Chapter 73: Chapter 73: Delivering a Thank-You Gift

An Ning’s question made Jiang Xia’s expression turn sour, and his gaze shifted to Da Huang, who was lying off to the side.

But when he saw the wound on Da Huang’s back, his slightly annoyed attitude softened, and he crouched down beside the dog.

"Let me see."

Jiang Xia checked Da Huang’s wound. It looked like a superficial injury. Da Huang was fast, so the wound was just a scratch and not too deep.

"Let’s go home. I’ll put some medicine on it for you."

Jiang Xia held Da Huang’s head, first giving it a rub, then a light pat.

"Remember this: next time, don’t try to steal honey from a bear."

"WHIMPER..."

Da Huang nuzzled against Jiang Xia with an aggrieved look in its eyes. ’And just who was I doing it for?’

The aggrieved dog stole a glance at An Ning.

"I know, I know. You were just trying to get honey for me. I’m not blaming you. I just want you to understand that the two of us can’t beat it."

Held in Jiang Xia’s arms, Da Huang’s whimpering grew even quieter.

Jiang Xia stood up and formally thanked An Ning.

"Thank you for saving me and Da Huang."

"You’re welcome. You jumped into the river to save me last time."

Jiang Xia shrugged. "Fair enough. Let’s call it even."

"I’m heading down the mountain. What about you?"

An Ning glanced at the sky and shook her head. "I’m going to walk around a little more."

"Alright. Be careful. If you can’t win, just run. I’m sure you’ll be fine."

"Of course I’ll be fine."

After her matter-of-fact reply, An Ning turned and entered the woods.

Jiang Xia, left behind, had been shot down again, but he just shook his head and chuckled.

"Sigh... The one who can’t win a fight has no right to speak."

Jiang Xia called for Da Huang and started down the mountain, muttering to himself, "I’m no good at fighting, I can’t match her strength, and I can’t outrun her. What is a guy like me even good for?"

’In all these areas, my physical fitness is basically terrible. But what about my mind?’

Unwilling to admit defeat, Jiang Xia continued muttering to himself as he descended the mountain. The first thing he did when he got home was to disinfect and medicate Da Huang’s wound.

Nearby, Grandpa Jiang Xia saw the injured Da Huang and his heart ached for the dog. He pressed for the full story of what had happened.

"You need to thank that girl from the An family. Go to town in a bit and buy a gift. Don’t get anything too extravagant, or they won’t accept it. Last time, they sent over two chickens and thirty eggs."

The old man thought for a moment. "Buy ten pounds of pork, two boxes of pastries, and two bags of candy, and take them over to the An family."

Jiang Xia readily agreed and set off at once. He had to go early to get the good cuts of pork.

Meanwhile, An Ning stayed on the mountain for a while longer. But perhaps because the brown bear’s roars had been so thunderous, the mountain was especially quiet today.

In the end, she only managed to catch two rabbits, which she carried down the mountain.

This time, An Ning took the rabbits straight back to the An family home and handed them to An Guoqing.

"They’re pretty plump," An Guoqing remarked, holding the rabbits by the ears to get a better look.

"Hey, it’s a male and a female. What if we try raising them?"

"If you want to raise them, go ahead, Big Brother. I don’t have an opinion."

An Guoqing glanced at An Sancheng, who also agreed.

An Guoqing, delighted, took the two rabbits and trapped them under an overturned basket. Then, he went off to figure out how to build a hutch for them.

An Ning went over to help.

"How should we build it, Big Brother?"

"I’ll go find some stones in a bit to pave the floor. These critters love to dig, so we can’t just put them on the bare ground." 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

"We can just block it in with some boards. Rabbits breed like crazy."

An Guoqing was especially happy and confident as he said all this.

"Oh, right, Little Sis. About the bathhouse—Dad and I talked it over. How about we build it for you on the south side? Didn’t you say you wanted it right next to the house?"

"Yes, that spot is fine."

The mention of the bathhouse reminded An Ning that she had bought two large metal tubs to hold water for bathing.

"Dad and I will come home early this afternoon, and we’ll get it built for you then."

An Ning nodded. "I’ll go carry back some stones."

"Oh? Alright, that works too."

An Guoqing didn’t see any problem with it. ’His little sister is so strong, it’ll be fine.’

After the An family finished breakfast, An Sancheng and An Guoqing went to the fields, An Ning went to haul stones, and An Guoming went to town to look for opportunities.

At noon, everyone came home from the fields to rest for a bit.

Now that the rush to irrigate the fields was over, there was no particularly urgent work to do, so their midday break was a little longer.

When An Ning entered the courtyard, she looked around, wondering if she had come to the wrong place.

’But why is Jiang Xia here?’

’Why is he chatting so happily with Lin Cuihua?’

’Is this polite and humble Jiang Xia the same one I know?’

"Mom, I’m back."

"An Ning, you’re back! Jiang Xia is here to thank you for helping him on the mountain."

Lin Cuihua’s words made An Ning’s heart leap into her throat. ’If Mom knew about the fight with the brown bear, her expression wouldn’t be this calm.’

"That’s right. If it weren’t for An Ning, I would have been stuck in that trap."

Jiang Xia’s comment helped An Ning figure out what they had been talking about.

"I just happened to come across him. It was no big deal."

An Ning glanced at Jiang Xia. ’What’s he so happy about?’

What was Jiang Xia so happy about?

He was happy because he had found An Ning’s weak spot.

Calling it a "weak spot" wasn’t entirely accurate, but he was certainly enjoying the show. ’So, she has things she’s afraid of too.’

"Exactly! It was just a small thing. I really can’t accept all this stuff you brought. Please, take it back," Lin Cuihua said, returning to the subject.

"We never even got a chance to properly thank you for jumping in the river to save someone last time. What An Ning did really doesn’t warrant all these gifts. Hurry and take them back."

An Ning’s gaze fell to the side. Pork, pastries, and candy... it really was a lot.

’I can accept this, though. I don’t feel I’ve done anything to be ashamed of.’

’But based on the story they’re telling, it’s true, I can’t accept it.’

"That’s right, you should take it back. I didn’t really do anything."

An Ning conceded again, downplaying what she had done on the mountain, which made Jiang Xia smile to himself.

’She’s like a little kid who’s done something wrong and is desperately trying to cover her tracks.’

’But she clearly did a good deed.’

"Auntie, please accept it. You don’t know how deep that trap was. It was really dangerous! My Da Huang even got hurt."

"I was shouting until my throat was raw up in the mountains, and An Ning was the only one who came. She saved my life! Otherwise, on a mountain that big, what if I had run into a brown bear or something? I would’ve been a goner."

As he spoke, Jiang Xia noticed An Ning tense up when he mentioned the brown bear.

He felt a secret thrill of delight but didn’t press the matter further.

An Ning shot Jiang Xia a semi-threatening glare and then switched tactics, turning to persuade Lin Cuihua herself.

"Mom, just accept it. Jiang Xia doesn’t like to feel indebted to people."

Lin Cuihua was in a bind and hadn’t yet made a decision when An Sancheng came home.

She finally had her pillar of support. An Sancheng asked about the situation, heard the same story, and it was hard to tell whether he believed it or not.

Regardless, the gifts Jiang Xia had brought were kept.

"Jiang Xia, stay and have a bite with us."

Lin Cuihua invited him to stay for a meal, but Jiang Xia naturally couldn’t accept. Using the excuse that his grandfather was at home, he politely said his goodbyes to the An Family and left.