Xiao Mei-jie was like a gentle mother, holding me tightly in her arms, waiting until my body was completely dry and warm before letting go.

She said it was thanks to my good swimming skills that I didn't drown after drifting in the water unconscious all night.

I said I grew up by the Wujiang River, and my ancestors had made a living in the water for generations.

She asked if my body hurt.

I nodded, saying my chest and arms hurt. She said I probably had a fracture and helped me to the hospital.

At the hospital, they took some X-rays. The doctor said my ribs and forearm were fractured. He put me in a cast and told me to rest at home. I glanced at the medical bill, which totaled 857 yuan and 20 fen.

Xiao Mei-jie paid for it. I told her I would pay her back when I got my salary this month.

Xiao Mei-jie laughed when she heard that. She rubbed my head and said, "Silly child, what salary? After making such a big scene at the restaurant, that job is long gone."

The restaurant owner was afraid of trouble and fired both of us that day.

I was indignant and felt wronged. I wanted to go back and argue with the boss, but the pain was so severe that I just wanted to find a place to lie down.

Xiao Mei-jie took me back to her rented room, a semi-basement not far from the restaurant. It was only about six or seven square meters in size, with just a single bed and a bedside table.

While I was bedridden, Xiao Mei-jie took care of me with tenderness and consideration. I slept on the single bed, and she made a bed on the floor beside it, bringing me three meals a day.

To prevent any lingering illness and help me recover completely, she often bought ribs for soup. But in the early 2000s, pork prices were soaring, and a jin (approximately 500g) of ribs cost thirty or forty yuan, which poor people couldn't afford.

Xiao Mei-jie, like me, had been fired from the restaurant and was struggling to support herself. How could she have money to buy ribs for me?

But she went out every night when it got dark and came back when it was light, always bringing ribs back. I couldn't help but ask her, "Where did you get the money to buy such expensive things?"

Xiao Mei-jie smiled and said to me, "As long as you're willing to endure hardship and suffer grievances, a young and pretty girl like me can always earn money."

I couldn't bear it. I took her hand and said, "I don't want to eat ribs. Don't spend any more money on me, and don't wrong yourself."

Xiao Mei-jie just told me not to think too much, to rest and recover, and when I was better, we would earn money together.

I understood her words. She was willing to be my wife.

I was both happy and distressed at the time. I hugged Xiao Mei-jie tightly and said, trembling, "I will be good to you for the rest of my life, and I will make you live a good life in the future."

Xiao Mei-jie giggled and told me not to go back on my word.

I said it was my blessing to marry her, so how could I go back on my word?

That night, we not only ate ribs, but also drank a bottle of baijiu (white liquor).

That night, Xiao Mei-jie didn't make a bed on the floor, but slept with me on the bed.

Xiao Mei-jie gave me everything, including herself.

I grew up overnight.

It takes a hundred days to recover from a bone injury, but fortunately I was young, and I recovered after lying in bed for more than two months.

As soon as I could get out of bed, I couldn't wait to go outside to look for work. I couldn't let Xiao Mei-jie support me alone. I had to earn money to repay her kindness to me.

I wandered around the county for a day but couldn't find a decent job. When I returned to the rented room, I ran into Xiao Mei-jie going to work.

Usually, when I asked her where she worked, she always hesitated and didn't say. I was curious, so I secretly followed her to see.

Xiao Mei-jie walked all the way to the center of the county and finally entered a dance hall called Tianya Xiangge (Fragrant Pavilion at the Edge of the World).

Everyone who lived through that era understood what kind of places dance halls were. Although I was young, I often heard the restaurant guys discussing them in private: which dance hall had pretty girls, and how much was the fee to take a girl out. In those days, there wasn't the euphemism "princess"; the girls in dance halls were all called xiaojie (miss).

I finally understood where Xiao Mei-jie got the money to buy ribs for me.

At that moment, my heart felt like it was being twisted by a knife. I was so uncomfortable that I couldn't speak. I squatted at the entrance of the dance hall and cried for a long time, feeling lost and disoriented all night.

When the sky was beginning to light up, Xiao Mei-jie came out, surrounded by two young men with dyed yellow hair, their hands behaving indecently towards her.

When she saw me standing at the door, Xiao Mei-jie was stunned. She quickly shook off the two yellow-haired men and ran to me, asking, "Rongsheng, how did you find this place? How did you know I worked here?"

I hugged Xiao Mei-jie and cried, "Xiao Mei-jie, can you please not do this job? My injury has healed, I don't need to eat ribs anymore, I don't need you to earn money anymore. In the future, you can just lie at home, and I will earn money to support you!"

Xiao Mei-jie wiped away my tears and asked me with a smile, "Rongsheng, I'm doing this job, don't you think I'm dirty? Are you still willing to support me?"

I nodded. "I am willing. If it weren't for healing my injury, you wouldn't have come to work in this place. I've implicated you."

Xiao Mei-jie smiled, tears streaming down her face as she smiled. She hugged me tightly and said, "If you don't want me to do this job, I won't do it. I'll listen to you. Rongsheng, let's go back to my hometown tomorrow. After you've met my parents, I'll wholeheartedly be your wife."

I agreed emphatically, took her hand, and led her back to the rented room.

The next morning, Xiao Mei-jie packed her luggage, checked out of the room, and took me on a long-distance bus back to her hometown.

On the way back, I learned that Xiao Mei-jie also grew up by the river. Her home was on the banks of the Tuojiang River in western Sichuan. That area is known as the Land of Abundance, and it is said that there are beauties everywhere in Sichuan and Chongqing, so it's no wonder Xiao Mei-jie was so beautiful.

After traveling for a whole day, changing buses four or five times, we finally returned to the small town where Xiao Mei-jie had grown up. The town was bordered by the Tuojiang River to the north and the Zhonghe River to the south. It was much larger than my hometown village. There were even hospitals and banks in the town.

Xiao Mei-jie's home, like mine, was also a spacious and bright red brick house. As soon as we entered the door, Xiao Mei-jie's mother heard the noise and came out to greet us.

The auntie was very enthusiastic when she saw me, taking my hand and asking all sorts of questions. Xiao Mei-jie didn't hide anything, and generously told her auntie that we were "shuapengyou" (dating), which meant we were in love and heading towards marriage.

But as soon as marriage was mentioned, the auntie's expression changed. It wasn't that she looked down on me, but she seemed to have some unspeakable secret.

Xiao Mei-jie quickly explained to me that her father's line of work wasn't honorable and was very unlucky. The reason her mother was worried was mainly because she was afraid that I would dislike their family's business.

I quickly said that I didn't mind. I had seen even more humble jobs.

The auntie told me not to rush to speak. Xiao Mei-jie's father happened to be out on the river fishing, and she wanted me to go to the river and take a look, to really see it before considering whether or not to marry Xiao Mei-jie, so I wouldn't regret it later.

I nodded and went to the river with Xiao Mei-jie. After walking a few steps, an elderly niangniang (woman of roughly grandma's age) ran towards Xiao Mei-jie's house. When she saw Xiao Mei-jie, the niangniang shouted, breathless:

"Xiao, Xiao Mei! Bad, bad news... Your old man has had an accident, come, come with me!"

When Xiao Mei-jie heard this, her pretty face turned as white as paper. Without bothering to go home to report the news, she quickly followed the niangniang to the river, and I followed behind her.

When we arrived at the river, we saw a fishing boat floating in the river, with no one on board. In the distance, there was a middle-aged man with dark skin, being tossed up and down by the river.

When Xiao Mei-jie saw him, she cried out, tearing her heart out, "Dad!"

Taking a closer look, I was shocked.

I saw that not far behind the uncle, there was another person, standing upright in the water, as if on guard, floating up and down with the waves. But he was lifeless, his face swollen like an eggplant, and his two round eyes protruding from their sockets, staring fixedly at Xiao Mei-jie's dad!

It was a floating corpse, a floating corpse that had been dead for a long time!