Chapter Forty-Eight
As Fu Wei had expected, Aunt Cuilan's affair had spread to several neighboring villages.
There are many gossips in every village and place, and some have even caused deaths, but the government has never intervened.
But the government office took care of the Fu family's affairs, which shows that the Fu family had a relationship with the people in the government office.
Because of these rumors, the villains who had originally had evil intentions when they saw the Fu family's life gradually getting better, gave up their plans immediately for fear of offending the government.
Besides, Aunt Cuilan's problem had been solved, and with these rumors as a protection, Yu Ying did not dare to delay in delivering the hundred coins to Huo Yachai.
In the morning, I went into the mountains with Uncle He, Aunt He, and my eldest brother. We picked some herbs and then came back.
She took Fuan to the village entrance to wait for Uncle Chen's ox cart to Yu County.
When Uncle Chen came, he also brought the crutches that Yu Ying had ordered earlier.
Yu Ying asked Uncle Chen to wait for a while, and then she and Fu An took the crutches back home together.
Yu Ying brought the crutch to Fu Wei. Because she was in a hurry, she simply explained to Fu Wei and her elder brother how to use it.
After all, Fu Wei's legs were broken and he had no support. He could only support himself with his hands, so it was difficult for him to get down to the ground or leave the house.
Right now, the crutch only allows him to move around a little. In another fortnight, after the bamboo supports are removed, his legs will still be unable to walk and he'll need another twenty days of recuperation. That's when the crutch will be most useful.
Yu Ying vaguely knew Fu Wei's temperament, so she repeatedly warned him, "Don't try to force yourself to stay in bed. Even if you do, you'll need my eldest brother's help. And don't stay in bed for more than half an hour."
Fu Wei glanced at the crutch she had specially made for him, and a smile flashed across his eyes.
He turned back to look at her and said softly, "I'm not the type to show off."
Yu Yingcai didn't believe him, so she brought up the past: "Only those who show off their abilities will admit that they show off their abilities. I haven't forgotten the time when you broke your shoulder and tried to show off by making fruit seeds."
Fu Wei was silent for a moment, and then he heard her say to his elder brother, "Eldest brother, before you go out at noon, keep an eye on Erlang. When you go out at noon, take the cane outside the house."
Fu Wei: ...
How worried was she about him?
Fu Zhen nodded: "I will watch him."
…
Fu Wei listened to their conversation and for a moment he felt like a restless child who needed to be watched by an adult.
Fu Wei said to her helplessly: "Go quickly, don't keep us waiting."
Yu Ying nodded and added, "I'll try my best to find what you mentioned."
After Yu Ying left, Fu Wei and Fu Zhen looked at each other.
After a moment of silence, Fu Wei took the cane and broke the silence: "Thank you for your help, brother."
*
Besides, when Yu Ying arrived in Yu County, she did not go straight to the government office.
How brave or stupid must she be to do such a thing as blatantly offering bribes in front of the government office?
Shopkeeper Chen had mentioned that the yamen runner Huo would often go to Wu's restaurant for lunch. Yu Ying therefore sent the money to Wu's restaurant and asked Shopkeeper Chen to hand it over to the yamen runner Huo.
After giving the money, she took Fu An to Penglai Inn.
At first, Fu An was still hesitant and grabbed his clothes and didn't dare to go in. When Yu Ying saw his clothes covered with pudding, she instantly understood what he cared about.
Although my eldest brother and his wife's clothes are basically unwearable now, it is necessary to do this. Even Fu Wei's clothes are not suitable for this season, but they are new clothes after all.
Originally, she only wanted her sister-in-law to make her one lining. After all, she only had one lining, and the other one she had previously had was cut into pieces.
But the eldest sister-in-law insisted on making her a coat.
By then, everyone will have new clothes, except Luo and the two children. It may not matter whether Luo has them or not, but what about the two children?
After thinking about it for a while, Yu Ying decided to go to the cloth shop to buy some cloth and make new clothes for the whole family.
If you are afraid of attracting attention, it is the same as not having it at all. You can wear it when you go to Yu County instead of wearing it on weekdays.
Fu An hesitated for a moment, but still lowered his head and followed his aunt into the inn.
When the waiter Afu saw Madam Yu who had just come in, his face immediately lit up with joy and he hurried forward to greet her.
While pouring tea, he whispered, "More and more drug dealers have been staying here lately. Is Madam Yu thinking about this?"
Yu Ying had originally intended to take on a few more small deals to maintain her business, so she whispered, "Then please keep an eye on it."
After thinking for a moment, he added, "Don't cast a wide net. First, see which drug dealer is more reliable."
Ah Fu knew that this matter should not be made public, so he quickly agreed.
After eating a bowl of noodles, Yu Ying and Fu An left the inn.
Yu Ying first took Fu An to buy some more fabric.
After buying the cloth, Yu Ying walked around several streets and finally saw a stall selling wild game.
When I stopped in front of the stall to check, I saw a wild deer whose meat was half sold.
Perhaps the deerskin was damaged, so the hunter just peeled off a few pieces and put them aside.
Yu Ying remembered that Fu Wei had told her that the best leather for making bowstrings was deerskin and cowhide. If neither was available, they could buy animal tendons.
Yu Ying squatted down and asked the price of venison. It was twenty cents per pound, which was much more expensive than pork.
If Fu Wei hadn't needed the deerskin, Yu Ying would have gotten up and left without a second thought after asking the price.
After thinking for a while, she asked how much the deerskin next to her was selling for.
The hunter looked at her and said, "If you buy two pounds of meat, I will sell you all these deer skins for ten cents."
Deerskin is still worth some money in Yu County, but it is just damaged and the pawnshop won’t give much.
Moreover, pawnshops do not recycle unprocessed leather.
In order to keep the meat fresh, the hunter did not skin it in advance, and planned to take it back and sew it into a sleeve.
Since someone asked, just buy it together with the meat.
When Yu Ying heard him ask her to buy two pounds of venison, she initially refused. However, she thought about the dangers of going into the mountains to gather herbs, the dangers of being outside, and the future chaos. A repeating crossbow was essential.
Yu Ying reluctantly cut off two pounds of venison and bought those pieces of deer skin.
Since the venison had been bought, it couldn't be cooked casually, so Yu Ying spent two cents to buy a small jar and got some soy sauce.
Today, she had to go to the village head to discuss land leasing, so Yu Ying bought two more rice cakes. One was given to the village head as a favor, and the other was kept at home to enjoy.
When I bought soy sauce and was about to go back, I passed by a stall selling chicks. The chicks were yellow and black, fluffy, and chirped non-stop. They were very cute.
Fu An was so shocked that he could hardly walk.
Yu Ying thought about it for a while and then asked the price of the chicks, which was three cents each.
She bought eight and spent another twenty-four cents.
Every time she came to Yu County, Yu Ying felt that she had spent a lot of money, and her heart was bleeding silently.
But when she thought that the chicken could lay eggs and hatch chicks in the future, she didn't feel so bad about the money.
When he was carrying the chicken coop back, he said to Fu An, "When the chickens grow up and can lay eggs, we can eat eggs without spending any money."
Hearing this, Fu An looked at the chicks in the small bamboo cage and said, "Little chicks, little chicks, grow up quickly and lay eggs."
Yu Ying flicked his forehead lightly: "There are still several months left."
Fu An looked up and asked, "If it takes several months, will my uncle's leg be healed by then?"
Yu Ying smiled and said, "It will definitely be fine by then."
Now that Fu Wei's legs have healed, even if he becomes the aide to the magistrate of Yu County in the future, he will not be humiliated because of his disabled legs.
Besides, she was acquainted with Huo Yacha. From now on, no matter what, whenever Fu Weiruo worked in the yamen, Huo Yacha would always treat her with a good face.
When we returned to Lingshui Village, Fu Zhen and Uncle He and Aunt He had not come back yet.
When Fu Ning saw the chick, his eyes widened, he approached the chick cautiously, squatted down, and stretched out his little hand to stroke it gently.
Even Wen Xing liked these cute little chicks, and joined the two children to watch.
Yu Ying couldn't help but laugh when she saw this scene.
After washing her hands, she said to Luo, "Mother, come with me to the village headman's house. I think Huo Yacha should have told the village headman about the farmland. Let's go and tell him while the iron is hot, and we'll go check on the farmland tomorrow."
Luo Madam responded, and Yu Ying gave the venison to her eldest sister-in-law: "This is venison. Cut half and stew it with radish tonight."
Wen Xing was surprised to hear that it was venison. Even Mrs. Luo was surprised and asked, "Why did you suddenly buy venison?"
Yu Ying couldn't say that she bought the venison because Fu Wei wanted the deer hide. She could only say, "Venison is very nourishing. I thought everyone in my family was a little weak, so I bought two pounds of meat to replenish them."
Mrs. Luo was not sure whether it was really nourishing, but she felt that Liu Niang was knowledgeable in medicine, and since it was said to be nourishing, it must be nourishing.
Yu Ying was worried that her sister-in-law didn't know how to cook, so she told her the recipe.
"The cooking process for venison isn't complicated. First, cut the meat into chunks and blanch the radish. Heat the clay pot, add two tablespoons of lard and shredded ginger, and stir-fry until fragrant. Then add the venison and stir-fry for a while. Add three tablespoons of soy sauce, and finally, once fragrant, add the radish and a bowl of water. Simmer slowly until the water is almost gone."
Wen Xing was afraid that she would remember it wrong, so she quickly repeated it again.
After giving the instructions, Yu Ying put the deerskin away, planning to deal with it after returning from the headman's house.
Yu Ying took a portion of rice cake and went to the headman's house with Luo.
Although the village head's house was also a thatched hut, it was much larger than the Fu family's and looked very sturdy.
When he heard that Luo and her daughter-in-law from the Fu family had arrived, the village head hurried out of the house to greet them.
Since Huo Yacha had personally mentioned the issue of the land, the head of the village naturally did not dare to slack off.
Yu Ying gave the rice cake to the village head and said with a smile, "I went to Yu County today and heard from Fu An that the village head also has several children at home, so I bought some rice cakes and asked the village head to take care of the children."
The village head said, "You're here just for show. Why bring any gifts? It's so strange."
Although he said that, he still took the rice cake with a smile.
Yu Ying talked to the village head about the land, and the head said, "We do have a few good plots left, but the rent will be a bit higher."
Yu Ying asked, "How much silver does one mu of land earn per year?"
In this dynasty, land still needs to be rented, but perhaps in the near future, there will be no need to pay rent, only taxes.
But by then, there will be no difference from now.
The village head replied, "Four hundred coins a year for one dan of grain. Since the planting season is over and there are still a few months left this year, I only need to give you fifty coins. In the next few months, you can grow some vegetables in the field and earn some money."
Yu Ying nodded and estimated the amount of money she had now.
If one needs to keep some money for emergencies and hire someone to take care of the land, the money available for renting the land will only be enough to rent two acres.
Seeing Yu frowning and calculating, the village head said, "Madam Yu, if you don't have that much money on hand right away, you can just give this year's money first, and pay next year's money at the beginning of next year."
Upon hearing this, Yu Ying felt relieved. If that was the case, then they could rent a larger piece of land.
Yu Ying thought about it and made a decision: "Then I'll rent five acres of land."
Upon hearing this, the village head, Mrs. Luo, and the woman who was busy nearby were all shocked.
But you have to know that even those villagers in Lingshui Village who are better off can only rent one acre of land.
Those who had no money had to pool their money together to rent an acre of land to cultivate. Madam Yu was so arrogant that she wanted to rent so much land at once.
The village head came to his senses and tried to persuade them, "Even if we can't grow crops this year, we still have to pay 200 coins. Besides, you might be able to come up with that much money now, but next year you'll have to pay 2,000 coins all at once!"
Yu Ying said calmly, "I saved it, but I still decided to rent five acres of land."
Some common herbs can be harvested in half a year, but some herbs require at least a year to be harvested.
If she wants to grow both medicinal herbs and grains, she will need more land.
Upon hearing this, the village head looked at Luo and said, "Luo, why don't you persuade your daughter-in-law?"
Mrs. Luo also thought that these five acres of land were too much, but she still said: "Sixth Mother has the final say on important matters in our family. If Sixth Mother wants to rent five acres, then it's five acres."
After hearing what Luo said, the two daughters-in-law of the village head and his wife looked at Yu in disbelief.
I couldn't help but wonder what kind of ability Yu Shi had. Ever since she married into the Fu family, the family had been thriving, and now the Fu family let her, a woman, make the decisions, which was surprising.
When the village head heard what Luo said, he simply gave up trying to persuade her. He simply said, "Since you insist on renting so much land, I've made it clear to you. If you can't pay the rent next year, the land will be taken back."
Yu Ying nodded.
After staying at the headman's house for a while, Yu Ying declined his polite invitation to have dinner with her. After deciding to go check on the fields the next morning, the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law went back.
After returning home, Yu Ying went into the kitchen to see the results of her sister-in-law's cooking.
When the ceramic lid was opened, a fragrance wafted out along with the smoke.
Yu Ying glanced at the boiling venison, inhaled the aroma, and praised, "Sister-in-law is not only good at making clothes, but also very good at cooking. Big brother is so lucky to marry her."
Wen Xing blushed when she heard this, lowered her head and whispered, "I'm so lucky to be able to marry Dalang."
Yu Ying smiled, glanced at her sister-in-law's face, which was sunburned and peeling in the quarry, and said, "I'll get her some herbs to treat her sunburn later."
Hearing this, Wen Xing touched her face, and then thought of her husband's face and upper body being sunburned, so she asked, "Da Lang is also badly sunburned. Can we do more?"
Yu Ying smiled and replied, "Of course you can."
As the two sisters-in-law were talking, they heard the sound of a fence door being opened outside the house, followed by hurried footsteps and Fu Zhen's urgent voice: "Sister-in-law, come out and check on Song Sanlang!"
Upon hearing this, the smile on Yu Ying's face immediately disappeared, and she hurriedly walked out of the house with her sister-in-law.
As soon as I walked out of the house, I saw my eldest brother carrying Song Sanlang, who was covered in blood, into the yard.
Also coming in at the same time were Uncle He, Aunt He, and He Dalang, who looked anxious.
The scene was too bloody and would scare the children, so Yu Ying quickly asked Luo to bring Fu An and Funing into the house.
Fu Zhen asked his wife to get a straw mat and spread it under the eaves.
With the help of He Dalang, Fu Zhen slowly placed Song Sanlang on the straw mat.
Song Sanlang was not unconscious, he was just gritting his teeth and holding on.
Yu Ying asked solemnly: "What happened?"
He Dalang said anxiously, "It rained last night, and the roof was already slippery, but the owner insisted we repair it. Song Sanlang slipped and fell from the roof, but the owner refused to send for a doctor, saying he fell without paying attention. They just had someone bandage him, but the bleeding wouldn't stop. There was nothing we could do, so we had to bring him back for a checkup."
The main reason was that the clinic was far away in Yu County. Secondly, they remembered that Yu Ying had cured Luo's eyes and knew about herbal medicine, so she must be knowledgeable in medicine, so they brought her back.
Upon hearing this, Yu Ying looked at Song Sanlang.
There was a hole on Song Sanlang's forehead, and even his clothes were stained with blood. She hurriedly asked, "Besides your head, where else did you get hurt?"
Song Sanlang took a deep breath and replied weakly: "Left elbow and knee."
When Yu Ying checked the depth and size of the wound on her forehead, she asked, "Is there a lot of bleeding?"
He Dalang quickly recalled and replied, "It feels like half a bowl of blood. As for how much I lost on the way, I don't know."
Yu Ying frowned.
After checking her forehead, she looked at her arms and knees.
The most serious injury was on the knee. Even though it was wrapped in cloth, it was still oozing blood, and the entire knee was stained dark.
She slowly untied the cloth, and there was a big tear underneath it, as if it had been punctured by a tile.
Yu Ying said seriously, "The forehead and hand don't need stitches, but the knee does."
Although Yu Ying is a Chinese medicine practitioner, it is not uncommon for Chinese medicine practitioners to know how to sew. Besides, she was originally going to take over her grandfather's Chinese medicine clinic, so she also learned the skill of sew.
Although it is possible, it is difficult to sew it up without any sterile tools. However, if it is not sewed up and just bandaged, it will be difficult to heal and more prone to infection.
Hearing about stitches, everyone was stunned. He Dalang asked, "Why do we need stitches?"
Yu Ying asked them, "Haven't you ever heard of a wound needing stitches?"
He Dalang replied: "I have only heard of it, but never seen it."
Since she knew it, Yu Ying didn't explain in detail, only saying, "His wound is too deep. If you bandage it normally, it will easily split and bleed again or pus will flow... Then his foot might not be able to be saved."
Hearing this, everyone's face changed. Song Sanlang gritted his teeth and said, "Sew it up."
After getting his consent, Yu Ying began to take action.
To avoid excessive bleeding, she cut new strips of cloth to bandage all his wounds.
After bandaging the wound, she asked her eldest brother to fetch some clean river water immediately, while she went into the house to get the needle, thread, scissors, and plain cloth.
The water was brought back and I asked my sister-in-law to boil a full earthenware jar.
She used scissors to bend the needle into a curved needle. After the water boiled, she poured two bowls of water into a basin half filled with cold water to allow it to cool down faster.
Yu Ying then threw the scissors and needle and thread into a ceramic pot that was half full of hot water to boil and disinfect them.
On the other side, when Fu Zhen and the others came back, Fu Wei asked Fu An to come in and lift the curtains. Then he moved to the end of the bed with great effort and looked out the window at the eaves.
Fu Wei saw everything from Yu Ying calmly checking Song Sanlang's wound to her busy work in an orderly manner.
Compared to the panic of others, she seemed particularly calm and composed.
When the water had almost cooled down, Yu Ying untied the cloth on Song Sanlang's wound and then rinsed the wound to prevent any sand or stones from remaining inside.
Although it is taboo to wash the wound with water because it can easily cause infection, there is no other way and this is the only way.
After a simple cleaning, Yu Ying held the threaded curved needle, looked at Song Sanlang, and said, "It will be very painful. There is no other way to relieve the pain. You can only endure it."
Song Sanlang had experienced hard times before, so he could endure it. He said directly, "I can endure it."
Yu Ying gave him a piece of clean cloth and asked him to bite it, and then asked He Dalang and Daxiong to hold him down to prevent him from moving in pain.
Because the scene was a bit bloody and made people feel uncomfortable watching it, Yu Ying asked Aunt He and her elder sister-in-law to leave before she started giving the acupuncture.
Muffled groans of unbearable pain were heard in the room, and Fu An and Fu Ning turned pale with fear.
It took less than half an hour to sew thirteen stitches. During this time, Song Sanlang fainted from the pain and then woke up from the pain.
Song Sanlang turned pale with pain and his whole body was covered in sweat.
The two grown men were terrified, but Yu Ying remained calm and composed.
At that moment, Fu Zhen, He Dalang, and Fu Wei who was watching every move outside in the house, all admired her from the bottom of their hearts.
It’s not that Yu Ying isn’t afraid, but she’s used to it.
She was also afraid when she sewed stitches for the first time.
It was my first time suturing someone, and I only managed three stitches under the guidance of my instructor. Even though it was just three stitches, I couldn't calm down for a long time.
After doing it the second time, I wasn’t so scared anymore. I don’t know how many times I’ve done it now, so I’m naturally calm.
After cutting the thread of the last stitch, Yu Ying finally breathed a sigh of relief.
She looked at Song Sanlang, who had fainted again, and said, "Don't rush to move him. I'll treat the scratches on his head and elbows, and then send him home."
Fu Zhen asked, "How is he now?"
Yu Ying: "Recover properly. Don't do heavy work, and don't let the wound come into contact with water. Don't let it get dust or dirt on it. The stitches can be removed in about ten days, and you'll be almost fully recovered after that."
Upon hearing this, Fu Zhen, He Dalang, and He Shu all looked solemn.
Uncle He said, "Song Sanlang's mother died, so his father remarried. He and his two sisters were treated very harshly. After his eldest and second sisters got married, everyone close to him in the Song family was gone. Even if he were sent back, there wouldn't be anyone to take care of him."
Yu Ying couldn't help with this matter, so she could only let the grown men discuss it while she treated Song Sanlang's other wounds.
Finally, after discussion among the few people, they decided to send Song Sanlang to Uncle He's house to recuperate.
After sending the person over, it was almost dark.
Fu Zhen and his wife cleaned up the bloodstains left by Song Sanlang in the yard, while Yu Ying took a rest.
Uncle He brought He Dalang back from the He family and talked to Yu Ying about helping.
Uncle He said, "Today, because of Song Sanlang's incident, my Dalang had a quarrel with the steward of the master's house. He definitely can't go back, so I plan to let Dalang stay and help. What do you think, Liuniang?"
Yu Ying nodded: "Of course you can."
After thinking for a moment, she continued, "As for the price, let's follow Uncle He and Aunt He's. I can only give you half first, and the remaining half will be settled after the goods are delivered. Do you think you can accept it?"
At home, Uncle He had already told his son everything, and He Dalang had thought about it over and over again, so he quickly nodded in agreement and expressed his gratitude.
After hearing what they said, Fu Zhen pondered for a moment and said to his sister-in-law, "Since we're short of people, let's wait until Song Jia Sanlang recovers and then ask him if he wants to work with us. What do you think, sister-in-law?"
One is the son of Uncle He and Aunt He, so they know each other well. The other is a good brother of the eldest brother, who often helps the Fu family and is also a good person. Naturally, there is no problem, so Yu Ying agreed.
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