Jiang Qiao sighed, "What can we do? We're not God, we can't control this."
Chunming was worried. "You don't know, my maternal grandparents' side has been relying entirely on our family to help them by scrimping and saving. My paternal grandparents' relatives also often come over to freeload. Haven't you seen how thin my mom and the others have become? If it weren't for your help, my mom would probably have collapsed long ago."
Hou Diankui, the master, saw that his young apprentice was filial. "Jiang Qiao, is it possible to buy some grain? Try to buy some for me to store, no matter the price. Give some to Chunming's family. He is my apprentice after all. I can't let him be full while his parents go hungry."
Chunming, his face full of apology, said, "Master—"
Hou Diankui waved his hand impatiently, "What are you shouting for? Your master isn't dead yet. As long as we can buy it, that's fine. I'm just afraid we won't be able to buy it. Your thanks will be in vain."
Jiang Qiao responded from the front, "I'll think of a way when I turn around. I can't help so many people, but I should do my part for my own close friends and family. I don't know how much I can help, we'll see when the time comes."
"We'll take whatever we can get. Even if I were to intervene, I might not be able to exchange it."
Chunming knew in his heart that Jiang Qiao had helped their family a lot before, and it would be too much of a burden for her if he asked for help again.
Under Hou Diankui's direction, the car drove directly to the countryside. It was quite remote, but fortunately the villages were close together, so it didn't feel desolate.
When they arrived at a farmhouse, Hou Diankui asked Jiang Qiao to stop the car. "We're here. This is my junior brother's home."
The old man ignored Jiang Qiao and Chunming, opened the car door and got out. When the village children saw a car entering the village, they all followed behind, as if they were watching a spectacle.
"Changqing, I'm here—"
When Song Changqing's wife saw the car parked in front of the door, she thought something had happened, but when she heard Hou Diankui's shout, she rushed out excitedly.
"Brother, you've arrived. Please come in."
Hou Diankui smiled and said, "I've also brought two children with me. Jiang Qiao and Chunming, come down here quickly."
Jiang Qiao and Chunming walked into the courtyard with their belongings, and Song Changqing's wife hurriedly came over to help.
"Come in, come sit down. Look at you, you're here, why did you bring so much stuff?"
Hou Dianchen was anxious to see his junior brother, so he had no time to chat with his sister-in-law.
Jiang Qiao pointed to Chunming and said, "Auntie, this is Master Hou's apprentice."
Chunming also spoke sweetly, "Auntie, hello, I am Du Chunming. I heard about my master's affairs and have been wanting to come and see you for a long time, but I have never had the time or the opportunity."
The woman looked him up and down with a smile, then nodded. "He's a good young man. Come on in."
When Jiang Qiao and Chunming entered the room, they saw Song Changqing holding his senior brother's hand and wiping away tears.
"Alright, alright, you're such a grown-up, aren't you afraid of being laughed at by your juniors? Changqing, I've invited a young doctor over this time, hoping that you can walk again someday. This is Jiang Qiao, girl, take a look at her."
When Song Changqing saw Jiang Qiao, he was dumbfounded. Was his senior brother joking with him? How old was this little girl? Even if she knew some medical skills, she couldn't possibly heal his leg.
"this--"
Actually, he wanted to say no, but seeing his senior brother's expression, he couldn't bring himself to say it. After all, the senior brother had come all this way to treat him, and it wouldn't be right to offend him so directly.
Anyone could see the suspicion in her eyes. Jiang Qiao smiled and didn't explain. Instead, she stepped forward and took Song Changqing's pulse.
However, after taking his pulse, his expression turned very ugly, and his temper flared up immediately. "What kind of lousy doctor is this? It's just a surgery, and he managed to damage the nerves in my leg. He's definitely a quack."
Hou Diankui nodded, his eyes filled with anticipation. "Girl, are you confident?"
Jiang Qiao smiled and said, "Is he wearing the jade pendant you gave him?"
Hou Diankui was finally convinced. He looked at Jiang Qiao and smiled, "Girl, just go ahead and treat her. No one will blame you no matter how far you go."
The father and son didn't care about Song Changqing's feelings at all. After their conversation, they asked Chunming to help Song Changqing take off his pants.
Song Changqing was embarrassed and said, "This, this won't do, senior brother, she's still a child."
Hou Diankui grabbed Song Changqing's hand and patted it, "Junior brother, what time is it now? Treating the illness is the priority. The young lady hasn't said anything yet, so why do you care?"
Jiang Qiao took out silver needles and said, "Uncle Song, relax. In the eyes of us doctors, patients have no gender distinction. We only care about whether we can cure them. As for whether they are male or female, it makes no difference to us."
Song Changqing sighed deeply, cupped his hands in a respectful gesture towards Jiang Qiao, and said, "Girl, I was ignorant. Come on—"
To be honest, Jiang Qiao wasn't very confident about treating this illness, after all, it had been going on for so long. Fortunately, the array engraved on Hou Diankui's jade pendant had been nourishing Song Changqing's body and nerves; otherwise, even if she had taken action, it would probably have been difficult.
"I'll give it a try first—"
Jiang Qiao was decisive. Although she really wanted to know where the place Song Changqing mentioned was, at this critical juncture, she couldn't ignore the feelings of the patients and their families.
When Hou Diankui and the others saw Jiang Qiao slowly inserting her silver needles into Song Changqing's leg, they thought that it was over once the needles were inserted in that spot. However, Jiang Qiao continued to insert needles in other places. Especially when they saw that Jiang Qiao's forehead was covered in sweat, Hou Dianchen, even if he had any questions, could not voice them at this moment.
Jiang Qiao was really tired. Her internal strength had increased a lot during this period, but pushing the spiritual energy brought by the jade pendant into her body with her true energy was not a simple treatment. It was more nerve-wracking than when she was having surgery.
Chunming saw Jiang Qiao with her eyes closed, her fingers moving back and forth on the silver needles. Even though he couldn't understand what she was doing, he knew that Jiang Qiao shouldn't be disturbed at this time, even though she looked very tired.
After the acupuncture was finished, Jiang Qiao was soaked in sweat and leaned weakly against the wall. "Auntie, could you please boil some water for me? I want to take a bath."
"Okay, okay, you wait here, I'll go out and boil some water for you right away."
Hou Diankui asked with concern, "Girl, how is it?"
Jiang Qiao shook her head weakly. "I can't say for sure. My internal energy is exhausted. With the jade pendant, I'll recover in a while. But my legs, because of the long time that's been here, will take time to fully recover. We'll have to stay here."
Uncle Song, how are you feeling now?
Song Changqing had never felt so healthy before. He felt a warm sensation all over his body and pinched his leg. "I can feel it, girl. Tell me, how should your uncle thank you?"
Jiang Qiao smiled and said, "Uncle, we're family, so let's not stand on ceremony. Can I ask you something? I heard you saw the Japanese soldiers going up the mountain and the graves afterwards. Can you be more specific? Also, can you still remember that location?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com