Chapter 5 I… I studied… Western medicine

On the way, Ming Leyao had already thought of a countermeasure. She turned on her heel with her things in hand and headed straight to a crowded place, her face filled with sorrow and tears welling up in her eyes. She looked as pitiful as could be.

“Hey? Leyao, what happened to you?”

Hearing someone call her, Ming Leyao was secretly pleased—here it comes…

“Auntie Wu… sob sob sob…” As soon as she called out, her tears fell like a string of pearls snapping, streaming down her cheeks.

She had perfected this move over the years. In her previous life, whenever she got tired of memorizing prescriptions, she’d use this trick to win her grandfather’s sympathy so she could take a break. Grandpa always knew she was acting, but he still fell for it every time. It had become a kind of special bond between them.

“Oh dear, Leyao! What’s wrong? What happened? Tell Auntie.”

This auntie’s maiden name was He, married to the fifth son of the Wang family from Shangjiaqiao brigade, so everyone just called her “Auntie Wu.” She had a good heart, though her only flaw was that she liked to gossip. But that was understandable. In these times, there weren’t many sources of entertainment. People either looked after the family or toiled in the fields. To relieve their boredom, they had to make their own fun.

“Auntie… do you know where the house my grandparents built for my uncle is?”

“Eh? That house… why do you ask…”

“Grandma said… Grandma said now that I’m injured and can’t work, she didn’t want to keep feeding me for free, so… she kicked me out. She only gave me ten jin of grain. How am I supposed to survive…”

“That old hag! It’s not even surprising she’d do something like that. Poor Leyao. Come on, Auntie will take you there so you can settle down.”

“Thank you, Auntie.”

Still sniffling and sobbing, Leyao followed Auntie Wu toward the edge of the village.

Right after they left, two people emerged from a low house nearby.

“Tsk tsk, that old woman from the Ming family really is something else. I heard before she was stingy and harsh, but to force her son and daughter-in-law to death, and now to mistreat the only child they left behind… is that even something a human being would do?”

Meng Chaoqing was full of indignation. But suddenly he noticed the person beside him hadn’t responded at all. Turning to look at Fu Wencheng, he saw him staring into the distance, lost in thought.

That woman… yesterday, she was calm and decisive treating his wounds. Today, she was sobbing like a poor little thing. And the other day, she cleverly defused a crisis.

How many faces did this woman have?

Meanwhile, when Ming Leyao arrived at the yard with Auntie Wu, she froze in place.

Where was the house? Where was the big mud-brick house she remembered?

Could it be the original host’s memory was wrong? She distinctly remembered there being a house before.

“Auntie… this…”

Her voice trembled—not from sadness, but from fury. That old witch! That old hag! So wicked! No wonder she had so “generously” agreed to give her a house. Turns out there was no house at all—just a bare, empty yard.

“Ahem… I forgot to mention… back when your grandma’s family was building a new house, they didn’t have money, so they took the mud bricks from here to use…”

“……”

“I… I…”

“Oh no, don’t cry, don’t cry. The weather’s been good lately. Building a new mud-brick house won’t take long—five days, tops. After drying it for two or three more days, you’ll be able to move in.”

“Auntie, does my grandma really hate me that much? But I’m useful… I don’t cost anything all year round. I wear my cousins’ hand-me-downs, eat their leftovers. Sometimes when there’s not enough food, I don’t even get a meal. They take my parents’ support money and buy new clothes and meat for Red Bean and Moon Lotus. Am I not worthy? sob sob sob…”

“Oh, sweetie… my poor, poor girl. Your grandma doesn’t dislike you—she’s just that selfish by nature. Your fourth uncle’s kids didn’t have it any better. Alright now, don’t cry. Let’s go talk to the brigade leader, maybe he can think of something to help you out.”

“Thank you, Auntie.”

Ming Leyao left her things in the yard and followed Auntie Wu to find the brigade leader. After thinking for a moment, the leader gave them a solution.

“I’ll report your situation to the commune and see if they can issue you the stipend for this year and the next two years all at once. That’s sixty yuan—more than enough to build a house.”

“Yes, yes! That’s a good idea. My husband knows how to make mud bricks. He can help too.”

“Thank you, Auntie. Thank you, Uncle Brigade Leader.”

Pang Jianyuan rushed to the commune to report Ming Leyao’s situation. The commune director listened, then fell silent for a while.

“I remember Ming Shi is Ming Leyao’s uncle, right?”

“Yes, Director.”

“Didn’t people used to say he treated his niece really well?”

“Pfft, Director, that Ming family eldest son… he’s no easy character.”

Pang Jianyuan had no desire to work with someone like Ming Shi. Just watching the way he operated made his head hurt. So if there was a chance to undermine him, he wasn’t going to pass it up.

“I was actually considering appointing him as the brigade secretary. But now it seems… he does his public image well enough to fool even me.”

“The way Leyao lived in that family… I’m embarrassed to even talk about it. The only reason Ming Shi kept her around was because of the money. She never saw a single cent of those years of stipends. And when it came time to divide the family, they didn’t say a word about it.”

“Well, well, it’s rare to see you this angry,” the commune director said, his gentle square face carrying a hint of teasing.

That afternoon, after returning to Shangjiaqiao Brigade, Pang Jianyuan immediately began arranging the construction of a new house for Ming Leyao. He found a few efficient workers, agreed on the price, and had several cartloads of loess soil delivered that very day to start making mud bricks.

Also that afternoon, the Ming family’s behavior quietly began to spread throughout Shangjiaqiao Brigade. So by the time Old Lady Ming was crying and accusing Ming Leyao of being ungrateful, no one believed her anymore.

Ming Shi was also called into the brigade leader’s office, where he got a long lecture on morality and responsibility. When he got home, he exploded in rage—even Ming Yuehe and Ming Hongdou each got slapped hard.

That night, Ming Leyao stayed at the brigade leader’s house, sharing a bed with his wife.

Pang Jianyuan’s wife, Li Fang, was a talkative woman who chatted with Ming Leyao until after 9 p.m. In the end, she couldn’t keep her eyes open and began snoring mid-sentence.

Listening to the snoring, Ming Leyao couldn’t sleep soundly. When she woke up the next morning, there were faint dark circles under her eyes.

After breakfast, Pang Jianyuan went to the brigade office. Ming Leyao helped Li Fang tidy up the house before heading to her new place to join in the mud brick work. As noon approached, Pang Jianyuan arrived with Meng Chaoqing.

“Leyao? Leyao?”

“Yes, Uncle Brigade Leader.”

“Leyao, Dr. Meng is going to the county to purchase some medicine. He needs someone who can read, and since you’re educated and don’t have much going on right now, I thought of recommending you. Would you like to go with him?”

“Sure…”

Ming Leyao knew this man was likely someone sent by Fu Wencheng, so she readily agreed. After washing her hands and face, she followed Meng Chaoqing into town.

Shangjiaqiao Brigade was part of the Hongqi Commune, under the jurisdiction of Qiping County. The county only had one hospital and a modest little traditional Chinese medicine shop.

Ming Leyao’s target was that very herbal shop.

“You really don’t need me to go in with you?”

“No need. It’s a private formula. Can’t let it out.”

“Ay, it’s not like I want to steal your recipe. I just want to see and learn a bit.”

“Oh? The famous Dr. Meng of Shangjiaqiao Brigade wants to learn from me? What an honor for this little woman.”

Meng Chaoqing: “…”

The way she spoke now, all sarcastic and cheeky, had absolutely nothing in common with the crying girl from yesterday. It made him question if this really was the same person.

While he stood there dumbfounded, Ming Leyao had already walked into the herbal shop and handed over a list for the clerk to prepare.

Meng Chaoqing scratched his head, feeling like this woman’s thoughts were impossible to guess. He just stood obediently at the door waiting for her.

Ten minutes later, Ming Leyao came out carrying over a dozen paper medicine packets, which she promptly tossed into the basket behind Meng Chaoqing.

“Aren’t you being a bit unfair here?”

“Oh? So you don’t want to carry them then?”

“Fine, pretend I didn’t say anything.”

“You can go handle your business now. I still have some other things to do.”

“Alright then. Let’s meet at the supply and marketing cooperative entrance at 3 p.m.”

“Okay.”

With that, she turned and left—neat and efficient.

Only after she was gone did Meng Chaoqing realize something—Ming Leyao probably didn’t have a watch. How would she know the time? Oh well, worst case, he’d just wait for her a bit.

After parting ways with Meng Chaoqing, Ming Leyao found a secluded spot to change her appearance. She pulled out a basket from her storage space, which contained prepared meat and dried noodles. Then she strolled casually around the county town until she stopped at the family compound next to the textile factory.

She glanced around and spotted a kind-looking older woman. Quietly approaching her, she lifted the cloth over her basket and softly asked:

“Ma’am, home-raised eggs. Want some?”

“So big??”

The woman’s eyes widened like the eggs themselves when she looked inside the basket.

“Auntie, my hens are fed really well. These eggs are super nutritious. Seven cents each with ration coupons, ten cents without.”

“You really dare to ask this price, girl.”

The woman’s mouth twitched, but she still looked tempted. The eggs were high quality—it was just the price that gave her pause.

“Auntie, these eggs are twice as good as the supply store’s. And I’m only charging two cents more. You’re actually getting a deal.”

“Alright then… I’ll take twenty. No coupons.”

Quickly, Ming Leyao placed twenty eggs into the woman’s basket and took two yuan in return. Then, she quietly asked:

“Auntie, need any refined grain?”

“Yes, yes! You have some?”

“Premium noodles made with fine flour. Interested?”

As she spoke, she pulled a roll of snow-white noodles wrapped in clean paper from her basket.

“Yes, yes, yes! I haven’t seen noodles this white in ages.”

“One yuan per roll without ration coupons. Eighty cents with.”

“Alright, come home with me. Let’s sit and talk properly.”

“Okay.”

Ming Leyao wasn’t worried the woman might try anything shady. She only knew a bit of flashy self-defense, but it was enough to escape if she needed to.