The county health center was located on the main street, and by the time they arrived, it was already past five in the afternoon.
By then, Old Man Wang had regained consciousness, but he was still very weak and couldn’t even speak.
Li Yi carried him inside and then handled the admission procedures.
To avoid delaying treatment, Li Yi shared his diagnosis with the doctor on duty, suggesting that the old man was suffering from hypoglycemia combined with heatstroke.
Of course, he was merely offering his opinion.
Whether the doctor accepted it or not, and how he chose to treat the patient, was the doctor’s decision—it wasn’t Li Yi’s place to interfere.
Fortunately, the old man had money on him, as well as his work ID, so Li Yi didn’t have to cover the medical expenses out of pocket.
After leaving the old man’s bicycle in the hospital’s care, Li Yi hurriedly left the hospital with his third sister.
Although they were both happy to have saved a life, the siblings were also very anxious.
It was nearly six o’clock by the time they left the hospital. At the pace of the mule cart, it would be at least nine o’clock by the time they returned to the village—clearly too late.
Thinking about how he’d promised Tang Xue they’d go to propose marriage, only to be this late, Li Yi worried she might get the wrong idea.
But with things having come to this, all he could do was urge the mule to go a little faster!
On the way, Li Na kept glancing at Li Yi from time to time without saying a word, which made Li Yi feel a little uneasy!
“Sis, what’s wrong? Just say it!”
“Since when did you learn how to treat patients?” Li Na voiced her question.
“I don’t know how to treat patients—why are you asking that?”
“If you don’t know how to treat patients, how did you manage to revive that old man with just a bowl of brown sugar water?”
Li Yi replied immediately, “I saw that the old man was pale, weak, and sweating, with cold, clammy skin and a rapid heartbeat—it looked a lot like hypoglycemia. Plus, I found some sugar cubes in his pocket, which confirmed my suspicion. That’s why I had you make him some brown sugar water to replenish his fluids and sugar!”
“So that’s how it was. How do you know so much?”
“Read more books—you can find everything in them!”
“Hmph, as if you’re the type to read books!”
Li Yi smiled but said nothing. In his third sister’s memory, he was indeed a poor student who didn’t like reading.
But Li Yi knew his own capabilities. In his previous life, after he’d come to his senses, his greatest passion had been reading.
Over the decades, Li Yi had read widely, delving into everything from astronomy and geography to classical Chinese literature.
Although he had never formally tested his knowledge nor obtained any diplomas from educational institutions, his erudition and eloquence were recognized by all the elite in the business world.
But he couldn’t share this with his third sister; otherwise, he wouldn’t be able to explain it.
Plus, they were in a hurry, so he didn’t want to say much.
And so, amid sporadic small talk, the two of them rode the mule cart swiftly toward the village!
Meanwhile, the Li household presented a completely different scene!
The Li family’s already small house was packed with people. Besides Li Shankui and his wife, there were several village elders from the Li clan, as well as the young lads who had brought Li Yi the mushrooms.
Right now, everyone was just as restless as Li Shankui and his wife, pacing back and forth like ants on a hot pan.
According to the plan, Li Yi was supposed to arrive home by four o’clock, and then go to propose to Tang Xue after she finished work at half past six.
To this end, Li Shankui had not only invited the village elders but had even brought in the village’s most eloquent matchmaker, Granny Zhang, to help broker the deal.
But they waited and waited, and by nearly nine o’clock at night, Li Yi and Li Na still hadn’t returned!
“Shan Kui, could something have happened to Na and Yi? Why don’t you go to the county seat to look for them?” said the clan elder, Li Jingfeng, with a look of concern.
Zhang Yuehong also said anxiously, “Husband, why don’t you head into town?”
“Alright, go tell Xue at the educated youth commune, and I’ll set off right away…”
Before he could finish, the sound of a bell rang out from outside.
Everyone looked out and saw the courtyard gate being pushed open as a bright red mule cart rolled steadily inside.
Li Shankui rushed out and, seeing that both his son and daughter were safe and sound, breathed a sigh of relief.
But thinking of the worry he’d endured all night, he snapped angrily, “Why are you back so late? Don’t you know we have important business today?”
Just as Li Na was about to explain, Li Yi quickly interjected, “Sis, I’ll handle this with Mom and Dad. You hurry over to the educated youth camp and explain the situation to Tang Xue. We’ll get ready and head over right away!”
“Alright!”
After Li Na left, Li Yi immediately addressed Li Shan Kui and the others: “Dad, on our way back we came across an elderly man who had collapsed by the roadside. His condition was quite critical, so Third Sister and I took him to the clinic in town. The round trip took several hours, which is why we kept you waiting!”
Hearing his son say they’d been delayed to save a life, the anger in Li Shankui’s heart finally subsided.
“Is he okay?”
“Yeah, he had already woken up when we left. I don’t think he’ll have any problems!” Li Yi replied.
“That’s good…”
At that moment, the village’s eldest elder, Old Man Li, leaning on his cane, spoke up: “Shan Kui, saving a life is better than building a seven-story pagoda. For Yi to save a life before his marriage proposal is a tremendous blessing—don’t scold the boy!”
Li Shankui nodded immediately and said, “Yes, Seventh Grandfather is right. Little Yi, you’d better get ready quickly—don’t keep Snow waiting!”
“Alright, just give me a few minutes!”
………
While chaos reigned at the Li household, the atmosphere at the educated youth camp was rather eerie!
In the women’s dormitory, several female educated youth were gathered around Tang Xue, offering words of comfort.
“Xiao Xue, something must have come up at the Li household—they’ll definitely be here!”
“Exactly. I heard someone say while I was working today that Li Yi’s mother went to Old Lady Zhang’s house—she must have gone to ask Old Lady Zhang to act as a matchmaker!”
“Li Yi sounded so certain the other day—he definitely wouldn’t stand you up…”
But Tang Xue, surrounded by the group, remained silent. Her face was pale, and her mind was in turmoil!
She had heard from Li Na that Li Yi was in love with Wang Xuemei from the neighboring village, and had sworn he would marry no one but her.
She also remembered that after he’d cornered her on the kang that day, she’d asked him if he’d be willing to marry her. He’d hesitated for a long time before finally saying yes.
Clearly, deep down, he didn’t want to marry her.
So, today he had essentially run away from the wedding… No, they hadn’t even gotten married; it was more accurate to say he simply hadn’t come to propose.
To think that not only had she, a virgin, been slept with for no apparent reason, but she’d also been cornered on the kang by the entire village—and in the end, that man didn’t even want to marry her.
Overwhelmed by a sense of injustice, Tang Xue couldn’t help but burst into tears!
Meanwhile, under a large poplar tree outside the men’s dormitory, Xu Hong and a few others were sitting on small stools, chatting idly. Naturally, their conversation revolved around the Li family’s marriage proposal, though their remarks were mostly tinged with schadenfreude.
“What’s the Li family playing at? It’s so late and they still haven’t shown up. They must have stood her up!”
“It’s this late and they still haven’t shown up. Clearly, they’re not coming. Tang Xue is going to be utterly humiliated now!”
“This is what happens when a woman isn’t a proper wife—no one will respect her!”
“Exactly. Losing her virginity before marriage—she’ll never be happy even if she does get married…”
However, just as these male and female educated youths were waiting with their own agendas to watch the drama unfold, a figure came running from the distance!