Quick Transmigration: Underdog Turns out to be Untouchable

Chapter 1090: Chapter 1000: That Era 10

Wen Shuangshuang didn’t originally want to meddle in others’ affairs. With fish and rabbit in her hands, she just wanted to quickly take them back home to make a good meal.

She assumed it was a child who had gone swimming in the river again and got caught by the parents, which was a common occurrence. The village children were wild, and with the weather particularly warm these days, it wasn’t the first time Wen Shuangshuang had seen children swimming in the river.

Wen Shuangshuang was not in the habit of watching kids get punished. Her mind was preoccupied with the thought of going home to prepare the rabbit and then stew it.

Just as Wen Shuangshuang was thinking about heading straight home, she saw someone running out from the crowd, it was Aunt Qi. Her direction was towards home, but her route happened to pass right by Wen Shuangshuang.

Seeing Aunt Qi in such a hurry, Wen Shuangshuang couldn’t help but stop her and ask, ”Aunt Qi, what’s the rush?”

”Going home to get a rope. Isn’t it Dang Dalong, that troublesome boy, who went swimming in the river for no reason and ended up drowning? We still haven’t found him yet.

I’m planning to go home for a rope to tie to one’s waist to fish him out. Just relying on those who can swim isn’t working; they haven’t seen a trace of him till now.”

Aunt Qi briefly explained to Wen Shuangshuang with a few words, then hurriedly ran off. She was still anxious to fetch the rope.

Initially thinking it was nothing serious, Wen Shuangshuang naturally didn’t plan to interfere. But now, as it was a life-or-death situation, with her excellent swimming skills, she couldn’t stand by.

She grabbed Aunt Qi, who had barely run a few steps back, shoved the rabbit and fish into her hands, and managed a quick instruction, ”Please take these back for me, I’ll go help with the rescue,” then dashed off hurriedly.

Wen Shuangshuang moved quickly, and before the words could finish trailing off here, she had already run a long way towards the riverbank.

When Wen Shuangshuang reached the riverbank, squeezed through the crowd, and approached the water, she saw several skilled swimmers from the village diving and surfacing repeatedly, continually trying to dive down.

Seeing their actions, Wen Shuangshuang felt a heavy weight in her heart. Obviously, the drowned person had likely sunk to the bottom, and in such situations, there’s usually little hope. Most of those retrieved under such circumstances are lifeless bodies.

The people continued attempting to dive down for rescue; their main purpose now was to do their best and leave the rest to fate, at least trying to retrieve the person’s body.

Wen Shuangshuang didn’t overthink it, immediately taking off her jacket and shoes, then diving into the water like a fish, quickly swimming to the spot where the others were continually diving.

When Wen Shuangshuang entered the water, not many noticed her; those who could swim, even the capable educated youths were all in the water.

The people of this era were simply this kind-hearted. To them, it was a conviction to enter the water for rescue during an emergency, without various hesitations or worries, or the fear of being a bleeding, tearful hero. They dared to help the elderly who stumbled without hesitation or cold indifference.

Once in the water, Wen Shuangshuang took a deep breath and dove beneath. Because of the many people continually diving around, the silt at the bottom was stirred up, making the water quite murky and adding difficulty to the search.

Besides being good at swimming, Wen Shuangshuang was also proficient at holding her breath and diving. Growing up by the seaside, she honed her swimming skills in the sea, making her highly skilled in swimming and holding her breath to dive.

Now, this skill proved immensely useful in the rescue. Once underwater, Wen Shuangshuang quickly swam a lap in the river. She took her time diving, being very thorough in her search.

When she felt short of breath, she shot up to the surface to catch a breath, and then continued diving.

The river was teeming with life, and the aquatic plants grew particularly lush. Folks often got lost in these tall aquatic grasses, which was why they hadn’t been able to find the person after several dives.

While rescuing, they also had to be careful not to get entangled in the aquatic plants, lest they end up needing rescue themselves, with unforeseen consequences if others failed to notice.

Adults in the village prohibited kids from playing by the riverside for fear they’d get entangled by aquatic plants while swimming and drown. Indeed, village children had swam, got entangled, and drowned.

Not only in Red Hero Village but also in nearby villages along the river, every year, children drowned here. It’s not just children, even adults have perished in these waters.

Whenever a child dared to play at the river, they were surely caught and heavily scolded by worried adults. But children are forgetful and playful, and despite being punished, some sneak back to play here.

Wen Shuangshuang swam over clusters of aquatic grass, carefully observing down into them, searching meticulously wherever someone might be hidden.

The aquatic grass swayed ceaselessly with the water current, and if not careful, it could silently ensnare individuals, posing extreme danger especially if there were no others around.

Feeling short of breath again, Wen Shuangshuang resurfaced for air, and then commenced another dive; it was due to her enhanced physical condition that she could sustain such intense, continuous diving without exhaustion.

During this dive, Wen Shuangshuang finally made some semblance of progress, noticing a large cluster of aquatic grass shaking unusually. She immediately thought there might be someone tangled inside.

She swiftly swam over, parted the grass, and indeed saw a man entangled in the grass, struggling desperately. His face was a blue and purple hue, appearing semi-conscious, barely remembering to hold his breath and avoid gulping water.

Wen Shuangshuang had seen this man earlier above water; he was among those who came to rescue but was ironically ensnared by the aquatic plants.

Instead of approaching him from the front, Wen Shuangshuang circled to his back, approached, restrained the man, and then quickly tore away the aquatic plants encircling his legs, towing him swiftly upwards.

A drowning person, when grabbing something, will cling tenaciously with all limbs, in which case the rescuer could be pulled under and drowned as well.

As Wen Shuangshuang hauled the man upward, he couldn’t hold his breath anymore and involuntarily gulped some water. Fortunately, her speed was quick enough, and before any danger befell the man, she had already brought him to the surface.

She pushed the man towards the riverbank, where others standing ashore reached out with steady hands to pull him up, assisting in water expulsion. Seeing others aiding in his resuscitation, Wen Shuangshuang turned back to continue down-diving for the rescue.

A precedent had been set with a rescuer encountering danger; thus, subsequent rescuers became cautious, worried about facing similar peril, consequently slowing the rescue efforts.