Chapter 54: Trouble with Medicine

In the afternoon, Wen Jiajia felt sleepy and took a nap on the bed.

Wei Dai was working on his crib again, applying the final layer of tung oil. Tung oil has a strong smell that dissipates faster if applied early.

His wife had mentioned that some people are allergic to tung oil and suggested using wood wax oil instead. Although Wei Dai didn’t understand why someone would be allergic to tung oil, he tried to find wood wax oil. However, many carpenters hadn’t heard of it, so he had to give up and prepare to make a backup crib.

After applying the tung oil, Wei Dai put the fruit charcoal Wen Jiajia had brought back into the utility room. She had thrown it into the corner of the living room, and Wen Xuan had accidentally stepped on a piece, breaking it into bits.

The charcoal was good, and he used a few pieces in the stove. After lighting them, there was minimal smoke.

With a bright fire burning, Wei Dai placed a casserole on top, poured in the melted brown sugar water, and added red dates to simmer. He believed drinking brown sugar and red date soup could replenish qi and blood.

Wen Jiajia woke up not long after her nap. When she opened the door, the strong smell of brown sugar and red dates hit her.

“Why are we making sweet soup all of a sudden?” She rubbed her eyes, still dazed, but the cold wind from the open door made her more alert.

Wen Jiajia straightened her collar and closed the door tightly.

“It’s for you to drink,” Wei Dai said, opening the door slightly for ventilation. “I’m burning charcoal.”

Wen Jiajia went to the kitchen, put a rag on her hand, and opened the lid of the casserole. The brown sugar water was boiling, and the sweet smell was especially inviting in winter.

She chuckled, “Another egg?”

Wei Dai looked helpless. “Aren’t you going to eat tonight?”

Wen Jiajia closed the lid and touched her stomach. “I really don’t have much of an appetite for dinner.”

After lunch, she had done no exercise and had just lain in bed. The lunch was still sitting in her stomach.

She sat on the sofa, propped up her head, and watched Wei Dai sawing wood as he prepared to make another crib.

Wen Jiajia suggested, “It might be better to build a cabinet. We don’t have enough storage at home.”

For example, the wardrobe in their room could only hold their clothes. If they bought more clothes in the future, they wouldn’t have enough space to hang them.

Wei Dai attentively measured lengths and said, “I’ll make a cabinet. After the wardrobe is finished, I’ll make a baby carriage.”

“…”

“Okay, as long as you’re happy,” Wen Jiajia said, though she was left speechless. She was still eager to find more tasks for herself.

Wei Dai smiled and said, “Who was looking for you outside before you went to bed? It sounded like Chen Da’s mother.”

Wen Jiajia gave a thumbs-up. “You’re right. You can even tell that. But I don’t know whose mother it was. I do know whose grandmother it is. It’s the fat kid’s.”

“The one with the really big ears?” Wei Dai lowered his head, measured the wood, drew a line with a pen, and picked up the saw.

Wen Jiajia recalled and nodded. “Yes, that’s right. His name is Zude. He was the child who went fishing in the deep river in August. The logistics staff caught him and made him stand in the corner as punishment.”

She remembered it clearly because that day was Army Day.

At that time, Wei Dai was extremely busy, leaving early and returning late every day. Others were similarly occupied. Teacher Shen next door mentioned he hadn’t seen Xie Yang for three days. It wasn’t that Xie Yang didn’t come back, but he returned late at night and left early in the morning. Living in the same room but not seeing each other for three days showed just how busy he was.

It was an exceptionally hot period, and Wen Chun and Wen Xuan couldn’t stand the heat, so they went to the shallow river area to play after dinner every day. The two sisters knew their limits, so Wen Jiajia didn’t stop them.

One day, she heard someone shouting that a child had climbed over the railing and swum into the deep river. Terrified, she dropped the clothes she was holding and rushed to the river.

The child was Xiaopang. Wen Jiajia saw the slightly chubby child being grabbed by the collar and dragged back by the logistics staff. Once onshore, he was slapped twice on the buttocks and punished to stand for half an hour. His legs were covered with mosquito bites, looking like corns.

The mosquito bites on her own legs and ears made her think of Tutu, the big-eared cartoon character from decades later. Wen Jiajia was deeply impressed by this.

Wei Dai commented, “That’s right. This old lady is quite reasonable, but she has a bad temper and isn’t very popular in the family area.”

Wen Jiajia agreed. The couple was gossiping about the old lady when someone knocked on the door again.

It was Sister Bao.

“You two are living well these days. The house is warm, and there’s brown sugar water boiling,” Sister Bao said, coming in with peanuts. She grabbed a handful from her pocket and handed them to Wen Jiajia. “I just fried these yesterday. Try them and see if they’re fragrant.”

With a crunch, Wen Jiajia pinched open the peanut shell and ate two peanuts. They were indeed crispy and fragrant.

She praised, “Sister Bao, your peanuts are perfectly fried. Every time I fry them, I always overcook them.”

Wei Dai glanced at her.

He thought, What the heck? You’ve only ever made boiled peanuts.

At home, the peanuts are always dried and then boiled in water, never fried.

Sister Bao smiled. “It’s okay. When you need to do it, call me, and I’ll teach you.”

Before Wen Jiajia could thank her, Sister Bao asked, “Did Chen Da’s mother come to see you just now?”

Wen Jiajia nodded. “Yes, Xiaopang vomited, so she came to ask.”

Sister Bao curled her lips. “That person is so unreasonable. What does her child’s vomiting have to do with the children he plays with?”

“But…” she added, “I took a look and saw that Xiaopang was vomiting quite badly. He was sent to the infirmary.”

The army has both a hospital and an infirmary. Minor illnesses and injuries are usually treated in the infirmary. Hospital resources are limited, and the infirmary is often empty unless it’s late at night.

Wen Jiajia was surprised. “Did they say why? I asked Wen Chun and Wen Xuan, and they said it wasn’t because of sprouted potatoes.”

“Who knows? The child was in a bad mood today. He fell and vomited, and he mentioned a headache.”

Wen Jiajia had a sudden thought. “Could it be related to the red medicine?”

“Who knows?” Sister Bao shrugged.

Wen Jiajia was certain. “It’s definitely related.”

Wen Chun had mentioned that Gao Fei went home to get medicine for him. Since Xiaopang was injured in a fall, he must have had red medicine applied. Wen Jiajia wasn’t sure if it was connected to the red medicine, but mercury poisoning was a rare event.

She decided not to tell others just yet. If she could think of mercurochrome, surely the doctors would consider it too.

As expected, after examining Xiaopang’s knee wound, the doctor in the infirmary suspected mercury poisoning. Further examination was needed to confirm it.

The doctor said, “You need to go to the hospital. A thorough checkup will confirm it.”

Aunt Chen’s face turned pale. “How could he be poisoned? Why would he get poisoned for no reason? Please explain. Is it mercury or not? What is this?”

The doctor patiently explained, “It’s mercurochrome. There’s mercury in mercurochrome. Very few people get poisoned from it. But young comrade Chen Zude might have been unlucky. He got poisoned after using it. I’ve cleaned his wound, but for safety, you should go to the hospital as soon as possible.”

“Also, you mustn’t carry him in your arms or on your back. He should be carried on a stretcher, and it must be done steadily,” the doctor added.

Aunt Chen was even more shocked. In her view, the need for a stretcher was concerning.

She grabbed her grandson’s hand and nodded quickly, tears streaming down her face. “Okay, okay, I’ll go right away.”

The doctor sighed and asked a strong female comrade from the crowd of onlookers to help carry Xiaopang.

Soon, Xiaopang was transferred to the hospital.

The news of his mercury poisoning spread quickly among the onlookers.

The family members never expected that this could cause poisoning, so Sister Hong’s family was the first to suffer.

“Sister Hong, you didn’t tell us that this could cause poisoning. How can we use something that can cause poisoning?” Someone came to Sister Hong’s house with red medicine bought from her and stood at her door, shouting.

“Yes, Xiaopang was vomiting so much that the doctor said it was mercury poisoning. His wound is still swollen, and he’s been taken to the hospital. We don’t know if he can be saved.”

This was a rather immoral remark, and the people around couldn’t help but roll their eyes.

The right approach would have been to address the issue calmly. The person who made such a statement was in the wrong for cursing other people’s children in this manner.

In reality, the doctor in the infirmary was in a relatively stable mood. He did not accompany the child to the hospital nor call the child’s parents, indicating that the situation was not critical. Aunt Chen was worried and confused, but anyone with a little sense among the onlookers would have understood this.

Sister Hong was stunned when she heard this. She didn’t react immediately. It wasn’t until someone explained the situation to her that she realized what had happened that day.

But she was not one to back down easily. She immediately retorted, “What does this have to do with me? Go to the hospital and see if they don’t have red medicine there! Are you implying that I’m responsible for this? Have you never used red medicine before?”

It was true that the medicine used in hospitals is also mercurochrome.

However, some people still had doubts and speculated that maybe Sister Hong sold inferior red medicine. They wondered why such a problem occurred with her mercurochrome but not with the hospital’s.

Someone made this speculation.

Sister Hong spat in frustration. “That’s also a human issue. Are you all going to get poisoned like Xiaopang?”

She insisted that all the red medicine in the city came from the same pharmaceutical factory and was produced in the same workshop. Therefore, it should be of the same quality.

Sister Hong was right in asserting this. Most people understood that the issue likely had nothing to do with her.

However, there were those who knew the law and understood that if there were a real need for investigation, Sister Hong would be held fully responsible.

After all, selling drugs privately might be tolerated if nothing goes wrong, but if a problem arises, it could lead to illegal drug sales and severe penalties.

A smart person stayed behind after the crowd dispersed to give Sister Hong a warning.

“You should be careful. Although private trading in our compound isn’t a big deal, this involves medicine. If anything goes wrong, it will definitely be a serious matter. It depends on whether the Chen family will pursue it. If they don’t, this issue will likely end here. If they do, it could be reported to the authorities.”

After giving the warning, the person left, leaving Sister Hong to sit in stunned silence.

Gao Fei, who had listened to the entire exchange, dared not move. She hid behind the door, fear in her eyes and tears streaming uncontrollably. She felt responsible for the trouble.

But Sister Hong didn’t blame her. She pulled her daughter close and patted her head. “Stay at home and take good care of your sister. Mom will be out for a while.”

Gao Fei’s eyes reddened as she nodded quickly.

Sister Hong left the house and headed towards Beishan.