After Qiao Shengwen finished speaking, he couldn't hold back a series of coughs.
Qiao Ruichen immediately went forward and knocked on the door. "I'm not mistaken. There aren't many blue brick and tile houses in Xining Town."
Even if they remembered their own house wrongly, there would definitely be a familiar blue brick and tile house next to it.
Qiao Ruichen suppressed his surprise. The most important thing was to get his father to go into the house quickly and find a doctor to see him.
When their family arrived in Xining Town, Qiao Ruichen gave his white jade hairpin to the chief military officer on guard.
The other party was secretly arranged by the saint to look after them. With the benefits that could be justified on the surface, the leader decided to rest in Xining Town for half a day to give them time to make arrangements for Geng's mother and her two daughters.
During these days in the military camp, Qiao Ruichen was always worried about his family.
Especially since it was getting colder day by day, he remembered that the house was very shabby and should not be very warm. There were either children or pregnant women in the house, and it would be difficult for Geng to survive the winter alone.
Under the order of General Dingbei, there were many people targeting Qiao Ruichen in the camp where he was stationed.
Fortunately, Qiao Ruichen had been practicing martial arts since he was a child and had a strong body. Although he suffered some hardships, he was able to deal with the human relationships and worldly affairs properly. He was unable to rest in the first month, but from the second month on, he used all his salary to win people's hearts, and finally he was able to rest.
But before the day came, news came from the official mine that Qiao Shengwen had broken his leg and had a high fever. He was asked to go there quickly, either to save his life or to collect the body.
Qiao Ruichen immediately took out the last valuable thing on his body - the Qiao family's heirloom jade pendant, and gave it to the centurion in charge of their camp. He got six days of leave in two months, and then found a way to ask for a cart and hurried to the official mine to pick up Qiao Shengwen.
The father and son had no money on them, so they could only rely on the ginseng slices given by the secret guards to stay alive. Qiao Ruichen did not dare to rest for a moment. He placed Qiao Shengwen on the cart with a thick quilt and oilcloth, and ran back desperately in the wind and snow.
The wind and snow were fierce on the road, and Qiao Shengwen and his son were very cold and felt heavy in their hearts.
When they first arrived in the northwest, although General Dingbei did not target them personally, the difficulties caused by his subordinates were enough to make them suffer.
Not only have they not found any evidence yet, the two men feel that the women in the family must be having a hard time too.
When they came back this time, they had to spend money to pay the head tax to Qiao Shengwen, so he could no longer go to the government mines.
There was a sick and pregnant bride at home, and it was winter, so the father and son hurried on their way and didn't feel like visiting the grave.
Who would have thought that when he arrived at the doorstep, he would find that the dilapidated house had become a new one?
Although there was no little match girl these days, the father and son still felt that they might have been hallucinating because of the cold wind and snow.
Geng was doing embroidery on the kang in the main room. When she heard a knock on the door, she wrapped herself in a thick cotton jacket and came to open the door holding an umbrella.
She froze as the door opened, her umbrella falling to the ground. Tears streamed down her face faster than the umbrella itself, "Ruichen? My husband?!"
She staggered to the side of the cart and burst into tears, "Master, why have you lost so much weight? What happened to you?"
His cheeks were sunken and abnormally red, and his lips were blue and purple from the cold. It was obvious that he had suffered a lot.
Qiao Shengwen was also a little excited, "Runiang, you too..."
The word "thinner" got stuck in his throat. The high fever made his voice light and fluttery. "Fatter?"
Not only did she gain weight, but her complexion also improved. After being frozen by the heavy snow, her fair cheeks actually looked a bit like when she was the wife of a minister.
Qiao Ruichen had no choice but to interrupt his parents' conversation, "Dad, Mom, let's go inside first. It's too cold outside. I'll take you inside and I'll go get a doctor."
In the Zhang family's yard next door, Donkey Egg, who was playing in the snow with Qiao Rui and her younger brothers and sisters, heard the noise, opened the door, and immediately turned around and ran back.
"Grandpa, Ada, Grandma Qiao is crying at the door, hugging someone!"
The Zhang family was alarmed, and everyone except Mrs. Sun and Zhang Sanzhuang who was not at home ran out to see what was happening.
Qiao Rui also ran out. When she saw the figures clearly, she immediately ran towards the door crying, "Dad! Big brother! You are finally back, wuwu..."
There was crying and shouting outside the door, as well as the noise of moving things, so Miao Wan naturally heard it.
She had just washed her hair and taken a bath, and changed to clean hot water, planning to add some essential oil and soak in it for a while.
Hearing the commotion in the yard, Miao Wan couldn't stay any longer. She quickly dried herself, put on her clothes, wrapped her still wet hair with an old quilt, and opened the door to see what was going on.
Qiao Shengwen was carried into the main house and laid down. Seeing that Qiao Ruichen looked exhausted, Zhang Dazhuang asked him to rest and ran out to find a doctor.
Qiao Ruichen couldn't refuse, so he walked the person to the door. When he was looking at the new well in the courtyard, he raised his eyes and saw Miao Wan sticking out her head wrapped in a quilt. Only a pair of big eyes with distinct black and white were exposed, staring at him with wide eyes.
"You..." Miao Wan was startled by the tall figure standing at the door of the main hall, and then immediately reacted, "Husband?"
Qiao Ruichen didn't know what to say to his wife for a moment. When he was exiled, he and Miao Wan had just been married for more than a month.
Except for the first three days when they slept together, Miao Wan's eyes would turn red and she would cry whenever she saw him. He had no choice but to sleep in the outer study.
When they learned that Miao Wan was pregnant during the exile, the family tried their best to take care of her carefully. Miao Wan lay weakly most of the time, and the two of them did not communicate much.
He didn't know whether his wife was still afraid of him. The mother and daughter in the main house were still crying. He really didn't need one more person.
In fact, Qiao Ruichen never understood why his wife was afraid of him. In the eyes of outsiders, he was a gentle and polite person, and at home he was just taciturn.
Fortunately, he didn't need to react. Geng wiped Qiao Shengwen's body and came out to pour out the dirty water. Seeing Miao Wan's strange look, she was so frightened that she threw the basin aside and ran over.
"Little ancestor, your hair is still wet after taking a shower. Go in quickly. Let Ruichen clean up later and let him stay in the room with you."
Qiao Ruichen: “…” Mom, have you made your arrangements too clear for me?
Miao Wan: "..." Thank you for the invitation. She just came out to watch the fun and didn't need anyone to accompany her!
In the original body's memory, during the first three days after the marriage, Qiao Ruichen did nothing except the night before Sanchao returned home, but he was very busy in the first two days.
The original body didn't understand anything, just felt that the night was too unbearable. Although Miao Wan had never eaten pork, it was not in vain to raise so many pigs... ahem, read so many novels and TV dramas.
Not only is this guy gifted, he probably has little experience. Not only does he not know how to do foreplay, but his instincts are also reckless. For two newbies, it's a complete disaster.
Miao Wan was pushed into the house by Geng. She sat on the kang with her cheeks puffed out and wiped her head with a cotton handkerchief. Did she need this person's company?
She dug the well, bought the charcoal, and boiled the water, but she didn't have a good bath. I guess it will all be lost to Qiao Ruichen later.
Since seeing Qiao Ruichen just now, Baobao has been punching and kicking in support. Thinking that Qiao Ruichen will snatch her kang and bedding at night, Miao Wan feels a little unhappy.
Since Geng asked her to stay, she simply didn't go out. She took the money box and counted the silver, then she became happy again.
Of course, she didn't stay in the house for too long. Even if Qiao Ruichen didn't care, he still had to take care of his father-in-law.
Miao Wan heard Zhang Dazhuang running to ask for a doctor, so she had to go out to greet her father-in-law and also pay the money.
By the time she dried her hair, put it up and went to the main room, the doctor had already taken Qiao Shengwen's pulse.
The doctor's face was very serious. "You have insufficient Qi and blood, a weak spleen and stomach, and a weak constitution that causes a persistent high fever. This must be caused by prolonged restless sleep and eating. The leg injury is easy to deal with, but you must first get the fever down and nourish your body. Otherwise, even if you recover from the illness, it will affect your lifespan."
Qiao Ruichen's heart sank when he heard this. He had to rush back to the military camp and meet with the person secretly arranged by the saint to borrow the silver back first.
It is snowing heavily now, the road can be seen at night, and there are not many people outside. It is the best time. My father's illness cannot be delayed. He is still young and it doesn't matter if he catches a cold.
Without waiting for him to say anything, Geng and Qiao Rui kept crying. One of them held her husband's hand, and the other hugged her brother's arm, both looking at Miao Wan eagerly.
Miao Wan looked at the doctor and said, "Just tell me how to treat the disease and nourish the body, and use good medicine."
Geng and Qiao Rui both breathed a sigh of relief. It was great to have a daughter-in-law/sister-in-law. The mother and daughter looked at Qiao Ruichen and thought that he was so tall but useless.
Qiao Ruichen:?
The doctor stroked his beard and said, "To reduce fever, you can use Baihu Fang. For leg injuries, use Zhuangjinxugu Gao. To replenish qi and blood, the best is Junzi Tang. To nourish the spleen and stomach and dispel cold, I have Jinkui Fang for food supplements. However, these prescriptions are not cheap. They require ginseng, angelica, and musk."
Without the doctor saying much, Zhang Dazhuang knew that these three things were not cheap.
Musk, in particular, is more expensive than ginseng, costing one penny for one string of coins. Butcher Zhang used it when he was injured in the bones by a pig. Three doses of medicine used nine pennies of musk, and the medicine alone cost him ten taels of silver.
Qiao Shengwen felt a tightness in his chest. He didn't think his family could afford so much money, not to mention his head tax.
He probably knew what his son was planning, but going out on a snowy night, not to mention whether he would be discovered, if Qiao Ruichen got frozen to death, he would definitely not be able to complete the task entrusted by the saint on his own.
Not to mention that he would be betraying the emperor's grace, the Qiao family only has him as a single child, and he would never allow anything to happen to Qiao Ruichen. For an old and weak man like him, what's the harm in living a few years less?
Qiao Shengwen's face was filled with sadness and he raised his head with all his strength. "No need to waste..."
Miao Wan was afraid that her mother-in-law and sister-in-law would continue crying, so she interrupted her father-in-law with a crisp voice, "Buy it! Just write the prescription."
Qiao Rui let go of Qiao Ruichen, turned around and hugged Miao Wan's arm, "Sister-in-law, I'm lucky to have you. You're still the best in our family!"
Geng also let go of Qiao Shengwen's hand, took Miao Wan's other hand and said with emotion, "Awan, it is a blessing for our family to marry you. Your father-in-law and Ruichen are bothering you."
Zhang Dazhuang also echoed, "Don't worry, Aunt Qiao. If my sister doesn't have enough money, she can ask Am for money."
Qiao Shengwen: ? ?
Zhang Dazhuang followed the doctor to get medicine, and Miao Wan directly gave him two small silver ingots of ten taels.
Both the father and the son were a little confused. They had only been away from the mother and her two children for less than two months, so why did it feel like they had been away for two years?
Before the two of them could figure it out, Geng started to get busy -
"Xiao Rui, go boil some water and let your brother wash first, so he doesn't stink and vomit on your sister-in-law."
"Husband, rest assured and recuperate. Don't go to the official mine when you recover. Help Awan at home. Let Ruichen handle anything."
"Hmm?" Miao Wan's eyes lit up.
She thought about adopting a godson for her mother-in-law, but unfortunately it was not realistic. It would be better to send her a biological father-in-law!
The author has something to say:
Miao Wan: With my father-in-law, I’m set to become a veteran employee!
Qiao Ruichen: Wife, what about me?
Miao Wan: Hey, why haven't you left yet? You're not needed at home. Your stage is in the military camp. Be good, go quickly.
Qiao Ruichen: ...
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