Niu Zhu, already panicked by his sudden appearance in an unfamiliar place, was further startled when Ding Yun, a stranger, touched his shoulder and spoke to him.
The next second, he bolted.
Yes, he just ran.
This left Ding Yun feeling extremely awkward. She was, after all, a beautiful young girl, and she had approached him with the intention of kindly asking if he needed help. Was she really that terrifying, like he'd seen a ghost?
However, within moments, the man Ding Yun had just scared away found he could no longer run. He had chosen the wrong direction and run directly into the middle of the road. While modern traffic rules prioritize pedestrians, that's for those crossing at crosswalks. He had dashed out like a sudden apparition, enough to make even a focused driver panic, and thus, he was hit.
The driver was momentarily bewildered and frightened, bystanders cried out in shock, and Ding Yun herself was utterly confused.
It seemed like she had tried to help but made things worse.
No, not seemed. She definitely had.
In novels, people who transmigrated to another world were usually extremely cautious, carefully observing their surroundings, and tended to show a sort of "imprinting" towards the first person who showed them kindness. Why did this guy not follow the script, panic, and run away?
Wasn't he just like those difficult patients who refused to conform to standard cases in medical textbooks?
Fortunately, the panic didn't last long. In front of everyone, the offending driver didn't flee. Bystanders quickly called an ambulance, and Ding Yun was also held back by passersby who pointed at her, claiming she had said something to the man now lying on the ground, unconscious, causing him to flee wildly.
She was considered one of the culprits and couldn't be allowed to leave.
While waiting for the ambulance, some with medical knowledge were providing first aid and staunching bleeding, while others gathered around, chattering.
"His injuries look pretty serious, he's already bleeding. It's probably internal damage, and his forehead hit something. Hope he didn't hit his head and lose his memory, that would be difficult to deal with."
"Tell me about it!"
"But we can't entirely blame the driver. I saw the whole thing clearly. The guy suddenly ran into the middle of the road. Forget the driver, even I was a bit stunned standing here and didn't react in time."
"Yeah, yeah, it's just the driver's bad luck. He happened to be driving by when this guy dashed out. But there's probably insurance, so it should be alright!"
"But where did this guy come from? I've never seen clothes this tattered on anyone. To put it bluntly, even a beggar on the street has better clothes. He has hands and feet, and isn't lacking anything except being a bit thin. How can he be this poor?"
"Right, and he's so skinny. My dad had late-stage cancer and went through so much chemotherapy. Towards the end, he was only about as thin as this guy. This person is practically skin and bones! It's strange, really strange!"
"Could it be... a scam?"
"No way. Those who try scams these days are very protective of their lives. Who would attempt a scam like this, risking their life?"
"Maybe he's a beginner."
"What did that young lady just say? What did she say to make this guy run for his life?"
"Don't even mention it. The young lady was also bewildered. She just told me she saw he looked pitiful, so thin, and she kindly bought him four steamed buns and a bottle of soy milk, intending to give them to him and ask if he was in trouble. Before she could even finish speaking, he ran off like he'd seen a ghost..."
"The young lady isn't ugly either!"
"Um, could it be that he's an escaped convict or something, hiding in the mountains and unable to hunt, and was starving? He ran out looking for food, and when the young lady tapped him on the shoulder and spoke to him, he thought he'd been discovered and fled in panic. I think this guess is quite reasonable. It explains why his clothes are so torn, why he's so thin, and why he suddenly ran."
"Hey, that actually makes a lot of sense. It's plausible. Should we call the public security bureau? And should we check the reward lists online? Maybe he's there, and we could earn tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands in reward money."
"Don't traffic accidents fall under the traffic police?"
"But his identity might be problematic!"
"Eh, it's hard to say. We're just guessing. Let's not label him and spread rumors. What if he's just genuinely poor? What if he just ran because he was startled!"
"Please, if you think that way, you're questioning the living standards of our country's citizens, questioning the national policy of poverty alleviation and support. Didn't you watch those poverty alleviation dramas recently? Even the laziest and most annoying characters in them weren't starved to this extent. Unless he has a terminal illness and all his money was spent on treatment, there's no way he'd be this emaciated with hands and feet. I'm telling you, I'm putting it on record today: this guy's identity is definitely suspicious."
...
Less than fifteen minutes after the crowd's discussion, personnel from relevant departments began to arrive. The hospital doctors quickly provided emergency treatment and took the injured person to the hospital. Traffic management officers inspected the scene, listened to witness accounts, and reviewed nearby surveillance footage to determine the nature and responsibility of the accident. The public security bureau took statements from several individuals and sent two officers to the hospital to keep an eye on the injured person.
Since they couldn't find any identity information through the injured person's fingerprints or facial recognition, his identity was undoubtedly problematic. He could be undocumented, a stowaway, or even a criminal who had undergone plastic surgery and altered his fingerprints.
With his identity unclear, even as an injured party, he needed to be monitored, and questioned once he woke up.
Ding Yun, of course, was one of those giving a statement.
After all, she was the person who had direct contact with the injured party. Who else would they question?
For this reason, Ding Yun could only take the dishes, which a restaurant near the market had quickly prepared for her, and pack them up to take to the public security bureau to give her statement. After being informed that she needed to keep her phone accessible and might be summoned at any time, she went home.
Her mother didn't get home for lunch as she finished work at two in the afternoon, so she only ate a quick bite. Her younger brother ate at school. So, at noon, it was practically just Ding Yun and her father who needed to eat at home.
When her daughter wasn't home, her father usually bought some braised dishes and cooked for himself. Even now, he still did the same. He just bought a slightly larger quantity of food.
Ding Yun had forgotten to tell her father in advance that she was buying groceries. On top of that, she had been delayed for a significant amount of time on the road. So, when Ding Yun arrived home with three dishes and one soup, her father had already finished lunch and gone to lie down in bed. On the table, only some pig's head meat, specially set aside for Ding Yun, remained.
"Why are you back so late? I saved some dishes for you. The rice is in the pot, serve yourself. After you finish, wash the bowls. Oh, and did you find a job? If you haven't, then don't bother looking anymore. When your mother and I were your age, you were already three years old. Find a partner and get married early, and you won't have to look for a job. You're twenty-four or twenty-five, and before you know it, you'll be thirty. Pay attention to this!"
Ding Hai, lying on the bed playing with his phone, saw Ding Yun return and, as usual, offered a few words of advice before continuing to scroll through short videos, playing the music out loud and loudly watching various "earthy" short videos.