Knock! Knock!
Knocks sounded outside the door and Dong Fang Tang got up from the bed. He opened the door and saw the waiter standing outside with a bowl of medicine in his hands.
"Doctor Dong Fang, this is the medicine you wanted."
"Thank you."
He took over the warm bowl of medicine and gave the waiter some reward as appreciation. Then he closed the door and turned around to walk to the bed. When he saw the person who was originally asleep, had sat up on the bed, he actually heaved a sigh of relief.
"You're awake. Just right for you to drink this bowl of medicine."
Ruan Xiang Yin did not say anything and took the bowl of medicine. She slowly sipped on the hot medicine.
"How long did I sleep?" She handed the empty bowl to him and asked.
"A day and a night."
His face darkened slightly. Placing the empty bowl on the table, he sat down again at the side of the bed.
Ruan Xiang Yin noticed the slight changes on his face and did not know what had made him dissatisfied.
"Are you unhappy? Why?"
"If you can avoid it, don't use 'The Four Soul-Oppression Tunes' again. Your internal energy is not strong enough to withstand it. I'm afraid if you use it over a long period of time, something bad may happen sooner or later."
He expressed his worries. Every time after using it, she would fall into unconsciousness which made him worry endlessly. He is afraid that one day, she may not be able to wake up again, then what should he do?
"It was your Younger Sister who came to me for help. If I don't help, wouldn't she think I'm a cold-hearted person? Moreover, since I know about this matter, there is no reason for me not to save the dying."
Although she is not as enthusiastic about saving people as he is, but then she is also not someone who sees a person dying and not save that person.
He sighed helplessly and knew what she said was right. He had never thought her to be a cold-blooded and heartless person but it was only her temperament that was a bit cold.
"Your health must be prioritized above everything else." That was his only insistence.
"Is Dong Fang Hai Yao.....Dong Fang Jie?"
Suddenly a thought flew into Ruan Xiang Yin's mind and she blurted out those words. When she saw the shocked expression on Dong Fang Tang's face, she finally understood.
"How do you know?" Dong Fang Tang asked curiously.
Although it was not his intention to hide this from her after all, this was a secret that must be kept in the Dong Fang Residence. How did she find out?
"Dong Fang Jie hated evil and is Shi-Di (Junior Brother) to Cheng Gang. All this is well-known in Jianghu. Dong Fang Hai Yao as Jing Wang-Fei, not only referred Cheng Gang as Shi-Xiong and also excelled in martial arts. She is very actively involved in the matters of Bai Hua Lou and Tie Xue Gang. It is impossible for people not to be suspicious of Dong Fang Jie faking her own death a year ago which leads to the present Dong Fang Hai Yao."
The most important thing was that Dong Fang Hai Yao was not afraid that Ruan Xing Yin would find out about this secret. In front of her, Dong Fang Hai Yao had not made any effort to hide the secret from her which made her involuntarily recalled that last year, Dong Fang Tang had received a letter from Dong Fang Ao. In the letter, it was said that one of the brothers had met with an accident and thinking deeper about this, the answer was apparent.
"That's correct. I didn't mean to keep this from you but at that time, it was not the right time to tell you."
Since she asked about this matter, Dong Fang Tang then told her everything about Dong Fang Hai Yao.
(This translation belongs to Catmeme6 from Wattpad. If you are reading this from another website, you are reading a copy extracted without permission. Kindly go to Wattpad to read the original.)
"So it was like that."
This secret of deception was considered committing a big crime to the Emperor and would result in the destruction of Dong Fang Family.
"Xiang Yin, there is one thing I had always wanted to ask you."
Dong Fang Tang's voice turned serious and stared at her intently.
"You want to ask me about the matter of me falling into the sea, last year and you want to know who saved me, right?"
She looked directly at him and it was so easy to guess what he wanted to ask.
"That's right. When you fell into the sea, I had requested for government authorities' help with the search. A lot of villagers also volunteered to help but there was still no news of your whereabouts. I only stopped searching after someone saw you and told me that you had been rescued. Who was the person who saved you?"
This question had been lodged in his chest for a whole long year until now. Ever since he had found her again, he did not have the chance to ask and now was the opportunity for him to do so.
"It was my Father."
"Elder Ruan? Didn't he leave?"
Suddenly, Dong Fang Tang understood! During her disappearance this whole year, he had visited Miao Jiang and Le Mountain several times and had also met Ruan Da Jiu. Every time Ruan Da Jiu would greet him with a closed door and was rude towards him. So, it was because of this reason!
"There is also one more thing that you may not know."
"What is that?"
"Do you know a person by the name of Sang Shiwa?"
"Auntie Sang?"
Dong Fang Tang looked at her in astonishment. In his heart, he believed he already vaguely know the answer.
"She is my Mother. Do you remember what my Mother said to you previously? She had praised you highly. Once, she had mentioned that I would be betrothed to you but at that time, you just laughed it off and did not take it seriously but my Mother was very serious. For this reason, my Father was very unhappy but he did not dare to make my Mother angry and so he left the mountain to cast Gu on you. He had also secretly observed you to understand more of your character. But a year ago, after I had fallen into the sea and he had saved me, he was even more against this marriage and my Mother had also given in and stopped her insistence."
This happened after she had fallen into the sea and had been rescued. Her Mother only knew about this matter after she had returned from Miao Jiang.
"So it turned out like this."
Dong Fang Tang finally understood the whole matter after listening to her. When he went to Miao Jiang two months ago, he had met Auntie Sang. It was no wonder that her attitude towards him was very cold at that time which was unlike her usual self in the past. Now he knows the reason why.
Six years ago, when he first entered the Miao region to gather herbs, the Miao Tribe had deliberately made it difficult for him. It was Auntie Sang who helped him and at that time, he did not know who she was. He only knew that the people of the Miao Tribe seemed to respect her very much. Later, when he entered the Miao region again to gather herbs, he did not meet with hindrance anymore and he had also met Auntie Sang several times.
Once in the past, Auntie Sang had told him that she has a daughter who is six years younger than him and she wished to match-make for them. At that time, he just smiled and did not agree to anything. Now everything is in the clear and he did not expect that Ruan Xiang Yin is Auntie Sang's daughter.
"Dong Fang Tang, even if you want to agree with my Mother now, I'm afraid my Mother will not accept, not to mention my Father."
Ruan Xiang Yin lifted the corners of her pink lips and gloated as she looked at the distress on his face. It was afraid that her parents would never agree to his proposal of marriage and not to mention, she was not even ready to marry him yet.
Dong Fang Tang smiled while his big hands gently stroked her cheeks and he said softly.
"Are you so happy because your parents don't agree to our marriage?"
"Of course......because I also don't agree." She coolly said.
Dong Fang Tang stretched out his arms and pulled her into his embrace, then he whispered into her ear.
"Are you not afraid that my child is already in your belly?"
He did not want to force her but she did not have the intention to spend this lifetime with him and he was anxiously worried. He did not know what else to do and could only embrace her once again. The kind of feeling of losing something and regaining it again filled up his entire chest.
For her........he would never be able to let go.
Her body stiffened, she had forgotten about this point. Pushing away his arms, she looked up at him with her bright clear eyes.
"Dong Fang Tang, do you really want to marry me?"
"Yes. I had said earlier that the only wife in Dong Fang Tang's life will only be you."
He gazed at her tenderly and reiterated. No woman had ever made him so worried and even if she gives him distress, he will only want her.
"Well, if we really have a child, then we'll get married." She promised as she looked into the depths of his dark eyes.
"Is that a promise?" His black eyes glowed with excitement and he wanted a reaffirmation.
She nodded lightly. If there really is a child then it is God's wish for them to be together. That time, even if she feels unhappy, she will still marry him.
Looking at his happy and excited face at this time, her heart felt warm and understood that this man loves her deeply.
He really did not want to force her and he knew that she was just trying to make it difficult for him and so he would silently bear with it.
She understood in her heart that he had always treated her well and he had never changed. If that accident had not happened a year ago, they would have been married a long time ago.
She sighed lightly, nestled deeper into his embrace and immediately his arms that were around her, hugged her even more tightly.
"Dong Fang Tang, let's take a trip to Shuiyuan Village."
"Do you really want to go?" Dong Fang Tang asked in surprise.
He had already known about the matter concerning Shuiyuan Village. It was just that he was concerned about her, unable to leave her behind and had delayed making the trip to the village. Since now that she had mentioned that they should go, he need not have to worry anymore.
After hearing his words, Ruan Xiang Yin closed her eyes and in her heart, she pondered. So it turned out he already knew about the matter of Shuiyuan Village. Although he felt worried in his heart, he was still more concerned about her and had kept it hidden in his heart.
Enough! At least in his heart, she held more importance than his patients and she should feel happy.
"Let's leave tomorrow."
At least items like herbs and some of the things that were necessary to be taken along had to be prepared in advance before they start on their journey.
"You've just woke up. Lie down first and rest for a while. I will liaise with government officers so that we can go together. I'll prepare everything, don't worry."
Dong Fang Tang helped her to lie down on the bed and covered her with the quilt.
Once when they reach Shuiyuan Village, they will not know how long they will have to stay there. Her body is still weak and she should rest more or else she will be the first one to collapse.
"Alright, I'll sleep for a while."
She closed her eyes. Since she still felt a little tired, she did not want to worry and let him handle everything.
He watched over her for a long time before he finally got up and closed the door quietly.
He decided to instruct the waiter to prepare chicken soup over a slow fire and when she wakes up, she could drink the soup to nourish her body. Then he would go and visit the government officers to request for assistance. When he thought of his mission to save people, this time with her to accompany him, no longer alone, a smile rose on his lips.
He had waited for this day for a long time and finally, this day had arrived.
***#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#***
The situation in Shuiyuan Village was far more serious than they had expected.
Houses had collapsed with broken down walls and not even one house was left in its original state. From time to time, soldiers would dig out dead bodies from the collapsed rubble. There were a lot of seriously injured people and even though they could save some lives, in face of the destruction of their homes and the grief of losing their loved ones, these people had blank looks on their faces which stirred up the feeling of sadness.
Shuiyuan Village was no longer the self-sufficient village as envisioned by most people, no longer the simple and unpretentious village but it was like a place in hell on earth.
When Dong Fang Tang, Ruan Xiang Yin and the government officers arrived bringing along the necessary items, they were shocked at seeing the actual situation. After they had got over their shock, they quickly began to help the injured with cleaning and bandaging their wounds.
"Uncle, I'm sorry. I'm afraid half your leg is already useless."
Dong Fang Tang looked remorsefully at the left lower leg of the middle-aged uncle and said. The nerves and bones on his lower left leg had broken off to the point that nothing could be done anymore.
"Doctor Dong Fang, don't blame yourself. If everyone had not worked speedily to save me, I'm afraid, I wouldn't even have this life. It's already fortunate that I can at least keep my life."
This middle-aged man was very tolerant. When the whole horizontal house beam collapsed, he could not escape fast enough, his left calf was pinned down and thus had resulted in this. But compared to other villagers who were crushed to death, it was considered he was very lucky.
"Uncle, rest here. I've to go and take a look at the injuries of the other people."
After Dong Fang Tang had helped him to bandage up all the other injuries on his body, he rushed to treat other people for injuries.
"Doctor Dong Fang, thank you." The middle-aged man watched his retreating back and said gratefully.
With the arrival of the Dong Fang husband and wife, the surviving villagers who were waiting for rescue and assistance could finally see a glimmer of hope.