Chapter 43: Shocked again. Do you mean I can’t come back?
There were only four words on the telegram - "Brother, please return quickly."
Yan Jigang developed a stuttering problem because of shock. One can imagine how Yan Xue felt when she saw this telegram.
At that moment, many thoughts flashed through her mind, such as how the person was doing, whether it was an accident or something else, but she could not find anyone to answer.
But she had experienced so much in her two lifetimes that she quickly calmed herself down.
I must go back. This time I will go back and pick up the people directly, but it is not possible today because there are no cars available today.
Besides, now that she is gone, her family needs to give an explanation, especially regarding the cultivation of the fungus.
Yan Xue sat down at the desk, took out a notebook and a pen, and wrote down the precautions for cultivating mother seeds.
Thinking that it would take three days for a one-way trip back, if she couldn't get back in time, there would be no time to waste later, so she also wrote down the method of cultivating the original species.
The cultivation of wood ear mushrooms is generally divided into three stages: mother species, original species and cultivated species.
The mother species is not suitable for planting. Only the original species can be used for log cultivation. The cost of cultivated species is lower than that of original species.
However, the previous culture medium cannot be used to cultivate the original species and cultivated species. Wood chips, which the locals often call sawdust, must be used.
This stuff is cheap in the forest farm and easy to come by, especially now that the weather is warm. In winter, some families who can't bear to buy coal might use it to light their stoves. While the fire won't burn as brightly as wood, it lasts longer, providing continuous heat for the house without being expensive.
Yan Xue was a person who liked to prepare everything in advance, so she prepared several sacks of sawdust and placed them in the warehouse in advance.
She also asked the farm to approve wheat bran, another ingredient needed to make the culture medium, as the forest farm’s agricultural team happened to grow wheat themselves.
When Qi came back from work, the ground was already filled with cans placed by Yan Xue. These were all cans that she had collected from various households at two cents each. They were mixed with 78% sawdust, 21% wheat bran, and 1% gypsum. All that was left was to add water.
In fact, it is best to use plastic bags to grow original species and cultivated species, but plastic is rare in this era, so Yan Xue can only use cans instead.
Qi Fang immediately sensed something was wrong and looked at Yan Xue, "What happened?"
Yan Xue didn't hide it from him and handed the telegram over directly. "I didn't tell you before that Jigang has a stuttering problem. It's a root cause of the disease when my father passed away."
Qi Fang took only a glance at it and put the telegram back on the table. "Are you planning to leave tomorrow?"
Yan Xue nodded and pointed to the bag at the end of the kang. "I've packed everything and will leave tomorrow morning."
As she spoke, she handed the man the notes she had written, but the man put them down without even looking at them and turned to walk out.
"What are you going to do?" Yan Xue was slightly stunned.
The man just turned around and looked at her with a deep look in his eyes, "What if there's something else going on? Are you planning to go back alone?"
Yan Xue knew what happened next needless to say. Ji Gang stayed at home and didn't even go out. How could he be frightened again, and so seriously that he had to send her a telegram?
But she was used to taking things on her own, so after receiving the telegram, she thought of everything except Qi Fang.
This made her purse her lips, but she couldn't say no, so she just said, "I'll pack your things for you."
Qi Fang's slightly tense expression finally eased a little. He turned away without looking at her.
When he came back, not only had he asked for leave and obtained a letter of introduction, the man also had a bag of biscuits and bread in one hand and a pair of women's sandals in the other.
"Try it." He put the sandals directly at Yan Xue's feet.
Yan Xue was a little surprised, "Why did you think of buying sandals?"
"Isn't it hot in the pass?" Seeing that she didn't move, Qi Fang simply squatted down to help her untie her shoelaces.
Seeing the shoes being untied and placed in front of her feet, and the man even wanting to help her put them on, Yan Xue hurriedly put her feet in.
The size was just right. Yan Xue took it off and saw that it was indeed size 35.
"How is the size?" The man asked her even though he remembered it clearly.
Yan Xue had just said "Just right" when the man picked up the notebook she had given him.
This time, before she could ask, he said, "I'll ask Aunt Guo to look after the fungus for you."
Act decisively and comprehensively.
In the past, Yan Xue was always the one who worried about others. This was the first time someone did this for her. After a moment of reaction, she followed and said, "I'll go with you."
When the couple walked to the next door, they heard Auntie Guo's voice inside, "Changan, try again. Didn't you take two more steps today than yesterday? Try again..."
Before he could finish his words, he was interrupted by the sound of a heavy object falling to the ground.
Auntie Guo panicked when she heard the voice, "Changan, are you okay? Where did you fall?"
Then came Guo Changping's voice, "Mom, don't worry about him. Let him get up on his own. Is he never going to get up again?"
From beginning to end, neither of them heard Guo Changan's voice. But it was obvious that Guo Changan had been injured for four months and had begun to try to walk.
However, ever since Guo Changan returned, he had kept the curtains drawn, clearly not wanting anyone to see his disheveled appearance. The couple tacitly agreed not to say anything, choosing to go back first and wait for someone from the Guo family to come out before calling for Aunt Guo.
"Let me help keep an eye on it? Sure." Aunt Guo didn't hesitate. "I'm just worried I won't understand and might ruin it for you."
"That's not difficult, you just have to pay attention to the temperature." Yan Xue handed over the notebook.
Aunt Guo immediately called Jin Baozhi over and said, "Baozhi, come here and help me take a look. Changping has never studied properly for a few days. It's better not to study at all."
"Then you have to let Chang'an come. I only studied two years longer than Changping." Jin Baozhi took it and frowned.
Aunt Guo hesitated for a moment, then walked in. "Then I'll go show it to Chang'an. He's well-educated." She turned back to look at Yan Xue and Qi Fang. "Are you guys not in a hurry?"
Yan Xue smiled and said, "Don't worry." Qi Fang also said calmly, "Don't worry."
Auntie Guo went in with the notebook and came out again after a while. The uncertainty on her face was gone. "If it's cold, light the fire. If it's hot, open the window. Keep it between 22 and 28 degrees Celsius, right?"
I guess Guo Changan helped her look at it and explained it very concisely and clearly.
Yan Xue handed over five yuan and said, "There is a thermometer on my kang. You can just come over and check it every once in a while. I will pay you as a temporary worker."
"It's just a small thing, how can I expect to get paid for it?" Aunt Guo obviously didn't intend to take it.
Yan Xue still stuffed the money into her hand and said, "I take money from others and help them get rid of disasters. Only after you accept the money can I hand it over to you with confidence, right?"
Mrs. Guo was still hesitant, and Qi Fang said, "If you don't accept, we'll have to hire someone else."
That would be troublesome. After all, the Guo family lives nearby and we have lived in the same courtyard for several months. Their character is also trustworthy.
Seeing that the two had made up their minds, Auntie Guo stopped pushing them. However, she was also very quick and went out immediately. "Tell me how to read that thermometer."
Before going to bed at night, Yan Xue checked again the things she was going to take with her the next day.
Change of clothes for both of them, a letter of introduction, food...
After checking for the second time, Qi Fang hugged her from behind and gently rubbed her head, "Jigang will be fine."
It was a rare comfort, and it was also rare for someone to detect her hidden anxiety from her mechanically repetitive movements.
This time Yan Xue did not hide, nor did she blame him for touching her head. Instead, she let out a breath and let herself lean in his arms for a while.
For a moment, if the sky falls, let the tall ones hold it up first, and not always her...
The next morning, the two locked the door and went out. They pressed the key on the windowsill with a big stone so that Aunt Guo could open it at any time.
First take a small train to the town, then take a big train to a boat, and then take a boat to a long-distance bus. It took three days to arrive at my hometown.
It was the beginning of June, the time for wheat harvest in the border areas. All the laborers in their hometown were in the fields. The two men walked all the way among the swaying golden wheat waves, but did not encounter any ox carts or donkey carts.
Qi Fang took over the two people's belongings and carried them. He couldn't help but look at Yan Xue's feet, "Are you okay?"
"It's nothing. I was almost healed before I left."
After Yan Xue finished speaking, she noticed that the man was still looking down at her ankle. She couldn't help but think of the conflict between them that day. "It's really okay."
Qi Fang didn't know whether he had believed it or not. He looked back and asked, "Are we there yet?"
"Yeah." Yan Xue had already seen an acquaintance at the village entrance and went up to greet her, "Fifth Grandma."
Yanjiazhuang is a village with the same surname, and all the relatives are from the same clan. In terms of seniority, the other party is the aunt of Yan's father, Yan Baishan.
When the old lady was young, her family was poor, and she would stay up late at night to spin cotton, which damaged her eyes. She stared at Yan Xue for a long time before recognizing her, "Are you Xiaoxue from Baishan's family?"
"It's me." Yan Xue said, "I came back to see my grandma and my brother. I don't know how they are doing now."
She greeted the other party just to ask about the situation in advance so that she could be mentally prepared.
The Fifth Old Lady was obviously aware of the situation and sighed upon hearing it. "That's not good. Jigang hadn't recovered from his last shock, and a few days ago, he got frightened again. He's had a high fever for days. My second sister-in-law has been looking for doctors everywhere for him, both Chinese and Western medicine, and we're still making medicine at home."
The old lady obviously hadn't completely eliminated the "Four Olds" and lowered her voice to Yan Xue, "In my opinion, it might be some kind of evil disease. If it doesn't work, go back and talk to your second sister-in-law and ask her to find someone to take a look..."
Yan Xue had no time to listen to her speculations. She thanked her hurriedly and rushed home with Qi Fang.
When they arrived at the Yan family's courtyard, Yan Songshan's family had all gone to harvest wheat. The yard was quiet, with only the sound of bubbling coming from the small medicine pot on the stove in front of the second old lady.
The old man pulled a cushion and sat in front of the clay stove, holding a large palm-leaf fan. When he heard the noise, he turned around and saw that it was Yan Xue, and immediately stood up, "Xiaoxue is back."
"Grandma, I'm back." Yan Xue responded and was about to go to the east wing. "How is Jigang now?"
But the second old lady stopped him and said, "Jigang doesn't live there now. He lives in my room."
Yan Xue paused at that moment, but she did not rush to the main house. Instead, she pushed open the door of the east wing and looked inside.
As expected, the second old lady reminded her not only because Yan Jigang was on her side now.
Otherwise, even if the person moved there temporarily to make it easier for her to take care of him, what would be wrong with Yan Xue going back to her own home to put something there?
"What's wrong?" Qi Fang followed Yan Xue and saw her stop at the door with a bad look on her face, so he glanced inside.
The two small houses were similar in layout to the one they rented at Guo's house, except that the houses in Northeast China were wider, usually six to six and a half meters. Some families would build north-south kangs, but the one in their hometown was only a little over four meters wide.
The kitchen is right at the entrance. It's quite clean, but too clean. The cabinets and rice jars are all empty.
The big earthen pot was lying there, uncovered, without even a lid. It was obvious that no one had used it for a long time...
Yan Xue closed the door expressionlessly, "This is no longer my home."
Just as he finished speaking, he heard the second old lady behind him sigh, "It's my fault that I'm useless and can't take care of things."
"No matter how well you watch over me, I can't stop someone from thinking about me all the time."
Yan Xue was relatively calm. She turned around and looked at Qi Fang, "Let's put the things in grandma's room first."
Yan Xue didn't often come to the small room to the west of the main house, and she felt that this time she came in, it was even more cramped than before.
Not only were a lot of Yan Jigang's things added, but the windows were also covered with sheets. In the dim light, a small figure was sleeping quietly on the kang.
Yan Xue recognized her brother at a glance and could see that he had lost a lot of weight. He was curled up under a thin blanket, holding something, his face was pale, and his brows were furrowed.
She reached out her hand to help him brush it away, but she was afraid of scaring him again, so her hand finally stopped in mid-air.
The second old lady didn't dare to say anything. She just helped the two of them put their things away and pointed outside, indicating that they should go out and talk.
"What's going on?" Yan Xue asked in a low voice as soon as they arrived in the yard.
"I don't know either." The second old lady said, "After you left, my successor was doing well. He came to my place during the day and went back to sleep with you at night. He held the same pillow he used before you."
Yan Xue also knew this. Yan Jigang had told her in a letter that as long as he held his sister's pillow, he would not be afraid of sleeping alone.
At that time, she wrote back to praise him for growing up, becoming brave, and becoming a little man, and said he would be able to protect his sister in the future.
"That day, he went home before dark, saying he wanted to get the letter you wrote and memorize a few more words. I had already laid down when I suddenly heard him shouting. I ran over and saw him huddled under the table, shaking. I called him several times, but he didn't respond."
The old lady sighed when she thought about it. "I have small feet and walk slowly. I don't know what scared him. Anyway, he's afraid of the dark and glass. He even blocked the windows. But it's still not enough. He has convulsions at the slightest provocation, and the fever keeps coming back."
"He didn't tell me the reason himself?" The more Yan Xue listened, the tighter her brows furrowed.
"It would be great if he could speak." The second old lady sighed again, "Jigang hasn't said a word in eight days. Otherwise, I wouldn't be able to send a telegram to ask you to come back."
The last time Yan Jigang was frightened, he didn't say a word. If Yan Xue hadn't gotten into trouble later, he wouldn't have been able to say it even if he was worried.
Yan Xue pursed her lips tightly.
"Was the gate locked at that time?" A man's light voice suddenly came to my ears.
The old lady was so worried about her grandson that she almost forgot that Yan Xue didn't come back alone. She looked at the overly tall and handsome man in front of her, then at Yan Xue, "Who is this?"
"My wife Qi Fang." Yan Xue had just forgotten about it and introduced the second old lady to Qi Fang, "This is our grandmother."
"Grandma." Qi Fang greeted immediately and brought up the question he had just asked, "When Jigang was frightened, was the yard locked?"
"It should be late. I've already washed my feet and gone to bed. It must be after eight at the latest."
"That is to say, the one who scared Jigang is in this yard."
Qi Fang spoke calmly, helping her unravel the mystery bit by bit. "Where was Jigang hiding at the time? Can you take us there?"
"Yes, I remember where he is hiding." The old lady hurriedly took him to the east wing.
Entering the inner room, you can see more clearly how empty the house is.
All the warm memories that originally belonged to this family and to the brother and sister were gone. Some appeared in the old lady's west room, while some disappeared.
The old lady pointed to the spot on the edge of the kang where four square indentations were clearly visible. "This used to be a writing desk. Xiaoxue's father broke it when she was in school."
He pointed to the middle and said, "There's a space under the table. When I came in, Jigang was hiding inside."
Yan Xue walked over without having to squat down. The moment she raised her eyes, she saw the door to the inner room.
"It's not something outside the door." Qi Fang had noticed it a long time ago.
If it was outside the door, Yan Jigang would not hide under the table at all, but would choose a place behind the door or in a box where he couldn't even see the door.
"It shouldn't be bugs or mice or something like that. He's not afraid of that," Yan Xue said.
Snakes, insects, rats and ants are common in rural areas, and even if boys don't play with them, most are not afraid of them. And if it's a rat, Yan Jigang is more likely to jump onto the kang instead of hiding under the table.
So what scared him must be...
The couple both looked towards the window and remembered what the old lady had said about being afraid of glass.
The second old lady was a smart person. When she saw the couple looking over, the wrinkles on her old face twitched.
Just as he was about to say something, a scream suddenly came from the west side of the main house.
The old lady instantly forgot about everything else and ran out on her small feet, "Grandma is here! Grandma is here!"
Yan Xue also hurriedly followed, and when she entered the room, she saw Yan Jigang with his eyes closed, twitching all over, and sweat all over his forehead.
The second old lady immediately held the person in her arms and kept patting him. Yan Xue finally saw clearly what Yan Jigang was holding in his arms.
A pillow, a pillow she was very familiar with.
Yan Jigang didn't calm down for a long time, and his fingers gripping the pillow had even turned white.
"Let me do it." She reached out and hugged the person over.
Perhaps it was because he was in a more familiar embrace, or perhaps the fear had passed, but as her hand gently patted his back, Yan Jigang's trembling stopped.
The second old lady stood up and said, "You stay here, I'll go look after the medicine."
"I'll go." Qi Fang went out faster than her.
When the old lady walked out of the inner room, the man was already squatting in front of the stove. He used a rag to pad his hands, lifted the lid and looked at the medicine soup.
Seeing that there was still a lot of water, he put it down again and picked up the palm-leaf fan left by the old lady when she left and fanned himself gently.
It was a June day, and steam was still rising from the medicine pot on the stove. The man's handsome face soon turned slightly red, but his expression remained unchanged.
The old lady stood in the main room and watched for a while. Seeing that he didn't look like someone who couldn't work, she turned back.
In the west room, Yan Xue had already hugged her younger brother in her arms, and Yan Jigang also changed from grabbing his sister's pillow to grabbing the corner of his sister's clothes.
The old lady took the opportunity to touch Yan Jigang's forehead and said, "He still has a slight fever. He keeps vomiting medicine and can't eat. If the fever wasn't so severe, he would have to get an injection."
There was a child in the village who had a high fever and couldn't get rid of it. They had to take him to the county to get a shot.
When he came back, his fever had subsided, but he became deaf. After that, the villagers were afraid to give children injections unless their fever was particularly severe.
After a while, the medicine outside should be ready. Qi Fang came in with the medicine pot and asked the second old lady, "Pour it into this basin?"
"Yes, give it to me." The second old lady was about to take it, but the man had already filtered out the medicine soup.
After filtering, he looked at the small basin containing the medicine and asked, "Third time?"
The second old lady nodded, and he poured out the medicine residue. "Do you still need the stove?"
Hearing that it was no longer needed, he extinguished the fire, found a large basin in the yard, scooped up water, and prepared to wash the medicine pot.
The second old lady was completely unable to intervene, so she returned to the house and said, "Your great aunt introduced you to a good person."
This made Yan Xue, who was wiping the sweat off her brother's face, pause. She didn't expect that the old lady didn't know about it yet.
But then again, the family is full of old and young people, and they would be anxious if they knew about it. It is estimated that Shan Qiufang only said that she wanted her address and did not mention that Qi Fang had not seen her.
Just as I was about to explain, someone approached outside talking loudly, and Bai Xiuzhen came back.
She did not come back alone. She was followed by a cousin of Yan Xue. He had a limp, but he was a famous carpenter in the village.
"Look at the furniture in these two rooms. The cupboards definitely need to be replaced, and this door looks a bit warped..."
"This Bai Xiuzhen." The second old lady couldn't help but look at Yan Jigang, fearing that she would wake him up who had just calmed down.
Outside, Bai Xiuzhen also saw Qi Fang in the yard and frowned, "Who are you? What are you doing in my yard?"
The uncle guessed, "Is it Xiaoxue's boyfriend? I just heard from Aunt Wu that Xiaoxue brought her boyfriend back."
"Ah, Xiaoxue is back?" There was no surprise in Bai Xiuzhen's tone, and her expression was two points worse than before.
Qi Fang guessed at a glance that she and Yan Xue had a bad relationship, and just nodded coldly.
Bai Xiuzhen didn't care about him at all. She hurriedly sent someone to the east wing to measure the dimensions, then went to the west room. "Why didn't you tell me you were back?"
Yan Xue covered Yan Jigang's ears first, then looked at Bai Xiuzhen, "Auntie, do you mean that I can't come back?"
"How could that be?" Bai Xiuzhen felt inexplicably guilty when she saw her clear and bright eyes. "No matter where you marry, this is still your mother's home."
"Really? When I came back and saw the house was empty, I thought Jigang and I were kicked out."
This is not a pleasant thing to say. Even if it is the truth, it can only be done but not said. After all, the house was left to the siblings by Yan Baishan, and it has nothing to do with the eldest wife.
Bai Xiuzhen's face became even more embarrassed. "Isn't it because Jigang is afraid to stay in that room? I saw that he didn't dare to go back anyway, so I packed up."
"So you want to exchange your two main rooms for our two side rooms?" Yan Xue's question stumped her.
They don't have two main rooms, but two and a half. Who would be willing to move into their small wing?
"That's because you feel sorry for us because we don't have parents to take care of us, so you're going to make Jigang a new set of furniture for when he gets married."
Bai Xiuzhen was choked again. She was indeed planning to make a new set of furniture for her son, not Yan Jigang, when he got married.
Yan Xue's return really caught her off guard. She couldn't stay any longer. "You must be tired after coming all the way here. You should rest first. I'll go check on that room. It's not good to leave you alone there."
The east wing is secondary. The key is to tell Songshan not to let this damn girl make a fuss at this time.
Bai Xiuzhen walked in a hurry. Yan Xue could guess what she wanted to do with just a little bit of guessing, but she didn't say anything to stop her.
Because just now, although the person in her arms didn't open his eyes, the hand that was holding her clothes tightened.
Yan Jigang woke up.
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