章 21: Chapter 21 Aperture_1
"Ashui, this time, it's really... really, thank you. Without you, I just didn't know what to do."
A thirty-year-old burly man, his eyes red, wiped away tears.
Had it not been for Liang Qu stepping in to pay the autumn taxes for him, he truly would have been taken to Lanzhou to dig the canal, a fate likely to be nine deaths in ten; and even if he was lucky enough not to die, there was no telling how long it would be before he could return.
By then, his elderly father and wife would be left to fend for two young children at home, how could the family not break apart, how could they not fall apart?
Chen Qingjiang pulled Little Shunzi over, pressed his head down, and tried to make him bow: "Shunzi, quick, kneel down and kowtow to your Brother Shui!"
"Hey, hey, Uncle Chen, there's no need, really no need," exclaimed Liang Qu in alarm, as he quickly pulled Shunzi back up, smiling bitterly, "If I saved Uncle Chen, and Little Shunzi has to kowtow to me, then when Uncle Chen saved me last time, wouldn't I also have to kowtow to Uncle Chen? Is Uncle Chen saying I haven't done enough and wants to remind me?"
"Ah... this..."
Chen Qingjiang wiped away more tears, unable to speak, not mentioning kneeling again.
Seeing this, Liang Qu let go of his worries, thinking to himself that the world truly sucks, poor people just can't turn their lives around.
Take the fishermen of Yixing City, for example, who work diligently and earnestly their entire lives, just managing to feed their families, pay taxes, and make ends meet; even if they're lucky enough to catch a Treasure Fish, it doesn't change their fate. At most, they can afford a small celebration with a couple of drinks, but catching a simple cold could easily be fatal.
They can't even afford to educate their own children, let alone train them in martial arts. Maybe joining the army could be a way out? But that's gambling with their lives for wealth, and it's more likely they'll lose their lives and others will claim the riches meant for them.
"Brother Shui is really righteous, filling a deficit of a whole stone of rice just like that. He went to learn martial arts, so his finances can't be that comfortable, right? He must have put it all into this," someone remarked.
"It's like a story out of a novel."
"Chen Qingjiang is really lucky to have met Ashui," another chimed in.
Bystanders who had returned from paying their taxes on the roadside, whether passing by or having witnessed everything themselves, all marveled at the situation.
Liang Qu said nothing, as he had never intended to make a scene; in these times, when someone wasn't being nominated for their filial piety, it was best to strike it rich quietly without making a fuss.
"Little Brother Li, carry Shunzi on your back and take him home, and let my sister-in-law know. Uncle Chen and I will take Grandpa Chen to the clinic first; that whip was no joke."
At six years old, Shunzi, having been through such a shocking ordeal and cried his eyes out, was already exhausted and dozing off.
As Liang Qu led him earlier, Little Shunzi had bumped his head against Liang's leg several times. If he didn't get a proper rest, he might well fall seriously ill and add to the troubles of a family already not well-off.
"Alright."
Li Libo agreed, his gaze toward Liang Qu filled with complexity.
The two men were originally just acquaintances, with not much of a relationship to speak of, merely casual friends made through circumstances such as Scabby Zhang getting beaten, borrowing fishing nets, or sharing meals together.
But now, Li Libo realized that he didn't understand Liang Qu at all. A whole stone of rice, almost one or two pieces of silver—that was a significant amount! Having learned martial arts, where had Liang Qu gotten this piece of silver? He was likely going to struggle to put food on the table next. What was he aiming for?
Li Libo couldn't figure it out, but he felt that Liang Qu was exceptional, truly like one of those "characters" described by storytellers.
"I'm troubling you, Little Brother Li," Liang Qu said.
"It's nothing; I can't spare a whole stone of rice, but I can still spare a bit of strength," Li Libo responded.
After hoisting Shunzi onto his back, Li Libo called out—Let's go—and then fell silent, trudging forward.
"And thank you as well, Ashui."
"Uncle Chen, let's not make jokes. We'd better hurry to the clinic; if the wound gets infected from waiting too long, it could be troublesome," Liang Qu urged.
The official's whip had been both fierce and powerful, tearing open a bloody lash on Chen Renxing's body. Chen Renxing was old and couldn't withstand such punishment; he fainted immediately from the strike and needed urgent medical attention to dress and bandage the wound.
"Infection? What is that?"
"It means getting sick. Wounds exposed to blood are prone to getting infected and festering."
"Oh, oh, oh, then let's hurry."
The two men carried Chen Renxing quickly to Yixing City's small clinic to have the doctor treat the external injury.
Upon lifting the clothes, the bloody wound was a startling sight to behold.
Liang Qu closely observed the doctor's technique, which started with rinsing the wound with boiled then cooled water, followed by applying medicinal powder, and finally wrapping it with steamed white cloth.
It seemed this world had no word for infection, but the concept certainly existed.
"My honored father is of advanced age and has suffered a serious injury, requiring careful recuperation. Fortunately, the wound isn't severe. I will write a prescription for you; fetch the herbs according to the prescription and take them on schedule every day."
"Very well, thank you, Doctor."
"Little Zhang, take these two to get their medicine."
"Please, follow me."
Afterward, Liang Qu and Chen Qingjiang went to get the medicine.
Having prepared the medicine, Liang Qu furrowed his brow, pointing at some chunky items, "Doctor Zhang, could you help replace these few herbs with ones that have clearer edges?"
The assistant surnamed Zhang was taken aback and appeared embarrassed. Without saying much, he promptly replaced the herbs.
Chen Qingjiang looked puzzled but did not ask on the spot.
"Including the medical fee, the total comes to eight qian and seven fen."
That was outrageously expensive. Liang Qu was shocked; a simple external injury was costing nearly a tael of silver.
Chen Qingjiang asked, "Can we write an IOU?"
"Yes."
The assistant drew up the IOU efficiently, with the date and interest clearly specified, obviously having done it many times before.
It wasn't until they had carried their old father out of the medical hall that Chen Qingjiang asked Liang Qu, "Why did Ashui just ask him to change the medicine?"
"Those herbs lacked defined edges. Generally, herbs without clear edges are either stale goods, sun-dried after being used, or moldy and cleaned up. The former is bearable; it might just be less effective and cost more money. The latter, however, could cause health issues. Of course, what I'm saying is not necessarily the case; it's just as a precaution."
Chen Qingjiang was greatly surprised, "Where did you learn all this from?"
Ashui was a child he had watched grow up, who had never received formal education, and yet, in the past two months, he had seemed like a changed person.
A few days earlier, when Chen Qingjiang went home, the elders had already mentioned that Ashui had not only learned martial arts but had also become very skilled at fishing. Now, it appeared he had also acquired a lot of impressive knowledge.
Liang Qu scratched his head, but before he could explain, Chen Qingjiang offered his own interpretation.
"Ashui, you've opened your 'aperture,' impressive!"
Liang Qu laughed awkwardly.
Indeed, it was an 'aperture' opening!
The special understanding for a Chinese baby's sudden growth - once a person became remarkable all of a sudden, that person was often said to have opened their 'aperture'.
Poor academic performance suddenly improving was due to an 'aperture' opening.
A blunt and honest person suddenly becoming a love expert was also an 'aperture' opening.
An angler who originally couldn't catch fish becoming a fishing master was still due to an 'aperture' opening.
Just as well, it saved the trouble of finding an excuse.
"It's a pity, if only Brother Liang could see how well you're doing now," Chen Qingjiang suddenly lamented, then realizing he shouldn't have said it, fell silent. After a long while, he added, "I will pay off that shi of grain I owe you as soon as possible."
Liang Qu intended to say there was no need to repay, but seeing Chen Qingjiang so serious, he figured it would fall on deaf ears, "I'm not in a hurry; pay off the medical hall first. Besides, the weather's getting colder; you can't let Little Shunzi and Xiaokui go hungry. If they fall ill because of repaying debts, it will be more loss than gain."
Chen Qingjiang nodded.
The two men walked towards home in silence.
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