Chapter 1 - Injured
Chapter 1 - Injured
In Northwest China, south of the great mountains, lay a small, secluded village deep in the forest. It was nestled between two mountains and situated at the bottom of a large beautiful valley. Meanwhile, the land behind the village consisted of sloping hills and steep mountains filled with ever-growing cedar trees. There was a river at the village's entrance, and whenever the snow-capped mountains started to warm up, it brought in melted snow aside from gushing waters, which ran down the mountain and flowed before the village. A little distance away was a large green field. Fields of grass extended out even further, connecting to the large field.
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It was almost the end of August and autumn's presence was getting heavier and heavier. The snow was also growing thicker as the snow-capped mountains were slowly turning whiter. The green fields were gradually losing their hue; turning from green to yellow, further beautifying the beauty of the entire valley.
It was always windy during the evening. When squall came in, grasses of yellow danced along its gentle breeze.
To the northwest of the village was the place where the green fields met the forest. There was someone there. Dressed in the same hue as the grass, the person treaded about and fell into the ground beneath. The individual tried to get to her feet, but after she struggled for several steps, she fell to the ground again. This time, she stayed there, unmoving within the blanket of grass.
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A violent gale sent its gust, bringing in dark clouds from afar while the grass swayed in a frenzy. The cloudy day became darker than ever when the dark clouds rolled into the valley. For the experienced, they would know that the weather was changing.
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There was a man with a bamboo basket hanging on his back and a sunhat resting on his head. He appeared from the thick cedar forest on the slopes as he ventured towards the village.
From the looks of it, he was happy; humming a melody as he walked.
"Shoot! It's going to rain!" he said when he gazed into the sky and noticed the dark rolling clouds, and only then did he make haste to get to the village.
A few paces later, he slowed down. He looked closer into a nearby patch of grass.
"What's over there…"
He stopped a little as he got closer for a better look. Not long after, he found an injured person.
He approached the individual fast and placed his hands on the person's neck.
There was a pulse, and he sighed in relief, knowing that the person was still alive.
He quickly turned the face-down person over and was surprised when he got a closer look at the unconscious person's face.
She was beautiful and young. Her hair, albeit short, covered half of her face. He brushed the woman's hair aside and noticed her pale, pasty complexion. Her eyelids trembled as her eyebrow twitched and furrowed, but her eyes remained shut.
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The young man took no time to find the injured woman's wound.
As though without hesitation, he took out a small vial, uncorked it, and poured its content onto the exposed wounds he could find. While he rubbed the flower powder on one of the wounds, it began to stop bleeding.
"Who is this woman? How did she venture out here with such heavy wounds?" he thought to himself.
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As he continued to throw wild guesses, he discovered the woman's belongings. He noted an emblem on her uniform and felt uneasy. His heart sank a little, but despite that, he did not dither from picking the poor woman up. He was going to carry her back to his home for further treatment.
…
The sky grew darker by the minute. Dark clouds rolled in ominously while mad squalls continued to blow. Not long after, beads of cold water fell from the sky. It lasted only for a moment before those beads of water turned into heavy rain. Everything was covered by it.
The young man ran as fast as he could. He took a small route past the side of the village. He continued to run and came to a small house that was situated on the flat fields at the bottom of the hill.
He was completely drenched by then. The woman on his back was still unconscious. She had lost a lot of blood, and to make things worse, she had suffered through the rain. That made her already pale complexion even worse, almost as if there was no blood flow.
The man had no time to care for himself right then. He went straight to change into a new set of clean clothes. He rushed back to the woman with a medicine case that he took out from the cabinet.
It was raining cats and dogs outside.
The heavy downpour completely washed the spot where the man found the woman, leaving no traces of blood.