Chapter 103 li was 8:00AM the next day when Veronica regained consciousness. Besides Melissa, Maithew was also in the room; the two ha d kept watch over her the entire night.
Veronica came round and opened her eyes, only to feel a little weak all over.
Seeing that she had regained consciousness, Melissa cried out, âVeronica! Youâre awake at last!â
Matthew immediately stood up, walked over, and put a hand on Veronicaâs forehead. Seeing that her fever had gone down, he asked, âHow are you feeling?â
âHow did I get back here?â Veronica asked subconsciously, before raising her wounded hand as her wrist hurt.
âYou didnât come back even by midnight, so Matthew went searching for you with his men.â Melissa sat next to Veronica, her eye s red with hurt. âLuckily, youâre alright. Otherwise, Iâd feel very sorry toward you.â
Born in a wealthy and distinguished family, Melissa was usually arrogant and domineering. However, she was crazy about Matthew, and Veronica, who was on friendly terms with him, could help her date him, so she liked Veronica very muc h as well. Despite her domineering disposition, beneath that flamboyant exterior, she was a kind-hearted person.
When Veronica recalled the masked man yesterday, her eyes darkened. âDid he bring me back?â
âWas there anything wrong?â Matthew sensed that something was amiss. He asked, âWho treated your wound?â
âMe. I did it myself,â Veronica replied.
Matthew didnât ask any further questions. He always brought a dagger with him when he went up the mountain, so he assumed t hat Veronica had done the same while going up the mountain last night. It was just that she collapsed near the steep mountain slope, so he thought she might have dropped her dagger down the mountain by accident.
âGlad to hear that youâre alright.â Matthewâs heart was finally put at rest when he saw that Veronica was fine. He said, âJust rest well for the next few days. You donât have to take part in the rest of the work.â
âOh, okay.â Having lost quite an amount of blood, Veronica felt somewhat weak, and she didnât feel like moving either.
The village chief made a chicken stew to nourish Veronicaâs health. In the afternoon, the warmhearted villagers came to visit her, bringing things like eggs, fish, chickens, ducks, and geese with them. After all, these were the only things people had in rural are as.
Deeply moved by the villagersâ simplicity and enthusiasm, Veronica felt very glad. She rested for two days, during which time Melissa followed her around and attended to her more eagerly than before, which she enjoyed very much.
That day, when she was fishing for crayfish by the pond near the doorway, she chanced upon the masked man again. Seeing the masked man walking past the other side of the pond with his stick, she yelled, âHey, you! Stop right there!â Laying aside the stick she was using to fish for crayfish, she stood up and trotted to the other side of the pond. Then, she walked up to the masked man and questioned, âWhy did you leave me on the mountain that day? I saved you!â She was really pissed off. To t hink that my kindness was reciprocated with ingratitude! Just what f*cking kind of a person is he?
Supporting himself with his stick, the masked man stooped without looking at Veronica. He merely rolled up his sleeve and pointed at the bruises and grazes on his arm. âIâI fell down the slope while hurrying down the mountain to get somebody to save you that day.â
Veronica looked at the bruises on the masked manâs right arm. Then, seeing him rolling up his left sleeve to reveal the bruises on his left arm, she decided to believe his story. âAlright. I thought you had ungratefully run away.â She finally cast aside the displea sure that had been building up inside her over the past few days. Then, she said to the man, âLetâs go and fish for some crayfish.
Weâre gonna have spicy crayfish this evening.â
From what the villagers had told her about the masked manâs family, Veronica learned that he was less than 30 years old. Since he was still young, he was supposed to be inclined to have fun, so she thought of doing some crayfish fishing with him and havin g spicy crayfish for dinner.
With Veronicaâs injured arm, she couldnât do heavy work. On the other hand, Melissa was a wealthy heiress who only came to Al meida for the sake of formality, so there was no way she could do any work. With plenty of free time on their hands and nothing e lse to do, the two passed the time fishing for crayfish by the pond. After all, life was dull without the internet or TV.
âNo, Iâll pass,â the masked man refused right away.
However, Veronica was somewhat moved when she saw that he had tumbled down the mountain slope in order to save her that day. She said peremptorily, âAw, come on letâs go! Iâm not good at crayfish fishing, so I only managed to catch less than half a bu cketful of them after a whole afternoon. Many hands make light work, no?â
Crayfish was a popular hotâ
selling food item in the city. In the mountains, however, the simple villagers mainly raised crops and worked in fields, so they wer enât interested in crayfish at all. Because of that, there was an overabundance of crayfish in the pond near the doorway and in th e village fields, making it very easy for them to fish for crayfish.
Seeing that Melissa and Veronica were having a great time, the masked man fished for crayfish by the pond without saying a wor d.
After Veronica lost consciousness that evening, he sat down beside her with the dagger in his hand already aimed at her neck. H owever, recalling how the lady had gotten poisoned in order to save him, he put his dagger away and went down the mountain in the end. Oneâs life or death was predestined, so she could only rely on her luck. Alas, she survived!
In the evening, the masked man left before Matthew came. Veronica repeatedly pleaded with him to stay, but to no avail.
After Matthew came back with Quincy and the few others, they began prepping the crayfish and peeling garlic to make crayfish with garlic. Cooked using the earthen stove in the rural village, th e crayfish tasted extraordinarily toothsome and delicious.
After dinner, Veronica, who felt completely stuffed, took a stroll in the village, while Matthew and Melissa followed her closely.
A few more days later, a construction team of about 30 people and a team in charge of installing the signal tower arrived from the The construction team was sent here by the Bloomstead Public Welfare Foundation to select a site for the construction of a school that the foundation had raised money to build. On the other hand, the team in charge of installing t line telephones, televisions, and cell phones for the villagers.
Unfortunately, the weather wasnât cooperating. Just as the construction team was about to start construction for the school, a hea The downpour hadnât stopped since the afternoon. Although Dawnpol Village stood on slightly higher terrain, it was located at the Standing at the villageâs entrance, Veronica and Matthew watched as the river swelled near the villageâs entrance. At the sight of t was the farmers in the villages who helped maintain the school building. The school was a simple tileâ
roofed building, and its roof leaked everywhere whenever it rained, making the kids unable to study with peace of mind. .
âThings will get better when the new school building is completed,â Matthew replied.
Veronica suggested, âLetâs go to the school to take a look. Weâve donated lots of books to the school these days, so letâs not let the rain we âOkay.â Murmuring a reply, Matthew turned around to head for the school with Veronica.
âGive me a minute. Iâm going back to get something,â Veronica said to him before going to the village chiefâs home, where she cur After waiting for a while, Matthew saw Veronica coming back with her backpack. The more time he spent with her, the more he fel many remarkable traits about her that were drawing him to her. âThis is for you.â He walked over to her side and handed her some Veronica couldnât see what was in Matthewâs hand since she was merely holding it. She asked, âDonât tell me itâs raspberries agai