“Have you always lived on this mountain all by yourself?” Fu Shiwen asked again.
Jiang Zhu hummed in acknowledgment, lowered her head, feeling a bit down, fidgeting with her hands.
“Why not move down the mountain to live? Isn’t it inconvenient living up here? And also… what about your family?”
“I… I’m, fine, on the, mountain.” Her voice was a little soft, and it was clear from her tone that something wasn’t right.
Fu Shiwen didn’t dare to press further on that topic, afraid of stirring up unpleasant memories for her, so he changed the subject.
“Um, I… do you have any books here? Lying in bed is pretty boring. If it weren’t for my leg, I’d be helping you with the chores.”
At that, Jiang Zhu remembered the novel she’d bought and forgotten to show him. She got up and went to fetch it for him.
“Here, read, a novel.”
Fu Shiwen glanced at the cover, took it, and said, “Thank you. I don’t feel like reading right now—I’ll read it when I get bored. I’d rather chat with you.”
Jiang Zhu sat down on the chair and asked, “Chat, about, what?”
“Don’t you want to know why I came here? Don’t you want to know why I ended up collapsed on the mountain?”
“Oh, go on, then.” Jiang Zhu put on an expression of earnest attention.
Fu Shiwen was amused by her demeanor and chuckled. “You don’t have to be so serious. Let’s just talk normally.”
“Alright.” Jiang Zhu leaned back against the chair, relaxing a little. “Go on.”
Fu Shiwen thought back for a moment, then began to speak.
“I came here mainly because I heard the environment was nice—pristine, untouched—a good place to unwind. So I came over. I’ve been under a lot of pressure lately and needed some relaxation.”
“After I got here, I saw this mountain, and it felt like something was calling out to me, so I went up.”
“But I wasn’t familiar with the area. As I was walking, my foot slipped and I fell. At that moment, I thought I was done for. I never expected to run into you.”
“You saved my life. If you ever run into any trouble in the future, I’ll do my best to help you out.”
So that was it—he’d fallen by accident.
He was lucky to have run into her. Otherwise, in this cold weather, he’d have starved or frozen to death.
Fu Shiwen added another line: “I really am lucky. Maybe this is fate—that I got to meet you.”
Fate… that was such a mysterious thing.
Jiang Zhu didn’t care about his talk of repayment. She simply said, “You, need, to pay, for, the food, and, the medicine.”
If he truly couldn’t afford it, Jiang Zhu wouldn’t force the issue. At worst, she’d just work a little harder next year and get by.
Fu Shiwen looked at her serious face—she didn’t seem to be joking—and asked, “Where’s my bag? Have you seen my bag?”
Jiang Zhu went to dig out his bag and brought it back. She hadn’t touched it since bringing it in—even the mud on it was still sitting there undisturbed.
“I haven’t, looked, in, your, bag.” she said.
“I believe you.” Fu Shiwen opened the bag as he spoke to check the contents. Wallet, towel, bread—everything was there, nothing missing.
It was just a shame about his phone. Who knew where it had fallen.
But even if the phone were here, there probably wouldn’t be any signal anyway, so he couldn’t make calls.
As for his family back home—without any word from him, he wondered if they’d be worried.
Forget it—thinking about that now is useless. Better to focus on what’s in front of him.
He took out his wallet from his bag, opened it, and handed all the cash inside to Jiang Zhu. “See if this is enough?”
Jiang Zhu saw a stack of crisp red bills—at least thirty of them. More than enough!
She took the money and counted it, discovering there were over fifty bills. She counted out thirty and handed the rest back to Fu Shiwen.
Fu Shiwen didn’t take them. “Keep it. It’s all for you.”
Jiang Zhu held the three thousand yuan and said, “This… is enough.”
Even three thousand felt like too much, but thinking about how most of the meat in the future would end up in his mouth, she accepted the three thousand.
Fu Shiwen said, “I have no use for this money anyway. It’s not like I can move around. You keep it—I’ll need you to take care of me in the days ahead. Sorry for the trouble.”
Jiang Zhu shook her head, insisting on not taking the extra money. “You… need… money… when… you… go… down… the… mountain.”
Fu Shiwen pulled out his bank card instead. “There’s money in my account—plenty of it. Once I can make it down the mountain, I’ll withdraw some more for you.”
Jiang Zhu had saved his life—she was his lifesaver. No amount of money could repay that debt.
“No need. This… is… enough.” She stuffed the remaining bills back into Fu Shiwen’s hands.
Fu Shiwen pushed them back. “Take it. If you don’t, I won’t have the face to stay here.”
“Really… enough.”
“Think of the extra as my gratitude. If you hadn’t saved me, I might not even be in this world anymore. Jiang Zhu, thank you.” He said it with sincerity.
Jiang Zhu let out a sigh and accepted the money. “No… need… to… thank.”
Then she’d just give him more meat in the future, and fresher vegetables too—not so much pickled cabbage.
Seeing that she’d finally agreed to take it, a hint of a smile appeared on Fu Shiwen’s face. “That’s right. Don’t stand on ceremony with me.”
This was nothing yet. Once he recovered and could go down the mountain, he’d repay her properly!
When that day came, Jiang Zhu better not be too shocked.
Jiang Zhu held the five-plus thousand yuan and counted it carefully once more, then looked up and said, “Thank you.”
“Why are you thanking me? I should be the one thanking you.”
“Mm.” Jiang Zhu didn’t dwell on it. She crouched down, pulled a box out from under the bed, took out five hundred yuan, wrapped up the rest, and placed it in the box’s hidden compartment.
This was her entire savings now—she was no longer someone without a single cent to her name.
A faint smile crept onto her face as she pushed the box back under the bed, then put the five hundred yuan into the bag she carried around.
After putting it away, she said, “I’ll… make… you… something.”
Fu Shiwen was curious. “Make what?”
Jiang Zhu didn’t say. She smiled mysteriously and headed out the door.
Fu Shiwen smiled too and didn’t press further. He watched her leave, keeping track of the time, wondering when she’d be back.
Only a few minutes passed before Jiang Zhu returned, carrying a small wooden board and a few wooden sticks in her hands—he had no idea what she was up to.
Jiang Zhu smiled at Fu Shiwen, then went to grab a saw, hammer, and other tools. She walked over to the stove, warmed her hands by the fire for a moment, and then got to work.
She was going to make Fu Shiwen a chair—or more precisely, a chair for him to use when going to the bathroom.
His leg was injured, so it was best for him to sit when he needed to relieve himself.
Making this chair was simple—just a regular chair with a large hole cut out of the middle. Nothing complicated about it.
Fu Shiwen lay on the bed, watching Jiang Zhu without blinking, curious about what she was making for him.