Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Yan Lingsu found a pen and paper and wrote the prescription down. “I’ve looked at the previous prescription. It seems that his current medication does not improve his condition. It’s not looking too good. If we don’t adjust his medicine, we might be too late.”
Gongyu Mingxi was shocked to hear this. “Are there complications? Can it be treated?”
Yan Lingsu shook her head. “It’s not that we can’t treat him. It’s just that it will take some time, and I will have to monitor his condition. Grandfather Zuo’s body was already weak since young. In addition, he was a hunter, and he had suffered many injuries that were not properly treated.
“After Grandfather passed away, the medicine that Grandfather Zuo was taking the past two to three years did not seem to be correct. The wrong prescription could have worsened his condition.
“Fortunately, Grandfather has controlled Grandfather Zuo’s illness for the past few years, and his condition improved over time. That is why Grandfather Zuo can survive until today. Otherwise, any medication he takes now wouldn’t improve his condition.
“I will prescribe him some medicine for the time being. Then, we’ll move to acupuncture. As long as he doesn’t do any strenuous activities, it shouldn’t be a problem for him to live for another ten years.”
Grandfather Zuo was already in his fifties. If he lived for an extra ten years, he would be close to seventy. Living until the age of seventy was rare, and it would be a great miracle in this era.
Gongyu Mingxi was relieved. “It’s not necessary then. Grandfather Zuo would hold down Uncle Lu if this continued for a longer period. It would be difficult for Uncle Lu to start a family.”
Hunting was a matter of life and death. It was challenging to find a wife, especially with his family’s condition. If it were to continue, Guanglu would never find a wife.
Guanglu was big, tall, and well-mannered. He looked kind and was a handsome young man. If his family’s condition were better, he wouldn’t be single in his twenties. Grandmother Zuo was so worried that Guanglu would never get married, and the worries have caused her hair to turn grey.
Yan Lingsu smiled and said, “I will write him a prescription for ten days for now. There are just one or two expensive medicinal herbs, and the rest are cheap. I will go up to the mountain later to look for more medicinal herbs. I will also write down a list of ingredients that he will need.
“Uncle Lu can grow them before the winter. It will be much easier to obtain these ingredients when spring comes. In the future, he would only need to grow more. There shouldn’t be any major issues.”
Actually, using some expensive herbs could help speed up the healing process. However, it would be unlikely to afford many costly medicinal herbs with their family condition.
Two hours had passed when the chicken soup was ready, and the sky was completely dark. The house lights were lit up, and the family ate noodles for dinner. After boiling some water and cleaning up, they turned the lights off and went to sleep.
The following day was bright and sunny.
As Gongyu Hao was preparing to go into town with Uncle Lu, Yan Lingsu was worried that her brother would get hungry along the way. So, she broke some eggs, made some scallion pancakes, and boiled a few eggs for him to bring along.
After having breakfast, Yan Lingsu said, “Mother, I’m heading out to the mountain to look for some herbs. I won’t be back for lunch. You guys can go ahead and have lunch without me.”
Gongyu Mingxi was worried. “You can’t go alone. Why don’t you ask Second Brother to go with you tomorrow?”
“There’s no need. I can handle myself. I’ll be sure to avoid going too deep into the mountain. I’ll just walk around the edge. I’m just looking for common herbs, and they should be easy to find.”
Gongyu Mingxi then remembered that Yan Lingsu was a martial arts practitioner in her past life. Yan Lingsu had followed her grandfather to practice the Art of The Five Animals for a few years. She wasn’t afraid of going deep into the mountains and encountering fierce beasts. Guanyu Mingxi reminded Yan Lingsu to be careful and told her to bring along a few boiled eggs before going out.
Yan Lingsu then packed a spade and a sickle as she carried the medicine basket on her back and left the house. Guanyu Mingxi and Yan Lingyu continued to make cotton clothes while Yan Qixun got back to completing her spinning wheel diagram from yesterday. By the time she finished drawing each component one by one, it was already noon, and it was time for lunch.
Seeing that her mother and sister were busy sewing clothes, Yan Qixun went to make lunch. They still had some leftover chicken soup from yesterday. She did not know how to roll noodles, but she knew how to make dumpling soup. She proceeded to the vegetable farm, pulled out a handful of spinach, and brought along a stalk of spring garlic to the well to wash.
When she returned to the kitchen, she reheated the chicken soup. When the soup was hot, she put in the dumplings. The chicken soup, spinach, and dumplings were ready with just a stir. She brought a bowl, sprinkled on some spring garlic, and carried it on a wooden plate into the room. She then called her mother and sister over for lunch.
After lunch, Yan Qixun washed the dishes, rinsed the pot, and put on a pot of water to boil. She then said, “Mother, I will be taking a chicken to the village to exchange it for some soybeans and green beans. Tonight we’ll be having tofu for dinner. Can you soak two jars of bean sprouts?”
Yan Qixun could sell a chicken for about thirty cents, which she could exchange for about six to seven jars of soybeans. Guanyu Mingxi waved goodbye to her daughter.
The mud on the road was not completely dry. Fortunately, Yan Qixun didn’t have to worry about her damaged shoes. She went straight to her Great-granduncle’s house. Besides the chicken, she had also packed two trays of fresh red dates and persimmons that her second brother brought back. She went to visit her Great-granduncle as well.
Great-granduncle was already in his seventies, but he was still healthy. However, the weather had not been good recently. His old legs were cold, so he was bedridden for two days.
Seeing that Yan Qixun had brought him some red dates, Great-granduncle’s spirits were lifted. He then asked her what the situation was back home and said, “Dates are going out of season in the market. Where did you get these red dates?”
Yan Qixun smiled and said, “Second Brother and Mother went to town and just happened to run into someone that was selling them. Seeing that it wasn’t too expensive, they decided to buy some. It’s not often that we see fresh fruit this season, so mother told me to bring you something sweet to eat. You can eat as many dates as you want, but persimmons are cold, so you are only allowed to eat one a day.”
The old man let out a loud laugh. “You kids are too clever, and your mother is too dutiful. Fine, I will refrain from eating too many. Now that our family has problems, don’t worry about me, I’m just an old man. Focus on yourselves.”
Yan Qixun laughed. “Don’t worry about us. First and Second Granduncle sent a lot of food to our family. We will be fine. Second Brother and Uncle Lu had also gone into the mountains yesterday and came back with a lot of prey which they can sell for a lot of money.”
“Second Brother had told me yesterday that your legs were acting up again and suggested that we get you some wolf skin so that we can make you a mattress to sleep in and have a more comfortable winter.”
Her words gave him a shock.
“I can’t accept that. I will be fine if it were just pheasant or even rabbit skin, I wouldn’t dare use the skin of such a ferocious beast. Tell him not to worry about me. I’m still very healthy.”
Yan Qixun did not argue. Instead, she said, “My mother said that Lingsu had inherited Grandfather’s medical techniques. She has completed her apprenticeship. She had gone into the mountains to help pick herbs for your medicine. I will ask her to come over and check up on you tomorrow.”
The old man did not want them to worry about him. He then asked Yan Qixun if her father had written them any letters since he had been away for more than half a month.
Yan Qixun smiled and said, “We haven’t received any letters so far. I will come over and let you know if we receive any letters from him.”
After chatting with the old man for a while, Yan Qixun left his place. Her aunty handed her some soybeans. If Yan Qixun were to carry them, they would weigh ten trays. She also had trays of green beans. She quickly said, “Aunty, this is too much.”
Aunt Guo was the wife of her First Granduncle, and she was a very straightforward and warm-hearted woman. She smiled and said, “You can just store them at home. Don’t be shy, just take them. They’re not worth much.”
An extra three or four trays would still be worth more than a dozen coins. However, Yan Qixun did not argue. She thought about making tofu and sending out some bean sprouts. She only needed to send some over.
She did not plan on selling them. A tray of soybeans could produce three trays of tofu. Her family would not be able to finish it all anyway. Besides, her family would not do it as a business. Making tofu and selling it was no easy feat. Her family simply didn’t have enough workforce.
On the other hand, their First Granduncle’s family had three sons. The eldest uncle was an accountant in town. The third and fourth uncles’ could only work part-time in town. Not only was it difficult, but they also couldn’t earn much money. It would be a good idea to pass the tofu business to their two uncles instead.
If the First Granduncle’s family were given things, it would only be fair if the Second Granduncle’s family received some benefits as well. The two uncles were siblings, and Yan Qixun had to be fair to both families.
However, the youngest son of her second granduncle was a teacher in town. The two old folks were the ones taking care of the grandchildren. They had to consider what they were going to do to earn money.
As Yan Qixun walked out, she asked her aunt, “Why haven’t I seen Brother Lingzuo and the others?”