A Farm Girl: Three Acres of Fertile Land Can Be Exchanged for a Country

Chapter 7 Stay Together

This trip had left Nanxing exhausted, and now he felt a tightness in his chest. He clenched his fists and, like a bull, rammed his head into her chest.

Caught off guard, Wutong was knocked back two steps by his collision and said speechlessly, "Hey, don't take advantage of me, you brat."

Nanxing didn't say a word, but took a few deep breaths, feeling her warmth and breath.

Seeing that he was acting like a child throwing a tantrum, Wutong helplessly patted his hair: "I'm telling the truth, I really consider you a brother, but if you care about me too, then tell me who you are, okay?"

She gently guided him, speaking in a very soft tone. A cool breeze blew across the water, carrying the scent of grass and leaves—it was a harmless environment.

Nan Xing wavered slightly, his thin lips parted, and his eyes gazed at her: "I...I am Duan..."

Before he could finish speaking, Zhao Sanyang suddenly appeared, pounced on them from behind, and laughed as he put his arms around their shoulders: "What are you two doing? Running out here so mysteriously, tell me! Were you eating alone behind my back?"

Nanxing was interrupted and could not continue. The only thing she wanted to say was swallowed back to the deepest part of her heart.

Wutong was disappointed and lightly punched Zhao Sanyang: "Get lost, we're not those kinds of people."

Zhao Sanyang said, "You're not that kind of person, but Nanxing might be. That kid is really wicked."

Nanxing rolled her eyes at him, turned around and left, not wanting to look at him even once.

Zhao Sanyang ignored her and put his arm around Wutong's shoulder, asking, "Wutong... I have something I'd like you to help me with."

Wutong asked, "What is it?"

Zhao Sanyang lowered his hands, clasped them together, and said awkwardly, "Could you please tell Commander Li that I can stay with you too?"

Upon hearing this, Nanxing immediately stopped and pricked up his ears to eavesdrop.

Wutong looked at him in surprise: "You want to stay too?"

The conditions here weren't good, and Zhao Sanyang didn't know anyone there. In her opinion, it would be better to stick with the main group.

Zhao Sanyang nodded: "Yes, actually I didn't want to stay, but... well, never mind, let me tell you the truth..."

He looked around and, seeing that no one else was paying attention, bent down to untie his leg bindings and lifted up his trouser legs.

Wutong looked down and gasped.

A wound seven or eight centimeters long was clearly visible on his leg, with pus forming at the edges, indicating that it had not been caused in just a day or two.

"What's going on?" she asked seriously.

Zhao Sanyang pulled down his trouser leg and scratched his head: "That was the day we went down to rescue people. We accidentally got scratched by a tree branch. We thought it wasn't a serious injury and that it would be fine in a couple of days, but now it hurts even more."

There were no military doctors in the team, but there were a few veterans who knew a little about treating wounds.

Wutong immediately grabbed his hand: "Let's go get treatment."

Floods also provide a good opportunity for bacteria to grow. The weather is stuffy and humid, making it an infinitely large petri dish. If it is not treated quickly, the wound will definitely continue to worsen, and you might end up having to amputate half a leg.

Zhao Sanyang stood there unwillingly, shaking his head at her: "No, okay? If you're going to treat me, you have to wait until they leave."

"why?"

Zhao Sanyang lowered his head and said sadly, "My family has been soldiers for generations. My grandfather, my father, and I are all like that in our village. If they find out that I am injured and don't go to fight, but just sit there eating for free, everyone will laugh at me."

Wutong frowned and asked, "Which is more important, your feet or your face?"

Besides, it's only natural for people to rest when they're injured; they're not made of steel.

Zhao Sanyang lowered his head and remained silent.

Wutong couldn't understand his mental world, but she couldn't bear to watch him become crippled. She sighed and said, "Put your shoes on properly, I'll go tell Lieutenant Li right now."

Zhao Sanyang immediately looked up and gratefully nodded.

Back in the tent, Lieutenant Li had already finished eating. Wutong found an opportunity to tell him about Zhao Sanyang, and he nodded without hesitation.

I brought Zhao Sanyang along just to use his pigeons, but I didn't expect to have a chance to use them along the way, and it's unlikely I'll be able to use them in the future, so keeping them or not doesn't matter.

As for Nanxing, there's no need to ask, he'll definitely stay. Everyone has already tacitly accepted him as Wutong's follower; wherever Wutong is, he'll be there too.

They agreed to communicate by carrier pigeon and send the three thousand soldiers onto the ship. Wutong, along with Nanxing and Zhao Sanyang, stood on the shore and watched them leave.

As the massive fleet gradually disappeared into the distance, and familiar faces became blurred, Wutong felt a pang of emotion.

She really couldn't bear to part with these people.

Ruolan stood behind them for a long time before walking up with light, graceful steps and saying softly, "It's getting windy now, let's go sit in the tent."

Wutong went back with her, asked her for some medicine, cleaned and treated Zhao Sanyang's wounds, and wrapped them with clean cloths.

Ruolan's conditions were much better than those of the other villagers. She had plenty of food and clothing, and maids served her everything, so she didn't have to do anything herself.

The tent was divided into inner and outer compartments, arranged like a house.

She ordered someone to roast a chicken, and the aroma was irresistible. Not only did Zhao Sanyang's appetite whetted, but even Nanxing, who usually disliked eating, was tempted, and the two of them fought over the chicken wings.

While they were eating chicken, Wutong and Ruolan sat at the table chatting. Because Zhao Sanyang, who was unaware of the truth, was next to them, they chatted very discreetly and never mentioned anything related to gender.

The tent was warm, and the aroma of chicken filled the air. Wutong felt very comfortable; she hadn't felt this comfortable in months. She took a sip of her tea and then let out a sigh of relief.

Ruolan chattered on and on about her experiences over the past few months.

When she first married into the Zhou family, only Zhou Pan'an treated her well. Her parents-in-law basically didn't respect her. Sometimes, if they saw that she had done something wrong, they would instigate Zhou Pan'an to beat her up, saying that they wanted to discipline their daughter-in-law.

Zhou Pan'an's wife seems quiet and reserved, but she is actually very wicked and always tries to trip him up.

She lived on thin ice back then. In front of her in-laws, she couldn't eat properly, walk properly, or even sleep properly. They could find fault with everything she did.

Fortunately, she held onto her pride and was determined to make something of herself, which allowed her to survive until today and turn the tide.

Zhou's parents-in-law dare not say anything to her now. When her aunt came to ask for grain, she was severely reprimanded by Zhou Pan'an and dared not be presumptuous again. Now they even avoid her when they see her.

Seeing her condition, the villagers no longer dared to treat her the same way they used to. Although Ruolan was still a concubine, her treatment was much better than that of Zhou Pan'an's first wife.

She finished recounting everything with a triumphant air, then held her hand up to her eyes, gazing dreamily at the crystal-clear jade bracelet on her wrist, and slowly exhaled.

This bracelet was a family heirloom of the Zhou family; they didn't give it to the first wife, but to her instead.

"What goes around comes around, haha..."

End of this chapter