Chapter 90: Chapter 90: He Will Definitely Go Blind in Less Than 2 Years
Shen Ningning jumped in fright, immediately rushing out on the Black Wolf King.
The mad scholar had fallen into a dry well behind the village.
Before the drought, the well had been filled with gushing spring water.
Now, it was empty, and the earth at the bottom had dried out too.
"Teacher! Mad scholar!?" Shen Ningning cried out anxiously, leaning over the edge of the well.
It was pitch-black inside the well, and she couldn’t see a thing.
Shen Ningning called for a long time before a faint reply came from below. "I’m here..."
The other villagers rushed over. Chen Ye, being agile, tied a rope around his waist and immediately rappelled down to rescue him.
Uncle Liu and the other brawny men pulled on the rope from above.
It took a great deal of effort, but they finally managed to pull the mad scholar out.
He had a long gash on his forehead, and his face was pale.
The moment he saw Shen Ningning, he asked, "Are you alright?"
Aunt Liu sighed in exasperation. "This mad scholar really is mad. He’s the one who fell into a well, yet he’s asking if someone else is alright?"
Granny Chen chimed in, "Exactly. What was he even doing out here?"
Ever since the well dried up, nobody used this path to the back mountain anymore.
The old village chief waved his hand, giving orders. "Quick, carry him back to his house!"
"Take him to my cottage!" Shen Ningning quickly interjected.
The mad scholar’s home had barely enough room to stand, let alone for someone to lie down and rest.
Shen Ningning was afraid that if someone stepped on his books, he would be heartbroken when he came to.
So, she had the villagers carry the mad scholar to her cottage and lay him on her new bed.
Granny Chen brought a cloth soaked in hot water from her house, and a deft-handed villager gently wiped the blood from his forehead.
The old village chief had suffered a head injury before and still had some wound powder at home, so he had his son bring it over for the mad scholar.
During all this, Shen Ningning wanted to help, but the mad scholar just kept looking at her weakly, repeatedly asking, "Are you alright?"
She couldn’t get away, so she had no choice but to sit by the bed and say in confusion, "Mad scholar, why do you keep asking about me? You’re the one who fell in the well."
Aunt Liu looked at him. "The mad scholar is incredibly lucky. To fall down such a deep well and come out of it alright."
She pulled her son over. "How did you find him?"
Liu Xiaohu said, "I heard someone over there crying out in pain, so I went to take a look."
Shen Ningning looked at him, her dark, clear eyes filled with doubt. "That’s not right. I was just looking down from the top. The bottom of the well is pitch-black; you couldn’t possibly see who fell in."
"How did you know it was the mad scholar for sure? He was injured, and his voice was so faint."
Liu Xiaohu looked a little guilty. "I..."
Aunt Liu stared at her son’s face, then grabbed him. "You little rascal, why are you hemming and hawing? How did you really find him? Spit it out!"
Liu Xiaohu flinched in fear, his lower lip trembling as if he was about to cry.
"Yes-yesterday, I was playing at the edge of the village, and he came over with a book to ask me why Little Wolf Sister hadn’t been around. I... I told him that Little Wolf Sister got lost in the mountains."
"He didn’t even wait for me to finish talking before he turned and left. I really didn’t mean to lie! Then today, when I went to play at the edge of the village again, I saw a book lying by the well and guessed that he’d fallen in."
"I was scared he might have died from the fall, so I didn’t dare to tell the whole truth."
At that, everything clicked into place for Shen Ningning.
’No wonder the mad scholar kept asking if I was alright when he saw me.’
’He was asking if I got hurt coming back from the mountains!’
She had thought he was so immersed in his ocean of books that not even the apocalypse could distract him from his reading.
But he had noticed her absence from the village, and upon hearing she was lost in the mountains, he had tried to take the path behind the village to go find her.
Aunt Liu was furious.
She smacked Liu Xiaohu on the back of his head.
"You little brat! You’ve been learning from that Deng Fugui, have you? You’ve even learned how to lie!"
The old village chief’s expression instantly soured.
Uncle Liu tugged on his wife’s arm. "That’s enough! Don’t bring up unrelated matters."
Shen Ningning tried to smooth things over. "Fortunately, Little Tiger came to tell us, and now he’s been rescued."
"Brother Chen, could I trouble you to make a trip into town? Please bring the pharmacy manager back to check on the mad scholar’s injuries."
Chen Ye nodded. "Alright."
He turned and left at once.
The other villagers also took this as their cue to leave.
Aunt Liu pinched Liu Xiaohu’s ear, forcing him to apologize to the mad scholar before dragging him home, muttering all the way.
After they had all gone.
Shen Ningning sat by the bed and spoke to the mad scholar. "Teacher, I’m fine. I did get stuck in the mountains, but I came back a while ago."
Grandma Qin had been worried about her, so she’d made the little girl rest at home for several days.
Since today was her first day back in the village, it was no wonder Liu Xiaohu hadn’t known.
The mad scholar seemed much more relieved to hear this.
He nodded weakly, his voice hoarse. "That’s good... that’s good..."
"Since you’re alright, you must continue to study hard. You’re a promising student..."
After he said this, the little girl was left momentarily speechless.
’Even at a time like this, the mad scholar was still thinking about my studies!’
"Mad scholar, you need to focus on getting better. Once you’ve recovered, I still have many questions to ask you!"
With that, she went into the inner room and quietly poured a bowl of Spiritual Spring Water.
"Here, have some water," the little girl said.
As she passed the bowl to him, the mad scholar slowly sat up.
However, when he reached out to take it, Shen Ningning watched, wide-eyed, as his hand reached out to the wrong side.
It was as if he couldn’t see where the bowl was. He fumbled blindly twice before his hand finally found it on the third try.
The little girl froze.
She looked closely at the mad scholar’s eyes.
He was naturally handsome, but far too thin. Though only in his twenties, he had the world-weary air of a man approaching thirty, with a faint stubble darkening his chin.
But his eyes, which should have been pitch-black, now looked as if they were veiled in mist.
They appeared hazy and grey, seemingly unfocused.
Shen Ningning hesitated. "Mad scholar... can you not see clearly?"
The mad scholar finished the bowl of water before shaking his head. "It’s an old problem. Nothing to worry about."
「About fifteen minutes later.」
Chen Ye returned with Manager Fang from the pharmacy.
"Miss Shen," the pharmacy manager greeted her respectfully.
"Grandpa Shopkeeper, can you please take a look and see how serious the teacher’s injuries are?"
The pharmacy manager stepped forward to check his pulse, pressed the mad scholar’s joints, and performed a traditional examination.
After a few questions, he stroked his beard and smiled faintly. "They are all superficial wounds. His wrist was slightly dislocated, but I’ve already set it back in place for him."
Shen Ningning nodded. "Then could you please look at his eyes?"
The pharmacy manager proceeded to hold open the mad scholar’s eyelids, instructing him to move his eyes for the examination.
Afterward, he took the man’s pulse again.
Shen Ningning watched as the pharmacy manager’s expression grew increasingly grave.
He asked the mad scholar, "Sir, were your eyes burned by a fire at some point in the past, without timely treatment?"
The mad scholar’s expression was calm, his tone even more detached. "I was. Many years ago."
After saying this, he pulled his hand back, not allowing the pharmacy manager to examine him further.
He added, "This is an old problem. It doesn’t need to be treated."
The pharmacy manager glanced at Shen Ningning.
The little girl then stood up, told the mad scholar to lie down and rest, and instructed Chen Ye to pour him some more water.
Then, she followed the pharmacy manager out into the courtyard.
"Miss Shen, I’ll be direct. The condition of your friend’s eyes is not good. If he doesn’t start applying medicine, he will certainly be blind within two years."
