Chapter 7: Broken Legs

Ruan Tao was stunned for a moment, then curled her finger and flicked Ruan Xing on the head, "Good for you, you knew Dad was causing trouble at noon, didn't you? You actually kept it from your sister the whole time!"

She did not seem to mean to blame Ruan Xing; she was only feigning anger on the surface.

With an "ouch," Ruan Xing rubbed her head; it didn't hurt much, she was just caught off guard.

Ruan Tao's attitude was very different from Ruan Mu's; Ruan Mu was both panicked and afraid, but Ruan Tao's face showed only surprise and a hint of worry, as she calmly and methodically dealt with the filth and wounds on Ruan Fu.

Even though Ruan Tao had experienced the happy life of a family of three, she was still young then, and her memories had likely long since blurred; the hardships and wear of these past few years had also nearly extinguished those few lingering feelings of affection, leaving Ruan Tao with only nostalgia for those memories, not longing.

This meant that Ruan Tao was very likely to understand her and stand on her side, and Ruan Xing was greatly encouraged, "Sister, just say it, if Dad stays at home every day like this and doesn't go out to cause trouble, do you think it's good or not?"

"Good? You're forcing a heavy burden on your sister and you're still feeling smug about it? With Dad having limited mobility at home, don't I have to wait on him every single day?"

Ruan Tao rolled her eyes.

Ruan Xing froze; she had forgotten to consider that, but it wasn't a big problem; once she gained a firm foothold with Qiye, she would certainly be able to resolve this matter properly.

Right, she still had to give Ruan Tao a heads-up first, "Sister, you know the head of the gang Dad used to hang out with, Qiye? He said today that he took a liking to me and wants to train me to work for him."

Ruan Tao's expression changed, "Dad sold you?"

"No, no!" Ruan Xing hurriedly denied, "If he had sold me, how could I have come back today? It was at the Gambling Den; I guessed a few gambling matches correctly, and Qiye felt I had a talent for Gambling. He didn't buy me from Dad but asked for my thoughts instead. I felt he genuinely wanted to train me, so I agreed."

"But..." Ruan Tao wanted to say something more, but paused, stopping herself; she naturally knew that among those who hung out in gangs, there were basically few who were reasonable. If Ruan Xing hadn't agreed, it would likely have been difficult to return. Since that Qiye was willing to give Ruan Xing some face, he probably wouldn't lie to her.

"You are a young girl, following people in a gang; I'm afraid that in the future, when it comes to marriage... it will be hard to have a good outcome."

Ruan Xing naturally didn't care about such things; she wanted to pursue Cultivation, not get married. Besides, even if she were to marry a man who saved her from fire and water like Ruan Mu did, would that necessarily lead to a good outcome? A woman cannot gamble her whole life on a man's conscience; perhaps this era is like this, but she cannot be.

"Sister, I don't care. Once I learn skills and have a future, I won't let you stay here and suffer and toil waiting on Dad."

"Fine, I will find time to talk to Mother about this."

Ruan Mu was a person without much of an opinion; most family matters were decided by Ruan Fu. Now that Ruan Tao could manage the household, she also had some say, and even if Ruan Mu was a bit unhappy, she could still persuade her.

Ruan Tao's expression was somewhat despondent; she felt that her younger sister had changed without her noticing, no longer as innocent and lively as before. Originally, she had tried her best to protect her sister all these years; although her sister was somewhat afraid of their father, she still had her childlike nature in front of her. But in the end, she was powerless, and she didn't know where the oversight had occurred.

But this could not be blamed on her sister; it was all because of Dad. The year her sister was born, she had also grown up just as suddenly, bearing responsibilities that did not belong to her.

The sisters did not continue chatting, because Ruan Mu had already returned with a doctor.

This doctor was surnamed Liu and was an old acquaintance of the Ruan family; from time to time, he would sell them some medicinal oil for bruises and injuries. There was no helping it; all four of them needed it, so the demand was naturally high. Doctor Liu took the pulse and checked the wounds again before coming to a conclusion, "These are all superficial wounds, not life-threatening. Only the leg bones on both sides are more serious; they appear to have been broken multiple times, and I fear they will not be able to walk normally even after they heal."

After Doctor Liu finished wrapping the bandages and used wooden boards to set the leg bones, wrote out a Medicine Prescription, and gave some instructions, Ruan Tao repeatedly agreed and saw Doctor Liu out the door.

Ruan Mu sat quietly by the bed shedding tears, her eyes full of complexity as she looked at the unconscious Ruan Fu. Ruan Tao waited for a while before softly speaking to remind her, "Mother, the consultation fee for Doctor Liu just now hasn't been paid yet, and we will need Silver to get the medicine tomorrow..."

"Look at me, forgetting about this... Tao'er, take good care of your father and sister; the household matters will be hard on you." Ruan Mu wiped away her tears and gave the three mace of Silver she had just prepared to Ruan Tao.

She very much wanted to take care of him herself, but as the family's only source of income, she could not easily lose her job at the Weaving Workshop.

Watching the Silver pass before her eyes, Ruan Xing felt a surge of greed but immediately suppressed it. Her moral compass was extremely weak, otherwise, she wouldn't have thought about stealing everywhere when she was scraping together those ten coins, but she had never thought about stealing Silver from Ruan Tao; her biggest targets were still the scumbag father and those rotten gamblers at the Gambling Den.

"Don't worry, Mother."

The mother and daughters blew out the lamp and prepared to sleep. Ruan Fu and Ruan Mu slept in the large room on the left side of the main hall, while Ruan Tao and Ruan Xing slept in the small room by the shed, but it was unknown how many of them would actually be able to sleep tonight.

Qiye did not make Ruan Xing wait too long, and the next day he sent someone to pick her up.

Ruan Xing was also very familiar with the person who came to pick her up; it was the burly man who had hammered Ruan Fu several times after stopping him that day. Ruan Xing had a rather good impression of him.

"My name is Hu San; just call me Brother Hu."

The man was not wearing the short-sleeved shirt that exposed his chest like he was at the Gambling Den that day, but was instead in a black martial outfit that wrapped his muscles tightly.

"Hello, Brother Hu." Ruan Xing greeted him obediently, said goodbye to the reluctant Ruan Tao with her small packed bundle, and followed Hu San away.

There were not many things in the bundle: two sets of her undergarments, a flower hair tie that the two sisters had worked together to make, two dry pancakes that Ruan Tao had baked that could be stored for a long time, and the few dozen coins left over from buying medicine for her father.

Ruan Tao had carefully instructed her that if she didn't learn well and was punished and not allowed to eat, she could secretly eat the pancakes she brought; if someone intentionally made things difficult, most people in the gang spoke based on Silver, and as a little girl, she could spend a few coins as a tribute to make people more accommodating.

Ruan Tao actually didn't know what the gang was really like; the street thugs Ruan Fu came into contact with were at most peripheral members. She was just using her own imagination to help Ruan Xing prepare for a rainy day.

Although it was a bit long-winded, Ruan Xing was still a little happy to be kept in someone's heart like this.

Hu San and Ruan Xing naturally walked there on foot. Ruan Xing didn't want to be so reticent the whole way, so as soon as they left the alley, she asked Hu San, "Brother Hu, what is our gang like?"

Perhaps because of Qiye's instructions, Hu San patiently explained quite a bit to her, and along the way, she gained a general understanding.

(End of chapter)