Courtyard House: My Wife is Xu Huizhen

Page 113

"Just leave it there, I'll have the guy bring it to you later."

"Thank you so much, you've really gone to so much trouble." Chen Xueru put the mutton aside, then sat down and, without any hesitation, poured herself a cup of tea and started a conversation with He Yuzhu.

Over the course of several days, He Yuzhu gradually learned that Chen Xueru's father, Old Master Chen, was a renowned tailor who had built his business over decades of hard work.

Chen Xueru is an only child, so she has been helping out in the shop since she was a child and has long since learned how to do business.

After chatting for a while, He Yuzhu got up to cook mutton soup. He brought it to a boil over a high flame, adjusted the seasoning, and told the waiter to keep an eye on the stove and deliver it when the time was right.

After making the arrangements, He Yuzhu rode his bicycle to Dongzhimen. It was already winter, and he had nothing to do while staying indoors all day. He wanted to buy more wood before the coldest days of winter to heat the kang (a heated brick bed) and make some furniture for the house.

Halfway there, snowflakes started falling from the sky, and the cold wind picked up.

Once outside Dongzhimen, the wind intensified, the northwest wind like tiny knives piercing through the cracks and into people's bodies.

I couldn't help but shiver.

As we approached Shizipo, we suddenly saw several people pointing and talking by the pond, with Yi Zhonghai leading the group.

Yi Zhonghai also saw He Yuzhu and quickly shouted, "Zhuzi, a child has fallen in there, come and help quickly!"

He Yuzhu was taken aback, then quickly turned the handlebars and came over.

"Uncle Yi, what's the use of calling me? I can't swim either. Why don't you go down and save them yourself?"

As he said this, He Yuzhu squeezed closer to Yi Zhonghai, deliberately pushing his way in.

"Where? Where?"

It was early winter, and although a northwest wind was blowing and light snow was falling, there was only a thin layer of ice on the river.

I saw a little child struggling inside, and he looked like he had no strength left.

"Don't bump into me!" Yi Zhonghai quickly said, "Zhu Zi, this..."

He Yuzhu exerted a little force, flicked his elbow, and tripped Yi Zhonghai, causing him to stumble and slide down the bank. The pond's slope was quite steep, and he fell straight in.

"Uncle Yi, you are truly noble. Quickly, save the child."

Chapter 98: I fell into the pond because Sha Zhu pushed me in.

Previously, Yi Zhonghai had lied to Xu Damao, inciting Xu Damao to seek revenge against him.

Although he and Xu Wude swindled Yi Zhonghai out of 1500 yuan.

However, He Yuzhu still harbored a great deal of resentment.

I've always wanted to find an opportunity to deal with Yi Zhonghai, but I haven't found the right time yet.

Today is truly a golden opportunity; Yi Zhonghai actually stood by the pond, giving He Yuzhu a chance.

Yi Zhonghai had just complained that the temperature was too low and even wanted He Yuzhu to go down and rescue people.

He Yuzhu then resorted to underhanded tactics, pushing Yi Zhonghai into the pond.

Now it remains to be seen whether Yi Zhonghai will go to rescue them.

Yi Zhonghai was a little confused. How did he fall?

You know, even though it's not the coldest time of winter, the river is already frozen, and the water temperature in the pond is only around 0 degrees Celsius.

Even wearing a cotton-padded jacket and trousers, I didn't feel warm. But after falling into the pond, my whole body came into contact with the cold water, and I couldn't help but shiver a few times.

"The old man is a kind and honest man; he quickly pulled the child out of the water."

"Yes, don't just stand there, go check on the child."

"If we don't save them now, it will be too late."

"Hurry up!"

Although the child had fallen into the water, everyone was in a dilemma; no one wanted to go into the river to rescue him in this weather.

The river water is too cold; anyone with a weak constitution simply cannot withstand it.

At that time, medical care was very poor. If you took a cold shower, you would get a fever and a cold afterward, and you might even lose your life.

So, when the three or four of them discovered the child had fallen into the water, they all gathered around the pond, very anxious, but no one was willing to step up and jump in to save the child.

If He Yuzhu hadn't stabbed Yi Zhonghai in the back, the group would still be arguing about who should step down.

Yi Zhonghai jumped in voluntarily, and everyone on the shore hurriedly directed and urged him on.

Yi Zhonghai was so frustrated he felt like vomiting blood; He Yuzhu must have pushed him down.

But now that one of our own has fallen into the pond, we can't just climb out and confront He Yuzhu.

This is a debt I'll just have to write down and settle later.

Now that people have come down, we can only show some sportsmanship and rescue the child who fell into the water first.

Yi Zhonghai was either angry or cold, his hands were completely unresponsive, and his teeth were chattering.

Fortunately, the pond wasn't deep in winter, and I shivered as I made my way to the middle.

They picked up the child who had fallen into the water. The child's face was already purple from the cold, and his breathing was weak. If they had waited any longer, he would have been frozen to death.

Yi Zhonghai, carrying the heavy child, turned around and quickly walked towards the shore. The water was too cold; he didn't want to stay there for even a second.

When Yi Zhonghai reached the shore, his face was also purple from the cold.

"Lift the child up first."

Yi Zhonghai thought about it and agreed. The slope was too steep, and it wouldn't be convenient for him to carry the child up. So he quickly reached out and lifted the child up.

Several people hurriedly took the child from him, and Yi Zhonghai was so exhausted that he plopped down in the pond.

"Quickly take off the child's clothes. If any of you know him, wrap him in your arms and take him to the hospital."

"I come."

One of the men readily agreed and then unbuttoned his cotton-padded coat.

He Yuzhu quickly took off the child's clothes, since it wasn't appropriate for the cotton-padded jacket and pants to stick to the body when they were wet.

The first thing to do is to remove these clothes and warm the child with body heat, and then rush them to the hospital.

The man wrapped the child in his arms and ran away.

He Yuzhu handed them his wet clothes, and the others left, leaving only one person behind.

"Quickly pull me up."

Yi Zhonghai tried to climb up by himself, but he was cold all over and his hands and feet were numb, so he couldn't muster any strength.

After two unsuccessful attempts, I had no choice but to ask for help.

He Yuzhu asked, "Grandpa, you're so old, you can just climb up yourself."

"If I could climb up, would I be calling you? Hurry up, I'm freezing to death." Although Yi Zhonghai was angry, he couldn't curse at this moment.

Right now, we need to get out of this pond first. Although I'm young, I won't be able to recover in less than ten days or half a month.

He Yuzhu then reached out to pull Yi Zhonghai.

Old Yi was soaking wet from head to toe, all his clothes were dripping water, and he was shivering and swaying, his teeth grinding together.

The last person who remained said, "Comrades, which unit are you from? I'll send you a letter of commendation and a banner later."

Shivering, Yi Zhonghai's eyes lit up. He thought that if he could gain a good reputation after all this suffering, it would be great. That way, he could become famous whether in Nanluoguxiang or in the steel factory.

He opened his mouth as if to say his workplace and name, but what came out was unintelligible; he was so cold that he couldn't even speak properly.

He Yuzhu righted the overturned car and said, "Comrade, you're too kind. There's no need to expect anything in return for doing good deeds. I'd better hurry up and take the person home."

"This is not good."

The villagers, while talking, helped He Yuzhu to get the frozen Yi Zhonghai to sit down in the back seat.

"Comrade, please leave your name."

"Alright, stop asking around and go check on the child."

He Yuzhu then pushed his bicycle back to the city.

Watching the two walk away, leaving a trail of dripping river water, the villagers exclaimed with emotion, "They are such good people!"

Yi Zhonghai sat in the back seat, extremely annoyed. "Even if I'm cold, you idiot Zhu still has time to say my name."

Is it really that hard to say the name Yi Zhonghai?

If it can spread my fame, it would be worth it to jump into the pool to save someone. Such deeds can be passed down for decades and bring countless good reputations.

Unfortunately, all of this was ruined by Sha Zhu, who refused to leave his name from beginning to end.

"Giggle..." Yi Zhonghai opened his mouth as if to say something, but what came out was the sound of his upper and lower teeth chattering.

"Grandpa, just save your breath and stop talking."

Yi Zhonghai was full of resentment. He thought to himself, "If you don't want to say anything, why don't you just get on your bicycle? Why keep pushing it?"

When will we be able to return to the courtyard house?

Wouldn't I freeze to death?

He Yuzhu explained, "Grandpa, please don't blame me for not riding a bicycle. The chain just broke, and I checked it; there's no way to fix it now."