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The villagers, who had been dispersing, paused upon hearing Auntie Li’s wailing. Many cast sympathetic glances at the couple Shen Zi’an, thinking that this time they had really been dragged into trouble by this family.
“Where is he? Where is my poor grandson? Falling into the ice hole on such a bitterly cold day, he must have lost half his life! My grandson—”
That last cry echoed, piercing the air with Auntie Li’s sharp voice, making people want to cover their ears. Even though it was a quite pitiful situation, her cries now sounded almost like singing, eliciting some unkind amusement from the listeners.
Su Zhi had lived in the countryside before and had seen women wailing, so she wasn’t too surprised. However, she was not the type to engage in such behavior herself, and listening to it only left her feeling unsettled.
By now, Auntie Li had arrived, supported by Zhao Xiaohua, although she moved quite briskly, seeming even more steady than Zhao Xiaohua herself. Behind them was Liu Siniang, Liu Siniang looked at Su Zhi with a helpless expression.
Since returning home late today, Liu Sianiang had even missed lunch, which would have left her hungry if she hadn’t eaten with Su Zhi and the others. Being forced to work hard, she was tired, and then she heard someone reporting that Tiedan had fallen into an ice hole, supposedly chased by a white wolf. At that moment, her mother-in-law panicked, and her younger sister-in-law even claimed it was Su Zhi’s fault and demanded compensation. Liu Siniang didn’t want to come, but she was still dragged here by her mother-in-law and younger sister-in-law.
Liu Siniang looked at Su Zhi with concern, hoping to convey some message with her eyes, letting her know to be prepared, as there was nothing she could do at the moment.
“Where is my grandson?!”
Unable to find Tiedan, Auntie Li only saw a large ice hole in the river and a large wet patch of soil on the bank, indicating that Tiedan had indeed fallen in. She didn’t know if he was alive or dead, and she was frantic. Pointing at Su Zhi, she demanded, “What happened to my grandson? Is he dead or alive? If he’s dead, even if I have to risk my life, I won’t let you off the hook! It’s all because of you that the wolf was attracted! My grandson!”
Su Zhi thought to herself, this is another attempt to shift blame onto the white wolf and then onto herself. They can not handle the white wolf, so they’re trying to pin the blame on her?
Zhao Xiaohua chimed in, “Exactly! Tiedan is my eldest brother’s only son. If something happens to him, how are they going to carry on? Zhao Xiaomei, you invited the white wolf to your house, but you shouldn’t bring disaster to our village! The Sacred Beast is fine in the mountains. You insisted on bringing it back. Do you not value our lives? You must give us an explanation!”
Li Qing’s Wife intervened, “Tiedan isn’t dead yet. He’s been taken back home. If you’re truly worried about him, go see him first. Don’t waste time here blaming Zhao Xiaomei. It’s pointless.”
Shugen’s Wife also chimed in, “Exactly. Who said it was the Sacred Beast that chased Tiedan into the river? The Sacred Beast doesn’t just chase people for no reason. If it did, Tiedan must have done something to anger it. When he wakes up, we’ll ask him. Maybe by then, you’ll need to apologize to the Sacred Beast.”
Su Zhi realized that Shugen’s Wife had spoken her mind.
Shen Zi’an bowed to the surrounding people and said, “Dear uncles, aunts, and neighbors, my wife and I just returned from town and heard about this incident right away. We don’t know the ins and outs of it, only that the Sacred Beast chased Tiedan into the river. Does anyone know who saw it happen? Why did the Sacred Beast chase Tiedan?”
Li Shi, Shen Zifu, and Shen Zigui also joined in asking. They couldn’t afford to bear this blame without clarifying the situation. The Zhao family was known for being troublemakers, and getting tangled up with them would be quite troublesome.
“Whoever knows, speak up! You were all talking loudly just now, weren’t you?” Li Zheng also chimed in, casting a stern glance over the crowd.
“It was Aunt Hua and her son, Niu Dabao, who saw it! They were the ones making a fuss about it.”
A man in the crowd spoke up, and others began to chime in, saying it was indeed that mother and son who started the commotion. Someone mentioned that Aunt Hua and Niu Dabao seemed to have followed some people in the direction of Zhao Dazhu’s house earlier.
Upon hearing it was Aunt Hua, Shen Zi’an furrowed his brow. That woman was quite a gossipmonger, always meddling in other people’s business and spreading rumors throughout the village. She had even leaked the incident involving Shen Yu’s family in the past, causing trouble between Sun Shi and the rest of the Shen family. They had always been wary of her. Now, it seemed she was involved in this matter as well.
Su Zhi also remembered Aunt Hua. During the house-warming, that woman had showered her with compliments, making her feel uncomfortable despite her experience in handling such situations in her past career. If not for that, Su Zhi might have been flattered and treated her differently. However, Su Zhi wasn’t naive; she found people who were overly sweet-tongued difficult to trust. Moreover, hearing from some of the sisters-in-law that Aunt Hua was a gossipmonger, she avoided associating with such people.
Now it seemed that regardless of Aunt Hua’s character or whether this incident was a coincidence, she had indeed lived up to her reputation as a gossipmonger.
“Since Aunt Hua saw it, let’s go ask her about it. This is a big deal, and we can’t wrongly accuse Zi’an and his wife,” Aunt Jinhua said, clearly siding with Shen Zi’an and Su Zhi.
“I’ll go too. I also want to check on my grandson. Poor child, falling into an ice hole on such a cold day. Who knows if he’ll develop any illnesses in the future. Zi’an, Zi’an’s wife, you brought the Sacred Beast here, and I’m not afraid of you. But you need to control it. It caused trouble this time, so you have to clean up this mess, or else it might cost me my life!” Auntie Li said to Shen Zi’an and Su Zhi. When she arrived earlier, she appeared aggressive, but besides being genuinely worried, she also wanted to make Shen Zi’an and Su Zhi feel guilty, hoping they’d offer some compensation later. Now that she had expressed her concerns and saw that Li Zheng and his wife were also siding with Shen Zi’an and Su Zhi, she softened her tone a bit. She might as well have said, “If you don’t pay for my grandson’s medical expenses because of what the Sacred Beast did, we won’t let it go.”
Zhao Xiaohua glanced at Su Zhi’s exquisite clothing and the golden hairpin on her head, a hint of jealousy flashing in her eyes. She pursed her lips and said, “Mother, why worry? In our village, even if a dog bites someone, we find its owner. Let alone raising a wolf. Brother Zi’an’s family is wealthy; they definitely won’t refuse to pay for Tiedan’s medical expenses.”
Liu Siniang whispered softly on the side, “Mother, let’s go see Tiedan.”
Liu Siniang was eager to go to Zhao Dazhu’s house to see Aunt Hua and clear things up. That way, they wouldn’t have to linger here, trying to figure out how to get compensation from Su Zhi, a thought that made her feel ashamed.
Zhao Xiaohua glared at Liu Siniang and said, “Oh, I forgot, you and Zhao Xiaomei are both from the same village. You used to play together. Now you’re siding with her. Are you so anxious to go see Tiedan, or are you trying to avoid causing more trouble for your good sister? Are you still part of the Zhao family?!”
Zhao Xiaohua’s words seemed forced, and it made everyone furrow their brows, thinking she was being unreasonable. Zhao Xiaohua, however, was unaware that she was tarnishing her own image.
Liu Siniang lowered her head and said, “I’m concerned about Tiedan and want to know what happened. Su Zhi is like a sister to me, and I don’t want to see her treated unfairly.”
Su Zhi looked at Liu Siniang, feeling somewhat moved. She thought this woman was both weak and strong. Despite being bullied by her mother-in-law and sister-in-law to the point of emaciation, she still had the courage to speak up for her friend. Such a woman was worth befriending. If she had helped Liu Siniang before out of sympathy, she would now do so purely because Liu Siniang was her friend.
Li Shi also glanced at Liu Siniang, then lowered his head, stroking the cow’s head beside him repeatedly.
Auntie. Li glared at Liu Siniang before leading the way back to the village.
Shen Zi’an asked Li Shi to take the ox cart back to their house first, then he and Su Zhi headed towards Zhao Dazhu’s house.
Zhao Dazhu had already invited Physician Huang to see Tiedan. Physician Huang examined him and diagnosed him with a chill, warning that if not properly cared for, it could develop into lung disease.
Upon hearing this, Su Zhi and the others frowned.
Physician Huang’s eyes lit up when he saw Su Zhi. He knew Su Zhi was skilled in medicine. She had previously treated her own illness and Shen Ziju’s facial injury. He asked if she had any ideas.
At this moment, Su Zhi didn’t hesitate to accept the compliment and modestly admitted that she could try prescribing some medicine for Tiedan.
Zhao Dazhu and his wife didn’t show any gratitude towards Su Zhi for the prescription. They believed it was Su Zhi’s obligation and instructed Shen Zi’an to pay Physician Huang.
“Dazhu’s wife, let’s hold off on the payment for now. We need to clarify the situation first before deciding if it’s our responsibility. If it is, we’ll naturally cover the expenses. If not, then sorry, but we won’t pay a single penny.”
Su Zhi insisted. She had confidence in the Sacred Beast. It wouldn’t chase people without reason. If it did, Tiedan must have done something wrong first. She needed to know the truth. If they paid without understanding the situation, what would stop everyone else from blaming the Sacred Beast for any misfortune? She couldn’t allow that.
“What else is there to investigate? Everyone knows it was the Sacred Beast that chased my son into the river!”
Zhao Dazhu’s wife shouted. This time, her son had suffered greatly. Surviving a disaster brings good fortune. She had made up her mind. They must hold onto Shen Zi’an and his wife tightly. Once they did, their good days would come. She had already planned it out. They would claim her son was injured after falling into the river, unable to work, and needed good food and drink for recovery. Even they, as parents, couldn’t support him. They would put all the blame on Shen Zi’an and his wife, forcing them to support their entire family!
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