For a moment, the hunter’s wife was too astounded for words. “Where did you get it from?” Her question did not delay her movements at all, and she took the baby from him right away.
The hunter was too occupied with the casualty on his back to answer her.
He carried the person into the house.
The hunter’s wife did not follow him inside. She could see that the baby was feeble from starvation, and she immediately raced to the kitchen to make rice soup.
After the rice soup was ready, she blew on it to cool it, then fed it to the baby. Only when the child’s cheeks finally started to regain color did she head back to her husband.
When she entered the house, the hunter had already cleaned up the young man and dressed his wounds.
Getting injured was nothing new for someone who hunted all year round like him, and over time, he had become somewhat of a physician himself.
Moreover, his family had resided here and made a living by hunting for generations, and his ancestors had handed down a medicine effective in treating external injuries.
The wounds on the young man’s body were all flesh wounds – those he could handle – but as for his eyes…
He was a little troubled.
He was not a real physician, hence naturally, he was not capable of treating such a difficult injury.
When his wife came in, he said, “This boy’s eyes are injured. I’m thinking of getting a physician from town to come over. Otherwise, he will really go blind.”
His wife was not surprised to hear this.
The hunter was an honest and kind man.
It was because of his kind heart that she had a place to stay in the first place and eventually married him.
Instead of advising him to mind his own business, she merely reminded, “All right, but don’t come back too late. Remember to get some cloth on the way back, something fine like muslin.” Sighing, she glanced down at the baby girl – she had confirmed her gender just now – sleeping in her arms.
“I wonder which wealthy family this child’s from. How could something so terrible happen to a newborn like her?” she muttered ruefully. Clearly, the swaddling clothes wrapped around the child were expensive and did not belong to an ordinary family. They were so fine that a mere branch was enough to snag them.
“Got it. Then I’ll set out right now. There’s no time to lose,” the hunter replied as he started toward the door.
“Wait!” His wife took a money bag from a cupboard and gave it to him. “Bring more money with you. If you don’t pay enough, no physician will want to come into the mountains.”
Scratching the back of his head, the hunter praised, “You’re as thoughtful as ever.” Taking the money bag, he strode out the door.
After seeing him off, his wife headed back indoors.
As she gazed at the boy lying unconscious in bed, compassion welled up in her heart.
This boy was just a teenager, but he was covered in wounds.
How did he get himself into such a state?
Although the hunter had cleaned him up, his upper body was naked and wrapped in bandages.
She stood for a while in the room, and seeing how soundly the baby girl was sleeping, she placed her next to the boy.
The hunter had left in the morning, and it was not until afternoon that he came hurrying back with a physician.
He was so thirsty that he grabbed a ladle and drank straight from the tank in the front yard.
The physician was unbothered, though he refused to drink unboiled water despite how thirsty he was. He asked, “Where’s the casualty? Hurry and take me to him, or it’s going to get dark soon.”
The hunter quickly cast the ladle aside and led him into the house.
“Darling…”
The moment he called out, his wife emerged from inside the house with a finger on her lips. “Keep your voice down.”
The hunter gave her a dorky grin, only dropping it when she shot him a look. Turning sideways, he gestured for the physician to enter the house.