Chapter 19

He Xianqiu’s knees were scraped bright red, with several scratches on them.

Ji Chen Zhou lowered his head, carefully applying medicine he had prepared on a leaf to her kneecap.

The moment the herbal paste touched her skin, it felt cool and soothing. He Xianqiu narrowed her eyes in relief, completely unaware that Ji Chen Zhou’s entire face had turned red.

He Xianqiu lowered her gaze to look at Ji Chen Zhou. When he noticed her staring, he gently turned his head away to hide his flushed face.

His voice sounded a little awkward as he said, “Comrade He, I’ll carry you down the mountain now and have the brigade’s doctor take a look.”

He Xianqiu nodded, then suddenly remembered the pit Ji Chen Zhou had dug. “Oh no, I forgot about the trap. What if some kids fall in?”

Ji Chen Zhou realized that was indeed a problem and said, “Then let’s go cover it up first before I carry you down.”

“Alright, let’s go there now,” He Xianqiu said.

Ji Chen Zhou lifted He Xianqiu onto his back. She lightly wrapped her arms around his neck.

Ji Chen Zhou’s eyelashes trembled. Carrying her, he headed toward the trap. He didn’t dare move his hands unnecessarily, only carefully supporting her legs.

The two of them crossed through the trees and arrived at the trap site. From afar, they heard a chicken squawking.

He Xianqiu immediately realized it had been caught.

From Ji Chen Zhou’s back, she could hardly contain her excitement. “Xiao Ji, we caught a wild chicken!”

Her joy was infectious, and Ji Chen Zhou smiled. “Mm, but we can’t roast it today. We’ll have to save it for next time.”

He Xianqiu sighed. “Alright.”

She was injured now, and it really wouldn’t be appropriate to stay in the mountains, so they’d have to wait.

Ji Chen Zhou set her down on a rock. He Xianqiu braced her hands on it and sat.

Her attention was instantly drawn to the wild chicken in the trap. She stared at it intently.

Ji Chen Zhou filled in the pit and caught the chicken in his hands.

Sensing her hungry, wolf-like gaze, the chicken trembled all over. Its tiny eyes were wide with terror, and it kept clucking frantically.

Ji Chen Zhou tied the chicken up and walked back to He Xianqiu.

But he hadn’t brought a basket today. Frowning, he said, “I didn’t bring a basket. There’s nowhere to put the chicken.”

He Xianqiu looked at their empty hands. There really was nothing to carry it in.

Since Ji Chen Zhou would be carrying her, he obviously couldn’t hold it, so she was the only option. She swallowed nervously. Was she supposed to hold the chicken herself?

At that thought, a shiver of dread passed over her. After hesitating for a moment, she closed her eyes and said, “I’ll take it.”

They had finally caught it—she couldn’t just let it go.

Ji Chen Zhou could see she was afraid but forced herself to be brave. “Or…let’s release it. Next time we can catch another.”

But the next time might not be the same one, and it had taken so much effort to catch it—it would be a pity to let it go.

He Xianqiu took a deep breath, then said, enunciating each word, “No. It’s too much of a waste to release it. I’ll take it. I can do it.”

Seeing the determination in her eyes, Ji Chen Zhou could only sigh helplessly. “Alright. But if you get too scared after holding it, we’ll let it go.”

He Xianqiu whispered, “Okay.”

Ji Chen Zhou lifted her onto his back again, then handed her the bound chicken. He Xianqiu’s hands trembled as she took it.

He carried her with a fish basket slung over his shoulder in front of them.

He Xianqiu held the chicken in one hand and the thorny fruit wrapped in taro leaves in the other. The chicken shrieked in terror, its cries drilling straight into her brain.

She was so startled she almost flung it away, but remembering how rare it was to have meat in the countryside—sometimes not even once a year—she clutched it tighter. Even if she wanted to go to the commune for a better meal, she’d have to wait weeks between trips.

He Xianqiu pursed her lips. When had she ever gone to such lengths just to eat chicken? Before, if she’d wanted, she could have feasted on dozens of chicken dishes at once. Now she was reduced to clutching a live bird for the chance to eat meat.

She used to live a life of carefree indulgence. Now that she’d transmigrated into the 1970s, she had to worry about everything—heating her own bathwater, washing her own clothes.

Expression blank with resignation, she held onto the chicken all the way down the mountain. Eventually, the chicken grew tired of squawking and finally fell silent.

With the noise gone, her ears were at last at peace. She glared down at it fiercely, thinking, Next time, I’ll stew you for sure. Hmph.

Ji Chen Zhou carried her steadily all the way down, then along a small path to the brigade’s medic’s mud-walled house.

When they arrived, Ji Chen Zhou knocked on the door. After a moment, an old man wearing glasses came out.

He wore simple clothes, his hair white, but his complexion was healthy and his eyes were sharp.

He looked calmly at them and said, “Come in.”

Ji Chen Zhou carried her inside. He Xianqiu looked around; the place was cramped but warm, with the faint scent of medicinal herbs.

The old man lifted his gaze and asked, “Where are you hurt?”

He Xianqiu replied softly, “I twisted my ankle and can’t walk. My knee and hands hurt, too.”

The old man nodded and turned to fetch some medicine.

Ji Chen Zhou set her down on a chair and took the chicken from her hands, placing it on the floor.

He Xianqiu whispered, “This grandpa has quite an imposing presence.”

Ji Chen Zhou replied, “Grandpa Zhong—Zhong Yueqing—used to be the director of the capital hospital. He was sent down here to our brigade. Since he’s a doctor, he didn’t have to live in a cowshed, but he only does a little better than the people who do. Sometimes when he treats unreasonable people, they refuse to pay or even beat him up.”

He Xianqiu frowned. “What kind of people are these? Shameless—like the fable of the farmer and the snake come to life.”

“How could there be people like that? But…it won’t last much longer. The dawn is coming soon.”

Old Man Zhong happened to come out just then and heard her last sentence. Shaking his head, he sighed. “Will there really be another chance? Who knows when this will all end… I don’t know if these old bones will live to see it.”

He Xianqiu looked at him and said firmly, “It’s coming soon. Just hold on for the dawn.”

The old man smiled faintly. “Alright.”

He handed her a bottle of medicinal liquid and instructed, “Apply this once a day. And your ankle—I’ll set the bone now.”

The moment she heard “set the bone,” she tensed up. “Does it have to be done?”

She’d heard it was very painful. He Xianqiu had always been afraid of pain.

“It has to be.”

She nervously extended her foot, tightly closing her eyes as if it would help lessen the pain.

Ji Chen Zhou looked at her and pressed his lips together, a smile in his eyes.

Old Man Zhong quickly twisted her ankle back into place. He Xianqiu felt a brief pang of pain, then nothing.

She opened her eyes in confusion. “Is it over?”

The old man nodded. “It’s done. You can walk now, but don’t go too far.”

She had imagined it would be excruciating, but it had felt like a light pinch. She hadn’t even processed it.

She quickly thanked him. “Thank you, Grandpa Zhong. How much do I owe you for the medicine?”

He glanced at her. “You don’t need to pay.”

She asked, puzzled, “Why not?”

“Ji Chen Zhou will pay me later.”

He Xianqiu nodded. “Alright.”

After a moment, she realized—why was Ji Chen Zhou paying?

Old Man Zhong glanced at the tied-up chicken. “Are you still planning to butcher it here? If you cook it, remember to save me a portion.”

Ji Chen Zhou was about to say they’d wait until next time, but He Xianqiu looked up and asked, “Xiao Ji, why don’t we just have it done here?”

Ji Chen Zhou thought it over. That was fine—so long as she could have something to eat.

He nodded warmly. “Alright.”

Old Man Zhong was astonished at how gentle his voice sounded. When had Ji Chen Zhou ever been so kind and easygoing? He was always cold and silent.

Suddenly, realization struck: Could this boy be sweet on her?

He looked He Xianqiu up and down. She was strikingly pretty, bright as a rose in bloom, with a natural elegance. A typical beauty of wealth and refinement. I wonder if he can win her over, he thought.

Then he turned his meaningful gaze on Ji Chen Zhou. Ji Chen Zhou felt a chill under that look and was completely baffled. What was that expression supposed to mean?

He Xianqiu noticed the old man’s scrutiny too but assumed he was simply curious about her as a newcomer.

Although she’d rinsed off by the river earlier, she was still filthy. She couldn’t stand it. She wanted to change into clean clothes, but she couldn’t walk far in her condition. She turned hopeful eyes to Ji Chen Zhou.

“Xiao Ji… could you carry me back to the educated youth dormitory?”

Her voice grew softer and more embarrassed the longer she spoke. She really was troubling him too much, but she felt so uncomfortable.

Then it hit her—when Ji Chen Zhou carried her up the mountain, no one had been around. But here, going back down, they’d encounter many villagers. Soon enough, people would start gossiping about them.

It would be annoying, and it might affect Ji Chen Zhou’s reputation. Maybe she should just grit her teeth and walk.

Ji Chen Zhou seemed to think of this too. “It’s alright. I’ll take the back path—no one goes there.”

He crouched down, gesturing for her to climb on. Since there were others around, He Xianqiu felt shy for some reason.

But she still hurried to climb onto his back. Ji Chen Zhou turned to Old Man Zhong. “I’ll be back in a bit. You can start on the chicken.”

Then he carried He Xianqiu off down the small trail.

Watching the young pair’s warm silhouettes disappear, Old Man Zhong smiled and shook his head.

“You young ones…”