Turns Out I’m the Villain They’re Supposed to Redeem? [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 41

Suppressing the tightness in her chest with great effort, Li Xuzhi closed her eyes, her face already somewhat pale.

“Maybe it’s the recent cold weather; I might have caught a chill.”

She looked up and, seeing Huo Yuwan’s worried expression, forced a faint smile to reassure her.

“You go ahead and eat. I’ll go lie down for a while and I’ll be fine.”

With those words, before Huo Yuwan could say anything more, she stood up and left.

The moment she turned around, Li Xuzhi’s brow furrowed deeply, one hand pressed against her chest, but her steps quickened.

Hearing this, Huo Yuwan still couldn’t set her mind at ease. She watched Li Xuzhi’s retreating figure, then turned to fetch a flashlight from the cabinet.

“Then I’ll go to the clinic to get you some medicine…”

Clutching the flashlight, she hurriedly made to follow her outside.

But as soon as she stepped out, Li Xuzhi stopped her.

“No need, I brought medicine with me.”

Unable to suppress a low cough, Li Xuzhi didn’t turn to look at her.

“You need to finish reading the rest of that book tonight. I’ll check it tomorrow.”

Her hoarse voice drifted into Huo Yuwan’s ears along with the howling cold wind as she watched Li Xuzhi stride into her room without pause.

Only after the door closed did Huo Yuwan softly reply, “I understand. Rest well.”

The untouched meal was taken back to the kitchen. Huo Yuwan sat at the desk in her room, where the physics book she had been engrossed in just yesterday lay open. But today, she couldn’t focus on a single word.

Earlier, she had boiled a pot of hot water to bring to Li Xuzhi, wanting to ask if she felt better after taking the medicine. But after knocking on the door for a long time, she received no response.

Worried yet trying to comfort herself, Huo Yuwan thought that perhaps Li Xuzhi had fallen asleep after taking the medicine and that her cold might be gone by tomorrow morning.

In this era, rural folks rarely bought medicine for common ailments like colds or fevers. For one, the clinic was far away, making the trip inconvenient. For another, the cost of medicine and treatment was a significant burden for already impoverished families.

She remembered from the original storyline that Li Xuzhi often suffered from colds and coughs, especially in winter, when the coughing could last for days without stopping. But she had little money, and after the medicine she brought from home ran out, she simply endured it until winter passed.

Later, after marrying Sun Xuedong, their family was even poorer, making buying medicine an impossibility. Over time, Li Xuzhi’s winters became particularly difficult. In previous years, she was often scorned by Widow Sun for her persistent coughing, accused of feigning illness to avoid work.

Now, Huo Yuwan felt both anxious and remorseful. She knew Li Xuzhi was prone to colds and coughs in winter, yet she had forgotten due to her recent busyness.

Resolving to wake up early the next morning and go to the city to buy medicine, Huo Yuwan forced herself to concentrate and finally managed to read through the remaining content of the book carefully.

Late at night, she tossed and turned in bed.

Had Li Xuzhi gotten better after taking the medicine?

Was she still coughing?

Would she be thirsty in the middle of the night?

Would she be hungry since she hadn’t eaten dinner?

The more she thought about it, the more worried she became. She rolled out of bed, threw on a coat, and stepped outside.

The night was quiet, with only the relentless cold wind asserting its presence.

Clutching the blanket tightly, Li Xuzhi curled up on the bed, a layer of cold sweat already beading on her forehead.

Her chest felt increasingly tight and stifled. When she couldn’t suppress a low cough, she would tightly cover her mouth with the quilt to prevent any sound from escaping.

The walls in rural houses were thin. Huo Yuwan and another educated youth lived in the rooms on either side of hers, and Li Xuzhi didn’t want to disturb them.

Her brows furrowed tightly as she struggled to breathe, feeling utterly miserable.

The medicine she had brought from home was down to the last dose, and Li Xuzhi was reluctant to use it up so early in her illness.

Her fingertips trembled faintly from the strain, her breathing grew heavier, and the world before her eyes began to blur. Outside, she could hear the sound of a door being knocked on, followed by Huo Yuwan’s voice.

But her mind was too foggy to make out the words. The suffocating feeling in her chest grew stronger. She tried to get up and open the door, but her strength was fading fast. Losing control, she tumbled off the bed.

“Sister!”

Just before her head hit the floor, someone caught her.

“Medicine…”

Her voice was so weak that Huo Yuwan only saw her lips part slightly, without hearing a sound.

These were clearly not symptoms of a common cold.

“Where’s your medicine? Did you forget to take it?”

Panicked, Huo Yuwan lifted her back onto the bed and frantically searched through the drawers in the room.

Finally, she found a medicine bottle in the bedside table drawer. Catching a glimpse of the English name on it, Huo Yuwan pressed her lips together tightly and fed Li Xuzhi the two remaining pills inside.

It was asthma medication.

Realizing this from the label, Huo Yuwan’s face turned pale with dread.

Sitting behind Li Xuzhi and letting her lean against her, Huo Yuwan unbuttoned her shirt and gently rubbed her palm in soothing circles over Li Xuzhi’s chest, helping her calm her breathing.

After a long while, perhaps because the medicine had taken effect, Li Xuzhi’s breathing gradually steadied.

Huo Yuwan let out a silent sigh of relief.

After tucking the quilt back around Li Xuzhi, Huo Yuwan picked up the empty medicine bottle and quietly left the room.

The fox spirit was waiting by the door. Seeing Huo Yuwan’s grim expression, it asked hesitantly, “Is her cold that serious?”

Huo Yuwan closed the door behind her and sat on the doorstep, head bowed.

“It’s asthma.”

“But… the original plot clearly said…”

The fox spirit was bewildered, its voice unusually stammering.

Asthma was a difficult illness to cure, especially in this era of scarce medical resources. The mortality rate for severe attacks was terrifyingly high.

Yet, as the female lead of the story, there had been no mention in the original text of Li Xuzhi suffering from asthma.

Rubbing her hair in guilt and frustration, Huo Yuwan stared down at the medicine bottle in her hand, her voice low.

“The medicine is finished. I’ll head into the city soon. Please take care of her while I’m gone…”

Peeking at the English text on the bottle, the fox spirit shook its head, sounding uncertain.

“Your Grace, this is imported medicine. There’s no way the hospitals in the city would have it now.”

“Besides, this medicine only relieves the symptoms, it can’t cure the illness…”

Huo Yuwan closed her eyes painfully, took a deep breath, and pressed a hand to her forehead, thinking rapidly.

“Domestic medicine should still be available.”

“Go back to the clan and use magic to copy all the ancient texts related to pharmacology.”

Guessing Huo Yuwan’s plan, the fox spirit sighed. “Alright, I’ll go right away.”

A flash of white light passed, and the previously energetic little white dog looked around in confusion before trotting over to the corner dog bed and settling in to sleep contentedly.

Watching the puppy, Huo Yuwan rose from the ground and returned to Li Xuzhi’s room.

Li Xuzhi was sleeping restlessly, her face pale and devoid of color.

Huo Yuwan sat on the small stool by the bed, tucking in the corners of the quilt. Remembering something, she reached under the covers and felt Li Xuzhi’s hand, it was icy cold.

Feeling distressed and heartbroken, Huo Yuwan found the hot water bottles at home, filled them with hot water, placed one at the foot of the bed, and the others beside Li Xuzhi’s hands.

Leaning over the edge of the bed, she slipped one hand under the covers to hold Li Xuzhi’s palm, silently watching her sleeping face.

…

Gradually, her body grew warmer, her breathing steadied, and the heaviness in her chest began to fade.

Li Xuzhi slowly opened her eyes. As she tried to sit up, she noticed something amiss the moment the quilt slipped aside.

Her clothes were unfastened, revealing her undergarments.

Pausing for a moment, she raised her hand to button her clothes when she noticed Huo Yuwan sleeping with her head tilted against the bedside.

Under the quilt, one of her hands was held in Huo Yuwan’s palm, warm and soft.

Adjusting the coat draped over Huo Yuwan’s shoulders and covering her with a corner of the quilt, Li Xuzhi lay back down quietly.

She didn’t pull her hand away.

Outside, the sky was still dark. She had intended to wait for Huo Yuwan to wake up but gradually drifted back to sleep, overcome by drowsiness.

When she woke again, daylight had broken, and Huo Yuwan was no longer in the room.

She instinctively sat up just as the door opened.

“You’re awake? Come have breakfast. I made wontons, they’re especially delicious.”

Huo Yuwan’s gaze was warm and smiling as she set a bowl down on the table. When she turned, Li Xuzhi noticed her slightly disheveled hair.

Holding the quilt in front of her, Li Xuzhi fastened her clothes. Her complexion had returned to a healthy flush as she said softly, “Last night… thank you.”

“It’s no trouble. Just don’t hide it from me next time.”

Taking a bottle of medicine, she had bought at a city hospital from her pocket, Huo Yuwan placed it gently in Li Xuzhi’s palm with a warm smile.

“I couldn’t find the exact same bottle as yours, but the doctor said this is the latest medication. The key ingredients are the same as in your bottle, and it can effectively relieve asthma symptoms.”

Her eyelashes fluttering slightly, Li Xuzhi stared at the medicine bottle in her hand, her lowered gaze catching sight of the mud-stained shoes and trouser cuffs on Huo Yuwan.

Getting out of bed, she opened a drawer in the table, took out the money tucked between the pages of a book, and handed it to Huo Yuwan.

Grasping Huo Yuwan’s hand as she tried to refuse, Li Xuzhi lowered her eyes, avoiding Huo Yuwan’s gaze.

“I know this money isn’t enough, but I can’t accept it so easily. I’ll pay the rest later… Just take it for now.”

Uncertain if she would ever have the chance to return to the city, and noticing Huo Yuwan’s reddened, frozen fingertips, Li Xuzhi felt a pang in her heart.

She knew that buying this medicine required more than just money, it took connections. Huo Yuwan had risen before dawn to go to the city, and Li Xuzhi had no idea how many people she had sought help from to obtain this bottle of medicine.

Smiling as if she had guessed her thoughts, Huo Yuwan gently brushed her fingertips against Li Xuzhi’s.

“Don’t overthink it. Someone as clever as me naturally has connections in the city.”

“Didn’t I mention before the older couple who often buy herbs from me? They happen to have relatives working at the hospital, so it wasn’t hard to get this medicine.”

Pulling Li Xuzhi to sit at the table, Huo Yuwan pushed a bowl of steaming wontons toward her.

“You didn’t eat last night, so you must be starving by now. I bought freshly wrapped raw wontons in the city and boiled them myself. They have tiny shrimp inside, really fresh. Give them a try.”

“Have you eaten already?” Li Xuzhi looked up and asked.

“Of course! Otherwise, how would I know there are shrimp in them?”

Resting her elbow on the table and cupping her chin, Huo Yuwan nodded playfully and blinked at her, looking both mischievous and adorable.

With a soft chuckle, Li Xuzhi picked up her spoon and ate one of the wontons.

Watching her finish all dozen or so wontons in the bowl, Huo Yuwan nodded in satisfaction. “If you like them, we can go into the city together when the weather warms up. The ones at the shop taste even better.”

She had slightly overcooked the wontons, and several had split open, filling and wrapper separating. It was a wonder Li Xuzhi hadn’t minded and finished them all.

Picking up the empty bowl, Huo Yuwan added thoughtfully, “I also bought some masks from the hospital. I’ll bring them over later. Wearing them when you go out should help a bit.”

As she turned to leave, Li Xuzhi called out, “Wait.”

She stood and walked over to Huo Yuwan.

Gently and patiently smoothing Huo Yuwan’s stray strands of hair, Li Xuzhi met her clear, bright eyes, her voice softer than ever before.

“Next time, there’s no need to rush like this.”

“O-oh, I understand.”

Two blushes spread rapidly across Huo Yuwan’s cheeks, her heart thumping wildly once again.