The Daily Life of a Down-on-Hard-Life Medicine Girl Supporting Her Family

Xiao Hu took Chun Nuan to see Aunt Ma.

This is also a three-room house, but the difference is that the other house is much larger and brighter, and there are fewer people living there.

“Grandpa Ma and Grandma Ma live in the village with several children. Uncle Ma and Aunt Ma live here.” Xiao Hu said, “Aunt Ma is the best. Sister, you must save her.”

"Okay, I'll do my best."

As soon as Xiao Hu entered the door, he shouted, "Aunt Ma, I've brought my older sister to see you."

"Who is it?"

The voice coming from inside the house was faint: "There's no one else here, come in."

"Auntie, it's me, Xiaohu." Xiaohu lifted the curtain and let Chunnuan in first: "Auntie, Uncle Ma said you're sick. My sister knows how to treat illnesses and has come to help you."

The room was well-lit, and Chunnuan immediately noticed the woman on the bed with a large, protruding belly.

"Little Tiger," the woman said weakly, "it's been quite a while since I've seen you. Where...where did you get your older sister?"

Xiao Hu was an orphan who lost both his parents at a young age. He was always single and never had anyone to worry about. The "older sister" he called out to were all the girls in the village, but the one in front of him was clearly not one of them.

"She's my new older sister, and she's incredibly skilled at healing."

"You child..." Aunt Ma sighed, "I'm afraid my illness is incurable."

"Aunt Ma, your belly is so big, are you pregnant with another baby boy or girl?"

Xiao Hu also saw Aunt Ma's prominent belly: "When will he be born? I want to play with him, I will protect him and not let anyone bully him."

"You're so kind. I don't even know when he'll be born." Aunt Ma smiled bitterly. "I've been pregnant for over two years, but I can't give birth. He keeps taking my blood. Look at me, I'm as thin as a vine."

"I'm afraid I owed him something in my past life. He came here to drink my blood and take my life."

"Aunt Ma, let me take your pulse."

Chunnuan sat down and asked Aunt Ma to extend her right hand to take her pulse.

Just as she thought.

"Aunt Ma, you're not pregnant."

"How can your belly be so big if you're not pregnant?" Aunt Ma was skeptical. "I started noticing my belly getting bigger around the first month of last year. At the time, I thought it was quite embarrassing to be pregnant at my age. But as time went on, the months went by and my belly got bigger and bigger, but I still didn't give birth."

For a time, everyone in the mine said she was pregnant with a monster.

While other women carry a child for ten months, I've been pregnant for two ten-month periods and there's still no sign of pregnancy.

"And now my belly is getting bigger and harder, making it difficult to even get out of bed, and I can't eat anything..."

Anyway, I've never experienced anything like this before, even when I was pregnant seven times and gave birth to six.

"Have you continued to have your periods for the past two years?"

These words made Aunt Ma a little embarrassed to turn around.

He turned to look at Xiao Hu.

"Little Tiger, go outside and boil some water for your older sister to drink."

"Oh, good."

Little Tiger wondered what Aunt Ma was thinking, why was she avoiding him?

What hasn't he seen?

Fine, if they don't want to listen, they don't want to listen. As long as my sister can cure her illness, that's all that matters.

Aunt Ma spoke only after Xiao Hu left.

"My period stopped a long time ago, when I was thirty-eight," Aunt Ma said. "I was just thinking, after five years of not menstruating, I'm pregnant again. This is truly a case of having a child late in life."

The emperor loves his eldest son, and the people love their youngest son.

They also like children born in their later years.

Chunnuan clearly understands that this is someone who lacks common sense.

Once a woman stops menstruating, her chances of getting pregnant are greatly reduced.

What's more, she had stopped working for five years.

"You have something growing in your stomach, it's not pregnancy, it's an illness."

This disease can occur not only in the remote northern desert, but also in the capital, though it may not have progressed to such a severe stage as in her case.

"Sick? What illness do I have?"

Aunt Ma kept thinking it might be a stillborn baby, unable to be born.

These doctors all said they couldn't do anything and were unwilling to prescribe labor-inducing drugs, saying that it didn't seem like a slippery pulse and that prescribing drugs haphazardly might cause trouble.

As a result, it grew bigger and bigger, became very hard, and could not be born.

“When cold pathogens invade the outside of the intestines, they combine with the defensive qi, preventing the defensive qi from functioning properly. The cold pathogens and defensive qi remain deep in the body, attaching to the outside of the intestines. As the pathogens gradually grow, polyps are formed,” Chun Nuan said. “At the beginning, they are about the size of an egg. As the disease progresses, the lumps gradually increase in size. When they are fully formed, the abdomen swells up like a pregnant woman.”

"When you press on it with your hand, the lump is very hard, but you can move it by pushing it."

"Yes, yes, that's it, it's moving," Aunt Ma said. "Try pressing it."

Chunnuan massaged her, and Aunt Ma cried out in pain.

"Is my illness incurable?"

If you are really pregnant, even if it's a stillborn fetus, you can get rid of it with just one dose of labor-inducing drugs.

But now it's not pregnancy, it's illness, and with such a big belly, is there nothing I can do but wait to die?
"It can be cured."

Chunnuan was very confident because her grandfather had taken her to see a doctor for a similar illness, only the one was not as big as Aunt Ma's abdomen.

"Can it really be cured?"

Hearing this, Aunt Ma felt as if she had seen a ray of light in the darkness, yet she still couldn't believe her good fortune.

“It can be cured, Aunt Ma. My sister said it can be cured, so it definitely can be cured.”

When Xiao Hu heard that Aunt Ma was really sick, he rushed in without thinking of anything else: "My sister's grandfather used to be a royal physician. He treated the nobles in the palace. He was very skilled."

"So you're a descendant of that Physician Xiao." Aunt Ma asked curiously, "But our master has looked for Physician Xiao's descendants, and they said they don't understand medicine and can't cure him."

The man really went to great lengths to get himself medical treatment.

Not only did they consult several doctors from the northern desert, but they also heard that Dr. Xiao's family members had consulted them when they were here, but without exception, they were all disappointed.

“Yes, my uncle and brothers didn’t study medicine, so they really don’t know how to treat it,” Chunnuan said. “I’ve loved herbal medicine since I was a child, and I’ve inherited some of my grandfather’s knowledge. Coincidentally, I can treat your illness.”

"That would be great."

Aunt Ma wept with joy.

Who wants to die when they're perfectly healthy?
In their early years, the family was poor, and the couple struggled to make ends meet until now. Their son and daughter are grown up, and the man works as a gatekeeper at the mine, earning a monthly wage. Life has improved, but she is about to die. Just thinking about it is heartbreaking.

Hearing Chunnuan say that it could cure the disease was like a savior.

How much silver will it take to cure my illness?

Aunt Ma was still worried that it would cost a lot of money, after all, she still needed to marry off her daughter and son. If her illness burdened them, she would rather die.

"It won't cost much money, but there's a problem."

This illness cannot be resolved in just three to five days.

Illness comes like a landslide and goes like a slow, drawn-out process. In addition to taking medicine, it also requires acupuncture and hot compresses. It is a long-term treatment process. Chunnuan can only stay here for five days. After five days, she will go back with the caravan.

"What should I do?"

Spring warmth brings its own set of worries.

“Sister, I can learn. I’ll learn to do acupuncture for my aunt.”

Chunnuan's eyes lit up. Little Tiger was quick-witted and clever; she was sure she could teach him. Uncle Ma was overjoyed to hear that his wife wasn't pregnant but ill, and that Chunnuan could cure her.

"People from the capital are really something else; they can even cure illnesses from a young girl."

"Master, Miss Xiao's family works at the mine, so you'd better take good care of them."

"It's natural."

The person who can save your wife's life is like a second parent.

He went to the Xiao family in person to find Chunnuan, wanting to know how much money it would take to cure his wife's illness.

"Uncle Ma, my sister is amazing. She can do everything and she even taught me acupuncture."

“Acupuncture is not like chopping wood; you’d better learn it carefully.”

Uncle Ma thought about his wife's insistence that he treat the patient: "You absolutely must learn this carefully, or you won't be able to compensate me if you harm the patient."

"Uncle Ma, don't worry, I will study hard."

"I believe in Xiaohu."

Chunnuan thinks acupuncture is very simple; the important thing is to get a feel for it and find the right acupoints.

Xiao Hu is very smart and quick to understand; I can teach him everything in five days.

Also, decocting and applying medicine are very simple, as long as you persevere and avoid certain foods.

Uncle Ma asked about the price, and Chun Nuan symbolically accepted one tael of silver as a consultation fee, then wrote a prescription and told Uncle Ma to get the medicine separately.

The only reason was that the medicine brought by the spring warmth was not for women's diseases, and since her family was mostly men, they didn't need those medicines.

Uncle Ma said he understood and was very grateful for the warmth of spring.

Uncle Ma had spent a considerable amount of money on doctors over the past year, including ten taels of silver, but without any improvement. Chunnuan said that she could cure him and that it wouldn't be expensive, which made Uncle Ma very happy.

After Uncle Ma left, Xiao Chunhua, Chunquan, and Chunqing, the three brothers, also returned.

"Elder brother." Chunnuan wrote a letter to Chunhua, written by her elder sister-in-law Zhu: "Muyang can read now, but he still doesn't know how to write. He insisted on writing, and his elder sister-in-law taught him to write the two characters for father."

"Thank you, Second Sister."

Upon hearing that her son could recognize and write characters, Chunhua's eyes immediately welled up with tears.

When he left the capital, his wife was only a little pregnant. Now, his son can write the word "father."

Time, it passes both quickly and slowly.

The Xiao family was exiled for twenty years. Twenty years later, his sons would be married and have children; twenty years later, his beautiful wife would surely have white hair.

"Elder brother, don't worry, everything is fine at home."

"Second sister, you've worked hard."

Chunhua took the letter and wanted to read it, but Chunnuan went to talk to Chunquan and Chunqing.

“Nuan Nuan.” Chun Qing and Chun Nuan are twins, and the siblings feel it most deeply: “I heard that your fiancé is also here. Your brother wants to see him and talk to him.”

"He's helping in the kitchen, tending the fire and cooking."

Chunnuan smiled. Her brother was so thoughtful, always afraid of being taken advantage of.

Even though he had been bullied by him since childhood, he never showed the slightest disgust.

Chunqing went to the kitchen and saw Zhao Minghua tending the fire.

"You're Brother Qing!"

Zhao Minghua knew from the person who suddenly barged in that it must be his closest brother-in-law.

"Are you Zhao Minghua?"

Standing in front of Zhao Minghua, Chunqing was half a head shorter than him. But, not wanting to lose face, Chunqing still put on the air of an elder brother-in-law.

"Yes, Minghua greets his brother-in-law."

This is a formal greeting.

"No rush, let me talk to you first."

Qingsheng watched helplessly as his third young master obediently followed the person who was even shorter than him out of the kitchen, not even knowing what they were talking about.

Chunqing led Zhao Minghua out of the house and looked her over again in the twilight.

"My sister is attracted to your face?"

"That's my honor." Zhao Minghua was taken aback, then smiled. He turned around to ask Chunnuan if she was such a superficial person.

"You have exceptional qualities."

The words were actually somewhat insulting, but Zhao Minghua didn't get angry, which shows she's intelligent.

"Brother-in-law, you can rest assured. Although Minghua is not very talented, he will definitely protect Nuannuan from the wind and rain."

"Nuan Nuan is different from other young ladies; she doesn't know needlework, cooking, or how to be a wife and mother..."

Zhao Minghua looked at Chunqing: The Nuannuan you mentioned and the Nuannuan I know are probably not the same person.

He knew Chunnuan wasn't good at needlework, but her cooking skills were truly excellent. Being a good wife and mother wasn't something one could learn overnight.

“When Nuannuan was three years old, her grandfather taught her how to make medicines, identify herbs, prepare medicines, and take pulses to diagnose patients.” Chunqing said, “Her mother did not teach her how to be a good young lady from a young age, because she spent most of her time in the pharmacy, except for eating and sleeping, receiving instruction from her grandfather on how to be a good doctor.”

Do you understand what I mean?

Chunqing looked at Zhao Minghua.

"I understand." Zhao Minghua nodded. "Before Nuannuan and I got engaged, Nuannuan told me that she was different from other girls. The reason I asked my mother to propose marriage was precisely because I valued Nuannuan's uniqueness."

“I promised Nuannuan that she wouldn’t need to change before or after the wedding; she would remain herself. If there’s anything I need to do, just tell me, and I’ll cooperate fully and never hold him back.”

Zhao Minghua's words surprised Chunqing.

"no sooner said than done?"

“I mean what I say.” Zhao Minghua said, “Not only that, I also know the Xiao family’s rules: men cannot take concubines, and women cannot become concubines. Coincidentally, our Zhao family also has such a rule.”

"I know that with the status of our Zhao family, we are not good enough for Nuannuan, but I don't want to miss out on meeting her. So, I will work hard to improve myself so that I can be on equal footing with Nuannuan."

These words made Chunqing feel favorably toward the person in front of her.

"Can I entrust Nuannuan to you with peace of mind?"

"Don't worry, brother. If anything goes wrong, you won't have to lift a finger. I'll chop myself up and feed myself to the dogs."

Chunqing was somewhat moved.

It seems that Nuannuan has a good eye; the person she's chosen is quite unique.

"Then I will believe you once."

Trust me, you won't regret it.

The two young men shook hands, gripping them firmly, as if they had reached some kind of unspoken understanding.

Unbeknownst to Chunnuan, her brother and her fiancé were negotiating at that moment.

She is being questioned by her uncle and father.

"I thought it would be better if you had your clansmen to take care of you when you returned to Shu. I never expected that the first thing they would do upon your arrival in Shu would be to kick you while you were away." The eldest son of the great-uncle was naturally more aware of how much the Xiao clan had received from his family: "They are truly ungrateful and have gone too far!"

“Uncle, don’t be angry. We’ve come through all the hardships and difficulties. There’s nothing more difficult than this in the future,” Chunnuan said. “The only thing you need to do now is to take good care of yourselves and wait for the day when we can reunite in the capital.”

Will there be such a day?

"Yes, Uncle, let me take your pulse."

Having been in the northern desert for over two years, my body is probably quite weakened; I need to take care of it. (End of Chapter)