingtang's legs and feet are not convenient now, otherwise, she would definitely step on it a few times and leave her own footprints.

She slowly strolled to the door of Sister Tan's house. Just as she was about to knock on the door, she heard a scream from inside: "No! Dabao, don't do this! Dabao!"

This was Sister Tan's voice. Xia Qingtang quickly knocked on the iron door: "Sister Tan? Sister Tan, what's wrong with you?"

An aunt from the family on the left also ran out: "What's wrong? What's wrong?"

Sister Tan heard the noise, opened the door and ran out: "Help! Help! Our eldest son has gone crazy! He's trying to chop me with a knife! Help!"

"What?" Auntie was shocked. "Xiao Xia, go and call for help! Their eldest brother is a big guy, and we girls can't do it!"

Xia Qingtang was also startled. She didn't care about her leg injury and limped forward: "Someone, is there any male comrade here? Come out and help me!"

Two or three male comrades were called over and they rushed into Sister Tan's house. It took them a while to control the situation.

Xia Qingtang didn't dare to go in, and just stood on the side of the road and watched.

Several people came out carrying a young man who was tied up. The young man was Sister Tan's son. He looked very abnormal. Although his body was tied up, he was still struggling desperately and shouting: "Kill you! Kill you! You all want to hurt me! You all want to hurt me!"

This person is completely different from the one I saw before, as if he has some mental illness.

Several male comrades thought so too, and carried the body out and sent it to the hospital.

Sister Tan followed out crying: "What should I do? My Dabao...how could he suddenly become like this?"

The neighbor aunt said, "Don't cry yet, send him to the hospital first. Your eldest child is usually an honest child, it is unlikely that he will suddenly become like this. Did something happen in your family? So... the child is possessed..."

"Possessed? I...I don't know..." Sister Tan whispered, "I don't know...I don't know..."

"Then let's go to the hospital first. You should hurry up and follow us. I'll go and tell Old Yu. Don't delay any longer." As she said that, the aunt pushed Sister Tan.

Xia Qingtang watched them walk away, then helped Sister Tan close the yard door and went home.

The news spread quickly, and everyone was saying that Sister Tan's eldest son was possessed by evil spirits. Some people even secretly went to the temple to ask the master for some talismans to ward off evil spirits.

Xia Qingtang and Xie Jinxuan did not participate in this, and she also resumed her normal work and rest routine.

Her legs still hurt when she rode a bike, so Xie Jinxuan temporarily took her to work, and she took the bus back home by herself after get off work in the afternoon.

Although she took two days off during the busiest time, her colleagues reacted well. Seeing that she was injured, they asked her to rest more and stopped her from running around.

Fortunately, the wound on her left leg scabbed over after a week, and it was no longer a problem. Xia Qingtang went back to riding her bike to and from get off work.

At this time, Sister Tan's eldest son was finally discharged from the hospital.

Xia Qingtang had just come home from get off work in the evening when Xie Jinxuan asked, "Where did you put the dried mushrooms that Sister Tan gave you?"

The kitchen cabinet doors were all opened, and it was obvious that Xie Jinxuan was rummaging through something.

Xia Qingtang said, "Ah? What's wrong? Do you want to drink that soup today? The cabinet was full before, so I hung it over there."

She pointed to a hook on the wall, and Xie Jinxuan immediately reached out and took down the cloth bag.

"You can't eat this. Sister Tan came over just now and said that her son went crazy because of eating this."

"What?! Is this poisonous?" Xia Qingtang was shocked.

"It's poisonous, but not serious. If it's cooked thoroughly and eaten in small amounts, it won't be a problem. But her son wanted to save some food at noon that day, so he only wanted to eat mushroom soup. So he ate too much and suddenly went crazy. He was later sent to the hospital, and after a long investigation, no one knew what caused it. As a result, one day, Sister Tan cooked the mushroom soup again and gave it to her son. The doctor saw it and took it to the southwest to identify it. Sure enough, it was this mushroom that caused it." Xie Jinxuan said, "Fortunately, we haven't eaten it yet."

Xia Qingtang was also shocked: "Luckily, I haven't been craving for mushrooms recently, and fortunately Aunt Six sent a lot of fresh vegetables over. I didn't have time to eat the fresh vegetables... I was actually planning to use this to make soup next week."

Xie Jinxuan said: "I took this out and broke it into pieces before throwing it away, to prevent someone from picking it up and eating it without knowing why."

"Okay, go quickly." Xia Qingtang was still in shock, "Is Sister Tan's son okay?"

"He has recovered, but he suffered a lot." Xie Jinxuan said, and went out with the mushrooms.

In a blink of an eye, January is almost over, and today happens to be Laba Festival.

The cotton mill was not short of money this year, so it cooked a lot of Laba porridge for lunch on Laba Festival and gave a spoonful of it to all the employees for free.

Although the Laba porridge in the cafeteria was not as thick as the one at home, it tasted good. Xia Qingtang and Wen Xiaoli took their cups to scoop a spoonful of it, and then ate it with the rice. It was sweet and salty and quite enjoyable.

That afternoon, the entire union office was working overtime again, and Xia Qingtang didn't rush home until almost six o'clock on his bike.

Passing the same intersection again, she intentionally sped up, wanting to ride through faster, but unexpectedly a man rushed out from the side and ran straight towards her bicycle.

The situation was exactly the same as the day it snowed.

Xia Qingtang cursed in his heart, No way?

You didn’t get the money last time, so you’re trying again today?

Why is she so lucky that she is always caught alone?

There were so many passers-by in front of me just now. Don’t you know how to extort money from them? It’s really infuriating!

But after what happened last time, Xia Qingtang was very alert when riding a bike. In addition, it was not raining, snowing or windy today, so visibility was good. So she skillfully turned over there and directly avoided the man.

The man was still not giving up. Seeing that he didn't catch her, he ran up to her in panic and reached out to grab the back seat of her bicycle.