Chapter 16
Chen Jingbai returned to the educated youth settlement, carrying herbs in his hand. He passed the canteen and headed towards the woodshed.
There weren't many people sitting in the canteen at the moment. Sun Jiabao saw that Chen Jingbai was carrying a handful of herbs and asked curiously, "Jingbai, what kind of herbs are these? Did you pick them from the back mountain? Why are you picking them?"
The others also looked at him curiously.
Li Baiyun recognized it as Hedyotis diffusa, with small white flowers on it. It was plentiful in the back mountains at this time of year and could clear heat and relieve summer heat, as well as stop coughing.
They had previously gone to the mountains to pick them, washed them clean, and boiled them to drink. It was the most refreshing drink on a hot day, and it was also less likely to cause heatstroke.
Li Baiyun said, "I think it's Hedyotis diffusa. Should we use it to make soup? It's so hot these days. I feel like I'm going to get heatstroke every day in the fields. Hats are no good at all. This afternoon, Xiao He almost fainted from heatstroke. Summer days are really unbearable."
When Li Baiyun mentioned He He, a playful glint flashed in Chen Jingbai's eyes. She was perfectly fine; she didn't need his soup made with snake tongue grass.
However, he quickly composed himself and said, "I was worried that everyone might also suffer from heatstroke, so I thought I'd go up the mountain to pick some to make soup. Drinking some of that will make everyone feel better."
Looking at her younger brother, Chen Jingyi sensed through their twin bond that he wasn't very happy. She got up to take the herbs from Chen Jingbai's hand, saying, "Xiaobai, give them to me. I'll brew them. You've had a long day. Go take a bath and drink the soup before bed tonight."
Chen Jingbai did not refuse. He was not in the mood to make any more soup, so he handed the white snake tongue grass to Chen Jingyi.
A bloody scratch on the back of his hand caught Chen Jingyi's eye. Her pupils dilated, and her voice became tense, "Xiao Bai, what happened to your hand? Did you cut it while picking snakegrass?"
Chen Jingbai withdrew his hand, covering the small wound. "It's nothing, I just accidentally scratched myself with some grass. I'll rinse it with water later, it'll heal quickly, sister, don't worry about me."
Chen Jingyi frowned and said, "Xiao Bai, you shouldn't go up the mountain at night anymore. It's dangerous when it's dark."
Chen Jingbai: "Okay, sis, you go make it quickly, I'm going to take a shower first."
Chen Jingyi nodded without saying anything more, and went into the woodshed to prepare the herbal medicine.
Sun Jiabao and Li Baiyun looked at the two siblings with deep affection and felt a little envious. They also had older brothers and sisters or younger brothers and sisters in their families, but none of them had such a good relationship as Chen Jingbai and Chen Jingyi.
Seeing Chen Jingbai about to leave, Sun Jiabao asked with concern, "Jingbai, are you sure your hand is alright?"
Chen Jingbai: "It's really nothing, I'm tough."
After he finished speaking, he went out to take a shower. When he came back, the dining hall was neatly filled with people, and each person had a bowl of steaming hot herbal tea made with white snake tongue grass in front of them.
When He He saw Chen Jingbai come in, her eyes lit up and she said, "Chen Jingbai, you're back? Come and sit down. Sister Baiyun said you picked the herbs?"
The night before last, there was a heavy rain. When the educated youth were eating, the wind blew the rain into the canteen, which was not closed. Inevitably, the raindrops blew onto He He, who was sitting closest to the door.
So He He used this as an excuse to switch seats with Sun Jiabao, who was sitting opposite Chen Jingbai.
The rain stopped these past two days, but He He didn't move over. She treated Sun Jiabao's original seat as her own and, without fail, was the first to sit there every day.
Chen Jingbai gave a curt "hmm" and walked to his seat.
Seeing Chen Jingbai's indifferent attitude, He He immediately dismissed her wishful thinking. She assumed that Chen Jingbai had picked the herbs from the mountain that evening because he saw that she had suffered from heatstroke in the afternoon.
He He bent over, leaned close to the table, and blew on the scalding hot herbs, trying to cool them down quickly. She wondered what was wrong with Chen Jingbai again; he seemed unhappy.
The educated youth chattered excitedly at the table.
"Thanks to the thorns, I was planning to go up the mountain tomorrow at noon to pick some for soup, but now I don't have to go."
"Jingbai is so considerate; he specially chose snake tongue grass that isn't bitter when brewed."
...
Amidst the cacophony of voices, He He heard Chen Jingyi ask Chen Jingbai, "Xiaobai, does your wound hurt when you shower?"
Chen Jingbai: "It doesn't hurt, sister, don't worry. I estimate it will heal by tomorrow."
Chen Jingyi: "It won't be that fast. Try not to get it wet. I've been scratched by thatch before, how could it not hurt? The most annoying thing is the tiny, dense wounds that don't hurt too much."
He He was shocked to see Chen Jingbai injured. She raised her eyes and secretly examined Chen Jingbai's hand on the table.
The wound is on my right hand, running from the middle finger to the wrist bone of my little finger. The wound is shallow but long, and the surrounding skin is red.
He He looked at him with a slight grimace, and then heard Chen Jingbai say to his sister very obediently, "It really doesn't hurt, but I'll remember not to get it wet."
Chen Jingyi sighed again, "We still have to plant rice seedlings tomorrow, and it will be even harder to deal with them if they get muddy."
Chen Jingbai said helplessly, "Sister, I'm really not that fragile. The herbal tea should be almost cold by now. Drink it. Is there any herbal tea left? Have them fill a pot for everyone to take to the rice planting tomorrow, so they don't really get heatstroke."
Chen Jingyi: "Okay."
Seeing that they had stopped chatting, He He asked Chen Jingbai, "Does it hurt?"
The reason Chen Jingbai was unhappy has been found; it must be because he was injured while picking the herbs, which is why he had such a long face.
He He stared at the light brown herbal tea in the bowl. She had three rock sugars in her bowl, unlike the others who had no flavor. Hers was definitely sweet.
She secretly added the rock sugar, and no one knew. He He was going to enjoy this sweet herbal tea all by herself, but when she saw that Chen Jingbai had hurt his hand while picking the herbs, she felt a pang of conscience and decided to give her herbal tea to Chen Jingbai.
She reached out and swapped her own herbal tea with the herbal tea on Chen Jingbai's table.
"It doesn't hurt." Chen Jingbai had just finished speaking when he noticed that He He had replaced his herbal tea. "What are you doing?"
Chen Jingbai's voice was a bit loud, and He He felt that the other educated youths' eyes were already drifting in their direction. Not wanting to attract attention, she said, "My bowl was the first one served, so it's a bit cold. You can drink it first."
Chen Jingbai stared at He He, trying to discern the truth in her words from her face, and pushed the bowl back, saying, "No need, I'm not in a hurry to drink."
Seeing the herbal tea halfway down the road, He He beat him to it, lowered her head and took a sip of the herbal tea. It had no taste but it wasn't bitter either, just a faint, refreshing taste of grass.
"It seems to be cold. Since we've already changed it, just drink it anyway."
Chen Jingbai hadn't drunk from his own bowl, but He He had already taken a sip, so it wouldn't be appropriate for him to take it back.
Sun Jiabao said nonchalantly, "It's just a bowl of cold tea. Why are you two arguing like that? Just drink it, it's almost cold."
Chen Jingbai picked up He He's bowl. The porcelain bowl was hot, but he seemed unaware of it. He put the herbal tea into his mouth, and the sweetness came before the herbal aroma. Having drunk it many times, he knew that the tea made with snake tongue grass would never have this sweetness.
Chen Jingbai put down his bowl, glanced at He He, and saw panic in her eyes. At this point, what didn't he understand? He He added sugar to her herbal tea.
And now, for some unknown reason, she gave him her bowl.
Why give him the one with sugar on it? Is it out of pity? Is it out of pity that he went up the mountain to pick snake tongue grass while she was chatting and laughing with other men, and now she's drinking the snake tongue grass tea he picked? Doesn't she feel guilty?
He really couldn't figure out He He's thoughts. After provoking him, she went on to provoke Cheng Sulin.
He He didn't notice Chen Jingbai's unpredictable expression. "When did you pick them?"
She was just on that path leading up the mountain behind the house, how come she didn't notice when Chen Jingbai went there?
Chen Jingbai's face turned cold. "After dinner."
He He didn't think much of it, "It must be very dark up in the mountains."
Chen Jingbai: "Very dark."
But I still saw you and Cheng Surin chatting and laughing there.
He He quickly took a sip of the snake tongue grass, "Then why are you thinking of going tonight?"
Chen Jingbai: "Hmm."
He He looked up, "Hmm?"
Just one "hmm"? What does Chen Jingbai mean? She even felt sorry for him and kindly gave him the herbal tea with rock sugar.
Chen Jingbai replied perfunctorily, "Mm."
The question-and-answer session between the two was extremely boring. He He could tell that Chen Jingbai had completely lost his patience and stopped talking, and she was also angry.
After returning to her room that evening, He He thought for a moment and then took out the mercurochrome and a pack of cotton swabs that her grandmother had given her.
Grandma was worried that she would be injured easily because she didn't know anything when she went to the countryside, so she prepared a lot of medicine for her, including mercurochrome for disinfecting and treating wounds.
He He picked up the mercurochrome and was about to leave when Zheng Xinxin asked her, "Are you going out?"
He He turned around and said, "Well, Chen Jingbai got injured while gathering herbs for us. I happen to have some mercurochrome here, so I'll put some on him."
"Xiao He, thank you." Chen Jingyi, who was standing to the side, was moved. She did not expect that He He, who had never gotten along with Xiao Bai, would be willing to take out the precious red medicine for Xiao Bai.
These days, most people don't take injuries seriously, mainly because they don't have the extra money to pay attention to them, and minor wounds heal carelessly.
But her maternal grandparents were both doctors, and when they were still alive, they told her from a young age not to take small wounds lightly, because some small wounds may not seem serious, but they could be fatal.
Although getting scratched by thatch grass won't kill you, there are all sorts of grasses on the mountain, and if you get infected by other poisonous plants, it could be bad.
He He hadn't expected Chen Jingyi to be so grateful; tears welled up in her eyes as she looked at her. "It's nothing, I'll take it to him first."
With Chen Jingyi, Zheng Xinxin, and Li Baiyun watching her leave, He He opened the door to the girls' dormitory and walked to the boys' dormitory next door.
She knocked on the door, and Zhao Dechuan opened it. "Xiao He, what brings you here?"
He He raised her hand, revealing the red medicine in her hand, indicating, "I'm here to find Chen Jingbai."
Upon hearing this, Zhao Dechuan immediately turned around and shouted to the people inside, "Jing Bai, Xiao He is here to see you, come out quickly."
After shouting, he said to He He, "Little He, you're so kind. You guys do it, I'm going in."
He He leaned against the wall, standing next to the door.
Chen Jingbai arrived late, dressed in his best clothes.
When He He saw him, she forgot her displeasure from drinking the herbal tea, waved the red medicine in her hand, and smiled, "I've come to bring you medicine."
Chen Jingbai was slightly taken aback, then politely declined: "No need to trouble yourself, it's really nothing, just a small wound."
He He said firmly, "No, do you want your hands to be done quickly? If you don't want to apply it, just hold out your hands and I'll apply it for you."
She looked very serious, and Chen Jingbai subconsciously raised his hand in front of He He.
A note from the author:
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