Chapter 18: Demanding a Life

Feng Buji loved this change in his elder sister.

He offered advice like an old man, "Sister, you are a young lady. You can only say such things at home; others will laugh at you if they hear."

"Alright, I'll only say it to my little brother."

Two bursts of light laughter drifted from the kitchen.

For dinner, they had a pot of steamed two-grain flour buns, a pot of winter melon soup with dried shrimp, and a small plate of scrambled eggs with green onions.

Banxia and Shaoyao both conscientiously avoided the eggs, and Feng Chuchen ate little as well, mostly leaving the food for Feng Buji.

Shaoyao hadn't eaten these kinds of buns since five years ago, before she had a younger brother; they tasted as heavenly as if she were ascending to the heavens. The winter melon soup had a bit of dried shrimp in it; so this was what the legendary seafood tasted like.

It was delicious.

Shaoyao ate incredibly fast, finishing a bun in three or four bites and gulping down a large bowl of winter melon soup in four or five swallows.

Seeing her set down her bowl, Banxia said, "You're so big, why do you eat even less than I do?"

Shaoyao said insincerely, "I eat little; I'm already full."

Feng Chuchen knew she was just being polite and said, "Sit down and have another bun."

She handed her a bun, and Shaoyao sat down and ate it with a flushed face.

Feng Buji felt she could still eat one more, so he stuffed another bun toward her. "Eat it."

Before she could finish the bun, tears welled up in Shaoyao's eyes.

Feng Chuchen asked, "What's wrong? Don't force yourself to eat if you can't."

Shaoyao sobbed, "Ever since my mother fell ill, I haven't had a full meal. Today I ate my fill, and it was even white flour buns and shrimp soup. My father was afraid I would eat you all into poverty and wouldn't let me eat much, but I couldn't help myself and ate three buns at once. It's truly a sin.

"I didn't listen to my father; I'm sorry to the lady and the boy. I'll eat you into poverty like this, and next time I won't be able to do it again."

Feng Buji and Banxia looked at her with pity.

Feng Chuchen smiled and said, "Our family isn't wealthy, but we can still afford to eat our fill. Besides, if you don't eat enough, how will you have the strength to work and protect us? Eat as much as you can."

Banxia stood up again to ladle a large bowl of winter melon soup for Shaoyao, and Feng Buji placed a mouthful of scrambled eggs in her bowl.

Shaoyao ate until she let out several satisfied burps, then rushed to wash the dishes. After washing them, she went to the small river at the village entrance and carried back two baskets of crushed stones.

"Tomorrow, I'll pave the path around the courtyard. My house is halfway up the mountain, and the paths around it were all paved by my father, my sister, and me..."

She felt embarrassed about eating so many white flour buns for free; she had to find something to do, and work hard to be worthy of her hosts.

When she returned the second time, she brought back a lotus pod and three lotus flowers.

She gave the lotus pod to Feng Buji. "It's very delicious, but you shouldn't eat too much."

She gave the lotus flowers to Feng Chuchen. "Put them in the lady's room."

Feng Chuchen found a small jar to arrange the flowers and placed them on the kang table in the main room.

With those three splashes of red, the bare little room immediately came to life.

Datou didn't return until after dark.

Feng Chuchen personally placed a bowl of winter melon and buns in front of him, and along with Feng Buji, she gently stroked his fur to comfort him.

Although Datou didn't pay her any mind, he wasn't aggressive either.

After talking for about fifteen minutes, Datou seemed to truly understand, as he lowered his head and ate the food in the bowl.

At the beginning of the Xu hour, Feng Chuchen gave Feng Buji a bowl of goat milk.

The gamey smell was very strong. The little guy gagged twice, then quickly covered his mouth and said, "It's not gamey. Sister, don't spend money on tea."

Feng Chuchen smiled; he was such a sensible little miser.

Feng Buji added, "Tomorrow, Sister can use the thick needles for acupuncture again."

If the acupuncture didn't make him cry, his sister would cup his face with her hands.

He liked that.

Feng Chuchen corrected him, "It's still the descendant of Great Aunt; don't use medical terms haphazardly. It's called pricking, pricking for blood or pricking the collaterals, once every three days."

Seeing the little guy look somewhat disappointed, she cupped his face again. "Goodnight, little brother."

If only he were a little younger, she would surely give him a kiss.

Even though it was his first time hearing the words "goodnight," Feng Buji understood the meaning.

His eyes curved into crescents as he smiled. "Goodnight, Sister."

Since Great Aunt's passing, it was the first time the little guy had smiled so happily, his eyes crinkling with joy.

Feng Chuchen smiled and gave his little cheek a gentle pinch.

In her heart, he wasn't just a younger brother; he was a son—a precious, dear son.

After spending fifteen minutes practicing Tai Chi and fifteen minutes practicing finger-flicking technique in the courtyard, Feng Chuchen returned to her small room to read her journals.

The oil lamp was like a tiny bean, the light very dim, accompanied by the scent of lamp oil, a cup of clear water, and the sound of frogs outside the small window...

Even though the lamp oil was expensive, she stayed up until the end of the Zi hour before going to bed.

She was sleeping soundly when she was awakened by noise outside.

At the beginning of the Mao hour, the sky was already bright.

She dressed and went out to ask, "What is it?"

Shaoyao had also just gotten up and was tending the fire in the kitchen.

She walked out and said, "It seems someone in the village has died. Sister Banxia went out to check."

Feng Chuchen's heart sank. Could it be Sister-in-law Jinniu?

Just then, Banxia ran back and said, "Sister-in-law Jinniu and the baby are both gone."

"Both the mother and the child?"

"Yes. The baby suffocated in the womb and was forcibly pulled out by the midwife, which caused Sister-in-law Jinniu to suffer massive hemorrhaging. She died during the Yin hour... They say she had bad luck; if Great Aunt were alive, mother and child would surely have been safe."

Feng Chuchen sighed inwardly; two living souls were gone just like that. If this were her previous life, a C-section would have solved it; it would have been so simple.

She thought that when she opened her medical clinic in the future, she would call it a Maternal and Child Clinic, not just to treat women and children, but also to deliver babies...

After breakfast, Feng Chuchen sent Banxia to the Sanshi Bridge market to buy some medicinal herbs, a jin of jasmine tea, two jin of Chinese yams, and two pieces of coarse cloth for Shaoyao to make clothes—one set of outer garments and one set of undergarments.

There was some scrap cloth at home, which she told Shaoyao to use to make shoes.

Sanshi Bridge was located by the Cang River five miles away; it was a market belonging to Stone Ditch Township and held only on certain days.

The market had a wide variety of goods and they were cheap.

Feng Buji emphasized again, "Sister, I'm not afraid of the gamey smell."

Feng Chuchen said, "Flower tea can be used to boil goat milk, and it can also be brewed as tea."

The original owner of this body didn't drink tea, but Feng Chuchen did. Although she couldn't afford good tea for now, drinking ordinary tea was better than plain water.

In the Feng family, only Great Aunt had drunk tea, and even then, it was coarse tea. Occasionally, when a family she delivered for gave her some good tea, she wouldn't dare drink it herself but would take it to honor her uncle from the Yao family.

Feng Chuchen went to the Jiang family alone to pay her respects, without taking Feng Buji.

His health was poor, and the ancients said that those with unstable souls should not visit the houses of the deceased.

Feng Chuchen offered fifty-one wen in funeral money.

Since Great Aunt had passed, the Jiang family had sent eleven wen and sent two people to the funeral.

Since her own family wouldn't attend the funeral, she would send more funeral money.

Jiang Jinniu was weeping bitterly.

His mother, Auntie Jiang, cried, "If Sister Feng were here, Jinniu's wife wouldn't have lost both mother and child. Even if Midwife Wang were here, they would have had a chance to live. What a pity for my eldest grandson..."

Old Lady Wang also arrived, curling her lip and saying, "You can't put it that way. If a child comes to claim a life, it's the Yama coming to claim a life. Midwife Feng wasn't an immortal; even if she were here, there would be nothing she could do..."

Jinniu's mother was so angry she nearly fell over, shouting loudly, "My grandson wasn't coming to claim a life; it was because the midwife was poorly chosen! No wonder you've lost eight children; your foul mouth never accumulates any merit!"