Chapter 57 I will go to earn military merits, we won’t ask for help anymore
After helping Sui Yu dress and tie her hair, Zhao Xiping wrung out a cloth and wiped her face. He called Sui Liang and carried Sui Yu on his back to go see a doctor.
In the clinic, the doctor had just started his shift and had just taken a sip of water when he saw a patient coming in. He put down his tea bowl and picked up the pulse pillow.
Zhao Xiping put the person down and said, "She has a slight fever. She said she has a headache and wants to vomit. She vomited before leaving."
The doctor nodded. He held Sui Yu's wrist and waited for a long time before he began to write a prescription. "How can you be so angry at such a young age? Did the couple have an argument?"
Zhao Xiping remained silent, not knowing why, so he could only acquiesce.
"Doctor, what's wrong with me?" Sui Yu asked, "I just still have a headache. I feel much better after vomiting."
"Liver qi is stagnant, qi and blood are insufficient, and the spleen and stomach are cold. You have quite a lot of problems. How old are you?"
"Ten...seventeen years old, and eighteen in another six months."
"How long has it been since you last had your period? Don't you know? You haven't given birth yet, have you? Don't you plan to have children in the future? You're in such a bad state that you've come to see a doctor. Oh, no, if it weren't for this illness, you probably wouldn't have had your period yet." The doctor scolded Zhao Xiping and handed him the prescription, saying, "Pay the money and get the medicine."
"Wait." Sui Yu pulled Zhao Xiping aside and turned to ask, "How long do I need to take the medicine? How much will it cost in total?"
Zhao Xiping opened her hand angrily and said, "Don't worry about the money. I have it. If I run out of money, I can borrow some."
Sui Yu made a bitter face. Seeing the doctor staring at her with a gloomy face, she asked in confusion, "What's wrong?"
"Money is more important than your health? No wonder you're so depressed."
"You don't understand." Sui Yu sighed, "Doctor, you haven't told me how long I need to take the medicine."
The doctor ignored her. When Zhao Xiping came over with the medicine bag, he said, "Boil one bag of medicine for three days, twice a day. Boil three bowls of water into one bowl of water. Don't drink it before going to bed."
Zhao Xiping repeated his words, nodded and said he remembered it.
"Take these ten doses of medicine for a month, and come back to see me after a month." The doctor glanced at Sui Yu and said, "Argue with her more often in the future. She has a lot of liver fire and a lot of depression, and she's been holding it all in. Over time, she can't eat or sleep well. This illness came at the perfect time, and look how energetic she is now."
Zhao Xiping also felt that his anger was not in vain, as so many problems were exposed at once.
"Please take my brother-in-law's pulse again." He pushed Sui Liang over and said, "Put your hand on the pulse pillow."
Sui Liang glanced at Sui Yu. He raised his arm nervously and stared at the doctor eagerly, fearing that he would have to give him medicine too, which would cost more money.
"You're so young, and your health is already failing?" The doctor was surprised. He looked at Sui Yu and her brother and said, "Immigrants from another place?"
Sui Yu nodded.
"No wonder." The doctor released his hand and said, "The boy is growing fast despite his young age. Eating more food and meat will help him make up for it. His foundation is pretty good, so he hasn't been hurt."
Sui Liang breathed a sigh of relief and quickly retracted his hand.
"My brother can't speak. Please take another look. He saw someone being killed on the road before and was so frightened that he couldn't speak." Sui Yu took this opportunity to ask another question, "Brother Liang, stretch out your hand again so the doctor can take a look."
The doctor waved his hands. He had encountered such patients before, and there were even some who were scared to death. He had no way to cure them.
"You can't tell from his pulse, which means there's nothing wrong with his body. I've seen several patients where people were frightened to death and could never recover, or couldn't speak, or became stutterers. Maybe they'll get better when they grow up and think more positively." He didn't say whether those people got better or not. The children were listening here, so he could only say good things.
Sui Yu touched Sui Liang and thanked the doctor. "We'll be leaving now."
"What's the hurry? Go into the inner room and lie down. I'll give you a few injections." The doctor waved to the medicine boy. The medicine boy said that the inner room had been cleaned up. He asked the medicine boy to take everyone in first while he went to get the needle bag.
Zhao Xiping and Sui Liang were waiting outside. When he heard Sui Yu complaining in a nonsensical way that the silver needle was too long and she was afraid, and then heard her screaming in pain, he felt that she was alive again.
After the injection, the doctor came out and Zhao Xiping and Sui Liang went in.
"The needle is inserted?" Sui Yu closed her eyes, she didn't dare to look.
Zhao Xiping took one look and then hurriedly looked away. She was lying on the bed with her clothes open and only a bellyband covering her body. Although he had been eating and sleeping with her for more than half a year, he had never seen as much as he did in this one glance.
There was no response, so Sui Yu stopped asking. She felt a little sleepy, but also a little cold. She had no choice but to say, "Talk to me, I'm going to fall asleep."
"How long has it been since you had your period?" Zhao Xiping looked at the wall.
"A year and a half."
The man snorted coldly, "Is this the sincerity behind your promise to give me a child? Who are you trying to fool?"
Sui Yu opened her eyes, glanced at him, and interrupted, "Are you really going to listen to that doctor and argue with me?"
"I don't care about you." Zhao Xiping sat on the ground and said, "You Sui people are all bad people."
"It's because my family is short of money. I was planning to recuperate after I was freed from my civil service status and started making some money." Sui Yu sighed.
"We get food every month and there are vegetables in the fields. What should I do with the four hundred yuan in my hand? Buy meat for the New Year?" Zhao Xiping said sarcastically.
That was his money, and Sui Yu was too embarrassed to squander it, let alone use it. She knew she had health problems, but she always felt that it was not a big deal. She could eat, drink, and sleep as long as she could, and she could make up for it by eating more and sleeping more.
"Okay, okay, I was wrong." She begged for forgiveness and admitted her fault, adding, "I'm sick and you're still arguing with me. I'm so upset."
Zhao Xiping snorted coldly. He was almost going to get sick from her.
The quarrel in the room stopped, and the doctor came in to remove the needle with an expression of watching a good show. Seeing that Sui Yu was still in the mood to glare at him, he thought to himself, no wonder she could control men so well.
"Okay, carry your wife back. Come to me if you have any problems."
Sui Yu breathed a sigh of relief. She pulled her clothes together, muttering that she was going to freeze to death. She sat up and pulled up her clothes, then buried her head in the needle hole to see if there was any bleeding.
"It hurts so much." Sui Yu didn't dare to move. She lay on the man's back and called Sui Liang to walk in front.
After leaving the clinic, she leaned on the man's shoulder and said, "A finger-long needle pierced my flesh and almost pierced through me. I don't know if I suffered any internal injuries."
Zhao Xiping deliberately shook her, and when he heard her screaming at the top of her voice, he felt relieved.
It was almost noon when the three of them returned home with empty stomachs. After Sui Yu lay down on the bed, Zhao Xiping washed his hands and went to make her some porridge. As for him and Sui Liang, they still had plenty of dumplings left over from last night, enough for them to eat for two days.
After the meal was cooked, Zhao Xiping woke Sui Yu up. He touched her forehead and said, "Why hasn't your fever subsided yet?"
"How can it be that fast?" Sui Yu felt weak. She sat on the bed and said, "Bring it to me."
Just as the meal was served, Sister Lamei came over. She didn't mention what happened yesterday, but said, "I heard you were sick, so I came to see you. How are you feeling?"
"I just owe some money, it's nothing serious." Sui Yu smiled, "Have you eaten?"
Seeing that she could still joke, Sister Lamei thought that she must be anxious. Seeing that Zhao Xiping brought the meal to her bed like serving the queen, she said a few more words and did not stay any longer, leaving two eggs and left.
Sui Yu felt bitter in his mouth and could only drink half a bowl of porridge before stopping.
"I'm going to sleep, don't call me unless necessary." She instructed.
"Would you like some eggs? I'll cook two for you." Zhao Xiping asked.
"No, I just want to sleep."
She fell asleep, and Zhao Xiping didn't leave the house for a long time. He would come into the house from time to time to check on her head. It was not until dark that his hand became warmer than her head.
In the evening, Sui Yu ate two dumplings and two eggs. It was still early to go to bed, so she drank a bowl of bitter soup, which was so bitter that her tongue numb.
Seeing that she was in good spirits, Zhao Xiping slept well at night.
However, the next day Sui Yu became weak again and had a fever again. As soon as the bowl of medicine was brought to her, she vomited as soon as she smelled the smell.
"I really feel like I'm pregnant." Sui Yu rinsed her mouth. She pinched her nose and gulped down a bowl of medicine. She couldn't even feel her tongue when she spoke. "No need to take me to see a doctor. Acupuncture is too cold. I think I caught a cold yesterday. I'll get some more sleep."
Zhao Xiping looked at her silently. He took the bowl and tucked in her mattress, then went out to get a shovel to shovel the soil to cover the acid water she vomited.
The sheep at home were bleating with hunger, the piglets were digging at the trough, and the two camels were getting impatient with being caged. Zhao Xiping had no choice but to go out. He asked Sui Liang to stay at home while he went out to graze the camels, pigs and sheep.
After an hour out, he returned, having eaten the pigs and sheep. Zhao Xiping went inside to see Sui Yu first. She was huddled up like a shrimp, covered in a wolfskin, yet still cold. He ignored her, woke her up, dressed her, and carried her to the clinic.
It was already afternoon when I came back from the acupuncture.
Zhao Xiping put the person on the bed, and he came out silently to stew the medicine.
Sui Yu hadn't gotten sick during her entire exile, but her body had been stretched too thin, and now that she was ill, she was completely devastated. She had recurring fevers, and Zhao Xiping had to carry her to get acupuncture every day. Her fever would subside by nightfall, only to flare up again at dawn.
In just five days, Sui Yu had lost a lot of weight.
Zhao Xiping also became more silent.
"Cough cough cough——" Sui Yu came out pounding her chest. She was going to get moldy from lying in bed every day. She saw that the weather was good in the house, so she put on a wolf skin and came out to bask in the sun.
Zhao Xiping was stewing medicine, and the whole yard was filled with a bitter smell. Sui Yu got a headache when she smelled it. She changed her shoes and said, "I'm going to walk around the vegetable garden."
Zhao Xiping wanted to say something, but he didn't know what to say, so he could only say, "Stay out of the wind. Come back if you feel uncomfortable."
"Okay, boss, thank you for your hard work these days." Sui Yu smiled at him.
"It's so ugly." Zhao Xiping was annoyed when he saw her smile, "If you don't want to laugh, don't laugh. I didn't say it was hard work."
"Who said I don't want to laugh?" Sui Yu muttered. She opened the door and was greeted by a gust of wind. She turned her face away and coughed. As she walked out the door, she saw someone walking towards her from the south. Recognizing him, she covered her mouth and coughed violently.
"Sister Yu." The person who came was Sui Wen'an. He was wearing new clothes and shoes, and his hair was combed clean. But he was too thin, and the empty clothes looked like they were stolen.
Sui Yu raised her hand to stop him from speaking. She took two steps back and went back into the door, closing it in front of Sui Wen'an.
"Why are you back again?" Zhao Xiping asked.
"The wind is too strong, I'd better not go out." Sui Yu bolted the door.
Sui Wen'an stood outside the door and stared at the closed door for a long time. Seeing that the door showed no sign of opening, he left.
After leaving the military settlement, Sui Wen'an stood dazed on the bustling street, his head spinning. Why did his family always implicate innocent people? What if he had escaped slavery? He felt deeply sinful, his very flesh and blood filled with sin.
As the sky slowly darkened, Sui Yu touched her forehead anxiously. Facing the man's worried eyes, she smiled and said, "I don't have a fever."
Zhao Xiping waved her hand away. He reached out and felt burned again. He slapped her and said, "I want to hit you in the mouth."
"Ah..." Sui Yu sniffed, "When will I be better?"
Zhao Xiping remained silent, acupuncture was becoming less and less effective.
Sui Yu sent Sui Liang out. She hugged the man's waist and said, "If I die, can you help me take care of Brother Liang?"
"No." Zhao Xiping wrapped her in a mattress. He first sent Sui Liang to Sister-in-law Lamei's house, then returned to take Sui Yu to see a doctor. All the clinics were closed, so he knocked on the door of three clinics before finally opening one. As expected, it was another acupuncture session.
Over the past few days, he had taken Sui Yu to four clinics in the city. The first doctor's face darkened when he felt Sui Yu's pulse. After acupuncture, he came out and said to Zhao Xiping, "Heart disease needs to be treated with heart medicine. If she can't get over it, she won't be cured."
On the way back, Zhao Xiping carried people on his back as he walked on the empty long street. There was no moon in the sky and the road ahead was pitch black. For Sui Yu, she must have felt that the road ahead was also pitch black.
"Can you live an ordinary life with me? Three meals a day, I'll farm, and you raise pigs and sheep."
"Yes."
"You're lying." Zhao Xiping smiled, then his voice darkened again: "Are you torturing yourself or me?"
Sui Yu's eyes felt sore and two lines of hot tears slid down the man's neck. She whispered sorry.
"I'll be fine tomorrow."
Zhao Xiping didn't say anything. For the first time, he felt that eighteen years was a long time. It trapped Sui Yu and him as well.
He knew it in his heart and he was no longer satisfied with the status quo.
One year, two years, three years... twenty years, being bullied every year?
After returning home, Zhao Xiping put Sui Yu in the house and went to pick up Sui Liang.
Sui Liang hadn't slept all night. When he heard the door open, he got up and ran out. Before Sister Lamei came out, he tiptoed to open the door and ran out.
"Where's my sister?" he wanted to ask, but there was no one there. He was so scared that he opened his mouth and burst into tears, but no sound came out. He was so anxious that he slapped his lips.
"Your sister is at home, she's not dead." Zhao Xiping was convinced. They were both tormenting each other. He turned around and thanked Sister Lamei.
"How's Sister Yu? Isn't it just a minor illness? Why have you been sick for so many days?"
"It will be fine tomorrow." Zhao Xiping picked up Sui Liang and said, "Sister-in-law, you go to sleep. We are going back."
"Okay, I'll go see Sui Yu tomorrow."
Zhao Xiping carried Sui Liang away. The two houses were only a few steps away and they arrived in a moment. As soon as Sui Liang got home, he hurried into the house and didn't feel at ease until he heard Sui Yu's voice.
Sui Liang hugged Sui Yu and cried again. When he was tired of crying, he fell asleep.
Zhao Xiping brought over the warmed medicine and said, "Drink it and don't worry. I'm tired of all the trivial matters at home. When you get better, I'll go out to fight."
Sui Yu's hand trembled and she almost dropped the bowl.
Zhao Xiping stood steady, staring at the hazy figure in the candlelight, and said softly, "We won't ask for help anymore. I'll go earn military merit and use it to free you from slavery."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com