The family reached an agreement. The matter of the prescription was not to be told to anyone.
This “anyone” even included Huo Changshou.
He was out all day like a wild man and rarely stayed at home. If he found out, no one could guarantee who he might tell.
Once this matter was settled, many problems surfaced.
Father Huo’s ankle was injured, so they definitely had to first prepare the plaster he could use.
No one had any objections to this.
What they did have objections about was that the prescription listed more than a dozen Chinese medicinal ingredients. How were they supposed to obtain them?
After thinking for a moment, Ning Yuchan said, “Tomorrow, let’s first go around the major pharmacies in the city. For those with reasonable prices, we’ll buy them first. For the expensive ones… we can ask if they grow in the nearby mountains, and we’ll go up the mountain to gather them.”
Mother Huo felt that this method was good.
“That’s right, we’ll go take a look tomorrow.”
Father Huo could not help but blame himself. “Of all times, my leg had to be injured. Otherwise, I would have gone up the mountain tomorrow.”
Mother Huo smiled. “If not for your leg, we wouldn’t have remembered this book either. It can be considered a blessing in disguise.”
Taohua also smiled. “We’ll definitely be able to make this plaster. Father, your leg will recover soon.”
Father Huo’s family had lived in the village since birth. The number of times they had gone to the city could be counted on one hand.
Now that they suddenly had to do something this big, everyone felt a heavy weight in their hearts.
Especially Ning Yuchan, as everyone was full of expectations for her.
But she only knew a few characters. Cooking porridge was fine, but making medicine was like forcing a duck onto a perch[1]An idiom meaning being forced to do something beyond one’s ability jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1949189_1_1').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1949189_1_1', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });.
Spending time and effort was not the problem. What she feared most was wasting expensive medicinal materials.
That night, she took the prescription back to her room and carefully studied it by candlelight.
There was no paper or brush at home, so she could not make any notes.
However, she was clever. She found a piece of white cloth and went to the stove to dig out two pieces of charcoal, using them to write down what she wanted to record.
It was rather laughable. She did not even recognize the medicinal ingredients.
If she succeeded, it would truly be heaven helping her.
That entire night, the Huo family all held their breath in their hearts. There was resentment suppressed over the years, the determination to live a better life, and a spirit full of hope for the future.
After breakfast, Ning Yuchan, Mother Huo, and Taohua made simple preparations and set out on the road to the city.
When Eldest Aunt Huo saw Mother Huo going out, she called across the courtyard in a sarcastic tone, “Changsheng’s mother, where are you going?”
Mother Huo replied in her loud voice, “Going out for a stroll. I heard there’s something lively in the city, so we’re going to take a look.”
Eldest Aunt Huo frowned. “Second Brother’s leg is already injured, and you still have the mood to go to the city to watch the excitement?”
Mother Huo laughed. “Changsheng’s father is sick, so does that mean we stop living our lives?”
As they spoke, the group left the courtyard and ran into Zhuzi’s wife, Shanxing.
Mother Huo was grateful that Zhuzi had carried Father Huo to Dayang Village twice, so she smiled warmly and said, “These past few days aren’t suitable at home. In a few days, we’ll invite you and your husband for a meal.”
Shanxing had a generous temperament. “We’re neighbors and relatives. Second Aunt, you’re too polite. Is my second uncle any better?”
Mother Huo sighed. “No. I’m going to the city to take a look and get him some medicine. If we just endure it like this, who knows how long it’ll take to recover.”
Shanxing shared the same thought. “The doctors here aren’t good. If you go to the city and find a proper doctor, that’s when he’ll recover faster.”
As they passed by Mother Huo’s natal home, she borrowed ten taels of silver from her family.
She did not know if it would be enough, but bringing it with her made her feel more at ease.
Ning Yuchan also mentioned that she had some silver.
Mother Huo saw that she truly intended to live her life in the Huo family.
When one prospers, all prosper; when one suffers, all suffer. Although she did not want Ning Yuchan to spend her own silver, at a critical moment, it might not be possible to keep it unused.
“You keep yours for now. If mine isn’t enough, then we’ll use yours.”
The three of them spent less than half an hour entering the city.
Qinzhou City was more than a hundred li away from the capital. It was considered to be near the Son of Heaven’s seat. Although it could not compare to the capital’s liveliness, it still ranked among the top cities in the country.
Before even stepping into the city, they were already shocked by the bustling traffic of carriages and horses.
Everyone stood at the city gate, lining up for inspection.
Before she got married, Ning Yuchan had almost gone into the city every day with Old Man Ning to sell flour-based foods, so she was already very familiar with it.
However, she was only familiar with the eastern part of the city.
That was because Old Man Ning only set up his stall near the eastern district.
The gate guard also recognized her.
Not seeing Old Man Ning or her elder sister, he asked curiously, “Why is it different people today? Where is your father?”
The gate guard was warm-hearted, a local who looked after fellow villagers and took good care of those passing through.
Ning Yuchan was thin-skinned and not very good at talking with men, but she did not dislike the gate guard. Every time she passed through the gate, if she met him, she would bow slightly in greeting.
“I came with my mother-in-law and younger sister. My father didn’t come.”
“Mother-in-law?” The gate guard glanced at Mother Huo.
He had already noticed Old Man Ning’s two daughters before. Each one was more beautiful than the other.
For a man like him in his late twenties who still had no wife, it was only natural that he could not help but take a few extra glances when he saw pretty girls.
He had even inquired about them before, but unfortunately, both girls were already betrothed.
Now, seeing Ning Yuchan entering the city together with her mother-in-law, he could not help but sigh inwardly. What kind of man could marry such a beautiful girl?
“Congratulations, Miss Ning.”
“Thank you, Officer Liu.” When it was their turn for inspection, Ning Yuchan gave another bow, then linked arms with Mother Huo and walked into the city gate.
The gate guard, Liu Hansheng, hesitated for a moment, then quickly caught up to them.
He took out two taels of silver from his pocket and stuffed it into Ning Yuchan’s hand.
“This is to congratulate you on your newlywed joy. Buy some sweets.”
Ning Yuchan was just an ordinary commoner. How could she dare accept something from a gate officer?
“Officer Liu, I cannot accept this…”
Before she could finish speaking, Liu Hansheng noticed someone trying to smuggle goods and hurried off to deal with it.
Ning Yuchan did not want to disturb him while he was on duty.
Holding the silver in her hand, she did not know whether to return it or keep it.
Mother Huo noticed her daughter-in-law’s awkwardness. She felt a bit uncomfortable, but after a moment’s thought, she figured it might be a good thing.
“Yuchan, since he gave it to you, just keep it. We’ll repay him when we have the chance.”
If her son truly could not return, she could not let her daughter-in-law remain a widow for life.
The gate guard seemed decent enough. Aside from being a bit rough, big and burly, and average-looking, he was still acceptable.
With Mother Huo saying this, Ning Yuchan accepted the silver.
The three of them entered the city and were captivated by its prosperity.
Taohua’s clothes were tight and ill-fitting, making her very uncomfortable. Seeing the passing women dressed in beautiful silks and satins, her eyes widened.
“Mother, they’re all so pretty. When will you make me a set like that?”
Mother Huo herself had been wearing the same coarse clothes for years.
Her long hair was tied up, with no ornaments, only wrapped with a piece of orchid-patterned cloth.
Hearing this, she laughed. “Look at our family’s situation. Even if I sold myself, I couldn’t exchange it for a single skirt.”
Taohua thought of her elder brother. “If my elder brother were here, our family definitely wouldn’t be like this.”
Mother Huo could not help but start scolding again.
“Who can be blamed for this? Who told him to go join the army?”
At the mention of joining the army, Mother Huo became even more angry. “Back then, our village was required to send three young men to enlist. There were just over thirty people in the village who met the requirements…”
Ning Yuchan asked curiously, “Then how did Brother Huo end up going? Did he want to?”
Mother Huo spat. “Want? Not at all. He was schemed against.”
Ning Yuchan asked, “How was he schemed against?”
Mother Huo said, “At that time, it was already summer. None of the thirty-some people wanted to go. There was no choice, so the village head came up with a method. He filled the stove with thick logs and burned it fiercely. The kang became as hot as charcoal, and even the bedding on top was about to catch fire.
All thirty people sat on it. Whoever could not endure it and moved first would be the one to go.”
It was Ning Yuchan’s first time hearing about this. “Brother Huo couldn’t endure it?”
Mother Huo said angrily, “With his thick skin and flesh, how could he not endure it? Even if he couldn’t, he wouldn’t have been among the first three. Someone threw a bug onto his face. He didn’t see it at the time and shouted, jumping up all at once. He just happened to be the third to move.”
Ning Yuchan: “…”
Mother Huo said helplessly, “Just like that, he went to the army together with two other villagers. I heard the war ended long ago. One of them returned last year, and the other was promoted to a centurion and stayed in the military camp.”
Ning Yuchan felt puzzled. “Then who informed our family that something happened to Brother Huo?”
Mother Huo said, “It was Huo Jinhu. He came back last year and said Changsheng was called to carry out some kind of mission. There were more than ten people who went together. I heard they all died. Not a single one returned.”
Ning Yuchan felt heartache for Huo Changsheng. So young, unable to return home, unable to even see his parents, all alone.
“Mother, then did you and Father go to the yamen to inquire? If something happened, wouldn’t the military notify the parents?”
After hearing of her son’s death, how could Mother Huo not investigate?
But there had been no result.
“We went to the county yamen. It wasn’t the same office. They didn’t know anything and said they hadn’t received any notice.
Jinhu insisted that everyone who went on that mission had died…”
Mother Huo could not help but start crying again.
Ning Yuchan comforted her, “Brother Huo has a fortunate fate. He’ll definitely be fine. Perhaps he was injured and is hiding somewhere to recover. Once he heals, he’ll come back.”
Mother Huo thought the same way. Otherwise, she would not have insisted on asking Old Man Ning to marry his daughter into the family.
She wiped her eyes. “Let’s not talk about this anymore. There’s a medical hall over there. Let’s go take a look.”
Ning Yuchan had planned carefully the whole night before. She could not directly take the prescription and come to buy the medicine, in case it was exposed.
Mother Huo agreed with her idea.
After meeting the doctor, Mother Huo first described Father Huo’s ankle injury, and Ning Yuchan added further details.
The doctor wrote a prescription.
Ning Yuchan filled the prescription accordingly.
Compared to the formula in the musty book, it lacked a few ingredients, and the dosage of each ingredient was different, but the rest were exactly the same.
They would boil the medicinal decoction themselves at home, and the doctor taught them the method for preparing it.
Ning Yuchan carefully committed it to memory.
Following the doctor’s method would produce a medicinal soup.
It would be beneficial to Father Huo’s injury.
However, if it were to be cooked into a thick paste and made into a medicinal plaster, the method used would be completely different.
Ning Yuchan requested that the doctor pack each medicinal ingredient separately.
The doctor was not very pleased, so Ning Yuchan gave him two extra copper coins.
There were still a few ingredients missing, and she planned to go to another medical hall to complete the purchase.
This was only enough for three doses of medicine.
After all, the amount of silver they had brought was limited. Being able to buy everything was already good enough.
Among them, two ingredients were especially expensive, more costly than all the other dozen ingredients combined. It made Mother Huo grit her teeth in pain.
The two of them had brought a total of twenty taels of silver, and it was still not enough. Fortunately, they also had the two taels given by the gate guard.
Taohua saw the roadside stalls, and her stomach growled loudly.
After all, she was still a child and could not hold back. “Mother, it’s not often that we come to the city. Can you buy me a candied hawthorn skewer?”
References[+]