Chapter 3

The setting sun sank over the mountain, staining half the rosy clouds red.

"Splash!"

Chang Yuan poured water into the vat with deft, unblinding movements.

He was blind, but not blind in heart. Since waking, he hadn't lost track of his past, yet he hadn't struggled. Once he was able to walk again, Jiang Fuying led him around the courtyard.

After just one try, he'd mastered the layout, never making a single mistake. Even if he stumbled, he quickly adjusted, unlike those who suddenly lost their sight and needed a period of panicked adjustment.

Carrying a wooden bucket and dressed in plain clothes, he had the air of a farmer, yet his tall, handsome figure constantly distinguished him from the ordinary peasants. It

was truly a delight to the eye, but unfortunately, she had no interest in appreciating it, leaving such a fine figure unused.

Jiang Fuying averted her gaze and sat on a small chair, continuing to boil the medicine.

The broth in the jar gurgled and steamed, its bitterness permeating the room and soaking every inch of her skin.

She stirred the charcoal fire, gently waving a palm-leaf fan.

"Madam Jiang,"

a clear voice rang out, bringing Jiang Fuying back to her senses.

Chang Yuan didn't leave after fetching water, but instead scooped some more water into the pot. The firewood had ignited at some point, and the water in the pot was already hot and bubbling.

Seeing his posture, Jiang Fuying was slightly startled.

"You want to wash the dishes?"

The man paused imperceptibly, pursing his pale lips. His long, bony fingers touched the edge of the stove and he replied softly, "Yes."

Jiang Fuying looked into his eyes. His expression was unclear in his dull eyes, but she could tell that his posture was not fake. She raised her eyebrows and handed him the melon pulp and soap for washing dishes.

His jade-white, thin, and slender knuckles touched the oily water, stained with worldly things. His dark eyebrows frowned slightly, but in a moment, his broad hands picked up the bowl in the water and fumbled with it to wash it.

The sound of running water gradually rose. Seeing that he seemed unfamiliar but quickly got the hang of it, Jiang Fuying didn't say anything more.

For a moment, only the swaying of a small fan and the rippling of water could be heard.

"Just now..." The man put down the bowl, and the bottom of the bowl touched the stove, making a crisp sound. "You were obviously very unhappy, why didn't you say it?"

Jiang Fuying paused.

The charcoal fire burned brightly. She sat by the small stove, as if her voice was steamed and hot: "The Liu family has helped us a lot."

Her father died early, and in the village, without a man in the family, they would be bullied to some extent. It was Uncle Liu who stood up and put a butcher knife at the door, so that those hooligans dared not to wait there again.

"Tonghua treats me well, and she doesn't mean to lose her temper occasionally," Jiang Fuying put down the small fan. "Aunt Cai...she's quick-witted, and it shouldn't be intentional."

She was naturally anxious and angry when her mother fainted, but what could she do.

She couldn't utter a single breath of anger at someone like Aunt Cai Tonghua. The day's pent-up frustration and heat finally settled deep within her heart, weighing heavily, with no escape.

Chang Yuan washed his hands in the water, washing with extra care because he couldn't see, caressing every inch of the dishes.

"So you have to swallow all your grievances alone?"

His voice was as indifferent as ever, his tone cold, not one of concern but of genuine misunderstanding—

judging her actions from the perspective of an outsider. He

was aloof, distant, and cold.

She harbored a sense of unease, yet she habitually maintained a nonchalant demeanor.

Jiang Fuying took out a few pieces of charcoal and simmered them over a low fire. Her tone was indistinct: "What's the use of saying it? It's already happened. Saying more will only make it worse."

But it couldn't be worse now, and she suddenly felt a sense of mirth in the midst of hardship.

"You should have heard it all."

Without even raising her head, she looked at the dark medicinal liquid and closed the lid.

Chang Yuan did not deny it. People who practice martial arts have good hearing, and Cai's voice is loud, so he heard the afternoon's conversation clearly.

But when he heard Jiang Fuying's tone, he suddenly did not confirm it directly, but just said: "I heard a few words unintentionally, but I don't know the details."

Jiang Fuying looked up at him, and the pale golden light of the setting sun poured down on the man from the doors and windows. His hair was stained with sunlight, and his dust-free appearance and the inevitable oil stains on his hands appeared on the same person, inexplicably showing a bit of embarrassment.

She smiled helplessly, thinking that such an extraordinary man like Chang Yuan was also raised with great love at home. It was a pity that he fell into the situation where he was blind and disabled and had to help a peasant girl wash dishes.

"So, what do you think?" she asked casually. Perhaps her recent thought had inadvertently brought them closer, and even the uneasiness he'd felt earlier, fueled by his indifferent tone, vanished. "If something like this happened to you, what would you do?"

Chang Yuan put down his work and tilted his head to look at her.

He had lost his memory and hadn't heard of the Zhang family since arriving. He first asked, "Does the Zhang family have officials in the court?"

Fu Ying chuckled. "You sound like you're investigating a case."

She straightened her expression and suppressed her smile. "The court doesn't know. A small place like ours is lucky to have a county magistrate. How could we possibly know what's going on in the court? But I often hear the Zhang family bragging about their close ties with the Xu family of Yancheng, claiming a life-or-death relationship with the Xu family's patriarch. It's hard to tell, but the Zhang family's business has indeed been booming in recent years."

Seeing Chang Yuan's puzzled expression, she sighed, assuming he probably didn't know about the Xu family either. She

shouldn't have told him. He didn't remember anything, so how could he know?

"The Xu family is the richest in Xuzhou. People often joke that the Xu in Xuzhou is the Xu of the Xu family. But I've been living in the countryside for a long time and haven't been back to Yancheng for many years. I don't have much experience and I don't know

much about other things." Chang Yuan heard the word "return", and his eyebrows raised slightly, but he did n't say much.

"In that case, just report it to the authorities."

Jiang Fuying shook her head, and after a while she remembered that he couldn't see, she lowered her head and laughed at herself for being unnecessary.

"It's not that simple. Why would the officials care about such a thing?" She said in a low voice, "Besides, what name should I use to report it to the authorities? Forcing a woman to be raped?" "The young master

of the Zhang family just ordered someone to send some things. That's far from the point of view. No one will care."

The members of the Tiger Gang were originally hooligans. If they said they came to harass her with the order of the Zhang family, without real evidence, who would believe it?

She had thought about reporting it to the authorities, but how could ordinary people compete with such a wealthy family?

Chang Yuan frowned, "Officials are paid by the emperor, and they have the obligation to maintain the safety of the people under their rule. From what you said, the Zhang family has been tyrannical for a long time, why is there no one to control them?"

Jiang Fuying did not answer. The bubbling sound in the medicine pot continued. She picked up the medicine pot and poured the medicine into the bowl.

The porcelain bowl was filled with boiling hot medicine. She raised her head and watched the sunlight gradually move down from the man. The orange light gradually dimmed and disappeared into the darkness.

His expression did not change, but I am afraid that he really thought so in his heart.

Jiang Fuying could not help laughing, and put it away briefly, "I didn't know you were... so naive before."

She could clearly see the sharp lines of his jaw tense, his throat rolling slightly, but he didn't utter a word in rebuttal, returning to his work.

Silence fell again, as if they had never spoken.

The medicine was ready.

Jiang Fuying set the pot aside and prepared to stand, but just as she was about to stand, she felt a wave of dizziness and her vision went dark.

The kitchen scene spun wildly before her eyes. She instinctively grabbed the stove, but it was empty. The small stool slid across the floor with a sharp sound, muffling her hurried groan.

After sitting on the stool for so long, it was common to feel dizzy when standing up. But she realized in an instant that as long as she didn't knock over the medicine, a fall wouldn't be a big deal.

She squeezed her eyes shut, feeling the rapid fall of her body.

The sound of fabric rubbing against each other reached her ears, but the expected fall didn't happen. Instead, she fell into a warm, solid embrace.

The slightly bitter taste of the medicine and the slightly astringent aroma of herbs provided support for her soft body.

A broad, warm hand grasped her back just as she was about to fall, leaving a trail of dampness behind her.

Chang Yuan sensed something was amiss the moment he heard her rise; she swayed, even letting out a soft moan.

Before he could react, the martial artist's practiced form had already sidestepped and caught her. Unable to discern the position, his other hand slipped across her fair wrist and palm, grasping the warm fingertips.

In the kitchen, suffused with the bitter aroma of herbs, the lingering, delicate scent of jasmine enveloped him once more, like a vine swirling upwards, lightly tickling his heart before swiftly withdrawing, leaving no trace.

The fingertips on his palm twitched slightly, a hint of panic. The woman hadn't recovered from her shock. The playful chuckle she'd just chuckled, the gentle resilience she'd once displayed in her previous helplessness, were gone. She simply placed herself, truly and authentically, in his palm.

Driven by inertia, Jiang Fuying's hand touched his arm, clinging tightly. In the moment when she was powerless and helpless, he was her only support.

Her chest rose and fell rapidly, and everything in front of her gradually became clear. She used the force to stand up slightly and stood up straight.

"...Thank you."

Her face suddenly felt a little hot, and she was afraid that she had suffered from the heat. Jiang Fuying's fingertips trembled slightly, picked up the medicine bowl, and walked out without saying a word.

She thought she should remember today.

Remember this large palm that was still incredibly hot even through several layers of clothes.

The water stains on her fingertips disappeared on the edge of the hot medicine bowl, but the heat on her waist and back remained behind her. The thin layers of summer clothes rubbed against her lower back with her movements, causing a slight itch.

Jiang Fuying calmed down, shook off all irrelevant thoughts, and went into the bedroom.

Tonghua had disappeared long ago, as she expected. She only saw A Niang lying alone on the couch, her face not at peace, her brows furrowed, perhaps she was still in a state of panic in her dream.

Seeing this scene, Jiang Fuying's heart sank. She fed him the medicine mouthful by mouthful, then slept by his bedside all night.

The

next morning, just after dawn, Jiang Fuying went into the mountains to gather some herbs. She walked briskly, and it was still early when she returned home.

The country road twisted and turned, and she slowed her pace. She looked at the end of the road. Qiu Er, who had been slapped by her yesterday, had somehow become alone, sitting at the village entrance, talking to some children.

She saw with her own eyes that Qiu Er had given some copper coins to the children.

...Strange, Qiu Er usually didn't steal money, so why would he give it away? Was he crazy?

She didn't bother to greet Qiu Er, so she turned around and took a detour back through the side road. By the time she got home, she had already found several children standing at her door, jumping and shouting something.

The gate was shut, preventing the children from entering. The fence, built by her father himself, was now swaying under the tugs of the mischievous children. Jiang Fuying stepped forward and shouted, "What are you doing?"

Seeing her return, the older children immediately popped their heads up: "Here they come!"

Facing her, they sang in unison: "Madam Jiang, you long for a man; raising a man is a sin! Madam Jiang—"

Something seemed to explode in her head. Jiang Fuying's head swelled, her hands grew hot, and the backpack behind her had never felt so heavy. She had never imagined that such innocent children's voices, when combined, could be so piercing.

The children's voices were loud and high-pitched. They had been shouting at the gate for who knows how long, and now they were singing in unison again.

... With such a loud noise, could her mother hear it?

"You—"

Before she could finish her words, the gate, which had been tightly closed, burst open, startling the children who had been standing there.

"You're back," Chang Yuan said, standing at the courtyard gate, looking in her direction. "Come in first."

His sudden movement interrupted the children's singing. His immense stature and impassive expression undoubtedly intimidated the children, who hadn't yet fully grown their teeth.

But he couldn't see.

Someone had noticed this beforehand, and one of the children shouted, "He can't see, he can't see, don't be afraid of him!"

Children of that age can't distinguish between good and evil, and when gathered together, they tend to follow the leader's actions.

Seeing that the singing was about to resume, Jiang Fuying's ears finally couldn't bear it anymore. She pushed aside the children blocking the doorway and shouted, "Who asked you to come? Who asked you to do this..."

"Me," the visitor's voice was lazy. "Madam Jiang, if I hadn't cared about you yesterday and asked the villagers, I wouldn't have known you had a strange man."

Jiang Fuying had adopted Chang Yuan for a while, but because he was recuperating from his injuries and staying away from home, few people knew about it.

The only ones who knew were her family and Tonghua's.

"I had to come and see for myself. Our sister Jiang gave up her bright future in the Zhang family and was hooked by this pretty boy. I don't know where this wild man came from. How could you do such a shameless thing?"

Qiu Er didn't have any followers with him today. He stood alone next to a group of children he had bribed. They surrounded Jiang Fuying and didn't let her in.

"Bah!" Jiang Fuying was not afraid of him. "It's shameful to talk about shameful things. Put on your clothes first! You don't know how to dress when you're so old. Isn't it shameful?"

She wanted to go into the house, but several children stopped her with stern faces. Qiu Er heard what she said, "So what you said about Madam Jiang missing a man is right. What unmarried woman would stare at a man's clothes all day long?"

"Could it be that you are thinking about me too? Is it that this blind man is too weak to satisfy you - ah!!"

No matter how strong Jiang Fuying was, she couldn't stand such dirty talk spoken face to face. Her head was hot and she was almost unconscious. But at this moment, a horrifying scream came from Qiu Er's changed voice.

Several children quickly dispersed and looked at the source of the sound.

The man's face did not fluctuate much, and there was a hint of annoyance.

Although he could not see, he pinched Qiu Er's arm as he was about to reach Jiang Fuying with such precision and speed. With two "clicks", Qiu Er's face turned pale, and the whole person slid down like a boneless loach and fell to the ground. Only one hand was raised in the hand of the extremely thin-looking man, and it had changed shape.

"Where did this stray dog come from?" The man "looked" at her again, his voice still indifferent, "It's barking and dirtying your ears."