Chapter 17.2

After a while, she hadn’t collected as many as Li Xiangdong had in just a few swift motions.

Even so, the little girl was still smiling brightly, chirping, “Thank you, Sister Wen Yue! With you helping, I’m collecting much faster today!”

Wen Yue felt a bit embarrassed. “I didn’t help much…”

Li Xiangdong retorted, “You helped a lot!”

“Alright, that’s enough. Let’s head back,” Li Nianqiu said as she finished chopping, taking a rope from her basket to bundle the branches together.

Wen Yue took a look and was taken aback.

That big bundle of branches looked even bigger than Li Nianqiu!

Yet, her expression seemed exceptionally relaxed, as if the heavy load behind her didn’t exist.

Wen Yue: “……”

She couldn’t help but admire how impressive the women in the countryside were in this era.

With a slight sigh, she looked at the firewood on Li Xiangdong’s back and, being self-aware, didn’t suggest that she carry it. Instead, she walked behind and reached out to help steady it.

That was the only thing she could do.

The three of them made their way back home.

But on the way, they encountered Li Huahong, who was also carrying a basket on her back.

Li Nianqiu paused for a moment and whispered to Wen Yue, “Your aunt is up ahead.”

Wen Yue peered out from behind the firewood and quickly ducked back. “Ignore her. Pretend we didn’t see her.”

She didn’t want to greet her at all.

Li Nianqiu responded with an “mm” and continued walking forward.

Li Huahong also noticed Wen Yue lagging behind.

Her face instantly fell, her already sharp features becoming even more fierce, and she spat disdainfully to the side, loudly saying something unlucky.

Wen Yue pretended not to hear and turned her face to the side.

Li Huahong grew even angrier upon seeing this. “You little brat are getting more and more uneducated. Can’t you even greet your aunt when you see her? I think you’ve really grown cocky, haven’t you?”

When she saw Wen Yue, she thought of the thousand yuan and the land that had been lost. She was so angry that she cursed madly.

“Unlucky star! Plague god! Money-losing stuff!”

Wen Yue still ignored her.

Now that Zhou Yao was not around, she didn’t want to get into a conflict with Li Huahong. She would definitely be the one to suffer!

However, just because she didn’t want to cause trouble didn’t mean trouble wouldn’t find her.

Li Huahong felt her anger rising even more as Wen Yue ignored her.

As the three of them passed each other, Li Huahong suddenly shouldered into Wen Yue, sending her tumbling down the small slope beside them, and the satisfaction in her heart was indescribable.

She left behind a remark: “You’re such a big person yet can’t even walk properly.”

With a proud gait, she walked away.

Li Nianqiu and Li Xiangdong were taken aback by Li Huahong’s sudden action, and it took them a full two seconds before they quickly dropped their basket to help her.

Fortunately, the slope beside them wasn’t very steep.

Li Nianqiu looked over worriedly. “Wen Yue! Are you alright?!”

Wen Yue was dazed, and when she looked down, she saw that her skirt had snagged on some branches, leaving a few cuts, and there were some scratches on her body, but they were minor, only causing a slight sting.

“I’m fine,” Wen Yue replied.

She thought to herself that she was lucky, she only had a few small cuts after rolling down.

However, when she tried to get up, she felt a sharp pain in her ankle.

The intense pain made her break out in a cold sweat.

“Did you hurt your leg?” Li Nianqiu carefully walked down the slope after putting down her basket, furrowing her brow as she pulled Wen Yue’s hand away from her ankle to take a look. “It looks like you twisted it. Can you still walk?”

Wen Yue attempted to take a step, tears fell from her eyes. “It hurts so much.”

“I’ll carry you.” Without hesitation, Li Nianqiu squatted down.

Wen Yue blinked back her tears, her voice soft and hesitant. “Isn’t it difficult to carry me up?”

Li Nianqiu’s tone was firm. “Get on.”

Wen Yue obediently climbed onto her back.

Li Nianqiu easily lifted her up, carefully pulling herself up using the tree trunks.

“Xiangdong, you stay here and watch. I’ll take Wen Yue back first,” Li Nianqiu instructed as she climbed up.

The little girl nodded, looking at Wen Yue with concern and wisely saying nothing more. “I’ll watch. Sister, hurry and take care of Sister Wen Yue!”

Li Nianqiu replied with an “mm” and steadily carried Wen Yue back toward the Zhou family courtyard.

When they returned to the courtyard, Li Nianqiu took the key from Wen Yue and opened the door, placing her on a stool. She stood up and asked, “Is there any medicinal wine at home?”

Wen Yue raised her foot to take a look, shaking her head and hissing, “I don’t know.”

Li Nianqiu frowned. “My family’s medicinal wine is used up. I’ll go ask someone else.”

“No need,” Wen Yue stopped her. “My foot isn’t swollen. I’ll probably be fine after resting for a while. You don’t have to go through that trouble. Xiangdong is still waiting for you on the mountain. You should go take care of your business.”

Li Nianqiu pressed her lips together. “Are you really okay?”

Wen Yue forced a smile. “Yeah! I’m fine!”

“Alright, then I’ll come back after I’m done,” Li Nianqiu said, knowing she had a few tasks to do. “Your foot can’t touch the ground for now. I’ll bring you lunch later.”

Wen Yue waved her hands repeatedly. “I’m not cooking with my feet. It’s fine. Don’t worry, I’m not that delicate. Just a little injury is nothing.”

Li Nianqiu thought for a moment and felt it was true.

In the countryside, a little injury was really nothing.Just rest for a while, and it would be fine.

Last time, she had a big cut on her leg from chopping wood, and she had only wiped it with some herbs and wrapped it up lightly before continuing to work.

They didn’t have the luxury to be delicate.

“Okay, then I’ll come see you after I finish my work,” Li Nianqiu said as she walked outside. “You should rest well for now.”

Wen Yue nodded, saying okay as she watched Li Nianqiu leave the courtyard.

After the figure disappeared from her sight, Wen Yue hopped on one foot to close the door, and then the tears she had been holding back flowed down her cheeks.

She wanted to go home.

She missed her close friends, missed her phone, computer, and air conditioning.

She missed normal neighbors without conflicts.

She missed the three-bedroom, two-bath apartment.

She had just saved someone; wasn’t that an innocent act?

Why was she thrown here?

Wuwuwuwu.

Wuwuwuwu.

…

…

“Be careful on the road, brother. See you tomorrow.”

Ren Yeliang and Fang Shitao waved goodbye to Zhou Yao.

The three parted ways, and Zhou Yao set off on his own to head home.

Today, the moon was hidden behind the clouds, leaving the world in darkness.

The beam of light from Zhou Yao’s flashlight was the only source of illumination. He walked quickly, wondering what kind of late-night snack awaited him tonight, a smile playing at the corners of his eyes.

As he reached the edge of the Zhou family courtyard, he looked ahead, and his smile instantly froze, a hint of confusion crossing his face.

What’s going on?

It’s one thing for the room to be dark today, but why isn’t there any light in the kitchen?

He furrowed his brows and quickened his pace, pushing open the courtyard gate and scanning the area near the doorstep.

No one was around. Had they fallen asleep?

Not believing it, Zhou Yao stepped into the kitchen and turned on the light, only to find the cutting board, cabinets, and pots empty—there was nothing at all.

Well, there really was no food prepared.

Zhou Yao felt a bit displeased as he walked to the door and glanced toward Wen Yue’s room, only to realize that her door was slightly ajar.

He paused for a moment, wondering if something had happened. Striding forward with a sense of urgency, he gently pushed the door open.

The room was pitch dark.

Zhou Yao didn’t go in, he just stood at the door and glanced inside.

A small lump had formed under the mosquito net.

Has she really fallen asleep?

Zhou Yao was just about to close the door when he suddenly heard a faint sobbing.

He paused, tentatively calling out, “Wen Yue?”

There was no answer, but the sound of her sobbing was indeed growing louder.

He switched on the light, and the warm orange glow instantly dispelled the darkness in the room. Squinting his eyes, he strode to the bedside and took a glance inside.

The little girl was curled up on her side in bed, the blanket draped around her waist.

Her nose was red, and her eyes were also a bit puffy, with shiny tears glistening on her long, thick eyelashes. She wasn’t sleeping soundly, her brows knitted tightly, and her delicate body trembled with sobs.

She was wearing loose, old clothes brought from the Wen family, and her bare skin looked pale and delicate under the light.

This made the reddish scars on her arms quite conspicuous.

The moment Zhou Yao’s gaze landed on the wounds, he frowned.

“Wen Yue?” He called her softly, pulling back the mosquito net. “Wen Yue, wake up.”

“Hmm?”

The girl on the bed let out a soft, muffled sound, her eyelashes fluttering as she struggled to open her eyes, her beautiful gaze misty and full of tears.

“Zhou Yao?” Her voice was muffled and soft, still carrying a hint of drowsiness.

Zhou Yao instinctively lowered his voice, asking, “What happened to your hand?”

Hand? What hand?

Wen Yue was still a bit disoriented. She had cried all day and finally managed to fall asleep.

Being awakened, her head and eyes felt uncomfortable, and her whole body ached.

She looked down at her arm, and upon seeing the wounds, all her memories flooded back. With a blink, her moist eyes brimmed with tears again, falling down like raindrops.

Wen Yue choked out, “Zhou Yao, my foot hurts so much.”

“Your foot hurts?” Zhou Yao was puzzled.

Wasn’t it her hand that was injured? What did it have to do with her foot?

He lowered his gaze and saw her pale, delicate little feet, which were smaller than his palm, with clean toes and a hint of pink on her nails.

Zhou Yao’s eyes wandered for a moment before settling on her ankle.

There, it was swollen.

Zhou Yao frowned. “What happened?”

Wen Yue sat up, sobbing as she recounted the whole story in brief, crying so hard that she was still hiccuping.

“Let me see.” Zhou Yao pressed his lips into a thin line, his expression unreadable as he leaned forward, taking hold of her injured ankle. “Bear with it.”

Wen Yue gasped in surprise, feeling confused.