Chapter 10: The Medicine Maiden

Lunch was prepared by Ning Xie. Her cooking skills weren’t exceptional, but they were certainly not lacking. The main dish was a bowl of steamed rice made with a mixture of sorghum, millet, and coarse corn grits, accompanied by a plate of stir-fried loofah with eggs and a bowl of salted vegetable soup. Yinyin couldn’t eat this kind of rice, so what she had was a thin pancake made from finely ground cornmeal mixed with wheat flour, which Zhuo Gu made for her.

As Zhuo Gu was ladling soup for Yinyin, Xinwan Chen returned from outside. Seeing Zhuo Gu, she paused slightly before smiling and saying, “Qixiu, how’s your health? Are you still running a fever?”

Though this daughter-in-law had always been gentle and kind, never speaking ill to her, for reasons she couldn’t quite name, Xinwan Chen always felt a little uneasy around her.

Zhuo Gu’s expression remained calm. “I’m almost fully recovered.”

In truth, she was still running a slight fever. However, she had brewed a medicinal decoction for herself that morning, and estimated that after another high fever that evening, her temperature would subside by tomorrow, and she would be nearly well the day after. But she was not the type to explain every detail to others, least of all to Xinwan Chen.

Xinwan Chen sat down at the table. Noticing that Chong Xie wasn’t present, she instinctively wanted to ask, but seeing Zhuo Gu’s composed face, she swallowed her words.

“Yinyin, would you like to eat some hawthorn berries? After lunch, Grandma can take you to pick some, all right?” Xinwan Chen turned to Yinyin.

Xinwan Chen was, in truth, partial to sons over daughters, but unlike other women in the village, she didn’t flaunt it or call the girls in the family burdens. Of course, it wasn’t that she cherished the girls either. Her offer to take Yinyin was purely because she wanted an excuse to slack off and avoid field work.

In the past, Zhuo Gu would turn a blind eye to such behavior—she was busy, and so long as Xinwan Chen didn’t beat or scold the child, it was good enough to have an adult watch over Yinyin.

But now...

Yinyin’s eyes were already sparkling with excitement, but Zhuo Gu spoke before she could answer. “Yinyin, would you like to come with Mama today? Mama will take you into the mountains to pick mushrooms.”

Given past events, there was no way Zhuo Gu would trust Xinwan Chen to take Yinyin.

“Yes, yes, yes!” Yinyin replied eagerly.

When it came to choosing between Grandma and Mama, she never hesitated.

Xinwan Chen’s face darkened. Zhuo Gu had never embarrassed her like this before. She was not one to tolerate slights, and was about to lash out when Ning Xie quickly pulled her back, giving her a warning look and whispering, “Mother, Sister-in-law is still ill.”

Zhuo Gu heard this but pretended not to, lowering her head to pick up a piece of egg for Yinyin.

While Ning Xie was tidying up the tableware, Xinwan Chen stormed into the kitchen, fuming. “Did you see that? Is that any way for a daughter-in-law to behave? She actually gave me, her mother-in-law, the cold shoulder! I kindly offered to help her look after Yinyin, and she’s not happy about it! As if I’d ever harm Yinyin!”

After ranting for a while, she realized her daughter was quietly washing the dishes, not responding at all. Displeased, she said, “Can’t you say something? Do you think your sister-in-law was right?”

“And was she wrong?” Even for her own mother, Ning Xie didn’t indulge her. “Yesterday, when Sister-in-law fell ill, you should’ve taken good care of Yinyin. What did you do? Sure, Second Brother nearly got Yinyin killed, but you, Mother, by letting Yinyin go looking for him, were an accomplice.”

Xinwan Chen’s face went deathly pale. Clutching her chest, she cried out, “You ungrateful child!”

But Ning Xie stared at her unflinchingly. “This isn’t a feudal society anymore, Mother. If you want the Red Brigade to take you away for re-education, then go ahead and keep calling me that.”

“You… Are you saying you’d report me?” Xinwan Chen was startled, but still refused to back down in front of her daughter, pointing at her and blustering.

Ning Xie sneered, “With your voice that loud, who needs me to report you?”

At this, Xinwan Chen was genuinely frightened. There were plenty in the village who disliked her—Aunt Liu next door, for one—and her own record wasn’t exactly spotless.

The kitchen window was open, and out in the yard, Zhuo Gu heard the entire exchange between mother and daughter.

Ning Xie...

Zhuo Gu frowned slightly. Compared to Chong Xie, this outspoken, sensible, and diligent sister-in-law was much more to her liking. Yet… this child had come to no good end in her past life. All she knew was that some conflict had occurred in the family, and in a fit of anger, Ning Xie had left home. Xinwan Chen, initially too furious to search for her, waited two days before looking, by which time she was nowhere to be found.

It had happened while Zhuo Gu was out looking for Yinyin, so she didn’t know the full story. Later, Xinwan Chen would occasionally weep and curse her daughter for being heartless, holding a lifelong grudge over a few scoldings, and never coming home to see her. But both speaker and listener knew these words were far from the truth.

Given Ning Xie’s temperament, she would have returned as long as she was alive. Something must have happened to her.

After lunch, Zhuo Gu and Yinyin took a nap. When they woke, the house was empty except for the two of them. Though the sun had lost its noon ferocity, it was still blazing hot. Before leaving, Zhuo Gu found a small black hat for Yinyin—it was made from Lin Xie’s old clothes, the kind of sturdy cloth used for labor, resembling a fisherman’s hat but with a narrower brim, embroidered with a little daisy, very pretty.

Mother and daughter each took a basket and headed up the mountain. Along the way, the villagers greeted them one after another.

“Qixiu, where are you off to?”

“How’s your health, Qixiu?”

“Yinyin’s all right, isn’t she?”

“Come play at our house sometime!”

...

Zhuo Gu replied to each with a gentle smile. No one minded her brevity; they’d watched her grow up and knew she was quiet by nature.

Only when they reached the foot of the mountain did peace return. Entering the forest, the heat quickly dissipated. Yinyin picked leaves, played by the creek, and caught insects, completely absorbed in her fun.

There had been rain two days ago, so mushrooms were plentiful in the woods. Though the local varieties were limited—mostly shiitake and golden needle mushrooms—they occasionally chanced upon bamboo fungus and porcini.

Mushrooms couldn’t serve as staples, so Zhuo Gu stopped after gathering a modest amount. Instead of returning home, she lingered with Yinyin in the forest, letting her play and picking some hawthorn berries for her as well.

Not until the sun was about to set did Zhuo Gu lead Yinyin out of the woods. This time, however, she didn’t take the same path back, but instead circled toward the thatched huts in the north of the village.

When Yinyin grew tired, Zhuo Gu carried her on her back.

And so, when the herbalist aunt saw her, she immediately scolded, “Who told you to carry the child? Don’t you know you’re still running a fever?”

Startled, Yinyin clung to her mother’s neck, eyeing the fierce old woman before her with wary curiosity.