The 60s Island: The Daily Life of a Capitalist Young Lady with the Army - Chapter 64: Thank You, Really Thank You!

Chapter 64: Thank You, Really Thank You!

Beside them, the little boy who had been dragged around and remained dazed throughout finally began to recover from his shock.

He blinked his big, dark eyes, glancing at the fierce woman who had just threatened to drown him, then looked up at the tall, mountain-like man—the scary uncle who had been so intimidating moments earlier—contemplating how to sneak away unnoticed.

Long Peiye noticed his gaze and gave the boy’s wet forehead a light tap.

“You little rascal, who told you to go swimming in the sea alone?”

His tone was stern, laced with lingering fear. “If it weren’t for my wife just now, you would have drowned. Do you understand?”

Scolded by him, the boy’s eyes immediately darted around guiltily. He hung his head, nervously clutching the hem of his shirt with both small hands.

Just then, an anxious, sharp voice cut through the sound of the waves from not far away.

“Xiao Jun—! Song Xiaojun—! Where have you gone?!”

Long Peiye recognized the voice at once. Straightening up, he called out in the direction of the sound, “Sister Yan! Xiao Jun is here!”

A middle-aged woman in a floral-print shirt hurried over at the sound. Seeing her son standing with Long Peiye and Xu Xiangsi, she first breathed a sigh of relief, then grew puzzled about how the three of them had ended up together.

But as she drew closer and saw their drenched, disheveled appearances, her face instantly paled.

“Wh-what happened? Did you all fall into the sea?”

Long Peiye explained succinctly, “I went to fetch a snake-skin bag earlier. When I came back, I saw my wife thrashing about in the water.”

As he spoke, his eyes remained fixed on Xu Xiangsi, as if he were addressing Sister Yan while also explaining to Xu Xiangsi: “I thought she was drowning. It wasn’t until I jumped in that I realized it was your Xiao Jun who was drowning, and my wife had gone into the sea to save him.”

Hearing that her son had nearly drowned, Sister Yan felt a dizzying rush to her head. Her vision darkened, and she staggered unsteadily.

In mere seconds, that overwhelming wave of fear transformed into uncontrollable rage!

She looked down and spotted the small digging shovel used for beachcombing still stuck in the sand. Without a second thought, she snatched it up.

Swinging her arm back, she brought the shovel down hard on Song Xiaojun’s buttocks.

Whack!

“I’ll beat you to death, you little brat!”

Sister Yan seemed to have lost her mind, striking him repeatedly while screaming, her voice cracking with emotion.

“How many times have I told you! Don’t go into the sea alone! Don’t go into the sea alone!”

Whack! Whack!

“I only went to help someone carry something for a moment, and you went and tried to get yourself killed! What would I do if you drowned? How would I explain it to your father?!”

Song Xiaojun howled in pain, dodging the blows and crying hysterically.

“Mom! I was wrong! I’ll never do it again! Waaah—!”

Sister Yan struck him more than a dozen times with all her might, as though finally venting the terror in her heart. Exhausted, she let the shovel clatter to the ground.

Leaning on her knees, she gasped for breath, tears and mucus streaming down her face.

Then, she suddenly remembered Long Peiye’s earlier words.

It was Xu Xiangsi… this stunningly beautiful city girl… who had saved her son’s life!

Her red-rimmed eyes suddenly turned to Xu Xiangsi, lips trembling. In the next second, her legs gave way and she nearly dropped straight to her knees!

“Hey! What are you doing?”

Xu Xiangsi was utterly startled, forgetting all about covering her chest as she threw down the palm-leaf fan and hastily jumped aside.

“Don’t… don’t bow like that… I can’t accept this!”

Long Peiye reacted swiftly, his long arm shooting out to firmly support Sister Yan before her knees could touch the ground.

His brows furrowed deeply as he asked in a steady voice, “Sister Yan, what are you doing?”

Though supported by him, Sister Yan’s legs remained weak as noodles, completely unable to bear her weight.

She hung entirely on Long Peiye’s arm as the fear and dread she had forcibly suppressed earlier finally burst forth like a broken dam, tears flooding out in torrents.

“Battalion Commander Long… I…”

She choked on her words, unable to form complete sentences, only managing to shed tears incessantly.

“Old Song and I have been married nearly ten years! We’ve traveled everywhere, consulted countless doctors, before finally being blessed with this son!”

“If anything happened to him, I wouldn’t want to live anymore! I really wouldn’t!”

Sister Yan wept as if her heart would break, crying as though she might expel her very organs.

Her red-rimmed eyes suddenly turned to Xu Xiangsi again, her voice filled with boundless gratitude and trembling: “Comrade Xu… you didn’t just save my son’s life – you saved both our lives!”

Nearby, Little Jun Song, who had just been beaten by his mother and was still trembling with fear, hunched his shoulders and muttered under his breath:

“Out in the sea earlier, she threatened that if I kept crying, she’d push my head underwater and drown me…”

Though spoken softly, everyone present heard it clearly.

The air instantly froze solid.

The grief and gratitude on Sister Yan’s face seemed to hit pause for one second before her expression darkened abruptly!

The lingering fear, panic, gratitude, and relief swirling in her heart all transformed in that moment into one single emotion – towering rage!

You little brat!

How dare you speak ill of someone who risked their life to save you?!

Sister Yan whirled around, her eyes locking onto the innocent little shovel on the ground again!

Without a second thought, she broke free from Long Peiye’s grip, rushed over in quick strides, bent down and snatched up the shovel again!

“I’ll beat you to death today, you ungrateful little wretch!”

“Smack! Smack! Smack!”

The screams that had just subsided erupted across the beach again, even more pitiful than before.

Little Jun Song scrambled across the sand, crying so hard he could barely catch his breath.

Xu Xiangsi stood to the side, watching this familiar scene unfold, and couldn’t help but shake her head slightly with a hand to her forehead.

This child… why can’t he learn his lesson?

Meanwhile, Long Peiye watched the chaotic scene unfold without even furrowing his brow.

He explained calmly to the still-furious Sister Yan: “Sister Yan, don’t misunderstand. Xiangsi said that because she was afraid Little Jun would panic in the water and struggle wildly.”

His voice wasn’t loud, but carried a power that could instantly calm people.

“A panicking drowning person could drag both rescuers under. She was scaring him so he wouldn’t struggle, making it possible to rescue him successfully.”

Sister Yan’s shovel-wielding hand abruptly halted mid-swing.

She panted heavily, her chest heaving violently, but the fury in her eyes gradually gave way to reason.

She threw the shovel to the ground and wiped the tears and sweat from her face.

“Battalion Commander Long, how could I not understand this logic?”

“Comrade Xu willingly jumped into the sea to rescue someone—that meant risking his own life! I understand that perfectly well in my heart!”

She paused, her tone becoming extremely solemn, even carrying a trace of lingering fear.

“To put it bluntly, if Little Jun had been truly terrified and clung desperately to Comrade Xu without letting go… if something had really happened to both of them in the sea… then my husband Old Song would owe Battalion Commander Long a life in return!”

After saying this, she turned to Xu Xiangsi once more and bowed deeply: “Comrade Xu, let me repeat what I said earlier—thank you, truly thank you!”