Chapter 20 - Chapter 20: 20 Choices

Chapter 20: 20 Choices Editor: Atlas Studios The old woman was laying sideways on the ground with wild hair obscuring her face. Her body was covered in dirt, and she was clad in a cloth dress. Gu Jiang’s first thought was that she must be a villager who had just returned from the fields and collapsed at Gu’s doorstep for some unknown reason. The loud thud earlier was the sound of her head hitting the door. There was a cut on her forehead which was bleeding a little. In her previous life, Gu Jiang had encountered people faking injury for compensation, but never someone staking their life on it. It appeared that the woman had truly fainted. Gu Jiang squatted down to see which family the woman was from so she could send her home. However, as soon as Gu Jiang turned the woman’s body to lie her flat, she spotted something strange. There were symmetrical pale skin lesions and light red spots on the woman’s face, with blurry borders between the spots. Similar marks were also on her hands. Gu Jiang’s eyebrows furrowed slightly. This was clearly… “Sister! We’re back!” Just at that moment, Gu Xiaoshun, carrying an old book bag, ran over to Gu Jiao like a bolt of lightning. Gu Jiao turned to look at him, and her gaze turned sharp: “Do not come over!” Gu Jiao had never spoken to Gu Xiaoshun in such a harsh tone before; Xiaoshun was stunned. “Sister…” He took a couple steps forward. “I said, do not come over!” Gu Jiao’s tone grew even colder. This time, Gu Xiaoshun didn’t dare to move. He just stood there, dumbfounded, about a dozen steps away from Gu Jiao. He saw Gu Jiao, and naturally, he also saw the old woman laying at Gu Jiao’s doorstep. His instincts told him that this issue was somehow related to this old woman. He asked, “Sister, who is she?” Gu Jiao looked at him seriously: “I do not know. You go back to our house first.” She had initially planned to call Xiaoshun over for dinner, but now with this incident, the security of their house was no longer guaranteed. She could not put Xiaoshun at risk. Xiaoshun was not happy with this, but since his sister had said so, he decided to go home first. “Well, brother-in-law, I’ll leave first.” He turned around and told Xiao Liulang, who was standing behind him. Gu Jiao was slightly taken aback. Xiao Liulang had returned as well? Not just Xiao Liulang, Fen Lin had also come over. Fen Lin had been helping a classmate revise their schoolwork and, as thanks, the classmate had sent him a basket of pomelos. Fen Lin directly gave half of them to Xiao Liulang. Worried that Xiao Liulang could not carry it, he accompanied him back to the village. As for Xiaoshun, he always picked on Xiao Liulang. Fen Lin was somewhat worried about Xiao Liulang heading back with him, suspecting that Xiaoshun may take advantage of Liulang. Both Xiao Liulang and Fen Lin noticed the old woman on the ground. “You two had better not approach either.” Gu Jiao told them. Fen Lin narrowed his eyes at her: “Is she dead? Did you kill her?” “Hey! What are you blabbering about!” Xiaoshun couldn’t stand Fen Lin constantly putting his sister down. Fen Lin huffed, “Did I say anything wrong? That old woman must have had an accident, why else wouldn’t they let us approach?” Xiao Liulang’s expression was cool as he walked over. “You… do not come over.” Gu Jiao warned him. But Xiao Liulang came over anyway. He had noticed something was wrong from afar and wanted to take a closer look to confirm his suspicions. Seeing Xiao Liulang approach, Fen Lin hurriedly followed him as well. “Oi! Why are you all heading over! Sister, I … I…” Xiaoshun was so worried that he scratched his head in exasperation. Fen Lin came over to Xiao Liulang’s side, where he got a better look at the old woman’s face. A bad feeling welled up within him: “Xiao Brother, this is…” “Leprosy,” Xiao Liulang said, his brows creased. Fen Lin stumbled in shock, almost falling! “This…this…the old woman has leprosy…” Fen Lin stammered, startled. Everyone knows that leprosy is one of the most terrifying infectious diseases. If someone in a village gets it, the entire village will be infected and the disease is incurable; once you contract it, you can only wait for death. In the last dynasty there was a tragedy where tens of thousands of people died because leprosy was not taken seriously. The first thing the founding emperor of this dynasty did after ascending the throne was to establish Mafeng Mountain, where all leprosy patients were sent to be managed. “Did you touch her?” Xiao Liulang asked Gu Jiao, his tone calm. Gu Jiao nodded. However, she had only made contact once, and her skin was not broken—there was a small chance that she was infected. But others might not think so. If it were known that Gu Jiao had contact with a leper, she would certainly be sent to Mafeng Mountain with the patient. And those who are sent to Mafeng Mountain can never leave. Fen Lin, scared out of his wits, pulled Xiao Liulang aside: “You heard her just now. She touched that leprosy patient. There’s a high chance that she’s infected. She has to be sent away immediately! Otherwise, your entire village will be infected!” Xiao Liulang’s brows furrowed. Fen Lin stamped his foot: “Oi, Xiao Brother, what are you hesitating for? Haven’t you always wanted to get rid of that wicked wife of yours? She contacted the leprosy patient herself; there’s a high chance that she’s infected. According to the national law, she has to be sent to Mafeng Mountain. This is a legitimate opportunity to get rid of her!” Fen Lin had thought this through: Xiao Liulang is an educated man and he wouldn’t want to tarnish his reputation by abandoning his wife and child. But now, because of this situation, he has a golden opportunity: he can maintain his reputation while getting rid of his wicked wife! “No one will be sent to Mafeng Mountain,” Xiao Liulang said calmly. Fen Lin was taken aback. Xiao Liulang, leaning on his crutch, walked up to Gu Jiao: “Get a dry cloth.” Without asking questions, Gu Jiao went into the house and brought out a clean cloth. Xiao Liulang accepted the cloth from her, squatted down in front of the old woman, and wrapped the cloth around her face, covering her mouth and nose. He then said, “Carry her inside.” “Okay,” Gu Jiao replied, nodding. “Oi, Xiao Brother!” Fen Lin tried to prevent him. At this moment, Xiaoshun had a good idea of what was going on. The old woman was a leprosy patient from god-knows-where, and his sister had kept him away for fear of contagion. However, would he, Xiaoshun, be someone who’d abandon his sister in time of need? Xiaoshun ran over to help his sister and brother-in-law carry the old woman into the backyard. Fen Lin stomped his foot in agitation. You’re all crazy! Then, he gritted his teeth and braved the risk of infection to follow them inside.