The Fortunate Lady and Her Mountain Man

Chapter 195: Chapter 195: Cannot Be Careless

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief upon learning that Dabao had been found.

When they realized they had wrongly accused the vagrant, they all praised Ji Huan, saying that good deeds are rewarded.

Hu Liang did a head count, and after the group came down the mountain, they chatted for a while in Ji Huan’s courtyard before dispersing.

From the moment it happened until now, Aunt Wang, Aunt Gao, Sixth Sister-in-law Feng, Second Sister-in-law Xu, Sister-in-law Fu, and Shi Yong had all been helping with the search.

The onlookers and temporary helpers had long since left, but these few had insisted on staying with her to the very end.

But it was late, and not a suitable time to ask them to stay for a meal. Ji Huan could only thank them repeatedly, thinking to herself, ’I’ll have to prepare some gifts and visit them another day to properly express my gratitude.’

The Hu Family stayed behind.

As soon as they entered the main hall, Widow Xie kicked the back of Hu Dacheng’s knees. With a THUD, he dropped to the ground, kneeling hard.

His face was puffed up and he looked like he was about to cry, but he forcefully held back his tears.

"Sister Wan, it’s all my fault. I’m the one who lost Dabao. You... you can hit me!"

"Do you really know what you did wrong?" Ji Huan placed Dabao on a chair and turned to look at him.

"Do you have any idea how irresponsible you were? You not only failed your duty, but you also put others in danger. Let’s not even talk about Dabao being taken. What if your grandmother had woken up and needed water? Or what if Xiao’an and Hua had rolled off the kang and gotten hurt?"

Tears streamed down Hu Dacheng’s face, and his voice was thick with sobs. "I’m an idiot. I shouldn’t have been so greedy for fun. I really know I was wrong..."

"Then we’ll let this be a lesson for you. From now on, remember this: don’t rashly promise things you can’t do. And when you do promise something, you must see it through. Haven’t you always wanted to be a real man? A real man’s promise is worth a thousand pieces of gold, and he must always finish what he starts."

"Yes! I’ll remember!" Hu Dacheng wiped his face haphazardly with his sleeve and nodded vigorously.

Widow Xie disagreed. She went to the kitchen, found a stick, and came back to whip him.

Ji Huan stopped her. "Aunt Xie, Dacheng knows he was wrong. Give him some time to reflect on it and let it sink in..."

It wasn’t that she was being entirely soft-hearted, nor did she want to stop Widow Xie from disciplining her son, but Hu Dacheng’s face was already swollen beyond recognition. His eyes were nearly shut into a thin line, a clear sign of how hard he’d been hit earlier.

And that was just the visible part. Who knew what the parts she couldn’t see looked like.

He definitely needed to be taught a lesson for his mistake, but he was just a boy of about ten. His bones hadn’t fully developed yet. Even if corporal punishment was used, it had to be in moderation. You couldn’t just beat him until he was broken.

Widow Xie threw the wooden stick down, pointing at Hu Dacheng, her anger flaring up uncontrollably.

"Nothing like this ever happened when Ximei was home! And you call yourself a big brother? You’re not even half as good as your sister! How did you beat your chest and promise me this morning? Is your brain filled with crap? What can you do besides eat, drink, and fool around! What can I possibly count on you for! Let me tell you, it’s a good thing Dabao wasn’t truly lost. If he had been... I would have beaten you to death!"

Hu Dacheng knelt in the middle of the hall with his head bowed, the tears he had just wiped away beginning to drip down again. DRIP. DROP.

When Widow Xie had tired herself out from scolding, Ji Huan pulled her over to a nearby chair to sit. Then, she went into the inner room, retrieved some anti-swelling ointment from her homemade first-aid kit, and handed it to Hu Liang, telling him to take Hu Dacheng to the kitchen to treat his injuries.

But Widow Xie was still worried. No sooner had they left the hall than she followed right behind them.

Ji Huan carried Dabao into the inner room, had him lie flat on the kang, then rolled up his pant leg to re-examine his injured ankle.

She ruled out a fracture or a dislocated joint. There was some slight local swelling, but the injury wasn’t to the bone. There was no internal bleeding, and no bruising on the surface of his foot.

Ji Huan gently pressed the injured area, carefully observing his reaction.

Seeing his little brow twitch, she asked, "Does it hurt?"

Dabao shook his head. "No, it hurts."

Ji Huan applied a little more pressure and pressed again. "Does it hurt?"

Dabao looked at her with pleading eyes and nodded. "It hurts..."

Ji Huan lightly rapped him on the head. "See if you don’t tell the truth next time!"

Widow Xie returned from the kitchen and, seeing the scene, asked, "How is Dabao?"

"A slight sprain. It’s not serious."

"Do you have any liniment? Quickly rub some on him."

"I’ll give him a cold compress with some well water first. It’s better to apply liniment later."

A cold compress can constrict the blood vessels, reducing internal bleeding, pain, and spasms.

But they didn’t have ice packs back then, so she had to soak a cloth in cold water and apply it to the sprained area.

Ji Huan thought for a moment and simply brought over half a basin of cold water, having Dabao put his foot directly into it. This would be more effective than a compress.

He would soak it for a quarter of an hour, wait for an hour, and then do it a second time.

After twelve two-hour periods had passed since the sprain, they could use a warm compress with hot vinegar or wine to promote circulation, clear blockages, and reduce swelling and pain.

As for topical medications that invigorate the blood and disperse stasis, they usually contain irritating ingredients that can burn the skin or even worsen the swelling, so it’s best to use them one to two days after the injury.

Widow Xie didn’t understand any of this and just watched her work.

Ji Huan turned back and asked her about Hu Dacheng.

Widow Xie sighed. "It’s not that I’m a cruel mother, but that boy has gotten used to running wild. If I don’t straighten him out now, who knows what kind of trouble he’ll get into later."

She had just gone to the kitchen to check on him, and she admitted to herself that she had hit him a bit too hard this time.

She felt a pang of heartache, but she also resented the little bastard for not living up to expectations.

"If it weren’t for his carelessness, would any of this have happened today? Thank goodness Dabao was clever enough to escape from the traffickers. Otherwise, I can’t even imagine... Aunt Xie has wronged you. I told you to give Dacheng a beating to vent your anger, but you wouldn’t do it."

"Aunt Xie, what are you saying? To be honest, I’m the one who should be beaten. Dacheng didn’t keep his promise, and I didn’t keep mine. If only I had come back a little earlier, this wouldn’t have..."

Widow Xie interrupted her. "Boss Fang was looking for you. It wasn’t something you could easily refuse."

Ji Huan smiled. "You’re so quick to be considerate of me, but you should be considerate of Dacheng, too. Just beating him when he makes a mistake is useless. You have to guide him, break down the reasoning for him piece by piece, so he can truly listen and learn his lesson."

"Well, I... I’ll try that when I get back... Speaking of which, we really have that beggar to thank this time. I guess you didn’t feed him for nothing. But what’s wrong with that beggar? I noticed he was walking funny, dragging one of his legs."

On the way down the mountain, Hu Dacheng had been supporting the vagrant. But then they discovered the vagrant seemed to have little strength in his limbs. Dacheng couldn’t support him alone, so Shi Yong helped carry him the rest of the way.

"He’s still settled in that low shed outside the back door. I’ll go check on him after I get Dabao to sleep."

"You should wait until tomorrow. Even though he helped, you can’t let your guard down... He’s a grown man with arms and legs. If he decided to use brute force, you wouldn’t be able to handle him. Otherwise, how did he carry Dabao up the mountain in the first place?"

Ji Huan knew she was just worried, so she agreed for the time being.

Widow Xie relaxed, rolled up her sleeves, and went into the kitchen. She casually cooked half a pot of noodles, and after everyone had filled their stomachs, they went home.

After Dabao was asleep, Ji Huan picked up a lantern and went to the back door.

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