62 Distress
◎Terrible man◎
A slender figure came from the side path. He was wearing a duck-green gown, with regular features and a gentle face.
When I got closer, I found that he had a basket on his back. The things in the basket seemed a bit heavy, and he had to weigh it every two steps.
When he came over, his forehead was already sweating. He wiped it with his sleeve, took Ji Bao in his hand, and said to Jiang He with a smile: "Miss Jiang, did you just come back from the market?" After saying this, he realized that there was someone standing next to him. He bowed slightly and said: "Who is this?"
Jiang He pulled Shu Yao over and said, "This is my cousin Shu Yao. She just came back from the capital two days ago."
Ji Liang smiled politely at Shu Yao, which was considered a greeting.
Shu Yao also responded with a smile.
Jiang He asked him, "The market is almost over. Mr. Ji, what are you carrying in your basket? Are you going to sell it at the market?"
Ji Liang nodded. "I dug some radishes in the mountains yesterday. I was planning to sell them sooner, but something delayed me this morning, so I only have time now."
Jiang He reminded him, "Mr. Ji, the show is over now. Why don't you go tomorrow?"
Ji Liang smiled and shook his head. "It's not too late for me to go over now." He then pulled Ji Bao, who was still licking his fingers, over and said, "Ji Bao, let's go."
Jibao was confused and just smiled foolishly at everyone.
Jiang He gave him two more candies.
Ji Liang pulled Ji Bao, and the two of them walked towards the market with one step deep and the other shallow.
Jiang He held the book tighter in her arms, thinking that she would send it to him tonight, so that she could talk to him alone for a while. Thinking of this, she couldn't help but curl the corners of her lips.
Seeing her happy face, Shu Yao poked her with her elbow and said "Oh" meaningfully.
Jiang He was a little shy and said, "Oh!" "Sister, don't think too much." After that, she walked forward quickly, fearing that the secret in her heart would be exposed in the next second.
Shu Yao didn't know whether to laugh or cry, so she followed him.
When the things were delivered to Jiang Fu's house, Qin E was collecting quilts outside the house. When she saw Shu Yao, she snorted in annoyance and went back to the house without collecting the quilts, as if she didn't want to see Shu Yao.
Jiang He was a little embarrassed, and she tried to make amends: "Sister, let's finish dinner before leaving."
Shu Yao put the things on the round table: "No, I have something to do at home, I'll go back first."
After she left, Jiang He walked into the room and looked at Qin E: "Mother, why did you treat my sister like this?"
When Qin E heard this, she threw the folded clothes on the bed and said, "If it weren't for her father, we wouldn't be living such a hard life now."
"But it's not my sister's fault." Jiang He really didn't understand. It was clearly her uncle's fault, but her mother insisted on implicating her sister.
Qin E walked up to her and gently poked her forehead with her finger: "Like father, like daughter. You should avoid associating with her in the future, or you won't know when she will sell you out."
"I think my sister is different from my uncle. I like to be close to her."
Qin E raised her eyebrows and said sarcastically, "Why did that girl Shu Yao marry that sickly man in the Ji Mansion? It was all because of you."
Jiang He's heart skipped a beat and he suddenly stopped talking.
Seeing her reaction, Qin E said to her earnestly, "Maybe they still hold a grudge against you. Don't keep following others around every day. When you have time, go with me to visit the boy next door named Chen. The matchmaker came once when you were sick. When spring comes, go with me to Chen Village again."
"You've reached the age to get married. I've been so worried about you. Within this ten-mile radius, only kid Chen can catch my eye."
Jiang He stamped her feet anxiously and retorted loudly: "Mom, I won't marry him." Then she picked up her skirt and ran away angrily.
Qin E was so angry that she slapped her thigh. It really is true that girls are no longer under the control of their mothers when they grow up.
…
Shu Yao took a shortcut when she went back. The road was a bit remote, without even the chirping of insects or birds. There were some houses on the side that had been uninhabited for a long time, with windows and doors wide open, and the inside was empty.
She was walking alone on this road, surrounded by deserted places. She felt a little regretful and should not have taken this path earlier. Halfway through her walk, she didn't meet anyone. There were some abandoned houses on both sides. She didn't dare to look into those houses for fear of meeting a pair of bloodshot eyes.
Shu Yao gritted her teeth and jogged. She didn't know if it was her illusion, but she felt like someone was following her. She turned around, but there was only an empty wasteland behind her, not a single ghost in sight.
But she still felt uneasy and unconsciously quickened her pace.
Dark clouds covered the sky and it suddenly became gloomy.
When she reached the door of a dilapidated temple, Shu Yao suddenly stopped. A sense of fear went up along her tailbone to the top of her head. In just two seconds, a layer of cold sweat broke out on her back.
Someone... someone grabbed her leg.
She stood still, forgetting to run away for a moment.
Now she believed the saying that people cannot run away when they are extremely scared. Her legs began to tremble, and the air was so quiet that she could hear the sound of her swallowing saliva.
The dirty hand holding her calf suddenly increased its strength.
"Ah." Shu Yao finally cried out, and mustered up the courage to look down. Just one glance and she almost cried out again.
I saw a burly man lying on the ground. His face was covered with filth and his messy hair was blocking his face, so his features could not be seen at all. His clothes were tattered and there was a chipped porcelain bowl next to him. He was filled with a foul smell.
Shu Yao kicked him with her legs: "Let me go."
But the man held her tighter and tighter. He opened his mouth but could not utter a word. He just held her tightly.
Shu Yao suppressed the fear in her heart and looked at him carefully. Looking at him, could he be a beggar?
She asked tentatively, "Are you hungry?"
The man's grip on her ankle loosened a little. Shu Yao gritted her teeth, took out a tael of silver and placed it next to him, then took out two cakes from the oil-paper bag and handed them to him.
The man hesitated for a moment, snatched the pastry from her hand, stuffed it into his mouth, and began to eat it ravenously. He looked as if he hadn't eaten for a long time.
Shu Yao was afraid that he would choke, so she handed him another pot of water.
The man picked it up and drank it. His thick Adam's apple rolled back and forth, and he finished the whole pot in one breath.
Shu Yao looked down at the rough hand still wrapped around her ankle. She began to struggle, and the man's hand immediately tightened. He raised his head and stared at her intently.
Shu Yao was startled by his gaze. Although the man's face was covered with mud, the remaining eyes were deep and cold, with a hint of light blue, like ice flowers in winter.
Shu Yao was afraid that he would hurt her, so she quickly said, "I won't run, I won't run. Big... Big Brother, are you after money or sex? Let me be mentally prepared."
The man was stunned, then his eyes looked at the food in her hand.
Shu Yao immediately understood and handed all the things in her hand to him: "Brother, these are all for you, can I leave now?"
The man still didn't let her go. He just lowered his head and started eating, devouring the food with great relish and an extremely heroic manner.
Shu Yao looked at the top of the man's head, and an idea popped into her mind: if she kicked him, he would probably let her go out of pain.
She did it right away. She lifted her other free foot and kicked down with all her strength.
The air suddenly became quiet for a moment.
The cold sweat on Shu Yao's forehead flowed down her cheeks to her chin, and fell into the dust with a "drop".
The man stared at her fiercely, his sharp eyes emitting a cold blue light like a wild beast.
He grabbed both of Shu Yao's feet with such force that it seemed as if he wanted to crush her bones.
Shu Yao gasped for breath and showed an ugly smile: "Well, I was just stretching my feet just now."
The man pushed her hard, and Shu Yao had no time to react, and her body fell straight onto the concrete floor.
A feeling of weightlessness came over her, and she fell heavily to the ground. Some small stones scratched her back, causing waves of piercing pain.
All the bones in her body seemed to be falling apart, and her palm was rubbed on the ground, causing a large piece of skin to be broken, and blood kept oozing out.
She ignored the pain in her body, got up immediately, and ran away in a panic. But while running, she suddenly stopped. Oh no, the medicine she bought for Ji Shijing was still in the temple.
Do you want to go back and get it?
But the man in the temple was so scary.
what to do?
After thinking it over, she turned back quietly.
Arriving at the door of the dilapidated temple, she hid behind a pillar and looked inside. The man seemed to have eaten and drunk his fill and was lying in a pile of straw to rest. Two or three medicine bags were scattered at his feet.
Shu Yao was very hesitant.
She waited outside for almost half an hour. The man lying on the straw did not move and seemed to have fallen asleep.
She gritted her teeth and tiptoed in, stepping very lightly for fear of waking him up.
Finally reaching his feet, Shu Yao carefully picked up the medicine bag and glanced at him secretly before leaving.
The man placed one hand on his abdomen and the other on his forehead, breathing evenly.
She breathed a sigh of relief, and when she reached the temple gate, she ran away, not daring to stay for a moment.
In the dilapidated temple, the man looked at her fleeing back, his blue pupils trembled, and then he closed his eyes again.
…
Shu Yao ran back home breathlessly, and only when she leaned against the wall of her own yard did she completely relax.
Ji Shijing was doing housework. During the half day when she was at the market, he cleaned the house inside and out. Now even the bench in the corner was shiny and there was no dust at all.
Seeing Shu Yao's frightened look, he couldn't help but quickly walked to her side: "What's wrong?"
Shu Yao was just about to tell him about how she risked her life to retrieve the medicine bag, hoping to move him and maybe increase his trust in her, but when she saw his worried look, she shook her head and kept silent.
"This is half a month's supply of herbs." She handed him the medicine bag.
Ji Shijing noticed the wound on her hand at a glance. He frowned and looked at her calmly, but his heart was secretly in a knot: "Does it hurt?"
Shu Yao smiled and pulled back her hand: "I accidentally fell on the road, it's okay."
Seeing that she didn't say anything, he didn't ask any more questions and turned around to start wiping the table.
Shu Yao went into the house to change clothes. Ji Shijing saw the tattered clothes on her back and his hand holding the rag gradually tightened.
…
In the evening, Shu Yao specially sent Ji Shijing out.
She took off her shirt and looked at her scarred back in the mirror. She couldn't help but sigh twice. Her originally fair and smooth skin was now covered with wounds of all sizes.
She scraped out a small piece of ointment and applied it laboriously on her back. Although the wound did not bleed, it was still extremely painful when touched. She took a deep breath and applied the ointment carefully. However, the injury was on her back, and it was not convenient for her to apply the ointment by herself. There were many places that she did not apply the ointment to. Just when she was in trouble, Ji Shijing gently pushed the door open and walked in.
Shu Yao was so frightened that she immediately hugged her clothes tightly.
Ji Shijing walked over and sat down next to her, looking very unhappy.
"I'll help you," he said.
"No, no." She refused hastily.
Ji Shijing acted as if he didn't hear her words and snatched the plaster from her hand. Seeing that she was still holding on to her clothes tightly, guarding against him like a thief, his tone turned cold: "Are you guarding against me?"
Shu Yao quickly waved her hands: "No, no."
Ji Shijing pinched her collar with his slender fingers, pulled it down a little, and helped her apply the ointment on the wound on her butterfly bone.
His fingertips were slightly warm, and when he pressed them gently on her skin, she felt an indescribable comfort.
But Shuyao still felt uneasy.
The clothes were pulled down a little more, and Shu Yao covered her cheeks with her hands.
Ji Shijing's face was calm, and his eyes were only focused on the wounds on her back. The wounds were densely packed. He pursed his lips, and a complex emotion flashed across his eyes.
Finally, when the candle was half burned out, Ji Shijing put clothes on her.
Shu Yao walked out of the house to get some fresh air, but found that there was still a fire burning in the kitchen. She was a little surprised. Why was he lighting a fire so late at night?
That night, she could only sleep on her stomach because of the injury on her back, and finally fell asleep in the second half of the night.
…
The next day, Shu Yao heard some noise outside the house, so she put on her clothes and wanted to go out to take a look. Before she opened the gate, Yang Xiuhe told her what happened last night through the low wall.
Shu Yao covered her mouth in horror.
Something big happened in the village.
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