Chapter 3

Ye Xiaoxiao knew they were worried about money, so she took the initiative to say, “I brought some money with me when I came, enough for an emergency. Fourth brother got sick because of me falling into the river. If anything happens, I’ll feel guilty for the rest of my life. Let me go with you.”

Hearing Ye Xiaoxiao’s firm voice, Ye Jianguo pondered for a moment before agreeing, “The mountain road is not easy to walk. If you regret it halfway, there’s no one to send you back.”

Actually, it wasn’t about worrying about money, Ye Jianguo was more worried that this child wanted to run away.

Wouldn’t that just cause trouble?

Besides, the mountain road was indeed very difficult to walk. This girl might not be able to handle it. He wondered how she managed to get to the village alone back then.

Although Ye Jianguo had a stern face and looked serious, Ye Xiaoxiao knew that this head of the family, despite his unsmiling appearance, actually cared about his children.

“I know.” Ye Xiaoxiao nodded firmly.

Before leaving the house, Miao Cuifang tried to persuade Ye Xiaoxiao to stay for a long time, but she had no choice but to put on the rabbit fur hat and scarf from home for her, reminding her to be careful on the road before letting her leave.

However, Ye Xiaoxiao still underestimated the ruggedness of the rural mountain roads in the 1980s. Because the main road was very far away, people in the village usually took the mountain road over the Big Stone Ridge to go to town.

The snow in the mountains was deep, and Ye Xiaoxiao had to pull her feet out like pulling radishes with each step.

Ye Changqing and Ye Changyuan, who were pulling the cart in front, walked much faster than her.

While Ye Xiaoxiao struggled to walk, Ye Jianguo was secretly observing her.

Ye Jianguo had been a soldier in his youth, so he had sharp observation skills. He was certain that this girl was different from before.

He didn’t know if she had figured things out, but she seemed calmer now.

She was more pleasing to the eye than when she first arrived.

He didn’t know how long they had been walking, but Ye Xiaoxiao felt like her feet were numb. “Are we almost there?”

“We’re still far away. We’ll be going downhill soon. After the downhill, it’s another twenty miles.”

Ye Changyuan’s voice disappeared into the north wind, chilling Ye Xiaoxiao’s heart.

Ye Jianguo shouted, “Be careful going downhill, don’t roll down.”

Ye Xiaoxiao then remembered that Ye Jianguo died when he slipped and fell on the downhill road.

“Xiaoxiao, why don’t you get on the cart too?”

Ye Changqing said to the little girl.

At first, he was shocked to learn that his little sister, whom he had loved for over ten years, wasn’t his biological sibling. But after Ye Xiaoxiao came to Baishi Village, perhaps due to blood ties, he accepted this sister from the city without much hesitation.

Since she was part of the Ye family, he, as the elder brother, should protect her.

Ye Xiaoxiao quickly waved her hand, “I can still hold on.”

As if to prove herself, she took a few quick steps, until Ye Jianguo pulled her back.

“The downhill road is even more dangerous, walk slowly behind me.”

Ye Jianguo led the way, constantly using a stick to check for snow pits.

They set off in the morning, and by the time they reached the town clinic, it was already noon.

Ye Xiaoxiao was now tired and hungry, but she still wanted to persuade them to go directly to the county.

“Fourth brother just has a fever. Let’s go to the clinic and get him a shot first. If his fever doesn’t go down, we’ll go to the hospital,” Ye Jianguo said.

Ye Xiaoxiao had to compromise, but she remembered that Ye Changsheng became paralyzed and had muscle atrophy because of the clinic doctor’s malpractice, so she decided to stay by his side at all times.

The town clinic was small, with only two doctors on duty.

The female doctor saw Ye Changsheng’s condition and hurriedly asked the family to carry him to the bed, “He’s delirious with fever, he needs a fever-reducing shot.”

The female doctor went out to get medicine, and then a male doctor wearing glasses came in.

Ye Xiaoxiao didn’t know who the unscrupulous doctor mentioned in the book was, so she could only keep a close eye on his movements.

Ye Changqing unbuttoned his brother’s pants and pulled them down.

Seeing Ye Xiaoxiao’s piercing gaze, he felt a little embarrassed and reminded her, “Xiaoxiao, why don’t you go sit outside.”

“No…”

How could Ye Xiaoxiao leave?

As the doctor was about to stick the long needle into Ye Changsheng’s butt, Ye Xiaoxiao suddenly pushed him away.

The medical equipment in the 1980s was not comparable to that of decades later, but Ye Xiaoxiao couldn’t be wrong about the injection technique. This doctor was the unprofessional one!

“What are you doing? Little guy, don’t cause trouble!”

The male doctor was annoyed, but seeing that Ye Xiaoxiao was just a white and tender little girl, his anger subsided a little.

Ye Xiaoxiao scratched her head, “Doctor, I know how to give injections too. Why don’t I do it?”

The male doctor and everyone else looked at her with disbelief.

“I really know how,” Ye Xiaoxiao gritted her teeth, “Anyway, I won’t let anyone touch my brother!”

The male doctor asked in disbelief, “Are you crazy?”

Ye Xiaoxiao suddenly reached out and snatched the syringe from the doctor’s hand. Then, she skillfully used tweezers to pick up an alcohol swab, wiped it on Ye Changsheng’s butt, found the right spot, and pushed the medicine in.

Her movements were smooth and efficient. Finally, she remembered to pull up Ye Changsheng’s half-pulled pants.

Ye Changsheng opened his eyes and saw his cheap sister pulling up his pants. He immediately wished he could faint again.

“Nonsense! Absolutely nonsense!”

The male doctor was furious after reacting.

“Doctor, you’ve worked hard. There are so many patients here who need your care. I’m just helping you share the workload. You go and rest.”

Ye Xiaoxiao handed the syringe back to the doctor, gave the angry man a beautiful smile, making the most of her white moonlight female lead aura.

“You! You! You…”

The man stammered for a long time without saying a word. Finally, he turned around angrily and left.

Ye Changqing reacted to what had happened, “Xiaoxiao, you…”

“Big brother, I learned medicine from my master in Beijing. If we didn’t have medicine at home, we wouldn’t have to come so far.”

Since the Ye family didn’t know Ye Xiaoxiao’s background, she could make up whatever she wanted without worrying about being exposed.

Ye Jianguo and Ye Changyuan, who were resting outside, hurriedly lifted the curtain, but they didn’t know what had happened before.

“Sheng’er is awake!”

Ye Changyuan shouted.

Ye Changsheng, who wanted to continue pretending to be asleep: “…”

Ye Xiaoxiao ignored everyone else’s concern for Ye Changsheng. The clinic had a stove, so it was quite warm. After coming in for a while, the snow on her body had melted, her feet were cold and wet. She found a spot by the stove to warm herself.

Two hours later, Ye Changsheng still had a fever, but his temperature had gone down.

More and more people came to the clinic. There were no overnight facilities, so people usually left after getting their injections and infusions.

Ye Xiaoxiao stood up and stretched, “Where are we staying tonight? Is there a guesthouse here?”

Ye Jianguo, “Sheng’er is not well yet. The doctor said he needs a few more shots. We’ll stay at your maternal grandfather’s place for the night.”

Ye Xiaoxiao then remembered that her mother, Miao Cuifang, was from this town. Her father, Miao Fengshan, was originally a teacher, but he was severely persecuted during the special period. After being rehabilitated, he lived alone in the town, receiving a pension of over ten yuan a month, enough for him to live on.

“Oh…”

In the original text, this old man was only introduced as a background character, and Ye Xiaoxiao didn’t know his personality.

She nodded. While everyone else was packing things for Ye Changsheng, she went to the medicine dispensing room.