So, i have met this phrase

> 私があの子を救ってあげなければ、誰が救うと言うのですか？

Now, with a quick glance, my brain translated it as something like "if i
haven't saved her, who would have done that?".

However giving it another look, i can see that it probably means something
closer to "if i don't save her, who would do that?" because that kind of
conditional (救ってあげなければ) can't be used for past actions, so it's something that
the speaker has yet to do i guess. (correct me if im wrong, but i think the
only way to make a past conditional is by using ーたら, right?)

But there's something else that's been bothering me in this phrase: the
ending. What does と言うの means here exactly? Some people explained it to me by
using a raw translation (ex: can you name a person that would save her, except
me?" but i still can't comprehend it fully.
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2018-07-12T12:14:03.270
60054
2018-07-12T16:48:53.413
2018-07-12T16:43:49.487
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question
grammar rhetorical-questions
The meaning/nuance of と言うの
言う means "speak" or "say", so a natural way of translating this would be, "If
I don't save her, who are you saying would?" or "If I don't save her, tell me
who (the hell) would?"
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2018-07-12T12:50:06.940
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2018-07-12T12:50:06.940
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answer