Upon hearing these words, Qian Hongmei’s already pale face turned even paler.

Doctor Jian’s medicine was still manageable; even if she had no money, she could owe him first.

But if they really had to go to Renhetang, how much silver would that cost?

Besides, she might not even have the money for the journey to Renhetang.

It would take at least half an hour to reach Quanyong County from here, and without an ox cart, how could she possibly take Jian Ming there?

Doctor Jian, of course, understood Qian Hongmei’s concerns.

Shaking his head helplessly, he walked over to Jian Dashan and carefully took his pulse.

“Your father-in-law is in better condition, but he can’t afford any more delays. I’ll prescribe some medicine for him—have him take two doses and see if it helps.”

“Alright, thank you, Doctor Jian. What about my mother? How is she?” Qian Hongmei asked, forcing herself to stay strong.

Right now, she had no other wishes—she just hoped that Jian Ming would stop bleeding after drinking Doctor Jian’s medicine.

She was the only adult left in the household. Her son was still young; he had cried himself to sleep earlier and was now lying on the ground.

Her second daughter, Jie-jie, and youngest daughter, Ting-jie, were watching over him.

Thankfully, her children were obedient.

If they weren’t, she really wouldn’t know what to do.

Thinking of her eldest daughter, Fen-jie, Qian Hongmei’s tears fell uncontrollably.

They had taken her eldest daughter away, and her fate was now unimaginable.

Meanwhile, her husband, father-in-law, and mother-in-law were all lying here unconscious.

She didn’t even know what to do anymore.

“Your mother-in-law is fine, just weak from hunger. Give her some food, and she’ll recover soon,” Doctor Jian said gently.

Hearing this, Qian Hongmei forced a bitter smile.

She knew all too well about their family’s situation.

Forget about nourishing food—just having something to fill their stomachs was already a luxury.

Not just for the adults—even the children had not eaten for an entire day.

Zhang Xuemei, who was standing nearby, noticed Qian Hongmei’s distress and quickly said, “Sister-in-law, don’t worry. I’ll bring over two steamed buns in a while.”

“How can I accept that? You need to eat too—”

“It’s fine! Missing one or two meals won’t hurt us,” Zhang Xuemei said with a cheerful smile.

With that, she hurried toward the door.

Zhang Xuemei had been married into Jianjia Village for several months now, and she was well aware of the Jian family’s situation.

Her house was not far from Qian Hongmei’s, so before long, she returned with half a large steamed bun.

Seeing this, Qian Hongmei immediately understood.

Noticing the marks on Zhang Xuemei’s hands, how could she not know?

Zhang Xuemei had occasionally given her children food before.

But her own in-laws were not well-off either.

And Zhang Xuemei herself had been unlucky—married for several months and still without a child.

Her father-in-law and mother-in-law were already showing their discontent.

Now, she was bringing food to Qian Hongmei again—there was no doubt she had been beaten by her mother-in-law for it.

“Sister-in-law, hurry and give some to Auntie, and to the children too…”

After saying this, Zhang Xuemei went to the backyard to fetch some water.

“Sister-in-law, quickly, give Auntie some water—her lips are already dry.”

Qian Hongmei took the water, sniffled, and said, “Xuemei, I can handle things here. You and Fuyin should go back.”

As she spoke, she glanced at the spot where Jian Fuyin had been standing earlier.

But he was already gone.

Realizing this, Zhang Xuemei suddenly cried out, “Oh no!” and ran outside.

There was no need to guess—Jian Fuyin must have seen the wounds on her hands and gone to confront his mother-in-law.

Once the house was quiet again, Qian Hongmei finally broke down, sobbing.

“Mother… Mother, don’t cry, please don’t cry…” Jie-jie whispered.

As she spoke, she stretched out her thin little hand to wipe the tears from her mother’s face.

“Mother won’t cry.. Mother won’t cry…” Qian Hongmei choked out.

“Mother, when will big sister come back?” Ting-jie asked timidly.

She was already six years old and understood many things.

She had seen her eldest sister taken away, and she probably knew what it meant.

She just didn’t want to believe it.

“She will, big sister will definitely come back!” Qian Hongmei reassured her youngest daughter gently.

After saying this, she recalled Doctor Jian’s words and turned to Jie-jie.

“Jie-jie, watch over your brother. I’m going to ask the village head to lend me an ox cart!”

In Jianjia Village, only the village head had an ox. Usually, renting it for a day cost twelve copper coins.

She didn’t even know if the village head would lend it to her—but she had to try, didn’t she?

Doctor Jian had said that if Jian Ming’s bleeding didn’t stop, he would have to be taken to Renhetang in Quanyong County.

And by then, he might not survive.

She couldn’t take that risk—he was the pillar of their family.

If something happened to him, their whole family wouldn’t survive either.

“Mother, go quickly!” Jie-jie said, her eyes red.

She was eight years old—she understood.

She had understood Doctor Jian’s words.

And she had understood what the scar-faced man had said earlier.

If they still couldn’t pay back the money, she would suffer the same fate as her eldest sister.

Hearing Jie-jie’s words, Qian Hongmei endured the pain in her abdomen and walked toward the door.

The scar-faced man’s kick had been heavy—she still felt the ache.

But she had no time to care about that.

The most important thing now was Jian Ming.

When Jian Xiu and the others arrived, the first thing they saw was Qian Hongmei’s hurried figure.

Watching her staggering steps, Jian Xiu instinctively frowned.

“Big Aunt!” Liu Tou called out first.

Hearing the voice, Qian Hongmei visibly hesitated, but she didn’t turn back and continued walking forward.

Seeing this, Jian Xiu immediately shouted, “Sister-in-law!”

She shouted loudly—Qian Hongmei couldn’t possibly not hear her.

Sure enough, after hearing the voice, Qian Hongmei turned around instantly.

“Jian Xiu? You’re here?” Her face was filled with disbelief.

It was as if she couldn’t believe Jian Xiu would come at this moment.

Qian Hongmei knew Jian Xiu’s situation very well.

It was spring plowing season—how could she have the time to return to her maiden home?

Wasn’t it already difficult enough just to survive her mother-in-law’s torment?