CHAPTER 132: 132: XIAO QINGYAO (VI)_1

So, there she was, with an ugly wooden basket on her back, squatting on the ground, digging up an herb, when suddenly a hoarse voice carried by the wind floated over.

"Is anyone there, help me—" The voice was so feeble it hardly seemed possible, breathless and barely louder than that of a mosquito.

Dong Huiying initially didn’t pay much attention, but the calls were incessant.

"Is anyone there, save me—" This time, she heard the cry for help, so she hurriedly picked up the ugly little wooden basket and followed the voice, only to see a large pit, one dug out by hunters, deep and wide, probably two or three meters across, meant for trapping large game like wild boars.

As she peered into the pit, "Oh, isn’t that Doctor Xiao?" she said with a smile, spotting Doctor Xiao sitting disheveled at the bottom, his complexion pale, his basket smashed to pieces, herbs scattered all over, his right foot caught in an iron trap, bleeding profusely, staining the bottom of his pants, and the blood on the upper part of his pant leg already dry. His left arm was hanging weakly by his side.

"Help—" Doctor Xiao was about to call for help again, but as soon as he saw Dong Huiying, he immediately closed his mouth.

It was clear that he had attempted some emergency measures, and Dong Huiying noticed the traces around the edge of the pit, guessing that Doctor Xiao must have fallen in while panicking.

His arm was injured, and his foot was trapped; the pit was deep, and the mountain was rarely visited by people, truly a situation where he could call to heaven and earth without receiving an answer.

Doctor Xiao shuddered as he looked at her.

And he didn’t dare to call for help anymore.

Two days ago, he had hurried off and, without paying attention, fell into the pit.

He had broken an arm, injured his foot, and been sitting at the bottom of the pit for two days and two nights without a drop of water. If it went on like this, he would either starve, die of thirst, or succumb to the infection from the wound on his foot.

He hoped someone would come to rescue him, but he knew the chances were slim in these wild, remote woods.

But after waiting for two days, hoping for two days, he had actually managed to bring Da Bao to his side.

This was Da Bao, after all!

Dong Huiying’s expression was somewhat mocking, "Do you need help?"

He bit his cheek, and finally, with a resigned nod, agreed.

Dong Huiying twisted a rope, told him to tie it around his waist, then used her small arms to pull steadily, hauling him up from the pit.

Doctor Xiao turned back to look at the scattered herbs at the bottom of the pit, feeling an urge to cry without tears.

He had been busy in the mountains for more than a month, all for what? To gather herbs, but now it was all ruined.

He was thoroughly despondent.

Doctor Xiao hesitated, then looked at Dong Huiying, "Miss Dong, could you possibly help me with one more thing?"

Dong Huiying raised an eyebrow, then secured the rope to a tree, and slid back down, picking up the tattered basket and collecting the scattered herbs, rolling up all the messy things before climbing back up.

"You’ve been badly hurt," she commented, touching Doctor Xiao’s broken arm bone. Dislocation could have been better, but a severe fall was a different matter, and no wonder he had previously seemed resigned to his fate at the bottom of the pit.

Doctors cannot heal themselves, not just because of a mental block, but also because... for example, a surgeon can calmly perform operations on other patients, but if he himself is injured, he must rely on others for help. Just like Doctor Xiao’s current predicament, with one arm broken, he only had one hand left to use, and the iron trap clamped deep on his leg, firmly fixed into his flesh, he couldn’t pry it open with just one hand.