He was stuck in the pit and couldn't move. Most of his body was not in the icy river water, and he was so frozen that he was numb.
When Song Yun saw a woman handing him a stick, it was like seeing a lifeline.
In a daze, he grabbed the stick and used the strength to crawl towards the riverbank.
Fortunately, He Tiantian had just eaten and had some strength, but she was, after all, just a woman, and a pregnant one at that. By the time she dragged the person from the river ashore, she was already panting heavily.
He Tiantian collapsed onto the snow, breathing heavily.
“I said… it’s cold and the road is slippery, how dare you come here in a horse-drawn carriage?” The road in Changfeng Village is so difficult to walk on foot.
Song Yun finally calmed down. He didn't answer He Tiantian's question, but instead walked to the carriage and looked at his servant. He reached out and checked on him before feeling relieved.
Fortunately, he was only unconscious.
He looked at He Tiantian with his sharp eyes and asked, "Are you a villager from Changfeng Village?"
He had done some preliminary research before coming, and found that Changfeng Village was the only village within a hundred miles. The other villages were too far away for anyone to come at this time.
He Tiantian nodded. She looked at the nobleman dressed in silk in front of her and thought to herself that no family in Changfeng Village had such a wealthy relative.
Song Yun stepped forward and bowed, then said with some difficulty, "I am the newly appointed director of Changfeng Mine."
He Tiantian blinked; she had no idea what a director was.
Song Yun continued to explain, "We came to Changfeng Mine today to take up our posts, but we were unfamiliar with the area and took the wrong road, which led to the accident."
He Tiantian grinned after hearing this; now she understood.
"Are you here to manage the villagers who work at Changfeng Mine? Are you their leader?"
Um... Song Yun nodded, that's not wrong.
He Tiantian pointed to the big mountain next door, "That's where the mining is. Come down the mountain with me and take another route."
The carriage was wrecked and unusable. Song Yun threw his servant onto the horse's back and followed behind He Tiantian, holding the reins.
As dawn broke, the villagers of Changfeng Village busied themselves with their tasks. Most of the women gathered by the river at the village entrance to wash clothes; the ice on the river had long since been broken.
There were three or four children squatting on the riverbank building a snowman.
The villagers were all dressed in coarse linen clothes, but some sharp-eyed women noticed a well-dressed man following behind He Tiantian. In those days, this was the first time they had ever seen someone who could afford silk clothing.
"Look quickly, who is the man behind Zhao's second daughter-in-law?"
"Judging by his clothes, he looks very wealthy. Could he be an old flame he's been hooking up with before?"
"Zhao He is beautiful, so it's common for men to be interested in her. But her husband has only been dead for a few days, so this is too fast..."
"If you had even half the looks of Zhao Heshi, you could do it too."
"Hahaha……"
The women got more and more excited as they talked, and eventually they stopped washing the clothes in their hands and all looked at He Tiantian and the man behind her who was leading the horse.
Song Yun frowned deeply; these women were speaking too loudly, and it was difficult for him to avoid hearing them.
Upon reaching the village entrance, He Tiantian immediately spotted Zhao Denglong and Zhao Wanzi standing at the gate of the dilapidated temple. She was carrying meat buns and roast chicken, but couldn't very well take them out in front of everyone.
"Director Song, just walk straight along this road until you reach the end," He Tiantian said calmly. She was anxious for this man to leave quickly so as not to disturb her child's mealtime.
Song Yun looked at the woman before him. He could call her "Auntie," but she was quite young. He was determined to repay the life-saving grace she had received today.
"May I ask how you should address Madam?" After hesitating for a moment, Song Yuncai asked.
He Tiantian gave an awkward laugh. "I'm not some kind of lady, I'm just an ordinary village woman. You can just call me He Tiantian."
"Very well, I, Song Yun, will repay this kindness in the future."
On her way back, He Tiantian didn't take those words to heart at all. Although she had just arrived in this place, she knew that the class system was very clear in ancient times.
She is currently at the very bottom of the social hierarchy, and she can't possibly be associated with these officials.
The women who had been gossiping a moment ago mustered up their courage and started chatting again after seeing Song Yun leave.
Liu was still holding a grudge against He Tiantian for slapping her a few days ago. She stood up and raised her voice, her tone sharp and sarcastic, "Shameless! This man has only been dead for a few days and he's already lonely and hooked up with another one."
He Tiantian wanted to get far away from these women, but to get back to her dilapidated temple, she had to cross the small river at the entrance of the village.
She was afraid of having food snatched from her, so she held back and didn't dare to have a conflict with Liu.
Sun also suffered a loss that day. Seeing that He Tiantian didn't seem inclined to argue after Liu finished speaking, she said sourly, "Ha, no wonder she was kicked out of the house by her mother-in-law. She doesn't even know whose child this is."
These words were considered extremely harsh in the village, and Widow Zhang, who was squatting nearby washing clothes, paused.
Speaking of which, her husband died three years ago, so why hasn't any man been interested in her since? Widow Zhang couldn't help but steal a glance at He Tiantian as she passed by, feeling a pang of sadness in her heart.
When He Tiantian walked up to Liu Shi and Sun Shi, she glared at them fiercely.
Zhao Denglong and Zhao Wanzi looked at their mother who had returned, their four eyes wide and sparkling.
"Come in and have something to eat," He Tiantian called to her two daughters as they entered the dilapidated temple.
On the riverbank, Zhao Ergou, who had been building a snowman, was drooling over a delicious aroma. "Waaah... Mother, what's that smell? It smells so good!" he cried, taking a few deep breaths.
Zhao Ergou was about ten years old and was Liu's second son.
He grabbed Liu's trouser leg, sat on the ground, and started acting spoiled, saying, "Mother, I want to eat, I want to eat."
Liu sucked the saliva from her mouth. To be honest, she had smelled it just now too; it smelled like meat buns. The last time she ate meat buns was ten years ago, and she thought she was hallucinating.
"Didn't you smell any fragrance?" Liu asked, glancing at the other women who were engrossed in washing clothes.
Everyone shook their heads.
That really must be an illusion...
"Mother, I want to eat meat! I want to eat meat!" Zhao Ergou was still tugging at his mother's trouser leg and throwing a tantrum.
Liu kicked Zhao Ergou far away and said impatiently, "What are you dreaming about! We're so poor we're lucky if we can even fill our stomachs, let alone get meat!"
"Blame your good-for-nothing father, he can't even support a family!"
Zhao San, who was returning from work at noon, overheard this. His day hadn't gone well; he'd been whipped twice on the head for slacking off, and his back was burning with pain.
He's feeling really angry right now, and then he comes back to hear his wife badmouthing him in front of so many people.
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