Chapter 43: A Minor Incident by the Sea

Jiang Yang muttered to himself, "You wouldn't happen to mean paying off the debt with my own body, would you?"

Yang Xiaoran raised an eyebrow and said, "What? Are you seriously evaluating whether you're worth one hundred and forty-three thousand?"

Caught red-handed by her remark, Jiang Yang's old face flushed red. "I didn't say that."

"But that's exactly what you were thinking. How about this—I'll waive the three-thousand remainder for the sake of our friendship, and I won't take you either. As for the remaining one hundred and forty thousand..."

Yang Xiaoran suddenly pointed at a small crab crawling on the beach ahead and said, "Go catch crabs for me. One crab counts as ten thousand."

Jiang Yang was stunned. One crab counts for ten thousand towards the debt?

In the moonlight, he could see a few tiny crabs slowly crawling across the sand toward the ocean.

Realizing what was happening, he hurriedly rushed toward those crabs. As long as he caught fourteen of them, the debt would be completely cleared!

Being someone who exercised regularly, he was quite agile. Those crabs were only about the size of a thumb; once spotted, he simply scooped them up one by one with his bare hands.

The extras he temporarily stuffed into his pockets, knowing those crabs had nowhere to run.

Meanwhile, Yang Xiaoran followed right behind him, counting for him: "Keep it up, Jiang Yang! One, two, three, four..." as if she genuinely cared about these little crabs.

Before he knew it, Jiang Yang's crab-hunting had led him to where the sea waves washed over his ankles.

As a wave receded, another small crab was revealed. Jiang Yang's lips curved slightly. "Found you, buddy!"

Just as he was about to make a move on this fourteenth unlucky creature...

Suddenly, a sharp scream rang out from behind him: "Ouch! My foot!"

Jiang Yang started in shock. He snapped his head around to see Yang Xiaoran kneeling on the sand, her expression full of pain, clutching the sole of her left foot with one hand.

In the faint moonlight, Jiang Yang could see a wound on the sole of her foot, which was wrapped in stockings, and a thin stream of fresh blood slowly trickling down onto the sand.

Jiang Yang dropped the crabs in his hands, rushed to her side in a single bound, and crouched down to inspect. "How did you hurt your foot?"

Frowning, Yang Xiaoran said, "I... I was running after you and accidentally stepped on a broken seashell, and it cut my foot."

Just then, a wave rolled toward them, crashing over Yang Xiaoran and instantly soaking her completely.

The seawater soaking into the wound caused a wave of sharp pain, forcing an involuntary moan from her lips: "Ah—so painful—"

Jiang Yang hurriedly turned his back to her. "Get on. I'll carry you."

He felt a wet and warm sensation against his back as Yang Xiaoran climbed onto him.

He hooked his hands tightly around her thighs and exerted a slight force, feeling her resilient skin through the stockings, along with the warmth that the seawater hadn't managed to wash away.

"Ah—you... gentler, it hurts..." At the slightest movement, Yang Xiaoran whimpered painfully right beside Jiang Yang's ear.

Her soft groans, amplified by her magnetic voice, sent ripples through the heart of Jiang Yang, a healthy young man.

However, this was definitely not the time for wild thoughts. Jiang Yang steadied his mind and comforted her, "Hang in there, I'll take you to get that wound treated right away."

Carrying Yang Xiaoran on his back, he jogged off the beach, only to encounter an awkward problem.

Earlier, just for fun, they had buried their shoes in the sand, and now there was no way to find them.

Moreover, it was already ten o'clock at night, and the medical station on the beach had long since closed. This meant they either had to treat the wound themselves or rush to a nearby hospital.

Seeming to sense Jiang Yang's predicament, Yang Xiaoran said from behind him, "There's a first-aid kit in my car. Take me back to the car and treat it for me. Ah—so painful..."

Treating Dr. Yang's wound took precedence now, and he certainly couldn't spare the time to look for shoes. Jiang Yang had no choice but to go barefoot, carrying her drenched body all the way back to the parking lot.

Opening the car door, he placed Yang Xiaoran in the back seat and retrieved the first-aid kit from the trunk.

"How am I supposed to treat the wound?" Jiang Yang looked at the pile of supplies in the first-aid kit and decided it was best to ask Yang Xiaoran, since she was a doctor after all.

With a painful expression, Yang Xiaoran said, "First, help me tear open the stockings."

"Huh?" Jiang Yang involuntarily swallowed a lump in his throat. Her beautiful legs had flashed before his eyes multiple times, each instance triggering endless fantasies and making his breathing shallow.

And now, faced with her drenched in water, he was expected to do it with his own hands?

"Can't you... take them off yourself?" Jiang Yang felt this request was somewhat inappropriate.

However, lying on the seat with a frown, Yang Xiaoran said, "It hurts too much, I can't move by myself. Hurry up and treat my wound, or it might get infected. It hurts..." With that, she groaned again.

Steeling his heart, Jiang Yang realized there was no other way now that he had to treat her wound.

He grabbed her stockings with both hands and pulled hard. With a "rip" sound and another dainty moan from Yang Xiaoran, the cicada-wing-thin stockings were forcibly torn open, revealing her flawless, fair legs.

The sound seemed to possess a magical quality, bringing a sense of strange satisfaction. While secretly feeling a thrill, Jiang Yang mentally cursed himself for being a brute for having wandering thoughts at a time like this.

"Use iodine to clean the wound," Yang Xiaoran instructed.

Following her directions, Jiang Yang lifted her fair calf, dipped a cotton swab in iodine, and gently wiped it over the wound.

"Ugh... Mmm..." This time, Yang Xiaoran didn't moan, but instead bit her lip, emitting a faint, muffled grunt that sounded even more soul-stirring.

"Cleaned. What's next?"

"Next, help me apply some ointment, and then bandage it up."

Jiang Yang found the ointment. Fortunately, doctors always kept a fully stocked first-aid kit in their cars with all sorts of medicine inside.

During the process of applying the ointment, Yang Xiaoran let out another series of whimpers, even pulling her foot back involuntarily at times. Jiang Yang had no choice but to firmly grip her ankle to finish applying the ointment.

By the time he finished bandaging, he was covered in sweat. When he looked up at Yang Xiaoran, who had been whimpering for so long, he noticed a flush had somehow crept across her cheeks.

She was panting heavily, as if she had just survived a brush with death, and even her voice had grown weak. "I can't drive anymore, Jiang Yang. Drive me back."

Looking at the frail Dr. Yang, a pang of guilt stirred in Jiang Yang's heart. After all, he bore some responsibility for this.

If he hadn't owed her money, he wouldn't have been catching crabs; and if he hadn't been catching crabs with Dr. Yang following him, her foot wouldn't have been injured.

Since he had failed to do his job as a chivalrous protector, he had to take responsibility tonight and see her home safely no matter what.

"Alright, I'll drive you back right now." Jiang Yang agreed without hesitation. He climbed into the driver's seat and started the car barefoot.

Meanwhile, while he wasn't looking, the corners of Yang Xiaoran's mouth curled up slightly, revealing a sly and triumphant smile.