A Good Country Wife

Zhao Erhu was desperately searching for someone, while Lin Yue was staring blankly at the place where the river had disappeared. Originally, the river flowed towards their village, but it vanished before a small hill. Lin Yue observed the surrounding geography and concluded that the river must have gone underground, becoming a Secret River, which was why it couldn’t be seen on the surface. She had heard of such phenomena before, but she did not know where the outlet of the Secret River might be. If it couldn’t be found, they would have to divert water to that location, which would require a lot of manpower and material resources, and cause a great disturbance. It would be much better if they could find a place closer to her home.

However, these were not things that could be accomplished right away, as she had no such ability to dive underwater and investigate. She only had the option to ask around nearby, to find out if any rivers had suddenly appeared without a traceable source, or if there were any other abnormal phenomena related to rivers. To have gathered this much information today was already quite good, so she would just have to go back for now and come up with a concrete plan before starting on this matter.

After resting for a while, Lin Yue stood up but felt a little dizzy. It took her a few seconds to steady herself before she felt another warm surge below. Remembering what she was wearing, she instantly felt that being a woman was really troublesome. Having been out for so long, she might have bled quite a bit. Those ’monthly affairs’ products were not as durable as modern sanitary napkins, and she had no replacements at the moment. She hoped not to have any accidents before getting home. Fortunately, she was in the deep mountains, where few people ventured, so she would not likely encounter anyone, or else she would be in real trouble.

But Lin Yue spoke too soon. There might not be people in these desolate mountains, but there were wild animals. The heavy scent of blood on Lin Yue was significant; while human noses could barely detect such smells, wild animals had a keen sense of smell, and a wandering wolf nearby had picked up the potent scent of blood and followed it to locate its source.

Meanwhile, Zhao Erhu and his brother, Zhao Dahuo, along with his wife, were going around the village asking if anyone had seen Lin Yue. Most of them shook their heads, indicating they didn’t know, but a few said that they had seen Lin Yue heading into the mountains. An old man living close to the mountains vaguely saw someone who resembled Erhu’s wife heading into the mountains, while a few children gathering firewood nearby were certain they saw Dalang’s mother enter the woods.

"I tell you, Lord Heaven, my sister-in-law is thin and frail, why would a woman venture into the mountains alone? There are so many wild beasts and poisonous snakes. She is a weak woman and knows no Martial Arts; if she encounters a wild animal, it will be dangerous. What should we do?" Liu’s wife became worried when she heard Lin Yue had gone into the mountains, anxiously pacing around in place.

"I’m saying, Erhu, it’s not that I want to criticize you, but your sister-in-law is young and may not understand some things. It wouldn’t have hurt for a grown man like you to give in to her. Why insist on being angry with her? Now you’ve upset her to the point she ran off into the mountains; what if something happens to her?" Liu’s wife, in her anxiety, spoke out of turn, bringing up Zhao Erhu’s misgivings, earning her a stern look from Zhao Dahu.

Zhao Dahu glared at Liu’s wife. Despite his usual honest and straightforward manner, his strong sense of masculinity was deeply rooted in his mind. "What nonsensical talk! How is that logical? Erhu is a grown man; how can he bow down to his wife? Besides, it’s not my sister-in-law’s first time going into the mountains. It’s not like you, who knows nothing once you’re in the mountains. She is capable and knows how to avoid danger."