Chapter 741 Going Home
As the day of the Autumn Equinox draws closer, the Li family is both happy and worried.
According to the letter Li Dalang sent back home, the troops who went to the border city to fight the Western Turks last year should be returning to receive their rewards around this time.
This means that Li Dalang and Shijiu are finally coming back.
After more than a year away from home, our son can finally return home and let people see if he is alright.
Li's mother sat in the courtyard, shelling beans in her hands, but she clearly looked absent-minded.
Sister-in-law Li put down the baby Liulang in her arms, took a cup of water and walked to sit down next to her mother. She handed the cup to her mother, who hesitated for a moment before taking it.
"Mother, have some water to soothe your throat."
Sister-in-law Li took the basket from in front of her mother, lowered her head and continued shelling beans. Then, with a hint of worry, she looked up at her mother and asked, "I've noticed that you seem uneasy these past few days. Are you worried about Hutou outside?"
Although Hu Tou only reported good news and not bad in his letter, he was actually aiming for a better future, and he already knew about the injuries and hardships he would suffer.
All I hope for is that he lives a good life and is safe and sound.
Li's mother nodded, hesitated for a moment, and then spoke: "Besides the matter of Tiger Head, I, I, I'm just thinking that someone from Dalang's biological father's side needs to come. More than twenty or thirty years have passed, and I still feel this way in my heart..."
Sister-in-law Li put down the basket in her hand, took her mother's hand, and said, "So that's what Mother was worried about."
Mother, don't worry, the house is all cleaned up. I've looked at it carefully, and I even fumigated it with mugwort.
Didn't Tiger Head's letter say that it was Guo's third and fourth sons who were coming?
When the time comes, Tiger Head will take them to see Chang'an City properly. They will be able to see each other, and the children will be able to see their mothers. If both sides know that everyone is well, that will be good.
"If Mother wants to see Hongniang, we'll make arrangements. She can go to the border town with one of the Guo family's sons in a merchant caravan."
Sister-in-law Li comforted Li's mother for a while, and although Li's mother was still a little upset, she was finally able to put on a smile.
Meanwhile, at the drug rehabilitation center on the outskirts of Beijing, Li Sanniang was listening to Physician Ning give a speech to everyone, along with Qiu Xiang and other doctors.
As for what was discussed at this meeting, it was indeed related to the army's return to Chang'an.
"...Therefore, there should be quite a few new patients returning with the army at that time."
I've already had quite a bit of medicine replenished in this medicine storehouse. If you need anything else later, just submit your order form so I can arrange for someone to purchase it.
In addition, although not all the doctors who went with the group returned, more than half of them were going to come back with the group.
The Imperial Medical Academy will hold an awards ceremony. Anyone who wants to attend can make a contact with the person on duty and give their name so they can come along.
Afterwards, Ning Yizheng called Li Sanniang aside for a private talk. At first, Li Sanniang was puzzled as to what else he needed to tell her in private.
After listening to what Physician Ning said, Li San Niang finally understood.
"Where would such a great achievement come from?"
Before the army set off, I only taught them some techniques. The fact that they were able to save so many lives was all thanks to the efforts of the doctors who went with them.
I dare not accept this credit!
However, I will definitely attend the commendation ceremony. Doctor Ning, this is a grand event for our medical community!
Ning Yizheng was pleased with Li Sanniang's refusal; he liked people like Li Sanniang who were so sensible.
What Li San Niang said is absolutely right!
Why hold an award ceremony for the returning doctors this time?
The first, of course, are the doctors who can follow the army to the border city; these are all people of great righteousness!
How can those who are loyal and righteous to the country and its people not deserve to be commended?
Not to mention, the doctors who went with them did more than just the work of military doctors. According to information from the Imperial Medical Bureau, they also treated local people under the guidance of Physician Sun and experienced three epidemics.
Fortunately, the disease was detected early, and no doctors have yet perished in it.
The second point is truly surprising.
Because Li Sanniang had specially taught the surgeons from the Imperial Medical Academy some suturing techniques before the expedition, and because of the constant supply of high-concentration alcohol from the unscrupulous people, the mortality rate of the wounded soldiers this time was reduced to several times that of the past.
In other words, in the past, if half of the ten wounded soldiers survived a war, it was considered a stroke of good fortune.
This time, eight or nine out of ten wounded soldiers survived!
Only those with truly severe conditions will not survive.
Such a high survival rate is truly astonishing!
How could this not be worthy of the Imperial Medical Bureau holding a special commendation ceremony to show off?
Before holding a meeting for all the doctors at the drug rehabilitation center, Ning Yizheng had just left Wang Shuzheng from the Imperial Medical Bureau. Wang Shuzheng had solemnly instructed Ning Yizheng with this sentence: "No one else can come, but Li Mingfang must be obtained!"
Therefore, after Ningyi Zheng held a large meeting, he invited Li San Niang to hold a smaller meeting.
Li Sanniang was naturally happy to leave Ning Yizheng's place. Being able to use the methods she taught to help more soldiers survive was a great thing, so how could she not be happy?
The soldiers that Li San Niang was thinking of, along with the surgeons from the Imperial Medical Bureau, were currently setting up camp in the wilderness. Li Da Lang looked at Nineteen, who was carrying two pheasants, and smiled, asking, "You're lucky today, managing to catch two?"
Nineteen put the pheasant down, casually found a rock to sit on, and watched as Li Dalang prepared to start a fire to boil water and pluck the pheasant's feathers. He took out the water pouch from his waist, took a sip, and casually wiped the water stains from the corner of his lips with the back of his hand.
"We were really lucky. I guess it's because we took a route that few people travel on?"
This pheasant was a bit silly; it didn't know how to fly away when it encountered people, which was a good opportunity for me.
Although we haven't gone hungry along the way, the cook is really stingy with the meat, even though the general allocated money for us to have some.
Li Dalang poked at the fire with a tree branch, then turned back to answer Nineteen's words: "We have no choice but to help. Although the local government has provided rations along the way and the general has allocated money, we are still not far from Chang'an. How can we spend it all at once?"
If it rains, and we're in the middle of nowhere, we'll have to camp in this desolate wilderness.
That would consume the purchased food, wouldn't it?
Every little bit helps.
"Just you wait, once we get home, Mother will definitely make sure we eat meat every meal. We'll have a good rest and nourish ourselves."
Thinking of the food at the Li family's house, Shijiu felt even hungrier. He stood up, grabbed the pheasant, and plucked its feathers with Li Dalang.
"Why don't you go take a look at the back? The third brother of the Guo family looks really weak to me."
Li Dalang thought of Guo Sanlang's frail body, paused, thought for a moment, and then agreed to Nineteen's suggestion: "When this soup is ready, I'll send a bowl over."
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