Zhang Erniu glanced at Qi Zhenzhen and bent down to pick up Du Xiang.
"Take him to my place first," Qi Zhenzhen said, seeing Zhang Erniu carrying the person towards Du's house. "Du Xiang is quite badly affected. I'm afraid if we take him back, Aunt Du will just smother him with blankets."
Hearing this, Zhang Erniu did not hesitate and carried the person towards Qi's house. Da Feng Xiao Shuo
At Qi Zhenzhen's request, the person was not placed on the heated brick bed inside the house. Qi Zhenzhen dragged out the tatami mat from the room and let Zhang Erniu lay him down. Da Feng Xiao Shuo Wang
"Brother Zhang Er, please unbutton Du Xiang's clothes and rub him vigorously with snow until his skin turns red," Qi Zhenzhen instructed.
Zhang Erniu was a little confused, but he knew Qi Zhenzhen was not someone who acted recklessly. She had risked going into the mountains to find him, so she wouldn't harm him.
She also instructed Yun Shi to boil ginger soup and hot water, then she hurried out to invite the physician and to inform the Du family.
When Physician Mo heard the whole story from Qi Zhenzhen, he quickly packed some medicinal herbs and, shouldering his medicine box, ran towards Qi's house. Someone freezing to the point of unconsciousness was no small matter; if not handled properly, it could be fatal.
Du Xiang's wife ran all the way with Qi Zhenzhen, tears streaming down her face.
When Qi Zhenzhen returned home, Zhang Erniu was still rubbing Du Xiang with snow, and even Physician Mo had joined in.
Du Xiang's wife was anxious and wanted to take off her padded jacket to cover Du Xiang.
Qi Zhenzhen stopped her. "Aunt Du, Xiang Ge'er was in the snowdrift for a long time, and the cold has entered his body. If we warm him up immediately, I'm afraid there will be problems."
When cold enters the body, it chills to the bone. Warming him up directly would be warming from the outside in, forcing the internal cold to be trapped. This could ruin him. Rubbing with snow promotes blood circulation, generating heat from within and forcing the cold out. Coupled with a medicinal soup to induce sweating later, this would be the best course of action.
Du Xiang's wife saw the physician rubbing snow on her son. Although anxious, she restrained herself from getting in the way.
"Physician Mo, I asked my mother to boil thick ginger soup. Should Xiang Ge'er be given the medicine or the ginger soup later?" Qi Zhenzhen asked.
Physician Mo had brought anti-cold medicine, but ginger soup was also effective in dispelling cold. Since it was already prepared, there was no need to bother boiling more.
"Just use the thick ginger soup. I'll use the anti-cold medicine I brought to make a medicinal bath," Physician Mo said, stopping his actions. He took out a packet of medicine from his box and handed it to Qi Zhenzhen.
The water in the pot was already boiling. Qi Zhenzhen lifted the lid and sprinkled the medicine in.
After the prepared medicinal soup was ladled out, Zhang Erniu directly carried Du Xiang and placed him in it. Du Xiang was now slightly conscious, his eyes barely able to open, but he had no idea what was happening.
The task of feeding him ginger soup was handed over to Aunt Du and Zhang Erniu. One held him, while the other poured the soup into his mouth.
After about an hour of work, the person finally regained full consciousness.
Aunt Du hugged him, sobbing. Du Xiang also knew that his trip into the mountains this time was reckless. If not for Miss Qi's rescue, he would surely have perished in the mountains. His ambitions would have all come to nothing, and his grandmother and mother would suffer greatly in the future.
"Mother, it was my fault," Du Xiang rasped. "Don't worry, your son will never do anything to worry you again."
After comforting Aunt Du, Du Xiang also thanked Qi Zhenzhen, Zhang Erniu, and Physician Mo with a sincere and grateful expression.
Zhang Erniu had been conscripted into the army with Du Xiang's father. Du Xiang's father died on the battlefield, but Zhang Erniu returned alive, so he had always taken care of the Du family and treated Du Xiang like a junior. He did not hesitate to reprimand him.
"With your scrawny body, why are you trying to show off? In weather like this, even I wouldn't dare go into the mountains. Where did you get the nerve to go into the mountains? Don't you know you are the pillar of the Du family? If anything happened to you, how would your mother and grandmother live? Miss Qi risked going into the mountains to find you. If anything had happened to her, even if you died, you couldn't compensate her! I always thought you were smart, but now it seems you're just a fool. You're still studying, have you been reading to a donkey's belly?"
Du Xiang listened to Zhang Erniu's scolding with a face full of guilt. He knew he was in the wrong and felt no grievance being scolded. Moreover, he had fallen into a snowdrift, and if Qi Zhenzhen hadn't pulled him out, he would have met Yama by now.
Zhang Erniu took a deep breath and was about to continue scolding when Physician Mo stopped him. "Let's scold him after he's recovered. With this time, go squeeze some ginger juice to rub Du Xiang's hands and feet. His body seems fine now, but his hands and feet are bound to get frostbite."
"Physician Mo, Xiang Ge'er's hands..." Aunt Du's voice began to tremble with tears.
"Take good care of him, and it won't affect his ability to write later," Physician Mo said, knowing her concerns. He didn't say anything unpleasant but instead reassured Aunt Du. "He's lucky to be alive. If it had been any later, or if he had been placed on a heated bed immediately after being brought back, it might have cost him half his life. Forget about studying, he might have had trouble taking care of himself."
Du Xiang and Aunt Du finally realized how dangerous the situation had been.
Aunt Du held Qi Zhenzhen's hand, crying and laughing, expressing her gratitude incoherently.
Qi Zhenzhen finally managed to break free. Being thanked like this was too much for her.
Du Xiang was still very weak, and it was very cold outside. Physician Mo advised against moving him for the time being.
The Qi family had many rooms, so accommodating someone was not a problem. Since Aunt Du still had to go back to take care of Grandma Du, Zhang Erniu would temporarily look after Du Xiang.
Once everyone had left, the Qi house became quiet. Qi Zhenzhen snuggled in Yun Shi's room, letting Yun Shi check her from head to toe. Only when she was sure she was unharmed did Yun Shi heave a sigh of relief.
"From now on, you are not allowed to take the lead in such matters," Yun Shi said in a low voice. "Don't say your mother is heartless. Compared to your safety, your mother would rather be heartless. This time, you were lucky. If something had happened to you, wouldn't it be like digging flesh from my heart?"
As she spoke, Yun Shi's eyes welled up.
Qi Zhenzhen felt this genuine concern and her heart warmed. She nestled into Yun Shi's embrace. "Mother, I'll listen to you."
Yun Shi hugged her and sighed softly. "I only have you and Brother Yi. I don't want you to be in any danger."
After Qi Zhenzhen's repeated assurances, Yun Shi's expression slowly improved.
"Mother, I only went to save Du Xiang to find some help for Brother Yi. The Du family has a hard time, and the villagers think they are all unlucky stars and don't want to get close to them. This is not true; Grandma Du and Aunt Du are kind people, and Du Xiang is also a smart person. In terms of studies, he is at least better than Song Mingze of the Song family. Now that I have saved Du Xiang, it is a great kindness to their family. If Brother Yi chooses the path of studying in the future, he will have someone to help him." Qi Zhenzhen shared her thoughts with Yun Shi without reservation.
Yun Shi intended for Qi Yi to pursue studies, but she hadn't thought as far ahead as Qi Zhenzhen. Hearing her words, she slowly nodded. "You are indeed more thoughtful."