With the departure of Feng Jia and his son, the commotion at the Qiao household finally settled.
Qiao Wan didn’t notice when Huo Yan had left. By the time she helped Qiao Fugeng carry Qiao Dahe into the house and came out to express her gratitude, he was already gone.
Thinking that he would come to pick her up in two days and that they would have plenty of opportunities to meet in the future, she decided there was no need to rush.
While the Qiao father and son were distracted, Qiao Wan fetched a bucket of spiritual spring water from her Dimension and brought three bowls into the room.
“Father, Second Brother, you’ve worked hard all day. Have some water. I’ll clean up Eldest Brother’s wounds first.”
She filled three bowls and placed them on the table in the main hall, urging the two to drink quickly.
Then, she took a coarse cloth and wiped the blood from Qiao Dahe’s face but found no wounds.
She let out a puzzled “Huh?”.
Logically, with so much blood, the wound should have been significant.
Qiao Wan turned to Qiao Erchuan and voiced her doubt: “How did you and Eldest Brother get injured? Why is he still unconscious?”
At her question, Qiao Erchuan buried his head in the water bowl, unconsciously shifting his buttocks further away before answering:
“Eldest Brother and I didn’t find any ginseng, but we came across a young wild boar. We thought we could sell it for a few taels of silver if we brought it back, but unexpectedly… there was a large one nearby. Eldest Brother hit his head against a tree while running and passed out. I went back to save him, tripped, and got a gash on my leg from a branch.”
His voice grew softer as he spoke, and his eyes kept darting toward his father beside him.
“You went to the Wild Boar Gully?”
Qiao Fugeng’s eyes widened, the bloodstains on half his face making him look even more fearsome.
He raised his hand to slap Qiao Erchuan, but the latter had shifted away, so the blow only grazed his clothes.
Furious, Qiao Fugeng stood up, grabbed Qiao Erchuan by the collar, and began hitting him.
“This is the season when wild boars are giving birth! Instead of running at the sight of one, you thought about catching it? Seems like the two of you think your lives are too long!”
“Father, I was wrong, I was wrong!” Qiao Erchuan hopped on one leg while dodging Qiao Fugeng’s slaps. “Father, don’t just hit me—Eldest Brother is lying right there. Go hit him instead, he’s an easier target!”
Qiao Fugeng’s face turned livid with rage. He tightened his grip on Qiao Erchuan’s collar and roared, “How dare you shift the blame to your elder brother! If it weren’t for the injury on your leg, I’d break it today!”
Qiao Wan had been an orphan since she could remember, growing up in an orphanage. Though she had been placed with several foster families, she had never truly experienced the warmth and care of a family.
In the two days since she had transmigrated here, she had come to realize that although the Qiao family lived in hardship, their care for one another was genuine.
She stepped forward and gently persuaded, “Father, Second Brother knows he was wrong. Right now, the most important thing is to check on Eldest Brother’s condition and tend to Second Brother’s wound.”
Qiao Fugeng, panting heavily, finally released his grip. Pointing at Qiao Erchuan, he scolded, “I’ll deal with you later!” Yet the worry in his eyes was unmistakable.
Qiao Wan returned to Qiao Dahe’s side and carefully examined his head. Sure enough, she found a large swollen bump near his hairline, but there was no visible wound.
She guessed that the blood might have come from a nosebleed caused by the impact—frightening to see, but not actually serious.
As for Qiao Erchuan, he unwrapped the cloth tied around his leg, revealing a wound about an inch long, with flesh torn open and still oozing blood.
Despite his harsh words, Qiao Fugeng frowned deeply at the sight of the injury and said gruffly to Qiao Wan:
“Take care of your second brother first, that scoundrel deserves to suffer a bit!”
Qiao Wan fetched clean cloth and the remaining spiritual spring water. She first rinsed the wound, making Qiao Erchuan hiss in pain, but soon the sharp agony transformed into a cool, soothing sensation, significantly easing the burning sting.
Qiao Wan carefully cleaned the dirt around the wound, then waited for Qiao Qing to return with the oxcart.
With nothing at hand now, she could only provide basic treatment. The gash on Qiao Erchuan’s leg was too deep and required proper medication.
“This water…” Qiao Erchuan stared at the remaining water in the bowl, smacking his lips, “Tastes strangely sweet. Drinking it seems to give me some energy.” He then drained the last drops from the bowl.
Qiao Fugeng had already finished the water in his bowl earlier. Hearing this, he snorted, “Isn’t mountain spring water always like this? You’re just being talkative!”
But inwardly, he also mused that the water was exceptionally clear and sweet, drinking it had dissipated much of the stifling heaviness in his chest.
After briefly tending to the wound on Qiao Fugeng’s face, Qiao Wan observed the men in the family—Qiao Fugeng’s injury was the mildest among them.
Having cleaned the room and dispersed the scent of blood, Qiao Wan was about to rest when she saw Qiao Qing rushing in frantically from outside.
She carried a medicine chest on her shoulder, followed by a limping Doctor Liu.
“Father, elder brother, hold on, I’ve brought the doctor—”
Bang! As the Qiao family’s door was shoved open, Qiao Qing’s remaining words stuck in her throat.
On her way back, she had prepared for the worst.
But now, her elder brother who had been bleeding profusely and whose condition was unknown was lying peacefully in bed as if asleep.
Their severely injured father and second brother were leisurely drinking water, and the household was far from the chaotic scene she had imagined.
Doctor Liu, who entered a step later, leaned panting against the doorframe. Seeing the condition of the three inside, he couldn’t help complaining:
“You ran so urgently I thought someone was dying. They all seem fine, don’t they?”
“I…” Qiao Qing wanted to say it hadn’t been like this before she went to fetch the doctor.
“Uncle Liu, it’s not my sister’s fault for worrying. My father and brothers are indeed badly injured. Please take a look at them.” Qiao Wan stood up to explain.
Doctor Liu was inwardly astonished. It had been less than half a month since he last saw Qiao Wan, yet she was now speaking softly and pleading. Even so, he still held a grudge against her for pushing him down the mountain.
Ignoring her, he entered the room directly, deliberately dragging his leg as he first examined Qiao Dahe’s injuries, then applied medicine to Qiao Erchuan, and finally glanced at Qiao Fugeng’s wound.
“Your Dahe was just knocked out hard. He should wake by tomorrow morning. Erchuan here needs his dressing changed every three days. Keep it dry, and he’ll recover within ten days. Your face is just scraped; no need for medicine. Nothing serious.” He then turned to Qiao Qing, “Come with me to get the medicine.”
Throughout, he didn’t glance at Qiao Wan once, as if she didn’t exist.
Qiao Wan knew well that the original host had deeply offended him. She politely stepped forward, “Uncle Liu, how much do we owe? Including what we previously owed you.”
“Wanwan…” Qiao Fugeng understood that Qiao Wan intended to use those ten taels of silver to pay the debt, but that money was meant to return the betrothal gifts to Huo Yan. If they spent it on medicine, they’d have no way to gather twenty taels.
His face full of guilt, he said, “Doctor Liu, could we delay the payment for a few days? Please put it on our tab for now.”
“Hmph!” Doctor Liu seemed to have anticipated this long ago. He glared at Qiao Wan and said indifferently, “Put it on credit? How much medicine money does your family already owe? That shove you gave me last time—my leg still hurts from it! I’m already being generous by not charging you for the medical consultation!”
Upon hearing this, Qiao Wan immediately took out a money pouch from her bosom.
“Uncle Liu, I was young and foolish before, and I offended you. I sincerely apologize.” Qiao Wan spoke earnestly and bowed slightly. “Here are ten taels of silver. Please take it first. Deduct the consultation fee and medicine cost for this time, and see if the remainder is enough to cover the expenses for your leg injury. If it’s not enough, just name the amount, and we will definitely find a way to repay you in the future.”
Doctor Liu clearly hadn’t expected Qiao Wan to produce such a large sum of money, nor had he anticipated her apologizing so humbly.
He stood frozen in place, staring at the money pouch, the anger on his face gradually fading.
He had always been on good terms with the Qiao family. Qiao Wan was someone he had watched grow up—a particularly adorable and sensible child since childhood. He didn’t understand how she had turned out like this as she grew older.
Previously, Doctor Liu had been somewhat disheartened, but now that Qiao Wan had returned to her sensible self, he softened a little.
“…Where did you get this silver?” Doctor Liu asked hesitantly, not immediately taking it.
“It’s the betrothal gift from Huo Yan,” Qiao Wan replied frankly. “Paying back debts is only right and proper. I’ll prioritize repaying your medicine money first, Uncle Liu.”
“Enough!” Doctor Liu sighed. “The previous debts, plus the medicine and consultation fees for this time—I’ll count it as three taels. As for my leg… let’s not mention it again!”
He took three taels of silver from the money pouch and pushed the rest back to Qiao Wan.
“Keep the remainder. As for Huo Yan… since it’s a betrothal gift, your family should handle it properly.” Doctor Liu’s tone was complicated as he gave this instruction. He glanced at Qiao Dahe and added, “If he still hasn’t woken up by tomorrow morning, come and get me again.”
With that, he shouldered his medicine chest and left without lingering, waving his hand as he went.
After seeing Doctor Liu off, the atmosphere in the room grew somewhat tense.
Qiao Qing and Qiao Erchuan looked at the money in Qiao Wan’s hand, wanting to speak but hesitating.
Qiao Fugeng lifted his head, his eyes slightly reddened. “Wanwan, that money… it’s all because I’m useless…”
“Dad, don’t say that.” Qiao Wan walked over and pressed the remaining silver into Qiao Fugeng’s rough hands.
“Now that the debt is repaid, my heart is at ease. As for Huo Yan, I’ve decided—since I’ve agreed, I’ll marry him!”