After placing the kudzu root into the pot and covering it with the lid, Jiang Zhi felt a sense of contentment at the thought of adding another food source for everyone. She casually remarked, "Kudzu root is very mild and can treat many illnesses. Boiling it with water and adding rice to make porridge can treat excessive thirst and frequent urination—what’s known as wasting-thirst.
For children who catch a chill, develop fever, or vomit, you can add ginger and honey. If combined with other herbs, it can even treat wind-stroke hemiplegia…"
Before she could finish, Xiaoman’s Grandmother asked in a trembling voice, "Errui’s Mother, did you say… this can treat paralysis?"
Jiang Zhi: "……?"
Seeing everyone in the room staring at her, she realized she had said too much!
People often hear selectively. She had mentioned wind-stroke hemiplegia, but Xiaoman’s Grandmother only caught the word "paralysis."
It seemed she wasn’t the only one—everyone in the room had done the same.
In the days since coming up the mountain, Jiang Zhi hadn’t paid much attention to Xu Da Zhu’s condition.
First, her original self wasn’t a particularly warm-hearted person, so she naturally didn’t ask proactively.
Second, Xiaoman’s grandfather was a proud man who valued face. He always felt his family’s misfortune was a disgrace. Even back in the village, he never complained in front of others and disliked others prying.
Since this was a painful topic for the family, Jiang Zhi refrained from asking.
But now that Xiaoman’s Grandmother had brought it up, there was a misunderstanding. Wind-stroke hemiplegia and paralysis from external injuries differed in both cause and symptoms.
After a moment’s hesitation, Jiang Zhi said, "Auntie, I heard from the elders that kudzu root can treat wind-stroke hemiplegia, but I don’t know if it suits Da Zhu’s condition!"
"It’s hemiplegia?"
The glimmer of hope in Xiaoman’s Grandmother’s eyes faded. Her grandson wasn’t suffering from hemiplegia—she had misunderstood.
Xiaoman’s grandfather, who had just finished skinning the snake and tossed the pale snake skin aside, cleared his throat and said, "Errui’s Mother, your family knows about medicinal herbs. Do you know any remedies for paralysis?"
In the mountains, where medicine was scarce, it wasn’t unusual for someone to know a few folk remedies passed down by word of mouth.
Madam Jiang knew that Cyclobalanopsis acorns were edible and now said kudzu root was edible too. Perhaps she really knew something that could help Da Zhu’s condition!
Jiang Zhi pretended to think for a moment. She didn’t outright say she didn’t know.
The original character, being a mere sketch, naturally had no memories to recall. What Jiang Zhi was thinking of was modern medical knowledge: "Uncle Changgeng, don’t mind me being long-winded, but to treat an illness, we need to understand how Da Zhu was injured in the first place and what his current condition is like. Only then can we know which herbs might be effective!"
Xiaoman’s grandfather’s face wrinkled like a walnut shell again. He glanced at his eldest grandson in the corner of the shed, who seemed like a living corpse, then at the others waiting to eat, but said nothing more.
Jiang Zhi sensed he simply didn’t want to discuss it at that moment and let the matter drop.
Soon, the meat in the pot was stewed, and the kudzu root was cooked through. Each person received a large bowl, and they sat around the central fire pit, eating steaming hot food.
Having already experienced eating meat once before, this time, though they were just as ravenous, there was none of the initial frenzy. The only surprise came when they tasted the kudzu root—it was unexpectedly delicious.
With the added flavor of chopped scallions and leek leaves, it tasted even better.
Xu Errui stuffed a piece of kudzu root into his mouth, his cheeks bulging: "Mother, tomorrow I’ll go bring back the remaining kudzu roots first, then look for more meat."
His mother had said there were still kudzu roots left to retrieve, so he would fetch them first before attending to his own tasks.
Xiao Man, eating beside him, mumbled with his mouth full, "I’ll go too!"
Now he was also a laborer capable of supporting the family. The affairs of both households were one and the same.
In the corner of the shed, Xu Da Zhu was also eating, with Xiaoman's Grandmother serving him meat.
"Grandma, give me some Kudzu Root!" Xu Da Zhu had also heard Madam Jiang's simple words.
Whether it was hemiplegia or paralysis, he would eat anything that could cure him—he wanted to sit up again.
Xiaoman's Grandmother said, "Eat some meat first. You're too thin. Those things can wait for later!"
She wanted her grandson to eat more meat to nourish his body.
Meat was not common, and every meal was a rare opportunity. Since Kudzu Root was edible and plentiful in the mountains, they could always dig for more later.
Xu Da Zhu shook his head, avoiding the meat offered to him. Although the meat was good, he lacked the strength to chew it properly and couldn't swallow it, so he could only drink the broth.
Sigh!
Xiaoman's Grandmother's eyes welled up with tears. Her heart ached for her eldest grandson, who hadn't eaten anything good since his injury. His health was deteriorating day by day, and now, with the chaotic times, they couldn't even find a good doctor. How could he ever recover?
By the fire pit, Xiaoman's grandfather also put down his bowl and chopsticks. Watching his grandson only able to drink broth, he lost his appetite too.
Madam Jiang was right—if they kept hiding the illness and didn't even mention the symptoms, how would anyone know what herbs could cure it? They should try everything; maybe something would work.
So, Xiaoman's grandfather lowered his voice and briefly recounted the tragic incident from two years ago, which had devastated their family.
In truth, it was a fairly common medical case, summed up in just a few words.
One winter morning two years ago, Da Zhu's wife had already given birth to Nini and completed her postpartum confinement. Xu Da Zhu, exhausted from burning charcoal in the mountains, should have stayed overnight, but he worried about his wife, child, and elderly parents at home. Risking the journey, he carried a heavy basket of charcoal down the mountain in the dark and accidentally fell off a cliff.
He survived but injured his back. When he was first carried home, his legs still had some sensation, and they sought doctors from the town and county to treat him.
They spent all their savings, trying acupuncture and herbal remedies, following every piece of advice they were given.
But as treatment progressed, he completely lost feeling in his lower body, even losing control of his bowels and bladder, becoming completely paralyzed.
Xu Da Zhu was only twenty years old—a strong, energetic young man who had been the pillar of the family. He couldn't accept becoming disabled and attempted suicide several times, only to be persuaded to live by his wife's tearful pleas.
But his condition for living was that his wife, Chun Feng, should leave their child behind, return to her parents' home, and remarry, rather than waste her life with him.
In the first year, Chun Feng returned a few times, but Xu Da Zhu always drove her away with harsh words. In the past year, her family arranged another marriage for her, and she never came back.
Jiang Zhi sighed repeatedly as she listened.
In the hospital, every patient had a heartbreaking story behind them, and she had long grown numb to such tales, feeling nothing but sympathy.
But now, sharing hardships with Xiaoman's family, her feelings were different.
Jiang Zhi pondered Xu Da Zhu's condition. Although she hadn't asked about it directly, she had gathered from Xiaoman's occasional remarks that Xu Da Zhu could move his fingers and arms but not his legs, making him a severe paraplegic patient.
The golden period for treating spinal cord injuries was within the first six months. Missing that window meant there was almost no chance of a full recovery.
Xu Da Zhu had been ill for over two years, so treatment wasn't entirely hopeless, but the odds were slim.
Jiang Zhi believed that before any treatment, the most crucial step was to restore his body to a normal weight and improve his malnutrition so he would have the strength for rehabilitation and treatment.
But in their current situation, talking about nutritional supplementation felt like an impossible demand.
Looking into Xiaoman's grandfather's hopeful eyes, Jiang Zhi couldn't bring herself to lie.
He could only say, "Da Zhu's body is too weak. If he could regulate his health, regain the strength in his hands, he would be able to dress and eat on his own in the future."
Xu Da Zhu could only move his fingers now, and he lacked the will to live. If he could truly dress and eat by himself, achieving basic self-care, that would be equivalent to a successful recovery.
Sure enough, Xiaoman's grandfather's eyes dimmed, though he wasn't disappointed: "As long as Da Zhu can eat on his own and gain some weight, it's still better than now!"
He didn't dare to truly hope that his eldest grandson could be cured. The physician had already said that his grandson would remain paralyzed like this for the rest of his life. After dragging on for a few years, his body would stiffen and shrink, and he wouldn't survive.
Now, his grandson was already reduced to skin and bones, likely struggling to make it through this year. He truly couldn't bear the thought of burying a younger generation again in his old age.