CH 38

Chapter 38 – Meeting Zhou Jingyu (2)

Xiao Jingfeng drank several cups of tea in a foolish way like a cow drinking water and his ‘unconcerned’ attitude attracted someone’s admiration.

“That’s very good.  One can only have a child-like heart by being close to children.”

People will only be happy if they still possess child-like innocence and those who are too serious will age faster.

“Hmph, both of you husband and wife are like-minded.  Don’t you want your child anymore?”

Zhou Jingyu held up the giggling Little Sister Yue who was kicking her legs happily.

The two people who were referred to as husband and wife exchanged a look and the mutual tacit brilliance in their eyes deepened.

Shuangming, who was eating and playing with his sister at the side, suddenly coughed. Upon hearing the slight cough, Zhou Jingyu stretched out his hand and grabbed Shuangming’s wrist with furrowed eyebrows.

“What’s the matter, is the child sick?”

After checking the child’s pulse for a while, he said.  “He suffered a serious illness more than a year ago.  Although he recovered, the root of the illness has yet to heal.  Occasionally, he will cough at night.”

The child almost lost his life during that time when he fell seriously ill.

“That’s correct.  Sometimes he will go back to sleep after a few coughs and sometimes the cough will persist until late in the night.”

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She thought it was due to a cold and gave him warm drinks from boiling Isatis root and honeysuckle.

“……..Lung disease.”

“Is it serious?”

Once lung diseases attack, they can be fatal.  In these backward ancient times, treatment is delayed due to a lack of medicine and medical staff.

“It’s fine.”  With him around, the disease is not an illness.

“Jing Niang, don’t worry……..Divine Doctor Zhou’s diagnosis has never been wrong.  Later, the child will be given some brewed medicine.”

Zhou Jingyu treated the illness lightly because it was not serious.

As soon as Li Jing’er heard Zhou Jingyu is a divine doctor, her mood lightened up.

“My family’s Shuangzhen and Little Sister Yue will have to rely on you.  It’s best to prescribe a medicine that can keep illnesses away and ensure they lead a healthy life for a hundred years.”

“You’re bold to have such thoughts.”  Zhou Jingyu snorted.

He does have a medicine that guards against all kinds of poisons but……..against all kinds of diseases?………  Well, it’s possible to give it a try……..

“There’s nothing wrong to have such thoughts.  Anyway, it doesn’t cost money, so it’s alright to think about it.”

Li Jing’er spoke confidently.

If there’s truly such a medicine that can cure all kinds of diseases, no one would refuse it.

Zhou Jingyu humphed contemptuously and took Shuangzhen’s pulse.

“This child thinks too much.”  He looked at Li Jing’er and commented.

There was no change in Li Jing’er’s expression as though she was already aware of the actual problem.

“Does she need to take any medicine?”

“There’s a medicine she can take but it has to be taken continuously for a year.”

Depression is also a kind of ailment.

Upon hearing this, she nodded.  “What about Little Sister Yue?”

The Divine Doctor took the child’s pulse and then showed an annoyed expression.

“Strong as a bull!  She takes after whoever gave birth to her!  Back then, the father was already on his last breath but could still manage to pull through, so it can be seen that cheap people are easy to raise!”

The two females not only showed the same silly smiles on their faces, but they also possessed unusual bones that were suitable for practicing martial arts.

Xiao Erlang only had mediocre martial arts because he received training under the wrong master and only his arm strength was astounding.  However, if his daughter trains from an early age to lay the foundation, she can become a martial arts genius in the future and make great achievements.

Although on the surface Zhou Jingyu showed impatience toward the family, he was already thinking about how to prepare medicine for the children, find a good martial arts master for Little Sister Yue and concoct a medicine that can keep all illnesses away.

“Ah!  You’re all here!  I’ve been looking all over for you.  I’m sweating profusely just looking for you and thought you have all left.”

The cold north wind was blowing outside but Chen Dasheng kept wiping his sweat which showed he was telling the truth.

As soon as he arrived, he hurriedly drank the tea and even ordered the waiter to fill up the teapot quickly as though he had not drunk enough.  The teahouse serves an endless flow of tea and snacks are available as well.

“Didn’t you send your younger sister home?”  Why is he out so soon?

“Don’t mention it……..we met my Third Aunt on the way home.  The two women started to chat and then said they wanted to watch the juggling performance and left arm-in-arm.  I couldn’t even stop them, so I could only instruct someone to send the two children back to the residence first.”

His nephew, Zhaoyang, was better as he had a quiet temperament and did not like lively environments.  As soon as the child was told to return home, he walked faster than everyone else but the niece, Zhaohua, kicked up a fuss.  She insisted on following her mother and in a moment of anger, he knocked his niece unconscious.

He wants to see how she is going to stir up trouble!

“Lord Zhenfu, please keep an eye on your younger sister during this period.  Based on her character, I’m worried she will try to harm Jing Niang.”

Xiao Jingfeng tried to be as tactful as possible and did not directly point out that Chen Dasheng’s sister is an arrogant shrew.  She was not tied up like animals, therefore, she would stir up trouble sooner or later.

Showing a tired look, Chen Dasheng rubbed his forehead which was throbbing with pain.

“It’s easier said than done.  The legs are attached to her body and she can go wherever she wants.  Can I tie her up?”

He was having a headache over this matter and wanted to send her far away.

“Because we’re friends I will be frank with you.  If she really does harm Jing Niang, don’t blame me for disregarding our many years of friendship.  As a man, Jing Niang and the children are my responsibility.”

Unless necessary, he won’t make a move.

“My family is unfortunate and I don’t know when her temperament started to become like this.  I went to the battlefield with General Chen at the age of 14 and left her and Cui Niang at home……….”

Chen Dasheng paused when he came to this point and everyone understood without him having to say more.

Cui Niang was Chen Yulian’s sister-in-law, Chen Dasheng’s first wife, and the relationship between the two women was particularly good.  Before Cui Niang was caught red-handed committing adultery, his sister was always beside her.  Those who are close to vermillion are red while those who are close to ink are black.  It was inevitable that his sister would learn and pick up all the bad habits.

By the time Chen Dasheng realized something was wrong, it was already too late.  He had no choice but to marry his sister off quickly but it had harmed others.  Unexpectedly, she returned home a few years later and continued to stir up trouble for him.

“I can turn her into a useless person and solve this problem once and for all.”

Zhou Jingyu took out a bright green poisonous needle and placed it on the white cloth that was spread on the table.

Everyone became silent.

It was obvious that the suggestion was not feasible.

“Didn’t we agree that we’ll get drunk together?  However, with the little brother and sisters here, we have to drink less and not get truly drunk.  Later, let’s order a jar of Peach Blossom wine to enjoy……..”

“This is a teahouse, no wine is sold here.”  A waiter with a blank expression was standing behind him holding a copper pot with a long spout, ready to add hot water to the teapot.

Chen Dasheng instantly showed an embarrassed expression.

***☆☆☆***

New Year’s Eve.

The next day will be the New Year.  Everyone will be older by one year and the children will also grow a little taller.

The festive atmosphere of the New Year was getting stronger and stronger and the fragrant aroma of steamed rice cakes from every household drifted up into the mountains.

Li Jing’er had set up a stove outside the house to correspond with the festive mood and steamed a tray of savory cakes topped with shredded radish.  When she was a child, she had seen her grandmother make this cake in the village, and like her grandmother, she tried her hand at carving out the gourds to make containers to steam the cakes.  She mixed rice flour with water and salt to form a paste and then fried the mixture with shallots and pork until the paste turned fragrant before steaming over low heat.

However, watching how it was done and doing the actual thing is totally different.  In the end, the finished product did not turn out satisfactorily, and although the cakes could still be eaten, the shape……..

Ai!  Eating them is almost like eating mud cakes!

Fortunately, the children were still young and adults could not eat much.  The finished product was as soft as milk pudding that had just been set.  They jiggled when shaken and could be scooped into the mouth spoonful by spoonful.  They definitely could not be picked up using chopsticks because the cakes broke up as soon as the chopsticks pinched them……..they were softer than tofu…….

“Mother, why is Father not home yet?”

Li Jing’er saw the worry in Shuangzhen’s eyes and was surprised the child would be the first to ask this question. She thought it would be Shuangming who was getting closer to Xiao Jingfeng day by day or Little Sister Yue who took her father as a playmate.  He would toss her high into the air and twirl her around and let her fly in circles.  The two children were more attached to him than Shuangzhen.

It was not that Shuangzhen did not try to get close to him but she was very cautious and a little reserved.  She was afraid that once she misbehaves, she would be abandoned, so she dared not accept him totally with an open heart.

Divine Doctor Zhou was right.

She is a thoughtful child.  She is only a few years old but her thoughts are like an adolescent’s.  She thinks too much and can’t let go…….and keeps everything in her heart.

However, after taking the medicine, a daily pill that Divine Doctor Zhou prescribed, her condition improved significantly.  She would take the initiative to help with chores unlike in the past when she waited passively for instructions.  Her eyes had become livelier, much more alert, and clearer.

“He should be home soon.  He promised to accompany us this New Year’s Eve to wait out the old year and set off firecrackers with your brother.  Your Father is a man who keeps promises and won’t go back on his words.”

However, it seems……..it’s truly very late.

“But it looks like it’s going to snow soon………will Father be trapped in the snow?”

Shuangzhen who is now overcome with new worries knotted up her eyebrows into a frown.

“He is an adult, so he should know to take shelter from the wind and snow.  Go and play with your younger sister on the bed while Mother stirs the pork again.”

Although Li Jing’er spoke casually, she still felt a little worried and looked out of the window from time to time.

………Is that person back?

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Man is not like grass and trees, devoid of feelings.

After getting along together with him these days, Li Jing’er turned from initially being uncompromising to yielding until good feelings for him developed.  She could see that Xiao Jingfeng was good to her, put his heart into uniting the family, and tirelessly climbed up and down the mountain.

Sometimes she felt guilty toward him.  Although he had done so much, she kept resisting him.  She wants a companion but is afraid of losing her authority in decision-making.  She did not want to be a man’s accessory or become an adornment and craved understanding and tolerance.

She desires a lot and wishes to take but is unwilling to give.  If she was Xiao Jingfeng, she would have lost her patience a long time ago.  Who would care about a conceited woman?

“I’ll help Mother to regulate the fire so that the stew won’t burn.”

The little girl picked up the fire poker and then sat on a small wooden stool that was made from two pieces of wood nailed together.  Very skillfully, she spaced out the burning firewood, and the leaping orange-red flames shone on her little face.

The present lovable Shuangzhen proved that Li Jing’er’s hard work was not in vain.

The child knows she is protected and this mother of hers who loves her very much is better than the previous one, so she is willing to open her heart to be the child of this new set of parents.