Chapter 2: Being rescued
At midday, in Mingfu Village, a small group of young people, having finished lunch, gathered in twos and threes on the banks of the Tang River, each carrying their own simple fishing tools.
Not far from them, in another area, women and girls from various families who had taken time out to do laundry also occupied a small space.
While working, everyone chatted loudly with their close neighbors.
After hiding in the water for a while and completely shaking off the two people who wanted to kill her, Xie Wanniang, who had been floating on her back in the river for an unknown amount of time, keenly distinguished the noisy human voices from the sound of the water.
She moved her extremely cold body with minimal movements, using the force of the flowing river to drift towards the shore.
A thin, dark-skinned boy on the shore, who hadn't caught a fish yet, muttered complaints under his breath, planning to find another perfect spot to cast his line.
However, as soon as he looked up, a fair-skinned girl with black hair and a skirt that were dancing wildly in the water, yet whose body remained motionless, suddenly entered his field of vision.
"My God!" the thin, dark-skinned boy cried out instinctively, "A dead man!"
Hearing the commotion, the villagers of Mingfu Village all looked up and gazed in the direction he was pointing.
"She's not... she's not dead, is she? I think I saw her move."
"Is that water moving?"
"Who cares if it's a person moving or water moving!" A short, stocky young man with frog-like eyes dropped his fish basket and started taking off his shoes and rolling up his trousers. "Judging by her clothes, her family is definitely not short of money!"
Xie Wanniang was wearing a purple dress. Leaving aside the fact that the color must have been made of fine cloth or silk, the fact that her dress could still faintly shimmer in the sunlight even after being soaked in water shows that such craftsmanship would not be used on coarse cloth.
That short, stocky young man with toad-like eyes not only had sharp eyesight and quick reflexes, but he also had a knack for making cunning plans.
As he walked barefoot into the river, he rubbed his hands together excitedly, muttering, "God bless me, let this little girl stay in my house and be my wife."
Upon hearing his words, the faces of the bachelors changed drastically. Good heavens, how come they never thought of such a stunt?
The group exchanged glances, all somewhat eager to act. However, before they could rush over and snatch the person from the toad-eyed youth, the youth roared angrily, "Jiang Yuan!"
He rushed up to Jiang Yuan, who had somehow gotten three or four steps ahead of him, and had already swiftly pulled the woman from the river. "You shameless bastard! What right do you have to steal the woman I've set my sights on?"
Jiang Yuan ignored him, taking advantage of his height and long legs, and quickly bypassed the toad-eyed youth. He then carried Xie Wanniang and walked towards the group of women who had stopped what they were doing and were now watching the commotion with wide eyes.
He had been using his body to shield most of Xie Wanniang's body. Whether it was the toad-eyed youth chasing after him trying to snatch her away, or the other men standing on the shore, they could only see Xie Wanniang's dripping black hair, her skirt, and her embroidered shoes.
"Fifth Aunt, can I borrow your bed sheet?"
The woman, whom Jiang Yuan called "Fifth Aunt," suddenly came to her senses and said, "Oh, oh, good, good."
She unfolded the sheets that were still stuffed in the bucket and hadn't been soaked in water yet, and covered Xie Wanniang, whose face was pale, lips were purple, and who was too weak to speak.
Jiang Yuan thanked her, "I'll return it to you tomorrow after I've washed it clean."
The woman waved her hand vigorously, "No need, no need, I'll just take it back myself later."
Jiang Yuan looked puzzled.
The woman cleared her throat. "You're taking this girl home, aren't you? You live alone. If I go with you, I can help wash her up and change her clothes."
Jiang Yuan looked grateful and said, "Then I'll have to trouble you, Auntie."
The woman who had successfully secured the best spot to watch the show waved her hand with a smile, "No trouble at all, no trouble at all."
Other women who also wanted to join in the fun immediately started volunteering their services.
"Then I'll go and call the village head!"
"I'll go get Dr. Chen!"
"My daughter has some new clothes that she hasn't worn yet, I'll deliver them to your house right away!"
"I'll go help make scallion, ginger, and brown sugar water. Luckily, I have a little bit of brown sugar left at home!"
"......"
Everyone was talking at once, grabbing all the jobs they could. Before the men who wanted to go and watch the excitement could even open their mouths, Jiang Yuan had already carried Xie Wanniang away.
The toad-eyed youth failed to snatch someone from the river. After getting ashore, he hurriedly put on his shoes and, unwilling to give up, chased after the person again, only to be blocked by a group of women carrying basins and buckets, who used their bodies to keep him out of the human wall.
Finally, they left excitedly. The toad-eyed youth was about to rush over and continue to try to snatch the person from Jiang Yuan, but he only saw Jiang Yuan's tall figure walking away quickly from afar.
He cursed and started to chase after it, but changed his mind halfway and went back home in a different direction.
Jiang Yuan carried Xie Wanniang, who was wrapped up tightly, and returned to his own home at the end of the village in a steady but quick manner.
His family only had three rooms that could be lived in. One room was for himself, one room was for his cousin and master, and one room was for guests who occasionally came to stay.
He originally intended to put Xie Wanniang in the guest room, but then he suddenly changed his mind.
Under the watchful gaze of his fifth aunt, who was borrowing his bedsheet and whose eyes burned with the fire of gossip, he carried Xie Wanniang into his own room.
He carefully placed the girl on the earthen bed covered with a clean mat. Their eyes met for a moment, and then Jiang Yuan quickly looked away.
He took out a clean set of bedding and pillows from the trunk and spread them on the kang (a heated brick bed). Then he quickly moved his usual set of bedding, along with the trunk containing his clothes, money, and other belongings, to Hao Yu's room across the street.
After doing all this, he said to his fifth aunt and Xie Wanniang, "I'll go boil some water."
Aunt Wu waved her hand at him, "Go on, go on."
"My dear girl..." While waiting for the water, Aunt Wu was about to ask Xie Wanniang about her name and background, but before she could finish speaking, the loud voices of her group of old friends rang out in the courtyard.
"I've brought the clothes!"
"Here, this is brown sugar, and some scallions and ginger!"
"Dr. Chen is here! Make way!"
Where is that girl?
"Here it is!" Aunt Wu called out, and everyone immediately rushed over.
Dr. Chen's old arms and legs were about to break from their constant urging. Luckily, he had the foresight to hand over his medicine box to his eldest grandson, who was learning medicine from him. Otherwise, he estimated that he would have been lying on the kang (a heated brick bed) before he even saw the patient.
"Don't crowd in, everyone go outside and wait." The old doctor took his medicine box and shooed away everyone else, including his grandson, leaving only Aunt Wu to look after them.
The old doctor slowly took Xie Wanniang's pulse, stroking his beard. "She's been soaking in cold water for too long and has caught a chill. In addition, she's exhausted and cold and hungry, so it's no wonder she's dizzy and confused."
He instructed his fifth aunt, "Give her a bath, change her into clean clothes, and give her some scallion, ginger, and brown sugar water to drink."
After Aunt Wu agreed, he went out of the house again to write out the prescription and get the medicine, and also gave Jiang Yuan a few instructions.
However, before he could even speak, the toad-eyed youth had already arrived at his door with his father, mother, and brother.
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