Because they couldn’t afford proper wound medicine, Zhuo Dawu’s leg had long since rotted into a horrifying state.
If Fenniang hadn’t stubbornly cleaned the wound with coarse salt water every single day, then applied a folk remedy she had begged countless people for—a wild herb with tiny purple flowers that she pounded into a paste and spread over the wound—Zhuo Dawu probably wouldn’t have lasted another month.
The moment she entered the pharmacy, she placed the small pieces of silver, now damp from being clenched tightly in her hand, onto the counter.
“Shopkeeper, could you please see how much wound medicine this will buy?”
…
The government salt shop was nearly deserted.
It wasn’t that ordinary people didn’t want to buy salt—they simply couldn’t afford the soaring prices.
Coarse salt that had once sold for fifteen copper coins a jin now cost thirty-five. The finest refined salt had climbed all the way to one hundred copper coins a jin.
The ten copper coins Fenniang had given Zhuo Chang’an only bought a small packet the size of an egg. The salt was coarse and black, with tiny gray flecks of unknown impurities mixed throughout.
“Eldest Brother, isn’t salt supposed to be snow white?”
Curious, Zhuo Ling dipped a finger into the packet, licked a few grains, and immediately spat them out.
“Bleh! Bleh!”
A bitter, astringent taste filled her mouth.
“This is coarse salt. They mix wood ash into it to increase the weight.”
Zhuo Chang’an replied calmly,
“The snow-white kind is refined salt. Common people can’t afford it.”
“What kind of world is this? I’d rather just buy some from the marketplace.”
Zhuo Ling sighed. Opening her system marketplace, she searched for table salt. A beautifully packaged bag instantly appeared in her hands.
“Eldest Brother, look! This is the salt from our underground city.”
Inside the transparent plastic bag was pure white salt, each crystal as clean and beautiful as fresh snow.
“This salt…”
Zhuo Chang’an couldn’t help pinching a little between his fingers and tasting it.
He was instantly astonished by its pure, clean flavor.
“It doesn’t have even the slightest bitter or harsh taste!”
Zhuo Ling proudly raised an eyebrow.
“This is one-hundred-percent refined table salt. No impurities whatsoever.”
Zhuo Chang’an rubbed her head with a faint smile.
“It really is excellent. We just need to come up with another excuse for bringing it home.”
The siblings went to a general store and asked for a sheet of straw paper. They removed the plastic packaging—which didn’t exist in this era—and wrapped the salt neatly in the paper instead.
By the time Fenniang returned after buying the wound medicine, she froze when she saw the large bundle of refined salt.
“Chang’an, where did you get the money to buy such fine salt?”
That’s right.
Where did the money come from?
Zhuo Ling secretly bit her finger and grinned, waiting to see how her eldest brother would explain this one.
“I didn’t buy it, Mother.”
Keeping his eyes lowered, Zhuo Chang’an answered,
“We happened to run into the Pang family’s young madam at the government salt shop. When she heard Ling’er and I were buying salt, she insisted on giving us a bag.”
“I refused at first, but she said Ling’er had returned her hairpin. We wouldn’t accept more money, and now we wouldn’t even accept this small token of gratitude. She got a little upset…”
“So I had no choice but to accept it.”
“That young madam truly has a kind heart.”
Fenniang sighed gratefully.
“She knows poor families like ours can’t afford good salt, so she’s helping us in her own way.”
She carefully put the salt away before gently reminding him,
“We’ll remember this kindness. But don’t let this happen again, understand, Chang’an?”
“I understand, Mother.”
Zhuo Chang’an nodded.
Behind her back, Zhuo Ling secretly gave him a thumbs-up.
Her eldest brother’s ability to lie with a perfectly straight face was becoming more and more impressive.
On their way out of town, they passed a secondhand clothing shop displaying piles of colorful bolts of cloth in front of its entrance.
The owner claimed business in town had become impossible, so he was selling off all his fabric at bargain prices before returning south.
Each foot of cloth was five copper coins cheaper than usual, attracting a large crowd.
Zhuo Ling paid it little attention. Holding Zhuo Chang’an’s hand, she walked along greedily taking in the lively sights of the ancient marketplace.
There were so many things she’d never seen before.
Everything fascinated her!
Fenniang unconsciously stopped walking.
Looking at her daughter’s tiny figure, her heart suddenly ached.
The clothes Zhuo Ling wore had all been hand-me-downs from her two older brothers. The elbows, seat, and pant legs had already been patched seven or eight times.
The patch over the seat was especially large because that area wore out the fastest.
As she waddled along, the patch—stitched in circles upon circles—looked especially ugly and conspicuous.
After all, she was a little girl.
Seeing her daughter dressed so shabbily filled Fenniang with guilt.
“Ling’er, come here…”
She beckoned her over, picked her up, and held out a piece of bright red coarse cloth.
“Tell Mother, isn’t this fabric pretty?”
Zhuo Ling’s attention was completely fixed on the little clay figurines at the neighboring stall. Distracted, she nodded absentmindedly.
“Pretty…”
How could it possibly be prettier than an entire stall full of clay figurines?
“Shopkeeper, how much is this cloth per foot?”
Fenniang quickly asked.
“This one? I’m selling it cheap!”
The shop assistant enthusiastically pulled the bolt of cloth closer.
“Eighteen copper coins per foot!
“Feel it, ma’am. It’s thick, durable, and the color is beautiful. Buy a few feet for your child and it’ll last for years. How many feet would you like?”
The price of eighteen copper coins immediately made Fenniang’s expression stiffen.
After buying wound medicine for Dawu, she only had a little over ten copper coins left.
She couldn’t even afford a single foot of cloth.
“N-No… I’ll keep looking.”
Pressing her lips together, she looked at Zhuo Ling with reddened eyes and said softly,
“Ling’er… Mother has let you down.
“I spent all the money on medicine for your father. Once his leg heals, Mother will definitely buy cloth and make you a new outfit.”
Zhuo Ling was stunned.
She hadn’t even asked for new clothes.
Yet Mother still felt guilty, believing she owed her daughter something, wanting to give her the very best…
So this is what that saying means…
Love is constantly feeling that you’ve fallen short.
So this is what it feels like to be a child with a mother.
It’s so wonderful.
Zhuo Ling’s eyes instantly turned red.
…
Loaded down with bulging baskets and grain-filled hampers, the family chatted and laughed as they headed home.
Along the way, they attracted countless looks of envy from everyone in the village.
Aunt Fang had already spread the story of how Zhuo Ling had found the Pang family’s young madam’s hairpin, embellishing it more and more with every retelling.
Although everyone was green with envy, all they could say was that the Zhuo family had extraordinary luck.
“Dawu! Dawu! Look what I bought!”
By the time the sun was directly overhead, Fenniang set down her basket. Without bothering with anything else, she hurried straight inside.
Her thin face glowed with joy she couldn’t suppress.
“Look! Wound medicine!
“Now your leg can finally heal!”
Seeing the grayish-yellow medicinal powder wrapped in paper, Zhuo Dawu stared in shock.
“Y-You bought this?
“How much did it cost?”
In truth, he had suddenly been feeling much better today.
He had regained a little strength, and the pain in his rotting leg wasn’t nearly as severe.
Since it seemed to be improving, perhaps if he endured a little longer, the wound would heal on its own.
Who would have thought Fenniang would spend so much money on wound medicine?
His heart ached at the thought.
It would have been better to spend all that silver on grain for the children.
“Listen to yourself!”
Fenniang shot him a reproachful glance.
“What does the money matter? Isn’t your injury healing more important than anything else?”
Her eyes reddened as she explained everything.
“The money was earned by our Ling’er and Chang’an…”
Zhuo Dawu’s eyes immediately filled with tears.
“Our good daughter…”
he said over and over.
“I always knew our Ling’er… wasn’t a foolish girl.
“She’s a blessed child!”
“Pork! Eldest Brother, am I seeing things? We actually bought pork?”
Outside, the second brother’s disbelieving shout rang out.
He immediately began calling for Fenniang.
“Mother! Mother! When are we cooking the meat?”
“I’m coming!”
Fenniang quickly wiped the corners of her eyes before looking at Zhuo Dawu with gentle affection.
“I’ll make something for the children first. Then I’ll come back, clean your wound, and apply the medicine.
“Dawu… take good care of yourself.
“When you’re well again, this whole family will be depending on you.”
Those simple words shattered the composure Zhuo Dawu had struggled to maintain.
The tears he had been holding back burst forth, streaming down his face.
People always said that husband and wife were like birds sharing the same forest—
when disaster struck, each would fly away on their own.