Chapter 14: 014. Consultation Fee

[Consultation Fee] Su Liang stretched out her hand and pointed, directing a villager who was carrying Yang Feng to place him on the ground instead of the bed. Bai Xiaohu did not come in but pulled Ning Jing aside and motioned for him to lower his head. "My dad said there is a dead person in the carriage," Bai Xiaohu whispered, his face pale, "My grandpa and my dad pulled the carriage from behind, not letting others see." "It's fine," Ning Jing shook his head, adding, "He's a bad guy." Bai Xiaohu breathed a sigh of relief, "That's good!" Qian Country was renowned for its harsh criminal laws, and ordinary farmers were most afraid of handling homicide cases. Originally, Mrs. Bai only wanted to do business with Ning Jing and make some money to support her family, and they weren't close. Things had changed since Su Liang married into the family, even though it had only been a short three days. The Bai family had felt Su Liang's kindness and generosity, and they were deeply grateful. This time, when they encountered a problem, they instinctively protected Su Liang and Ning Jing. Otherwise, Yao Wei's corpse would be exposed, and officers from the Government Office would soon come to investigate. Rumor had it that Ning Jing was hiding here, and getting involved in a lawsuit might cause serious trouble. Mrs. Bai, who returned home after herding pigs, came to see the situation, just in time to witness Yang Yu sitting up from the ground, her face full of horror! "Grandma, she's still alive!" Bai Xiaohu shouted loudly, "He's alive too!" Mrs. Bai clasped her hands, "Thank heavens..." Ning Jing took a string of coins and handed it to Mrs. Bai, asking her to divide it among the villagers who had helped them. Villagers who had carried the injured people back were delighted by this unexpected reward. Mrs. Bai divided the money equally, not including her own family members. After sending the villagers away, Mrs. Bai helped Yang Yu, who was shivering from the cold on the ground, stand up. "Where's my older brother..." tears streamed down Yang Yu's face. "In that room!" Bai Xiaohu pointed at the Su family's room. As the door opened, they saw Su Liang, her hands covered in blood, squatting by Yang Feng's side. "Ning Jing, help me find some things." Su Liang spoke. Listening to Su Liang's long list, Ning Jing jotted them down, fetched what he had at home, and brought them over. "Mrs. Bai, do you have any old, unwanted bedding at your home?" Su Liang asked. Mrs. Bai hurriedly nodded, "Yes!" Bai Xiaohu returned carrying an umbrella, while Mrs. Bai went to the kitchen to help boil water. Yang Yu collapsed next to Yang Feng, crying so hard that she almost fainted. "Shut up!" Su Liang frowned. Yang Yu covered her mouth, not daring to look but unable to stop herself from watching Su Liang's every move, her heart pounding with fear. Ning Jing saw Su Liang sewing up Yang Feng's wounds as if mending clothes and a flash of surprise flickered in his eyes. "I'm going to the town to buy medicinal herbs. Is there anything else we need?" Ning Jing asked. Su Liang mentioned a few more types of medicinal herbs, Ning Jing nodded and headed into the rain. Father and son from the Bai Family pulled the empty carriage back into the courtyard and placed it in a corner. Bai Xiaohu brought back clean, tattered bedding, thinking that Su Liang would use it for the severely injured and dying Yang Feng. There were no doctors in Su's village, so the villagers had to either go to the town or the nearest Songjia Village, where there was an elderly doctor. Old Mr. Bai asked, but Su Liang said she didn't need his help. The rain became heavier, Old Mr. Bai wore a raincoat as he left the Ning Family house, he looked at the rising river with a worried expression on his face, "A lot of the crops will rot in the field." The Bai Family had little land but worked hard, so the autumn harvest had already been gathered. However, many families in the village had just started the autumn harvest. Earlier, villagers who helped find the pigs were the ones who had rushed home to salvage their harvests in the rain. Mrs. Bai brought over the hot water. Su Liang thanked her and asked her and her family to go home first. Village head Lei Zheng arrived just as Mrs. Bai stopped him at the door and informed him that Ning Jing's relatives came to visit him. On their way back, they encountered bandits who robbed and tried to kill them. Fortunately, no one died. Relieved to hear that no one had died, Lei Zheng then left. In this day and age, if a murder was discovered, the government would undoubtedly capture a "murderer." Those convicted of homicide were usually sent to the mine as laborers. Ning Jing had stopped Su Liang from killing someone at Su Daqiang's house for this reason. Ning Jing ventured into town in the rain, hired a carriage to go to the county, and bought all the necessary medicinal herbs. With the remaining money, he purchased a horse and rode back just as the sky was getting dark. "Are these what you wanted?" Ning Jing handed the items he had bought to Su Liang. Su Liang checked them and said, "Yes, that's right. How much did it cost?" The ginseng looked good and must have been pricey. "I have fifty coins left," Ning Jing replied. All the money, including what he had taken from Yuanwai Family's house the previous night, had been spent. Su Liang: ...After I save Yang Feng, I'll have to ruthlessly swindle him, otherwise it would be a breach of justice! Yang Yu, scolded by Su Liang, gathered herself, changed her wet clothes, soaked her hands in hot water, and looked at Yang Feng. Su Liang was cooking medicine in the kitchen. Ning Jing's clothes were also soaked through. She wanted to return to her room but saw the carriage, walked over, dragged out Yao Wei's body, put it in a linen bag, tied it with a rope, and dragged it out of the house. Su Liang cooked the medicine and fed it to Yang Feng before Ning Jing came back. "Will my big brother die?" Yang Yu looked at Su Liang with teary eyes and asked. Su Liang shook her head, and Yang Yu's face turned pale. "It's up to fate now." Su Liang said as she walked out the door. Thankfully they found him early enough, otherwise, even the Great Immortal couldn't save Yang Feng due to the excessive blood loss. But with limited resources, they could only do their best and leave it to fate. Su Liang took her clothes to Ning Jing's room, changed out of her bloody clothes, and entered the kitchen where Ning Jing had already heated the water. Cooking porridge, preparing pancakes. Ning Jing's hair was wet, not tied up, draped over her head. She sat there stoking the fire, her profile beautiful like jade. Su Liang glanced at her and suddenly remembered something, "When you decided to take in Yang Yu yesterday, did you have any favor to ask of the Yang family?" Ning Jing shook her head slightly, "I have nothing to ask of the Yang Family." Su Liang frowned, "Just out of kindness?" Ning Jing glanced at Su Liang, her expression indifferent, "You haven't agreed to stay and work for me yet, and you have nowhere to go. Yang Yu is a good person, and once you become friends, she might be useful in the future." Su Liang was stunned, not expecting Ning Jing to consider her in that situation. At that time, although they wouldn't have left Yang Yu alone, they could have hired someone from the Escort Agency in the county town to escort her home and just paid them afterward. They could even have given the task directly to Hu Er, as it was a profitable and risk-free business that he should be interested in. "Aren't you afraid that I'll become close to Yang Yu and leave with her?" Su Liang asked with a hint of sarcasm. Ning Jing shook her head, "You can go. But I still hope you'll stay and work for me." "Thanks. I won't go with Yang Yu, I'll think carefully about that matter." Su Liang said. After dinner, Su Liang brought a share to Yang Yu and checked on Yang Feng's condition, which wasn't very optimistic. Whether he lived or died would depend on whether he could make it through the night. After dinner, Ning Jing spread the mat that Su Liang had cleaned last night in the outer room, and brought her bedding out from the cabinet. Separated by a screen, Su Liang slept on the bed, and Ning Jing slept on the ground. They told Yang Yu that if anything was wrong with Yang Feng, she should call them immediately. Yang Yu dared not close her eyes; she'd check Yang Feng's breath and touch his forehead to see if he had a fever every now and then. The rain hadn't stopped the next day. Early in the morning, Su Liang got up, washed up, and went to check on Yang Feng. "Now that he's awake, he'll be fine." Su Liang sighed in relief. It was her first time saving someone's life after crossing over, so she naturally hoped that the person would live. She turned her head to see Yang Yu's face flush red and her mind a bit dazed. Su Liang reached out to touch Yang Yu's forehead and found it burning hot. "You're amazing!" Yang Yu looked up to Su Liang and hugged her arm. Su Liang pulled her up and forced her to lie down on the bed, not letting her move. Then she went out to cook medicine. A while later, Su Liang finished cooking medicine for both Yang Feng and Yang Yu, and had them drink it. During this time, Bai Xiaohu came over and asked about Yang Feng. When he learned that Yang Feng was alive, he couldn't help but exclaim, "He has such great luck!" Approaching noon, Yang Feng opened his eyes. Su Liang was cooking when she heard Ning Jing call her, so she came over with her apron still on. "Where's my sister..." Yang Feng looked at Su Liang and weakly asked. "She's fine." Su Liang was somewhat satisfied that Yang Feng's first thought was to find Yang Yu. "Ning Qi..." Yang Feng looked at Ning Jing standing behind Su Liang, "You saved us..." Ning Jing shook her head indifferently, "Not me, it was her." Yang Feng looked at Su Liang again, shocked, "You... how did you know... I was in danger..." Su Liang shook her head, "I don't have the ability to predict the future, I just cursed you, don't overthink it." Yang Feng's face grew uglier, but then he saw Su Liang smile, "Young Master Yang, since you're awake, let's sign the labor agreement." Ning Jing passed over two prepared pieces of paper, which Su Liang held up for Yang Feng to see. "The first time I saved your sister, and the second time I saved both of you. The money and labor we spent are all written clearly here. Although the total amount of silver spent was just over 300 taels, we can't compare to you. This is all of our family's wealth. To be fair, you have to compensate with your entire fortune. In consideration of Yang Yu, I'll give you a discount; half of the Yang family's property will do." "You... you're taking advantage of my misfortune!" Yang Feng looked as if he'd known their hidden intentions all along and was saying "I knew you had ulterior motives and wanted something big!" Su Liang remained calm, "Of course, you can refuse. According to Yang Yu, it was your half-brother who tried to kill you. Even if you go back, it's still uncertain whether you can retake the Yang family's property." "I refuse... I'll pay you back the 300 silver taels in full..." Yang Feng gritted his teeth in pain, having pulled at his wound. Su Liang nodded, "Alright. We talked about money first, now let's talk about life. I saved your life, and I guarantee you'll be as good as new. But I have a bad temper, so I charge random fees for my services. Initially, I wasn't going to charge you any fees for considering Yang Yu, but now I've changed my mind." Yang Feng's eyes narrowed, "What do you mean?" "If you want to live, sign the labor agreement. The fee is to work in the mine. I think it's very suitable for you," Su Liang sneered. "Otherwise, I'll stab you again, throw you out, and we'll be done with each other."