Jiang Si did not go back, but decided to take a walk along the willow bank.
The servant Aji was apprehensive: "Fourth Miss, please let me take you back home, or the young master will scold you if he finds out."
Ah Man sneered: "We are just going to take a walk along the willow bank, not to a dangerous place, why are you so nervous?"
That night she and the girl went to Moyou Lake to rescue people from a fire. Now she was being nagged by a servant in broad daylight. How could this be justified?
"Oh, my naughty sister, why are you fanning the flames instead of trying to persuade me?" Aji smiled bitterly and made a begging gesture.
Ah Man rolled his eyes at him and said, "You are wrong. I am not fanning the flames. I will follow our girl even if she goes to a dangerous place. It is that simple."
Ah Ji couldn't win the argument with Ah Man, so he kicked a small stone at his feet impatiently and persuaded with the last glimmer of hope: "Fourth Miss, it's almost time for dinner, why don't we go back home first, and let the young master accompany you after dinner..."
Jiang Si finally spoke: "If my second brother blames you, I will tell him."
Aji opened his mouth but said nothing in the end.
Forget it. He is the master and a servant like him cannot stop him from going anywhere he wants. I just hope you will beat him lightly.
Jiang Si wanted to take a walk along the willow bank, but of course it was not as simple as a stroll.
She went to collect "medicine".
She had no knowledge of medicine, but she had learned some strange prescriptions from the elders of the Wu Miao tribe. Each of those prescriptions had magical effects, and the "medicines" required were even more bizarre.
The "medicine" she wanted to collect this time was a kind of grass growing under a hundred-year-old willow tree, called white horn. White horn grass looks no different from ordinary green grass. If people or birds and animals take it alone, it will have no effect, but after being mixed, it will be of great use. This grass can only be identified by its smell.
Along the Jinshui River, there is endless greenery and century-old willow trees are common.
It was early summer at that time, and there were many people strolling and enjoying the scenery along the willow bank, including men, women, old and young. Occasionally, a naughty child would run past Jiang Si and the other two like a whirlwind, shedding a string of silver bell-like laughter.
At this time, Aji would glare and shout: "Watch out, little bastards, if you bump into someone, I won't show mercy!"
"Come on, why are you competing with the little boy?" Looking at the beautiful scenery of the green willows and mist on the long embankment, Ah Man felt that Ah Ji's shouting was ruining the atmosphere.
Aji was a little unconvinced: "I was just afraid that they would bump into the girl."
"I'll protect the girl."
"Yes, yes, sister Ah Man is the most capable."
While the servant and the maid were arguing, Jiang Si had already walked forward.
"Miss, wait for me--" Ah Man hurriedly chased after her.
Jiang Si stopped beside a green willow tree, and with her white fingers twisting around the branches, she asked Ah Man, "Can you weave a flower basket?"
Ah Man laughed: "I can pick flowers."
"I can, I can weave flower baskets!" Aji said hurriedly.
Ah Man sneered.
Why are you showing off? Even if you can bloom, you can't be a girl's personal maid!
"Then Aji can weave a flower basket with willow branches, and Aman can pick some fresh flowers and bring them back home to put in the house. It will be nice."
After receiving the order, Ah Man and Ah Ji hurriedly took action.
Seeing the two busying around, Jiang Si slowly walked around behind the willow tree, squatted down, took a deep breath, found the white horn grass, and carefully wrapped it with a handkerchief.
By the time the basket was woven and filled with flowers, she would have gathered as much white horn grass as she needed.
"Let's go back home."
Suddenly, people on the willow bank rushed in one direction like a tide, shouting in panic: "Oh no! Someone jumped into the river—"
"Girl?" Ah Man looked at Jiang Si.
"Go and have a look."
Ah Ji hurriedly said, "Fourth Miss, there are too many people near the river and the road is slippery. Let's not go over there. There's nothing to see if you jump into the river."
Oh my God, if the fourth girl was replaced by a young master, he would run faster than the young master!
Jiang Si smiled: "I told you to go and see what's going on."
She still understands the principle of doing things within one's ability.
It was a large crowd, with everyone watching. Was she going to squeeze through and take off her clothes in front of everyone to save him?
Hearing that there would be excitement to watch and that he didn't have to worry about Jiang Si's safety, Aji was delighted and ran away.
The riverside was already full of people. Relying on his thick skin and nimble body, Aji squeezed in. After a while, he came out amid the curses of the crowd and reported to Jiang Si.
"Fourth Miss, the person who jumped into the river was a woman. She was just rescued and is now sitting by the river crying."
The woman's wailing voice floated over the crowd and into Jiang's ears: "I don't want to live anymore if I can't find my Niuniu——"
"I heard from people around me that the woman who jumped into the river was a tofu seller. People called her Tofu Xishi. She became a widow at an early age and raised a daughter. But who would have thought that her daughter disappeared two days ago. It was so pitiful..." Aji told Jiang Si what he had heard.
"Didn't you report it to the police?" Ah Man asked without thinking.
"I have reported it. Why not? But every year there are so many women and children missing. How can the government handle it?" Ah Ji sighed and took the opportunity to persuade Jiang Si, "Fourth Miss, it's dangerous outside. Let's hurry back home."
The woman cried even louder: "My poor daughter is only fourteen years old. She never goes out when other children play. She follows me around all day and never has a single day of peace and quiet. Niuniu, where are you? Come back——"
"Fourth Miss, let's go back." After hearing the crying, Ah Man felt as if a stone was pressing on his heart, making him feel very blocked.
The woman was helped out of the crowd, or more precisely, was dragged out by someone.
Her whole body fell down, and her feet left long trails on the ground. But despite this miserable state, the beauty of her youth still remained on her desperate face.
Suddenly, the woman's dull eyes suddenly shone with amazing light, and she struggled to break free from the person who was supporting her and ran towards Jiang Si.
Ah Man reacted very quickly and immediately stepped forward to stand in front of Jiang Si.
The woman's breath blew past the master and servant, and Jiang Si smelled a faint sour smell.
"Niuniu, Niuniu——" The woman ran very fast and grabbed the sleeve of a girl in blue.
The maids and servants screamed, "You crazy woman, let our girl go!"
"Get out of the way, give my Niuniu back to me!" The woman went crazy and let the maids and old women beat and kick her, but she just grabbed the girl's sleeve tightly and refused to let go, "Niuniu, it's your mother, look at your mother——"
The girl turned around and frowned slightly: "Auntie, please let me go. You have the wrong person."
The woman saw the girl's face clearly and let go of her hand in a daze.
Jiang Si clearly saw the light in the woman's eyes quickly extinguished and turned into cold gray.
"Madam Xiu, you'd better go back. Niuniu might have already gone home." The people nearby kindly advised her when they saw that the woman had offended the nobleman.
"Niuniu, I want to go home to find my Niuniu!" The woman ran forward madly.
The girl pursed her lips and tilted her head to meet Jiang's eyes.
"You are—the fourth Miss Jiang?"
Ginger seems to raise his eyebrows.
What a coincidence, she even met a girl from the Duke of Anguo's Mansion when she came to get some "medicine"!