Chapter 20 Health Center
Accompanied by a group of people's exclamations and noises, the farm clinic, which had just seemed a little deserted, suddenly became busy and tense.
Chen Zhilu was holding a thin figure in his arms, with a slender arm hanging limply and blood dripping from her fingertips.
Chen Zhilu was followed by several members of the road construction team, who shouted at the top of their voices: "Where is the doctor? Call Doctor Jiang! Someone fell off the cliff, hurry up and save him——"
Jiang Kun is a surgeon at the clinic, specializing in treating injuries and back pain.
Liu Lili walked out of the clinic and was a little panicked when she saw the critical situation: "Doctor Jiang hasn't come yet. I'm the only one on duty now."
Tao Nanfeng and Qiao Yadong heard the familiar voices of the road repair team members and hurried out. Tao Nanfeng stood guard at the door, paying attention to Xiao Aiyun's situation. Qiao Yadong ran to Chen Zhilu and asked, "Who is it? What happened?"
Chen Zhilu's white vest was stained with blood on the chest, and his face was anxious: "Ximei was delivering water to the road repair team, the road was slippery and she fell down the cliff."
The thin figure in his arms moved. He was as thin as a bean sprout, his face was pale, and his clothes were torn in many places, revealing the cotton inside.
It’s my younger sister! There was a hole on her forehead, her hair was disheveled, and her body was covered in mud and blood. She looked very scary.
One of Ximei's legs was twisted into a strange shape. Chen Zhilu didn't dare to touch it at all. If he moved it a little, Ximei would tremble in pain. It was obvious that the pain was unbearable.
Qiao Yadong's face turned pale: "Did Ximei take that fatal road?"
Several members of the road construction team sent people to call Xiang Bei and Doctor Jiang, while they put the patient on the bed. After settling him down, they began to curse that damn deadly road.
"It's that broken road! There's a cliff on one side and a stone wall on the other. The whole road is only one meter wide. Every time I walk on that road, I get scared for fear of falling off."
"Last year, Xiangbei led us to put wooden stakes densely on the side of the road and built a guardrail, which made the situation better."
"Today the road was icy and the wind was strong. My thin sister couldn't handle it, so she fell."
"Luckily, Ximei came with Hehua this time. Hehua called us over to rescue her."
By this time, the educated youth became increasingly aware of the importance of building roads. If the road had been repaired, Ximei would not have fallen. To take a step back, even if he fell, he could be sent to Quping Town Central Hospital in time, instead of being frightened in the poorly equipped farm clinic.
There was a moment of chaos and Dr. Jiang and Xiangbei rushed over.
After the examination, Dr. Jiang looked a little serious: "You fell too hard. Your tibia is fractured and dislocated. You have a slight concussion. I need to fix your bones and put a plaster cast on them. You should make an appointment and pay the fee."
Xiangbei paid the money without saying a word and cooperated with Doctor Jiang to correct his bones.
With a crisp "crack" sound, the unconscious Ximei screamed in pain, frightening Chen Zhilu so much that his face changed drastically, thinking that Doctor Jiang had broken her legs.
Doctor Jiang really has his own way. He can determine the condition of bone injuries with his eyes and hands without the help of any instruments. With a push, a pull, and a turn, the dislocated tibia is put back in place. He applies a plaster and wraps it with gauze, and then cleans the wounds all over the body. He sews stitches where necessary, takes anti-inflammatory measures where necessary, and bandages where necessary. The treatment was not completed until noon.
Xiao Aiyun woke up slowly and found herself in the hospital, with her hands wrapped in a cotton hat, and Tao Nanfeng and Qiao Yadong standing beside her.
"I—" Her voice was a little hoarse.
Seeing Xiao Aiyun finally wake up, Tao Nanfeng finally breathed a sigh of relief and came close to her: "You awake?"
"I'm glad you're okay." Qiao Yadong smiled slightly.
Qiao Yadong's smile fell into Xiao Aiyun's eyes, like a spring breeze on her face. She raised her hands, tightly grasped her cotton hat, tears of gratitude welled up in her eyes: "Thank you."
The military green cotton hat is lined with brown fur, warm and thick. Xiao Aiyun recognized it as Qiao Yadong's hat.
Although she was drowsy today, she was not completely unconscious. She was just like a small boat floating in the waves, shaking so much that she was completely unable to speak or think. She knew that Tao Nanfeng carried her on his back, accompanied her, fed her water and wiped her sweat.
Qiao Yadong waved his hand and said jokingly: "Don't be polite. Our revolutionary friendship is deep and unbreakable."
"What are you thanking me for? We are friends." Tao Nanfeng sat down next to the hospital bed and adjusted the corner of the quilt.
Xiao Aiyun held her hand, her eyes full of dependence: "Tao Nanfeng, thanks to you for carrying me to the clinic. You don't know how much pain I felt when I had a high fever... I felt pain in my bones, and it hurt so much that I just wanted to cry."
Tao Nanfeng nodded. She knew what it felt like to have a high fever. It was so painful that she had to curl up in a ball on the bed. Only by constantly shouting "Mom" could she withstand the pain.
Since his mother died when he was seven years old and his father remarried and brought Feng Qing'e home, Tao Nanfeng has not dared to touch the word "mother" for a long time. Tao You quickly adapted to the presence of his stepfather and called Tao Shouxin "Dad" warmly and intimately, but Tao Nanfeng only called his stepmother "Aunt Feng".
My father and I gave Feng Chun'e and Tao You the greatest kindness and respect, but what we got in return was not warmth and gratitude. Tao Nanfeng has a lot of worries, which she keeps deep in her heart because she doesn't like intense conflicts and is worried about embarrassing her father.
The girl in the bed next to him didn't wake up and even started vomiting. Doctor Jiang frowned and said to Xiangbei, "It's a concussion. We can't treat it here. Send him to the town hospital for an X-ray. Don't delay the child's condition."
Ximei's father Fan Wufu rushed over after hearing the news. He fell to his knees and kowtowed desperately: "Xiangbei, please save her, please save her, she is only twelve years old. I will pay you back for the medical expenses, and I will definitely pay you back when I have money in the future."
Xiangbei helped up the farmer, who was only in his forties but had become old due to suffering, and said, "Don't worry, Uncle Fan, I will definitely save him." Although it was not easy to travel between the north slope and the south slope, the villagers on both sides were related, so Xiangbei had to call Ximei's father "Uncle".
Fan Wufu thanked him profusely, choking with sobs, his dark and thin face full of tears. He squatted in the corner and covered his head with his hands. Self-blame and worry made him look ten years older.
Seeing this father worried about his daughter's life or death, Tao Nanfeng felt very uncomfortable.
Why did Ximei roll down the cliff? In the final analysis, Ximei wanted to thank the road construction team for opening the tunnel and wanted to give the sweetest and clearest Luohan Spring water to the road construction team members to drink.
If she were a cunning person, she would have cried and made a fuss: My younger sister fell down because of you, so you have to take care of it! But Fan Wufu was an honest man. He knew that Ximei was injured because she delivered water to the road construction team members, but he did not blame anyone in his heart. He did not even mention the matter of delivering water. Instead, he was grateful to everyone for sending her to see a doctor.
Such villagers deeply shocked Tao Nanfeng. It turns out that there are greedy villains like Feng Chun'e and Tao You in this world, but there are more good people who are grateful and repay kindness.
Knowing that Fan Wufu's family was in financial difficulty, Tao Nanfeng took out two yuan and handed it to Uncle Fan: "Uncle, keep this money and use it to supplement the nutrition of my younger sister."
When the others saw Tao Nanfeng taking out the money, they all searched their pockets for it. One cent, two cents, fifty cents, one dollar... the scattered bills were delivered to Fan Wufu's hands. He couldn't stop crying and kept saying thank you: "You are all good people, all good people."
Next, Xiangbei arranged a stretcher, which was carried by four strong road repair team members in turn. Accompanied by Uncle Fan, they sent Ximei down the mountain and said, "Looking at the weather, it will snow soon. Go and come back quickly. If the mountain is closed due to heavy snow... I'm afraid it will be difficult to return to the farm. You can only wait for the snow to melt."
Hearing this, Tao Nanfeng was startled. With clear eyes, he looked at Xiangbei seriously and asked, "Is the mountain blocked by snow?"
Before Xiangbei could reply, several members of the road construction team rushed to speak.
"You new educated youth don't know this yet, do you? Xiufeng Mountain is at a high altitude, so it will snow in late December. Once it snows, the mountain roads become difficult to travel, and we are trapped on the mountain. This is called a snowy mountain closure."
"Didn't I ask you to store potatoes and corn a while ago? It's because we're short on vegetables in the winter, so we need to save food."
"But don't be afraid, snow is not all bad. According to farm tradition, as soon as it snows, we kill the pigs and distribute the meat."
Hearing this, several educated youths from Jiangcheng looked excited and said, "Really? There's meat to eat!"
Xiang Bei nodded: "The logistics department has already started preparations." These are all children in front of them. They only care about having meat to eat, but have never thought about how long the dozen or so pigs in the pig farm can last? Later, due to food shortage and severe cold, the winter in Xiufeng Mountain was really unbearable.
Tao Nanfeng asked: "Can we still repair the road if it snows?"
Xiangbei shook his head: "No, all work must be stopped. When it snows, you will know that the wind and snow in the mountains are very strong, and it is impossible to go out."
Tao Nanfeng stared at Xiangbei steadily, and saw hidden worry in his eyes. How severe would the snowstorm be if I couldn’t even get out of the door?
The educated youth who had just been looking forward to sharing the meat also understood and started to get nervous.
"We can only stay indoors? Then we need to prepare more firewood."
“Will the farm distribute rice to us on time?”
"The postman can't go up the mountain, right? Then how can I contact my family?"
"It's over, it's over. I have to hurry down the mountain to tell my family. Who knows how long this snow will last? If my parents don't receive my letter, they won't be able to have a good year."
Hearing that the educated youth were worried about contacting their families, Tao Nanfeng pursed his lips and clenched his hands. Why on earth? I wrote several letters but received no reply! Could something have happened to my father?
The more I thought about it, the more scared I became. I clenched my hands tighter and my knuckles began to turn white.
Xiangbei's eyes fell on Tao Nanfeng's hand, thinking: "Well, let's give everyone a day off tomorrow, and you can go to Quping Town together, the post office, the supply and marketing cooperative, the cloth shop...if you want to send a letter, send a letter, if you want to buy something, buy it, and make arrangements quickly. If you want an advance on your salary, go to the finance office and write a note to get the money, and I'll sign it."
Hearing Xiangbei's words, all the educated youth cheered.
"Great! Director Xiang is really a good leader for us."
"Write more letters when you get home, so that your family can rest assured."
"Hurry up, hurry up, get the money to buy some egg cakes. Oh no, egg cakes don't last long, so buy some more steamed buns to store."
Faping is a local snack. It is a fermented bread baked hard. It has a wheat aroma mixed with an alkaline taste. It has a unique flavor, is very filling, and is durable to preserve.
For a moment, the gloomy atmosphere caused by Xiao Aiyun's fever and Ximei's fall gradually dissipated, and even Xiao Aiyun wanted to get up from the hospital bed and go back to write a letter.
Because Dr. Jiang stopped them, Xiao Aiyun had to tearfully hold Tao Nanfeng's hand and tell him, "Get the money for me. Bring the letter paper and pen. I'll write the letter and remember to mail it for me tomorrow."
The homesick educated youth were now thinking about how to contact their families. Liu Lili smiled and said to Tao Nanfeng: "Don't worry, I'm here."
Tao Nanfeng nodded and left. Together with everyone else, he went to the finance office to advance the sixteen yuan subsidy for next month. After giving Xiao Aiyun paper and pen, he hurried back to the educated youth site.
Li Huilan and Ye Qin had not finished work yet, so Tao Nanfeng was the only one in the room.
The cold wind was howling outside the window, but Tao Nanfeng felt as if there was a small flame burning in his chest. She sat at the table, spread out the letter paper, picked up the pen, and wrote a line.
"Dad, are you okay?"
The words in front of him became a little blurry, and Tao Nanfeng raised his eyes to look towards the wooden window. The light-colored curtains were gently lifted, as if to comfort her gently.
"Dad, I'm doing fine on the farm. The weather is getting colder, and heavy snow is coming. I may not be able to write to you for a while..."
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