Zhou Lan chatted with Zhou Jing'an for a while longer, and seeing that it was getting late, she got up to leave.
"Isn't eldest sister going to stay a little longer?"
Ning Huan quickly got up to see Zhou Lan off, but tried to persuade her to stay.
Zhou Lan waved her hand: "I'm not staying any longer. I'm going home early. If I get back late, my mother will definitely nag me again."
Originally, Zhou's mother didn't like her coming to see Zhou Jing'an often, fearing that she might cause some trouble.
Ever since they found out that she had taken money to help Zhou Jing'an, they have been even more opposed to her coming.
These changes are evident in the fact that when Zhou's mother first saw Zhou Lan arrive, she only muttered a few words.
Now, whenever Zhou Lan goes out, her mother keeps a close eye on her, wanting to search her thoroughly to see if she has any money on her before letting her go out.
Watching Zhou Lan's retreating figure, Ning Huan couldn't help but sigh.
The eldest sister of the Zhou family is also a pitiful person. She was married off by her mother at a young age, just because her in-laws gave her two extra boxes of betrothal gifts, regardless of the fact that her daughter was to marry a sickly man who was prone to illness and misfortune.
The villagers gossiped behind her back that the eldest daughter of the Zhou family had married into the family to bring good luck to someone.
But Zhou's mother didn't care about any of that. She happily accepted the betrothal gifts and let Zhou Lan marry into the family.
Lan's husband died of illness less than two years after she got married this week. Her husband's family didn't want to support a widow anymore and originally wanted to send her to a chaste shrine to observe mourning.
Considering that she took good care of her husband at her in-laws' home and was also filial to her parents-in-law, they sent her back to her parents' home.
But Zhou's mother was not happy. Ever since Zhou Lan was sent back, she often scolded Zhou Lan for being a second-marriage woman who could not get married and was now just a mouth that was losing money.
As time went on, the villagers started gossiping about Zhou Lan. Eventually, Zhou Lan's grandmother couldn't stand it anymore and invited Zhou Lan to live with her.
After Zhou's mother learned that all the food and clothing had cost her money, she finally calmed down and stopped saying anything more.
But this older sister treated her younger siblings very well, especially Zhou Jing'an.
Therefore, Zhou Jing'an respected her very much, and he often took the money he earned for the wealthy students at the academy home to help Zhou Lan and her grandmother.
Zhou Lan saved all this money, which is why she was able to afford to treat Zhou Jing'an when he fell ill.
But in the eyes of Zhou's mother and Zhou Yan, this turned into Zhou Lan using the family's money to pay for Zhou Jing'an's medical treatment.
After Zhou Lan left, Ning Huan was thinking of going to brew medicine for Zhou Jing'an, but suddenly heard a noisy sound coming from the neighboring courtyard.
She followed the sound and saw a group of people bustling about as soon as she entered the courtyard.
"What should we do now!"
"This child is so young and already..."
Ning Huan asked in confusion, "What happened?"
Because Ning Huan had a bad reputation in the village, no one paid any attention to her.
She walked into the house and saw a child about the same age as Xiao Sanbao lying on the family's bed.
The child was pale, with purple lips, and was emaciated, looking like he was about to die.
Seeing this, Ning Huan quickly ran to the child's side to check on him.
Just as she was about to place her hand on the child's pulse, Yang rushed forward and shoved Ning Huan aside, shouting, "What are you going to do to my child!"
Ning Huan was caught off guard and almost fell to the ground.
She steadied herself by holding onto a table on one side, and couldn't help but frown.
Yang hugged the child tightly, looking as if she was afraid Ning Huan would touch her: "Don't touch my child!"
Ning Huan explained, "Auntie, calm down. I just wanted to see why your child was acting this way."
Yang spat and said, "You don't know anything! You can't even take care of your own children. You're no longer needed to cause trouble. Get out of here!"
The villagers watching from the sidelines also pointed and whispered about Ning Huan.
"Exactly, how could this woman have the nerve to say such a thing? Look at the state she's put her children in."
"They are all sensible children, but they just happened to have such a mother."
"You can't even take care of your own children, yet you're thinking of taking care of other people's children? What are you thinking?"
Ning Huan ignored the surrounding noises. She looked at the woman in front of her and knew from the original owner's memories that she was a daughter-in-law of the Yang family and the baby lying on the bed was her child, named Yang Xiaoshu.
Yang had always disapproved of Ning Huan's mistreatment of the children, so it's no wonder she reacted so strongly today.
Looking at Yang Xiaoshu lying on the bed, Ke Ninghuan knew that he must have a very serious illness.
He quickly said, "Don't get agitated, listen to me, something's wrong with this child, let me take a look."
Ning Huan's attitude made Yang even angrier, and she hugged the child tightly to her chest.
"No way! Who do you think you are, offering to treat my child's illness!"
Yang's resolute attitude left Ning Huan somewhat helpless.
The child's condition was indeed strange, but Ning Huan couldn't find a reason to persuade Yang to hand the child over to her.
At this moment, Yang's husband, Yang Yong, and her mother-in-law also rushed back from outside.
Seeing that Madam Yang was holding the child tightly and wouldn't let go, Madam Yang sighed, "Xiao Ying, stop making a fuss."
Yang Yong then turned to Ning Huan and said:
“Jing’an’s wife, don’t blame my wife. Xiaoshu’s illness came on so suddenly and quickly. He collapsed in just a few days. We’ve consulted so many doctors, but they all said it was hopeless. He was about to die, so it’s no wonder we were so anxious.”
Hearing this, Madam Yang, with tears welling in her eyes, said:
"Yang Yong, shut up! Why are you saying such discouraging things out of the blue? Let me tell you, Xiao Shu will be alright. If you say anything more discouraging, believe me, I'll fight you to the death!"
In any case, Xiaoshu's illness seems quite serious; if it's not treated promptly, he might really die.
Ning Huan bowed respectfully to Granny Yang and then said:
“Mother-in-law, since Xiaoshu has seen so many doctors, it won’t hurt for me to take a look. I won’t do anything to the child.”
"If I can really see something, then there is hope for the little tree to be saved, isn't there?"
Seeing Ning Huan's sincere attitude, and considering that Xiao Shu was her only grandson, Grandma Yang thought Ning Huan's words made sense, so she decided to give it a try, even if it seemed hopeless.
Hearing her mother-in-law say this, Yang was still somewhat incredulous: "Mother!"
Grandma Yang comforted her, "Xiao Ying, just listen to me. Jing An's wife is just taking a look. Besides, many doctors say the child's illness is incurable. What if she can find something?"
"Xiaoshu is your son, but he's also my grandson. I would never harm him!"
Seeing her mother-in-law's reaction, Madam Yang had no choice but to make way for Ning Huan to take her pulse.
She placed her hand on Yang Xiaoshu's wrist, her brow furrowed slightly, and pondered for a moment.
Grandma Yang, Yang Yong, and Madam Yang all held their breath and watched Ning Huan.
A moment later, Ning Huan knew exactly what was wrong with Xiao Shu.
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