Chapter 169: Prepare
“Ning Bao Gai, shall we go take a look?”
She shook her head in refusal. In this situation, it was better to leave them some private space. After all, most of them were elders, and their distraught, tearful appearance…
“Let’s continue cooking.”
“Okay.”
Luo Shuangshuang took the vegetables that Ma Xiuzhen had washed earlier and placed them on the stove, then sat back down on the low stool and began picking vegetables from the vegetable basket.
……
When Yan Changrong and Zhao Panpan walked home with their young grandson and saw the Fu Family boy waiting at the roadside, they knew that Fu Rong and the others had finally arrived.
About the same age as his own two sons, he had raised him single-handedly for so many years, no different from his own flesh and blood.
Even when they first learned that Fu Rong had suddenly stood up and betrayed them, the sadness and disappointment in their hearts outweighed any anger or resentment, and afterward they still couldn’t believe it.
When they learned it was out of necessity, the old couple felt more relief, that they hadn’t let down the early-deceased Fu Xuan by raising the child poorly.
When they arrived in the main hall and saw the Fu Family father and son, one paralyzed and one crippled, just looking at them they could imagine the danger at the time. Before they could even speak, tears streamed down their faces.
“How, how did it become like this!”
“Uncle, Aunt, ARong is sorry to you…”
Before her husband could finish speaking, Ma Xiuzhen knelt heavily with a thud in front of the two, doing what her husband wanted to do but couldn’t at that moment.
She kowtowed and begged forgiveness.
“Xiuxiu, what are you doing? Quick, get up!”
“Uncle and Aunt, ARong and Dan’er can’t stand up. I, on behalf of their father and son and our Fu Family, beg forgiveness from you two elders. Sorry, sorry…”
Fu Jiaming, who had just entered with Yan Qi and hadn’t said two sentences, saw this scene, his eyes instantly reddened, and he rushed forward in a few big strides, kneeling heavily right after his mother.
Unable to pull up the people on the ground who were kowtowing desperately, she pounded her chest, but it couldn’t relieve that swelling pain. Zhao Panpan’s tears flowed even more fiercely.
“Enough!”
Yan Changrong, with equally reddened eyes, couldn’t help but shout loudly. How could he not know this boy’s stubborn temper and thoughts?
He probably felt that if he didn’t personally beat him half to death, he couldn’t get over that hurdle in his heart!
Thinking of this, he couldn’t help but raise his finger pointing at Fu Rong. “When you’re better, family discipline awaits! You think you can still run?!”
“Good… good…”
Fu Rong smiled through his tears, nodding while choking back sobs. “I won’t run, I won’t run…”
“Alright, alright, get up quick!”
Wiping the tears from her face with her hand, Zhao Panpan once again pulled Ma Xiuzhen and Fu Jiaming up, one in each hand.
“Jia Dan, how are you feeling? Is sitting like this okay?”
“Grandma, I’m fine. Don’t worry about me.”
“What about Qianqian? Why didn’t she come along?”
As soon as these words were asked, everyone’s faces except Yan Changrong’s became even more unsightly, with a surge of grief welling up in their eyes.
Ma Xiuzhen covered her face, her features twisting in agony, tears streaming down through her fingers nonstop.
“Aunt, Qianqian… Qianqian is gone.”
“Gone… gone?”
She abruptly raised her head, looking incredulously at her young grandson. When she saw Yan Bei nod with difficulty, the old couple’s hearts tightened simultaneously, and feelings of sorrow and grief immediately spread.
That girl about the same age as Xi Xi, gentle and pretty… she was gone forever.
“Damn Tong Family, that Tong Xuesen deserving a thousand cuts and ten thousand stabs!”
Blood debt must be repaid in blood!
More than an hour passed, and everyone’s moods finally calmed and eased.
Compared to revenge, the most important thing right now was still the injuries of Fu Rong and Fu Jiatan.
“I’ve discussed ARong’s injury with Old Liu. If we can pick the red ganoderma that Ning Ning mentioned, it’ll be easy once we have the medicinal ingredient.”
“I’ll go tomorrow and bring back Doctor Ge when I return.”
“The girl said that red ganoderma grows on a cliff. Jiaming, you must prepare thoroughly before acting.”
“I know, Grandfather. Rest assured.”
Fu Rong opened his mouth upon hearing this, but that rascal pretended not to see and immediately turned his head away, instantly making his hands itch with anger, his fists even wanting to clench hard.
“Old man, don’t say anything. I must get it back!”
Sighing, Fu Rong glanced at his fingers that he still couldn’t grip, and finally said to act within his capabilities.
Paralyzed was paralyzed, but he didn’t want to lose another child because of himself.
Qianqian was already his greatest pain in this life.
……
The next day, because she had to accompany Fu Jiaming and Luo Shuangshuang to Gu City and Luohu, Su Ning went early to tell Old Master Su.
She temporarily handed the health clinic’s key to him for safekeeping, informing him that for life-saving emergencies, he could quietly ask Old Man Liu at the cattle shed for help.
After returning to Gu City, the two went back to the Luo Family together, and she ran to the brick factory for Fu Jiaming to order bricks and tiles for building the house.
With the approval note issued by Old Master Su and the deposit paid, things went very smoothly.
She didn’t know what the two said at home, but when they met again at the bus station, Luo Shuangshuang’s eyes were still red and swollen, though her expression showed no sadness.
In contrast to her, Fu Jiaming was the complete opposite, walking with a spirited swagger. If circumstances allowed, he’d want to buy some firecrackers to set off.
With a turn of her thoughts, Su Ning had the answer: it seemed the two had discussed the marriage and successfully convinced Uncle Luo and Yan Xin.
“Then let me congratulate you in advance?”
“Hehe, shared joy, shared joy!”
“You big fool!”
As if disdainfully glancing at him, Luo Shuangshuang stood up and sat beside her. “Ning Bao Gai, you don’t know what this fool said to my parents!”
Recalling the particularly wonderful expressions of her family at the time, Luo Shuangshuang couldn’t help but chuckle out loud.
“Cough~ Don’t I have any face? Shuang Shuang, let’s discuss leaving me a little bit?”
“Hmph hmph~”
“Alright, I’m not interested in his marriage proposal vows. Have you decided when to get the certificate and hold the wedding?”
Hearing this, both of their faces simultaneously showed sweet yet embarrassed expressions.
“After the house is built and Shuang Shuang graduates from health school.”
That would be around the tenth or twelfth lunar month?
Nodding in understanding, she felt happy once again for her two friends.
……
Coming from Beijing City to Xiangnan and working at the textile factory for these few months, the biggest gain was probably curing her motion sickness.
After more than two hours on the route bus plus over half an hour on the ox cart, when they arrived, she only looked a bit pale, without the usual dizziness and nausea.
Granny Yan and Maternal Uncle Yan were even more warmly delighted by her arrival than the first time, their joy surpassing even when they learned Fu Jiaming was their prospective son-in-law.
After a thoughtful lunch, Yan Xi also learned the purpose of their visit this time.
“Ning Ning, are you sure it’s over there at Treasure Mountain?”
“Mm.”
“You, you, this girl has such a bold guts!”
Pointing at her lightly, Yan Xi rarely put on a stern face.
Since deep autumn entered Treasure Mountain, the peak had already been covered in white. As winter approached, the big ones inside were starving and would come out, making it much more dangerous to enter the mountain than usual.
After thinking about a relatively safe route and gaining some confidence, Yan Xi stood up and said, “I’ll ask for leave. We’ll go quick and come back quick.”
This mountain trip was for gathering medicinal herbs, not hunting, so Yan Xi didn’t prepare to bring his two sons, nor the clamoring Luo Shuangshuang who wanted to come along.
Once the three had packed things in that thatched hut storing hunting tools, they quickly entered the mountain.
Su Ning, following behind them, touched the ink jade on her chest. After hesitating for a long time, she still didn’t choose to switch to the lucky purple jade.
Although bringing the purple jade would likely yield good medicinal materials, perhaps even the needed red ganoderma this time, the other good luck couldn’t be avoided, and that scene would probably scare the two into heart attacks.
If they could find another red ganoderma on the Treasure Mountain cliff, that would be best. If not, she’d have to find an opportunity to pull a switcheroo.
Yan Xi carried a homemade longbow and quiver on his back, while Fu Jiaming carried a bundled thick hemp rope.
As for her, she carried a small back basket containing a water bottle and a small hoe.
The deeper they went, the rougher the mountain road became.
Along the way, not only did Su Ning pick several stalks of herbs, but Yan Xi also shot a big gray rabbit and a bamboo chicken that came right to them.
With Yan Xi, who had rich hunting experience in the mountains year-round, leading them, they avoided several dangerous situations in advance, including a family of four wild boars out foraging.
With almost no stops to rest, when Su Ning’s stamina was nearly at its limit, they finally reached the foot of Treasure Mountain.
“Let’s rest by this small stream first, then head up the mountain later.”
Fu Jiaming, who had also noticed her condition, nodded without hesitation and considerately moved a smooth, clean large stone for Su Ning, so she could sit and rest properly.
