Chapter 4: Only 1 Breath Left
But asking her to take out money now to hire a doctor was more painful than carving the flesh from her own bones.
She remembered how her third son had died because his injuries hadn’t been treated in time, and her heart clenched with anxiety. If something happened to Mrs. Zhao and this wild brat, and the village chief actually reported her to the authorities, what would she do?
Money was important, but you had to be alive to spend it.
"Fine, I’ll get them a doctor." She gritted her teeth. ’I’ll wait for the crowd to disperse before I go. Then I can tell the doctor to use less medicine—just enough to make sure they don’t die.’
But who would have guessed? The ever-elusive Doctor Lu was right there in the crowd, enjoying the spectacle. Perhaps he knew his services would be needed, because he already had his medical kit slung over his shoulder.
Doctor Lu pushed his way out of the crowd and squatted beside the unconscious Mrs. Zhao. "No need to go looking. I’m right here. I’ll take a look at mother and daughter now."
As he examined Mrs. Zhao’s injuries, his tightly furrowed brow relaxed slightly.
But when he looked up at Old Mrs. Bai, his expression soured. "Old woman, you were far too vicious. She’s barely breathing. If you want her to live, we’ll need to sustain her with ginseng soup while I perform acupuncture. That might just save her."
Bai Zhi watched Doctor Lu spouting nonsense with a perfectly straight face. She wanted to laugh but didn’t dare, and it was a real struggle to hold it in.
The old woman was a notorious shrew in all the nearby villages, and Doctor Lu had suffered his fair share of her bullying. Now that he had such a perfect opportunity, how could he possibly let her off?
Old Mrs. Bai stared suspiciously at Doctor Lu. "That can’t be right. She’s my own daughter-in-law, don’t you think I know her? She’s tough as nails. I only hit her a few times with a stick. How could that leave her with just one breath left? You’re just trying to scare me, aren’t you?"
When Bai Zhi heard this, fury surged through her.
’The Bai Zhi who had died and Mrs. Zhao had never known a single good day in this so-called home. Not only did they toil from dawn till dusk, but anyone in the family—no matter who—would take out their bad moods on them, with either a beating or a cursing. To Old Mrs. Bai, she had only done what she did every other day. It was completely natural.’
Suppressing the rage churning in her chest, Bai Zhi took stock. ’With so many people here, and with right entirely on my side, how could I pass up this chance to make the old hag bleed?’
"Grandma, my mother is dying, can’t you see? I’m begging you! For the sake of all the years she’s slaved away for this family like a beast of burden, please, save my mother!"
Doctor Lu raised an eyebrow at Old Mrs. Bai. "So, are we treating her or not? Give me a straight answer. Brewing the medicine and performing acupuncture both take time. If you keep stalling, you’ll be the one who stalls her right into her grave."
Hearing this, Liu quickly tugged on her mother-in-law’s sleeve. "Mother, just pay for the treatment. As long as the green mountain remains, we won’t have to worry about firewood. We can always get the money we spend today back from them later. But if we don’t treat her and the worst happens, we’ll both end up in prison."
At the old woman’s age, it didn’t matter so much what happened to her. But Liu was still young; she had no intention of burying the rest of her life in a prison cell over a bit of money.
All eyes were now on Old Mrs. Bai. She knew she had no choice but to get the injuries treated. She finally nodded at Doctor Lu. "Fine, treat her. But I don’t have much money on me right now. I’ll have to owe you."
Doctor Lu frowned. "Putting my consultation fee on credit is fine—we’re all neighbors, after all. But the cost of the medicine cannot be deferred."