Jiang Yimian just smiled, then opened up some more chestnuts and used the remaining syrup in the pot to make a pot of roasted chestnuts before sending some to the Chen and Liu families.
When Gousheng, Zhao Dashu, and the others returned, they were immediately drawn in by the aroma in the air. Upon seeing the bright red candied hawthorns and the glistening roasted chestnuts, they were all somewhat surprised.
It wasn't until they tasted the sweet and fragrant candied hawthorns and roasted chestnuts that the group still couldn't believe that Jiang Yimian had actually made candied hawthorns.
While eating the candied hawthorn, Gou Sheng exclaimed in surprise, "Sister Yi Mian, this candied hawthorn is so delicious! You're amazing!"
At first, he thought Jiang Yimian was joking, but he didn't expect her to actually make candied hawthorns, which were sweet and sour and very fragrant.
Zhao Xing'er nodded repeatedly, and said in surprise as she ate the roasted chestnuts in her hand, "This is the first time I've ever eaten roasted chestnuts. They're so delicious! They're so much better than eating them raw or boiled."
In autumn, many villagers go up the mountain to find chestnuts. Most of them eat them raw, while those who are a little more particular will boil them. But no one would be willing to use oil and sugar to stir-fry them, and they don't know that chestnuts, which are usually bland and tasteless, can taste so delicious.
Even Old Liu, who never liked sweets, nodded repeatedly, praising Jiang Yimian's excellent skills.
As they were talking, Liu Xiaoyun came running back from the stream in a panic, her face extremely pale.
Just as Wang Fengqin was about to invite her to eat chestnuts, she heard Liu Xiaoyun say in a panic, "Xiao, there's a dead person by the stream."
She was just going to do some laundry when she saw a person covered in blood lying there from afar, which terrified her so much that her legs went weak.
Upon hearing this, everyone's expression froze.
Old Liu immediately frowned and said in a trembling voice, "Xiao, Xiao Yun, you didn't see wrong?"
How could there be a dead body by this perfectly good stream? Could it be that their little depression has been exposed?
Everyone felt a wave of fear.
Jiang Yimian thought of what Lu Cijian had said about the bandits looking for someone, and combined with the corpse at the entrance of the mountain stronghold, she seemed to understand something.
The thought flashed through my mind and disappeared in an instant before I could grasp it.
Liu Dayong quickly picked up a shovel from the yard and said nervously, "Big Tree, let's go take a look."
Zhao Dashu and the other two nodded hurriedly. Although they were apprehensive, they still took their hoes and shovels and carefully followed Liu Dayong toward the stream.
Jiang Yimian and Old Man Liu quickly followed.
From afar, one could see a young man dressed in coarse linen clothes being swept away by the stream and lying on the bank, the ground of which was stained red with blood.
The man was pale, his eyes were closed, and his body was covered with knife wounds that had turned ashen from being soaked in the stream.
The group was startled and dared not approach the corpse.
Zhao Dashu hesitated for a moment before saying, "This body seems to have been washed ashore from another river. It doesn't look like it's been dead for long. What's going on?"
Even though he had seen many dead people on his journey of fleeing famine, he was still somewhat frightened when he suddenly saw the blood-soaked person in front of him.
Old Liu frowned, took a deep breath, and then walked shakily toward the corpse.
He carefully checked the person's breathing on the ground, but was suddenly shocked and quickly said, "He's still breathing, he's not dead."
The group breathed a sigh of relief, but then became wary again.
What terrified them more than a dead person was a living person brazenly appearing in the small depression; fortunately, the person on the ground had already fainted.
Jiang Yimian stepped forward and checked the person's pulse. After confirming that the pulse was still beating weakly, she nodded and said, "The person is indeed still alive."
If she wasn't mistaken, this person must be connected to the government.
She needs to wait and see.
Old Liu hesitated for a moment and said, "Yimian, why don't we take this person back first? This person is injured. If he stays here, he will either bleed to death or freeze to death."
Although winter hasn't officially arrived yet, the chill in the mornings and evenings is still quite strong. It could cause problems for anyone, let alone someone who is seriously injured.
Jiang Yimian thought for a moment before nodding: "Take it back first. Uncle Dayong, you and Dashu and the others should patrol around the mountain recently. If you find anything, come back and tell us immediately."
Liu Dayong quickly responded and, along with Zhao Dashu and the others, hurriedly carried the person on the ground back inside.
Because the man was seriously injured, the group carried him directly into Zhao Dashu's house.
After chasing everyone away, Jiang Yimian searched the other person's body but found nothing that could confirm their identity, so she had to give up.
The man was seriously injured; if she hadn't been lucky enough to find him, probably no one could have saved him.
Those bandits must have guessed that the person was already dead, which is why they didn't send anyone to continue searching.
I wonder if the bandits that Lu Cijian dealt with haven't returned yet, and whether that will arouse suspicion among the people in the village down the mountain.
Jiang Yimian took out a needle and silk thread that she had prepared earlier from her spatial storage. After disinfecting them, she began to sew up the largest wound on the man's chest.
The silk thread was originally intended for Chen Tiezhu's surgery, but now it's being used on this person first, just to test its effectiveness.
After working for a quarter of an hour, Jiang Yimian finally finished stitching up the wound.
She disinfected the other knife wounds on the man's body, applied medicine and bandaged them, before letting Zhao Dashu change the man into dry clothes and going straight to the Liu family.
Liu Xiaoyun was no longer as scared as before, but she was somewhat absent-minded, clearly worried that the bandits from the foot of the mountain would come looking for her.
Wang Fengqin comforted her, "Xiaoyun, don't be afraid. That person doesn't look like a bandit. Besides, meeting him by the stream was an accident. Bandits from the foot of the mountain wouldn't be able to find this place."
Jiang Yimian quickly said, "Aunt Xiaoyun, don't be afraid. That person isn't dead, just badly injured. He'll be fine. I heard from Cijian that the situation outside has improved a lot. I estimate that the imperial court will send people to suppress the bandits in a few days. Don't be afraid."
Although it was just her guess, she decided to say it to reassure everyone.
Lu Cijian had no choice but to take the blame for her.
Sure enough, everyone's eyes lit up instantly upon hearing this.
Old Liu was the first to ask, "Is what Yi Mian said true? Will the imperial court really come to suppress the bandits?"
Although he had no worries about food and drink in the small depression for the past six months, the bandits at the foot of the mountain had been occupying their village, constantly reminding him how terrifying they were, which made him very worried.
They were always afraid that the bandits would attack again.
The same was true for the others. Although they deliberately forgot about the existence of the bandits, the wildfire and the tragic deaths of the villagers still left a deep impression on their minds.
Even now, when they think back on it, they still break out in a cold sweat.
Jiang Yimian met those hopeful eyes and nodded after a long while, hoping that she was right and that the imperial court should come to suppress the bandits as soon as possible.
Seeing that everyone had calmed down from their earlier worry and fear, Jiang Yimian quickly changed the subject and started talking about Liu Dafei and the others.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
