Chapter 14: In the Embrace of Life

Without a moment’s delay, Li Sanniang immediately stood behind the young boy, bent over, and inserted her arms under his armpits, pulling them tight to secure him. She made a fist with one hand and wrapped the other hand around it. Using this double-fisted posture, she pressed firmly between the boy’s navel and sternum. After three or four such thrusts, the boy suddenly coughed up a foreign object.

The candy that had been choking the life out of him flew out of the young master’s throat in a downward arc and landed on the spotless bluestone floor of the Xianggui Bakery, emitting a crisp sound.

The crisis was finally averted. The young master, his face covered in drool, burst into loud sobs the moment the candy was expelled.

One has to lament that the high-pitched, unbroken voice of a young boy is truly terrifying to hear—it is exceptionally shrill, especially after experiencing such a harrowing airway obstruction. The young master cried hysterically, venting all the terror and shock he had felt inside.

The elegantly dressed lady immediately rushed over, grabbed her precious child, and began to weep along with him.

Even the old woman, the shopkeeper, and the young clerk nearby were shedding tears; it had truly been a brush with disaster.

The feeling of surviving such a fright left everyone breathless and teary-eyed.

In this scene, aside from Li Sanniang, who had performed the rescue, even Li’s sister-in-law, who had been watching with a heavy heart, wiped the hot tears from the corners of her eyes with her handkerchief.

As it happens, Li Sanniang was an obstetrician before she transmigrated. Although she knew this method—called the "Heimlich maneuver" in the modern era—for saving someone with an obstructed airway who could not breathe on their own, her daily work had primarily consisted of treating gynecological issues and delivering babies. She had never actually had a patient who required her to use it.

Using it suddenly on a little child from a different time and space made Li Sanniang instantly understand why her professor had said during her training that this emergency technique invented by an American was truly remarkable, and that it would be best if everyone knew it, as it could save oneself or others in an emergency.

A vague idea began to form in Li Sanniang’s mind: should she write down all the emergency methods from her memory, compile them into a book, and spread them widely? Perhaps it could give the people of this Tang Dynasty more options and more hope.

In fact, the principle of this method is simple. To use an analogy, a person’s lungs are like an inflatable balloon, and the trachea is the balloon’s nozzle. When the nozzle is blocked by a foreign object, one only needs to squeeze the balloon firmly to force the air upward; this force can then push the object out of the nozzle, naturally clearing the airway.

Li’s sister-in-law looked at the weeping mother and son and said to Li Sanniang in a choked voice, "Sanniang, you have performed a great deed today. When we get back, I must tell Father and Mother about what just happened. It scared me to death; this young master is about the same age as Luzhu, and it’s a blessing he met you."

Before Li Sanniang could reply, the shopkeeper, who was quite perceptive, came over and bowed to her, repeating the gesture three times before stopping.

"The lady is right; it was truly thanks to your quick thinking! Zhao Sheng thanks you for your intervention! I will take the liberty of saying that today’s purchases for you two ladies are on the house, and I will also provide you with a 'Ten-Perfect' gift set from Xianggui Bakery."

Those in business are quick-witted. If this young master had died in his pastry shop today, he, the shopkeeper, would be finished, and the century-old brand of Xianggui Bakery might have vanished entirely.

Li Sanniang’s intervention had truly saved the old shopkeeper’s job and career, the possibility of the Xianggui brand continuing to flourish and expand out of Chang'an, and perhaps even the shop's practice of allowing children to be "left" there or sampled—which would certainly need age restrictions now!

"Shopkeeper, that won't do. I cannot accept a reward for no merit. I simply happened upon the situation and acted out of concern for the child; who doesn't have children of their own? I absolutely cannot accept your thanks."

"How can you say you have no merit, Lady? The fact that this young master is still here and able to cry loudly is your merit. You must accept it. If you refuse, are you looking down on my Xianggui Bakery?"

Li Sanniang didn't know how to refute the eloquent shopkeeper, and seeing his feigned anger, she felt helpless.

Even Li’s sister-in-law was stunned, never expecting the shopkeeper to be so generous, as if he were suffering a major loss.

But it must be said, the atmosphere of the Tang Dynasty at this time was not only inclusive of everything, but also very upright!

One wouldn't go so far as to say that people didn't pick up lost items or lock their doors at night, but if you shouted on the street, strong men would indeed come forward to ask if you needed help. The folk customs were simple and honest.

Before Li Sanniang could decide how to respond, the rescued lady came over, her face tear-stained, holding the still-crying boy—who was covered in snot, tears, and drool. She bowed three times, her voice filled with relief and the joy of having her child back. Grateful to the point of incoherence, she said, "Thank you, Lady. If it weren't for your quick thinking today, I don't know what would have happened to my son. Truly, thank you. You have done a great kindness to me and my son. Thank you."

Seeing the lady, who still spoke with a nasal tone, and hearing her endless thanks, Li Sanniang instantly felt the same bittersweet sensation she had felt back when she was a resident at the hospital, watching a rural couple offer a sack of home-grown peanuts as a thank-you gift to the chief of thoracic surgery.

"Please, Lady, leave your name and address. My Qian family must visit to thank you properly for the great deed you performed today."

Li Sanniang couldn't quite keep up with this turn of events. How had it escalated to exchanging names and addresses and visiting her home?

"Lady Qian, there is no need for that. I am the third daughter of Li Hualin, a physician at the Bencao Hall. I just happened to encounter this situation. My father is a physician, so I have known a few things since childhood. When faced with such an emergency, I had to do my best. There is really no need to visit. I have already received your kind intentions."

Li Sanniang waved her hands repeatedly. With greater ability comes greater responsibility.

Although she had taken a risk by intervening, she knew she would have regretted it for the rest of her life if she hadn't.

This is why, in many emergency situations, there are always people who step forward. With greater ability comes greater responsibility; when I have the ability to help others, I must do my best!

The "save the dying and heal the wounded, sparing no effort" philosophy Li Sanniang learned in the modern era had influenced her entire life, and even transmigration could not change that.

Precisely because she felt she had only done what she ought to have done, she didn't feel she deserved special thanks, which made her feel embarrassed by Lady Qian’s insistence on visiting, leading her to decline firmly.

Li’s sister-in-law couldn't watch anymore and bowed, saying, "Lady Qian, I am Sanniang’s sister-in-law. Our Sanniang lives at the Bencao Hall; if you wish to visit, you are welcome anytime."

After a few more polite exchanges, Lady Qian left, holding the boy tightly, accompanied by the old woman. She had ordered quite a few pastries, and the shopkeeper promised to have them delivered.

In the end, they couldn't refuse Shopkeeper Zhao’s hospitality. Not only did he waive the cost of the pastries Li Sanniang and her sister-in-law had bought, but he also gifted them a "Ten-Perfect" gift box—an exquisite carved wooden box containing ten types of fine pastries and candies.

Shopkeeper Zhao even provided delivery service, calling a donkey cart from the end of the street and having the young clerk accompany them back to the Li residence.

On the donkey cart, Li Sanniang looked at the full load of pastries that hadn't cost a single copper coin. She felt happy, but thinking of the fate that likely awaited the old woman who hadn't taken good care of the young master, she couldn't help but feel a pang of sympathy.

Rationally, Li Sanniang knew this was the consequence of the woman failing to perform her duties, and she understood that if she hadn't intervened, the boy might have suffocated, and punishing the woman afterward would have been useless.

Sigh, even in the modern era, the mortality rate for children under five still exists, let alone in this time.

Whether due to human error, accidents, or natural disasters, there are always things beyond human control.

After this delay, it was dusk by the time they returned to the Li residence. The golden-red sunset was stunningly beautiful. Just as Li Sanniang wanted to pause and admire the beautiful natural phenomenon, Luzhu, led by Li Silang, struggled over the threshold toward her.

Before Luzhu could reach her, they heard a whimpering sound behind them. It turned out the little puppy, bought for ten copper coins, couldn't climb over the high threshold and was spinning in circles, whining anxiously because it couldn't catch up to its little master.

Although Li Silang was straightforward, he didn't have the cruel hobby of watching the puppy spin around, so he simply grabbed the loose skin on the back of the puppy’s neck, lifted it over the threshold, and set it down, letting the little thing chase after little Luzhu.

Li Sanniang picked up Luzhu, pointed to the sunset in the sky, and asked her if the strangely shaped clouds looked like a little yellow dog.

Luzhu looked at the clouds carefully, then looked down at the dog, and with her round eyes wide, she said to her mother, "Mother, Zhuer thinks it looks a bit like it."

Seeing her precious baby’s adorable, dazed expression, Li Sanniang was filled with love. If not for the fact that they were at the doorway, she would have wanted to give her a big hug right then and there.

"Stop teasing her. You’re a mother yourself, yet you still have the temperament of a child."

Li’s sister-in-law, while calling Li Silang to get Li Dalang and the others to help move the pastries, expressed her "dissatisfaction" with Li Sanniang for teasing the child.

She took the dazed Luzhu from Li Sanniang’s arms, patted Luzhu’s little pigtails, and said, "Luzhu, don't listen to your mischievous mother. Come with Big Aunt; Big Aunt will give you sweet pastries to eat."

With that, she carried Luzhu away.

Li Sanniang laughed heartily at the side. Once she had finished laughing, she picked up the little yellow dog by the scruff of its neck and headed home.

When the whole family was eating by the light of the moon and the dim lanterns, Mother Li asked why they had returned so late from shopping, whether something had happened, and why they had bought so much cotton and so many pastries—especially the expensive-looking ten-layer carved gift box, which was the signature of Xianggui Bakery. Had the sisters-in-law used their own private savings?

Only then did Li’s sister-in-law have the chance to recount the thrilling scene that had occurred at Xianggui Bakery that afternoon.

(End of chapter)