Chapter 107: Taking Care of the Child 1/2

Diarrhea could be a serious matter.

When Jin Xiaoye was young, she would always have diarrhea whenever she attended banquets, and her uncle’s wife used to say that she didn’t have a prosperous life and couldn’t eat meat.

But it was just her stomach not getting used to it, and she would recover quickly.

But if the diarrhea was too severe… There were people in their village who lost their lives because of it.

“I’ll take her to the medical clinic. You guys continue working,” Jin Xiaoye said.

When Jin Xiaoye found Jin Mao’er, she realized that her condition was really bad. Her face was unusually pale. Jin Xiaoye didn’t dare delay and immediately carried her to the medical clinic.

Calling a doctor to the house requires extra money. When people in the county town fell ill, they usually went directly to the medical clinic.

Jin Mao’er was very light, and Jin Xiaoye didn’t feel her weight at all as she carried her swiftly.

“Shopkeeper, I’m sorry,” Jin Mao’er sobbed as she lay on Jin Xiaoye’s back.

“It’s okay; don’t be afraid. You’ll feel better after taking some medicine,” Jin Xiaoye reassured her.

Jin Mao’er fell silent. After a while, she began to murmur for her mother in a daze.

Jin Xiaoye felt uncomfortable hearing this. She was twelve years older than Jin Mao’er and knew about Jin Mao’er’s being sent to be a child bride when she was young.

In the countryside, some families treated their child brides well, treating them like their own daughters, and the girls had a better life than in their own homes.

But in some families, they treated the child brides like free servants, mistreating them in various ways and even physically abusing them.

The family Jin Mao’er encountered was not a good one.

Afterward, when she returned to her own home, she found that her family was too poor…

Jin Xiaoye soon arrived at the medical clinic.

Jin Mao’er’s illness wasn’t serious. The doctor prescribed some anti-diarrheal medicine and advised her to drink more water and eat light food. Then Jin Xiaoye returned home.

Feeling relieved, Jin Xiaoye carried Jin Mao’er back home and had someone prepare medicine for her. Then she went to see the other girls from Miaoqian Village and asked if they had hidden food like Jin Mao’er, but they refused to eat it.

As it turned out, the other two girls had also hidden eggs.

Jin Xiaoye was both angry and amused. She made them crack the eggs on the spot to make sure they weren’t spoiled before letting them eat. She warned them, “From now on, don’t hide your food. Eat when you’re supposed to. If I find out someone is still hiding food and not eating it, I won’t give you any next time.”

The children nodded repeatedly, promising not to hide food anymore.

Then Jin Xiaoye let them continue working. Seeing that the household thread was running out, she went out to buy more thread.

Buying thread inevitably led to buying some other things, and Jin Xiaoye ended up buying a basketful of goods without realizing it.

Passing by the dock, she decided to buy two buns to take back home.

Their family now had to cook for the female workers, which was quite troublesome. She couldn’t be bothered to cook anything else separately, so recently, her whole family had been eating the same food as the female workers.

Li Damao and Li Ermao had no objections to this, but when she thought about Li Qingzhi, not only did he cook several dishes when he was around, but he also bought snacks for the children from time to time.

Arriving at the dock, Jin Xiaoye immediately spotted Jin Moli and Jin Liushu.

Jin Moli and Jin Liushu had been doing business at the dock for several days now. Jin Xiaoye didn’t intentionally inquire about their situation, but Jin Liushu mentioned a few things.

Both of them used their own rice and vegetables for their businesses.

The Yao family didn’t mind at all. Although Jin Moli kept all the money she earned for herself, in their eyes, the money Jin Moli earned would eventually go to Yao Xiaobao, so it didn’t matter who held the money.

Of course, there was another reason they acted this way. After Yao Zhenfu returned home on the day of the county examination results, he shut himself in again…

Seeing their own son like this, Mr. Yao and his wife felt guilty when they saw their daughter-in-law. How could they dare to ask Jin Moli for money?

But the Jin family was different.

Their family indeed had surplus grain, and they couldn’t finish eating all the vegetables from their fields, but they had three brothers!

Jin Liushu used the grain and vegetables from their home to make money but didn’t give any money back to the family. Wasn’t this inappropriate?

When Jin Sangshu’s wife made a fuss, Jin Liushu had no choice but to give some money to the family. But even if he did…

These days, Jin Sangshu and Jin Zaoshu felt that the money he gave was too little, while he thought he had given quite a lot. Both sides inevitably argued.

“Big brother, Moli,” Jin Xiaoye greeted them. She found that they were selling simple meals, the appearance of which was average, and there were still a lot left.

“Xiaoye, have you eaten?” Jin Liushu asked with a smile, but Jin Moli turned her head away and didn’t look at Jin Xiaoye.

Jin Moli didn’t want to see Jin Xiaoye at all now. She felt that Jin Xiaoye was here to mock her.

By doing this food business, she was following in the footsteps of Jin Xiaoye from her previous life.

But Jin Xiaoye, from her past life, made a lot of money. Why couldn’t she earn any?

And the savory snacks that Jin Xiaoye made, especially later on, she didn’t know how Jin Xiaoye made them.

Now, there were also people selling savory snacks in Chongcheng County, but their snacks weren’t as delicious as Jin Xiaoye’s.

“I’ve eaten.” Jin Xiaoye smiled at Jin Liushu and went to the nearby stall to buy some buns.

Jin Moli couldn’t help but say, “Why is she buying other people’s things and not ours?”

Jin Liushu felt speechless at her words. “Moli, she can eat the food we sell at home, and she’ll definitely eat better. Why should she buy ours?”

But the other people’s buns were different. Most people in Chongcheng County couldn’t make buns.

Jin Moli knew this reason, but she couldn’t help feeling upset.

Just then, a dirty-looking young man of about seventeen or eighteen years old, with a faint odor, led a little girl to Jin Moli and the others. He took out a penny and asked, “Can I buy a penny’s worth of food?”

Jin Moli had always been quite clean. When she saw this young man, who was covered in dirt and had a smell, she couldn’t help but frown. “We sell dishes and rice together here. The cheapest one is two pennies.”

“I only have one penny. Can I buy some rice? I don’t want any dishes,” the young man asked in a low voice.

In the past, Jin Moli didn’t mind selling him a penny’s worth of rice. But just now, she had seen Jin Xiaoye, and her mood wasn’t good. She couldn’t help but look disgusted. “Go buy from someone else. Don’t block my business.”

The young man felt embarrassed and annoyed, gritted his teeth, and led the little girl away.

Jin Xiaoye had already bought the buns and happened to see this scene.

The young man was very thin, with messy hair and dirty, tattered clothes. But his eyes were bright. As for the little girl he was leading,. She was about the same age as Li Damao and Li Ermao, with a very bad complexion, as if she were sick.

“Never mind about that. The child still looks very scared, looking around in fear.

Jin Xiaoye suddenly remembered the time when Jin Mao’er lay on her back and called her ‘mother.’

It’s not easy…

When Jin Xiaoye bought buns, she also bought a steamed bun. She originally intended to eat it herself, but now she took it out and handed it to the girl, then asked the boy, ‘Is this your sister?’

The boy shook his head and said, ‘She’s my niece.’

The girl hugged the boy’s leg tightly and didn’t let go, nor did she take the steamed bun from Jin Xiaoye. Jin Xiaoye then gave the steamed bun to the boy, saying, ‘Where are your family members? Your niece is sick; it’s best to take her to see a doctor.’

The boy took the steamed bun and handed it to his niece, and only then did the girl cautiously start eating it.

At that moment, the boy suddenly said, ‘Big sister, I’ll give my niece to you. Just give her some food to eat.’

Jin Xiaoye was momentarily taken aback. She had only pitied the girl and gave her a steamed bun; how could someone want to give their niece to her?

The girl burst into tears at these words: ‘Uncle, I don’t eat much; please don’t abandon me… Uncle, you eat…’

While crying, the girl also handed the steamed bun that she had taken a bite of to the boy.

‘Even if you eat less, I can’t afford to raise you,’ the boy said harshly, then looked hopefully at Jin Xiaoye.

‘Is there trouble in your family?’ Jin Xiaoye asked.