Chapter 34 The Pregnant Girl

Qin Jue's maternity leave was very short, it was very short these days. When Xiao Doudou could raise her head, Qin Jue had to return to her job.

I guess it's a physical problem. She doesn't have much breast milk.

In the past, Qin Guihua had always said that she had no milk when she was young. Her second sister Youdi also said that she didn't have much milk when she was young. At that time, Qin Ju thought it was due to malnutrition in that era. But when it came to herself, she found that she ate a lot, had enough nutrition, and was in a good mood, but she just had very little milk...

As a new mother, she felt guilty at first, thinking she had gained so much weight for nothing. But when she tried Chinese medicine and massage techniques and still saw no results, she had to admit that this was just metaphysics!

So, in less than three months, Doudou had to stop breastfeeding.

Fortunately, Lao He had already bought milk powder from the provincial capital, and she was willing to eat it, gulping down a lot in one meal. Seeing her getting whiter and fatter day by day, Qin Jue felt a little relieved.

Back at work, the first task is to plant medicinal plants - it is not a good idea to leave the reclaimed wasteland idle for a long time. If it is idle for another year, it will be overgrown with weeds again. Qin Ju plans to take the initiative this time.

*

I was sleeping soundly at night, and not even the barking of dogs could be heard in the entire family area, when the door of the Qin family's outer room was knocked.

"Who is it? It's the middle of the night. Can't we sleep?" Qin Guihua is old and has a light sleep. It was only last year when she was exhausted from clearing land every day that she could sleep a little more deeply. Recently, she has had trouble sleeping when she has been free. She finally fell asleep and was very unhappy to be woken up.

"Xiao Qin, it's me."

"I'm coming, wait a moment." Qin Ju groped in the dark, put on his clothes and got out of bed.

"What are you doing so late at night?" Qin Guihua heard the voice and came over wearing clothes.

"I agreed yesterday that I would go to the provincial capital today, but I came back late last night and forgot to tell grandma."

Qin Guihua was relieved then. She gave a few more instructions, wrapped Doudou tightly, and carried him to her room. The little guy didn't wake up during the whole process, but was still snoring, smacking his lips from time to time and sucking on milk.

Qin Ju quickly brushed his teeth, wiped his face with a wet towel, and reluctantly kissed the white and tender little cheek again and again. Finally, he hardened his heart and got into a green jeep as soon as he went out.

"Director, you're up so early." There was no alarm clock at home, so she didn't know what time it was.

"The main thing is that we have to leave early if we want to come back today. It's three o'clock in the morning now. You can stay in the car for a while."

The straight-line distance from Lenghe Town to the provincial capital is only more than 200 kilometers, but the problem is that there are no smooth, flat and straight highways like in later generations. The current roads are all dirt roads, and you have to avoid moving deserts, rivers, mountains, and boulders. It's at least 400 kilometers in a winding way. In addition, there are many potholes and the car can't speed up. It takes at least six hours to get there.

Thinking that the journey was still long, Qin Ju didn't hesitate and fell asleep.

When I woke up again, it was already bright outside, the sun was shining on the car window, it was actually past nine in the morning. Leaving the driver to watch the car, the two of us went to the provincial capital pharmaceutical factory, took the drug purchase order to chat with the sales director, and asked for the approval slip bit by bit with a smile, then went to the finance office to pay, and got the delivery order before going to the warehouse to pick up the drugs... It was twelve o'clock when we finished.

"Let's just have a simple lunch. We might have to stay outside for two days, with a lot of things to do and more places to spend money." Qian Fusheng spoke a little embarrassedly, watching the driver and Xiao Qin sweating profusely from moving the medicine.

His old waist was injured yesterday, and he grimaced in pain every time he bent his waist, so the two young people didn't let him help.

"It's okay. We'll listen to the leader." Driver Xiao Zhang wiped the shiny beads of sweat from his forehead, revealing a mouthful of white teeth.

Although Qin Jue also liked to eat outside, she also knew that she couldn't get any special treatment when she was on a business trip. But when she arrived at the state-owned hotel, she found that her understanding of "eat anything" meant ordering two dishes and a soup, while Qian Fusheng's "eat anything" meant two bowls of noodles and two steamed buns.

Yes, Xiao Zhang and she each had a bowl of noodles, with two pieces of braised beef cubes, which were extremely tasty. The flavor of the meat was so tempting that it made people drool.

As for the steamed buns, he ate them. He was obviously reluctant to spend public funds, but he still insisted that he wanted to eat steamed buns.

Qin Ju suddenly felt that he couldn't eat much. Everyone only knew that Director Qian had to go out to buy medicine every two months, but they didn't know that he would go out at three in the morning every time to buy medicine, be humble and say nice things, drink boiled water and eat steamed bread, and when he went back, he would be complained about and criticized for not being able to get the urgently needed medicine...

What a simple cadre!

"I just asked Director Lu about Chinese herbal medicine seedlings, and they don't have any in their factory either." Director Qian munched on his steamed buns, as if he was tasting some kind of delicacy. "I don't know the details, but I heard that Chinese herbal medicines don't make much profit, so they don't do this."

Qin Ju naturally knew that Western medicine was the most profitable now, especially imported medicine and joint-venture medicine, which could earn several times more. Chinese patent medicine could earn a little, but pure Chinese herbal medicine could only earn a little, barely enough to make a living. "Director, why don't we go to the Chinese medicine factory and ask?"

The Shilan Provincial Traditional Chinese Medicine Factory was not far away. After eating, the two of them rushed over without stopping. The guard saw that they were dressed in ordinary clothes and refused to let them in. "Which unit are you from?"

Qian Fusheng quickly took out his work ID and letter of introduction and said, "Comrade, look, we are here to buy medicine."

The guard saw that they were from a remote area and looked at their work ID cards again and again with a squinting eye. He let them in after a long while. "The sales department is on the first floor on the left."

Qin Ju followed them and indeed found an office with a sign saying "Sales Department". There was only one clerk there. Hearing that they were there to buy medicine, he asked them to wait. The clerk didn't say how long they would have to wait and who would be in charge, so he simply went to visit the guests with a cup of tea in his hand.

Qin Ju was fine, after all, he was just a junior doctor. In the era of shortage of doctors and medicines, the pharmaceutical factory was the boss. But Director Qian was after all a first-generation military soldier, and he was a director in the factory. Here he couldn't even drink a sip of water, and his face looked really ugly.

She stood up and poured some water into the water bottle she brought with her. The green military water bottle she brought today was round and flat, with a slightly larger lid on top, which could be used as a water cup. "Come on, Director, have some water."

Qian Fusheng had no time to be polite at this point. He walked more than 400 kilometers, feeling sunburned and thirsty all the way, and his throat was almost smoking.

After drinking a few glasses of water, the anger in my heart finally subsided. "Xiao Qin, I asked you to follow me right after the production leave was over. Look at you, you have been doing hard work for the past two years. Do you regret coming to our factory?"

Qin Ju shook his head. "Homeland is built. We Dragon people have infinite ability to adapt to and transform nature." Otherwise, how can we say "infrastructure maniac" and "planting maniac"?

Qian Fusheng opened his mouth hesitantly, "Yes, the home is built." He couldn't help but think of the passionate days of the old soldiers and settlers in the early days of the founding of the People's Republic of China. Who could have imagined that the barren Gobi desert could be transformed into the fertile fields of today? At that time, they had to eat a dry bun in two days, and even the boiled water was the same color as horse urine, but it still did not prevent them from loving this land.

Qin Ju had only heard about it in bits and pieces from the old soldiers in the settlement before, so he became interested and asked them about their stories of settling and guarding the border. They talked for more than two hours, and finally a man in cadre uniform showed up.

"You two must have been waiting for a long time. There is a meeting outside. I heard that you are here to buy medicine?" This is Long Wen, the sales director of the Provincial Traditional Chinese Medicine Factory. He looks quite gentle and speaks very politely.

Qin Ju quickly handed over the letter of introduction and credentials and introduced herself.

"So you are from Lenghe Town. You two must have had a hard journey. Come and sit down."

Qin Ju did not dare to breathe a sigh of relief. She thought that Director Long was easy to talk to and became careless. In many cases, the more easy-going a person seems to be, the more troublesome he is and the more he is a smiling tiger.

Qian Fusheng, who had been sitting on the bench for three hours, didn't dare to sit down anymore. He took out a box of peonies from his pocket and handed it to him, then he opened a match for him with both hands and said something polite.

With the catalysis of cigarettes, Long Wen sat down in the chair behind the desk and finally took the initiative to ask: "What kind of drinks do you need?"

"Hello, Director. We want to buy something, but not drinks." Qin Ju stood up.

Long Wen's brows wrinkled slightly. If they didn't buy pills, were they buying medicine? They didn't have any.

"We are not looking to buy ready-made medicines, but some Chinese medicine seeds and seedlings. Since you are the largest Chinese medicine sales company in the province, I took the liberty to come and consult you."

It is said that you should not hit a smiling person. Qin Jue is pretty and polite, so Long Wen couldn't refuse her directly. "Which ones do you need?"

Qin Ju and Qian Fusheng looked at each other. Since they didn't refuse, there would be hope!

"It's like this. Our unit is in Lenghe Town. Director Long is knowledgeable and should have heard about it. Currently, our Lenghe Town has a total population of more than 50,000, but there are only two health centers. Many commonly used medicines are not available, and it is not okay to always rely on Western medicine. Our Director Qian is thinking about whether we can be self-reliant and grow some Chinese medicinal materials, which can also alleviate the shortage of medical care and medicines..." blah blah.

Long Wen listened carefully and nodded from time to time.

"The climate there is not as good as here in the provincial capital. We estimate that we can only grow wolfberry, jujube, scutellaria, salvia miltiorrhiza and Magnolia officinalis. But because of the formula, we also need dozens of other commonly used Chinese medicines, and we will definitely purchase them from you when the time comes."

"There is also Rehmannia glutinosa." Director Qian added. He remembered Xiao Qin said that if used properly, this medicine would be more effective than Pagoda Candy. Just now, he risked his face to ask for some Pagoda Candy, but in the end he only got two bags. He really wanted to curse.

Long Wen nodded, but looked troubled: "It's a bit difficult..."

Upon seeing this, Qian Fusheng quickly handed over two bottles of old-vintage Xifeng wine, saying that it was getting late and he wanted to treat him to a simple meal and chat while eating.

Long Wen took the things with a smile, and then agreed. He personally poured them two cups of tea and asked them to wait in the office for a while. He had something else to do. As he was talking, a clerk came to the door and said, "Director Long, there's a call for you."

As soon as he left, Qin Ju started talking to Qian Fusheng in a low voice. Judging from the situation, he didn't refuse outright, but just said "it's difficult", and agreed to go out for dinner. As long as he put in a little effort at the dinner table, it should be possible... Well, things must be given as gifts. Long Wen has become very picky. She just noticed that he didn't even raise his eyebrows when most of the cadres smoked Peony cigarettes. It seemed that he was used to it.

She could not have imagined that in this simple era, the medical industry is the most difficult to be simple. In her previous life, she sometimes blamed Director Qian Fusheng for not fulfilling his responsibilities. The health center was always short of this medicine or that medicine. Now it seems that he has tried his best. A man of integrity had to beg everyone for some medicine. He was reluctant to eat a bowl of noodles when he was on a business trip, but he had to go to a restaurant to ask for help.

As long as they entered the state-owned hotel and ordered some delicious dishes, the funds for their business trip would be used up. If they met a leader who loved wine, and ordered two more bottles of wine, half a month's salary would be gone!

As they were talking, Long Wen came in hurriedly and picked up the coat on the armchair. "I'm sorry, let's have dinner another day. I have something to do at home today, so I'll leave you now."

Qian Fusheng: Ah? That’s it?

Qin Ju: Huh? That's it? I promised you two bottles of Xifeng wine as a knock on the door, but I'm just leaving a crack in the door to make them happy!

Although Qian Fusheng was disappointed, he had already given the things away, so there was no reason to ask for them back. He could only force a smile and stand up to see him off. Looking at his back, he sighed, "Oh, I didn't expect that buying Chinese medicine seedlings is more difficult than buying Western medicine."

"What we want to buy now are seedlings, which are different from drinks. He didn't say he didn't have them just now, so there should be a way to get them. Why don't we wait a little longer?" He didn't look anxious as if he was pretending. Even if he was, they needed help from others now, so they had to treat it as if it was true. Otherwise, the sitting on the bench, the humble attitude, and the two bottles of Xifeng wine would be wasted.

Qian Fusheng sighed, "Now that we are here, we can only wait."

Qin Jue was impatient. "No, Director, please wait for me. I have to go and take a look."

After saying this, he ran out of the door and went in the direction that Long Wen went out. Sure enough, he saw him get into a black car at the gate.

It seems that I am not just trying to please them.

Qin Ju is now hungry and tired, and she misses Dou Dou very much. Although she usually goes to work, she goes home at noon to eat and put her to sleep. Today she is not at home, and she doesn’t know if she is used to it and whether she can sleep by herself.

She has never raised other children, so she doesn't know what other children are like, but she feels that Doudou is a very easy child to take care of. He can sleep through the night, doesn't cry or make a fuss, will giggle at the slightest tickle, and is not shy no matter who holds him.

The more she thought about it, the more she missed her child. Qin Ju decided to finish everything today and go home early. She turned around and whispered a few words to Director Qian, who nodded repeatedly, got in the car and headed for the railway community.

When they were chatting just now, Long Wen vaguely mentioned that he lived in the Railway Community, and he also said that he was going home because of an emergency at home. They drove slowly, and when they arrived at the entrance of the Railway Community, they could just see the back of Long Wen's car.

"Can it really work?" Lao Qian was still a little unsure.

"Give it a try. At worst, it'll just be a wasted trip. The loss won't be too big."

The two got out of the car and watched it drive into the community and stop under a residential building. Qin Ju hid behind a small tree and stared at the door without blinking.

Soon, the noise of people started to rise, and she heard Long Wen's angry roar, "Who are you?"

"What's going on?!"

"Your mother and I have lost face. You are deliberately trying to piss me off to death. How could you be so foolish!"

Qin Ju couldn't hear whether anyone answered him or not, because there were also the cries of several women, some were howling loudly, and some were sobbing softly. It was obvious that they were all suppressing their tears, as if they didn't want to be heard by their neighbors.

Fortunately, the Long family lived on the first floor, and Qin Jue was hiding behind a big tree outside their balcony, otherwise she would not be able to hear anything.

The quarrel at the Long family did not last long. Soon, a group of people came out of the building, escorting a young girl in thick clothes. Long Wen went out first to check and make sure there was no one outside before letting them help the girl into the car.

Qin Ju had been hiding, so of course she saw it all. It was such a hot day, but the girl was wearing a thick cotton jacket, crying and her face was pale. The people who were supporting her, who looked to be her mother and grandmother, were also crying and looked as if the sky had fallen.

Qin Ju didn't understand what was going on, but she quickly noticed something unusual - the girl's belly seemed abnormally large!

The girl's arms and legs were very slender, so her belly should have been flat as well, but she wore thick clothes, which was unusual for her. When she bent over to get on the bus, the hem of her clothes lifted up, and Qin Ju suddenly saw her slightly bulging belly.

Could it be——pregnant? !

Thinking back to Long Wen's dark face when he received the phone call, his angry roars when he got home, and the expressions of the female elders in the family, Qin Ju had a guess in her mind.

But this matter concerned the girl's reputation, so she couldn't say anything before it was confirmed. She just looked at their car driving away, a little dazed.

"You saw it too, right? Hey, I told you, there's something wrong with the daughter of the Long family." Suddenly, a bunch of old ladies came out from all directions and started talking at the same time.

"I noticed it a long time ago. A few days ago I was wondering if she had gained weight. Yesterday I saw her squatting by the garden and vomiting."

"She's not gaining weight, she's obviously pregnant with some kid out there."

Some women were also puzzled: "I saw Jiaojiao was usually very well behaved, she didn't get close to anyone, her grades were OK, how come she suddenly got pregnant?"

"Who said it wasn't true? In the past, everyone in our compound praised her. It's not like she could become bad all at once, right?"

Then someone else said that she remembered seeing Long Jiaojiao once half a month ago, and her belly was still flat at that time. Even if she was really pregnant, it would not have grown so big in just half a month.

Qin Ju had just finished her pregnancy, so she had a deep understanding of this. Even during the last two or three months of her pregnancy, the growth was not so fast. Her tiny belly now looked like she was more than four months pregnant.

She thought about it, and finally walked to the gate of the community.

Lao Qian came forward and asked, "How is it? Did you find out clearly?"

Originally, Qin Ju's initial plan was that since Long Wen's approach didn't work, he would go to the elders of the Long family and tell them about the current predicament of the health center to see if he could gain their sympathy. He could also see if there was anything he could do to help at home, such as physical work or cleaning, to gain some favor. If he came a few more times, Long Wen might change his mind about them.

When they were penniless, they had no capital to be noble.

But now it seems that it doesn't work.

"Why don't we go back first and come out next month." Lao Qian hung his head dejectedly.

Qin Ju shook his head. The land that had been reclaimed couldn't wait any longer, not even a second. "Let's wait and see."

She always felt that Long Jiaojiao was not pregnant.