Chapter 50: Witness the Fire Where Once Was the Army...
Chapter 50 Knowledge
"Don't forget to report home that you're safe." Chen Yin reminded him in a low voice.
"Yes, if you hadn't mentioned it, I would have almost forgotten."
Yan Jiuru paused, he really couldn't remember anything.
It must be because his wife is always by his side, Yan Jiuru gave himself a little excuse in his heart.
The two men asked a staff member of the guesthouse where the post office was.
"Do you see that overpass? Cross the street and you'll find our Post Office building down there."
The staff member was a man in his thirties. He was very polite and always addressed everyone as "you".
He even went outside to point it out to the two of them: "You can walk on the ground, but the zebra crossing is a little far away. You'll have to walk about 200 meters and then use the zebra crossing to get to the other side."
Then, the staff member suddenly thought of something, took a quick look at the two of them, and said hesitantly, "By the way, zebra crossings, do you two know about them?"
He didn't mean to look down on them, he was just worried that these two outsiders didn't know.
Yan Jiuru smiled and thanked him. "Thank you, big brother. It seems we're not far away. Let's go send a telegram home to let them know we're safe. If you're busy, we'll go over there by overpass."
"That's great, it saves my family from worrying about me. Take care, both of you~"
***
The two walked onto the street and smiled at each other: The older brothers and sisters in Yancheng are all quite talkative, as I've seen before when they were eating and bathing.
"It's not that cold here. I feel like it's about the same as November here."
The two people discovered on their way to the guesthouse that most people were still wearing blue, gray, and military green clothes, with fewer patches. A few people were wearing woolen coats, leather shoes, etc.
Neither of them changed into their new clothes, as that would have been too conspicuous.
On the way, they happened to find a bookstore.
"Comrade, do you have a map of Yancheng?" Yan Jiuru asked the salesperson.
"Forty-five cents a copy."
Chen Yin counted out fifty cents and gave it to the salesperson.
"Give me five cents change. Here's the invoice. Do you want it stamped?"
Yan Jiuru and Chen Yin asked hurriedly and found out that the bookstore also provided free stamping service, mainly because many people from other places thought it was commemorative.
This one certainly can't be missed.
The two watched as the salesperson dipped the wooden-handled stamp into the ink pad twice, then slammed it onto the blank space on the map they had bought.
The technique is clean, neat and very skillful.
Wow, I’ve really broadened my horizons.
Unfortunately, before the two of them could take a closer look, they were squeezed away by other customers, and there was a long line of people waiting to get the commemorative stamp.
****
Yan Jiuru pulled Chen Yin to a corner and opened the map.
With a sweep of his spiritual sense, he found the approximate location of the address given by his father-in-law in a place in Dongcheng District.
He tapped his fingers lightly and put away the map. "Let's go. After sending the telegram, it's a good time to call Liu Changyi."
When they stepped onto the overpass, Yan Jiuru stopped and looked around. From here, he could see that the guesthouse they were staying in was only a small turn away from Chang'an Avenue, the widest street in Yancheng, and could be considered the central city area.
From the bridge, I saw a huge clock on the Post and Telecommunications Building diagonally opposite, and the hands were pointing to 4:20 in the afternoon.
The working hours here are half past five, so they have to hurry.
***
After finally sending the telegram in the crowded post and telecommunications building, without even having time to feel bad about the seven cents per word, the two of them quickly found a counter for making local calls.
Nowadays, apart from work units, few people have telephones installed in their homes. If you want to make a call, you have to go through the switchboard. If it is a long-distance call, I don’t know how many transfer stations it will have to go through. It’s really troublesome.
The Post and Telecommunications Building is the most convenient place. There are only 11 telephones in total, and there are people waiting in line in front.
Yan Jiuru also went to queue up.
There were two people in front of him, and just from listening to them it sounded quite troublesome.
After more than ten minutes, it was finally his turn.
I dialed the dial repeatedly, and after a moment's wait, a voice finally came through the receiver: "Hello! This is the switchboard at the XX Steel Plant. Who are you looking for?"
Yan Jiuru hurriedly followed up with a "hello" and said, "Hello, I'm looking for Liu Changyi from the technical team of the fifth workshop."
"Liu Changyi... please wait a moment."
After waiting for three or four minutes, or perhaps even longer, a breathless voice came over: "Hello, I'm Liu Changyi. Who are you?"
The call is charged by the minute, and it's two cents a minute within the city. It's probably a little over ten cents now. No wonder the other party is running around.
"Hello, I'm from the Xinghua Brigade of the Red Star Commune in Northern Province. My last name is Yan. Your friend has a letter for you."
"...Uh, okay, are they, are they okay?" The other party was quite surprised and seemed a little excited.
"fine."
The phone call was too expensive, and there was an operator in the middle, so it was not convenient to say much. The other party asked him where he lived, and then agreed to meet after get off work to talk.
"The East is Red, the sun is rising..."
Yan Jiuru and Chen Yin were in a good mood after finishing their work.
The two stopped and listened. This was the second time they had heard this song.
"This is the hourly time."
There were enthusiastic people in the Post and Telecommunications Building who answered their questions, obviously because they had seen people from other places doing this too many times.
The two thanked each other and left the Post and Telecommunications Building. They couldn't help but chuckle and said to themselves, "It's true that country people come to the city. Everything is new to them."
"Let's go, since we're off work at 12:30, let's go to the pharmacy and buy some medicine. This way we don't have to waste time buying it later."
***
The two asked around and found a big pharmacy.
Yan Jiuru was thinking about what medicine he needed to buy. "I don't know if there is any external injury. If there is an injury to the lung, it must be anti-inflammatory..."
"It would be best if we have ginseng wine." He had personally experienced that it really did have miraculous effects on the human body.
Chen Yin whispered, "If you ask me, it's best to bring some hot porridge. I haven't eaten properly for a few days. I don't know how I'm doing... Also, quilts, cotton clothes, and preferably hot water."
The more I talk about it, the sadder I feel. How could a general in the revolutionary army end up like this?
Yan Jiuru lowered his head and advised, "Don't worry, we're here, aren't we? I calculated with my fingers, and he's so lucky to have met me. It must be a turning point, and he'll survive a near-death experience."
"Don't worry, if you survive a disaster, you will have good fortune in the future."
***
Pharmacies in the capital are special. They sell ginseng wine on their Chinese medicine counters.
A small bottle weighs two taels and costs two yuan and eighty cents per bottle.
Yan Jiuru bought ten bottles in one go.
The old Chinese doctor who was treating the patient had his beard sticking up and was glaring at him.
Yan Jiuru touched his nose and explained: "Well, we are from other places, and we brought some local specialties back home. My grandparents, my father-in-law and my grandmother are all old, and there are also my parents and my third uncle..."
The old Chinese doctor said: "That's enough. It's good to be filial, but just don't treat it as alcohol."
Yan Jiuru nodded quickly, "Well, how do you think my wife is doing?"
After giving birth, Chen Yin had only leg cramps, and the nurse couldn't figure it out, so she came to Yancheng to take a look.
"Nothing else is a big problem. My legs hurt and cramp at night, so I need some calcium. After all, I'm breastfeeding my baby. I'll prescribe some calcium tablets. Also, if possible, it's best to drink a bottle of fresh milk every day."
It was Yan Jiuru's turn to take the pulse. The old doctor took it for more than ten minutes, and his face changed again and again.
"Have you suffered any serious injuries recently?" The old doctor lowered his brows and his expression could not be seen.
Chen Yin was a little nervous, "He..."
Yan Jiuru gently comforted her with his other hand.
"Don't move." The old doctor glared at him.
"Did you not rest well after your injury? Did you engage in strenuous activity for a long time?"
Yan Jiuru admired him very much.
He knew that he couldn't lie to the doctor, otherwise he would be irresponsible to himself.
He explained in a low voice for a few words, then said, "...some time ago, I caught up with the militia and trained for about a month."
This is something that cannot be avoided.
The old doctor didn't say much, but only warned him: "Don't take it lightly just because you are young. Even the best foundation can't withstand this.
I'll prescribe you some medicine. You should take it for half a month first. If it's convenient, you can come back to check your pulse after half a month. If it's not convenient, you can find a doctor nearby. I'll show them the prescription and they can adjust it appropriately."
"You're still a little deficient in Qi and blood, so you need to replenish it. Warm tonic, not anything heavy. Your body can't handle it right now."
Chen Yin took the prescription and went to pay and get the medicine.
Seeing that no one was around, Yan Jiuru whispered to the old doctor, "Old sir, let me ask you something. If a patient has... an old lung injury, no medicine, and is starving and cold, what medicine can you buy to help them out?"
He spoke only after seeing the eldest lady's calm demeanor. He didn't know what the old general's current situation was, but since there was a chance, it was worth taking a risk.
The old doctor stared at him steadily, but Yan Jiuru did not retreat.
After a while, the old doctor wrote him a prescription. Before leaving, he heard the other party mutter: "It's not that you can't use a little ginseng wine, but you can't use too much.
If you are coughing up blood or have internal bleeding, Yunnan Baiyao can be taken internally.
If it’s serious, it’s best to go to the hospital.”
Yan Jiuru looked at the names of the medicines on the list and finally only bought a few bottles of glucose saline and Yunnan Baiyao.
Because neither he nor Chen Yin knew how to give injections of things like penicillin injection on the list, it would be useless even if they bought them.
He had heard from the village health worker that if this thing was not used properly, it could cause paralysis in people.
***
Not long after the two of them returned to the guesthouse with several large bags of medicine, Liu Changyi came to find them.
After their first meeting and a few brief greetings, Yan Jiuru handed the letter from Professor Qin and his wife to Liu Changyi.
The envelope was not sealed, partly because of trust, and partly because there was no condition to glue it in the cowshed.
After reading the letter, Liu Changyi's eyes turned red.
He took a deep breath and said, "Brother Qin's family is very nice... I have been playing with him since I was a child.
At that time, there were many children in the family and life was very tight, so I often had to eat at their house... "
"Who knows good things don't come easy to good people... Let's not talk about that anymore. Are they really okay now?"
Most people only report good news in their letters, not bad news, so he wanted to confirm it.
Yan Jiuru said, "The food and accommodation are definitely not as good as in Yancheng, but our village doesn't engage in criticism and struggle sessions, so we won't be bullied."
He pointed at Chen Yin and said, "My father-in-law is the village secretary. He's an old revolutionary who has carried a gun and fought against the Japanese. He doesn't like to get involved in these things."
"That's great, I have to thank you very much."
Liu Changyi pulled Yan Jiuru to treat him to dinner, but Yan Jiuru would not let someone spend money on the first meeting.
He declined, "There will always be opportunities in the future. There's no need to rush. However, I do have something to trouble you with. I want to ask you something."
"You tell me. As long as I know."
The letter told him to help as much as he could. In fact, even if Brother Qin didn't say it, he wouldn't refuse.
***
Yan Jiuru glanced around and saw Chen Yin sitting near the door with a book in her hand. He then said in a low voice, "That's right. We were also entrusted by someone, you know."
Liu Changyi straightened his back immediately. It was he who had asked others to take care of Brother Qin, so he certainly knew what this meant.
Yan Jiuru looked at his expression and continued, "A friend of mine was persecuted. His situation might be very bad now. He seems to have been imprisoned in this place before."
He wrote an address on the table with his fingers. "I'm planning to go there tonight. I only have a rough idea of the route on the map, so I need some advice on how to get there."
Liu Changyi knew that most of the people being persecuted at this time were good people. Although he could not save them, he could still help find the way.
“The place you mentioned was formerly called Yunci Temple, but it was demolished in the 1950s.
It used to be the army's artillery repair shop, but it later moved away and the site was abandoned. If you go looking for Yunci Temple, you'll definitely not find it, and you might even arouse suspicion and attract the Red Guards.
Apart from the houses, there are only a few dilapidated temple buildings left on the site.”
Yan Jiuru secretly felt lucky that he didn't ask a stranger.
"This place is in the Dongbalizhuang area. There are several cotton mills there now. It takes more than an hour to take the 113 or 115 trams, but they're already past closing time."
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