Thrown out of the house, the wet nurse enters the noble household and becomes a person of high statu

Liu Wenying chatted with Grandma Lu for a while longer, but seeing that the old woman looked tired, she got up to say goodbye.

Lu Ye offered to see her off, and the two went outside.

"Your leg is injured, don't move."

As she spoke, she looked at the strip of cloth wrapped around his right leg and said, "Let me see how bad your injury is."

Lu Ye stiffened and stepped back, saying, "No, no need, it's almost done."

Liu Wenying frowned. "You're better? You still walk with a limp, and you can't chop wood smoothly. Is that what you call better?"

Her tone was gentle, yet every word she spoke made sense.

Lu Ye felt uneasy under her gaze and avoided her eyes.

After a brief standoff, he finally gave in and said in a muffled voice, "Look outside, it's dark inside."

Actually, there was another reason: she didn't want her grandmother to worry.

Liu Wenying nodded, and Lu Ye sat down on the stone stool and rolled up his trouser legs.

The cloth strip was untied, revealing her calves, which made Liu Wenying hold her breath.

The wound was three inches below the knee, with two clear teeth marks. The surrounding skin was red, swollen, and shiny, and had spread to the ankle.

What's shocking is that there are multiple abrasions and bruises on the entire leg.

The old and new are intertwined; some have scabbed over, while others are still oozing blood.

"Was this a snake bite?"

Liu Wenying squatted down to take a closer look, her fingertips lightly tracing the edge of the redness and swelling.

"When did this happen? How was it handled?"

Lu Ye turned his face away, his voice muffled: "Four days ago, I encountered a snake in the mountains. I tripped and fell while trying to dodge it. I applied some herbal medicine when I got back, and it's nothing serious."

"Is it alright?" Liu Wenying looked up at him, her eyes filled with anger.

"Brother Lu, do you know that if the snake venom isn't completely cleared and the wound becomes festering, it could lead to amputation! Then your entire leg will be useless!"

She remembered the wound on his chest the last time she saw him.

If she hadn't happened to find him, this man would probably have just fainted in the field and bled to death without anyone knowing.

He's always like this; he doesn't utter a sound when he's injured or in pain, as if his body doesn't belong to him.

Lu Ye pursed his lips and remained silent.

His profile was taut, and his Adam's apple bobbed.

Liu Wenying stood up and patted the dust off her skirt.

"Wait here, I'll go to the village to fetch a doctor."

Lu Ye quickly grabbed her wrist, then let go as if he had been burned.

"No need! It's too far, and the mountain road is difficult to walk. The herbal medicine I applied will work, and it will be fine in a few days."

Liu Wenying pointed to the red, swollen, and shiny wound. "You call this effective? Brother Lu, listen to me, this injury can't be left untreated."

"Besides, instead of thinking about yourself, you should think about your grandmother. If you really become disabled, how will you go hunting in the mountains to take care of her in the future?"

Liu Wenying continued, "We can be considered destined. I saved your life in the mulberry field, and then the matchmaker arranged for us to be together..."

"Since we've run into each other, I'll help if I can. Don't refuse. Consider it for Grandma Lu's sake, for the sake of those elderly people who care about you, and for your own sake as well."

Lu Ye has lived for twenty-three years and has heard far too many things.

Most of them are unlucky sayings like "monster eyes," "cursing family members," and "stay away."

There were very few people who cared about him besides his grandmother.

Lu Ye sat frozen, not daring to move.

He looked at her with her eyes lowered, her expression filled with worry for him.

And a wisp of hair that was lifted by the breeze at her temple.

In a frozen corner of my heart, a crack silently appeared.

A warm current rushed in, scalding his heart with pain.

So this is what it feels like to be cared for.

When Liu Wenying returned to the village by donkey cart, it was already evening.

He went straight to Dr. Wang's house at the east end of the village.

The old doctor, who worked from sunrise to sunset, was about to rest when he heard that he was going to treat Lu Ye's injury, and his gray eyebrows immediately furrowed.

"No, no, that place is bad luck."

"Doctor, doctors are compassionate; how can you stand by and watch someone die?"

Liu Wenying stood in front of the door, her tone earnest.

"Lu the Hunter's leg injury is severe; if it drags on any longer, he might be crippled. He also has a frail grandmother at home; if he collapses, how will the old woman survive?"

Doctor Wang looked troubled. "It's not that I don't want to go, it's just that his eyes... everyone in the village says..."

"What's wrong with your eyes? Just because they're a slightly unusual color, does that mean you have to die? Doctors have been practicing medicine for years, do you really believe in this nonsense?"

She took a purse from her sleeve and stuffed it into Doctor Wang's hand.

"I'll pay for the consultation, I just ask you to come and save this life."

The purse felt heavy, and after squeezing it, Doctor Wang agreed.

As the two rode the donkey cart further into the valley, the sun was setting.

The afterglow of the sunset spilled onto the mountain path, gilding the grass and trees with golden edges and making their outlines distinct.

An oil lamp was lit inside the room.

Lu Ye sat on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), his trousers rolled up to his knees, revealing his gruesome wounds.

Doctor Wang frowned upon seeing it. "Nonsense! Applying herbal medicine haphazardly before the snake venom has been cleared? Don't you want to ruin your leg?"

Lu Ye pursed his lips and remained silent, accepting the reprimand with his head down.

I don't know how he survived his injuries before; it was partly luck and partly his resilient body.

The wound was cut open, cleaned, treated with medicine, and bandaged; the whole process took half an hour.

Lu Ye kept his back straight, only his clenched fists betraying his pain.

After the bandaging was finished, deep finger marks were left on the piece of wood in his palm.

After washing his hands, Dr. Wang prepared to pack his medicine box and leave.

"Doctor, please wait."

Liu Wenying hurriedly said, "Now that you're here, please take a look at Grandma Lu as well. The old lady has been coughing for half a year and it just won't get better."

Lu Ye said urgently, "No need to trouble yourself—"

"Since we're already here..."

Liu Wenying looked at the bed. "Grandma, let the doctor take a look. That way we can feel at ease, right?"

Grandma Lu was about to decline, but Liu Wenying had already pulled the doctor down to sit.

As Dr. Wang took the pulse, examined the tongue coating, and inquired about the symptoms, his brows furrowed deeper and deeper.

After a long pause, he withdrew his hand and sighed, "A cold has entered the lungs, and it's been left untreated for too long; it's become a chronic illness. If it had been treated six months earlier, there would have been a 70-80% chance of recovery, but now..."

He didn't finish speaking, but the three people in the room understood each other without saying a word.

Grandma Lu smiled and said, "I know, I'm too old for that."

Lu Ye lowered his head.

"Doctor, please prescribe a medicine. Treat as many patients as you can; it's better than nothing. I'll pay for the medicine."

Lu Ye suddenly looked up, "Manager Liu! I can't trouble you any further."

"Consider it a loan. Once your leg heals, hunt more game to pay me back."

"If all else fails, you can come patrolling Zhiyun Manor at night after you recover, and that will be your wages. That's not out of the question."

Liu Wenying did some calculations. Lu Ye was tall and imposing. Just by standing there, no one would dare to come in and act recklessly. He would be a very good bodyguard.

Doctor Wang prescribed a medicine, but some of the medicines need to be picked up from my hospital room and will be delivered tomorrow.

Liu Wenying then went out to see Doctor Wang off.

Inside the house, Grandma Lu beckoned to Lu Ye, "Ye'er, come here."

The oil lamp cast the shadows of the grandmother and grandson onto the window paper. Lu Ye squatted by the kang (a heated brick bed), holding his grandmother's hand.

"Liu Zhuangtou is a good girl. Grandma has lived to such an old age and has a good eye for people. It's rare to find a girl like her."

Lu Ye didn't speak, but lowered his head even further.

"You should remember the good things people have done for you."

Grandma Lu gently patted her grandson's hand, "You must be kind to others from now on, okay?"

After a long silence, Lu Ye finally responded in a muffled voice, "Yes, Grandma, I will."

Even without his grandmother saying anything, he would never go west if Liu Wenying told him to go east.

He will remember her kindness and do his best to repay her.

…………