But Qian Xiaoshu was lucky. That day, when Old Lady Qian was beating Qian Xiaoshu, the child's cries were terrifying. Luo Changyou's wife, Chen Jinfeng, Luo Dajiang's mother, felt for the child. However, she had previously gotten into trouble for meddling in other people's affairs, and had also caused the child to be beaten even more severely. So, she didn't dare go directly to the Qian family to inquire about the situation, so she went to the village chief instead.
During the day, village chief Luo Changzheng was away on business, so Chen Jinfeng told the story to Luo Changzheng's wife. Qian Xiaoshu's beatings were commonplace, and the village chief's wife didn't really take it seriously, so she didn't go to the Qian family first. When Luo Changzheng returned home that evening, his wife brought up the matter while they were eating.
As the head of the village, although there were some things he didn't want to get involved in, since the villagers had come to report the situation, he couldn't pretend to be ignorant. So he quickly ate a few mouthfuls of food and went to the Qian family.
At that time, the Qian family's door was closed and locked from the inside with a bolt. Luo Changzheng knocked on the door for several minutes before someone opened it from the inside.
When Luo Changzheng entered the room, he saw Qian Xiaoshu, his face flushed red and unconscious. He reached out and touched the child's head. It was terribly hot, probably over 40 degrees Celsius.
How could he do this? Human life was no small matter. Furthermore, while he was knocking on the gate, the nearby villagers thought something serious had happened to the Qian family and swarmed into the yard to watch. Even if he didn't want to intervene, he had no choice.
He immediately ordered Qian Jincai to call the village doctor to come and take a look. The first priority was to reduce the child's fever. As for the child's injuries, they would probably have to go to the hospital at dawn. However, judging by Qian Xiaoshu's condition, it was unclear whether he could make it to the next day.
At this time, many villagers are still awake. They are either lying in bed watching TV, or gathering together to play cards or mahjong.
Village doctor Luo Changshun's family was now the same group playing mahjong. Qian Jincai started shouting through the gate, "Uncle Changshun, are you still awake? Come to my house quickly, there's an emergency!"
When I entered the house, I found that in addition to the people playing mahjong, there was also a circle of people watching the fun outside, and I was instantly silenced.
Luo Changshun heard Qian Jincai's cry just now, and when he saw Qian Jincai enter the house, he asked, "What's going on? Who's sick?"
Qian Jincai knew that family disgrace should not be made public, so he said vaguely: "Well, it's nothing serious. Someone at home has a fever. Bring all your things and come with me!"
Luo Changshun gave up his seat to the onlookers and followed Qian Jincai out. On the way, he asked and found out that it was Qian Xiaoshu who was dying.
This really pissed Luo Changshun off. He'd met Qian Xiaoshu a few times before, always while he was gathering herbs. The old couple loved eating wild vegetables, and in the spring and summer, whenever there were any tender, edible wild vegetables, they'd let Qian Xiaoshu dig them up. Of course, this was just something he'd dig up while gathering grass for the pigs.
After a few interactions, he discovered that Qian Xiaoshu was intelligent, quick-witted, and deeply interested in Chinese herbal medicine. He would introduce the herbs to Qian Xiaoshu, briefly explaining how to identify them and the effects of each herb, and he would memorize them accurately.
Luo Changshun, now sixty years old, is a brother of Luo Changzheng and Luo Changyou. Although Western medicine is now becoming more popular, Luo Changshun still uses traditional Chinese medicine more often when treating people in the village.
He's following in his father's footsteps. His father, now in his nineties, remains in excellent health, though he rarely sees patients anymore. He no longer lives in the village, but lives in the city with his eldest son, Luo Changgeng. Sixty-five-year-old Luo Changgeng now runs a traditional Chinese medicine clinic in Mafang, making him a well-known local practitioner.
By the time Luo Changshun entered the Qian family's house and examined Qian Xiaoshu, he was so angry that his lungs were about to explode.
He roared at the Qian family, "Is this how you raise a child? Such a young child, what sin did he commit in his previous life that you torture him like this? If you can't raise him, just say so and send him to my house. I can afford him a bite to eat!"
The other onlookers looked at Qian Xiaoshu's body covered in bruises, with almost no intact skin, and they were filled with hatred. Taking advantage of their large numbers, they began to attack the vicious old lady Qian and the other members of the Qian family who were accomplices.
As the situation at the scene was rather chaotic, Luo Changshun drove all the villagers and the Qian family out.
This was the first time the villagers had seen Luo Changshun lose his temper! One could imagine how bad this matter had become.
Time was running out, and it was too late to prescribe, get, or decoct the medicine. Luo Changshun took out the Angong Niuhuang Pills from the small compartment of his medicine box, cut out half of it, ground the medicine with warm water, and carefully poured it into Qian Xiaoshu's mouth.
After that, he stayed by Qian Xiaoshu's side, took his pulse, checked his injuries, and did some basic treatment.
By the time these tasks were completed, it was almost midnight. However, the villagers were still curious and wanted to see what was going on at the Qian family's house. The people in the yard had almost started a fight with the Qian family, so now they didn't dare to act arrogantly or chase them away.
After a while, Luo Changshun saw that Qian Xiaoshu's fever had subsided a little, and he felt a little relieved, but he did not dare to be careless.
He walked out of the house and said to the villagers in the yard, "It's too late, everyone go back first. If you want to understand the situation, come back tomorrow morning. It's too noisy outside, and it's not good for the children!"
After hearing what Luo Changshun said, Qian Xiaoshu was most likely to survive, and the villagers gradually dispersed.
However, while everyone was not paying attention, a woman slipped into the room where Qian Xiaoshu was, and then quickly bolted the door.
Luo Changshun's heart, which had just been relieved, was immediately lifted again. He knocked on the door and tried to persuade the other party not to hurt the child.
The woman acted as if she didn't hear the noise outside. She looked at Qian Xiaoshu lying on the kang and asked softly, "Baby, mommy is here. Did you miss her?"
Then, she gently stroked Qian Xiaoshu's cheek, which was no longer too hot, and said with a smile, "My baby is so good. How come you are so cute? Mommy will never lose you again. Come home with mommy later. Mommy will definitely protect you this time."
Then, the woman suddenly started to sob again: "Baby, don't blame me for losing you, okay? I didn't mean to do that. Can you forgive me?"
This woman who laughs and cries at times and spreads rumors is Shen Nan, the third daughter-in-law of the Qian family.
Her child was lost ten years ago, when he was the same age as Qian Xiaoshu is now. Today, she heard someone say that the child was dying, which stimulated her again, reminded her of her own son, and suddenly her mind was not clear again, and she mistook Qian Xiaoshu for the child she had lost.
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