Chapter 10: Hearing the Sound of Water

Ye Meizi carefully applied the badger fat ointment to Granny Li’s scalded leg with the gentlest touch.

In the countryside, badger oil was a go-to remedy for burns—cooling, soothing swelling, relieving pain. It was very effective, but usually only hunters’ families had it.

Granny Li was in such intense pain that her eyebrows, eyes, nose, and mouth all seemed to squeeze toward the center of her face, like her features were holding a secret emergency meeting.

Finally done, Ye Meizi—drenched in sweat—let out a long sigh.

“Granny Li, did Qin Rongsheng flip the pot? Why would he do that?”

Granny Li gritted her teeth. “It wasn’t Qin Rongsheng—it was Li Dafa. She did it on purpose. She was trying to scald me to death.”

Ye Meizi was stunned. “Why would Dafa go that far?”

Granny Li told her everything that had happened.

Ye Meizi sighed. “These days, hunger makes some people lose their humanity. You can’t even call them people anymore. Good thing Xiao Nian’s more like you—not like her mother.”

The mention of Qin Nian seemed to ease Granny Li’s pain a little. At least now, her mouth returned to its usual place.

“I don’t care if it costs me this old life—I won’t let them take Xiao Nian back and sell her off.”

Ye Meizi nearly blurted something out but stopped herself. Now wasn’t the time to push. It would be better to wait until Granny Li was healed and ask indirectly through someone else.

She decided to stay and accompany Granny Li, wanting to wait until Qin Nian came back before leaving.

—

Qin Nian was at the foot of the mountain, carrying her small basket. As usual, many people were hunched over, scavenging for any edible greens they could find.

Even the tiniest wild herb was worth digging up.

Years of drought had left even the May grass yellowed and brittle, like the hearts of the poor who searched here—drained of life and color.

Qin Nian walked slowly up the narrow path, carefully scanning the surrounding grass for any signs of lush green.

After a long climb, she finally reached the spot where she and Geng Feng had once hunted the wild boar. She was drenched in sweat.

The mountain trail was even harder now, but Qin Nian didn’t stop. After all, she had her spatial dimension—if there was danger, she could just blink into it for safety.

She pressed on deeper into the mountain. After walking for quite a while and starting to feel very tired, she decided to take a break.

This area likely still had wild boars. To avoid a sudden attack, she climbed up onto a large boulder and sat down to rest.

The warm May sunlight felt better than the hands of the finest masseuse.

The wind wasn’t cold or harsh—just light breezes brushing her hair gently. It was… beautiful.

Qin Nian tilted her head back slightly, eyes half-closed, enjoying the tranquility of the moment.

After a while, a sudden “rushing” sound reached her ears.

She opened her eyes instantly, heart leaping with hope. Water? Was that the sound of a mountain spring?

Did she really find one?

She hardly dared to believe it.

She listened again—yes, the sound was definitely spring water trickling.

Her breath quickened, and just as she was about to head toward the sound and investigate, a voice echoed from below the mountain:

“Xiao Nian! Xiao Nian, where are you? Answer me if you hear me—Xiao Nian!”

It was far away—but familiar.

Geng Feng? He’s looking for me?

Qin Nian immediately leapt off the rock and shouted back:

“Geng Feng! I’m up here—at the spot where we hunted that wild boar!”

If this really was a spring, she could come back later and find it again. Right now, Geng Feng’s presence meant something important had happened.

She guessed maybe Geng Zhenhai’s leg had gotten worse.

—

When she arrived back at the wild boar spot, Geng Feng met her.

“You looking for me?”

“I am.”

Remembering Granny Li’s instruction, Geng Feng spoke gently and slowly. “Your grandma… burned her right leg.”

Qin Nian’s heart skipped. “Did she scald herself while boiling the pork bones? Was there too much water and it overflowed?”

Geng Feng shook his head, still speaking carefully: “Your parents showed up. They fought with your grandma. The pot got knocked over.”

He didn’t tell her the truth—that it was Li Dafa who intentionally tipped the pot—because he didn’t want Qin Nian to get too upset, or feel humiliated.

Still, panic rose in Qin Nian’s eyes. “Is it serious?”

She knew how dangerous burns could be. Right now, they barely had enough to eat, and she only had two taels of silver on her. That wouldn’t be enough to treat a burn.

“My mom told me to come get you. I was in a hurry and didn’t check Granny Li’s leg too carefully.

It probably isn’t too bad. We’ve got badger fat ointment at home. I think my mom’s already put it on her.”

“Let’s go. Back down the mountain.”

Without another word, Qin Nian turned and hurried downhill.

Geng Feng took the basket from Qin Nian’s hands. When he saw that there wasn’t a single wild vegetable inside, he looked a bit surprised. She had climbed so high up—yet hadn’t found anything?

The two of them hurried back as fast as they could. As soon as they entered the house, Qin Nian saw Granny Li’s injured right leg.

It was covered in badger oil—a horrifying sight.

Granny Li pretended like it didn’t hurt much. “Xiao Nian, don’t worry. It’s just a few blisters. Your Aunt Geng helped me apply some badger oil. It’ll heal in a few days.”

“Grandma…”

Qin Nian took a deep breath. “Qin Rongsheng and Li Dafa came here? You fought with them? Did the pot get knocked over during the scuffle and burn you?”

Hearing Qin Nian say this, Granny Li was secretly relieved.

Just earlier, she had been worrying aloud to Ye Meizi, regretting that Qin Nian had found out Qin Rongsheng and Li Dafa had come. She feared Qin Nian would rush off to settle scores and, without a strong helper like herself, wouldn’t be able to fight that entire family alone.

Now it seemed Geng Feng hadn’t told Qin Nian that Li Dafa was the one who had burned her. Granny Li silently praised him—this boy had a good head on his shoulders.

Feeling pleased, a hint of a smile even crept across her face.

“Xiao Nian, you didn’t see it—Li Dafa’s eyes were glued to our pot lid like she was trying to charm the bones right out of it. I hated that look of hers. So I did what you would—I took an oak branch and went to slap her in the ear.

She dodged to the side, I missed, and fell over myself—knocked the pot over and burned myself with the soup.”

Qin Nian knew that for minor burns, it was better to leave the wound exposed—air exposure could help healing. But for moderate or severe burns, it was essential to bandage after applying ointment. Bandages would protect the wound from infection and reduce pain.

Her grandmother’s injury was quite severe—it definitely needed to be wrapped.

Qin Nian’s gaze fell on Ye Meizi’s face. “Auntie, could you give me a piece of white cloth from your house? For serious burns, it needs to be bandaged.”

“Of course, of course! I’ll go get it right now!”

Granny Li quickly spoke up, “Xiao Nian, your Aunt Geng was so nervous while applying the ointment just now, she broke out in a sweat. Let her sit and rest a bit—you go with Geng Feng to get the cloth.”

Qin Nian agreed at once. “Alright, I’ll go.”

As soon as the two left, Granny Li chuckled and turned to Ye Meizi.

“Meizi, Geng Feng’s a decent kid. He didn’t tell Xiao Nian that Li Dafa was the one who burned me. Make sure you remind him later—don’t let him slip up. Once my leg’s healed, I’ll deal with Li Dafa myself.”

Ye Meizi smiled. “Don’t worry, Granny Li. I’ll remind him.”

Moments later, Qin Nian returned with two pieces of white cloth. She sterilized a needle in the fire first, then carefully pierced the large blisters on Granny Li’s leg to drain the fluid.

Only after that did she wrap the burn in clean white cloth, securing it tightly.