Chapter 16 Because I firmly believe that even metal and stone can be carved.
The siblings quickened their pace and rushed over, only then realizing what had happened.
After Yu Mingshu was sent off to stroll in the garden with Zhu Yishan, the elders at the table started talking about old stories from more than ten years ago. As people get older, they love to reminisce about the past, and they can easily get lost in those memories. They were so engrossed in their conversation that no one noticed the silent child next to Madam Yang.
The child, eyeing the peach blossom pastries on the table, took advantage of Madam Yang's loosening of her grip to grab the table leg and go to the other side. He stood on tiptoe, reached out, and actually managed to grab the pastry.
Perhaps worried about being discovered by the adults, the child ate in a hurry, taking a bite of half a peach blossom pastry and wolfing it down with bulging cheeks. As a result, he choked and couldn't breathe, and his little face turned purple in an instant.
Fortunately, he did know to tug at Madam Yang's sleeve, which attracted the attention of the elders at the table.
Now all the guests in the courtyard saw that he was choking, and they gathered around him anxiously. As the host of the banquet, Madam Zhu was the most nervous and anxious, and immediately sent her servants to a nearby clinic to fetch a doctor.
"By the time the doctor arrives, this child will probably be mentally impaired, even if he survives," Yu Mingshu muttered, his brows furrowed. He pushed through the anxious crowd in the aisle and made his way to Yang Congen and his wife and the child.
Mrs. Yang was so anxious that her cheeks were trembling, and she kept patting the child's back with her right hand, praying that this would dislodge the thing stuck in the child's throat.
Seeing this, Yu Mingshu immediately stopped her, picked up the child, and said urgently, "Patting the back like this won't work. I have a way, let me do it."
Wu Qiuniang turned pale with fright when she saw her daughter's actions. She didn't want to curse a poor child, but the fact was that if anything happened to the child in Ming Shu's hands, the Yu family simply couldn't bear the consequences.
"Ming Shu!"
Wu Qiuniang tried to stop her daughter's actions, but Madam Yang, as if grasping at straws, cast a hopeful glance at Yu Mingshu: "Can you really save You'er? This child is the eldest grandson of the Yang family, and the apple of my and my husband's eye! If you can really save You'er, I will grant you whatever you ask for!"
First aid is a race against time; speaking at this point is a waste of time.
Yu Mingshu remained silent, only recalling Heimlich's technique. He picked up the child from behind, clenched his left fist and placed it between the child's chest and abdomen, while his right palm tightly covered his left, and then quickly thrust upwards with both hands.
The people around could only watch helplessly, as most of them had no medical training and had never heard of the young girl's methods. However, seeing her confident demeanor, they believed she wasn't bluffing.
"Whose daughter is this? Does Master Zhu have a friend who is a doctor?"
"I heard she's the daughter of the late Imperial Censor Yu. Who knows where she learned her medical skills from..."
"Doctors save lives by observing, listening, inquiring, and palpating, and by administering medicine and acupuncture. What kind of medical skill does she have by picking up the child and hitting him like that?"
"This girl looks petite and thin, yet she has such great strength."
Amidst the rustling of voices, a clump of sticky paste fell from the child's mouth, followed by rapid breathing and coughing.
Yu Mingshu watched as the child's complexion gradually returned to normal before he dared to breathe a sigh of relief. He then placed the child back in front of Yang Congen and his wife, saying, "It's alright now, he'll be fine once he vomits it up."
Her rescue was undoubtedly successful. There was no need for a physician to prove it. Just seeing the child's normal complexion, his gradually even breathing, and his cries of relief after the ordeal were enough to prove that her method worked.
Yu Mingshu was an unmarried girl who had never studied medicine or had any experience in taking care of young children. Even her mother had not expected this to happen. Where did she learn her methods from?
Yang Congen gave her a deep look before lowering his head to reprimand his grandson for getting into trouble because of his appetite.
Since it was someone else's banquet with many onlookers, he was stopped by Madam Yang after only two sentences.
Madam Zhu also came out to mediate, saying with a guilty look, "This is all my fault. Ming Shu had already reminded me, but I still left the pastries on the table, causing the young master to suffer for no reason."
After saying that, she winked at the maid, who hurriedly handed the jewelry box she had just brought to her mistress.
Madam Zhu opened the brocade box and took out a gold chain with a gold-inlaid jade longevity lock attached to the chain. She immediately put the longevity lock around the child's neck and said apologetically, "This gold lock has a good meaning, so I give it to the young master as an apology. I only wish the young master peace and happiness every year."
"It's clearly this child's gluttony that caused this trouble, how can I let you spend money..." Seeing this, Madam Yang felt a little embarrassed. Seeing that the gold lock was already hanging around her grandson's neck, she could only pat his head and say, "Hurry up and thank Madam Zhu!"
The child was still in shock from the brief moment of suffocation, clinging to his grandmother's arm and shrinking back, not daring to look Mrs. Zhu in the eye.
Madam Zhu smiled and said, "It's good that the child is alright. There's no need to stand on ceremony now."
Madam Yang's gaze returned to Yu Mingshu, filled with immense gratitude yet at a loss for words. After a long while, she asked with a kind smile, "Miss Yu, what method did you use just now? I have wasted half my life and have never seen anything like it before."
The name Heimlich is difficult to translate into a localized language, so Yu Mingshu hesitated for a moment before deciding to omit it.
"It's not a special method. The principle is simply to know where the object is stuck, and then forcefully strike it there. As long as it comes out, it's fine." She added, "This method can be used by people of all ages."
"Can even younger children use this?" Madam Zhu asked with some doubt. "If it's a child under one year old, we can cover their entire chest and abdomen with one hand. Won't that hurt the child?"
"If the child is under one year old, you can let the child lie on an adult's arm and pat his back. It's best if he can cough it up directly."
Yu Mingshu explained carefully, gesturing to himself with his right hand, "If that doesn't work, turn the child over, head down, face up, and press two fingers into the middle of the child's ribcage, which is this spot."
Zhu Yishan arrived at some point, and at that moment, Yu Mingshu seemed like a true sage to him. He listened attentively to her story and then earnestly asked, "What if you choke on your food and there's no one else around?"
“Then do it like this.” Yu Mingshu gave a generous demonstration: “Place your hands against your abdomen, find a table with rounded edges, and squeeze repeatedly until you vomit.”
Madam Zhu smiled and said, "I've remembered this today. This method can truly save lives."
Yu Dan squeezed through the crowd, approached his sister, and whispered, "Sister, did Madam Yang just grant you a request?"
Yu Mingshu gently tugged at his ear and said, "I didn't even take it to heart, and you're still holding a grudge?"
Yu Dan clasped his hands together and said devoutly, "Could you ask Lord Yang to exempt me from yesterday's homework?"
“Anything can happen in a dream.” Yu Mingshu applied a little force with his fingers, and Yu Dan immediately started wailing and howling at the top of his lungs.
The servant who had been sent out to fetch a doctor had just returned. The white-bearded old man who had been following behind had run all the way and was still out of breath when he heard that the person had been saved. He had made a wasted trip! Frustrated, he headed home.
Although Madam Yang was over seventy years old, her hearing was still very sharp. She heard every word that Yu Dan had mumbled and naturally remembered what he had promised in his haste not long ago.
“Miss Yu, I promised to repay you with a generous gift, and I cannot go back on my word.” She leaned slightly forward to show her sincerity, and asked her very gently, “Is there anything you would like?”
Yu Mingshu looked at her silently, then quickly shifted his gaze to Yang Congen.
Believe it or not, she actually has a wish.
Yang Congen met her gaze and immediately realized what she wanted to say, but Yu Mingshu remained silent for a long time.
According to the original plan, Yu Mingshu wanted to enter the academy as Yu Erlang. However, with so many people around, she could not openly say that she wanted to enter the academy as a woman, let alone make up something like, "I have a younger brother who also wants to study at Chang'an Academy."
"I didn't think that much when I saved him, nor was I after your gift," Yu Mingshu said tearfully, uttering words against his conscience. "Let's not talk about this anymore."
Yang Congen could tell that she was not being sincere, so he sighed and said, "A word spoken is a word that cannot be taken back. If you haven't decided what you want yet, then let's talk about it later."
…
Later in the evening, meaning after the banquet had ended. Taking advantage of the fact that it was still light, Yu Mingshu caught up with the Yang family's carriage, which was just about to depart.
"Master Yang, please wait!"
The coachman stopped when he heard the shout. He looked blankly at the little girl running towards him, then turned back to look at the people sitting inside the carriage.
The carriage curtain was lifted, and Yang Congen, as if he had expected it, calmly looked at the girl chasing after him outside the window, meeting her resolute gaze.
Before Yu Mingshu could speak, he asked, "Do you still want to go to Chang'an Academy?"
"To be honest, Lord Yang, I am truly unwilling." Yu Mingshu's eyes burned with fervor as he bowed to the person inside the carriage. "I beg you, Lord Yang, to give me a chance. I will bear the consequences myself, no matter what lies ahead."
Yang Congen was silent for a moment, then raised an eyebrow. "If I still disagree today, what will you do?"
Without hesitation, Yu Mingshu said, "Then I'll come back in a couple of days."
"You really are persistent," Yang Congen said with a helpless smile.
Yu Mingshu seemed oblivious to the sarcasm in his words, her eyes still burning with conviction, her tone firm: "Because I firmly believe that even metal and stone can be carved."
A note from the author:
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