Chapter 24: Misery Loves Company

This is a cruel reality. Zhuanzi’s father did not feel that his choice to "consider the big picture" was wrong. As for the fact that his young daughter was currently in a high fever from extreme terror due to his sudden outburst, he chose to ignore it entirely.

He justified it to himself: What parents don’t discipline their own children? He had only scolded her a few times; he hadn't actually laid a hand on her. What could possibly be wrong with that? His two sons had been beaten plenty of times and grew up healthy and active, didn't they? When it came down to it, the little girl was just fated for a short, miserable life and was both greedy and cowardly by nature.

Having successfully convinced himself and suppressed the rest of his family, Zhuanzi’s father turned to the village head and Doctor Chen. "Well, we’ve decided not to treat her. Sorry to trouble you both for coming."

As for the consultation fee for Doctor Chen, since they weren't having the patient treated, there was no need to pay anything.

Doctor Chen, accustomed to such scenes, was not surprised, but the village head’s face darkened. "If you don't have enough money to build your house, you can just borrow from everyone else. This child is a human life, after all. Are you really just going to let her lie there and wait for death?"

Zhuanzi’s father pulled a long face. "Even if I borrow it, I have to pay it back, don't I? You’ve seen my family’s situation; every single copper has to be split in two to be spent."

He sighed heavily and turned to his wife, who was weeping silently. "While the girl is still breathing, hurry up and change her into some clean clothes."

With the child in a high fever, unconscious, and convulsing, refusing medical treatment meant, in plain terms, that it was only a matter of time before she died. Zhuanzi’s father did not want the household to remain in an uproar over the girl’s impending death, so he wanted to wrap her in a mat and bury her in the desolate hills as soon as dawn broke.

Xie Wanniang stood outside the courtyard, hearing second-hand news from the older women who had arrived before her. When she heard that the man intended to simply send the girl to the hills for burial, her urge to strike him became even stronger.

In her past life, she was an orphan. In this life, although she had a father and mother, having a father was the same as having none, and having a mother was practically the same as not having one. Having had little connection to parents in both lives, she was not without regrets. Now, encountering a child in a similar situation, she couldn't help but feel a sense of shared fate.

She wanted to help her, but she had no money. Or rather, that wasn't quite right; she did have money, but it was pitifully little. Her hands clenched subconsciously, and her mind was in turmoil.

Jiang Yuan, standing beside her, saw her furrowed brows and the way she was biting her lip, so he gently tugged at her sleeve. Xie Wanniang collected herself, and Jiang Yuan gestured for her to follow him.

Once they were a distance away from the crowd, Jiang Yuan asked in a low voice, "Are you unhappy? Because of the little girl?"

Xie Wanniang sighed. "Her parents are a lot like mine."

Parents who viewed their children as objects from the start, measuring their value by weight; mothers who paid little attention to their children normally, but became especially heartless when deciding their fate. She took a deep breath, forcing those unpleasant thoughts out of her mind. "I want to help her, but I can't."

Jiang Yuan looked at her deeply. The "father and mother" Xie Wanniang spoke of today were clearly very different from the "father and mother" she had mentioned before.

"How do you want to help her? By paying for her treatment?" Jiang Yuan didn't pry into her private affairs, but glanced at the entrance of Zhuanzi’s house. "Doctor Chen and the village head are coming out."

Xie Wanniang followed his gaze. "Treating her is a given, but I can't pay for it for nothing. I can't let the villagers think I’m some kind of fool who doesn't know the value of money."

Jiang Yuan’s lips curled slightly. "Then buy the girl."

Xie Wanniang: "What?"

Jiang Yuan asked, "Your family has scholars, right?"

Xie Wanniang understood immediately and puffed out her chest proudly. "My father is a famous Confucian scholar! A top-ranking graduate from the previous dynasty!"

Jiang Yuan gave a short laugh. "Then just buy her. Once she belongs to you, it’s only natural for you to pay for her medical treatment, and you won't have to worry about being seen as a fool."

Xie Wanniang hesitated. "But wouldn't that make her a person of base status?"

Jiang Yuan’s eyes grew even softer. "You don't have to register her status at the magistrate's office."

As long as she wasn't registered at the office, there was no need to worry about the imperial government's strict regulations on manumission, and she could restore the girl’s free status at any time. And as long as the bill of sale was in her hands, the authorities would recognize that the girl belonged to her, and Zhuanzi’s family would no longer be able to profit by claiming to be her relatives.

Xie Wanniang’s eyes lit up. "Your brain works fast!" But she quickly thought of two critical problems. "But I don't have enough money! And I have nowhere to keep her."

The little money she had earned during this time might not even be enough to treat the girl, let alone pay her parents to buy her. Her shoulders slumped, perfectly illustrating what it meant to be "dejected."

Jiang Yuan said, "She is dying; you can drive a hard bargain. If she survives, you can let her live in the room next to yours."

Xie Wanniang immediately perked up and beamed. "Thank you, A-Yuan!"

Before Jiang Yuan could say anything else, she trotted back to the entrance of Zhuanzi’s house. "Master! Village Head!"

Doctor Chen and the village head, who were surrounded by villagers asking for details, looked toward her and Jiang Yuan at the sound of her voice. The villagers were so shocked by her calling him "Master" that they forgot to keep asking about the girl, whispering to each other to confirm if they had heard correctly.

The village head was also stunned and looked at Doctor Chen. Doctor Chen nodded at him, then asked Xie Wanniang, who had run up to them, "Is something the matter?"

Xie Wanniang nodded. "If her family is willing to sell her to me, I can pay for the girl’s treatment."

The village head and Doctor Chen frowned simultaneously, and the villagers began to discuss it even more loudly.

Xie Wanniang explained, "I just think it’s a pity for such a young girl to be left there by her family to wait for death, so I wanted to save her. But my money didn't fall from the sky; I won't just give it away for other people’s families."

Zhuanzi, his father, and his younger brother, who were coming out to see off the village head and the doctor, happened to hear this. The two brothers hung their heads in shame, but Zhuanzi’s father, feeling stung, became angry and embarrassed once again.

He lunged toward Xie Wanniang in two or three strides, raising his hand to strike her face. "You wretched woman, did I give you too much face? My family’s business—"

Jiang Yuan, who had moved to Xie Wanniang’s side, grabbed Zhuanzi’s father’s wrist with precision and speed. "If you dare to scold her or lay a hand on her again, don't blame me for being unkind."

The village head also spoke up. "What is this? You’re too stingy to pay for your own child’s treatment, and now you won't even let someone else with a kind heart try to save her life?" His face was dark, his pent-up rage pouring out.