Chapter 209 Treating the Child 1
The child was quickly brought over; his sallow face was flushed with an unnatural redness, his eyes were tightly closed, and his skin was burning hot.
Old Hong took the child into his hands and felt something was wrong. He instinctively lifted the child's clothes.
Upon discovering several horrifying, inflamed, and swollen whip marks on the child's body, his eyes immediately sharpened.
Stared at by his fierce gaze, the matchmaker and her son both instinctively shrank back.
The matchmaker explained fearfully, "We didn't hit him, really. He was already like this when we took him in."
Although they were engaged in the slave trade, they were government-approved brokers who only picked up people through legitimate channels, unlike the private brokers who dared to venture into any gray area and risk everything for profit.
Even if there are goods under their command that are unable to recognize reality and unwilling to behave themselves, they will only punish them by beating, scolding, or starving them, as long as it does not affect the quality of the goods.
With someone beaten up like that, what buyer would want them? They'd be losing money hand over fist.
Xie Wanniang glanced at the child, then turned to Haitang and instructed, "Settle the bill."
Haitang nodded and handed three silver notes totaling one hundred and twenty taels to the matchmaker.
After confirming that there were no problems with the banknotes, the matchmaker put on her enthusiastic, business-like smile again.
She called her son to help her, and together they quickly completed the handover procedures. Only then did the matchmaker warmly see Xie Wanniang and the others off.
Of course, she still didn't dare to glance at Lao Hong, who was holding the child.
As a seasoned veteran who had survived more than a decade of turmoil and had also been involved in the peculiar trade of slaves, the matchmaker knew from the look in Old Hong's eyes that he must have killed countless people.
She dared not offend such a ruthless person. When it was time to back down, she always backed down very quickly; otherwise, she wouldn't have been able to survive the chaos of the world and live to this day.
With a slightly ingratiating smile on her face, the matchmaker bowed and scraped as she saw Xie Wanniang and the others off. Only then did she straighten her back and quickly adjust her mood to greet the next customer.
Xie Wanniang and the others, along with the eight newly purchased young boys and girls, and the extra item that Xie Wanniang had impulsively asked the matchmaker for, rode in a carriage back to Xie Wanniang and Jiang Yuan's home.
Along the way, Lao Hong and his companions increased the speed of the vehicle and horses as much as possible without disturbing passersby.
Upon arriving at their destination and getting out of the car, Xie Wanniang didn't even have time to go to the backyard before calling Xiaomei to help her get the first-aid kit.
"Haitang, go and settle the eight of them. Xiaomei, go and get my first-aid kit, then come and help me treat this child's wounds."
Haitang and Xiaomei left as instructed, while Xiaoyang, without needing Xie Wanniang's permission, went directly to deliver a message to the maid in the front yard.
"Grandma Lu, could you please boil a big pot of water? Sister Xie needs to treat a child's wound."
As she spoke, she scooped up some water, stepped onto a small stool, and began to carefully scrub the pot.
The water used to treat wounds must not contain oil, salt, or anything like that.
The old woman surnamed Lu was sold off by the government along with her family after her master committed a crime. However, because she was old, neither her son nor her daughter's new master bought her.
She was forced to separate from her family and then, along with several other unsavory old women who shared her fate, was sold cheaply to a matchmaker in Yi County who used to pick up bargains.
Because they knew the rules, worked efficiently, and were generally honest and law-abiding, and because the matchmaker asked for a very low price, Xie Wanniang bought them.
The new place they had found to live, and the new family that treated them very well, were rare opportunities that they cherished, something they had never imagined would lead them to hard labor.
They worked hard and were usually well-behaved, so Xie Wanniang was very satisfied with them.
Now that Xie Wanniang rarely needs them for anything other than cleaning, Granny Lu feels full of energy.
She drew fresh well water and poured it into the large iron pot that Xiao Yang had already cleaned. Then, she quickly started adding firewood, lighting the fire, and boiling the water.
Seeing this, Xiao Yang said, "Please take the water to the flower hall when it boils," and then ran off to rummage through his wardrobe.
The child was even younger than her, and besides her, there was no one else in the family who could give him their clothes to wear temporarily.
As for the fact that she and the other person are of different genders, it's not like she's going to let the other person wear a skirt; she's planning to lend the other person her new undergarment and new shorts.
The little maid moved swiftly, and before Xie Wanniang realized that she might need to prepare a new set of clothes for the child, she took the new clothes that she hadn't yet been willing to wear to the entrance of the flower hall in the front yard like a gust of wind.
Granny Wu, who was guarding the door, was handed a set of clothes by a panting young girl. Hearing her say in broken breaths that the clothes were for the child inside, Granny Wu hurriedly and carefully carried the clothes inside.
Xie Wanniang and Xiaomei were working together, one taking the child's pulse and the other using physical methods to lower the child's fever. When they heard the noise, they only looked up briefly before lowering their heads again to continue with their own tasks.
Granny Lu, who had boiled the water, rushed over with a wooden bucket while Xie Wanniang was giving the child acupuncture and dictating the prescription for Xiao Mei to write down.
She had already carefully scrubbed the wooden tub, just like Xiaoyang had done. Now, the water inside was steaming and looked very hot.
She put down the wooden bucket and then jogged to get a large wooden basin that she had washed.
After writing down the prescription, Xiao Mei read it aloud from beginning to end. After Xie Wan Niang nodded in confirmation, she bypassed Granny Lu and ran to the backyard to get the medicine according to the prescription.
After Granny Lu poured the hot water into the wooden basin, Xie Wanniang looked up and instructed Granny Wu, who was guarding the door, "Granny Wu, could you please take two pieces of cloth from my medicine box and put them in the hot water?"
Granny Wu responded and then carefully took out two soft cloths from Xie Wanniang's medicine box, which she had washed in advance and dried thoroughly in the sun.
Xiao Yang, who was stopped at the door by Granny Wu, couldn't help but peek out and ask, "Sister, is there anything I can help with?"
While putting away her needlework, Xie Wanniang replied, "Go to the kitchen and have the cook prepare some easily digestible congee and side dishes for this child."
"Okay!" Xiao Yang replied and ran off to deliver the message with his short legs.
Not long after she left, Xiaomei rushed over with a medicine bag.
After handing the medicine packet to Granny Lu and reminding her of the precautions for decocting the medicine, Xiao Mei went into the house, washed her hands, and together with Xie Wan Niang, treated the child's wounds.
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