Chapter 1 - Will You Marry Me? (Part 1) (1/2)

”Will you marry me?”

Yao Ling never thought there would be a day when she would be the one who proposed marriage to a man, but she had no other choice. She needed his protection, and in a way, she was his savior.

Yao Ling's mind flickered back to the first time she had met him. She was walking in the forest near her village just like usual, trying to gather some herbs for her mother. When she found the herbs, she suddenly heard a groaning voice. It was only a low and subtle voice, but still, the hoarse voice was caught by her sėnsɨtɨvė ears.

She froze, feeling a bit scared. Yao Ling tried to listen again once again, thinking that she was probably mistaken, or it was just a part of her imagination. She was pretty sure that it was a man's voice and it sounded like he was in pain.

'Should I look for the voice's source or not?' She thought to herself. After a few seconds, she chose the first choice and finally decided to look for it.

Yao Ling had to break through a dense thicket of bush before she found him. She gasped in surprise, looking at his awful condition. She could only see blood at almost every part of his body, and she couldn't even see clearly the man's face. Fortunately, she wasn't afraid of blood, otherwise, she probably would faint before she could do anything to help him. He was unconscious and she didn't know what to do.

Yao Ling was only fourteen and petite in size. That man was tall and muscular. It was not the scary muscular type, but due to her petite size, the man looked so big. She had no idea how to bring him back home. Yao Ling decided to find a few big trunks -- well... as big as that she could manage to lift -- and bind them together with the rope that she brought along just in case she met a mishap. With all her energy, she tried to put him on the makeshift stretcher. She was sweating hard and almost lost all the energy she had left, but she couldn't give up or this man would die. It was against her conscience.

She didn't forget to collect her mother's herbs before she dragged the man all the way to her village. She had no idea how she did it or where all her energy came from, but Yao Ling made it to her house -- well... although she felt like fainting a few times. Fortunately, both Yao Ling and her mother lived in the outskirt of the village. There would be no gossip about this stranger -- at least for now, but she didn't know for how long. Gossips were always easily spread among the villagers, especially if strangers were involved. It was all due to curiosity.

At least for now, in Yao Ling's mind, she should nurse him and help him recover. Whether he was alive or not in the end, it depended on his own luck. She didn't care about any stupid gossips. To her, a human's life was certainly a more important choice.

After she arrived at her house, Yao Ling called her mother. When she didn't get any reply, she yelled a bit loudly, ”Mother, please help me!”

Jiu Lan, Yao Ling's mother went out quickly when she heard the anxiety and urgency on her daughter's voice. Yao Ling rarely shouted. That's why she knew that there must be something important had happened that made her daughter behave differently. Jiu Lan saw her daughter standing beside a man whose face and body was covered in blood, she gasped in surprise.

”What happened to him?” She asked.

Yao Ling shook her head. ”I have no idea, Mother. When I found him just now, he was already in this condition. Can you save him, Mother?”

”I need to look at his condition first. Let's bring him inside first!” After saying that, Jiu Lan helped Yao Ling, both took the unconscious man inside their house and put him on their small but clean bed.

”Go fetch clean water!” Jiu Lan ordered Yao Ling.

Yao Ling nodded and did what her mother told her to do without complaining. Actually, she already knew what she was supposed to do without any further instructions. Her mother was the village's doctor and Yao Ling learned a thing or two from her. Hopefully, her mother could save this man. When she came back with a bucket of clean water, her mother was already thoroughly checking the man's condition.