Liu Taixiang wanted to know even more what illness his daughter had and why the doctors couldn't figure it out.
Upon learning that the illness was treated by a local folk doctor and itinerant physician, Jiang Qiao nodded knowingly.
"This disease isn't really serious. It's just that Yadan encountered a tick outside. These things like to burrow into the body and are very easy to infect, which is why she ended up like this. But it's all better now. I'll remove the sutures in a couple of days and she'll be fine."
Aunt Liu reminded her husband, "Honey, Miss Jiang Qiao said that her neighbor's son is here. Could you see if you can help contact the child? They said visitation is not allowed, and we don't know why. Could you help send a message or something? The elderly in the family are getting old, and we can't just ignore them like this, can we?"
Liu Taixiang inquired about the person Jiang Qiao was looking for, and after hearing that it was Gu Zhengkai, Liu Taixiang remained silent for a long time.
"I've heard people talk about him privately. I think he was a translator for the Japanese back then?"
Jiang Qiao nodded. "I've heard that's true, but he didn't do anything wrong back then. He's already been punished, so why won't his family be allowed to visit him? I don't understand. Uncle, could you let me meet with him?"
If it's inconvenient, even just sneaking a peek from the farm would be fine.
Liu Taixiang pondered for a moment, "A farm? You know what, if you manage it well, you might actually be able to meet him."
Miss Jiang Qiao, as you know, the punishment for those who act as traitors is quite severe.
However, I don't know why they won't even let us write letters anymore. I'll ask around for you later. As for meeting people, they were working on the farm this afternoon.
"Honey, find a way to bring Jiang Qiao over. Just say it's a relative's child visiting, and you can take her out to see the world."
Aunt Liu readily agreed. Actually, she was quite familiar with the people at the farm, and there were no obstacles there, so meeting them wasn't impossible.
Ya Dan lay on the kang (a heated brick bed) and supported her mother, saying, "Mom, go ahead. I can manage on my own at home."
Jiang Qiao smiled and peeled a candy for Ya Dan, stuffing it into her mouth. "Little Ya Dan, don't worry, we won't be away for too long."
"Mother, we're back—"
The Liu family's children had all come home from school, and Aunt Liu quickly prepared the food.
The Liu family children were curious to see that there was another girl in the family.
"Oh dear, she's a distant relative's child. You can just call her Jiang Qiao. Hurry up and eat, you have to go to class soon."
Because of the drought, the Liu family now eats flatbread mixed with wild vegetables. The vegetables are all homegrown, steamed in a pot with a little salt, and there's not a drop of oil in them.
Even so, the children ate with relish. As she ate, Aunt Liu explained to Jiang Qiao, "Girl, don't be disgusted. There's nothing we can do. We don't have much food left at home, and the fields are like this. I guess we can't expect much from the autumn harvest."
Jiang Qiao said nonchalantly, "Auntie, what are you saying? We eat the same kind of food at home. It feels just like being at home. It's great, and it tastes even better than my mom's cooking."
This wasn't a lie. Wen Jingwan was fine in every other way, but her cooking skills were truly unmatched, even by Aunt Liu.
I guess it's because she eats in the cafeteria every day. She's from a wealthy family, so it's normal that she can't cook. Over the years, she's been too busy with work to learn how.
Otherwise, why would she have arranged so many things for them before leaving? It was because she was concerned about her mother's situation.
Aunt Liu had already decided that she would cook something nice for Jiang Qiao that evening. No matter how poor her family was, she couldn't let him suffer.
She didn't want Jiang Qiao's money for the meal and lodging after they had already eaten; the debt of saving her life was greater than anything else, and she would feel embarrassed to accept it again.
"Auntie, don't argue with me. There's no room for discussion. We've already agreed on this. Besides, treating and saving lives is our duty as doctors. We'll help when we encounter someone in need. There's no need for so much talk."
Please keep this safe. I feel more at ease staying at your house, and I might need to trouble you and Uncle again in the future. Should we be going now?
Liu Taixiang wasn't in a hurry to go back to work, as long as it didn't interfere with dinner preparations. So, Jiang Qiao and Aunt Liu went out first, carrying their baskets.
However, before leaving, Jiang Qiao asked him to help her inquire about someone else, "Uncle Liu, there's someone who came to visit today. I feel like I've seen him somewhere before. His name is Shi Yan. Can you help me find out who he went to see?"
Liu Taixiang readily agreed, saying there was a registration system at the entrance, it was just a casual remark, the only problem was that Jiang Qiao couldn't get in because she didn't know the procedure.
Actually, the farm isn't far from here. Just pass through a small grove of trees, and you'll find a large open area where not only crops are grown, but also a large vegetable garden. Everything is lush and green, quite different from what you see outside.
Jiang Qiao was puzzled. Aunt Liu gave a wry smile and said, "What's their little plot of land compared to ours? It can't compare to what our team has. But the people here really work incredibly hard, and I admire that."
Moreover, they have wells here, so they can fetch water for irrigation. Even if we fetch water every day, we can't keep up with the sun's heat. So the crops here aren't as good as theirs. I guess this year will be like this; we'll just have to wait until next year.
"Auntie, don't you need to go work in the fields?"
Speaking of this, Aunt Liu said frankly, "How could I not need to do anything? It's just that the child was sick, and I was afraid that if the child died, at least there would be someone at home to take care of her. Luckily you came, our Yadan was saved."
The two of them were digging for wild vegetables by the edge of the woods. By sheer coincidence, a pheasant appeared out of nowhere, leisurely looking for insects to eat.
When Aunt Liu saw the pheasant, her eyes lit up with greed. How could she, as a mother, not know that her children were malnourished?
Although we have a few chickens at home, we rely on these eggs for all our cooking oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar for the whole year.
Jiang Qiao had already spotted the pheasant, but didn't say anything. He looked up and saw Aunt Liu rush towards the pheasant.
But pheasants aren't so easy to catch. They flapped their wings and flew into the sky. She knew the pheasant couldn't fly far, but just as it was about to fly away, a small pebble in her hand flicked against its wing.
Seeing the pheasant fall to the ground, Aunt Liu let out a howl and pounced on it again.
"My goodness, this pheasant is so fat! It'll be perfect for adding to our dinner tonight. But why did it fall to the ground?"
Jiang Qiao stood up. "Who knows? Maybe this pheasant was injured before and can't fly anymore."
Aunt Liu placed the pheasant at the bottom of the basket, covering it with a lot of wild vegetables. Just then, the prisoners started walking over one after another, surrounded by heavily armed prison guards.
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