"Okay, then let me ask where the hospital is. Thank you for your help?"
"No, no." Fang Meixiang's mother turned around, her face beaming with an undisguised smile. She went back into the house and took Fang Meixiang's hand. "Meixiang, now there are hospitals that can cure you. You can be like other women, cooking and washing dishes, and go to the city to see Dongqiang." The more Fang Meixiang's mother thought about it, the more exaggerated it seemed. "Maybe you can even ride a bicycle. Will you go?"
“Go.” Fang Meixiang nodded vigorously.
"Okay, I'll ask Wenzhao as soon as possible." Fang Meixiang's mother's eyes reddened as she thought about how her daughter could be like other women, but she couldn't help but smile. "Back then, there were no medical conditions, but now the technology is better. Meixiang, you can finally be cured."
Fang Shugen then asked the villager who said he knew the address to inquire about the details. "First go to the county bus station, which is in the suburbs. Call a disabled motorcycle and ask them to take you there. Tell them you know the address and that the sooner you go for treatment, the better the results."
"Okay, I got it. I'll go tomorrow."
The next morning, Fang Shugen took his mother on a minibus to the county town.
Fang Shugen's mother sat upright in her seat, watching the trees flash by outside the window. "Shugen, are you taking me to Lutong's place?"
Fang Shugen's Adam's apple bobbed, but he didn't reply. If he had let her go to the mountain earlier, or even just spent some time with her, things wouldn't be like this now. It's all because of him that things turned out this way. Now that medical conditions are better, he must get her treated properly.
As soon as I got off the minibus, drivers of rickshaws and tricycles for the disabled surrounded me, saying, "Where are you going? We'll take you there."
Fang Shugen asked the driver of the disabled vehicle, "How much does it cost to go to a mental hospital?"
The driver chuckled upon hearing this, "It'll cost 3 yuan for two people to get there."
Seeing the driver's smile, Fang Shugen assumed he was taking advantage of them as inexperienced customers and had raised the price. "Why is it so expensive? How much does it cost to get a ride from the countryside to the city? Make it cheaper."
“Do you know how far that hospital is in the suburbs? It was originally 2 yuan per person, but you two wanted 4 yuan, so I only charged you 3 yuan. You can go ask them about rickshaws; none of them want to ride there.”
Fang Shugen's mother looked around nervously, as if she wanted to leave at any moment. Fang Shugen quickly pulled his mother onto the disabled tricycle, saying, "Okay, don't charge me too much. We'll take you back when we come back."
The tricycle drove along a stretch of gravel road and then through a dusty area before stopping in front of a silver-painted iron gate.
"We're here, this is it." The tricycle driver smiled and raised his chin.
There was a white sign with black lettering standing next to the door, which clearly read "Suburban Mental Hospital".
Fang Shugen then understood why his master was laughing, and said somewhat embarrassedly, "Oh, it's called a mental hospital. I thought it was just called a neurological hospital."
"It's okay, I know where it is as soon as you tell me. Everyone says it's a mental hospital."
Fang Shugen led his mother inside.
After asking about the situation, the doctor prescribed some medication. "Take this medicine first. Take it with warm water after meals. Make sure she takes it, don't miss any, and don't take too much. This medicine will help her talk less nonsense, sleep more soundly at night, and stabilize her emotions."
Fang Shugen quickly took the medicine and carefully put it into his pocket, as if it were a precious treasure. "Doctor, will my mother get better after taking this medicine?"
The doctor sighed. "Try this for half a month and see. She's been through a sudden shock and her mind isn't quite clear yet. Come back for a follow-up appointment after she finishes the medication so we can adjust it. Don't be too anxious. This illness can't be cured with just one or two pills; it requires gradual conditioning."
Fang Shugen nodded. "Doctor, I have another one at home. Can you see if you can treat her?" Fang Shugen also told the doctor about Hua Mei's condition.
“If she wants to make a fuss, we can prescribe some medicine, but after so many years, she can’t change her habits all at once. It’s like a scar on an old tree; we can only try to prevent it from cracking again and avoid stimulating her.”
"If I take the medicine for a longer period of time, will it get better?" Fang Shugen pressed.
"We can't guarantee that. You haven't even brought the person here to see us yet. Even if we did, it's hard to say what would happen with this kind of mental health issue. It's been going on for decades, and it's very difficult to cure it completely."
"Yes, we've never seen a doctor for this disease before."
The doctor tapped his fingertips lightly on the table, his tone tinged with emotion yet also with certainty. "Things are different now. In recent years, the authorities have begun to pay more attention to the mental illness, which is why this mental hospital was built and specialized medications were introduced. Although it's still far behind that of big cities, at least there's a proper place to get treatment. The level of medical care is gradually improving, and there's more and more attention being paid to this kind of illness. It's much better than before."
"Okay, doctor, my mother can take this medicine for now. As for my wife, I'll bring her next time she needs to see a doctor."
Fang Shugen carried the medicine and went home full of hope.
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