I finally got home and just as I entered the yard, I heard a burst of rapid coughing, as if I was coughing out my lungs.
The old woman's name was Zhu Ruiyun. She ran in with a heavy basket on her back. Seeing her husband's face flushed purple, her heart broke. "Old Shi, we have money now. I'll take you to the hospital right now."
Shi Kaiji coughed for a long time before stopping. He tilted his head for a moment before opening his eyes and forcing a smile. "Don't be afraid, I'm fine. Where did you get the money?"
Zhu Ruiyun then burst into tears and said, "I exchanged the pair of bracelets you gave me that my mother left for me for two hundred yuan and some food."
She didn't have time to see what was in the basket, she just guessed it was food.
Then he remembered that it was placed at the door of the room, so he hurried over to get it. When he opened the lid and took a look, he couldn't help but be surprised. "Lao Shi, I'll make some porridge first, and then take you to the hospital."
They had not eaten for two days and were starving. Shi Kaiji saw her happily going out to get things: ten kilograms of flour, ten kilograms of rice, two bags of milk candy, and even two bags of milk powder.
These are all good things, things that may not be available even if you have money. The old couple felt very grateful, thinking that they had met good people!
"Originally I wanted to exchange twenty yuan, but the girl insisted on giving me two hundred yuan. She also said that if it was less, I should go to the guesthouse where they were staying to find her."
Zhu Ruiyun knew very well that the girl was worried that giving her too much money would bring her trouble. When she was in the black market, she was targeted by that bad guy, who insisted on exchanging these old items for ten dollars.
It’s also because the times are not good now, these old items have depreciated to the point of being worthless.
From ancient times to the present, is there any jade that is not valuable?
Gold has a price, but jade is priceless.
In fact, Zhu Ruiyun's target price was less than one hundred yuan. She was hoping to bargain for fifty yuan.
If not, give your man twenty dollars and he will be cured of his illness.
They swept the streets and cleaned toilets, and received food and coal every month. However, in order to buy medicine, they exchanged some of this month's food so that their family would not go hungry.
Zhu Ruiyun quickly went to boil some water, first made a cup of milk for the man to drink, and then cooked some porridge with the water. He finally regained some strength and went to the hospital.
"Why are you so late? This pneumonia is already very serious, and the hospital is out of anti-inflammatory drugs. There are only ordinary cough medicines, which don't have much effect. You should go to the provincial hospital as soon as possible and don't delay." The doctor wrote a prescription. Although there was no medicine, he had to do his job.
As for the hospital not having medicine, that is the pharmacy’s business.
Nowadays, unless you are hospitalized, you generally don’t get an IV drip, but usually get an injection in the buttocks.
When Zhu Ruiyun heard this, his heart sank. They were people who were overthrown and sent down to the countryside. If no one helped them find a solution, they would have to live in a cowshed.
How is it possible to go to the provincial capital?
Isn't this life-threatening?
"When will this anti-inflammatory medicine be available?" Zhu Ruiyun cried, "Can you prescribe something else first to deal with it?"
"No, we're out of penicillin. We've been out of it for almost three days. The truck that was delivering the medicine said it was buried by a landslide on the road. I don't know if it was buried. Anyway, it hasn't come back yet. I haven't heard from it, and I don't know if it's still alive."
Zhu Ruiyun stood up and slowly knelt down towards the doctor, but Shi Kaiji held his wife back.
Instead, it was Shi Kaiji who helped his wife out. He suppressed the urge to cough in his chest, his face flushed red. The old couple walked out of the hospital, walking in the snow, with their heads full of white hair, whiter than snow.
"It's fate, don't cry. It's windy and snowy, be careful not to get your face chapped." Shi Kaiji was very understanding.
They returned from abroad after going through untold hardships, originally wanting to serve their motherland, but unexpectedly they were reported and demoted. They couldn't describe the feeling in their hearts. Sometimes when they woke up in the middle of the night, they would ask themselves, do you regret it?
There seems to be no regret or resentment because it is not the country's fault.
"Don't we have white flour at home? When we get home, can you make some dumplings for me?" Shi Kaiji coughed violently in the wind and snow. He swallowed the sweet and fishy taste in his throat and didn't dare let his wife know.
Zhu Ruiyun nodded vigorously, "Let's go back first. I'll get some money and buy some meat. Then we can have a good meal of dumplings."
She had already made up her mind that if her husband passed away, she would die with him. In this world, she did not have the courage to live alone.
On the road to the underworld, she and her husband accompanied each other.
When the two returned home, they opened the door and found the house in a mess. The only two torn quilts were thrown in the snow, clothes were scattered all over the floor, pots and pans were smashed to the ground, and tables, chairs and benches were broken into pieces.
Seeing this scene, the two men felt no emotion at all. They picked up the quilt from the snow, patted it, and found that it was wet and could not be used to cover the body, so they piled it on the kang first.
Zhu Ruiyun dragged a broken enamel basin from the backyard, filled it with the coal slag he had picked up, and used wood chips to light the fire. When the fire was burning, he tidied up the house.
The flour and rice were hidden very well, as were the toffee and milk powder. Zhu Ruiyun went to get them, scooped out some flour, and kneaded it until it became dough.
During this period, Shi Kaiji leaned on the kang, following his wife's gaze. The light in his eyes was soft and bright, not scorching, but long-lasting and warm.
Zhu Ruiyun put the noodles in place, covered it with the only remaining bowl, and began to dry the quilt.
By the time everything was ready, it was almost dawn.
"You rest at home for a while. I'll go get some meat and make you some fresh meat dumplings." Zhu Ruiyun felt so sad that it felt like someone was cutting her with a knife.
But there was a smile on his face.
"Okay!" Shi Kaiji understood his wife's meaning. He took her hand and squeezed it gently. "Don't worry, it's okay. The hospital might have some anti-inflammatory drugs tomorrow. We have money now. I'll hold on a little longer. There will be a chance."
He ended up hurting his wife, and it was he who wanted to get her back.
He studied electrical engineering abroad. Thinking about the country's much work to be done, he wanted to come back and contribute to his motherland. This is his root, and he missed his motherland every day he was abroad.
He and his wife met when they were studying in college abroad. They fell in love and got married. In order to return to China, he suffered a lot and even sacrificed his daughter's future, but ended up like this.
Zhu Ruiyun didn’t know what tomorrow would be like, she only knew that she had to cook a delicious meal for her husband now.
She was afraid that after today, her husband would be gone tomorrow, or her money would be stolen.
Her eyes were red as she nodded, "Don't worry, I'll be back soon."
I have to go sweep the streets soon, and I can't delay for a single day even if my husband is sick.
About twenty miles ahead, there was a road collapse and vehicles could not pass through. Qin Xiao decided to stay in the guesthouse temporarily and leave after the emergency repair work was completed.
Otherwise, if you get delayed on the way in the snow and ice, it could be fatal.
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