"Hey, Auntie, I'll try to be as fast as I can. Don't worry, Grandpa Yan will be fine."
"drive--"
"Smack—"
Zuo Li lashed out with the whip twice.
The horse cried out in pain twice and sped up.
Finally, before dark, we arrived at the entrance of the clinic.
He carried Yan Hecheng on his back and took him to the clinic.
"Auntie, I'm going home now. My mother is probably still waiting for me to eat. Don't worry, Grandpa Yan will be fine. The doctors at this clinic are always very skilled."
"Thank you so much, Xiaoli. I don't know how to thank you enough. Here, take this money you lent me."
Yan Xia took out a purse from her sleeve; it was something she had taken out of her spatial storage while in the carriage.
There are ten taels of silver inside.
"Alright, I won't stand on ceremony with you, Auntie. I'll be going now. If you need anything, just come find me at the yamen."
"Okay, you can go back now. Drive carefully!"
"Hey~"
Zuo Li's home is not far from the clinic, only a ten-minute walk away.
His house wasn't big; it was the last house in the alley.
The house has a courtyard of only 20 square meters.
The mother and son lived there without feeling crowded at all.
"Mother, your son is back—"
The courtyard gate wasn't closed, just slightly ajar, and Zuo Li pushed it open and entered.
He then plugged the door bolt in.
Anyway, I'm not going out tonight.
"Why are you back so late today? Is something wrong at the county office?"
Upon hearing her son's voice, Yang took out the food that had been prepared earlier from the pot and placed it on the table in the main room. She also prepared a basin of water for her son to wash his face.
"Come on, wash your face and hands before you eat."
"Yes, Mother. The government has paid out wages. I did well in my work last month, and the magistrate gave me an extra month's pay. Here you go."
Zuo Li rolled up his sleeves and handed the purse to his mother.
I just started washing my face and hands.
"I've never seen this purse before. Do you have someone you like? Tell me, and I'll go ask for your hand in marriage."
Looking at the embroidered purse in her hand, Yang began to imagine wildly.
"What is this, Mother? This is from Aunt Yan. I went with her to run some errands this afternoon and lent her seven taels of silver. This purse is the money she just paid me back. Don't overthink it."
Zuo Li was speechless.
"Aunt Yan? You mean the Manager Yan you mentioned? Sigh, I thought you had someone you liked. You're not getting any younger. You're my only son. When are you going to let me hold my grandson? Or even a granddaughter would be fine. I'm not picky."
"Mother, let's eat. We can talk about this later. I'm so busy every day, how can I have time for a wedding? Even if I were to find you a daughter-in-law, we would hardly ever meet. The county magistrate values me now and takes me out from time to time. I only come back every few days. Isn't that delaying the girl's time?"
After washing his face and hands, Zuo Li dried them with a towel and then served himself two bowls of rice.
He pulled Yang down to sit.
"Alright, alright, I know you don't like hearing this, so let's not talk about it at the dinner table. I'll save the money for you, and by autumn at the latest, I'll definitely find you a wife."
"Yes, yes, I understand, Mother."
Zuo Li took a couple of bites of rice and spoke incoherently.
"Hey, didn't you say seven taels of silver? How come there are ten taels here?"
Yang poured the silver from her purse onto the table.
Exactly ten pieces of silver.
"Oh dear, Aunt Yan must have thought it was too much trouble for me, so she gave me three extra taels. I was in a hurry to come back just now and didn't pay attention to the weight. I took the purse and left."
"You can't accept this. Manager Yan has been good to you and often gives you pastries. You can't just take his money for nothing."
"Shopkeeper Yan won't accept it even if I return it. Never mind, Mother, you keep it. I have a good relationship with Aunt Yan, and it wouldn't be good to be too distant. Oh, by the way, Aunt Yan brought me some water chestnut cakes when she went to Jiangnan County this time. Mother, I heard that these are good for your health. I left them at the county office, and I'll bring them back for you to eat tomorrow."
"........"
Zuo Li originally intended to return it as well.
But considering Yan Xia's personality, I gave up on the idea.
He knew Yan Xia definitely wouldn't accept it.
It has to be said that Zuo Li really understands Yan Xia.
Yan Xia had just come out of the clinic at this moment.
The clinic's staff carried Yan Hecheng onto the carriage.
Yan Xia drove home.
Two more packets of medicine appeared in the carriage.
Back at the shop entrance, Yan Xia called her two sons to carry Yan Hecheng inside before she began to eat dinner.
He explained where he had gone that afternoon and told Yan Hecheng that he would be living with them from now on.
Yan Xia returned to Yan Hecheng's room and served him his medicine.
The medicine was decocted very strongly; you could smell it from a distance. It was Xiao Ji who decocted it himself.
Only half a bowl of water was obtained from three bowls.
After acupuncture and cold compresses, Yan Hecheng's face was no longer so red. Yan Xia touched his forehead and found it wasn't as hot as it had been in the afternoon. Once he drank this bowl of medicine, his fever should subside by tomorrow.
However, he still had many scars on his arms, which looked like whip marks.
That damned official even beat people up.
The poor in ancient times were truly miserable.
"Whoosh—"
The medicine was very hot, and Yan Xia blew on it for a long time before dripping two more drops onto the back of her hand.
I tested the temperature.
Once he felt it was appropriate, he lifted Yan Hecheng's upper body.
They pried open his mouth and started pouring the contents of the bowl into it.
"Glug glug—"
"Cough cough cough—"
Yan Hecheng choked.
After he finished coughing, Yan Xia started drinking again, in less than a minute.
He drank half a bowl of medicine and finished it all.
Xiao Ji, standing to the side, was completely dumbfounded.
Isn't it supposed to be one spoonful at a time when you give medicine? Auntie, you're really strong.
"Alright, take the bowl away. Go to my bedside table and get a box of ointment. Give it to Jin Fu and ask him to come and apply the ointment to his grandfather."
"Okay, I'll go right away."
Xiao Ji took the bowl away.
Only Yan Xia and her father remained in the house.
"Xia'er~"
"Xia'er, don't be afraid, Daddy's here. Don't cry, Daddy will protect you. I won't let your mother hit you again. Don't be afraid, sweetie—"
Yan Xia wanted to leave, but Yan Hecheng, who was lying on the bed, called her by her nickname.
She stopped in her tracks, returned to the bedside, and looked at Yan Hecheng with a complicated expression.
"Xia'er, Daddy brought you candied hawthorns. Aren't you happy? Don't tell your mother, and don't let your brother see them, or he might steal them from you. Go on, go play with your friends, and come back when you're done. As long as Xia'er likes them, Daddy will buy you more in the future—"
"Xia'er, your mother is in charge of this family. Your father is useless. Xia'er, your father is a good-for-nothing. I have no ability to return the dowry money your mother took. She has already spent the money. Xia'er, your father is useless!"
"Xia'er, Father was wrong, Father was really wrong. Father shouldn't have agreed to let you marry into the Chen family. Xia'er, don't leave Father, don't die! Father is a bad person, Father deserves to die! Xia'er, sob sob sob, Xia'er, wake up, Xia'er! Father is too late, Father deserves to die! It's all Father's fault—"
"Xia'er, don't be afraid, Daddy's coming to be with you. We'll keep each other company on the way. Daddy was wrong, please don't ignore Daddy, okay? I'm coming, I'm coming right now, you must wait for me—"
Yan Hecheng wept uncontrollably, his tears soaking his pillow.
I don't know what kind of nightmare I had.
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